So as you may have noticed, if you've somehow stumbled back upon this blog, that I've come back to it after spending a year at www.asimplehedonist.com.

Last summer, after a lot of critical thinking, I decided to take a break from Maggie's Makeup. I had fallen into some really bad habits in terms of my spending (and consumerism in general), and I needed to disengage with aspects of my life that were feeding into that. I also needed a fresh space to begin a transition to cruelty-free beauty, and to explore the concept of minimalism.

I really value the time I spent at a distance from Makeupland - I started a decluttering process that I've documented on youtube, and more importantly, I got control of my spending habits and fascination with labels. I was never very successful at becoming a minimalist, but I picked up some good mental tools from the attempt.

The time away also made me realize how much I love writing and talking about makeup. I tried doing more lifestyle/foodie/book/sociopolitcal oriented things, and it became evident that while I'm interested a wide variety of topics and am happy to post about them, I am, at the heart of it, a beauty blogger. My perspective on beauty and makeup has shifted over this past year, and my passion for it has fluctuating along with some of those mental shifts - but ultimately, it's just what I love.

And so I'm back to where I started. :)

(If you scroll down to older posts you'll see that I've mirrored most of what I've written on A Simple Hedonist, so if you didn't follow me there, you can catch up here, if you're so inclined.)

Rise and Shine, Rosy Outlook, Lucky Penny, Smile On, Trailblazer, Courage

Rise and Shine, Rosy Outlook, Lucky Penny, Smile On, Trailblazer, Courage

All of the eyeshadows kick up a fair bit of  powder when I dip my brushes into them, but I don't get any fallout during application.

Rise and Shine: an ivory-leaning beige matte, the texture is very smooth and silky, and it blends easily into the skin without looking chalky. The pigmentation is softer.

Rosy Outlook: a light rose shimmer, this has a more "wet" reflective quality than the other two shimmers, and looks more ethereal when applied. Slightly flaky when I dip my finger into the pan, but that doesn't translate into application. Very bendable, and can sheer out to a much paler version of itself, so it can work as both a lid color when packed on, or a highlight when used lightly.

Lucky Penny: a muted, rose-gold with strong taupe undertones. It's the smoothest and creamiest of all the shimmers, though only marginally more so than Smile On. It blends perfectly, and has lovely pigmentation.

Smile On: a neutral brown shimmer, with essentially the same texture and pigmentation qualities as Lucky Penny.

Trailblazer: a neutral chocolate brown matte, with a somewhat drier, slightly less silky texture than Rose and Shine. It blends out without a problem, with good pigmentation.

Courage: a pretty nude rose blush, very much in the same tonal family as Exposed. The powder is soft and smooth and silky, and it blends seamlessly into the skin, but the colour intensity is fairly muted, so I doubt it would show up very well on skin that's darker than medium.

One thing to note as well: the formula of the blush is not the same as the regular blushes, but seems more similar to that used in the holiday palettes. I have several of those holiday palettes and this seems comparable.

In terms of value, this contains five eyeshadows of 1 gram each - so 5 grams in total - and one blush at 5.4 grams, for a cost of 36$.  In comparison, one regular Amazonian Clay blush is 5.6 grams, and 35$. So basically for the approximate cost of one Tarte blush, you're getting a blush and five eyeshadows. I think that's a really decent price, for the performance and quality.


For the look below, I kept it simple: Lucky Penny on the lid and lower lash line, Smile On in the outer corner and on the outer third of lower lash line, Rosy Outlook in the inner corner, Trailblazer lightly through the crease, Rise & Shine on the brow bone and to blend out the the crease.

I also applied Courage blush to my cheeks. (It's a shade that could also be mixed lightly with Trailblazer for a softer transition.)

This boxy, beautiful palette contains a wonderfully functional array of products for creating a natural-to-night-out look: a medium toned bronzer, a vivid pink blush that leans a bit blue, five neutral shadows in a mix of finishes, a shimmer powder that can work as both a face highlight and another eyeshadow, a deep brown eyeliner, a muted rose lipgloss and a mascara. Add in your favourite face products, and maybe a lipstick or liner, and all your bases are covered.

The packaging is, as most things UD, gorgeous to look at, and cumbersome to store and carry - and that goes double when the marketing calls this a travel palette. Though smaller than the egregiously overstuffed Book of Shadows of yore, it's still far from streamlined. I don't know how anyone would look at this and think: "why yes, this is exactly what I need to tuck into my carry-on bag". (Then again, I'm a super-light packer, so if your travel motto is There's Always Another Suitcase, then this might not be an issue.) Personally, if I really wanted to tote these items along on a trip, I would take the loose items out into my makeup bag, and depot the actual pans. Which sort of defeats the purpose of the pretty packaging. The only part that is travel-friendly for me is the nice-sized mirror, and the fact that it stays open by itself.

That being said, I do think this is a GREAT option to get yourself or to give someone as a sampler of Urban Decay products. The quality of the products is very representative, and they're almost all full-sized or generously proportioned items - only the eyeliner and mascara are mini versions. For 64$ CAD, you get a lot of good, varied product for the money, and everything works well together.




The eyeshadows skew on the cooler side in the pan, though they are warmer on the skin, and offer a  solid neutral range for light to medium skin.
Dive - a metallic rose gold with micro shimmer, this looks like it could be chunky in the pan, but actually applies smoothly, with minimal fallout. I can be packed on for a dense, shimmery look, but I prefer it applied lightly as a wash, with a damp brush, for a sunlight-shimmer-on-water effect.

Fix - a medium taupe matte, this has a silky-smooth texture and the perfect tone for a softly applied lid color or transition shade. Depending on your colouring, it can also work as a contour or even brow shade, making it the most flexible shade out of the palette. I almost wish it was a larger pan, as I know it's the one that will be most used.

Resist - a metallic taupe with the kind of creamy, rich texture that is definitively "UD". It looks more grey in the pan than it does on the lid, and I find myself using it a lot for defining the lower lash line. Something about the shimmer and tone works wonders.

Dare - a neutral medium brown matte. Swatched, it seems a little choppy, but I had no issues using it on the eye. Like most truly neutral shades, it's a bit of a yawner in the pan, but perfectly useful in reality. The silky-smooth - but not buttery - texture makes it perfect for contour work (eye or face, depending on your skin tone) and as a brow powder. It builds up nicely as well.

Stun - a metallic bronze with gold micro-shimmer. Another one that looks like it might be chunky glitter bomb in the pan, and feels drier and more powdery than I'm used to from UD. There's a bit of fall-out during application, but it blended out smoothly on the eye. Also the warmest of the eyeshdows here.

All five of these eyeshadows are 0.04 oz, which is just a bit under the 0.05 oz size of the single eyeshadows. (Which works out to 4 x 19.20$, so a 76.80$ value.)

The second powder row features a bronzer, a blush and an eyeshadow that also works as a face highlighter.


Bronzer - a medium, slightly red-leaning bronze. I thought it would be too deep for me at first, but it's actually exactly right. It doesn't turn orange and it doesn't make me look sallow. If you have light, somewhat olive-toned skin, this is perfect. The texture is smooth and silky, and is easy to both apply lightly or build up, as there is no powdery-ness.

Blush - a bright pink with slight shimmer. Intense in the pan, but the perfect in-from-the-cold shade on the cheeks. Beautiful on lighter skin tones, but vivid enough for medium to deep skin as well. It has the same texture as the bronzer, with marginally more shimmer. More glow on the skin than anything else.

5050 - a slightly shimmery champagne beige. As an eyeshadow, it's on the sheerer side, but it provides a nice balance to the medium/deeper shades in the rest of the palette. It can be applied overtop to add some dimension, or in the corner of the eye for a straight-on highlight. With the sheerer texture and relatively subdued shimmer, it also works well as a face highlight. It has a creamier texture than the blush and bronzer, more like the UD eyeshadows, though not as dense.

The blush and bronzer are each 0.3 oz, and while there isn't a direct individual product equivalent in the UD line-up, the Naked Flushed palettes contain blush, bronzer and highlighter, and have 0.59 oz of product for 35$ CAD. Adding in the 5050 highlighter at 0.07 oz, the total value of that row comes out to 39.75$.

This is my first experience with the Naked Ultra Nourishing Lipgloss. First, the tube is GORGEOUS. I mean, really, really well done, UD. It fits perfectly alongside the Revolution Lipsticks, kinda funky and modern but with a nice amount of heft and elegance. (As an aside, I really like the grown-up version of Urban Decay. As someone who was introduced to brand in my teens, when both it and I were heavily inspired by the grunge aesthetic, its evolution feels perfectly in tune with mine.)



Performance-wise, this is a lovely gloss. Nothing outrageously inventive, but it feels light, comfortable and hydrating on the lips (I've used it instead of balm once or twice, and it worked better than expected), and not sticky at all. There is a slight scent, which I can't place, and it's not noticeable after application. The shade here is in Sesso, which is a nude rose with a slight shimmer, and is also exclusive to this palette. It's right in line with the Naked theme, a MLBB color. These are sheerer glosses, by the way, so not for you if you like something with a lot of pigmentation, but optimal if you're the type of person who applies lipgloss on the fly.

This is a full-sized product, coming in 0.13 oz. (Individually, the glosses retail for 24$ CAD.)



The 24/7 eyeliner included in the kit is in the shade Stag, which I don't believe exists independently. It's a cool-toned, grungy dark brown, verging on grey, with a bit of shimmer. The shimmer doesn't really read on the eye, just gives it a bit of depth. I really like this shade - it's softer, smokier and easier to wear than black, without appearing noticeable brown either. Kind of that perfect daytime shade, but also intensifies for a nighttime look. It's actually been my go-to liner for the last few weeks.

Stag is 0.03 oz compared to the full-sized 0.04 oz, so a comparative 18$ value.

One coat only on the top lashes, on the left.

I'll be doing a series of quick and dirty swatch-and-mini review posts for the holiday palettes, as there isn't a lot of time left to purchase or put things on wish lists for the holiday gift-giving season. (And I'll be back to both regularly scheduled programming and some new things come January.)

For today, I have two really, REALLY awesome palettes: The Make Up For Ever Artist Palette and the Laura Mercier Artist Palette for Eyes and Cheeks. (And hey, I just realized the name similarity here. They both wanted to be sure you knew they were MUA-friendly brands, I guess?)

First up, the Make Up For Ever Artist palette. Price is 48$ CAD, available at Sephora.



The new MUFE eyeshadow formula is both unique and a vast improvement over their original formula. It's one of those weird gel-powder hybrids, but without that surface dryness that kind of formula can have. These are creamy and a little dense, with a neat texture when you press your finger into the pan, almost like it has a bit of squishy-ness. The gel part of it, I assume? And unlike a lot powders that claim some kind of special privilege of being usable wet, these powders not only can be applied damp, they transform into an almost cream eyeshadow texture when applied wet. They can be painted on, blended, buffed out without losing potency or getting funky.

All the shades I've tried so far have wonderful pigmentation (especially the Metallic and Iridescent finishes), and more notably, are an absolute dream to build up, sheer out and generally blend. They're so incredibly malleable for a powder eyeshadow. I think the ones that might be the weakest in pigmentation are the Diamond shades, but it's a truly minor difference.

I've heard that these eyeshadows can develop a hard pan surface, which hasn't happened to mine, yet. (I think because of that gel-powder, squishy texture they compact down easily, maybe?)

Shades are, left to right:

M536 (Milk Tea - matte), 1524 (Pinky Beige - iridescent), I550 (Olive Grey - iridescent),
D652 (Celestial Earth - diamond), ME728 (Copper Red - metallic), ME230 (Peacock Blue - metallic, D926 (Blueberry - diamond), ME930 (Black Purple - metallic).

I think the Copper Red and Blueberry are perhaps the only ones where the name doesn't quite match the color, but otherwise they're pretty accurate descriptions.





Next up, the Laura Mercier Artist Palette for Eyes and Cheeks. Price was originally 70$ CAD, now 59$ in the sale section at Sephora. Score!


I have to say that the exterior of the palette is decidedly lacklustre. It's a functional flip top with a magnetic (sort of) closure, and a zebra-like cloth wrap. It's just totally "meh".

Inside, WAY better.




I had a rough patch with the Laura Mercier palette. My first one had a misprint that turned Deep Night into something close enough to a racial slur that I debated with myself for a week before exchanging it. That bump aside, it's a lovely palette! The eyeshadows are up to par with what I expect from LM (compared to, say, the unreliable quality of Bobbi Brown palettes), with silky-smooth mattes, creamy-textured shimmers, and great payoff. I find the rosy tones on the left side especially useful for everyday wear, but the navy also makes a terrific eyeliner shade, and the stone taupe is a go-to contouring shade for both eyelid and cheeks.

The one thing that stands out a bit oddly is the blush/highlighter, as it is distinctly warmer-toned than the rest of the palette. It can be a bit odd pairing them in a cohesive look, but I actually like dusting it a bit over the centre of the lid to add a burnished tone and then applying it as a second, highlighter-y blush over a rosy or taupe blush to tie everything in. It's probably a little less value for the buck if you don't like the blush, since it contains half the amount of eyeshadows compared the palettes from previous years. If you do like it, though, then it's great quality for the price, especially now that it's discounted. (If you want to press your luck, you can also try waiting until the sale section discount thing Sephora usually does later in December/early January.)




Back soon with a few more!

(I purchased everything.)

But they ARE some of the most beautiful eyeshadows I've ever used. These swatches were done after spraying with Smashbox Primer water, because that's honestly the only way I'd suggest wearing them.

Golden Egg: pinky beige with turquoise glitter Pay the Piper: icy blue GRLFRND: pink with violet glitter Zero Clue: vibrant warm yellow Watch Out: golden ivory with pink glitter

Drizzle: icy baby pink Uptight: rose gold Can't Stop: icy champagne ivory Sparkler: silvery bronze Unsupervised: pink champagne

Lust in Time: medium cool rose Mind Tricks: icy blackened purple Wing Woman: red brown with green and gold glitter Heads or Tales: icy cranberry Tinker Time: blackened antique gold with blue glitter

So would I recommend these? Sure, if you:

- Really, really love glitter. Like, you long for the 90s, when we would literally roll ourselves in glitter from a tube.
- You're willing to put some work into applying these.
- You're going out for a few hours and long wear isn't an issue.
- You're going somewhere where the lighting will flatter the dimensional shimmer on your eyelids (daylight isn't actually the best, flattening the sparkle).
- You don't mind paying 33$ CAD for all this.

Personally, I'm taking advantage of that Sephora return policy.

Specs: 15 x 0.98g for 26$ USD - 33$ CAD (compared to, say, the Yes Please palette, which is 12 x 0.85g for 16$ USD - 20$ CAD).
Availability: Sephora.com, and a few in-store locations in the US and Canada. Also now at www.colourpop.com.