Urban Decay NAKED 2 Palette ~ Review & Swatches!

Hello everyone!

I have been waiting to post my review on the NAKED 2 palette for what feels like ages! I received this for my birthday and have been using it ever since. After years of wanting it I finally have it! Out of the 3 NAKED palettes, this was the one that appealed to me the most. The taupe-hued shades really stood out to me and are great neutrals for everyday. This palette is so versatile and can create numerous eye looks from bare to smokey.

Anyways, on with the review!

The palette came with a primer potion set containing 4 different eye primer samples. I was excited to see this because I have been wanting to try out Urban Decay's primer potion shades for a while now! I've been trying these out and they really do help shadow stay vibrant and last all day.

The samples are actually fairly large! It says they will last around a week, but I've been using Eden for nearly 3 weeks now and I still have lots left. A little goes a long way with this!

The packaging is almost like a tin case and it's very sturdy and good quality. The design is very simple and sleek and I really think it suits the palette. 

The NAKED 2 palette costs $64 CA and $54 US on Sephora.com. 

The palette inside is spectacular! There are 12 taupe-hued neutrals (as the UD website states) which are all very unique. A few of my favorite shades are FOXY, BOOTY CALL, VERVE, AND BUSTED.

My go-to look recently has been FOXY on the inner corner and brow-bone, BOOTY CALL and VERVE all over the lid, and a mixture of browns such as BUSTED and SNAKEBITE in the crease.

The palette has a great selection of shades from very light shades to extremely deep shades. There are 3 mattes in the palette which are great shadows to have. I really love shimmer so this palette is perfect for me!

From left to right: FOXY, HALF BAKED, BOOTY CALL, CHOPPER, TEASE, SNAKEBITE, SUSPECT, PISTOL, VERVE, YDK, BUSTED, BLACKOUT.

The shadows have amazing pigmentation! However a few of the shadows don't show up as pigmented on the eyes as they do swatched. They're so smooth and velvety and they blend so easily. The shadows create the most stunning eye-makeup looks that last all day. All of the shades in the palette correspond with each other creating opportunity for endless looks. It's perfect for day or night!

It also comes with a dual-ended makeup brush which is another great bonus to this palette! The brush is a fairly good quality brush with a side great for packing on color and a side perfect for blending. The bristles are very soft and they blend the shadows effortlessly.

The swatches are so buttery (funny but accurate chose of words!) and smooth!

Here's an up close of the texture of the eyeshadows. 

OVERALL:

Pigmentation: 9/10

Lasting Power (with primer): 10/10

Lasting Power (without primer): 9/10

Blend-ability: 10/10

Packaging: 10/10

Price: 7/10 Pricey but almost average for high-end palettes.

Downside: Some shadows aren't as pigmented and some shadows lose pigmentation with light blending.

Would I repurchase?: Probably, if I ever run out

Would I recommend?: Definitively!
Overall: 9/10!

I hope you enjoyed this review & sorry for the length! I wanted to fit in as much info as possible!

Bye! :)

April Collective Haul + What I got for my Birthday 2014! ~ 1 year Blog Anniversary!

Hello Everyone!
I started my blog 1 year ago today! I can't believe I've been blogging for a year! I wasn't really sure what to do for my 1 year post so I thought I'd just keep it simple and post a haul. This will include everything I've bought throughout April, as well as some gifts I received for my Birthday!
Huge hanks to everyone who has read my blog throughout this past year!

Birthday “Haul”:

Starting out with gifts I received from friends and family for my birthday. I'd just like to say I am extremely thankful for anyone who wished me Happy Birthday and gave me a card or gift. I didn't expect to be spoiled this much, and I am so thankful to have such great family and friends!

I am also jot trying to brag in anyway and I hope you can understand that.

Of course I had to start with the makeup & nails portion! 

I was absolutely speechless when I opened the NAKED 2 palette. I have been eying this palette for years and now I finally have it! I also received this gorgeous Revlon palette with some great neutrals. I received various beautiful nail polishes, Revlon nail buffers and the Sephora free birthday gift!

Everyone knows me so well, haha!

I received quite a few scented products. I have the Kokeshi Cheery perfume, Benefit "Rita" perfume, and the Victoria's Secret Passion Struck perfume and body butter. Everything smells so divine!

I was given some absolutely gorgeous jewelry! I cannot wait to wear all of this, everything is completely my style! First off, I got a couple of necklaces (left), from some friends which I believe are from Target. I also got a stud set which is perfect. My parents gave me this spectacular initial necklace from an Etsy shop. It is the perfect length and the chain is so dainty!

I got a few clothing items which I'm in love with. The skirt on the left is from Hollister and it fits perfectly! The hoodie is from PINK and the color is amazing! I also got a pair of no-show socks from Steve Madden. 

These two items didn't really fit into a specific category so they're just on their own!

I got a new water bottle which I'm super happy about because I really needed one! I also got a curling wand, and I cannot wait to use it. I've never had a curling wand so I'm extremely excited!

 

 A got a few other things that I actually just opened today, since I'm having a family dinner tonight! I was super excited to receive the Physicians Formula blush I had wanted as well as the Q&A d ay journal!

 

I got some food! I've already actually eaten a pack of sour cherries, haha!

Also received some gift cards which I'm looking forward to using. I've already got my eye on something at Sephora and I just ran out of my old Starbucks gift card. I also am super excited to see some new movies!

That's everythings I got for my Birthday, thank you so much to everyone!

 Moving on to what I bought during April!

I got quite a few drugstore items ,which I'm not going to go over everything because that would take forever!

I also got some new hair and body products!

I bought these mini boxes of chocolates around Easter for only $1 at Target. I probably shouldn't have got 5 but don't worry, I've only eaten 1, so far! 

A few more drugstore bits! The Apocalips is in Phenomenon.

Kind of an odd, childish purchase but I got these Smackers body mists and they smell so sweet!

I did some shopping at Urban Outfitters. I got this over-sized sweater on clearance for $30 + 30% off. I got a size way too big and it's more like a dress on me, oh well! I also got a scrunchie on sale for $2.99 + 30% off and I'm in love with it!

I got another top at Winners by the brand paper + tee. It's an adorable baby pink crop top with an incredible pattern along the bottom. 

The last thing I got, was this beautiful maxi dress from Target. I've never owned a maxi dress but I fell in love with this one. it was on sale for $25!

That's about it! I know this was a super long post, but I hope you enjoyed anyway!

Again, a big thanks to everyone who made my Birthday extra special!

Bye!

xx

Urban Decay Deluxe Shadow Box Review!

I'm finally doing a review on my first Urban Decay makeup product!

I know I post mostly on drugstore products, but  wanted to step out a bit and share my opinions on some higher-end products as well! 

I actually showed this in my boxing day haul, check it out here!

Anyways, I got this at Sephora for only $12! I had never heard of it before, but I think it retails for $38 normally so I got it for a third of the price! 

The colors really caught my eye, there are some really unique colors in there. Most of them are colorful and fun, but the bottom row is full of neutrals perfect for everyday wear!

The packaging is extremely gorgeous, Definitely a 10/10 on that one! It has a purple velvet looking border, with a very unique silver, textured material on the front which catches the light beautifully.

It also comes with a mini primer potion which I've been wanted to try for ages!

It's not huge, but it's definitely enough to try it out to see if I want to buy the full size.

The palette has a fairly large mirror, which is useful when applying eyeshadow. It includes 9 shimmery eyeshadows and 2 sponge-tip applicators.

The 6 top colors are mostly fun, colorful shades, but you also get 3 fairly neutral colors down at the bottom.  You can create endless looks with this palette, although I didn't create any for this review today.

I could not seem to get a good swatch photo. The sun has been going down so early, I barely have any natural lighting to work with, so the photo isn't focused very well. :(

A few individual swatches.

I expected more pigmentation coming from Urban Decay. I've heard great things about their shadows and I was a little disappointed.  Some of the shades such as Peace, Honey, and Zero have great pigmentation, while other shades like Fishnet, Graffiti and Scratch aren't as great.

Some of the colors are a little difficult to see from the photo so I'll try my best to describe them:

Fishnet: A purple/pink with blue shimmer

Honey: A very unique golden yellow with gold shimmer

Ransom: Another unique color, almost an Indigo color with purple shimmer

Graffiti: Emerald green with lighter green shimmer

Zero: Looks black, appears charcoal-y, a black with specks of silver shimmer

Peace: A bright blue with lighter blue shimmer (one of my faves!)

Shag: A golden brown with gold shimmer

Scratch: A beautiful rose gold shadow with golden shimmer

Underground: A medium brown with brown and gold shimmer

Overall I think this palette IS worth it. Yes some of the shadows are not extremely pigmented, but the ones that are and the price make up for that!

I would definitely recommend this anyone who can get their hands on this, especially if you'd like to try Urban Decay for a little cheaper! ;)

I hope this helped, Bye!