A Buyer's Guide To the Urban Decay Naked Palette Collection

Not long ago, a friend of mine posted on her Facebook page that she couldn't understand all the hype over the Urban Decay Naked palettes. After all, it's just eye shadow, right?

Personally, I get it. I'm a neutral girl to begin with, and I also don't have a whole heckuva lot of time to spend getting ready in the mornings. It's nice--nay, essential--to have something I can grab, knowing that I'll be able to pick a color, slap it on my eyes, and not have to deal with pigmentation or blending issues. Urban Decay (who is not paying me to write this, and has no idea I even exist) makes some of the best shadows around, so a palette filled with twelve coordinating shades is kind of a god-send for me. Key words: "for me". Everyone's tastes and needs are unique. Some people crave zillions of bright colors; others may be good with a flesh-toned single. Me? I prefer these 40 neutrals.

If you're reading this, you're probably considering picking up a Naked palette. Here, I hope to share with you everything you need to know to decide which one(s) will be right for you. Please note: I'm not going into detail over every single shade in each palette. They will be touched on, but odds are, the inclusion or exclusion of one shade isn't going to make or break your decision. You know, generally speaking. All descriptions and recommendations are my own, and may or may not differ from those found elsewhere.

Alrighty, then. Let's start with the Basics.

Packaging: Hard plastic with a rubberized finish and raised logo. Slightly larger than a credit card. Very secure closure. Full-length, usable mirror on the inside lid.

Extras: None.

Shades: Six full-sized shadows. Five matte, one satin. Pigmentation ranges from fair to excellent, with the darker shades being best. Easily blendable. Could be considered slightly powdery.

Versatility: Blending, highlighting, liner, brows. Can create a limited number of looks. Works best in conjunction with other palettes.

Swatches: For reference, I'm an NW15 in MAC, and around a 2.0 in Urban Decay. And yes, that is my leg, and yes, my lighting does kind of suck. I have work with what I've got, sometimes. Believe it or not, colors are actually very close to true to life.

Top Row, L-R: Venus, Foxy, W.O.S. Bottom Row, L-R: Naked 2, Faint, Crave 

Repeats: Four shades are exclusive to this palette. Foxy is also found in Naked 2 and the permanent range. W.O.S. was also available in some build-your-own palettes, but is not in the permanent collection.

Recommended For: All skin tones. Fair to medium may benefit most.

Naked

Packaging: Sturdy cardboard with velveteen covering. Embossed logo. Magnetic closure. Small, high quality mirror on the inside lid.

Extras: Eyeshadow brush and mini Primer Potion (at time of purchase).

Shades: Twelve full-sized shadows. Two matte, one satin, six shimmer, three glitter. Pigmentation generally excellent, with the exception of Naked, which has good pigmentation. Easily blendable. Generally creamy. Moderate fall-out on glitter shades. Overall warm tone.

Versatility:  Blending, highlighting, liner. Possibly brow fill. Evening and heavier daytime looks, with limited lighter looks possible.

Swatches:


Top Row, L-R: Virgin, Sin, Naked, Sidecar, Buck, Half Baked. Bottom Row, L-R: Smog, Darkhorse, Toasted, Hustle, Creep, Gunmetal.

 Repeats: Smog and Sin are in the Ammo palette. Half Baked is in Naked 2. Only Sidecar, Hustle, and Creep are not part of the permanent line.

Recommended For: Warmer and neutral medium to deep skin tones. Fair skin tones may find the majority of the colors require a very light hand.

Naked 2

Packaging: Metal with raised logo. Secure closure. Usable mirror fills the inner lid.

Extras: Double-ended eye shadow brush and mini Lip Junkie lip gloss in Naked (at time of purchase).

Shades: Twelve full-sized eye shadows. Three matte, one satin, two glitter, six shimmer. Pigmentation ranging from very good to excellent, with the exceptions of Foxy, which has good pigmentation. Easily blendable, though Tease can apply somewhat patchy. Generally creamy texture. Moderate fallout on glitter shades. Overall cool tone.

Versatility: Blending, highlighting, liner. Best for lighter to medium daytime looks, with some evening looks possible.  

Swatches:

Top Row, L-R: Foxy, Half Baked, Bootycall, Chopper, Tease, Snakebite. Bottom Row, L-R: Suspect, Pistol, Verve, YDK, Busted, Blackout.

Repeats: Foxy is in the Basics pallete. Chopper is in the Ammo palette. All but Busted, Snakebite, and Bootycall are in the permanent line.

Recommended For: Cooler and neutral skin tones. Fair to medium skin tones may benefit most, but could work for deeper tones.

Naked 3

Packaging: Metal with raised logo. Secure closure. Usable mirror fills the inside lid.

Extras: Double-ended eye shadow brush and sample blister packs for the Primer Potion line.

Shades: Twelve full-sized shadows. Three matte, three glitter, one satin, five shimmer. Pigmentation generally very good to excellent, with Strange ranking as fair, and Dust acting more as a glitter topcoat. Easily blendable, generally creamy. Moderate to heavy fallout on glitter shades (particularly Dust). Overall rosy tone.

Versatility: Blending, liner. Best for glowy, natural daytime looks, with some evening looks possible.

Swatches:

Top Row, L-R: Strange, Dust, Burnout, Limit, Buzz, Trick. Bottom Row, L-R: Nooner, Liar, Factory, Mugshot, Darkside, Blackheart.

Repeats: None. All are new shades, exclusive to this palette.

Recommended For: Warm, Cool, or Neutral. Fair skin tones may benefit most, but also recommended for medium. Deeper tones may be able to make it work.

Good luck getting Naked!

Times Square Crystal Ball-Inspired New Year's Eye Look

I am trying very hard not to get sick, but I think I'm losing the battle. I'll be staying in tonight, but if you're lucky enough to be ringing in the New Year somewhere fabulous, here's a pretty silver smoky eye for you.

I started by using my finger to dab a little Benefit Creaseless Cream Eye Shadow in Silver Spoon across the inner half of my eye, including inner corner, and blending upward to the browbone. I filled in the entire crease to brow area by blending that one little dab. Then, I popped Benefit Creaseless Cream Eye Shadow in Strut across the outer half and blended upward to the browbone. I also ran a small amount under my lower lash line and across the top lash line. Next, I grabbed my Urban Decay Naked, Naked 2, and Naked Basics palettes for the rest of the eye. I patted Verve across the inner third of my eye and over the silver in the inner corner. Then, I added Pistol to the center and crease, and Gunmetal to the outer third and above the Pistol in the crease, then blended all of them together and up toward the browbone with a fluffy brush. I used the same fluffy brush to blend a little Creep into the crease, then ran what was left on that brush under the lower lash line (that's a blend of ALL of the colors, since I didn't change brushes. If you want to change brushes, just run a light layer of each color under the lash line). Using a small, flat brush, line the upper lash line with Crave, and run a small amount of that color under the outer quarter of the lower lash line. Clean up the browbone area with a light dusting of Foxy. Finish with loads of black mascara. I like Buxom Lash.

If you don't have Naked Basics, sub Blackout for Crave. You can also line your waterline (which I think would look amazing) with a black liner. I would have loved to, but I have small eyes and it just closes them up. A silver liner would look cool there, if you have small eyes, too. I don't have a silver liner, so I'm still S.O.L. Oh, well.

This is not a glittery look, but it is super-duper shimmery. I finished the look with a demi-matte foundation, matte powder, matte cool pink blush, matte bronzer (see the trend?), and just a very light amount of pale pink highlighter on the cheeks. The lips are also a pale, glossy bright pink with just a hint of shimmer. A pink gloss would work just as well.

Happy New Year, guys!

Week of Naked 2 Challenge!: Day 5

Woohoo! It's the last day! I made it! Five different looks, using different combinations of shadows, showing each shadow at least once. Y'all may not be impressed, but I'm ridiculously proud of myself. This was harder than I expected it to be.

For those just tuning in to our blog, already in progress, I've been field-testing the Naked 2 palette for range and versatility over the past week. Some people may be looking into purchasing one for themselves or as a gift, given it's the (ridiculously early) holiday season. Swatches are nice, but sometimes it's more helpful to see things in action. Hopefully, this helped.

So, today's even-more-casual-than-usual Friday at my job, so I tossed on some jeans, a Doctor Who tee, and a hoodie. I look freaking fifteen years-old. Seriously, I ran by the mall, and security watched me like a hawk. I felt very uncomfortable. However, because I was dressed so casually, I kept my makeup looking very natural. In fact, I'd call it a "no-makeup" look. Light foundation, concealer, minimal cream blush on cheeks, tinted lip balm, brows, and this eyeshadow look with mascara. Easy peasy.

Indoors

Natural Light

This was done by simply applying Foxy from lid to brow, then Tease in and just above the crease. I used a flat brush to wiggle blackout along my upper lashes, not really focusing on a line, but mostly filling in-between the lashes. I ran Tease along the lower lashline. Mascara is Buxom. No highlight. No inner corner. Done.

Seriously, I hope this helped somebody. I've got another really fun palette to show you next week--inexpensive, and a great stocking stuffer!--and a glittery holiday nail polish to review. Stay tuned!

Week of Naked 2 Challenge!: Day 4

If you're just joining us, I thought I'd spend this week field-testing the Naked 2 palette, so that any of you guys interested in possibly purchasing it could see in action before plunking down your cold, hard, cash on one. These aren't necessarily tutorials or "looks". This is, literally, just me putting my makeup on for the day. It's about as "Reals World" as you can get. Anyhoo, I hope this helps you decide if the range of colors and versatility are what you're looking for.

I spent today singing, so I went for a vaguely theatrical Fall look.


Indoors




Natural Light

 Yes, I will clean up my brows! Okay, for this look, I used Snakebite all over the lid, then Suspect just above the crease, then Half Baked over the Suspect, Busted on the outer corner and lower lashline, and Blackout in the crease. Once that was blended, I dusted Bootycall on the browbone and in the inner corner. Liner is UD 24/7 in Zero. Mascara is Buxom. And that, folks, is half the palette in one look.

Week of Naked 2 Challenge!: Day 3

As I said yesterday: As a public service to my lovely readers, I thought I'd test the range of the Naked 2 palette by using its shadows exclusively for a whole work week. That way, anyone interested in picking up this popular, yet pricey item can make an informed decision on whether or not to plunk down fifty bucks, or use a rare holiday coupon on it. These are not tutorials. This is strictly real-world field testing, and I hope you find it helpful.

Today, I thought I try a quick, slightly more dramatic eye.

Natural Light

Indoors

For this, I used Verve on the lid and inner corner, Busted in the crease, Foxy as a brow highlight, and then drew a cat eye with Blackout, and brought it below the bottom lashline. Liner and Mascara are Buxom.

Week of Naked 2 Challenge!: Day 2

As a public service to my lovely readers, I thought I'd test the range of the Naked 2 palette by using its shadows exclusively for a whole work week. That way, anyone interested in picking up this popular, yet pricey item can make an informed decision on whether or not to plunk down fifty bucks, or use a rare holiday coupon on it. These are not tutorials. This is strictly real-world field testing, and I hope you find it helpful.

Yesterday, I wanted a no-fuss look. Today, I wanted something slightly more sophisticated, but still not over-the-top.

Inside

Daylight

For this, I used Bootycall all over the lid and as an inner corner highlight; then Pistol in the crease, outer corner, and up to the browbone; Blackout in the outer corner and crease; Verve as brow highlight. I ran Pistol under the lower lashline, then Blackout just under the outer corner of the lashline. Eyeliner and Mascara are Buxom.

Week of Naked 2 Challenge!: Day One

It's that wonderful time of year, when the temperatures drop, caloric consumption explodes, and high-ticket items can be purchased with coupons! Ah, Christmas!

Seriously, though, Sephora will be sending out coupons, most likely, and Ulta has already started. If you have any "you've got to be kidding me" items on your shopping list, the holiday season is one of the rare times you might be able to snag it at a discount. Now, I know that one of the crazy popular items last year was the Naked 2 palette, and that its popularity hasn't really waned. Some of you are probably eyeing it, but wondering if it's worth the money, or if you could use it.

I can't tell you.

See, the shadows are amazing, but color preference is up to the user. I like it a lot, but that doesn't mean you will. In an effort to help any of you who are curious about the versatility of the palette, or how the shadows look in a real world setting, I've decided to field test the palette for a week, with a different look each day. That's how much I love you guys. These are not tutorials or even looks you might want to copy. This is just to check the range and appearance of the shadows, and see how well they work together. Also, is it even possible to get a week's worth of different looks with the palette? I don't really know. I've never tried.

So, without further ado, here's today's look. I wanted an "I just threw this on" look today. I've been cleaning house all morning, and was only going to wear jeans and sweatshirt to record today. My hair's in a ponytail, and I went with tinted moisturizer instead of foundation because I'm currently broken out to heck and back. I'm pretty. A full-on eye look would just be silly.


Right Eye, Indoors



Left Eye, Outdoors

For this look, I used Tease from lid to a little over the crease, YDK on the outer third of the eye and crease, Busted on the outer corner, crease, and under the lower lashline, Chopper on the browbone and inner corner. Liner and Mascara are both Buxom.

One day down, four more to go!

Attack of the Deadly Spider-Lashes!!: KISS False Eyelash Review

Well, Halloween happened, and I think the neighborhood kids enjoyed Mom's spooky front-yard cemetery. A very confident little Harry Potter made the low-lying fog "expelliarmus", and at least one mom thought Thomas' Batman was "sexy". Me? I fought my false eyelashes all night.

Note to self: Do NOT try something new on a day when you will NOT be able to do anything about it if it sucks. 

Okay, so a couple of weeks back, I received the Beauty Blogger Influenster VoxBox, which was filled with products for me to play with and report back to you on. For the most part, I've been impressed with the items, and even gave some mini-reviews on my box opening post. However, I decided to save the KISS false eyelash kit to use on Halloween...'cause I'm an idiot. 

I should have known better than to wait until the day of to try out a foreign object that must be attached to my eyes with glue. I mean, seriously, there are way too many things that can go wrong! Yeah...idiot...

Luckily, for me, the glue did not irritate my eyes. It's actually a very nice glue. There was a slight odor, but, as I said, no irritation, and the stuff really held. I wore these lashes for twelve hours straight, with no worries of the lashes coming off. That said, they did remove easily, and the glue wisked away with a little makeup remover. My only complaint with the glue is that it took ages to dry enough to apply, but I can deal with that. 

The applicator was a nice idea. It didn't work as well as a pair of tweezers, and I ended up just using my fingers, anyway, but it was helpful for clamping the lashes to my natural lashes. 

The lashes, however, were terrible. They looked fine when worn, but the strips were ridiculously stiff. Normally, I flex my strips a few times to help them contour to my eyes, but these wouldn't flex. I had to bend them in half--so that there was a crease and a point--before I could attempt to apply them. On top of that, I still couldn't get the inner corners to lay flat. I tried bending, I tried trimming, I tried yelling obscenities at them (that probably worked the best, believe it or not), but nothing did the trick. I spent the next twelve hours checking, clamping, re-checking, and re-clamping. On top of that, they were so heavy that they weighed down my natural lashes and impaired my vision. I had to close my eyes, from time to time, just to have a rest from the weight! Let me tell you, it sucked. When the last trick-or-treater exited the graveyard, those furry little spider lashes went straight into the trash can. I'll reuse the glue, and I'll hang on to the applicator, but I'm not bothering with any more of those strip lashes. 

Final Verdict: 5 out of 10. You can make 'em work...just don't plan to wear them too long. 

They look fine, but they just don't feel good. 

In unrelated news, I'm starting a challenge Monday! It's self-imposed! 'Cause I don't have enough on me, already! 

It's, ready or not, the Holiday season. I know a lot of you will be looking for makeup gifts to either give or put on your own lists, and I thought this might help you out. Last year, my "had to have" item was the Urban Decay Naked 2 palette. I didn't do a review on it because it seemed unnecessary. We all knew that the shadows were fantastic quality, the packaging was amazing, and the brush was pretty darn good for a freebie. The colors, themselves, were completely open to debate, but it all boils down to personal preference. Me? I love it, and use it a lot. Other bloggers...not so much. The main complaint I run into is that it's not versatile. I haven't really run into that, but that could just be me. So, as a public service, I am going to wear and photograph a different eyeshadow look, made exclusively with shadows from the palette, every day for a week. God, help me. Then, you can judge for yourself if you think that the palette is versatile enough for you or your loved one. I know it's still a very popular, wished-for item, but it's also a fairly pricey item. I'd hate for anyone to spend the money on it, only to be disappointed. Conversely, I'd hate for anyone to miss out on something that would really enhance their routine. After all, 'tis the season for coupons and sales. 

Profusion Review: Naked 2 and Midnight Emergency Dupes

Okay, today's post is going to be crazy long and ridiculously picture-heavy, but please stick with me, because I think you'll find it's worth it.

Backing up, on Friday, I posted about some 99-cent palettes at Walgreen's. Basically, I said they didn't suck, and that 12 shadows for a buck was a deal too good to pass up. They're about the same consistency as MAC shadows, are wonderfully pigmented (considering the cost, anyway), and looked like they might possibly contain some Urban Decay dupes. I also said that they looked uber-glittery in the pan, but that it didn't seem to show up as sparkly on skin. So far, that's the only thing I've been wrong about.

These suckers are beyond glittery. Sometimes, that's a good thing. Unfortunately, I'd planned to use these for film, and glitter doesn't usually work for that. Plus, they fallout something awful. Still and all, I have to recommend these. There are ways of getting around fallout, and my UD Midnight Emergency is just as bad, if not worse. Also, I should point out that not all of the Profusion Cosmetic Colour Me Glow palettes are glitter palettes. Since my last post, I've picked up two more. Palettes 05, 06, 07, and 08, have chunky glitter. Palettes 03 and 04 are shimmer only. I tossed those in my film makeup kit and called it a win.
*Please note: there are no matte shades. Only shimmer and glitter.

Saturday, I decided to give the shadows a test drive. I used three colors from palette 07:

Left side, top: all over/highlight. Middle section, #2: lid. Left side, bottom: crease

Here's how that came out:

Yeah, I know, my brows are a mess. Also, I was standing under a vent for that first shot, so my hair's going all over the place. The first shot was indoors, and the second was in sunlight. The shadows feel awesome going on, blend well, and are nice colors, if a little sheer. Some hues need to be packed on, and some are incredibly pigmented. It's just hit or miss, but for a buck, I can deal.

I applied them over a sticky pencil primer (I used UD Sin, but NYX would be a good choice, too), and they held up fairly well. These shots were taken a couple of  hours apart, and there's no creasing. There is, however, a ton of glitter, obviously, and it took some serious cleaning up to be able to walk out of the house without feeling like a disco ball. That said, I wore UD Midnight Emergency colors on Sunday, and had the same experience.

I'm not going to rate this on a scale of 1-10, like I usually do. The shadows are just too varied for that. There are enough really good, quality, pigmented shadows that I can confidently say you'd get more than your money's worth. Heck, if you find just one that you love in each palette, you're ahead of the game. When in Walgreen's, do yourself a favor and grab a couple. You'll be glad that you did. 

And...as I mentioned before, there were a few Urban Decay Midnight Emergency and Naked 2 dupes. A couple aren't exact, but are really, really close. A couple, however, are spot on. Let's take a look at Midnight Emergency:

Here, we have on the left, Midnight Cowboy and a close imposter from Profusion palette 06. It's not right on the money--a little too pink, not enough gold--but I'd put it at about 75%. On the right, though, are Midnight Rodeo, and a dead ringer, also from 06. In fact, they're right next to each other in the pan. They're the third and second shadows (respectively), in the middle section of the palette.

Here's a pretty spot-on dupe for AC/DC, also from Midnight Emergency:

The dupe is on the left, and AC/DC is on the right. The Profusion shade is a little brighter, but so close that I'd put it at about 90%. It's in the middle section of palette 04, and is the fourth shade in that row.

It's the one in the center, next to the pink.

Okay, now on to Naked 2 dupes. There are three, and they're actually three of my most used colors:

I was so excited over this one! Chopper is one of my favorite colors out of Naked 2, and Profusion has a near exact dupe. Chopper has a little more depth to it, but I'd call this about 90%. It's in palette 03.

Suspect (also in the Rollergirl palette) also has a reasonable dupe in palette 03. It's a little warmer, and again, lacks some of the depth of it's UD counterpart, but I'd give it a solid 85%.

Chopper's dupe is the middle shade on the left side of palette 03. Suspect's imposter is the one right below.

This dupe (on the left) for Busted (on the right) is, possibly, a smidge cooler, but it's about a 95%. You might get some glitter with it (I didn't here, but you could), but I was shocked at how similar these were. It's in palette 05, middle section, fifth shade.



The one in the center, here, next to the light beige.

I really hope this has helped some, and that you've enjoyed this little search for cheap alternatives. Let me know what you think (and how you think I did!) in the comments.

Filmmaker Fashion: The Q&A

Last night, Thomas, our friend Soren, and I were guest speakers at the local university's Communication Day. The school screened The Night Shift, and we gave a short Q&A afterwards. It was a lot of fun, and a real joy to be a part of.

Of course, it was also a chance for all of us to get to play fancy-schmancy filmmaker and dress up! This is not the exact outfit I wore last night, but it's as close as I could get on my new Polyvore account (follow me! Link's below), since everything came directly out of my closet, and a few things were a few years old. Anyway, let's play with this for a bit. Oh--and if you want to buy any of this stuff, Polyvore was nice enough to link to what's still available for me. (I think I'm going to like this thing.)

Okay, first up, the henley tank isn't the one I wore last night. That would be this one, that I blogged about a million years ago. Mine isn't available in stores anymore, but this one is really, really close.

The earrings are the Rachel Earrings from JewelMint. Mine are actually the Rachel Rose Earrings, which have a very muted pink stone and a silver finish. You might be able to score some on Ebay, but that's about the only way. Sorry.

I finally got my Naked 2 palette!! No, I don't have a Naked "1", but that's okay. I'm absolutely in love with this palette, so expect a full review sometime in the very near future. I used Chopper, Snakebite, and Bootycall last night, with the Naked Lip Junkie, in case you were wondering. And no, I don't have any pictures. Someone at the school took one, but I don't have a copy. And I'm sad. Really, really sad.

I do actually own this necklace. You might remember a post about it from forever ago, where I talked about how it made me think of my dear little Herbie. I fell pretty darn hard for this piece before Halloween, and watched it on Open Sky for ages. It finally went on sale cheap enough that I could justify the purchase, and I don't think I've taken it off, yet.

Sadly, this bracelet is another that you'll have to search for on Ebay. It's the Black Swan Cuff from JewelMint, and one of my all-time favorite pieces from them. Seriously, try to find this one. It's worth the trouble. Good luck! I'm rooting for you!

If you want a good pair of jeans, go to DressBarn. I know, I know, I didn't expect that, either. Look for the ANGELS line. They're affordable ($39.99), cute as pie, have a good amount of stretch, suck in my stomach and make my butt look good. These are my Cinderella jeans.

Lastly, these are not my shoes. I did wear some pewter Guess strappy platforms, but they came from Ross, and I've had them for a while. These are extremely similar, even if they are more than twice what I paid for mine.

I know this is a little different from the norm, but I hope you enjoyed this post. Let me know in the comments. Seriously, though, if you did like this, follow me on Polyvore, and I'll try to do more with it in the future.

Screening and Q&A Inspired by adorablenapalm featuring printed tank tops

Daytrip printed tank top
$25 - buckle.com

Women's & Misses Clothing And Apparel At Dressbarn
dressbarn.com

GUESS t strap high heels
$66 - heels.com

Urban Decay shimmer eyeshadow
$50 - sephora.com

Soixante Neuf BABY SILVER SKULL NECKLACE in 14K GF
$113 - stefanibags.com