So if you don’t already know, SophDoesNails (she very rarely does actual nail tutorials) is one of my favourite UK YouTubers. She’s basically a highlighter queen who dabbles in US beauty brands such as Ofra and Jouer but focuses mainly on UK drugstore makeup. Soph always speaks her mind and is incredibly relatable and honest. I adore her personal style (grungy with a glam twist) and the way she talks to her viewers like they are her mates rather than customers that she’s trying to influence. I actually got emotional watching her video swatching and explaining her inspiration and shade choices for the Soph X Makeup Revolution Eyeshadow Palette (£10). She seems like a genuinely lovely girl who is relatable and humble.
This collaboration with Makeup Revolution is such a good fit and I’m so happy to see the brand launching a unique product rather than the stream of dupes they’ve been releasing lately. I have definitely noticed that their palettes have been getting better and better in quality and I was excited to get my hands on this collection as the selection of shades online looked beautiful.
I was so happy to see a mixture of neutrals, rusty oranges and reds (Soph’s signature shades) as well as emerald greens and purples. It’s such a unique combination of shades and there’s definitely something for everyone. The possibilities are endless. Although the matte nude packaging is very on trend right now (Fenty, KKW Beauty, Gigi Hadid X Maybelline) and I’m very much a fan of it, I was a little disappointed that the overall look of the palette doesn’t seem to reflect the personal style Soph’s known for on her channel. Nevertheless, it’s definitely very pretty. Inside is a full sized mirror and a clear insert with the shade names on which I, of course, lost the minute I opened it. If you’re going to go through the fuss of individually naming 24 shadows (14 mattes and 10 shimmers) having the names on the box for easy reference would have been handy. It’s worth noting that this palette is also cruelty-free, gluten-free and vegan-friendly.
Soph states in her video that a few of the shadows do need a bit of building (she swatches a few of them twice for example) as this is an affordable palette so doesn’t expect Urban Decay quality, a comment I must admit got my back up. The majority of the shimmers definitely need to be applied with your fingers and/or wet and you really need to take your time blending out the darker mattes to avoid them looking patchy. There is also quite a bit of fallout, however, this doesn’t really bother me as I have come to expect this from drugstore palettes. As you can tell from the swatches above, there are a few lovely shades and several disappointing ones. You can make some beautiful looks, you just need to be patient and take your time building them up. I personally found this palette a tad frustrating, it just didn’t perform how I wanted it too. I don’t find myself reaching for this very often. It’s hard work, especially for someone like me with very limited skill at applying eyeshadow.
