I thought my Urban Decay Eyeshadow Ammo and Dollface 15-Pc Neutral palette contained all the eyeshadow colors I would ever need, but boy was I ever wrong. I don’t know how I came to realize that I needed more vivid eyeshadow in my life, but I did, and it looked as though the Stila All Doll’d Up Palette could satisfy that need. It’s got 12 colors, it comes in a cute compact case, and I don’t have to go to a mall to get it! (I hate malls.) After a lot of Googling and mental deliberation (time spent: 15 minutes), I decided to purchase it from Carefree Shopper on Multiply. It came in the mail a few days later and I wasted no time swatching it and playing with the colors!
(Warning: picture-heavy post up ahead!)
Trio 1 contains feminine neutrals – a shimmery champagne highlighter, a coppery brown, and a Barbie pink shadow I probably won’t be able to use (pale pink shadows look horrible on me). The coppery brown actually has these tiny little glitters and is way more shimmery than in the photo.
The palette’s two best colors (in my opinion) can be found in trio 2. The shimmery teal looks more like a peacock blue when applied, and the violet complements it beautifully. Haven’t played around with the gray in the center, but I can probably make a very dramatic smokey eye with it.
I don’t know how Temptalia’s swatch of the black/brown shadow (center) turned out to be all glittery and pigmented, because it most certainly is not. It’s the worst color of the palette – very chalky, very dull, very bad. Fortunately, the blue and silver/gray in the trio more than make up for it but ugh, I was really looking forward to having another glittery black shadow to play with (I rely on Oil Slick from UD Eyeshadow Ammo).
Trio 4 contains earthy neutrals – a more matte champagne color (great for highlighting brows), a dark brown, and a shimmery moss green. It’s a little on the boring side, but it does what it does.
A neutral look with the green from trio 4 and the copper brown from trio 1
My first experiment with color using trio 2
(Taken with flash)
DO LIKE:
* Very pigmented colors. All it takes is a tiny dab of the brush, and you’ll have enough pigments for one application. The brighter colors are wildly vivid; some of them even leave a faint but stubborn mark after removing.
* Versatile. The colors in this palette will satisfy the needs of conservative office workers and experimental avant-garde artists. You can make great neutral looks with trios 1 and 4 and wild party eyeshadow with trios 2 and 3. (See FOTD: Big in the 80′s)
* Rich texture. Except for the black shadow in Trio 3, all colors have this nice, rich texture that makes them easy to apply and blend. Trio 2 in particular seems to have the most satiny shadows.
* Cute packaging. I am a sucker for cute packaging, and I love how the cover looks. I also appreciate the fact that it has a rather large mirror – makes it a whole lot easier to follow tutorials and do my makeup in front of the PC.
* The price tag. I only paid around 1,280 for this palette (including shipping). I’m not sure how much this costs in department stores, or if Stila Philippines even has this particular palette.
DO NOT LIKE:
* Creases. After just four hours of wear, the more vivid shadows develop a noticeable crease. This never happens to my Urban Decay shadows. The neutrals don’t crease as obviously though.
* Some shadows are too sheer. I don’t like how sheer the green (Trio 4) and pink (Trio 1) shadows are. In the neutral look I did above, you can barely even tell that I have green shadow on.
* That black chalky shadow. It takes a lot of scraping for a decent amount of product to get on the brush, and it’s absolutely useless when applied. Ugh, I don’t know why the maker of this palette even bothered including this one.
CONCLUSION
If you’re looking for a pocket-sized palette with a fairly wide range of colors, grab the Stila All Doll’d Up Palette if you can find it. Not only does it have safe neutrals and bold colors for all sorts of occasions, but it’s real value for money. Let’s do the math – if you divide 1,280 by 12, each shadow is worth P107.52. Not bad at all for a well-rounded palette! Some people don’t like how one pan holds three colors, but they’re so pigmented that a light dab of your brush will go a long way. As long as you’re careful, you don’t have to worry about the colors getting mixed up in the pan.
Although I’m mostly happy with the palette, I’m not as in love with it as Temptalia is because of that stupid black shadow. Also, the only shadows that really impressed me are those in Trios 2 and 3. It was still a really great buy though, and I can’t wait to see what other looks I can come up with.
WHERE TO BUY
I got mine at carefreeshopper.multiply.com, but I don’t know if she still has any in stock. Try the Stila booths at Rustan’s Department Stores too.
temptalia’s swatch of the middle color in trio 3 did look a lot different no? she could’ve used a primer before she swatched them on her hands, or used a slightly damp eyeshadow brush…
anyway, the colors of this palette look good on you…the blues you wore at the body shop event were from here right? :D