No.
Not for $169.
Maybe for $65.
Okay, $85.
But really, definitely NOT for $169.
Let’s start with the good. The palette is a decent size. It doesn’t hold a candle to her massive $239 offering, but it’s a good size. The pans are a good size… a little smaller than Tarte. The packaging is what you’d expect from Natasha Denona, with a metallic leather cover and sturdy construction.
The colors are beautiful. They’re not particularly unique but they are all beautiful and feel good when swatched with fingers. The mattes are creamy, but they are not revolutionary as Denona suggests. They are a LOT like the Lorac Pro Palette mattes. They feel like a cream but are actually a powder. They swatch terrible with fingers, but a whole lot better with a brush.
This is the left side, top to bottom. The very first shade on the far left is among my favorite. It also looks a LOT like one of the shades in Denona’s green/brown palette. This one is one of the new Crystal formulations. What that honestly means is that more of it will end up on your face than on your lid. OMG THE FREAKING FALLOUT! And what’s worse, good luck getting it on your lids with a brush! Wet… dry… doesn’t matter. It goes all over the counter or on your face. These are your choices with a brush. Fingers are a MUCH better bet, but even then, you get fallout. I finally got it to work by LEANING OVER A MIRROR AND PRESSING THE SHADOW ON WITH MY HEAD FACE DOWN.
WTF.
Can you use this palette? Absolutely. Are the colors beautiful? Yes. Can you get multiple looks with this palette? Yep.
But the fallout from the crystal shadows is some BULL. Seriously, just NO. Get a MAC pigment and get your life. And the mattes, while good, are not life changing. The best part are the shimmers. Denona has always done shimmers well, which is why her big palettes are basically all shimmer and why Youtubers were acting like they were the second coming.
Speaking of which, let us take a moment for the Youtube shenanigans. It’s depressingly hilarious to watch them contort themselves into all kinds of shapes, trying to justify this palette’s very noteworthy shortcomings. There is literally glitter ALL OVER THEIR FACES as they declare how this palette is so worth it! What? HOW? WHERE?
Chile.
Getting something for free now translates into basically selling your integrity out of fear of being taken off the free list. That is so damn sad because you KNOW that if any of them had to pay for it or were reviewing a drugstore or mid-priced brand, they’d be all ‘thumbs-down’ into freakin’ eternity.
I love Natasha Denona for many things, including the two original palettes (although I love the green/brown way more than the blue/purple because I use the former colors so much more) and the Blackest Black eyeshadow. I am not a fan of the foundations, but LOVE the Face & Body Glows. She does some things extremely well.
But this Star Palette is definitely not one of those things.
Y’all stop lying and do better.
(smh)
See your life.
P.S One more moment of stupid ass silence (cue: twisted up lips) for that heinous blue/brown duochrome in Row 2. STOP MAKING THIS COLOR!!! It was ugly when MAC first did it and it’s ugly now. If you have the blue/brown pigment from MAC or you were super late to the party and ended up with the shadow from Makeup Geek, know that this is identical. Ugly ass color. Stop making it. Seriously. No one even wears it. We just buy it because we think it’s interesting and it proceeds to gather dust after the proverbial ‘first impressions’ post. At this point, recreating it in any form is just lazy.
brick color that is super flattering on my warm skin tone. I loved it immediately. The formula is the same gel-cream goodness that you expect from all Marc Jacobs lipsticks. And I believe this one is limited edition so if you want it, get it.
