MUA Poptastic Palette - First Look!

MUA is a brand I have seen around on many an occasion but never really had any products. If you have never heard/seen MUA before it's a drug store brand which sells a range of make up products & palettes for SUPER cheap prices. & considering the low prices, the quality is quite impressive.

The Poptastic palette is £4. £4 for 12 shades. This palette is a mix of shimmery/metallic shades & more matte shades in pretty bright, electric colours. The brush it comes with, well not quite a brush, but the average double ended sponge type eyeshadow applicator. The packaging itself is quite light plastic, so it isn't particularly sturdy but for the price that is to be expected.

These eyeshadows are surprisingly pigmented. The swatches are applied over a primer (a Seventeen, relatively inexpensive primer in this case) but I was still surprised by their colour for the price again! The texture of the more matte colours are a little chalky, but the metallic/shimmery shades are more easily applied & smoother in texture (I see a pattern emerging with metallic eyeshadows here).

From Left to Right - Pizzaz Purple, Cool Cyan, Sizzle, Electric Purple, Gold Mine, Blue Suede

Left to Right - Jade Jazz, Cherry Sour, Atomic Aqua, Shocking Pink, Crystal Blue, Sonic Blue

Though I would say after owning it for some time the metallic shades seem become almost slightly clumpy (?) those this may just be to the fault of the air surrounding it being slightly damp, so I would suggest possibly keeping it in another container? Does anyone else ever have issues with this?

Urban Decay Ammo Palette - First Look!

I actually got the Ammo palette before Vice 3 (a Christmas gift) & was pleasantly surprised!

The aesthetics of the palette is once again - gorgeous - though smaller & more simplistic than Vice 3. The cover has an intricate purple skull design detailed with filigree & animal illustrations on the metallic background, with a similar design carried through the inside of the palette with a more atmospheric cosmic feel.

  

All ten colours are metallic, shimmery shades - ranging from neutral, coppery shades to purples & greens. It comes with a small metallic flat brush AND a mini, travel sized Original Primer Potion.

As with the Vice 3 palette the metallic shades (which are all these shades) go on incredibly smoothly with very good colour pay off - better than Vice 3 palette in my opinion however Vice 3 has more room for error with the double the shades. Even the white shimmery shade Polyester Bride has great pay off - with Maui Wowi being the least strong in colour although it is a fantastic transition & blending shade.

My favourite shades are Last Call & Chopper, a purpley pink tone & a copper. Sin & Maui Wowie work amazingly as transitioning shades & Polyester Bride is a shade I use as a highlight & inside the corner of my eye for extra shimmer & brightness. Although Oil Slick is one of my favourite metallic blacks with pigmentation built up so easily to be super dark!