Having bought more eyeshadow palettes this past year than I ever even previously owned, I feel like I’m in decent shape to provide recommendations for a gift guide. The focus of this post will be on palettes that I’ve tried, price points, and why I think they’d be a good gift. Since eyeshadow palettes are more of a big ticket item, I personally would consider these as someone’s “main present” rather than a stocking stuffer. Keep that in mind when you’re looking at the prices!
Here are my recommendations:
Brand: Kat Von D
Palette: Mi Vida Loca Remix
Price: $71 CAD
Let’s start this off with an absolute bombshell of a palette. If you decide you would like to get this (for yourself or otherwise), you’re going to have to get your butt to a Sephora store asap because this has been sold out for a few weeks online (the problem with releasing holiday palettes in September!!!).
This would be my absolute number one recommendation for an eyeshadow palette present. While the rainbow wheel aspect of it is undeniable and undoubtedly makes this one of the most visually appealing palettes I own, what makes this stand out even more is that inner ring of neutral shadows. This is perfect for colour lovers who need blending and deepening shades alongside their brights. While there are a few misses in pigmentation in the shades (maybe two shades), the overall quality of the Mi Vida Loca Remix palette is off the charts. If you can get your hands on it, you absolutely need to purchase it.
Further reading:
Brand: Too Faced
Palette: Chocolate Bar or Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar
Price: $59 CAD each
While the Urban Decay Naked palettes may own most peoples’ hearts, my true love lies amongst the Too Faced Chocolate Bar palettes. I’ve become obsessed with the scent of chocolate that wafts up from these palettes as soon as I open them. The shade selection is neutral enough for most people to love them, but there are pops of colour to make things interesting. My personal preference is the Semi-Sweet palette, but you can’t go wrong with either of them. The pigmentation and blendability are excellent in both palettes and either one would make lovely gifts.
Further reading:
- Swatches: Chocolate Bar | Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar
- Challenge Week: Chocolate Bar | Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar
Brand: Laura Mercier
Palette: Eye Art Artist’s Palette
Price: $70 CAD
This palette was originally a holiday 2013 exclusive, but they wisely decided to bring it back within the last year. Although the outer packaging is slightly different now (I have the 2013 version), the shades inside are still the same. I have nothing bad to say about this palette – Laura Mercier has some of the smoothest, easiest to play with shadows I have ever encountered. These are an absolute pleasure to apply to my eyelids and I would recommend this palette to every single person out there! Personally, I consider Laura Mercier a bit more of a “grown up” brand since their average price point is very, very steep (a single eyeshadow is $29 CAD!), but that further reinforces that this palette is a great value.
Brand: Sephora
Palette: Wonderful Dreams
Price: $13 CAD
My first look at Sephora’s shadows have been a good one with this little palette. The Wonderful Dreams 8-pan palette slides out to reveal four matte and four shimmery shades. (In particular, the silver is to freaking die for!) I cannot find it on Sephora Canada’s site anymore, but I’ve seen it in stores. This is a perfect travel palette since it’ll cover all your neutral basics, and it would also make a great stocking stuffer since the price is quite low!
Brand: Makeup Geek
Palette: N/A
Price: Regular shadows are $6 USD, foiled shadows are $9.99 USD each
I would be totally remiss if I didn’t mention Makeup Geek somewhere in this post! While this isn’t a pre-made palette, you can purchase the shades you desire and create your own perfect gifting palette. Makeup Geek is unbeatable in terms of quality and price tag – they could easily charge double that price and still be considered one of the best shadows on the market. For a holiday-themed palette, I chose the shades Vanilla Bean, Shimma Shimma, Grandstand, Creme Brulee, Cocoa Bear, Bitten, Magic Act, Jester and Flamethrower.
Further reading:
- Must Have Makeup Geek Shadows
- Makeup Geek Foiled Shadows (Review + Swatches)
- Makeup Geek Foiled Shadows Expansion Set (Review + Swatches)
Brand: Smashbox
Palette: Double Exposure
Price: $45 CAD
The Double Exposure palette came out of nowhere in the last few months and smacked me upside the head. I could not believe the quality of the shadows in this palette! I’m a relative newbie to Smashbox so I don’t have a ton of exposure to most of their products, but this one completely blew me out of the water. Pigmentation and bendability are incredible, and there’s enough variety of colour in this palette to make it a liiiittle bit different from all the other neutral palettes out there.
Further reading:
That’s it for this makeup palette gift guide! If you were looking for what to give a friend or family member, I hope this was of some use to you. 🙂
Certain palettes in this review were sent to me for consideration (Sephora - Wonderful Dreams & Smashbox Double Exposure).
This is a really good list of palettes. I would throw my support behind many of them. And I’m so glad to see a good review of that Sephora one, because I picked it up on a whim last week to go along with another makeup gift for my cousin!
Trysh recently posted…REVIEW: Sure Thik Hair Thickening Fibres*
Do you remember how much you paid for the tiny palette? I guessed $13 since the American site said $10 and I can’t find it anywhere on the Canadian site. I wore it yesterday and got a lot of compliments, which is unusual because I don’t often get comments on neutral eye makeup!
You were right! It was $13! I think she’s going to really like it. I was surprised at how it swatched in the store, so I just grabbed it because it was cute and small and neutral. Are you gonna put the look from yesterday in a post?
Trysh recently posted…REVIEW: Sure Thik Hair Thickening Fibres*
Yessss! I just went off the prices based on the Black Friday deals. Thanks for the confirmation!
Oh dang, I didn’t photograph it. It’s too dark in the mornings now and wayyyy too dark in the evenings when I get home. Sorry. 🙁 I’m basically screwed for weekday shots until January and I get my hands on the ring light I purchased. (It’s sitting at my in laws in Wisconsin.)
I totally know where you’re coming from. I’ve been trying to do more pictures of my makeup, but during the week I am never home when there’s any natural light. Period.
Trysh recently posted…REVIEW: Sure Thik Hair Thickening Fibres*
And then on the weekends, unless I’m going out, I don’t really bother to do any makeup. And even then, if I DO go out, I have to do my makeup before 4 pm if I want to get shots! Ah well, I’m a bit burnt out by all of the recent palette launches – I think I’ve been doing Challenge Weeks since September and at this point I just want to use whatever shadows I want! (Beauty blogger problems… amiright??)
I have a note in my calendar that the lighting starts to get a bit better around January 20th… but we’ve still got a while to go!
Yess love this post!! The MUG palette you curated is kind of the perfect palette any time of the year, haha.
Jodi recently posted…Guest Post: Ready with Reds with Zoe
Totally true for most of us bloggers, but I think a lot of people don’t tend to think of green or coppery shadows until the holiday season. (That’s just a guess though really.) I mean, if I could just be like “go buy ALL the MUG shadows” that would basically be my post. But like… apparently there are budgets and limitations for how much money people spend on makeup? *gasp* 😉
I have Smashbox Full Exposure and it was the perfect palette for me, love my neutrals! LOL! I’ll need to place an order with MUG, so many love her eyeshadows but I have yet to try anything from her.
Shireen L. Platt recently posted…How On Earth Did We Get Here?! November Favourites
I can’t recommend MUG enough. The price point, the quality… everything is amazing!
Smashbox is a brand I’m only starting to delve into and the Double Exposure palette really impressed me!
I never tried smashbox until this week (I won some great items) and omg I love them now!
What have you tried?? I was gifted the On The Rocks holiday palette last year, but I don’t think the quality of the shadows are as good as the ones in the Exposure palettes. They completely knocked my socks off! Tell me what else you’re using by them!
I got the 25th anniversary lip palette (and I usually think lip palettes are not as good quality as a real lipstick) it is amazing and is the exact same as a great pigmented lipstick. I also got the Step-By-Step Contour Kit and I really like it, everything I need is in it and the colours work well on my skin.
That’s awesome! What a great way to try out a variety of their products.
I actually own none of these palettes. which is the #1 you would recommend?
The Kat Von D Mi Vida Loca Remix palette if you can find it in stores. If not, the Too Faced Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar palette!
All wonderful choices! I have yet to try a chocolate bar palette. Maybe the bon bon one. 😉
Also, I saw that wonderful dreams Sephora palette on discount when I went boxing day shopping! I sort of regret not getting it now!
Melanie recently posted…My First (Real) Experience with Lush
Bon Bons is lovely (been using it all week!), but I will say my favourite is the Semi-Sweet one. However, choose whichever one has the colours that appeal to you the most!