| Review | Charlotte Tilbury Easy Portable Pocket Sized Smokey Eye Palette (Nordstrom Anniversary Sale 2019)



| Review | Charlotte Tilbury Easy Portable Pocket Sized Smokey Eye Palette (Nordstrom Anniversary Sale 2019)

Shimmering rose gold, copper, and champagne...plus, some pinky nude shades to boot! Charlotte Tilbury definitely has a style and I'm not mad about it! These are the shades that sucker me in every time regardless of the brand but Charlotte Tilbury just seems to do it so much better than everyone else. I couldn't help picking up this pocket-sized beauty full of wearable shades from the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale.



The Charlotte Tilbury Easy Portable Pocket Sized Smokey Eye Palette (Nordstrom Anniversary Sale 2019) retails for $55.00 USD and is available exclusively at Nordstrom for a limited time. This very sleek and compact palette is so thin, it looks like it can fit in your wallet or your tiniest clutch. The compact has the iconic Charlotte Tilbury logo in the center of a beautiful rose gold burst, which is very typical of Charlotte Tilbury packaging. 



SHADES

The palette is split into two sections, Day Eye and Date Eye, making it super easy to create a look. Unlike previous full-sized versions of this kind of palette, the Day Eye and Date Eye sections are not labeled on the actual palette but only on a clear insert. This isn't a huge deal but it does differ from her usual design. I will most likely, like many of you, trash the clear insert because it's a bit annoying to keep it in the palette. Of course, you can deviate from these looks at any time, which I intend to do but if you really have no clue what to wear, this palette does all the work for you. The palette comes with six shades of varying rosy tone.




Day Eye 

Prime 1 - This warm shimmering champagne shade has a subtle golden undertone and will suit most skin tones. This shade is meant to be applied all over the lid and offers a beautiful luminous finish to the eyes. This shade really brightens up the eyes and is perfect for an inner corner highlight as well.

Enhance 2 -  This rose gold shimmering shadow is intended to be the enhancing crease shade. While I don't often go for a shimmer in the crease, this shadow actually looks really lovely in the crease for a subtle and luminous day look. This rose gold has some heavy gold shimmer and a peachy undertone, which will suit most skin tones. This is a shade I would recommend using as a lid color, as it is quite shimmery and doesn't offer a lot of enhancement to the eyes. 

Smoke 3 - This soft matte pink with a warm undertone is intended to be the smokey shade for this soft day time smokey eye. It is a very rich and creamy shade that offers a lot of definition to the eyes. When layered over the Prime 1 shade, it's a little hard to achieve as much definition, which is why I prefer to use the Prime 1 shade in a controlled area versus all over. The warmth in this shadow really shows on my warm skin tone and it appears much more peachy than pink. 

Date Eye 

Prime 1 - This coppery bronze shadow has a very strong reddish undertone and is a beautiful all-over lid shade. The warmth in this shade ad the pigmentation will suit many skin tones and will look especially beautiful on deeper skin tones. For those with fairer skin tones, this shade may come off redder and I recommend rimming the eyes with a brown liner to ground the look, so it doesn't look like your eyes are tired or irritated. When you blend this shade, the shimmer starts to disappear and the base shade is identical the Enhance 2 shade right next to it. 

Enhance 2 - This matte warm medium pink shade has a warm undertone and suits the rest of the eyeshadow shades very well. Like I had just mentioned, it is a very similar shade to the Prime 1 shade blended out but this difference in texture does add more definition to the eyes. It also helps blend out the lid shade very well and creates a seamless transition. 

Smoke 3 -This matte milk chocolate shade adds just the perfect amount of dimension and definition without appearing too smokey or too dark. It complements the other shades very well despite it having a cooler undertone. This brown shade creates a very soft smokey eye, which is perfect for every day or for those who are intimidated by very dark shades.





Swatches from left to right: Prime 1 (Day Eye), Enhance 2 (Day Eye), Smoke 3 (Day Eye), Prime 1 (Date Eye), Enhance 2 (Date Eye), Smoke 3 (Date Eye)

COMPARISON SWATCHES 

The shadows in this palette remind me of a lot of the Pillow Talk palette, which I have reviewed here. While the shades are very similar, there are some minor differences. I don't think you will need both palettes and I feel the quality of this Pocket Sized Smokey Eye Palette is better. The textures are smoother and creamier. Also, the shades are much more pigmented. If you have a medium to deep skin tone, I think the Pocket Palette will suit you much better than the Pillow Talk palette.




Swatches from left to right: Enhance 2 (Day Eye), Pillow Talk Prime, Pillow Talk Pop, Smoke 3 (Day Eye), Pillow Talk Enhance, Smoke 3 (Date Eye), Pillow Talk Smoke

As you can see, the Enhance 2 (Day Eye) is has much more golden shimmer and has a bit more warmth than the Pillow Talk Prime shade. It looks a lot closer to the Pillow Talk Pop shade except there is more fine shimmer, where the Pillow Talk Pop shade has sparse larger particles of golden shimmer. The Smoke 3 (Day Eye) is significantly more pigmented and warmer than the Pillow Talk Enhance shade. If applied lightly, the Smoke 3 (Day Eye) will look very similar to the Pillow Talk Enhance shade on the eyes. Finally, the Smoke 3 (Day Eye) is a much cooler chocolate brown than the one from Pillow Talk. The Pillow Talk Smoke shade has a very warm undertone and requires more layering to be opaque.  

Also, I couldn't help seeing the similarities between the Date Eye Enhance 2 and the Multi-Glow shade from the Lovegasm Palette.



Swatches from left to right: Enhance 2 (Date Eye), Lovegasm Multi-Glow

As you can see, the Date Eye Enhance 2 has much more of a bronze tone, while the Multi-Glow has a very reddish-pink tone but both have a very strong coppery shimmer. On the eyes, there will be a subtle difference but if you wanted a similar shade, the Multi-Glow is very close! 


FORMULA 

The formula of both the shimmer and matte eyeshadows is excellent. They are all very creamy, smooth, and easy to blend. The eyeshadows are very pigmented and they layer beautifully. The shadows are quite soft and will cause minimal fallout but if you carefully press the shadows on, you won't have any issue. I love the balance of this palette, with the inclusion of three matte shades and three shimmer shades that can be mixed and matched to your needs. There is a very good range among all the shades to create dimension and depth. The shadows also adhere very well to the eyes even without primer. I find these shadows don't crease throughout the day, however, if you have oily lids, you may want to use a primer because the shadows are so creamy. The shadows stay very vibrant and fresh all long.



THE LOOKS 

Day Eye 

I used the palette as intended by Charlotte Tilbury to show you exactly what the finished looks will look like. So for the Day Eye, I applied the Prime 1 Shade all over the lid, focusing on the lid and blending upwards. Then, I took the Enhance 2 shade and applied it in the crease blending upwards. Finally, I packed the Smoke 3 shade on the outer corner and blended it into the crease shade. The finished look is very soft, luminous, and subtle. This look is really great for work or just as a simple everyday eye. I paired this look with the Charlotte Tilbury Lovegasm Palette (full review here) and the American Sweetheart Lipstick (LE).




Date Eye

For the Date Eye look, I used the Prime 1 all over the lid blending up to the crease. Then, I took the Enhance 2 shade and applied it into the crease, blending upward. Finally, I applied the Smoke 3 shade in the outer corner of my eyes and blended it up into the crease. I felt like this smokey eye need a bit more brightening, so I applied a touch of the Prime 1 from the Day Eye side to the inner corners to highlight and brighten the overall look. I also used the Charlotte Tilbury Lovegasm Palette for this look and I paired it with the Very Victoria Lipstick.





FINAL THOUGHTS 

I had a feeling from the look of this palette that I would like it a lot and it really did not disappoint after I started using it! The quality is exceptional! I love the creamy and soft textures of the eyeshadows. The pigmentation is rich and vibrant, which means I only need to pick up a little product to make an impact. All the shadows blend beautifully and there is no issue with patchiness or uneven application. The colors all compliment each other very well and create a very beautiful range of shades to play with. I love the concept of an easy to use and effortless palette, which is broken down into two three-shadow looks. This makes it so easy for any beginner or someone who just doesn't have the time to fuss with choosing eyeshadow shades! I love the sleek and compact style of the palette. It makes it so easy to travel with! Overall, for the price, I think this is an amazing palette! If these are your kind of shades, this palette is a winner all around! 

Shop Charlotte Tilbury: 

3 comments:

  1. I think this is a beautiful eyeshadow palette from Charlotte Tilbury.

    http://shimmeringhighlights.blogspot.com/

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  2. Thanks for the review, Liz. I was disappointed in this release as the shades are duplicates of those in the Instant Eye In a Palette Holiday 2018, (and,from previews, appearing again in the Holiday 2019 version). It's a great palette for those who don't have last year's 12-pan palette and probably the shades I would have preferred instead of the full 12 shades. I'm ready for cool tones from CT. Well, from all brands.

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  3. I heard so much about CT that I decided to try the pocket palette. However, I wish I'd read your great review first, because Nordstrom doesn't include any description of the palette's colors on their website. Fortunately, the rose gold and copper suit my medium skin tone. I love both the day and evening looks as you illustrate so well, and I'm going to try the Very Victoria lipstick at your recommendation, too!

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