Review: Wet n Wild Fergie Summer 2014 Limited Edition Centerstage Photo Focus Eyeshadow Palettes

Press Sample

The Fergie Centerstage Summer 2014 Limited Edition Collection is now available at Walgreens stores nationwide, and everything except for the To Reflect Shimmer Palettes is on sale for 25% off now through May 31st. To see the entire collection, click here. I received the full collection from Wet n Wild and I'll be reviewing everything in the days to come. But I thought I'd start with the Photo Focus Eyeshadow Palettes since there's been a lot of buzz about these! Take a look...

Wet n Wild Fergie Summer 2014 Limited Edition

Centerstage Photo Focus Eyeshadow Palettes

(retail: $3.99 each, 0.19 oz, available exclusively at Walgreens stores)

Purple Drank


Swatched with the accompanying sponge-tip applicator on bare skin, no primer

Purple Drank is a mixed bag in terms of the quality of the shadows. The first two shades above (the shimmers) are lovely and nicely pigmented. The mauve shimmer in particular has some beautiful, fine gold glitter in it (sorry you can't really see that in my pic) and I can't recall WnW ever doing a shade quite like that before. As for the three purples, they're not dry, but they are hard and sort of waxy. Also, they apply inconsistently (you can see that they're streaky above, applied on bare skin). Over primer, I'm afraid they don't get that much better. I would only purchase this palette if you were drawn to the two shimmers. Unfortunately, the three matte purples get a pass from me.

Blue Eyed Soul


Swatched with the accompanying sponge-tip applicator on bare skin, no primer

Blue Eyed Soul really surprised me. With the exception of the blue, the shades without primer are very nicely pigmented and easy to work with (the blue is pretty sheer and it's also chunky, which causes some fallout during application). But the stand-out, must-have shade in this palette is that matte gray. I don't understand why good, pigmented matte grays are so hard to come by at the drugstore level, but they are. And this one is AWESOME. Here's proof:

I did not use any primer for this look. I applied the matte gray from lash line to crease using the accompanying sponge-tip applicator (I always use a sponge applicator with my matte shadows--they go on so much more smoothly and they retain their pigment better that way). Then I applied the blue shade in my outer "v", but it was quite sheer so I "pumped it up" by applying a bit of the black matte on top of it. I then used a fluffy blending brush and did a light dusting of the white shade on my upper crease and brow bone, just to blend everything together. I also applied a bit of the matte gray to my lower lash line.

This look lasted about four hours on me without primer before I started to see some fading, so I do suggest applying primer first. I used the Wet n Wild Fergie primer on a different day and the matte gray lasted 8+ hours before I started to see some fading.

Mixing Metals


Swatched with the accompanying sponge-tip applicator on bare skin, no primer

Mixing Metals is another very nice palette. In particular, that bronze shade is a SERIOUS metallic--my camera sort of flipped out due to how reflective it is, but I think you can see that it's definitely a metallic. The other shades are very nice as well, but for me they do require primer first. Worn without primer, they can be a bit sheer for my personally. Also, the texture of the last two shades was a bit dry and reminiscent of the original Fergie shadow palettes. 

No Filter

Swatched with the accompanying sponge-tip applicator on bare skin, no primer

No Filter is my favorite palette in the bunch, but that should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone who is a regular reader of this blog! I love my earthtones and neutrals, and this is a lovely mix of both mattes and shimmers. Every shade in this palette is a winner, even the one that's sheer (the cream color above). That shade makes for a nice blending shade when you want to tone down deeper shades, so it's very handy. The other four shades are very pigmented and apply quite nicely. The matte brown in particular is creamy and just lovely--here's a look I did using all but the black matte:

I used no primer for this look. First I applied the champagne shade to my lid. Then I applied the bronze shade on top of that, blending up into the crease. I then applied the brown matte to my outer "v" and then used a fluffy blending brush to apply the cream shade to my upper crease, blending upward, just to blend everything together. I also applied the brown matte to my lower lash line. 

Additional thoughts: For anyone who has been disappointed by the permanent collection Fergie Eyeshadow Palettes (I did not care for those either), you may be in for a pleasant surprise with these. I think that Wet n Wild has noticeably improved both the texture and pigmentation of the shadows in the Fergie summer collection, and several of these shades remind me of the original Coloricon shadows in terms of their buttery texture and great pigmentation. Yes, there are some duds (some of the shades are a bit dry, crumbly or weaker on pigmentation) but overall, a HUGE improvement over the original Fergie shadow palettes. I love them, with the exception of Purple Drank since only two of the five shades in that palette are worth owning, in my humble opinion. If you love matte grays, you kind of need Blue Eyed Soul, and I think the colors in Mixing Metals and No Filter speak for themselves.

FINAL VERDICT: Skip Purple Drank (unless you really like the two shimmers in that palette). Definitely consider Blue Eyed Soul, Mixing Metals and No Filter. Even if you're not a big fan of the Fergie shadow palettes, I think these will surprise you. There's a very noticeable improvement here in terms of texture and pigmentation, and I've been pleased with them after multiple uses. I do suggest applying primer first, just to lock everything into place (but I'm betting you would do that anyway!). 

Don't forget that these are 25% off at Walgreens stores nationwide, now through May 31st!

Do you own any of the Fergie Centerstage Summer 2014 Limited Edition Eyeshadow Palettes? I'd love to hear from you!

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. For more information, click here.