Urban Decay Summer 2013 Collection - part 1

Urban Decay Rebound Build Your Own Palette*

You've probably already heard me talking about these UD palettes before - here and here - and the good news is that there's a new one in town! 

The summer 2013 limited edition tin is the most beautiful yet and it's the right time to get yourself one: with the previous palettes, you'd get one neutral shade included, but this time it's completely customizable and, of course, cheaper (£8). 

You can now choose which base colour you prefer and there are 3 new releases for the occasion: Easy Baked, Desperation and Laced.

Desperation* is a matte blueish gray with a slightly warm undertone and satin finish.  

It has enough depth to be beautiful on its own (it will really make blue eyes stand out) or perfect as a base/all-over-the-lid colour to make brighter shades pop!

Next up are the Urban Decay Moondust Eyeshadows, a NEW line of glitter shadows.

I've to admit that I'm not afraid of a bit (or a lot) of shimmer and these are really exciting because you get the same UD smooth and silky quality with added voooom!

The colour payoff is superb and the sparkling particles are fine, giving a metallic finish to the shade.

Glitterrock* is pink galore with pink and silver glitter. Zodiac* is a dark green with blue, yellow and green particles; you can really obtain a beautiful smokey eye look with a twist because of the black base! Stargazer* is going to be a favourite of many: an ultra versatile 'antiqued' gold with a lime undertone. 

Intergalactic* is a true cool lilac with silver sparkle; this is the only shade that doesn't transfer as much on the eyelid and I tend to use it wet, instead.

There are 7 shades available - Zodiac is definitely my favorite and Space Cowboy is the next that shall be mine!!!

l-r: desperation, glitterrock, zodiac, stargazer, intergalactic

...Come back tomorrow for more reviews from this collection! :)

Urban Decay OZ Glinda Palette

This is the second part of the Urban Decay Oz Limited Edition palettes; yesterday I shared the Theodora palette - you can check the swatches here - and today I'll be talking about the Glinda palette*.

Glinda character, portrayed by Michelle Williams, is the so-called good witch and the colours reflect this ethereal mood with pastels and 'magical' glitter; the pinks and purples are definitely girly but still very wearable.

Tornado is a dark purple with shimmer, very wearable on his own or as a crease colour - Aura is a duo-shade and I'm in love! Extremely difficult to swatch but I added a separate pic below to try and show you the difference between the 2 parts; both are iridescent whites, one with blue/purple duochrome undertone and the other side with pink undertones. They do look pretty ordinary in the pan but they are so beautiful applied. Magic is a pale pink with gold shimmer.

l-r: magic, aura, aura, tornado

Illusion is a peachy champagne with a frost finish, extremely smooth and well pigmented - Oz is the other duo-shade of the set: first half is a gold with silver and gold glitter and second half is silver with silver glitter. There's a ton of glitter here and the consistency also feel different, not for everyday use; finally, South is a stunning taupe - a grey with green undertone and silver shimmer.

l-r: south, oz, oz, illusion

My favourite shades are: Aura (both) and South

This set also comes with a 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in rockstar which is a purple and the Super-Saturated High-Gloss Lip Color which is called Glinda; Glinda is a nude colour, leaning on the pink side and with a sheer finish.

I got to admit I love both palettes and I think they are gorgeous in their own reasons but, to my surprise, Glinda is my favourite. The shades in this set feel truly special and they are so pretty that I want to wear them all at once!!! ;)

What do you think?
Which Urban Decay Oz Palette do you prefer?

Urban Decay OZ Theodora Palette

sorry but I just HAD to share this photo... isn't James Franco even hotter, holding the UD palette?! ;)

Now that I caught your attention with this fine piece of man, let's move on to make up, shall we?

Urban Decay just launched 2 stunning limited edition palettes to celebrate the release of Disney' Oz The Great and Powerful; I can't wait to see the movie because of the amazing cast but also because I'm a huge fan of the classic 1939 film... Exciting!

Both palettes come with 4 mono shadows plus 2 new duo-shades,1 eyeliner and 1 high gloss lip pencil; the shadows come in the pop-out format like the recent 'build your own palette' (reviews here and here), so you can further customize these beautiful tins, with your existing UD colours.

Oh by the way, all the shades are brand new as well!

Theodora Palette* is inspired by the wicked witch - Mila Kunis - so you can create a smoky, edgy, more intriguing kinda of look.

This is not only an eyeshadow palette but a fabulous set that will let you create a complete look and at a very decent price - £35 - I could easily imagine any other brand trying to market the lip colour as a separate product and charge another 14quid (just saying..).
Included there's also a 'get the look' card with tips on how to use the shades at their best but of course, you can create many more looks with all these colours.

Broken is a matte cream, perfect as an highlighter/all over the lid primer - Beware is a matte medium brown with a yellow undertone, kind of a ochre/sepia which has been really popular in recent catwalks; Bewitch is a true dark brown which will suit any eye colour, slight shimmer here - West is another stunning shimmery brown with red undertone; such a rich, chocolate shade that has a metallic finish.

l-r: bewitch, beware, broken, west

Spell is half rich antique gold and half black/blueish dark shade with multi-tonal glitter; both colours are very shimmery and - especially the gold - the glitter is a bit chunky but luckly doesn't transfer to the eyelid.

Jealous is again a duo-shade with a dark and light green - both smooth with good pigmentation and a pearl finish.

l-r: spell, spell, jealous, jealous

My favourite shades are Beware, West and Spell (dark side).

Finally, you also get a 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in zero (black) and I don't think this eyeliner needs any presentation and Super-Saturated High-Gloss Lip Colour in a vibrant warm red to finish the look. I'm extremely impressed with both pigmentation and glossiness of this lip colour - Gorgeous!
Zero is not the deepest black I have ever seen but you can be assured it won't budge.

I wanted to give enough space and photos to each of these gorgeous palettes and do them proper justice so I decided to review them separately... so pop around tomorrow for swatches from the Glinda palette!!!

Review / Urban Decay 4-pan Build Your Own Palette

You may remember my review about the Urban Decay Build Your Own Palette, a couple of months ago (if not, you can check it out here).

The original palette holds 6 eyeshadows and I remember people mentioning that you may not need that many colours, especially when travelling... well, here comes the perfect compromise: a 4-pan palette!

As with every Urban Decay product, the packaging is sooo cool - I love the shiny tin heart and the size is perfect for every day use, as well; easy to carry in your handbag for touch-ups and day-to-night transformation!

It works with the same principle, of course, where the eyeshadows pop in and out so you can create and change the combination every time that you want.

Urban Decay Build Your Own 4-pan Palette*

The palette comes with a complimentary exclusive colour: Breathless* - a medium neutral taupe with stunning shimmering and ideal for daytime. 

I also treated myself to a couple of extra shadows :)

S&M: I fell in love with Money but unfortunately, it's not available as a single shadow so I went with S&M which is very similar. S&M is a metallic silver with a hint of frost and pretty cool toned. I don't have any grey in my collection and this will be great to create a monochrome smokey eye and perfect for the festive season.

Woodstock: I can't resist a fuchsia and Woodstock is definitely a vibrant pearly hot pink. I mainly got it because I fell in love with a tutorial where is blended with Freelove - my all time UD favourite shadow.

It's very pigmented and It can also be used as a wet liner.

So, this is the finished product: 

l-r / t-b: Breathless, Freelove, S&M, Woodstock

There are 3 quads palette available now at Debenhams:
Breathless, Rock & Melt... all with beautiful designs and worth checking out!!!

Urban Decay Build Your Own Palette

I'm so excited to be talking about this product today... the Urban Decay Build Your Own Palette* gives you the chance to have all your favourite UD eyeshadows together, in the same place.

This customisable palette is pretty roomy and holds 6 eyeshadows but it's still slim enough to be carried around in your handbag.

I, personally, think it's a fantastic idea because let's be honest... how many palettes have you bought and there are always some colours that you never use and it's pretty annoying to have to take them with you, especially on holiday (and god forbid, they get smashed in transit too!)

I know there are other diy palettes out there but nothing as pretty and innovative as this one, in my opinion.

It's a metal case and I love the design on the packaging; the mirror inside is huge and definitely an added bonus when you're trying to balance it on the oddest surfaces (talking for experience here... train journey anyone??!)

There's also a travel-size Good Karma Shadow Brush which has the same high quality bristle as the bigger one.

 ALSO - the palette comes with 1 eyeshadow included:

Walk of Shame*: this shade is exclusive to the palette! 

It's a natural matte and multi-use really: as a base to neutralize any discoloration or to brighten the inner corner and brow bone area, too.

Alongside the palette, the eyeshadows have been reformulated: the new Pigment Infusion System delivers shades that are multidimentional and rich, easily blendable and velvety.

To the touch, they feel extremely soft and buttery but didn't crease one bit on me!

The colours are absolutely unrivaled, in my opinion... Have a look:

The single shells are a metallic pewter colour and show the same attention to details; they are also very easy to pop out when you want to transfer them into the palette.

X*: gold with sheer peach tint; it's a duochrome so it looks more yellow in some lights and peach in others. I know it's a favourite for many as it's a perfect shimmery nude.
Freelove*: a true shimmery peach/coral. Extremely versatile - I can pair it with 'X' as a crease colour or play it down as a base colour with 'Roach'.

Roach*: another shimmer, this time much deeper. It's a warm brown with red in it and it's gonna be an absolute killer for the autumn season.

Asphyxia*: this shade is a duotone lavender; it looks a bit ashy in the pan but transforms on application, as you can notice in the swatch. 

I can detect some blue and grey/pearl in the shimmer that gives it a cool undertone.

Psychedelic Sister*: this colour is a warm violet, perfect to bring out the green in my eyes. It's got a metallic sheen and - superfluous to say - it's the perfect match for 'Asphyxia.

Ta-Da!!! 

What a beauty - purples, neutrals, coral... my favourite colours all neatly together!

Have you checked this palette yet? What would be your ideal combination? :)