e.l.f. Chromatic Eyeshadow Palettes Review
It’s been a while since we checked in with our friends at e.l.f. Cosmetics. The truth is, I hadn’t really been excited about their new releases… that is, until the Chromatic Eyeshadow Palettes came my way!
These $12 palettes have seven shades and have two summer-ready versions available currently. The shades range from matte to metallic, and are infused with vitamin E, Meadowfoam Oil (what is that!?) and Jojoba oil to nourish while you wear. I literally let out a sigh of relief when I saw the well-balanced palettes, both in terms of the colors and finishes. These are definitely palettes you can create entire looks from without having to dip into another product.
First, we have the e.l.f. Chromatic Eyeshadow Palette in Birds of Paradise. This is a very on-trend color scheme with warm rust and mauve shades with a pop of lilac. It’s my favorite of the two, not only because I think these colors are very wearable but also the pigmentation is smooth and strong across the board. There are clear choices for lid, crease, liner, and highlight shades making it easy to use and play around with. The three “chromatic” shades are the gold champagne, the medium bronze and the lilac. They all have a slight shift to them when they catch the light.
Here’s one of my favorite looks to create with Birds of Paradise. There aren’t any shade names in this palette so numbering the shadows from left to right, I used #1 on my brow bone and inner corner, #3 as a transition shade, #5 in my crease and outer corner, and #7 on my lid.
The e.l.f. Chromatic Eyeshadow Palette in Posh Peacock is a more unique shade selection in my opinion. It leans more blue/green with a few neutrals to balance the range. The “chromatic” shades include a green, a blue-ish bronze, and baby blue. The only deep matte in this palette is the dark teal, which wasn’t my favorite shade to work with. It applies a bit patchy and is hard to blend, so it’s not the ideal crease color. There is also a dark charcoal but it has shimmer in it. Posh Peacock one had a little more inconsistency when it came to pigmentation, but is still different enough to be worth checking out.
Numbering the shadows from left to right, here’s how I created the look above: #1 in the inner corner and brow bone, #7, #3 & #4 on the lid in that order, and #5 in the crease and outer corner.
One complaint I have about the palettes is that they’re a bit bulky. They’re really thick, which seems to be because of the miniature brush they include. Which, I guess I can’t be mad at, because I actually love e.l.f. brushes and this one is a good shader/blender duo that you’ll actually find yourself using. It just makes the palette a bit thick.
Also— these are more expensive than the brand’s 10-pan palettes which is a bit weird, especially considering the very similar Rose Gold Eyeshadow Palette in Sunset. Though there isn’t anything very similar to Posh Peacock.