I am very pleased with last weeks eye shadow find. I went to my local Sephora and discovered the Natural Instincts Eyeshadow Palette from the Sephora Collection. Palettes are always a great choice when it comes to eyeshadow choices. It gives you a variety of colors and finishes in one convenient package allowing you the freedom to play with a multitude of looks. You can build your collection of colors at a fraction of the price it would cost to purchase each shade individually. My normal eyeshadow routine is very subtle, natural looking colors during the week. I like to keep it simple and quick since my work day starts at 6:30 AM. I am NOT a morning person so I try to stay in bed as long as possible. When I finally drag myself out of bed I lose track of time in the shower leaving me very little time to do my make-up so i choose colors that are light and don't take much skill to slap on. On the weekends however, I choose my colors according to outfit and mood. I love experimenting with my looks from bright bold pops of color, dark rich smokey finishes, to romantic soft blended colors with smooth shimmers. The Natural Instincts Palette is perfect for any occasion. It comes with fourteen different beautiful shades. Four natural matte shades, eight matte and shimmery fashion shades, and two smokey shades. Each color is very wearable for all skin tones. The colors go on smooth and vibrant and are easy to blend and build for what ever look you desire. The colors can be worn wet or dry depending on how dramatic of a look you want to achieve. What I also love about this palette is inside they include a clear cover sheet the groups together 2-3 shades and identifies which shade to use as a base, in the crease, and on the lid. I know many women who are lost when it comes to deciding which colors to pair up and where to put them. If you haven't evolved from wearing a single shade across your entire lid this palette is a great start for you. The purchase price was $28.00. Other palettes like Urban Decay's Naked will run you $54.00. Single eye shadow's can cost anywhere from $7.00 to $16.00 so this palette is a fabulous deal. Along with Natural Instincts Sephora has a second palette of colors called Primal Instincts so if you wanted you could purchase both palettes and it would run you about the same as one Urban Decay Naked palette.
You can slightly see the clear film over the shadows on the photo of the palette to the right grouping colors together and labeling where they are applied.
The photos of look 1 I am wearing "Wood" and "Sandy Brown" in the crease with "Sea Green" on the lid. In photos of look 2 I'm wearing "Sandy Brown" in the crease, "Desert" on the lid, and "Pearl" on the brow bone.
Application tips:
- Use a good eye primer before applying your shadow. Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion, Mary Kay Signature Eye Primer, or Mac's Paint Pot in Painterly (which I use the most) are a few of my favorites. For more vibrant looks apply Nyx jumbo pencil in Milk for your shadow to appear extremely pigmented.
- Invest in good brushes. You don't have to spend a fortune. Sephora, Target, and many online cosmetic companies sell brushes as low as $1 that work great. The key to achieving a beautiful look is using the right brush for the job. If your using the same generic eyeshadow brush for each color you apply they wont blend as smoothly and will look very harsh. A good brush can be the difference from looking like a hooker or a Hollywood starlet. Even if your like me and don't have any formal make up training you can easily recreate all the looks you love because the brush really does all the work for you. For years I was trying to layer colors in my crease using a regular shadow brush and could never get that super soft blended look. When i upgraded to an actual blending brush BAM! It was so simple and looked amazing. I currently use a brush set from the Sephora Collection. They can run from $18.00 to $125.00.
- Apply your eye make up first. It's easier to clean up any eyeshadow powder that has fallen onto your cheeks, eyeliner smudges,or uneven application. Use baby oil or make-up remover on a Q-tip, cotton ball, or cotton pad to remove excess product or to fix any mistakes. Then apply your foundation. You won't have to worry about being precise in your application or patching up areas of your foundation that were removed when you were fixing a mistake.
- Play with your colors! Layering and blending can create new and glamorous looks. You never have to do the same look twice. Blending soft mattes into a smokey eye or shimmery shades combined and layered can reveal endless multi-dimensional effects.
