German brush brand Zoeva is slowly but surely expanding their make up offerings. After trying a blush and two eye liners, I finally caved and decided to buy two of their eye shadow palettes last winter. By now I have had ample time to play around with these and form an opinion on what I think of them. Are these as good as their brushes, which I love and use on a daily basis?
Zoeva Rose Golden eye shadow palette
Zoeva Cocoa Blend eye shadow palette
I bought both the Rose Golden as well as the Cocoa Blend eye shadow palettes. For two reasons. First of all, there is the price point. Each palette retails for €17.50 from the official Zoeva.de website. For a 10 pan eye shadow palette that is not too bad of a price, especially since these seem to have really good quality shadows. Secondly, Zoeva just released their Spectrum palettes, which at €35 each give you fewer shadows, that seems to be of a lesser quality. I figured that instead of buying one of their newer palettes, I would purchase two from their regular line at the same price point. Luckily for me, these two palettes compliment each other nicely.
Zoeva Rose Golden eyeshadow palette
The first palette we’ll have a look at is the Rose Golden palette. This palette comes in cardboard packaging which is held together with a slip on case. The Balm has similar packaging and some people love it because it is so sleek. Others hate it as it is fragile and can easily break if you’re not careful. I personally don’t mind and think the packaging absolutely stunning.
Inside, you will find 10 eye shadows. There is no mirror present in these palettes and that will be a let down to some people. The shadows themselves seem to consist of fairly generous sized pans (around the size of a €2 coin). There are 3 matte shades, the rest are shimmers or metallics.
The overall shade range of this palette is quite demure. There are only two very dark shades and there are none that are too light either. Everything else is mid-toned and ranges from a matte beige to a matte taupe grey. The three shades that appear to be metallic in the pan, look stunning in the pan, and the shimmers round things off by adding some blending and all over lid shades for less outspoken looks.
Luster is a matte beige that veers towards a light brown.
Reflective Elegance is a champagne metallic shade with a rose undertone.
Copper is King is a subtle copper shade with a pink undertone.
Shining Bright is a rosy taupe shade.
Rusty Petals is a golden brown.
Foil is a pinky bronze shade.
Just a Rose is a full on rose gold.
Golden Rule is a yellow toned gold.
Harmony is a matte grey with a purple undertone.
Wonder Full is a matte dark brown.
Luster – Reflective Elegance, Copper is King – Shining Bright – Rusty Petals
Foil – Just a Rose – Golden Rule – Harmony – Wonder Full
In the swatch, you can clearly distinguish the mattes from the rest. Pigmentation and texture are stellar. The swatches go on smoothly, the shadows feel buttery smooth and the color pay off is great. I made these swatches with one swipe of my finger. The biggest surprise shade is Shining Bright which looks like a shimmer in the pan, but is far more intense once applied. My favorite here has to be Foil: it is one of the most versatile shades of eye shadow I own.
Zoeva Cocoa Blend eye shadow palette
Just like Rose Golden, Cocoa Blend comes in cardboard packaging that includes a slide on case (not pictured). The packaging for this palette is even more gorgeous than the first. The gold metallic pattern makes this palette look a lot more chic and sophisticated.
As its sister, this palette comes without a mirror, but with 10 stunning looking shades. Overall, this palette is a lot darker shade wise. You get one more matte too: there are 4 mattes, 3 shimmers and 3 metallics. Like Rose Golden, Cocoa Blend is a very warm toned palette, but I think Rose Golden is a little easier to pull into a cooler direction than this one.
As you can see, this palette has a far bigger range of shades. There is one very dark shade, one very light shade and then there is everything in between. From light shimmers, to matte crease shades, some fun pops of neutral colors and then there is that one odd cool toned shade.
Bittersweet is a matte off white cream.
Sweeter End is a shimmery champagne.
Warm Notes is a metallic cranberry.
Subtle Blend is a full on bronze.
Beans are White is a matte dark brown, the color of ground up coffee beans.
Pure Ganache is an orange toned gold.
Substitute for Love is a matte warm toned brown.
Freshly Toasted is a matte warm toned brown with a reddish undertone.
Infusion is a dark brown with a golden glitter running through it.
Delicate Acidity is a taupy mauve.
Bittersweet – Sweeter End – Warm Notes – Subtle Blend – Beans are White
Pure Ganache – Substitute for Love – Freshly Toasted – Infusion – Delicate Acidity
Again, swatches are beautiful. Like Rose Golden, Cocoa Blend’s shadows are buttery soft, do not produce too much fall out (if any) and color pay off is intense. You can clearly see here, how Cocoa Blend is darker and more intense. It is why I purchased both and am reviewing them together: I feel that together they make the perfect neutral palette with an interesting twist.
Look 1: Rose Golden & Cocoa Blend mix
The first look I would like to show you is one of my favorites. I used both palettes to create this. And stay tuned, if you would like to know how to create this. This Saturday I will be uploading a video where I am showing you how I created this look. So be on the look out for that!
Look 2: Cocoa Blend
I also used each palette separately to show you how these work on their own. For this Cocoa Blend look, I had to work with that one mauve shade. I love cool toned mixed in with warms and so that is what I did here. I used a bit of Beans are White to create a smokey line along my upper lash line for added intensity.
Look 3: Rose Golden
For my Rose Golden look, I wanted to play up the softer shades this has to offer. If you are in soft, natural, every day looks, this is for you. If you’re more of a smokey eye kind of gal, I think Cocoa Blend would be your best bet. I used Reflective Elegance all over the lid, for a soft, fresh pink glowy lid. Then I used the matte grey to define the crease and pretty much left it at that.
The verdict? These are some of the best palettes I have purchased in the past year. I used these religiously for a month straight. I do have to say that I prefer the combination they make when paired together. On their own I feel that they miss something: a good highlight and crease shades in the Rose Golden, cool tones and a good blend shade in the Cocoa Blend. Together they make the ideal palette for me, but if you can do without these missing elements, then I think you can also make do with buying either one.
Have you tried any Zoeva products yet?