Urban Decay - Sustainable Shadow Palette

With the recent release of the long awaited Naked 2 palette I thought I'd venture into Debenhams and House of Fraser and see what all the Urban Decay (UD) hype is about. My only brush with the brand in the past was a tube of blue glitter which I had to throw out on account of the '12m' life on the bottom of the tube but having seen the concession stand I am truly in love with the edgy packaging, the variety of palettes on offer and of course I am eager to try out the products that the blogosphere raves about (need to find some pennies and decide: Do I Naked, or Naked 2?).
I ummed and ahhed over the variety of palettes, they were all so pretty, namely the Mariposa (a metal case with a gorgeous butterfly on the front) and the Book of Shadows, but settled with the Sustainable Shadow Palette, which I purchased for £27. On reflection that's really quite expensive for 10 mini shadows but I feel that UD has a sort of cult style follower status and it's a brand that simply must be present in everyone's make-up collection. (And the quality and colours are amazing so I felt justified!)















The packaging of this palette fits in with the overall feel of UD, it's quirky, timeless and fashionable. It suggests to me that UD's make-up is designed to be played with, mixed up and had fun with and this is something I embrace wholly. I love the sturdy, sustainable, and eco-friendly bamboo box, which covers the eyeshadows in a swivel lid motion. I know that UD pride themselves on being cruelty free, they don't test on animals and each of their make-up brushes is cruelty-free which fits the theme of this palette nicely. I am all for the eco sustainability and wish that many brands would embrace this more. The outer packaging of the Sustainable Shadow Box is even recycled and of course can be recycled again once you remove the palette.

Big picture for the colours: there are ten, four are browny golden shades which I thought was perhaps a bit much to include the same colours in a smaller palette, and the rest are a mixture of glitter and matte shades. I do like all of the shades, but for a die-hard UD junkie perhaps this palette doesn't provide the best of their shades like other palettes would do, and so I think this palette is better for someone who is starting to venture into the brand and is looking for a good quality eyeshadows to start out with (which is exactly what I wanted!). I do love the inclusion of a brush and a mini Eyeshadow Primer Potion and when my Benefit 'Stay Don't Stray' runs out I shall be purchasing the Eyeshadow Primer Potion, love it - my eyeshadow didn't move an inch all day which I believe is down to the quality and pigment of the shades and of course the use of the primer.

 I admit that I'm the kind of girl who wears striking eyeshadow during the day and doesn't change much for nights out, but hey my eyes deserve a dressing up daily!
I always wear three different colours, which match a part of my outfit (here my purple cardigan was inspiration) and move up towards my brown dark to light. The three shadows here are 'Flash' on my lid, 'Midnight Cowboy Rides Again' in the crease and then 'Vzi' on my brow bone. Team that with layers of Lancome 'Doll Eyes' and Benefit 'They're Real' mascaras, Soap & Glory eyeliner and that was the first Urban Decay look I created for myself. What do you think?

Urban Decay concessions can be found in House of Fraser and Debenhams stores nationwide and online.