Review: New Wet n Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow Palettes

If there's only one thing that you're going to take away from this review today, I hope it's this: matte eyeshadow fans, you NEED one of these Wet n Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow Palettes. If you really trust me, you can just stop reading now and get one the next time you're at the drugstore. But if you're not fully convinced, by all means, please read this review! :)

As you all probably know by now, I received several different products from the Wet n Wild 2010 makeover to review (so you can expect more reviews to come), but these palettes were the first products (aside from the nail polishes!) that I had to immediately try:

Wet n Wild Color Icon Lust (with flash)

Lust (without flash)

I've mentioned many times on this blog that I have a hard time pulling off plums and purples, but that certainly didn't stop me from tearing into this palette. Especially when there are three lovely mattes and three lovely "effects shades" in each of these palettes. I don't know about you, but I think these shades are gorgeous, especially this little lovely:

I know there's a MAC shade that's very similar to this. Anyone? Anyone? What is the name of that darn shade?

Anyway, unlike the new Maybelline Plush EyeStudio palettes (click here for my review of those), I am VERY happy to report that the effects of these shadows are not surface-level only. When you swipe these for the first time, the prettiness does NOT disappear.

Here are some swatches on my arm:

And of course a close-up of the shimmers:

Now what you can't see is that the first "effects shade" at the top of this swatch (the cream shade), has teeny tiny silver sparkles blended throughout. So it's a matte with just a hint of specialness. The middle shade is that gorgeous black with tons of plum micro-glitter, and then the bottom shade is the deep blackish-silver shimmer (the only true frost in this palette).

So let's talk about those mattes, shall we? They're AWESOME! And this is coming from a longtime matte eyeshadow fan. Over the years, I've come to find that the best matte eyeshadows for me are Bobbi Brown, Avon, and MAC. Personally, those three brands give me the least amount of trouble when it comes to finicky mattes that sometimes need special attention when applied. If you're a matte eyeshadow person, you know that mattes can sometimes leave little ugly patches of inconsistent color on your lids, even if you're wearing a primer. So it is with all the excitement I have in me that I tell you that the mattes in these new Color Icon palettes are freaking AMAZING. They are buttery smooth and they glide across your lids like they were made especially for YOU. And the best part? I didn't need a primer with these babies. Seriously, I applied them to bare skin and they were perfection. So easy to blend, so easy to work with, I am amazed that WnW can sell them for so little money. Matte girls, you need these.

Oh and one word of advice about matte eyeshadows: In my experience of using matte shadows for oh, well, 20+ years, mattes apply best when you use a sponge-tip applicator. You can definitely use a brush for blending, but for initial application, try using the applicator that comes with this palette. It's great. Oh, and here's a pic of the applicators that come with each palette:

Let's move on to the other palette I received, which is Vanity:

Vanity (with flash)

(without flash)

Again, you get three matte shades on the left and three "effects shades" on the right. Ladies, I am straight up addicted to this palette. If you've an earthtone girl, you will love this one. It's just so versatile and like the other palette, you do not need a primer to get beautiful results and these babies last all darn day without a primer, even on my oily, crease-prone lids.

Here's a swatch on my arm:

Unlike the Lust palette, the three "effects shades" in Vanity are true frosty shimmers through and through. And I'm telling you, they can hold their own against MAC frosts any day of the week. In my humble opinion, they are just as shimmery, just as pigmented, and just as effortless to work with as MAC frosts (and I own a lot of MAC frosts, let me tell you). If I were blindfolded and someone handed me a brush loaded with one of these WnW frosts, and then handed me a brush loaded with a MAC frost, I would not be able to tell the difference when applying them to my lids.

And as for the mattes in Vanity, well, I am going to tell you something you may not like to hear, but I know I'm not alone in this because a dear reader echoed what I'm about to say in a recent comment. These mattes perform better than MAC mattes. There. I said it. And I mean it. Like I mentioned earlier, I'm a matte eyeshadow person and have been for over 20 years. I know my mattes, and these WnW mattes are pure perfection. I defy you to find a matte that is more buttery smooth, easier to apply and has better staying power than these. I have had several issues with MAC mattes in the past, and I have not had ONE issue with any of the mattes in either of these WnW palettes. The quality of these mattes just cannot be beat, which make the low price even more insane.

So like I said at the beginning of this review, if you're a matte eyeshadow fan, you NEED one of these palettes. And remember that the key to applying the mattes in the palette is to use the sponge-tip applicator that comes with them. I think you'll be amazed by the ease of application, the pigmentation, the quality and the staying power of these little eyeshadows.

As always I would love to hear your thoughts--and please chime in if you already own a new Wet n Wild eyeshadow palette!

A sample of this product was given to Nouveau Cheap for editorial purposes, either directly from the manufacturer or from the agency that works on behalf of the manufacturer. All reviews on NouveauCheap.blogspot.com are the honest opinion of its author and editorial samples do not, in any way, affect the outcome of product reviews.