Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette Review & Swatches

Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette ($24) is a new, limited edition aquatic eyeshadow palette that the brand recently launched. You might recall that last year Tarte pulled an April Fool’s Day and said they’d be introducing a Tartelette Icy Betch Eyeshadow Palette which included 12 aquatic shades. People were pretty disappointed this was only a joke! Tarte finally saw the potential behind releasing a palette like this but they waited an entire year and almost to the day they announced that there would be an Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette on the way and no, this time it wasn’t a joke!

Sadly, we aren’t getting the Tartelette Icy Betch Eyeshadow Palette they pranked us with which was disappointing for a lot of people as that palette is actually a lot better than the one we did get! Shrug! I guess they might be testing the waters for a palette like this and seeing how their consumers will react to it before actually doing something bigger in size. The Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette we are getting is smaller holding only nine shades instead of twelve and it also includes one highlighter versus the joke palette that contained twelve eyeshadows and no highlighter.

It’s an interesting release for Tarte and very much outside their comfort zone but the brand’s been making strides to get a lot more colorful in 2019 as we’ve seen from the Remix Pro Eyeshadow Palette as well as the recently launched Adelaine Morin Eye & Cheek Palette.

I’m not really sure who they are trying to channel with this palette. They seem like they want to go with a Game of Thrones-like theme especially since Jen did an entire tutorial for the palette dressed up in a Mother of Dragon’s-like wig. Or feels more Elsa/Frozen to me though…! Maybe Tarte’s just hasn’t really broken the awesome zone enough to enter the cool realm of Game of Thrones so, I’m associating this with more Frozen than Daenerys!

Ok, so, obviously I’m getting WAY too old because the name just makes me roll my eyes so hard. Icy Betch? Really? Ugh. I’m not really a hardcore feminist so, I don’t really find the word bitch or betch (eye roll) offensive in the context they are trying to use it in. But that opinion will vary from person to person and some people may find the name offensive. I will say I loved they named the shades after some bad asses (I refuse to call them bitches as that would be offensive) like Veronica and Heather who doesn’t love a good Heathers nod? Regina is there too! And Georgina Sparks! Blair made it to for the Gossip Girl fans!

One thing I found very interesting relating to the name is the fact that the outer packaging has the name “Icy Betch” printed on the side of the palette in smaller letters but not on the cover itself. I do WONDER if this was intentional for sale purposes. Are they concerned people will find the term offensive? That mom’s won’t buy it for their younger daughters or sons if they see “betch” printed in big letters across the front? It was sort of strange to not see the name splashed across the packaging in bigger letters.

The palette itself does have the name printed on it though. Speaking of which the crackling purple, blue design of the palette is really presented nicely! And I appreciate the larger mirror as well! Although, those that like a more uniformed design will struggle with the eyeshadow wells with which vary in size. They have six square wells, one larger well for the highlighter, and three liner-like wells (I used these as eyeshadows and as liners). The palette is made in the USA and has a chocolate-y vanilla fragrance.

The eyeshadows are dominated by matte shades. Four of the shades are “luster-impact” eyeshadows aka they are a satiny formula that’s dense yet buttery in texture and apply and blend well. And five are matte shades. I struggled a little with Veronica and Heather, both of which lacked pigment. The mattes are dense and they are best used as accent shades since they do apply a bit patchy all over the lid but act wonderfully when paired up with the satiny shades.

Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette Swatches (Georgina, Miranda, Cheryl, and Aria)

Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette Swatches (Veronica, Becky, Blair, Heather)

Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette Swatches (Vivian and Regina)

One thing to note about this palette is a lot of the looks and shades are similar to ones you can find in the Tarte High Tides & Good Vibes Eyeshadow Palette. If you have High Tides I’d advise against purchasing Icy Betch. The two palettes DO compliment each other really nicely but at least three of the shades are easily duped in High Tides. Dive In, Surf�s Up, Deep Blue from High Tides look exactly like Cheryl, Heather, and Aria.

This palette is it reminds me a lot of Urban Decay Naked Heat. Urban Decay Naked Heat is an interesting palette but it really lacks a lot of contrast and transitional shades. I’ve always felt the need to bring in other eyeshadows and palettes to create a complete look using the Urban Decay Naked Heat Eyeshadow Palette. And I feel the same about Icy Betch! It just lacks a good color selection. The colors are all run together and it’s difficult to transition shades as they all look like the same shade of teal on my eyes. Especially during the blending process! Everything just runs together! I felt forced to bring in items from my eyeshadow collection to get a good contrasting look.

The highlighter is really for me. It’s a cooler white that has a white gold undertone. I used it to accent the inner corners of my eyes and my highbrow but didn’t love it on my face. The formula is a bit frosty that might be why I didn’t love it. It applies and blends out well but if you have drier skin it might gather around and look patchy so do prime well prior to application!

There’s fun to be had here and at $24 the price isn’t too bad to indulge especially if you like aqua and teal shades! Yeah, you might be getting some dupes especially if you have a lot of Urban Decay in your stash or you just love a good aqua eyeshadow! I actually liked this palette and I can see myself using it for some funky Summer looks!

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