July 19, 2012

Victoria’s Secret The Nakeds Eye Palette Review & Swatches

Ahhhh the moment you’ve all been waiting for! Is the Victoria’s Secret The Nakeds Eye Kit Palette worth it?

This $28 palette features a slick little face plate that could get your blood pressure way up. Who doesn’t love brilliant packaging? Housing 10 shimmering shades of nude shadow, a brush for application, and an eyeliner pencil plus a how to get the look guide this one seemed like a hot pick for Fall.

Is it?

No.

Sorry.

Here’s the scoop….

Visually, Victoria’s Secret did an excellent job with the packaging here. This is a flip close palette that has a faux croc-like feel with a mirrored face plate that simply states “The Nakeds”. It’s pricey looking, it’s pretty, and it’s very appealing to those us that put great importance on packaging. It’s a little bit of a magnet for fingerprints which disturbs an anal person like myself.

Lord knows they must have spent the entire budget to create the outside packaging alone as it really is a nicely made palette.

Inside they did cheap things up a little bit as the shadows are laid out on a plastic tray. I wasn’t thrilled about this and particularly was displeased when two of the shadows popped out of the wells easily. I almost broke the two black shades as I opened it one day and both we’re laying loosely in their wells. Now they do have a metal casing so if you’re the type that likes depotting, these will easily pop out. I dislike that they paid such a great deal of attention to the outer packaging but got a little lazy with the inside.

The Nakeds…that’s a little misleading. I get more of a taupe feel from these shades than I do a “naked” or “natural” one. Perhaps Urban Decay has conditioned us into believing all naked shades should be made up of warm browns, rich bronzes, and gorgeous golds but…maybe not because I’ve always commonly associated the naked/natural look with those shades so I was kinda disappointed that these shades aren’t what I would dub naked. The shades start out with cooler, pastels of peach, cream, and pink and they graduate to sultrier shades of taupe, brown, and black. I feel like the shades aren’t balanced as on one hand you have shades to create a completely nude look and on the other you have shades to use in a smoky lid. Granted, you might think it’s wonderful as you have a variety of colors for either a nude eye or a smoky one. However, if you’re buying for a natural/naked look I do think the introduction of the smokier shades could prove disappointing.

I don’t feel like the formula is anything to rave too hard about. They do swatch with a ton of frost but don’t write them off for that reason alone. I was a little scared on first swatch but I applied and they apply with a silky almost velvet-like texture. There isn’t a ton of glitter or shimmer or sparkle here either (outside of the matte black which has chunky silver glitter) actually most of the shades have a touch of a sheen but not sparkle.

For me the formula is a toss up. It’s smooth, it blends easily, shades seem to play nice together, and they do have decent pigmentation but they lack any pop. They just seem so terribly bland and the formula feels terribly uneventful to me. I can’t rant about how terrible the formula is because there is some quality here. I just didn’t really like them. They had a faint chalkiness to them that just didn’t sit well on my eye lid. Victoria’s Secret did take time out to name each shade which I am thankful for. Too many smaller house brands put out palettes and fail to name the individual shades inside them so it’s a refreshing and nice change to have a name for each color.

They also include a brush and a liner. I think the brush is absolutely useless and I probably don’t need to go into great detail about why, just look at the photo. The liner isn’t too bad. I’ve tried creamier but it has decent pigmentation and applies easily enough.

At $28 I think the price isn’t friendly at all. I can use that money for something far higher end and get far better quality along with it. The shades are .02 oz versus Urban Decay’s Naked Palette at $50 for 12 shades of shadow at 0.05 oz each. Victoria’s Secret should consider pricing it at around $15. For me, it’s worth like $12 but most definitely not near $30.

Now I do think if you loved the NYX Butt Naked Palette this might be a tempting pick up. I also think it’s appealing for taupe lovers as that’s the look you’re getting here (although I went a little different in one of my looks below).

For me, it was a let down. The formula is sub-par at best, the price isn’t terribly appealing, and the over looks you can create are boring for me.

This one just wasn’t a love.

No likey!

Sorry VS, I typically enjoy your makeup but this I didn’t love.

Tried it?

Do share!

I’d love to hear your thoughts!

I purchased this item.

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‘.

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Comments

  • Cj

    Hey Muse I has some news!

    Lipstick queen is now being sold @ Nordstrom

    Aaaaand

    Jane iredale just released a bb cream (along with a primer) that apparently has real bb cream coverage!

    • the Muse

      I heard about JI’s BB Cream w00t! ;-D was going to post later today! AHHHH awesome on Lipstick Queen that means Free Shipping YES!

      • Cj

        Yep! I’m gonna get backups of the jean queen lipstick and gloss!

        • the Muse

          SMART! ;-D particularly since they are such a bitch to find. her site used to link to neimans (or maybe saks?) and it was never around!

          • Abbi

            Ulta had the Jean Queen lipstick and gloss advertised in a recent mailer (and I was interested but decided maybe it was gimmicky and probably not as good as advertised. Now ya’ll are making me wish I had taken advantage of that 20% off they had over the weekend!! Is it really that great that I need it in my hoard??? (I already know I’m sold on it now!!) thanks 🙂

          • the Muse

            abbi it really is an incredible gloss/lipstick! such a great universal shade of pink!

    • Tammie

      Cj you are my freaking hero. Now I can FINALLY get my paws on that Jean Queen lipstick!!!! *sparkles*

    • Tammie

      (Needless to say I’ll be picking up both the gloss and the lipstick when I get paid tomorrow)

  • Kaitlin

    No. Just…no. This is rather disappointing, especially the fact that two shades almost popped out! I’d rather save my money for something higher quality. Thanks for the great review, Muse!

    • the Muse

      my pleasure kaitlin, it just wasn’t there for me….I’ve seen far better from VS, this just seems sorta cheesy.

  • danielle

    i’m glad i didn’t pick this up! when you first posted about it, i was lukewarm on it, but you sold me on not bothering to pick it up..i’m pretty content with by UD and The Balm naked palettes so I will skip this one..thanks! 🙂

    • the Muse

      I think both of those are FAR nicer Danielle. You really don’t need it. I know you were patiently waiting for this review, apologies for the delay. ;-D

  • Gina

    Thanks for the review. I am skipping this. The colors are too cool toned for me anyway. I don’t like that the packaging is virtually identical to the UD2 palette.

  • Caitlin

    I agree with Gina–a bit too cool. I like taupe, but there’s too much mauvey stuff in there. Also, it looks like the frost monster sneezed on the whole thing.

  • Lauren

    I was drooling over the pictures of the exterior of the palette. It’s absolutely stunning. Such a shame the inside packaging and product don’t match up. Thank you for saving me money!

    Also, laughing at Caitlin’s comment – frost monster. HAHA! Love it.

    • the Muse

      lauren it really is nicely done. the face plate is lovely. It’s a little light but it still has a luxe feel to it. Inside it’s nicely padded in black with a nice mirror but why they ended up using a plastic try is beyond me!? my pleasure ;-D they actually aren’t too bad on frost. They swatch frosty but apply quite differently ;D

  • Winni

    Aaaaaand thx for killing that lemming for me! Imma save my $$ for the new UD palette!

  • Melissa

    They had one of these open in the store and it was missing 3 shades.I wasn’t turned off because testers get messed up easily. They had 3 left and I opened one waiting in line to check and sure enough cracked icky mess. I skipped.

  • Lulle

    Wow, the outside packaging IS really gorgeous! Now, for the color selection, I actually like it, nothing exciting but nice everyday shades. But if the texture is only so-so then it’s definitely not worth the price. Thanks for the review!

    • the Muse

      my pleasure lulle! I think if you like the color range you might just feel you like the formula, it isn’t TOO bad.

  • Kate

    I was thinking that this might be a nice gift for some teens in my life. But you have just saved me some money. Thanks!

  • SJG

    A bunch of those shades (the peach, the pinks, the taupe and the gray) look EXACTLY like the shades in the “Style” palette of 12 shades I got at Sally Beauty Supply for $1. I wouldn’t be surprised if they are, only it sounds like the Sally packaging is a lot better.

  • Beauty and the Scientist

    This palette looks like a mix of NYX’s Bohemian Rhapsody and Champagne & Caviar palettes.

  • Tiffany Martin

    Terrible, I’d never buy something that washed out. Much prefer your new nars palette review!

  • Jennie

    I was looking forward to getting this palette. I liked the idea, loved the packaging, but this looks very disappointing now. I’ll skip this one.

  • Emily

    Sadness 🙁 I think the colors are pretty but if the formula is only so-so I’d rather go for a palette with higher quality shadows. And in all honesty that brush looks almost like it would be painful on the delicate skin of the eyelid (maybe I’m paranoid though..)

  • GREG’S girl!!!

    Hello Muse!!! I don’t like this!!!….I may get the Urban Decay palette later!! Luv ya and have a blessed one!!!!

    • the Muse

      i felt the same way greg’s girl, just wasn’t all that great 🙁 you as well <3!

  • Paris B

    Wow the palette cover does remind me of the Naked2 palette. Pity it didn’t live up to the hype.

  • Corina

    O man. I have yet to see this in person but just by the looks of it, the colors kinda look too glittery abd it kibda defeats the purpose of having a natural look makeup (thus the name, nakeds) siigh.. really nice packaging tbh but kinda disapponting..