Hey y’all! When I was in high school, I hoarded single eye shadows from Maybelline, MAC, and Covergirl. But, in the last 8 years or so, I feel like palettes have taken over the game.
Palettes have such pros and cons to me. The pros are the fact that you get a dozen or so shadows in a single compact, often for cheaper than you would get buying them all separately. Also you get an already curated group of colors you know will look good together in several different ways. But, on the flip side, sometimes you can’t spend $40-60 on a palette, or you’re only interested in one or two shades in the entire thing.
I get it. But I think overall, if you know how to navigate the insanely saturated world of eyeshadow palettes, you can wind up with a great collection you’ll go back to time and time again.
Here are my top 6 favorite palettes, both drugstore and high end. Happy blending!

Tartelette In Bloom by Tarte

Maybe my favorite palette ever! I love the shades in this palette and how they can be used for simple & clean looks for every day, but then you can use the dark burgundy or black to smoke things out a bit for night. Classic colors and such a great formula! This guy is totally worth your money, ten times over.

Buy it from Ulta here

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Paradise Enchanted by L’Oréal

Peach-scented eye shadow… are you skeptical? Because I was. But no joke, this palette is awesome. I love the colors, the shimmer shades are amazing, and the scent is actually really nice! There’s quite a bit of fallout, but I that’s not surprising with the price point and kind of odd packaging on this product (the shadows like sit on top of the plastic palette). I’m still loving it though, because the shades are so pigmented and blendable.

Buy it on Ulta’s website here

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Naked 3 by Urban Decay

Ah, you knew it was coming. Naked 3 is my old standby, and I can always reach for it when I want to do a quick look that I know will turn out well. I feel like I don’t branch out a lot into some of the colors into this palette, but I’m trying to give some of the glittery and deep shades a shot. But, regardless, this is a product I couldn’t live without.

Buy it from Ulta here

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Lovatics Demi by NYC

This palette is a sleeper for sure. It’s SO affordable, and I would definitely call it a dupe for the original Naked (which was a close runner-up in this post). These colors are surprisingly pigmented and the white shade is awesome to lay down before you get started building shadows. You can tell that the fallout is pretty heavy, but I don’t mind too much because the shadows are so buttery, you could blend it with your fingers.

Buy it on Amazon here

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Tarteist Pro by Tarte

I had an internal debate by including this, but hear me out. I don’t usually use solely this palette for a full look, but it has some undeniably amazing matte shades. The four shimmer shades aren’t my favorites (although the formula is great), but I love how the palette is designed to make things easy– each row is technically a “look,” which can make things super easy if you are being lazy or just don’t know what to do! I have a few staple colors in this palette that are totally worth the price tag. Plus, I love the huge mirror!

Buy it on Amazon here

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Flawless 3 by Makeup Revolution

Let’s start by saying I love Makeup Revolution products, and love their price tag even more. I was crushing hard on Naked Heat and the Tartlette Toasted palette, but wasn’t willing to shell out the money for either. So I found this guy, and it saved me so much money by giving me triple the shadows! They definitely aren’t the best quality eyeshadows and they take some layering, but I think this is a great dupe for some of the warmer-toned palettes out there. You get a ton more options, and the shimmers are great when used over a glitter glue or with a wet brush.

Buy it from Ulta here

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