This beautiful palette is a mini version of the oh so popular Smashbox Full Exposure palette. The reason I got the small one is because I felt that some shades in the original were too similar and gave off the same effect. It didn't make much sense to me to pay 45€, when I could pay 17€ and get all the shades I wanted. One more reason for this particular purchase was because I heard some bad things about the product in terms of pigmentation so I wanted to try it out first and if I liked it, I could get the full version.
This little beauty comes in a plastic, but very durable packaging. You won't have any problems with this guy opening in your purse and having your eyeshadows get shattered. You can clearly hear a click when you're closing it and you know that it won't go anywhere. The size is amazing for traveling, it fits in the hand perfectly. There is also a mirror which can be very helpful, especially on the go.
There are eight eyeshadows including both shimmer and matte finishes. Four are shimmer shadows and four are mattes.
The shadows that you get are: S1, S3, S4, S4; M1, M3, M4, M6. You can find all of these in the original version of the Full Exposure.
Total net weight is 6g which in my opinion, is a pretty small amount.
Lets start with the important part, colors and the pigmentation.
As I mentioned earlier, some online reviews made me scared that the pigmentation of these is bad. I must admit that these shadows are definitely not as pigmented and buttery as the Urban Decay shadows but they are not bad at all. They are soft, easy to use and not hard to blend at all. They are not highly pigmented, a better description would be medium, If you find a good base for them (I recommend the ARTDECO eyeshadow base or even Duraline by Ingot) you can get a very good use out of them. I feel like they improved the quality a bit since they launched this palette, because I find that it swathes much nicer than the photos I've seen online.
Before I get into the actual swathes I have to say something very important for me and that is the fact that I can't seem to get a full look from this palette. Something is missing. Even though there is a gorgeous crease color M2, I still want a warmer and a bit deeper shade. A nice deep matte outer corner color is missing too. This is more about preference, nothing else.
Also, I think that the color selection is not unified, meaning that there are both warm and cool tones in this palette but there's not enough of both. I would much rather prefer if they made two mini palettes from the original Full Exposure and make one into a warm and the other one into a cool tone palette. It would be much easier to get the desired look if you're not the kind of person who likes to mix those when creating an eye look. I always find myself reaching for at least one or two more eyeshadows whenever I am using this palette.
The swathes shown below are made with absolutely no base. As you can see, the shadows are not sheer, but in all honesty they look more pigmented on the swatches compared to what they actually look like on the eyes. They blend very easily, but you can pack on the color more in order for it to show better on the lid.
S1: warm medium shimmery brown; the shimmer looks more like a sheen on the lid and the color doesn't show very vibrantly on the lid
S3: true gold with shimmer; looks very nice on and it brightens up the eyes; one of the colors that shows pretty well on the lid
S4: very light shimmery champagne pink; doesn't show very well on the lid; blends away far too easily
S6: very unique gunmetal grey shimmery shade; looks beautiful on the lid with some cool toned crease color, as well as a dark matte outer corner color
M1: the equivalent to S1, just without the shimmer
M3: peachy crease color; looks beautiful in the crease with any look; I find that if I want it to show true to color, I have to go over the same spot with my brush quite a few times
M4: matte white; doesn't show very well
M6: medium taupe color; goes very well with S6
Now onto the swatches with a base. I used the ARTDECO eyeshadow base and it worked wonderfully. I have to repeat myself here, but for some reason the shadows look more pigmented when I swatch them compared to what they look like on the eyes. The reason for that is probably because there is no blending involved when it comes to doing the swathes on my hand.
As you can see, the eyeshadows become much more vibrant when used with a base. I have heard that some people dip their brush in water or in Fix Plus by MAC and they increase the intensity of the colors that way, but I cannot say anything about that because I haven't tried those methods, I can certainly say that the shadows become much more vibrant and intense when used with a base or Duraline.
In conclusion,
it is a nice palette but is it worth the money? Not really, because you can buy Catrice or Makeup Geek eyeshadows and get a better value for your buck. They are cheaper and more pigmented. Since it is a bit hard to create a full look if you are not the one to mix cool and warm tones, and the not so great pigmentation, I'd say skip it. Unless you have a lot of palettes already and you're not aiming for this one to be your staple piece don't waste your money. There are better quality shadows out there for less money. Don't get me wrong, I like this palette but I'm just saying you don't exactly get what you pay for. Smashbox, you gotta step up your game!
Sincerely yours,
Ayesha
This little beauty comes in a plastic, but very durable packaging. You won't have any problems with this guy opening in your purse and having your eyeshadows get shattered. You can clearly hear a click when you're closing it and you know that it won't go anywhere. The size is amazing for traveling, it fits in the hand perfectly. There is also a mirror which can be very helpful, especially on the go.
The shadows that you get are: S1, S3, S4, S4; M1, M3, M4, M6. You can find all of these in the original version of the Full Exposure.
Total net weight is 6g which in my opinion, is a pretty small amount.
Lets start with the important part, colors and the pigmentation.
As I mentioned earlier, some online reviews made me scared that the pigmentation of these is bad. I must admit that these shadows are definitely not as pigmented and buttery as the Urban Decay shadows but they are not bad at all. They are soft, easy to use and not hard to blend at all. They are not highly pigmented, a better description would be medium, If you find a good base for them (I recommend the ARTDECO eyeshadow base or even Duraline by Ingot) you can get a very good use out of them. I feel like they improved the quality a bit since they launched this palette, because I find that it swathes much nicer than the photos I've seen online.
Before I get into the actual swathes I have to say something very important for me and that is the fact that I can't seem to get a full look from this palette. Something is missing. Even though there is a gorgeous crease color M2, I still want a warmer and a bit deeper shade. A nice deep matte outer corner color is missing too. This is more about preference, nothing else.
Also, I think that the color selection is not unified, meaning that there are both warm and cool tones in this palette but there's not enough of both. I would much rather prefer if they made two mini palettes from the original Full Exposure and make one into a warm and the other one into a cool tone palette. It would be much easier to get the desired look if you're not the kind of person who likes to mix those when creating an eye look. I always find myself reaching for at least one or two more eyeshadows whenever I am using this palette.
The swathes shown below are made with absolutely no base. As you can see, the shadows are not sheer, but in all honesty they look more pigmented on the swatches compared to what they actually look like on the eyes. They blend very easily, but you can pack on the color more in order for it to show better on the lid.
S1: warm medium shimmery brown; the shimmer looks more like a sheen on the lid and the color doesn't show very vibrantly on the lid
S3: true gold with shimmer; looks very nice on and it brightens up the eyes; one of the colors that shows pretty well on the lid
S4: very light shimmery champagne pink; doesn't show very well on the lid; blends away far too easily
S6: very unique gunmetal grey shimmery shade; looks beautiful on the lid with some cool toned crease color, as well as a dark matte outer corner color
M1: the equivalent to S1, just without the shimmer
M3: peachy crease color; looks beautiful in the crease with any look; I find that if I want it to show true to color, I have to go over the same spot with my brush quite a few times
M4: matte white; doesn't show very well
M6: medium taupe color; goes very well with S6
Now onto the swatches with a base. I used the ARTDECO eyeshadow base and it worked wonderfully. I have to repeat myself here, but for some reason the shadows look more pigmented when I swatch them compared to what they look like on the eyes. The reason for that is probably because there is no blending involved when it comes to doing the swathes on my hand.
In conclusion,
it is a nice palette but is it worth the money? Not really, because you can buy Catrice or Makeup Geek eyeshadows and get a better value for your buck. They are cheaper and more pigmented. Since it is a bit hard to create a full look if you are not the one to mix cool and warm tones, and the not so great pigmentation, I'd say skip it. Unless you have a lot of palettes already and you're not aiming for this one to be your staple piece don't waste your money. There are better quality shadows out there for less money. Don't get me wrong, I like this palette but I'm just saying you don't exactly get what you pay for. Smashbox, you gotta step up your game!
Sincerely yours,
Ayesha
TREBALA MI JE OVA RECENZIJA!!!! :DDDDD
ReplyDeleteUstedjela si mi pare!
Drago mi je da sam nekome pomogla kad vec sebi nisam haha :D
Deleteajj steta ako je tako,ja nekako mislim da drogerijske paletice ako ih s bazom nanosis
ReplyDeletesuper izgledaju i budu bas pigmentisane,a jeftinije ;)
Iako ova paletica ima krasne nijanse :*
iskoristive su, samo sto sam ocekivala puno vise od Smashboxa. drogerije nude stvarno dobre mono sjene i palete, samo treba znati odabrati.
Delete:**
Šteta za paletu, mada mi ne djeluje loša pigmentacija. Nije popput UD možda, ali što kažeš, ne mora značiti da su loše....
ReplyDeleteOk su mi za svakodnevnu upotrebu, ali tesko je sa njima uraditi nesto jace na ocima jer se izblendaju previse
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTvoje recenzije su jako korisne !
ReplyDeletePogledaj moj blog www.thefoamofcancun.blogspot.com
xoxo
Hvala puno :D
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