This is Punk Beauty Alternatives, and this is my secret - I was honestly not expecting much from this palette. I even contemplated passing on it at some point. My excitement for it was only stoked by my disappointment in the Riviera Palette, so I really didn't have high hopes for this one.
Yes, I liked the colors. Yes, I love matte shades. Yes, this palette served a lot of cool-toned realness. Yes, I do like Alyssa Edwards. I was still not that intrigued by this palette at first. But no, I don't regret getting it now. Anyway, let's get into the product.
The Palette
Encased in plain neon pink covered cardboard, this palette contains 14 shades that exemplify what Alyssa considers are her essential colors in all the looks she creates. The drag performer of RuPaul's Drag Race has been known for her colorful show-stopping looks that have a lot of pink, purples, and cool-toned colors.
Again, this palette comes with ABH's signature prickly and sub-par quality dual-ended brush and includes a little leaflet containing all the information about the shadows.
Comparison With the Riviera Palette
Some people have also pointed out that the release of this palette seemed a bit off because it looks similar to the Riviera Palette. I don't think it does though. I think the Riviera palette was about warm summer tones that had a lot of neutrals and some color. The Alyssa Edwards palette is mostly an explosion of vivid colors that scream drag queen extravaganza.
Before I go in-depth on the shadows, I am going to say now that this product is not vegan. It contains Carmine or CI 75470, which is a red dye derived from crushed beetles. Moreover, the Zinc Stearate and Palmitate may be animal-derived too (as it's not stated if they are vegan, but they can be).
The Shadows
Of all the 14 shades, most of these are matte (11), and 4 of those matte shades are pressed pigments (Texas Made, Dream It, B.B.D.C., and Believe). It is mentioned on the palette that these colors are not safe for the immediate eye area because they can leave stains. While I personally have no problem with it, a shadow that can leave stains might not be safe if you have extremely sensitive skin on your eyes.
There are 3 metallics in this color scheme, a champagne (Inspire), a fuchsia (Beyond), and a violet (D.D.G.). Anyway, since a lot of the shades are pressed pigments to begin with, I decided to swatch everything over a layer of Milani eye primer because many of the eyeshadows were impossible to finger swatch otherwise:
Some of the matte shades are pretty hard to blend out and build up, particularly B.B.D.C. and Believe. I definitely think you will need to set your eyeshadow base first where you intend to blend these shadows out beforehand. Also, yes, the pressed pigments do leave stains on your eyelids. They're nothing that intense but your eyes will for sure look pinkish until your next hot shower.
As for those metallic colors, would have definitely liked lighter ones on this, like a duochrome shade (Like Cube from the Subculture Palette) and a lighter blue metallic (Seychelles from the Riviera Palette for example). I just think Beyond and D.D.G. don't really enhance the color story, they blend in too much.
My Final Thoughts
This palette is most definitely not beginner friendly. I would say this was created for people who already know how to work with pressed pigments, like drag performers and people who love color. Many of the looks that you come up with are definitely going to be bold and vibrant, not necessarily seamless and subdued, as can be seen by the looks that I have come up with using this palette:
You can make a more neutral glam kind of look by just using The Supreme, Backrolls, and Inspire, but using this palette for just those three colors seems like a waste - especially with everything else included.
Overall, I would definitely only recommend this palette for color lovers and aspiring drag artists for the quality and color scheme, but I admit that it's really not the easiest palette to work with. If you adore color and stan Alyssa Edwards, I definite think this palette is worth picking up. If you have never really worked with a pressed pigment and want to get this palette to start with, maybe not do that - there are other more colorful palettes with shadow formulas that are easier to work with.
Judging from the video of Alyssa talking about the palette with Norvina, it is implied that there are possibly other products in the works. Maybe they'll be more user-friendly? Let's wait and see.
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