I know, I know there have been a gajillion reviews of the Gwen Stefani x Urban Decay collaboration and this post is just a drop in the ocean at this point, but I wanted to do this anyway. Who knows, maybe I’ll even say something different about it!
I very generously gifted this palette to myself just after Christmas and I’ve been playing with it for a little while, so I think I’ve got a really good understanding of how it works for me. It came with samples of 4 of the lipsticks from the collection, so I wanted to swatch and show those too.
I’m sure we’re all familiar with how cute the packaging is and the general layout of this palette by now. It’s really sturdy and a lot heavier than I expected! The palette is mainly light-medium neutrals with a variety of finishes – but there are a few darker shades and splashes of colour thrown in for good measure.
In all honesty, the first three shades don’t really inspire me all that much. While they all have different finishes and slightly different tones, I find them all to be quite interchangeable. They’re all really pretty inner corner highlights, but that seems to be the only way I like to use them. I’ve tried one or two of them on the lids, but I just don’t like a lid that bright. However, I love Steady on the lid – it’s the perfect shimmery peach to compliment my eye colour and it has a beautiful sheen. Punk is one of my favourite shades in the palette, I’m really drawn to dark burgundy, chocolate shades and this one is great for creating a smoky eye, which I’ve done a few times with this palette.
The middle row is way more interesting to me than the top row. Baby is a gorgeous champagne pink – one of my favourite types of colour to wear on the lid. I’m really impressed by the variety of crease and transition shades here. Anaheim, Stark and Zone offer everything you need – cool tones, warm tones, deeper shades and lighter shades. To be honest, these are the shades I’ve used the most so far. Serious is a bit of an uninteresting shade for me, it’s just a dark brown-toned grey. In the pan, it looks like it has some sparkle in the pan, but that doesn’t really translate on the eye.
Pop and Harajuku were kind of disappointing for me, Pop is a little chunky and I find the glitter doesn’t really stick to my eye. Harajuku just looks so much brighter in the pan. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a pretty baby pink, but it just doesn’t pack the punch it looks like it would. I love the last three shades, they’re my other favourite shades. Danger is a gorgeous deep navy with a medium blue shift. It looks beautiful on the lower lash line and I can’t wait to create a smoky eye with it. 1987 is the best gold shadow I’ve ever used, it’s so incredibly bright and metallic. Lastly, we have Blackout out, a super deep dark matte black that’s crazy pigmented, definitely one of the best black shadows available.
As I mentioned earlier,the palette came with samples of 4 of the lipsticks in the collection, there’s a good variety of shades and finishes included and I’m really excited about some of them!
Firebird (Cream) – I absolutely love this shade. It’s a vibrant fuschia with a slight blue shift. It’s so smooth and creamy and drop-dead gorgeous. I definitely recommend this one!
Ex-Girlfriend (Sheer) – This is a pretty standard sheer nude. I feel like you could achieve the same effect with a lip butter type product. I don’t think this shade is really worth the hype.
714 (Mega Matte) – A pinky red in the mattest of matte formulas. It’s a nice shade but I just can’t get along with the formula, I find it too drying and it tugs a little on the lips. On the other hand, it didn’t budge at all. So it all comes down to how dry of a lip product you can take.
Rocksteady (Cream) – Another beautiful shade that I think is a must-have. It’s a deep berry-red with a hint of sheen. It’s incredibly flattering on.Again, this one is smooth and creamy and absolutely delightful.
Okay, so overall, I like the eyeshadow palette but I don’t love it. There are some amazing shades in there but also quite a few that just don’t wow me. It’s nothing to do with the quality- the quality is great – I just think I prefer deeper and more colourful shades. It’s totally down to personal preference. With regards to the lippies, I’m obsessed with the cream formula shades, they’re gorgeous. I just don’t think I need the other two in my collection. It’s a great collection overall, there are definitely stand out pieces.
You can find the full Urban Decay x Gwen Stefani collection here.
What do you think? Are you totally in love with this collection or are you resisting the hype? I’d love to know.
See you next time!
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