MUA Immaculate Collection Palette

A couple weeks ago I stumbled up a coupon code for MUA that offered not only 35% off but free shipping as well. Not wanting to miss out on free international shipping (which can add up mighty fast) I took that as an opportunity to haul a few of the Nail Constellations (post soon!) I realized that I didn't have much in my cart, so I threw in an eyeshadow palette. Can't go wrong with a few more eyeshadows.... can you?

MUA Immaculate Collection Palette

'MUA Pro's fantastic collection of 24 highly pigmented eye shadows with both matte and shimmer finish to suit every tone and taste. This must have beauty bargain offers ladies a unique palette containing a selection of the hottest new A/W fashion forward eye shadows as well some of MUA’s best selling much loved shades from brown shimmer tones to nude and natural hues.'

Normally, when I choose a palette, I put quite a bit of thought into. I have to know that I'll use at the very least 85% of the shades in it, or else, it's a no go. I could have gone for a more neutral MUA palette, but I opted to be a bit wild. With 24 shades there had to be at least a handful of shades for me to love.

The palette itself, is all plastic. It's light in hand, but seems sturdy enough that it won't immediately crack and should stand up to normal use. The lid is clear, which is quite useful, as you can see what you've got with just a glance. Of course, this also comes with an obligatory foam applicator. My immediate thought is always 'toss it' but in this case you may want to hold onto it (more on that soon.)

 1st Row (over primer)

 2nd Row (over primer)

 3rd Row (over primer)

Out of the shades, this palette contains five mattes with the remainder falling into a shimmer/satin category. The individual shades don't have names, but are numbered based on the order they appear in the palette. Boo. I like names. Anyhow, the mattes are.... meh. Not the absolute worst that I've tried, but they don't make me wish for more. They can be built up and are useable, they just don't have a ton of pigmentation and are a bit chalky. Surprisingly, the white matte shade performed the best.

The remainder of the palette, being shimmer/satins, were all, for the most part, very pigmented and creamy to the touch. They swatched easily, but when I started to actually use them, they proved to be a bit difficult to use. While they're essentially powder shadows, they are so creamy, they almost act like creams, making them almost impossible to pick up with a fluffy style brush. I found that a flatter, firmer brush worked best.

After using this palette, I learned a few things that might be helpful to know:

• Pat shadows on with a flat style brush. Some shades were tad crumbly (crumbly yet creamy, an odd combo...) and patting yielded less fallout.
• Blend minimally. My first look was an utter mess as these get muddy if you blend too much. Try and apply all colour where you want it first and blend gently as a final step.
• For best results, stick to simple looks were blending multiple colours isn't necessary. You get the best of the shadows this way. I quite like my first look using only shade #12 (a champagne) and shade #19 (a deep green).

Overall, there are some great shadows in this palette - the last shadow, a vibrant purple, is quite stunning and reminds me of MAC Stars and Rockets- but it's not without its... Not problems per-say, particularities, one might say. It's not bad to have on hand, but it isn't a must own. I've heard great things about other MUA palettes, so I wouldn't pass up trying others, add they're so inexpensive I don't mind if I only use half of the shades. In this case, I'll likely only use 66% of them (yes, I did the math.) Do you have this palette? Which MUA products do you love?