Amanda's 2013 Holiday Palette Pick

It's that time of year again! Holiday seasons are a great time to purchase makeup and skincare products. Companies put together exclusive and limited edition palettes that give you opportunities to try out new products and save money. 

With so many options out there it can be hard to decide which set(s) to buy. You can spend a fortune on holiday palettes that may meet your expectations or leave you disappointed. Here is my top pick for this holiday season.

The Tarte of Giving Collector's Set & Travel Bag

 Sephora Exclusive $59 (a $490 value)

Tarte has taken things to the next level with this limited edition exclusive set. Tarte also released an exclusive set for Ulta as seen here.

 The reason I selected this set over the one for Ulta was twofold. First off you get 4 more eye shadows along with additional products not found in the Ulta set. Secondly, the travel bag. It holds everything included in this set with room for other products, like your foundation. That being said every product in the Ulta set is full sized and comes with a to-go compact. There's always a trade off : )

This set includes:

20 Limited Edition Amazonian Clay Eyeshadows - Full Size

8 Limited Edition Maracuja Lip Glosses - Deluxe Size

Lights, Camera, Lashes 4 in 1 Mascara - Deluxe Size

Cheek Stain in Flush - Deluxe Size

Limited Edition Amazonian 12-Hour Clay Blush in Memorable - Deluxe Size

Maracuja C-Brighter™ Eye Treatment  - Deluxe Size

Pure Maracuja Oil - Deluxe Size

and finally the Travel Bag

 Talk about a lot of products in one set! Though a majority of the products are deluxe sized they are not tiny. Enough of the details, let's go on to the review.

Please note that all swatches were photographed without primer and in natural light.

Eyeshadows:

Photos put in palette order.

 I love these eyeshadows, there's no other way to put it. They have high color payoff, buttery velvet consistency, and are long wearing. You get a mix of matte and shimmer with colors ranging from neutral to bold. These limited edition colors come with fun names like Anna's Tea Set and Steph's Pearls. The palette the shadows are housed in is large, but very slim so you can still fit the whole thing in an average sized purse.

Lip Glosses:

From Top Left: Ro, Spence, Viv, Lizzy, Finn, Kara, Sully, and John.

 These limited edition lip glosses were named after Tarte staff members children. I am a lip gloss junkie (I admit it!) so I expect a lot out of my lip gloss. These glosses are great on their own or over other lip colors. They are not sticky and condition and plump your lips without any pain or making your lips go numb. My favorite is Sully and if there was anyway for me to get my hands on a few full sized versions of it, regardless of cost I would do it! It almost pains me to use it knowing that once it's gone, I'm not getting it back

Cheeks:

Left: Cheek Stain in Flush    Right: Amazonian Clay Blush in Memorable

 These blushes were hard to photograph, but it had more to do with my tan than the color payoff. The cheek stain is a sheer berry that blends well and doesn't overwhelm like some other cheek stains. I think what I love most about it is the smell. Normally cheek products have no, or very little smell. This one has a light citrus berry fragrance that makes me smile when I apply it. As for the Amazonian Clay Blush it's a shimmery rose mauve tone. I use matte foundation as my sensitive skin can go haywire with oil when I wear makeup. This blush gives me a natural glow without the oil or additional highlighters.

The other products I did not photograph, but here are my reviews on them.

 

The mascara is one of my favorites. It lengthens, adds volume, and doesn't clump after multiple coats. I wore many pairs of false eyelashes for dance and can't stand wearing them. This is the next best thing to false lashes.

 

The oil and eye treatment are now part of my nightly routine. I never used to use any products like this as they either didn't work or made me break out. These two products not only worked for me, but I have not had a single break out. My skin has improved in texture and when I wake up my eyes are not puffy and the slight dark circles I used to have are all but vanished.

 

As a whole this set is amazing. Not to mention as it's from Tarte it's all formulated without parabens, mineral oil, phthalates, triclosan, sodium lauryl sulfate, or gluten. That's always a plus in my book, as is their cruelty free status.

That being said, there are some small issues with the set I got. The lids of the lip gloss containers were not screwed on completely when I got the set. This caused separation and in the long term would have caused the glosses to dry out. Make sure to check the lids and secure them tightly if you decide to purchase this set.

 

I think I've gone on quite enough about this set, however if you would like to know more specifics or see additional photos just let us know in the comments below. We would love to hear from you regarding our posts or even suggestions on what you would like to see next. 

 ~Amanda