Beauty palettes; it’s all fun and games until a brand throws in an acid green eyeshadow or a frosted white highlighter, right?! You know what we mean, those palettes you buy for the colours you adore and suit you perfectly, but are always used-up while their less beautiful palette sisters get overlooked and remain unused.
Makeup artists have long used buildable palettes to streamline their kits and it was, for a long time, a professional system that would allow you to choose and create your own colour combinations for photo-shoots, catwalk shows and the like. Check out the instagram account of any MUA and you’ll likely find a shot of their palette lined up next to freshly washed brushes, a colour selection carefully edited to be flattering for all skin tones whatever the editor’s brief.
You don’t need to be a professional makeup artist to be able to build your own palette though and more and more brands are responding to us wanting to personalise our beauty bags in the way MUAs do. Here are a few of our favourite customisable palettes...
essence live.laugh.celebrate! Palette, £1.50It comes with either four or eight wells for eyeshadows and the palette has a cute design with crushed pearls in the lid you can shake so it’s not just your makeup that’s eye-catching.
MAC pro palette x4 compact, £5 Perhaps the brand most famous for customisable palettes is MAC and their pro palette can be filled with powder, gel, cream or emulsion products so you can create a really tight edit as well as versatile options.
Urban Decay NIRVANA Build Your Own Palette, £10 If you want this dreamy palette then you’ll have to rush as it's limited edition, but it means you can house everything you need for a smokey eye or everyday eyeshadow essentials - taupes, nude, greys - so all your favourites are in one place.
NYX CUSTOM 9-SHADOW PRO PALETTE, £5 If you like to have a lot of choice at your fingertips ten NYX's palette has a whopping nine wells, but still manages to be pretty compact. Fill it with the Hot Singles eyeshadows, £3.50 each, or the Prismatic Singles, £5.50.
Bobbi Brown 3 Pan Customisable Palette, £7 A favourite for blushers, bronzers and contouring is Bobbi Brown's coveted customisable 3 pan palette. With singles costing £19.50, there’s a broad range of colour and two finishes, satin and shimmer, to add into the pans.
