In the US drugstore I spotted the L’Oreal La Palette Nude 1 and 2. Now, I already purchased and reviewed the European drugstore version of one of these and I hadn’t put these on my wishlist, thinking they were the same thing. However, once I took a good look at the US versions of these palette, I figured they looked different from the UK version I bought last May. I picked up the L’Oreal La Palette Nude 2 to see whether I was right.
L’Oreal La Palette Nude 2
The US version of this palette contains 17.5 grams of product and retails for 19.95 dollars. With the exchange rate being dreadful at the moment I bought this, the price for this palette is roughly the same amount in euros or in pounds. But for that same price the US does get 10 grams more product! That’s right: the European version of these palettes contains a mere 7 grams of product for the same amount of money. The US shadows are bigger, the palette is bigger and therefore the question is: Is bigger, better?
The L’Oreal La Palette Nude 2 is comparable to the L’Oreal La Palette Nude Rosé when it comes to the color selection. However, I feel that the US version does look a bit more samey samey in the color selection than the European version. The version you see here, seems more muted in tone, there are more browns and plums and isn’t as rosy toned. So the shades definitely look different in the pan.
I already mentioned the palettes looking different packaging wise. This US La Palette Nude has sturdier packaging which is thicker and comes with a see through window in the lid so you can actually tell the palettes apart if you were to own both. Each palette comes with the same applicator that has a sponge tip on the one end and a fluffy brush on the other. Could work if you are on the go, but I prefer using my own brushes anyway.
The palette in all its glory. The mirror of this version is smaller than the European version, which has a mirror which covers the entire lid.
The shade selection goes form roses and taupes to light browns and plums. In the pan these all look pretty similar, whereas the European version looked much more distinct in the pan, ranging from rose and taupes to burgundy and a shimmery golden peach shade. Here’s a break down of each shade in this palette. The shades do not have names, so I have numbered them 1 – 10.
01 – 02 – 03 – 04
01: Shimmery beige
02: Shimmery rose toned taupe
03: Matte mauve toned grey
04: Matte medium taupe
05 – 06 – 07 – 08
05: Shimmery taupe
06: Matte soft brown
07: Shimmery light brown
08: Matte rose toned cream
09 – 10
09: Matte rose toned purple
10: Matte plum
In total this palette contains 6 mattes and 4 shimmers. The European La Palette Nude Rosé has 4 mattes and 6 shimmers. Where the European version features more rose tones, this US version has a little bit of everything. I prefer this when it comes to the different textures as there are more mattes and I love a good matte eye shadow. Let’s have a look at the swatches.
01 – 02 – 03 – 04 – 05 – 06 – 07 – 08 – 09 – 10
As you can see these shadows are nicely pigmented and intense. There is a good variation of mattes and shimmers, and light and dark shades. My eye is drawn immediately to that intense plum (10) at the end, as well as the rose toned purple (09) right next to it. Other shades that draw my attention are the shimmery taupe (05) in the middle and the matte taupe (04) to the left of it.
There is at least one good shimmery and one matte highlight (01 & 08), a matte color to blend out the crease (03) and some darker tones to darken things up (04, 06, 10) as well as some good overall lid shades (02, 05, 09). The only shade here that seems a little lackluster is 07, but that could be a great basic for a neutral look.
Look 1:
08, 02, 01, 06
Full face
On my lips: NYX High Voltage Lipstick in Wine & Dine
Look 2:
09, 10, 05, 01, 04
Full face
On my lips: Anastasia liquid lipstick in Carina
Look 3:
02, 03, 01
I used a Maybelline Color Tattoo in Black Orchid as a base and a black eye pencil do to darken it up
Full face
On my lips: Essence liquid lipstick in Peach Party
I found it very easy to create 3 distinctly different looks with this palette. The texture is soft, but doesn’t cause too much fall out. The plum shade, being the darkest, suffers from that the most, but it was easy to wipe away. The shadows blend easily but not into nothingness. The colors are easy to build up: one or two swipes of your brush will allow you to get the desired intensity in color.
Top: L’Oreal La Palette Nude Rosé (Europe)
Bottom: L’Oreal La Palette Nude 2 (US)
On to the comparison and an answer to the question: which one is better? To substantiate my verdict, I decided to add the swatches of both palettes. As you can see the US palette is much more intense and diverse in its shade range. It instantly makes the palette more versatile. Because the European palette features so many shades that are similar and that blend into nothingness a lot more easily, I feel that palette is subordinate to its twin from across the pond.
In short, I would pick the US over the European version. The color intensity is much better, as is the usability and blendability of the shades. Add the fact that I like the shade selection of L’Oreal La Palette Nude 2 a lot better and that you get more bang for your buck and I think it is safe to conclude that sometimes bigger does indeed mean better.
Stay tuned as this afternoon I will post a give away featuring a product very similar to the one you’ve read about here.
