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!

'Ip, 'Ip, 'Ooray!: January Ipsy Unbagging

Does everybody know what time it is? IT'S TOOL TIME! Er, no...wait...no, it's actually ipsy unbagging time. First, the usual explanation:

*ahem*

ipsy (yes, it's all lowercase) is a monthly sample subscription service. Every month, for the cost of ten dollars, you'll receive 4-6 deluxe- and/or full-sized beauty-related products and a makeup bag. There's always a theme, and this month's was "19 Reasons", as in "19 Reasons" 2014 is going to be the best year ever. The 19 referred to the number of possible brands they were sending out, but a 20th was added at the last minute...whoops...

Anyhoo, that's the deal. I pay for this. They, most likely, don't know this blog exists, so I'm not shilling for them. All opinions are mine and mine alone.

*end of spiel*

Let's see what we got!

This month was really skincare heavy. Normally, ipsy is more color cosmetic-centric, and the change was a little surprising. I dig skincare, though, so bring it on!

First, let's check out the bag. This month is a bright blue (the camera is muting the color. This is a true "healthcare" kind of blue. Think: Blue Cross blue) with lind drawings of cosmetic bottles. The fabric is a thick, plastic-y material, and looks like it would be fairly water-resistant. It smelled like a beach ball, but airing out has faded that considerably. I think it's kind of cute.

The bag has a zip closure with the ipsy logo embossed on the pull. Again, I like this one. It's not the most glamorous of bags, but it'll go well with the other travel bags I have for shoes and laundry.

The first product on the block is this Alterna Caviar Anti-Aging Dry Shampoo. Retail price: $22.00. Sample value: 88 cents.

Yeah...this is a disappointment. Not the product, so much, as the size. I love dry shampoo, but I'm honestly not sure I can get a single use out of this. The bottle is small, but there's also a lot of empty space on the inside. I'm just going to call this a miss and move on.

Next up, Absolute! Make-up Cleansing Tissues with Cucumber Extract. Retail price: $2.49 for 10. Sample value: $2.49.

Okay, now we're talking. I haven't tried these yet, but face wipes are generally welcome in my house. If I can't use them, maybe Thomas can, or they can go in my kit. In any case, they're getting used.

Moving on! Pure Marula Facial Oil. Retail price: $58.00. Sample value: $3.92.

This is a small sample, but that's okay because you don't need a lot for each application. This little guy should last long enough for me to decide if I like it or not. The spray applicator is a really nice touch. I can see this coming in handy on road trips, when the combination of recycled car air-conditioning and dry hotel rooms love to wreak havoc on my skin.

On to the next! Elizabeth Mott Smooth Shadow Pencil in Penny. Retail Price: $14.99. Sample value: $7.00.

This was a pleasant surprise! I'm an eye makeup junkie, so a shadow pencil is right up my alley. This pencil is exactly the color of a penny--not just some vague shade of copper. I found that it applied smoothly and easily, and could be used as either a very sheer, glittery shadow, or as a light liner. I haven't tried it as a shadow, mainly because I'm not sure how to apply it, exactly. The pencil is the size of an eyeliner pencil, and not like the chubby pencils you think of when you think "shadow pencil". As a liner, however, it added a pretty pop of color and shimmer, and didn't budge when worn all day.

Here's a swatch of Penny sheered out, and used as a liner. You can see that neither are super dark, but that's not due to lack of pigmentation. It's just a very light color. The product has a very creamy consistency, and once set, it's set.

(Please ignore my brows. I've been letting them grow in a bit. They're getting cleaned up this weekend. My apologies.) This shows Penny on my lower lash line. There's just a hint of sparkle and color. The rest of my look is W.O.S., Naked 2, and Faint shadows from Urban Decay Naked Basics, and the Naked Basics pencil in Crave on top lash line, and the same pencil in Venus (double-ended pencil) in the inner corner. Mascara is Maybelline The Rocket. Brows are Anastasia Brow Wiz in Brunette and Brow Gel in clear. You know, in case you were interested.

Lastly, we have Mica Beauty Cosmetics Tinted Lip Balm in Natural. Retail price: $30.00. Sample value: $18.75.

This is just a shame. Let me preface this by saying that the Mica lip balm and the Cailyn lip balm that I received in an earlier bag are the exact same product. Seriously. Compare the websites, if you don't believe me. They have the same product names and numbers, same packaging (save for this sample version), different prices. This same product from Cailyn is only $19.00. Now, let me also say that I really liked my Cailyn lip balm in Big Apple, but only for the color. Big Apple is a pin-up red, but viewed through a soft focus lens. The balm's texture keeps the color from looking too harsh. Also, the red stains your lips a bit, so you can go over the color with an actual lip balm, if you so choose.

Okay, now that that's out of the way...I don't like this. The texture is strange. It feels like it would be creamy, until you put it on your lips. Then, it's matte and dry and kind of gritty. It also only lasted about thirty minutes before fading in patches. The color, however, is gorgeous, and that's what makes this a shame. ipsy nailed finding a flattering color for me, though, which gives me hope that maybe ipsymatch is beginning to kind of, sort of, maybe work? Maybe? Please?

When the color started to fade away, I grabbed my go-to lippie from my purse to touch it up. This is the Em Cosmetics Creamy Color Sheer Lipstick in Nude, and also from an ipsy bag. The two looked so similar, I had to compare.

The top swatch is Mica, and the bottom swatch is Em. They're not identical, of course. The Mica is much more opaque, and the Em is sheer and shiny. Also, the Mica is pinker, where the Em leans more toward orange. Still, they are very similar. Of the two, I'd recommend the Em, and it's only $16.50, compared to either $30.00, even $19.00 for the Cailyn. Of course, E.L.F. also has a tinted lip balm in Nude, that is far superior to the Mica/Cailyn in creaminess, longevity, and moisturization, and you can get it for a whole two bucks. I don't have a swatch of it, but it's, again, very similar, but not quite identical. The only difference in packaging (from the sample) is that the E.L.F. has a white lid. There is nothing to justify a $30.00 price tag. Nothing.

Total value of the bag: $33.04

Price paid: $10.00

The shadow pencil, wipes, and Marula oil made this bag worth the money. I'm really looking forward to using those items. The way I look at it, three out of five ain't bad.

Do any of you get ipsy? What'd you think this month? Please share with the rest of the class in the comments.

'Ip, 'Ip, 'Ooray! July Ipsy Unbagging

It's mid-July, which means that it's time for another Ipsy unbagging! This month's bag arrived much more quickly than the last couple, so I was pleasantly surprised to find this waiting for me when I got home from work yesterday. July's theme was "Beach Beauty", and I think the selected products fit that theme perfectly.

Let's see what we got:

I love this bag! It's a fluorescent pink cylinder, made from a clear, PVC-ish material. It's water-resistent, and wonderful for keeping in your beach bag. Inside the bag, I found Big Sexy Hair Weather Proof hairspray, BH Cosmetics eye shadow mini-palette, Coola Mineral Sunscreen, Demeter perfume oil in Salt Air, and Pop Beauty Pouty Pop Crayon in Coral Crush. So, stuff to keep me frizz-free, fry-free, smelling beachy, and looking Summer-y. I'll take it!

This is my first experience with BH Cosmetics eye shadows. I have lip and concealer palettes (those same ones available from Coastal Scents and Crown Brush and...well, everybody else), and they're fantastic for the price, but I've never used the shadows before. I have to say, they're not the most amazing shadows I've ever used, but they're pretty darn good. I could toss this in a bag and be good to go for a weekend trip. The colors are a little sheer (save for the gold--wowzers!!!), but they apply smoothly and blend well.

I'm a little conflicted about the lippie. On the plus side, it's a gorgeous coral, and I love coral. It's also extremely creamy, easy to apply, feels amazing, and has decent staying power--not phenomenal, but not bad. On the other hand, that gorgeous coral is NEON against my skintone. You can't really tell from the swatch (below), but this is most definitely meant to be a statement lip. I just really don't know how I feel about it. I do know that I'll have to give Pop lip products a second look, though. I've not been impressed with their eye shadows, but this lipstick is a great product, neon or not.

From left to right, we have the Pop Beauty crayon, then the BH eyeshadows in Hollywood, San Francisco, and Malibu. Just look at that Malibu--LOOK AT IT!!!! I'm a gold eye shadow kind of girl, and that rivals a couple of Stila shadows that I absolutely adore.

Pay no attention to the sleep deprivation (my adorable puppy likes to practice his tap-dancing at 3am...on my bed...on top of me). I threw this together this morning, using only the shadows in the mini-palette. I used San Francisco in the crease, outer corner, and lower lashline, Malibu sheered across the lid, and Hollywood as an upper lashliner. I applied these over Urban Decay Primer Potion, and they've stayed put for the past five and a half hours. If there's been any fading, it's so minimal that I can't tell.

I haven't had a chance to use the hairspray, yet, but I'm sure it's going to get a workout. I'm interested to see if it's as good as my Redken 28. That sucker could hold your hair through a hurricane.

This applied smoothly, truly was unscented, and hasn't caused any oiliness or irritation. I just don't know if it's worth the trouble to add SPF 20 when I'm already using a BB Cream with SPF 20. I might just stick with my drugstore SPF 100 (Lord, that doesn't mean anything. They were out of 35 and 50). It's not oily, either, and costs a heckuvalot less.

Alrighty, now we're on to my favorite part of the bag! This perfume oil is killer. It smells exactly like the beach. I don't mean, "ooh, it smells of salt and coconut! It's beachy!" I mean, "holy cracker jacks, this smells like the air when I get out of my car at my aunt's beach house. There's some salt, some seaweed, some sunscreen...it's a cooler of fried chicken and cokes away from actually being the beach. It should come with a towel, a boombox, and sand for the floorboard of your car. I'm in love. Pure love. Tara, if you're reading this, your name is all over this bottle.

Here's a look I put together with the stuff in the bag. It's mostly drugstore, since I wanted this to be something you could grab at Walmart or Target while you did the rest of your vacation shopping. There are a couple of exceptions, but just a couple. And yes, my hair is wet. I could tell you it's because this is a beach look, and I wanted you to see how it would look for reals, but honestly, I'm just lazy and didn't feel like blowing my hair dry.

Coola Mineral Sunscreen
Garnier BB Cream Light/Medium
Maybelline Age Rewind Eraser in Brightener and Neutralizer
ELF Studio Body Shimmer in Mystic Moonlight
BH Cosmetics Mini-Palette
ELF Studio Contouring Blush and Bronzing Powder in Turks & Caicos
Rimmel Stay Matte Powder
ELF Essential Wet Gloss Lash and Brow Clear Mascara
Pop Beauty Pouty Pop Crayon in Coral Crush
Juice Beauty Lip Gloss in Pink
Buxom Buxom Lash Waterproof Mascara in Black

Ip, Ip, Ooray! April Ipsy Glam Bag

I missed my Glossyboxes. Granted, they were ridiculously expensive, and more often than not, a little disappointing. Still, I loved the anticipation of not knowing what I was going to get, and the fun surprise of finding a little happy in the mailbox.

I'm a child. I know. I'm okay with this.

The Glossyboxes had to go. That was the hard truth, and one of the things that sucks about being a grown-up. They just didn't make the cut on my scale of fiscal responsibility. But...I still really wanted them.

Enter ipsy. Like Glossybox, they're a monthly subscription service that sends deluxe sample and travel-sized products to your door. Unlike Glossybox, they're only ten bucks. I can do ten bucks. Plus, each month's selection comes in a cute little makeup bag. That's a heck of a lot easier to reuse than the pink box. (I loved the pink boxes, and found ways to repurpose most of them, but a few still ended up in the trash, and that hurt my soul a little.) It should be noted that the ipsy products aren't quite as prestigious as the ones in the Glossyboxes, but let's be honest: was I ever really going to purchase a full size of the $100 moisturizer I sampled? Sweet fancy Moses, not a chance! Even if it was miraculous, there's no way I could ever swing that. Might I purchase a bottle of the $22 hair treatment from ipsy? No idea, but if it's miraculous, there's a distinct possibility, especially if I have an Ulta coupon.

Anyhoo, each month is themed, and this month was "Pretty in Pink". It was my first ipsy Glam Bag, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. Turns out, it was a pretty darn great bag.

The first product I tried out was the Mica Beauty mineral eye shadow in Earth. The shade is a lovely muted rose with a ton of sparkle. As with any loose mineral shadow, it helps to have a base for the product to stick to. Here, I have it layered over the Maybelline Color Tattoo in Inked in Pink. They're almost the exact same shade, so the pairing works nicely. The mineral shadow has good staying power, and I haven't experienced any creasing, even after hours of wear in high humidity. The size I received was 2g, just shy of the 2.5g full-sized version. The full-sized runs $14.95.

Next, I found a full-sized bottle of Sation by Miss Professional nail polish in the color Of Corset I'll Call You (that's adorable). The shade is a stunning sheer blush pink with a hint of lavender. Please note: it is very sheer, but not in a watered down, streaky way. I would call this less of a nail color, and more of a nail flush, and it would make for a gorgeous French manicure. In this picture, I'm wearing three coats, because, honestly...I'm a klutz. I kept making one nail darker than the one before it, and kept adding coats trying to even them out. Adding to the klutz factor: this is the only finger photographed because this is the only finger I didn't totally destroy immediately after applying nail polish. It has nothing to do with the polish, itself. It has everything to do with the fact that I've been out of town at a film festival, trying to buy a house, and hold down a job. I haven't really slept a whole lot, and am a little bit of a walking zombie, right now. Also, I may have had a slight case of food poisoning, as well. I'm a mess, y'all. But that's beside the point. Back to the polish! It's beautiful, goes on smoothly and evenly, and has a fantastic brush. Best of all, it's only five bucks for a bottle. I may have to pick up a few more

And it's blurry, too...I rock...(ugh...)

I'm really excited over the next product! Unfortunately, I'll have to wait a little longer to really play with it. Included in each bag was a full-sized (read: $16) Be a Bombshell blush. Mine was in the color Sweet Cheeks, which is kind of a bright mauve with a slight sheen. Sad to say, it broke in shipping (as did many others, according to Facebook), but a brand new one is on its way to me.

Cute, cute, cute packaging! It's about the size and shape of a MAC mineralized blush.

My heart hurts.

In the meantime, I did my best to work with what I had to, at least, give you an idea of the color and what it would look like on. Here it is on my cheek. While it might look a little scary in the pan, when applied with a fluffy brush, it appears as a natural flush on the skin. The sheen is so light that it just gives you a little glow. It's highly pigmented, not powdery, and I love the finish. Now, I really can't wait until the unbroken one arrives and I can really see what it can do.


See? There's a little color, but it doesn't look like I'm caked with blush. Also, I need a face mask. And to not photograph this close up. 

 Here's a shot of me with the blush and eyeshadow. The rest of the makeup is very minimal (mascara, eyeliner, beauty balm, concealer, lip balm, and a little pressed powder), and I think these products help pull together a very fresh and natural Spring look.

The last product in the bag was Sexy Hair Healthy Sexy Hair Soy Renewal Nourishing Styling Treatment. (That's a mouthful.) I haven't tried it yet, but as soon as I do, I'll give you a verdict. The sized I received is a good travel size, so I should get several uses out of it.

Part of the ipsy Glam Bag experience is the little makeup bag (the Glam Bag, itself, I suppose) that holds all of the products. This month's appears to be a simple white bag with a pink zipper, but I won't know for sure until next month. There was a problem with some of the bags, and those of us who were to receive those bags were sent a different one, with the assurance that our correct bag will arrive in our next shipment. The one I ended up with is cute, though. It's Springy and floral--not the highest quality, but whatever. It's not the one I was supposed to get, so I'm reserving judgement.

So, is ipsy worth the ten bucks a month? I think so. I've been impressed with the products I tested out, and really impressed with the customer service. I don't know how long I'll subscribe, but for now, it's a fun, inexpensive treat.

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!

Pink and Girly Eyes Featuring Urban Decay

I bought the Urban Decay Rollergirl palette for one color, and one color only: Woodstock. I knew that the shocking pink would be tough to wear, but it was just so gorgeous (and the palette was on sale so cheap!) that I had to give it a shot. Happily, I have been able to pull off the color in a couple of party looks, but, you know, sometimes a girl wants to wear Barbie pink eyeshadow during the day. Sometimes, you just need that little pick-me-up that only girly, shimmery PINK can provide. Today is one of those days. So, with the desperate need for pink as motivation, I came up with this look that I will now show you, step by step. Yes, you do start out with hot pink, but in the end, you have this soft, sweetly sexy, not overly made up eye. Think: Victoria's Secret Angel. That wasn't the goal, necessarily, but that's what I got. Please let me know what you think in the comments, and also let me know if you'd like to see a party look with Woodstock. Thanks!

Start by smoothing Sin Primer Potion all over the eye area, then applying Woodstock to the outer third of your eye, and bringing it up into the crease.

Next, apply Virgin (from Naked) to the inner two-thirds of your eye, inner corner, and browbone.

Apply Sin (from Naked) to the area where the two colors meet, and blend.

Apply Toasted (from Naked) to the crease and area directly above.

Blend the colors, then line the upper and lower lashes with Creep (from Naked). Wing the top line out slightly.

Blend out the liner, so there are no hard edges.

Fill in your brows and apply black mascara to top and bottom lashes. This is Buxom Lash. Brows are E.L.F. Brow Kit.

This  is the same look in daylight.

To finish the look, I used NARS Orgasm blush, Too Faced highlighter form the Spun Sugar Glamour To Go, and Urban Decay Midnight Cowboy Lipstick with Dervish pencil from MAC. Foundation is Urban Decay Naked. Concealer is Maybelline Age Rewind.

Villainous Vanity: Disney and E.L.F. Villain Palettes

Once Upon a Time, the good fairies at Disney and the pretty pixies at MAC concocted a delightfully wicked collection of villainous cosmetics, and there was much rejoicing. Some time later, the good Disney fairies decided to create their own brand of magnificently malevolent makeups, and there was, um, less rejoicing. Now, the fairies have opted to bring on board the happy elves at, well, E.L.F. to magick up a new line of palettes for beautiful baddies, and I, for one, am ridiculously excited.

Available for a limited time at select Walgreen's, beginning September 15th (mark your calendars, guys!), will be three E.L.F. palettes, based upon Snow White's Evil Queen, Sleeping Beauty's Melificent, and 101 Dalmatians' Cruella DeVille. The palettes each contain colors themed to their specific villain, and each focuses on a different style of makeup. The Evil Queen's "Daringly Dramatic Eyes" palette is plummy overall. Melificent's "Sinister Smoky Eyes" are gorgeously green, and Cruella's "Evil Everyday Eyes" boasts a neutral, natural color scheme.

Photo Credit: Musings of a Muse

An Instagram photo was released on Friday, giving an up-close view of the Melificent palette. It appears to hold a set of false eyelashes and glue, eight eye shadows, an eyelid primer, two lip pencils, and what could be either an eyeliner or lipgloss (the pictures aren't the greatest in the world). Palettes will retail for $9.99.

Photo Credit: Instagram

I'm beyond thrilled at the prospect of bringing these home. The packaging is beautiful (I love the mirror!), and E.L.F. has some wonderful products. The brand has a tendency to be hit or miss, but when they get it right, they knock it out of the park. From these photos, it looks like they've gotten it right.