Recently, on a trip to London, I picked up this palette that I’d been wanting for months; it’s my favourite out of all the Too Faced palettes, as I often like to play it safe with the eyes, using neutral-toned shades. This particular palette is called ‘Natural Eyes’ and just as the name suggests, it’s for ‘my-eyes-but-better’ looks. Too Faced is known for having brilliantly pigmented palettes with creamy, long-lasting formulas and all I can say is that this palette certainly lives up to that reputation. It contains 9 shades, which are split into 3 sections – Day, Classic and Fashion. Me being me, well I decided to mix it up didn’t I? Instructions? Pfft… Make-up is for creativity, not following the rules! The only downside I’ve found to this palette is the price tag – £32, rather normal for high-end beauty brands, but still rather expensive, considering my usual budget. Hey ho, I guess, you have to treat yourself once in a while!
So, below I’ve produced a day-time look for you, using solely this palette for shadow along with some other make-up-drawer staples. Take a look!
Alright, let’s focus on the eyes first. As I mentioned earlier, this taupe-day-look was created using entirely the Too Faced Natural Eyes Palette. The shades I used are indicated above; Heaven, Silk Teddy, Nudie, Cashmere Bunny, Honey Pot and Sexpresso. Nudie was used as a base colour to eliminate any redness or veins trying to make an appearance. Then, I used Cashmere Bunny and Sexpresso to cut the crease and contour the eyes, applying Silk Teddy to the centre of the eyelid afterwards. Finally, Heaven was used to highlight the brow bone and inner eye and Honeypot was gently applied to the lower lash line. I used various brushes from my Real Techniques Starter Set (£21.99) and Real Techniques Deluxe Gift Set (£30) to apply these shades.
After shadow comes liner – I prefer to line my upper lash line with my Rimmel Exaggerate Smoke’n’shine Eye Pencil (£3.99) before creating a wing with L’Oreal SuperLiner Perfect Slim (£6.99). This way I find it much easier to use a pen-style liquid liner without accidentally giving myself wings that cover my entire eyelid. Also, when drawing a wing, I like to start from the tip of the wing and work my way into the inner part of my eye.
Brows? You accustomed followers should know what I swear by by now! First I groomed the brows with Miss Sporty Just Clear Mascara (£2.99), a drugstore lifesaver. It’s basically the same as using a spoolie brush – I’m simply too lazy to buy one. Then, using light and small, hair-like strokes, I filled in my brows with MAC Brow Pencil in Lingering (£14.50). And, finally, I gave my brows another coat of clear mascara afterwards to set them. Although I’ve followed this routine for years, I’d love to hear of any other brow products that may change my ways!
Lastly, for the eyes is mascara, I always apply Benefit They’re Real Tinted Lash Primer (£18.50) before mascara as it helps to separate the lashes, giving you great definition in the end. This can be used alone, as well, for days when you want a more natural lash, but can’t quite face going bare. Afterwards, I wiggled a little Benefit Rollerlash (£19.50) through my upper lashes (the primer is enough for the bottom lashes) and tah-dah, there you have it, defined, length and curled eyelashes. I recommend conditioning your eyelashes with coconut oil every so often if you’re someone who regularly wears mascara – it will help them to stay strong and increase the rate of growth.
Now it’s time for the rest of my look, if you’re interested that is…
First up is the base – I used Benefit The Porefessional (£24.50) today as my pores have been particularly large recently, I don’t love the texture of it but it sure does it’s job. On top of this, I applied Charlotte Tilbury Magic Foundation in shade 1 (Fair). I picked up a sample of this whilst I was in London too; I’ve never used CT cosmetics before but from what I gather, everyone seems to love them. The foundation is surprisingly affordable compared to the rest of the range, in my opinion, retailing at £29.50 – I use it for days when I need a little more coverage than usual. Expect a review on this individual product coming soon! Next, I patted MAC Pro-longwear Concealer in NW15 (£17.50) onto areas of particular redness and blemishes and blended it using MAC 287SE brush (£23) and Real Techniques Detailer Brush. After concealer, I dabbed Benefit Ooh La lift (£17.50) on the under eyes to banish puffiness and Benefit High Beam (£19.50) along the top of my cheekbones to add some dimension to my face. This was then set with a light brushing of Laura Mercier Translucent Pressed Setting Powder (£26).
Next, let’s call them ‘face colour’ products. Firstly, I blended a little NYX HD Blush in Taupe (£7.99) just underneath my cheekbones as a subtle contour for my pale skin. Following this came my Emite Artist Colour Powder Blush in 108 (€19). This blush is amazing, it’s incredibly pigmented and it contours as well as adding a healthy flush of colour to the face. Then, just along where Highbeam was applied, I used my Real Techniques Highlighter Brush to apply MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle (£24) for a little sparkle.
And finally, the lips, seeing as eyes were neutral, I decided a subtle, but glossy lip colour would be the best option. For this, I used Benefit Hoola Ultra Plush (£14.50).
The Verdict – 9/10
There’s no doubt about it, this palette is better than MAC, Urban Decay and Clinique. I wouldn’t be surprised if it overruled most high-end eyeshadows. The formula for these shadows is truly like no other; they’re buttery but still last the whole day! Very easy to blend too. My only complaint is that the darker shimmery colours, such as Erotica and Chocolate Martini aren’t quite as pigmented as their matte counterparts. However, I would still recommend this to any lover of neutral eyes or even brown-toned smokey eyes. If you’re not willing to spend £32 then I would suggest the Makeup Revolution Redemption Palettes (£4) as a less creamy, less soft and slightly less long-lasting alternative.
There we have it – my review of Natural Eyes! What do you think of this palette? Would you like to see me try any other looks with it? Send me a comment to let me know!
Emilia x
p.s. I am considering purchasing some new eye brushes as I’m not sure my Real Techniques ones give me the best results. My budget is around £40 – what would you guys suggest?
Irregular Collection 