Surrey Homes | SH31 | May 2017 |Restoration & New Build supplement inside

Palettes
Make-up
Josephine Fairley finds out whether the latest colour collections are
worth the investment, and how to choose the right one for you
Beauty
Twice a year, shiny, bright new toys
appear on the make-up
counters – or rather, the
beauty equivalent: palettes filled with
pretty, eye-catching unicorn-esque
shades, perhaps dustings of sparkle.
They are deeply, deeply seductive. And the
fact is, they’ll probably end up at the back
of the toy cupboard (a.k.a. the make-up
drawer), unplayed-with after an initial burst
of enthusiasm during which you discover
that emerald green, aqua or (heaven forbid)
glimmering pink really aren’t that easy to wear.
And if that isn’t the case – well, you’re probably 17.
But that’s no reason to give make-up palettes a
wide berth in general. They can be time- and
space-saving – if you choose carefully. I’m
sure I’m not the only woman who’s wasted
ridiculous amounts of time opening and closing
identical single shadows to try to find the
one I’m looking for because the identifying
label on the back has been scuffed off in my
make-up bag. So a palette which combines
all you need for an eye look, or better still
throws in the perfect tone of blusher, can
be just a little bit life-changing, actually.
But let’s set some guidelines, here. First
of all, never buy a palette because you like just
one or two of the shades. The whole line-up has
to float your boat – or you’ll find yourself
carrying round a chunky quartet in which
one corner’s been used down to the metal,
while carrying around the ‘excess baggage’
of the other three shades (and a heavy
mirror, to boot). Secondly, I sort of think
there ought to be a law that eye make-up is
only produced in neutral shades – browns,
taupes, greys, ivories and creams, maybe a soft
plum or two. The colours of actual shadows,
actually. It is almost impossible – unless you are
a professional make-up artist – to make brighter
colours, or even unusual ‘sludges’, sit well on the
skin. Therefore, any eye palette you decide to buy
should essentially feature neutral shades. (That’s not quite true of
lips: for lots of us, deep burgundies and reds can be a signature.)
I’ve swept my brushes over a lot of palettes, in my time – the
equivalent of kissing a lot of frogs – but have consistently had
success with Bobbi Brown. . Their counter should always be
your first port of call for palette-shopping and a
particular favourite of mine is the double-decker
Bobbi Brown Sultry Nude Eye & Cheek Palette,
£48, which features a great line-up of basics
with a complexion-awakening blusher on the
bottom ‘deck’. (It’s also a great starter set for a
teenager who you’re trying to keep away from
My Little Pony-like colours and textures.)
Adored by beauty editors everywhere,
meanwhile, are the Urban Decay Naked
palettes – the newest of which is the Naked3
Eyeshadow Palette, £39.50. With 12
shades it showcases everything you could
possibly wish for any look ranging from a
soft wash of barely-there neutral colour
right through to an intense smoky eye,
spanning smooth mattes to gleaming
metallics for an ‘accent’ of shimmer.
Probably impractical to lug around
– but nevertheless it is a complete
eye kit, in one – and the powders are
famously velvety and easy-to-blend, with
great staying power. As palette brushes
go (and they do usually go straight in the
bin), theirs offers good blendability, too.
Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Natural
Eyeshadow Palette, £TBC, is the most
brilliant new palette of what I call ‘weekend’
eyeshadows – a spectrum of five neutrals for
can’t-tell-it-from-real shadowplay when you want
a little extra help but rocking a seriously smoky
eye is going to be overkill. Four great nudes, in
a sexy Chanel
palette. Nothing – but nothing
– not to love about this (including, of course,
the beige double-C-ed packaging). And I’m also
loving Estée Lauder Pure Color Envy Sculpting
EyeShadow 5-Color Palette, £40, in Defiant
Nude – a completely brilliant selection of plushtextured
neutrals. Unlike most websites, by
the way, where you really don’t get a clue what
colours look like in reality, the photos of this
palette (which comes in several neutral options)
are really true to life if you check them out at esteelauder.co.uk.
If you can’t find a combination of tones that you like, the
alternative is to build your own palette. At the luxe end of
the spectrum, there is Chantecaille
Ma Palette – a glamorous
empty case that enables you to interchange any eight colours
from the Chantecaille collection including Shine Eye
129 wealdentimes.co.uk