Product Review -- Natasha Denona Eyeshadow Palette

As sad as this might be to admit, there are few things in life that get me as excited as trying out new eye shadow.

What can I say?

 I'm a total eye shadow junkie.

 I just love playing with new colors and testing out different textures and seeing how the new guys play with the other shadows in my collection.

 I was especially excited to try the Natasha Denona Eyeshadow Palettes because I'd heard some pretty good things about them. The palettes are available in 5 pan varieties that are $48 each, and 28 pan varieties that are $239 each.

Now, obviously I wasn't going to spring for a $200+ palette when I'd never tried the shadows before (honestly, I'm not sure I'd ever spring for a palette that expensive. I know you're getting 28 shadows, but I guess I don't really feel like I need one that big, especially because I have such a large collection and it's really difficult to find unique shades that I don't already have) so I went with one of the 5 pan palettes, #04.

The 5 pan palettes come in white plastic compacts that feature a clear lid so you can see the shades inside. It's fairly slim so it's easy to store.

Natasha Denona Eyeshadow Palette in 04

Palette #04 features Aura, a metallic white gold; Cool Bronze, a metallic golden bronze; Oxide, a metallic rust; Cool Plum, a brown with plum undertones and a satin finish; and Moonstone, a metallic rose gold.

First of all, the color selection in this palette is absolutely stunning -- and right up my alley. All of the shades complement one another beautifully, so you can do a look that uses all of them. But it's also possible to do a look with just a two or three of the shades as well. I really enjoy that versatility.

From l. to r.: Aura, Cool Bronze, Oxide, Cool Plum, Moonstone

The shadows are also incredibly pigmented. With the exception of Cool Plum, which has more of satin finish, the shades are all metallic and you get really rich, intense color from them. Cool Plum is a little bit more on the sheer side, but it builds up very easily.

The texture of the metallic shades is creamy, but they do feel a little bit chunkier than some other metallic shadows I've tried (like the new Tarte Tarteist Metallic Shadows, which are so smooth and creamy! I promise a review shortly.).

 However, the chunkiness doesn't really seem to affect the shadows' performance. They apply and blend easily, and have a really intense look on the eyes.

From l. to r.: Aura, Cool Bronze, Oxide, Cool Plum, Moonstone

The one drawback to the Palette #04 is that with the exception of Cool Plum, all the shades are metallic so the look can be a little dramatic. I find that it helps to incorporate a couple of matte shades to balance out all the metallic shades.

I think all of the shades in the palette are lovely, but Moonstone is my absolute favorite. It's just such a gorgeous rose gold color that really brightens up the lid.

All in all, I really like these shadows and this particularly color selection. I wouldn't say this is the best shadow formula I've ever tried, but I definitely think they're worth the less than $10 per shadow that they go for in the palette.

You can find both the 5 pan and the 28 pan palettes on Beautylish and the Natasha Denona website.

Have you tried the Natasha Denona Eye Shadow Palettes? Which one is your favorite?