Urban Decay Naked Basics vs MUA Matte Palette

If there is one make up item I know myself I do not need to purchase more of its eye shadow palettes, but when I saw the new MUA mattepalette I couldn't leave it behind. Not only was it a drugstore entirely matte palette, which I find is like finding a needle in a haystack nowadays. It also had several shades that bared a striking resemblance to a certain Urban Decay Naked Basics palette you may have heard of!

I got the UD Naked Basic palette about a year and a half ago now and as you will be able to tell from the photos I have to say it’s one of my most used palettes. I find it perfect for natural day looks and the deeper shades to darken up the crease or add definition for a night time look. Plus, it’s tiny so perfect to wack in your make up bag for on the go touch ups.  Although this is the cheapest of all the Naked collection palettes, it is still a high end product ( at £22)  and if I can get a dupe for less than a quarter of the price I’m game.

(Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette -£22) 

( MUA Matte Palette- £4) 

Texture

Urban Decay –

So as you can see from the pictures the palette has two pale matte neutral tones, which again as you can see are my most used.  Although I love these colours for an all over wash of colour I do find the texture to be slightly chalky and with that comes fall out. Not necessarily a problem for this very light tones but no one wants to ruin their perfect base by smudging, black and brown all down their face.  They are not the worse I have used, but I defiantly would  be aware of this and make sure you use correct brushes and tap off excess before you start.

MUA –

I wish I could say this issue is totally avoided with the drugstore option but sadly I cant. The very light tones do still have a chalky texture which I find does lead to fall out. I would say ,however, that the darker tones I have less of an issue with, but that maybe due to less pigmentation meaning the fall out is less obvious.

( UD  swatches- Venus, Foxy, W.O.S, Naked 2, Faint, Crave )

(MUA swatches- Unwrap, Butter, Bare, Taffeta, Fade, Penny, Chino, Truffle, Fog, Smoke)

Pigmentation

UD-

As I touched upon above this really is where you see you value for money, the pigmentation is amazing! The colours not only apply as they do in the pan they also work together well and are easy to blend making creating a look with this palette almost fool proof.  The photos will not do this justice as of course the skin toned shades blend in with my arm but I think you can see how much the dark tones pop.

MUA-

As I mentioned above these are much less pigmented especially noticeable towards the end of the palette with the dark shadows. However, I find the light neutral tones that I use every day are extremely similar. These are not colours that you are using to stand out and so I feel a lighter but build-able pigment is totally acceptable for me. Also as you can see I have nearly completely used up the W.O.S shade which I use as my base colour for every look. To re buy the whole palette for one shade seemed ridiculous but with the MUA palette even if I only use these light colours I have saved money.

Lasting Power

UD-

 As expected for the price point theses shades lasted pretty much all day with relatively little creasing, which was totally removed with the use of a primer. I particularly noticed that the lightest flesh toned colours were still obvious at the end of the day.

MUA-

I was very surprised at just how well the darker tones lasted throughout the day, and with a primer underneath I would say they were very much comparable to the UD. However, the downside appears with the light tones which are virtually non- existent even with a primer after a couple of hours. This may not be a problem for some people as they are so similar to flesh tones but I was still disappointed. 

(Foxy and Butter, W.O.S and Bare, Naked 2 and Penny, Faint and Truffle, Crave and Smoke)

As you can see from above some of the shades are virtually identical and bar the pigmentation of some of these shades from MUA, I would say this MUA palette is a winner. I do love the UD one and if you have the budget give it a go, but if your new to matte shades and want a large section that will help you achieve a variety of looks form natural day to smokey evening, for £4 you cannot go wrong. 

Have you tried them both ? Let me know what you think in the comments below and make sure to let me know if you have any palette dupes id love to test some more out. 

Summer Saviours...

With the British weather slowly creeping up the temperature gauge, it was sure enough time for me to have a makeup re-think. Being a dry skinned girl, I’m used to the creams, lotions and potions I have to slather on my face during the colder months in order to prevent the awful flakey face I know so well. So when the heat does start to kick in I definitely need to have a root around and rejig my stash so that my make up has not slid off my face by the time I leave the office at 5 o’clock.

So when this seasonal mix up happened this year, I realised I had several staples that my face – and sanity would not be intact without.

   (Seaweed Mattifying Day Cream - £10)

The first is my moisturiser of choice – The Body Shop's Seaweed mattifying day cream. Like I said before, during the winter months, I need to plaster on the moisture to keep my face under control but as soon as a glimmer of sun pops out I’m all about the mattifying moisturisers. This gel like product creates a great base for makeup and doubles up as a primer for me. The light cooling formula is great during a particularly hot summer morning and when applied to the T-zone it prevents all signs of oil or grease.

I am normally someone who will always powder before I leave the house and usually at the end of the day, but with this I don’t feel the need to at all. It has definitely saved my foundation on several occasions and has never dried my face out. For the price I would definitely give it a whirl, especially if you can catch one of The Body Shop's amazing online discounts they frequently have.

(L'oreal Nude Magique BB Cream - £9.99)

I am a firm believer that there is nothing worse than finding your perfect foundation, high end or budget and going on holiday and coming back only to find you need a brand new shade for the relatively short amount of time you retain your holiday glow. In the past I used to simply opt for just bronzer and concealer during those pesky in between months, but on days I feel I need more coverage, I leap for my L'oreal Nude Magique BB cream.

This whitey, purply liquid is at first a little alarming, especially as it tends to have a greyish tinge when you first apply it, but just go with it. As you work it into your face, some magical L'oreal technology kicks in and it adapts to your skin colour and within seconds you have an even beautiful face without the awkward pale moon face situation.

I would always recommend using your hand as I feel the heat of your fingers works the product in better, but if you are brush junkie, I would opt for the Real Techniques buffing brush as it’s not so dense, so gives a lighter finish.

I am, regardless of tan, always going to be fair so I use the light version but I find this spans a wide colour range and there are 3 options for all complexions.

(Caudalie Beuaty Elixir - £10.95)

As much as I did not want to give into the hype, I have to admit the Caudalie Beuaty Elixir is a real summer treat to combat that mid afternoon glow. Although I wouldn’t necessarily regard it is as staple, I would say the mini bottle is ideal for several uses throughout the hotter periods. I personally use it as a toner in the morning before I apply any make up and throughout the day over the top as a light spritz just to cool me down.

 Now, the smell is one that has divided opinions for a while, I would say if you are not a fan of anything remotely herbal/medicinal give it a wide birth but if you can handle it for a few seconds it fades almost instantly.

(MUA Matte palette - £4.00)

For me, the summer months are all about the, “no make up, make up look”. In the words of Beyonce,“ I woke up like this” kind of look. I find that in order to achieve this, I will always reach for matte shades over shimmer on my eyes. I have quite sparse, fair lashes so I feel I look odd and unfinished with just mascara, so I tend to use matte shade to contour my crease and give light definition under my eye. This year I have found the new MUA Matte palette takes the ticket.

It’s got a wide spectrum of tones all without a glimmer of shimmer in sight and all perfect for that effortless smoky natural eye. I know what your thinking- that looks suspiciously like a dupe for the Urban Decay Naked Basics palette, well that was my thoughts too and I will be doing a detailed comparison of the two to come, so watch this space.

However, for now I will say I enjoy the vast colour selection and the variety of tones and shades and for £4 it’s worth a go even if just for the hotter months.

(The Urban Decay All Nighter Make Up Setting Spray - £9.00)

My final product I fear will not be a surprise to anyone, especially for hotter climates, The Urban Decay All Nighter Make Up Setting Spray. Now, I don’t use this every day , mainly because I only have a tiny bottle and its slightly on the pricey side, but on a night out or on a day when I need my make up to last, it’s a must have.

Applied before you apply your foundation and then again once you have finished your base, it almost locks in the products and helps keep it in place all day. It’s also really refreshing and can be sprayed similar to the BeautyElixir throughout the day to refresh your make up. Urban Decay have several varieties of the spray for different skin needs, so I would recommend reading up or visiting your local counter for advice before purchasing, in order to get the one that’s suits you the best.