August 13, 2009

Tarte Femme Fatale Eye Palette Review and Swatches

Tarte is totally slaying me this Fall season with the introduction of not one but two palettes. Oh you do so know I can’t say nay to a Tarte Palette! Tarte Femme Fatale Eye Palette and Tarte Naturale Eye Palette should be winging their way into your Fall wish list for a dramatic or nude eye look!


Check out one of the two after the jump!

The two best parts about the Tarte Femme Fatale Eye Palette is the fact that’s it refillable (yup you heard me right) and it comes with quickie instructions for creating two looks. Interestingly enough the palette is made up of ten separate shades and gives instructions for using five shades of shadow per a look. Oh god, let me tell you, I made such a fantastical mess this morning attempting to pull off one of the two looks. I swear present me with five shadows and it’s like brain surgery…most I ever used was three…four is pressing it and five is living dangerously. Ahhh! Brain overload….BOOM! Sadly, I don’t have looks to share today but I’m attempting them again shortly and will post when I’ve gotten the knack of it.


The palette is a great piece as the refillable shades totally make it worthy of a pick up. Each shade is the standard Tarte size with a magnetic backing for slipping the colors in and out of the palette. The palette also includes a double ended eye liner pencil and a double ended brush. Something tickles me about the fact that it’s refillable. Not sure why I love that option so much but it’s just rather super don’t you think?


The Tarte Femme Fatale Eye Palette for more smoldering eye looks where as the other is for a more natural, softer look. This palette contains an array of deeper, richer shades. You can get away with pretty much using them all individually if you want but of course the fun is in mixing and matching ’em up. The palette is the traditionally royal purple shade that Tarte is known for. It’s a sturdy plastic with a wrap around of faux leather and golden spikes topping it. Quite chic and slick looking. Pretty decent for traveling as well since the plastic keeps everything snug although I’d wrap a rubber band around it for extra precaution when toting it around so it doesn’t flip open by mistake. The brush it comes with is very good. One end holds a crease and the other a standard eye shadow brush. Both are soft without shedding and pretty much will do the job of applying and blending with ease. The liner pencil included has two shades, emerald green and sparkling jewel blue.


I love that Tarte included instructions for creating two separate looks. I’ve noticed more and more US brands have embraced the technique of explaining how to achieve a desired look from a palette. Nothing worst than getting a beautiful palette home and just being clueless how to use it. The step by step instructions are made up of six steps and are pretty easy to follow. I’d probably have done an ok job of recreating each look if I didn’t have such a problem with the darker, bolder shades in the palette. But I shall continue to try, try again until my shadow application and blending techniques are at the greatness status, one can hope.


On the instruction cards the eye looks are a bluish, purple look and a golden green look. I honestly had a hard time figuring out how they created such great looks with these shades as it seemed heaps difficult. But like I said I stink at blending so could be me.

The palette is made up of ten shades as mentioned above. You’ll get (top row) a sheer pink blush, light gold, violet, smoky blue, and a shimmering onyx. On the bottom row you’ll get a shimmering light apricot gold, copper, bronze gold, green, and a reddish brown. Aside from the base shadows of pink and apricot (used as a color wash on the eye and prepping the eye area for the deeper shades) all the colors are deeply pigmented and pretty much have a shimmery finish. The two last shadows on the bottom and top row are the ones that are tricky for me as they are almost matte in texture so I had a time of it trying to blend correctly plus they are generally dark and difficult to work with for me. I really need practice with these guys.


I’m kinda psyched to perfect the looks and get them right. As I said I don’t have looks with the palette as of yet as I’m just in practicing mode but I’ll post when I do have them as I’m excited to try to dupe them correctly.

Overall, Tarte has a nice Fall Collection to add to your wish list. The palettes are a prime piece for me as I’m all about eye shadow but they have also released a new concealer and an eyeshadow primer as well which could become quick favorites for many.

The two palettes are worthy of a check out especially if you love Tarte and just adore color in general. The shadows are all a good healthy size so it’s quite a bang for your buck as you should know if you’ve indulged in some of Tarte’s incredible Holiday offerings.

Tarte Fall 2009 is available for purchase at Sephora and www.tartecosmetics.com If you sign up for there newsletter here you can get 30% off your order plus free shipping on $60 or more. Kinda a good deal if you’re wanting to haul Fall 2009.

Is Tarte on your Fall wish list?

What items are you interested in getting?

Tell it!

2 Comments

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Comments