Beauty, Eyes, Eyeshadow, Makeup, Mid-Range Brands

Happy new year! I hope you enjoyed a safe, cozy night because today is going to be jam packed with makeup porn and your heart needs to be ready. I branched out from my usual MAC and NARS this year and tried a lot of new brands as well as fell in love with a lot of different products. Last year was filled with fun collections, tempting new releases and limited edition goodies that made me proud (and poor) to be a makeup junkie. So before I kick off the new year with my first haul of 2016 I want to properly say goodbye to 2015 by giving shoutouts to all of the products that helped make it a beautiful year to remember.

After an insane round of eyeshadow palette hauling, it only made sense to kick off my end of the year faves with some eyeshadow love. I hate to admit it but I spent most of this year rushing through my makeup–leaving very little time for eyeshadow. Once I made the transition from Bobbi Brown to Ulta, I decided to step up my shadow game since my schedule would seemingly be less intense. It still isn’t but I’ve still managed to squeeze in some precious blending time which led me to fall in love with these beauties in 2015:

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette I’ve had this yummy palette for a couple years now but it still remains a staple in my collection. The original Chocolate Bar Palette is filled with a mix of neutrals making natural everyday looks and smokey eyes a breeze. Plus, I never get tired of that delicious chocolate scent. My favorite shades are Marzipan, Semi-Sweet and Cherry Cordial. Together they create a lovely plummy brown smokey look with a hint of shimmer.

Too Faced Stardust Palette by Vegas Nay Stardust is a new palette to my collection but I haven’t been able to put it down since I got it. The colors are right up my alley! There’s warm browns, a plummy crease shade and shimmering pops of color. Stardust contains pretty much everything I need to go from day to night Vegas Nay style. My go to shades are Girl’s Night and Double Tap for my crease with Showgirl and Golden Nugget on my lids.

Too Faced Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar Palette The original Chocolate Bar Palette was such a hit that I had to get my hands on the follow up. Semi-Sweet features a warmer mix of neutrals with a fun shimmering blue that pairs nicely with the original. I always find myself reaching for Semi-Sweet because it has the most perfect transition shade ever: Peanut Butter. I’m easily able to create a variety of looks thanks to my handy Peanut Butter but my favorite recipe calls for a dash of Caramel on the lids and Truffled in the crease.

Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Eyeshadow Palette I didn’t think the limited edition Gwen Stefani Palette would capture my heart but its cool mix of neutrals and fun bold shades has really won me over. I was mostly excited for the brighter, more vibrant bottom row but I’ve found myself reaching for the Gwen Stefani Palette for really quick everyday looks for work. My favorite shades are Zone, Punk and Steady.

What were some of your favorite eyeshadow palettes last year?