Just Another Neutral Palette?: Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance Palette Review

So I know this palette has been featured and swatched to high heaven all over social media, but according to a Twitter poll I held, a review and makeup look for this palette were still very much requested. I think it is important as a consumer to read many, many, many reviews on any given product and find out the good, bad, and the ugly before making a solid decision if the product is worth purchasing. I, like many other consumers, have a drawer filled with "must have" neutral palettes collecting dust, which begs the question: do we really need them all? While I'm probably not the best fit to answer that question as I am a self-proclaimed beauty addict, it is some food for thought. However, if we are being completely honest, I was not at all impressed when I saw the initial PR images for the Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance Palette. It wasn't because the palette looked like a bad one by any means, but appeared to have so many multiples of the exact same shades. Nonetheless, clearly my inner beauty addict gave in the second I swatched this palette in stores at Sephora, so hopefully this review will shed some light on what others haven't yet told you.

Q&A's

♥What is the Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance Palette?♥

The Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance Palette is a 14-pan eyeshadow palette containing a variety of warm neutrals and berry tones (nine mattes, two satins, & three metallics). Each eyeshadow contains 0.02 oz of product and are housed in a durable cardboard packaging topped with fuzzy, mauve-pink velvet. As an added bonus, the palette also comes with a double-ended brush for on the go. It the first palette that ABH has produced that will be permanent to their line and can be purchased at Sephora, Ulta, and Macy's for $42.

♥How do these shadows perform?♥

In previous palettes, I have felt that Anastasia Beverly Hills lacked the quality and cohesiveness that draws me in with other neutral palettes. I much preferred the quality of their single shadows, which always proved to be pigmented and easy to work with. However, I am pleased to say that ABH has tremendously improved the formula of their eyeshadow palettes. The shadows in the Modern Renaissance Palette are buttery smooth and pigmented, but are also easy to work with and build up. I do find that the shades provide a lot of kick up, but that does not really bother me as all I have to do is tap off any excess from my brush. On initial application of the mattes in particular, I noticed that buffing and blending cause them to lose their vibrancy and pigmentation, but when applied a second time, the pigment stuck and was nicely buildable. I believe this makes it a palette that is very user- and beginner-friendly.

♥How do the shadows wear?♥

I had absolutely no issues with the wear of these eyeshadows. There was no creasing, fading, or transferring whatsoever.

♥What are my overall thoughts on this product?♥

While there are a ton of neutral palettes on the market, I do believe this specific palette has its own voice and individuality. Many of the neutrals in this palette, such as Golden Ochre, Warm Taupe, and Realgar, are very unique and are ones I haven't seen before. The palette is also very compact and portable, allows you to create an entire look with just this one palette, and gives a good amount of variety to transition you through the seasons. The price point also isn't that bad as it breaks down to $3 per shadow, though I do wish each shadow contained more product. All in all, the quality is pretty on par with other neutral palettes on the market, such as the Lorac Pro Palette and the Kat Von D Shade And Light Eye Palette. However, it maintains a better quality and consistency than the more affordable Morphe 35O Palette, which can be pretty chalky and reads one-note overall. Nevertheless, if you already have a ton of neutrals in your collection, this palette may not be an absolute must-have, but if you are just beginning out in makeup or are interested in trying out some of Anastasia Beverly Hills eyeshadows, this would be an excellent introduction.

Makeup Deets

♥Brows - NYX Micro Brow Pencil in Taupe

♥Eyeshadow - Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance Palette (Burnt Orange, Red Ochre, Cyprus Umber, & Venetian Red), ColourPop Super Shock Shadow in Lace, & NYX Roll-On Shimmer in Mauve Pink
♥Glitter - Revlon PhotoReady Eye Art Duo in Lilac Luster

♥Eyeliner - Wet n Wild H2O Proof Liquid Eyeliner & Make Up For Ever Aqua XL Pencil in M-10

♥Lashes - Koko Lashes in Queen Bee

♥Foundation - Maybelline Dream Velvet Soft-Matte Hydrating Foundation in Sandy Beige

♥Concealer - LA Girl Pro Conceal in Porcelain

♥Highlight - Nars Illuminator in Copacabana topped with Lorac Illuminating Highlighter in Twilight

♥Bronzer - L'Oreal Glam Bronze in Medium

♥Blush - Mally Effortless Airbrush Highlighter & Blush Duo in Peach

♥Lips - Anastasia Beverly Hills Liquid Lipstick in Kathryn

XO♥

My "Life" Palette: Customized Eyeshadow Z-Palette

"Life" Palettes are a trend that have taken the beauty community by storm. They are based upon the idea of housing all of your absolute fave powder products in one area, making them perfect for traveling or when you just don't have the luxury of carrying a bajillion loose palettes. Now Z Palettes or any other magnetized palettes are no new concept whatsoever. As you can tell by the wear-and-tear on my baby, I've had mine for quite some time--back to when I did freelance makeup to be exact. Over the years, eyeshadows have come and gone out of this palette depending on how my personal preferences have changed and that's the whole point of a "life" palette. They are customizable to you. In fact, you don't even have to only stick to eyeshadows the way I did. You could fit some blushes and bronzers in there too (whatever floats your boat). I'm a lil bit crafty and like to use my eyeshadows as highlighters, bronzers, blushes, and even eyeshadow powders when I'm really in a pinch. The options are limitless and I challenge you all to creating your own!

For me, having a wide variety of neutrals to choose from is very important, hence why more than half of my palette is various shades of brown. Depending on the look I'm going for, I'll need different transition and crease shades, so I like to keep my options open the most in that department. I've also included a bunch of different shimmery lid shades and pops of color for wherever my mood might take me that day. I chose all of these shades for my "life" palette because they never fail me; their pigmentation is out of this world and I always find myself reaching for them. It surprises me that some of the shades don't have more of a dent in them considering how much I use them, but I guess that speaks to their pigmentation. While I love them all, some of my absolute favorites are: Mac Nylon, Coastal Scents Persian Peach, ABH Burnt Orange, ABH Sienna, BH Cosmetics BHCM03, ABH Rich Velvet, ABH Truffle Glitter, and Mac Plumage--in case you were looking for some eyeshadow recommendations.

XO♥

Review: Nyx Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade (Mini Tutorial, Swatch, & Possible Dupe?)

When a product takes the beauty industry by storm, many other brands will be sure to follow. So when Anastasia Beverly Hills introduced the Dipbrow Pomade ($18) in early 2014, other brands quickly followed suit. The drugstore, on the other hand, can be slow to take on the trends, but lately I feel as though Nyx Cosmetics has been uping their game. (Can we talk about their Spring 2016 releases really quickly?! Yes, Nyx! Yes!!!) They introduced their Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade in early 2015, but I'm slow to jump on the bandwagon as I'm skeptical of practically everything new. However, recently, my HG Nyx Micro Brow Pencil has provided really inconsistent results for me, sometimes giving me a fab brow, other times rubbing off or going patchy. I have a feeling this has a lot to do with the fact that it's Winter here in NYC, so I'll revisit that product again once the weather gets warmer. Nevertheless, my brow game must go on and remain strong, so off I was on the hunt for another brow product.

I came across the Nyx Brow Pomade during one of Ulta's BOGO sales and decided that now was a good time as ever to try something new. I decided to go with the shade Brunette instead of my usual Taupe/Blonde because Blonde looked overly grey to me online. Brunette still maintains a cool undertone, but it's a quite a bit darker than Blonde and much more flattering on my skintone and with my natural hair color.

Nyx Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade in Brunette pictured with the Morphe M160 Brush in the size 1/16

Swatch of the Nyx Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade in Brunette

♥ What is the Nyx Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade? ♥

The Nyx Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade is a gel/cream product that gives color, shape, and fills in your brows when used alongside an angled eyeliner brush of your choice.

♥ What are the claims? ♥

Nyx claims, "Give extra life to your brows with our easy-to-use brow pomade that glides onto skin and hair. Our smudge-proof waterproof formula comes in five shades to coax brows into prime shape. Stand up to humidity in style!"

♥ How do you apply this product? ♥

As mentioned before, this product must be applied with an angled eyeliner brush. However, the product does not come with it's own brush included. This is fine with me as usually brushes that come with products are throw-aways anyway. Personally, I've seen enough tutorials on the Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade to know that I should apply this Nyx product with a very thin angled eyeliner brush. Doing so will give you much more control when creating "hair-like strokes", thus allowing you to go as natural or as dramatic as you please. For a mini tutorial and my tips and tricks on how to apply this product, check out the pictorial located further down in this post.

♥ How does this product wear?♥

Using a brow product with a more creamy consistency on my oily skin is not at the top of my list. I expected it to move around on my skin and disappear by the end of the day. However, I have to say that I am pleasantly surprised. Swatching it on my arm, I found that the product has a fast dry-down time and sets to a powder finish. Rubbing the swatch, I had no transfer and found it was a bit difficult to remove. The oils naturally produced by the skin, of course, break down the product over time, but I found that it broke down "gracefully". Six hours into my wear test, I noticed that the product had oxidized and become slightly warmer, but nothing that was alarming. Ten hours into the wear test I noticed that the my brows didn't look as crisp and clean, but that problem was easily corrected by running a spoolee through my brows and spreading out the product again. I finally decided to remove the product at the twelve hour mark and I felt I had to go over them a few times with makeup remover and toner because my brows were still tinted. If you have extremely oily skin like I do during the Summer, I think this product could still work for you as long as you prime your brows with a long-wearing drier base like a Mac Paint Pot.

♥How does this product compare to the Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade?♥

While the container of the Nyx Tame & Frame is super tiny and travel friendly, it actually contains more product than its higher end counterpart. The Nyx Tame & Frame contains 0.18 oz. for $6.99, while the Anastasia Dipbrow only has 0.14 oz. for $18, making the Nyx pomade a much better value. In fact, Nyx is constantly on sale at places like Ulta, so you would be able to stock up without doing too much damage to your wallet. It should be noted, however, that, while they're both pomades, they have significantly different formulas. Dipbrow is very pigmented and much thicker in consistency and could potentially be harder for some to work with. On the other hand, Tame & Frame has a thinner formula that is more beginner friendly since it's harder to add "too much".

♥ What are my overall thoughts on this product? ♥

I tried out this product because I needed to find something new to use in my brows and I think I found just that. I'm very pleased with how much control I have in creating my brow shape and how long this product wears. Overall, I'm extremely impressed, so you can be sure to see me using it in future Instagram looks and tutorials.

Tutorial

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

1♥ After grooming your eyebrows to your liking (and priming them if you have oilier skin), take a small amount of the Nyx Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade on a thin angled brush and line the bottom of your eyebrow. Leave the very front of the brow unlined as it will be defined later.

2♥ Take a small amount of the pomade again and line top of the brow, creating the arch to your liking. Also, leave the front blank.

3♥ Fill in the area between those two lines. If there still seems to be some areas that are blank, don't worry. That will be corrected in the next step.

4♥ Using whatever product is left on the brush, line the top and bottom of your brows now. The reason I waited to define the front of my brows until now is because less product used in the front creates a softer effect. Then, taking a spoolee, brush through your brows. This blends and spreads out the product a bit, filling in the front and any sparse areas you might have left out in the last step.

5♥ Put on your finishing touches. Personally, I like to carve out my brows, so I use my foundation to carve out the top and my highlighting concealer to carve out the bottom, both in conjunction with a flat liner brush. If you do this, blend it out really well. You don't want there to be a halo directly around your eyebrows.

Other Makeup Deets

♥ Eyeshadow - Elf Smudge Pot in Ain't That Sweet, Lorac Pro Palette (Lt. Pink, Mauve & Black), Yaby Blush in BL022, & Nyx Liquid Crystal Liner in Crystal Hip
 ♥ Eyeliner - Milani Eye Tech Extreme Liquid Eye Liner in Blackest Black & Inglot Gel Liner # 77
♥ Lashes - House of Lashes "Smokey Muse"

♥ Foundation - No. 7 Lift & Luminate Foundation

♥ Concealer - LA Girl Pro Conceal

♥ Bronzer - Urban Decay Naked Skin Ultra Definition Pressed Finishing Powder in Naked Dark

♥ Blush - Sephora MicroSmooth Baked Sculpting Trio in Medium

♥ Highlight - Sephora Radiant Luminizing Drops in Ultralight topped with Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Opal

♥ Lips - Too Faced La Creme Color Drenched Lip Cream in Taffy

XO♥