Illamasqua Multi Facet Palette - is it worth the money?

Hi all, hope you're doing great! Today was a great day for Croatians that are into handball - our team just won the bronze medal in the European Men Championship! Yaaay! #proudtobecroatian :)

On to makeup: to answer the question in the title of this post, I will immediately say (a conditional) yes. Allow me to explain. This little palette was originally £45.00 and I don't think it is worth the money. However, if you find it on 'sale', you might get it for ridiculous price of £13.50. Which is, I won't lie, the only reason why I got it. There are two versions of this palette: 'Semblance' for darker skin tones and 'Aura' for lighter, paler people. Even though I am quite pale normally (I get darker during summer months), I went for 'Semblance', as I am usually more attracted to warmer, bronze colors.

This is what Illamasqua says about the Muti Facet Palette: Multi Facet Palette comes housed in a sleek, mirrored compact. Complete with a mini double ended angled and blending brush this features 8 'must have' shades to complete a full variety of eye and cheek looks. Use the double ended brush for eyes and brows and fingers for cheeks. With new Gleam in Mirage, best sellers Cream Pigment in Hollow, Eyebrow Cake in Thunder, Powder Blusher in Hussy and four beautiful Powder Eyeshadows (Slink, Dizzy, Tango, Obsidian) you can create a multitude of looks with just one palette.



Let's start with packaging: it consists of shiny (some people won't like this because it is prone to fingerprints), black plastic with the Illamasqua logo. Once you open it, there is a thin plastic insert filled in with cream and powder products. The design is sleek and the plastic seems durable. One thing I really don't appreciate is the thin plastic insert, it just looks and feels cheap. Regarding the products - I will immediately say I adore the cream products, but I think powder products (eyeshadows and blush) could be better. That might come as a surprise to you if you've read other reviews, which are usually very positive for this palette. 


The thing is, my opinion on this palette highly relies on the quality of products I've used in the past. As someone who uses Urban Decay Naked 2 (review here), M.A.C., Sleek (review here) and even Make Up Revolution (MUR) eyeshadows on a daily basis, I have to say Illamasqua eyeshadows are quite disappointing. Don't get me wrong, they are pigmented, they blend nicely and you can build them up, but they are just too powdery (like they consist of too much talc). I am used to buttery, almost creamy texture of my Urban Decay, M.A.C., Sleek and MUR eyeshadows, and these are not like that. That is the reason why I don't reach for this palette as often as I would like to.


This palette comes with a double-ended brush, that is perfectly usable and not bad at all. Especially I like the eyeliner angled brush for filling in my eyebrows. The Eyebrow Cake in Thunder is great - the texture is perfect for an eyebrow shade, but unfortunately the color is too dark for my eyebrows. I use it when I am going out and in general have more dramatic makeup. And I absolutely love both the Gleam in Mirage highlighter (especially in summer) and the Cream Pigment in Hollow which is great for contouring. Both cream products are pigmented and not sticky, just a dream to work with.


Finally, this brings me back to the question again: Is this palette worth the money? No, definitely not if you pay £45.00, but it could be a handy thing to have if you manage to find it on 'sale' for £13.50 (and have someone in the UK who can get it for you and send it to you via normal post, not to pay for Illamasqua's shipping which is 7€ if you're in the EU).

Below you can see swatches of each product inside the palette: Gleam in MirageCream Pigment in HollowEyebrow Cake in ThunderPowder Blusher in Hussy and four Powder Eyeshadows: Slink, Dizzy, Tango, Obsidian).


To summarize this post, here is a list of pros and cons of having this palette:

PROS:
  • Travel-friendly (4 diverse, neutral eyeshadows + blush + contour + highlighter + brow shadow)
  • Neutral, usable on diverse skintones
  • Beautiful creamy products
  • All products featured are pigmented
  • Big, good quality mirror included
CONS:
  • Way too expensive if you pay the original price of £45.00
  • Powdery, non-buttery eyeshadows
  • Plastic, cheap insert that holds pans
To conclude: if you find it for £13.50, go for it! :) 

Do you have any Illamasqua products? Do you like them? If you have any suggestions on what to buy, I would be happy if you tell me in the comments below.

Hope you have a great week ahead,
~Anelei

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