Eyeshadows are my absolute favourite type of makeup, I’ve never been a fan of single shadows, I’m definitely a palette girl. I noticed recently I’ve built up quite a collection of mini palettes; they’re great for dipping your toe into a new brand (especially an expensive high end one) and of course finding the perfect mini to take with you on your travels.
Read on to see my mini palette collection, and mini review of each palette!
Too Faced // Peanut Butter and Jelly & Natural Eyes // RRP £24.99 each
Too Faced isn’t a brand I want to purchase from anymore for personal reasons, but I used to be OBSESSED. I have two of the mini palettes, each with 9 shades. I really love the Natural Eyes one, it’s great for an everyday basic eye look, it also has a really pretty highlight shade (for my skin tone) so it’s so useful that it can be used for more than just eyes. I was intrigued by the bright pop of purple in the Peanut Butter palette, but honestly I never really reach for this one.
Urban Decay // Petite Heat and Mini Honey Palette// RRP £26.00
I haven’t ever tried that much from Urban Decay, crazily I never even bought a Naked palette until this year (SO late to the party, I know). Honestly the Petite Heat is brilliant. I wasn’t ever that keen to buy the full size but this tiny compact palette is the perfect travel buddy if you love rust tones. The Honey palette came as part of a Limited Edition set and can’t be purchased alone. The lesser value is evident in the cardboard packaging but the shades are so pigmented, unfortunately I feel the yellow tones don’t particularly compliment my eyes or skin tone, so I may give this away to a friend.
Natasha Denona // Mini Star and Sunset Palette // RRP £22.00 each
The mini sunset was my first foray into Natasha Denona and I’ve been in love ever since. Although tiny I don’t find the packaging that secure so I don’t tend to travel with these, but I love the colours in both and I would highly recommend either if you want to try this pricey formula without making too much of a dent in your bank account.
Milani // Everyday Eyes Earthy Elements // Price varies – no longer sold from Milani
I’ve had this palette a while, something I bought when I was starting to try different brands and get more into makeup. It’s very neutral but the shades are very pigmented and blend well, however due to everything in my collection I don’t tend to reach for it very often.
Charlotte Tilbury // The Vintage Vamp // RRP £40.00
This gorgeous quad was a lovely gift and my first venture into Charlotte Tilbury shadows. Despite the excitement at receiving it I found I never used to reach for it, finding it difficult to work with. As my blending skills have improved, I find this quad much easier to work with now, however I don’t quite know if the price is worth it for four shadows, the quality isn’t as good as the bigger palette I have since purchased from the brand. I think they have revamped all or most of the quad palettes now so I bet the formula has probably improved since I got this!
Huda Beauty // Mauve Obsessions // RRP £25.00
This is the one and only Huda product I have and I was really impressed with the formula. I’ve been very tempted by numerous of the other mini 9 pan palettes, but yet to purchase. I love all the shades in here, especially the shimmery pink shades. Again, this is one I don’t find travels that well due to the cardboard packaging and soft, almost crumbly, formula of some of the shimmers. If you love these tones, I would say this is definitely worth it.
Tarte // Tartelette Flirt Palette and Glam on The Go // RRP £19.00
I have quite mixed feelings about the few things I’ve tied from Tarte, but generally it’s not a brand that excites or interests me. The difference in formula between these two palettes is crazy, one being VERY good and one really quite poor. The Tartelette Flirt mini is the perfect night or weekend away palette when you need something quick and easy, the shades are so pigmented and the shimmer shades are so soft and look amazing, the easiest palette to create a soft smokey eye. The formula of the other palette just doesn’t feel like the same brand. The shadows are OK but when you have a fairly sizable makeup collection there’s nothing about this palette that makes me want to use it. I don’t think you can actually even buy it anymore, not a bad thing!
Viseart // Petite Pro 2 // RRP £25.00
Another expensive brand where buying a mini was the perfect opportunity to try without spending TOO much money. I definitely gravitate towards pink and purple shades but the neutral tones in here make it really wearable. The shadows are really soft and feel like good quality, however I’m not blown away so don’t feel tempted right now to buy a bigger palette right now. This is probably the tiniest mini in my collection and it even has a tiny mirror to match! The packaging, although cardboard, feels really good quality and I love how it unfolds.
Fenty Beauty // Snap Shadows Peach and Deep Neutral // RRP £21.00
These Fenty palettes are my latest edition to the mini’s collection. To be honest I was really interested in trying more from the brand, I don’t think the shades are anything that unique. Even so I really enjoy the shade selection in each and I would happily travel with these and still be able to create a variety of looks. I’m not convinced these are quite worth the price tag, as I’m not blown away by the formula.
Do you have a favourite mini palette that always goes away travelling with you? I’d love to know!
Talk Soon x
June 14, 2020 @ 2:24 pm
I love these mini palettes. I don’t tend to stray much with my eye-shadow so something small like this would suit me well 🙂 Some lovely shades here! xxx
June 14, 2020 @ 8:52 pm
I agreed with so many of your assessments! I ended up giving away my CT quad (yet somehow I still want to try the Pillow Talk quad LOL). I have a mini 9-pan from the MAC x Aladdin Collection that is a total fave!! It’s basic, but pretty lol!
July 11, 2020 @ 1:36 am
I really like mini palettes and unless you wear the same eyeshadow palette every day, it feels like it takes you ages to hit pan on palettes, so mini ones are great to ensure you’re not being wasteful. I have the Huda Beauty Coral Obsessions Palette which I honestly adore. The formula and colour story is unreal, so I’m not surprised you love your mauve one. I’d love to try a Natasha Denona Palette but the mini eyeshadow palettes never really inspire me. However, your one actually looks pretty cute!