Colour me gorgeous! 11 fabulous make-up palettes we love
Want to keep your make-up compact? Here are eleven of our favourite palettes to keep you looking your glamorous best.
If you’re a makeup magpie like us, then you’ll love a fresh out the box, jewel-coloured eye shadow palette. It’s our secret weapon to perk up tired eyes and for adding shimmer, shine and smokiness during party season. Here’s our pick of the best eye shadow palettes on the market – perfect for (self) gifting.
Best for party glam
Charlotte Tilbury’s nine-pan palette harnesses the joy of party make-up with futuristic, shimmery shades that play with the light as you dance the night away and you can create fabulous festive looks with the neutral and eye-popping hues or go for a subtle vibe when you need it. CT’s compacts always look so pretty in your handbag too.
£60
Best for drama
One for the serious make-up junkies, Mothership I: Subliminal from Pat McGrath Labs is a replica of the legendary runway make-up artist coveted go-to colours for every show and shoot look she’s created over the last 25 years, this rather splurgy palette features six shades to build eye structure, along with options deep enough to create a dramatic smokey effect and some accessory shades for a pop of colour when the mood strikes. Covers all bases. Oh, and it comes in a rage of different colourways too.
£119
Best capsule colour palette
Luxe UK beauty brand delilah mixes impeccable sustainable and cruelty-free creds with high quality formulations. This nine-pan palette gives you matte, shimmer and pearl tones to enhance, shade and sculpt the eyes. The microfine, buttery smooth pigments glide and blend easily over the skin for a pro finish.
£39.50
Best for everyday
Rihanna’s hit beauty brand is not just absolutely lush, it’s also pretty affordable – and available from Boots. What’s not to like? This game-changing portable mini eyeshadow palette offers a range of matte and shimmery finishes and – here’s the clever bit – you can use them solo or snap them together to double your collection while keeping it perfectly compact—that’s 12 of your fave shades, all in the palm of your hand. Thanks Riri.
£24
Best for a flawless finish
You never see VB looking anything less than perfect, so we’re guessing if we invest in one of these we’re be nailing her perfectly poised and flawless beauty in no time. The Smoky Eye Brick delivers rich pigment in a choice of either a smooth matte or soft satin finish, with five colourways to choose from, plus it’s easy to blend and the packaging in super luxe.
£56
Best for soft matts
We love this range of palettes by Nars, which combine silky cheek and eye colour in one handbag-friendly compact, and they’re not too over the top in terms of colour and shine, perfect for when you need to carry off that subtly put together, luminous look without the effort.
£60
Best for everything
Dior is really bringing the bling with the release of a limited-edition multi-use makeup palette in time for Christmas. The Dior Couture Palette features both the case and powders decorated with a motif created by Pietro Ruffo. Lift the engraved golden clasp to open the palette and reveal the different shades for face, eyes and lips.
£116
Best for balance
Banish under-eye circles, redness, rosacea, uneven and dull skin with this all-in-one customisable colour-correcting palette from Stila. You get five long-wearing and waterproof velvety smooth cream colour correctors and two tinted setting powders to help neutralise imperfections and brighten dull skin tones. Perfect for when you’re channelling Rudolph on a freezing winter’s day.
£33
Best for disco divas
There’s no excuse to stay off the dance floor with with this eye-popping technicolour 12-pan eyeshadow palette from MAC Cosmetics. Make like Jerry Hall with a highly pigmented formula that helps you create limitless makeup looks – from artistic to ultra-cosmic. Studio 54, here we come.
£46
Best for teens
Benefit’s Treat Yourself Gorgeous might be a bit on the pricey side for a teen gift, but we love the soft colours and versatility of this cutesy pink palette. Think silky-soft, buildable and blendable blushes in pinks and peaches and six eyeshadows in a mix of shimmer and matte finishes.
£50
Best for make-up junkies
Ouchie – that price-tag is causing some palpitations, but if you love a bit of Kardashian-esque contouring then this Bobbi Brown Pro-Face Palette is probably all you’ll ever need. With a huge selection of foundation, corrector and concealer shades that apply easily and remain fresh-looking for hours.
£300
