Natasha Denona ~ Sunset Palette | Review

Natasha Denona Sunset Palette

As a redhead with green-blue eyes who is a great lover of neutral, warm-toned eye shadows, I, like half of Instagram, fell in love with the Natasha Denona Sunset Palette at first sight. I had never tried the Natasha Denona eye shadow formula before and had been curious for some time. Seeing this palette, I knew it was the one I'd buy to give this brand to shot.

(Redhead spends way too much on warm-tones)

This palette offers 15, warm-toned shades in matte, duo chrome, metallic, and chroma crystal finishes.

The matte shadows are soft and powdery, similar to Lorac, Kat Von D and Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance formulas. If you prefer stiffer, more buildable formulas, you might want something that’s more forgiving as the Sunset Palette definitely isn't. I had no issues with any of the matte shadows. The only note I will make is in regards to the darkest brown: it is not quite as pigmented as other dark brown shades I have. I wouldn't say it requires "building up" per say, but I usually go into darker matte shadows with a bit of hesitancy and was surprised that I really didn't need to with this particular shadow.

Natasha Denona Sunset Palette Swatches (direct sunlight lighting)

Natasha Denona Sunset Palette Swatches (bathroom lighting)

The metallic, duo chrome and chroma crystal shades are fantastic if you know how to work with them. I find that so many people in the makeup space criticize these types of formulas as more “high maintenance” if there’s any fallout when applying with just a brush. This is a pretty unrealistic expectation; I can’t think of any metallic or similar formula I’ve used that went on perfectly with zero fallout while still being loaded with shimmer and color when using just a brush. For the record, the payout with these shades is lovely. The gold shade (5th from the top in my arm swatches) looks like actual flecks of gold. It is especially flaky and does require precise application (using a product like Fix+ is advised) but it looks stunning on the lid.

I apply these types of shadows two ways: One, pat a flat eye shadow brush into the pan (drag it just a little across the pan to get it on the tip of the brush bristles), spray with something like M.A.C. Fixed+ or any similar type of product (I use Fix+ or a Nyx Setting Spray you can get at Ulta for maybe $8). Spray the bristles (after you have the eye shadow on the brush, not before) and then pat on the eye area (lightly) to apply. The other alternative that many regard as amateur but I find works just fine if you know how to do it so it works for you is to just use your fingers. For application on the lid, this works just fine for me. I will usually use my finger for the very last swipe on the center of my lid as the final touch to really get that burst of shine and glitter. Using this method for other areas on the eyes is more tricky, but just the lid is quite easy.

Wear time is pretty standard. I wear eye primer nearly every time I wear eye shadow so I rarely encounter any issues with shadows not staying in place or lasting for an entire day. These shadows wore like any of my other shadows with a variety of eye primers.

I do have two gripes with this palette. Neither is enough to make me want to return but it's enough to perhaps limit my desire to buy more of her eye shadow palettes. The first is the way the pans are placed in the palette; they lie flat so the palette itself looks 2D. While this looks odd (to me) from a visual standpoint, it also means that the palette gets messy as the separation between the shadow pans is minimal and the powders can more easily mix.

Natasha Denona Sunset Palette

My second gripe is the packaging itself. Yes, it is gorgeous to look at but it does leave something to be desired when you feel it with your hands and see the inside. I really like the gold leather casing (I'm unsure if it's real leather but it mimics what leather looks and feels like). I think that’s a nice and unique approach in a plastic palette heavy scene. My issue is what the front and back “flap” of the palette is made of and the way it looks and feels. If you (visually) take away the gold leather cover, it looks like the palette is made of just a thick, black foam-like material. It reminds me of the rubber “leather” cheaper handbag companies use, the kind where over time the rubber starts to flake off and little strands of the rubbery bits start peeling off the purse straps. I feel like if I had this palette for a couple of years, it might start doing that. Now, I take care of my makeup, the wear-and-tear on my eye shadow palettes is pretty minimal so I’m sure this won’t happen. It’s more that it looks like it could.

I do wonder if this packaging approach is more for functionality purposes, specifically for makeup artists. The cover portion of the case can be folded back easily and held with one hand, and it's also extremely light in weight. If you're a MUA, this will work well for you, but I am unsure about how much wear-and-tear the packaging can withstand.

Regardless, I would like the palette packaging to be stepped up half a notch. I'm not worried about the palette breaking like I am with many of my palettes (MAC is notorious for the extremely thin, plastic casing that will almost surely shatter if dropped on a hard floor). Maybe making the palette feel a little less like it's made of foam while keeping it light and easy to work with. I would hope this could be done without sacrificing the unique, leather cover of the case itself.

Natasha Denona Sunset Palette

Quality comparisons in terms of price point: The Sunset Palette is $130. This is the most expensive palette in my collection (2nd runner up is the Marc Jacobs 20 pan holiday 2016 palette that goes for $100). If I compare the Sunset to that palette quality-wise, they are quite similar. If I compare it to the Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance palette ($49) the quality is very similar and on par with the MR. If I compare it to the Too Faced Sweet Peach palette (also $49) which isn't really a similar palette but does offer that same warm-toned array of brown shades, the Sunset is vastly more pigmented and does blend better than the Sweet Peach.

But does it provide more than twice the quality of the Sweet Peach (given the Sunset is more than twice the price)? I think it does. To get the same sort of look, not necessarily shade-wise but actual impact of the shadows on the eyes, the Sunset palette requires less effort to build and blend. You also get more variety of unique shades. To me, the Sweet Peach has a couple great peachy shades that I love using all over the lid, whereas the Sunset gives you bold shades of gold, red, and orange--there is a lot more choice as to which shades to use to provide you with a “pop” of color than there is in the Sweet Peach. I don't think the Sunset is twice as good, quality-wise, as Modern Renaissance. If you like MR, you will probably like what Sunset has to offer granted you enjoy and know how to work with metallic shades.

Dupes for pretty much every eye shadow shade exist and this palette is no exception; there are dupes for these shades. I’ll skip over the brown shades since, if you’re reading this because you considering getting the Sunset Palette, it most likely is not going to be your starter palette and you most likely already have a handful of neutral, warm-toned brown shades in your collection. Regarding the other shades:

Make Up For Ever has an extensive arsenal of eye shadow singles that are of absolutely stellar quality. If you’re looking for some shades that look like they would belong in the Sunset Palette, check out: Tomato, Tangerine, Apricot, Orange, Burgundy, Gold Nugget, Mandarin, Pumpkin, Copper Red, Mustard, Sienna, Poppy, and Magma.

Anastasia Beverly Hills has some single shades to consider as well. The Sephora Collection also has a loaded collection of single eye shadows. Sephora will also launch their own dupe for the Sunset Palette which is slated for launch in August ($65). It offers more shades (but many of them do look quite similar) so the variety isn't quite there.

Natasha Denona "Sunset", Smashbox "Ablaze", ABH "Modern Renaissance", Too Faced "Sweet Peach"

Palettes that are comparable in terms of shade range and are worth the price you pay for the quality (ie. I own these and recommend all of them). I mentioned the Too Faced Sweet Peach palette (more peach tones, less red/orange/golds) and while I wouldn't call Sweet Peach a dupe for Sunset, they are similar in that if you like certain things about Sweet Peach and want more, you might want to take a look at Sunset. My review on the Sweet Palette is located here.

Smashbox’s Ablaze palette is a mini, Limited Edition palette that is very nice. I take this one coupled with a neutrals palette when traveling a lot as it’s great to add a little something extra to a normal, everyday look when on the road. I think this palette most greatly mimics Sunset in terms of the shades available. With Ablaze, you get the basic shades offered in Sunset but you do miss out on the shades that make this palette unique: you get your warm toned browns, a burnt red, and a burnt orange. All you're really missing is the yellow shade, the metallics, and that pale pink-orange shade in the bottom left of Sunset which I absolutely adore as a transition shade. Look into some single shades to expand on the Ablaze palette and you will have something similar to Sunset in your arsenal. My review on the Ablaze palette is located here.

Modern Renaissance compares most strongly quality-wise and while the shade range is more pink-themed (red and pink undertones exist in many of the shadows in this palette whereas in the Sunset the undertones are more red/orange/yellow), it offers a very similar look and feel to Sunset. Quality-wise, both are highly pigmented and have a creamy, powdery formula.

If you're into warm tones, any of these palettes are wonderful and can be used to create stellar, warm-toned eye looks.

The Sunset Palette is "Limited Edition", so who knows how long it will be available. You can buy it on Sephora here

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