I love palettes. Since I’ve gotten so much into loose powder eyeshadows and blushes, I don’t use them as much as I used to, but I still really love them. Put it in a palette, and I’m especially going to be a sucker for it. This 5 Things is a list of the three palettes I HAVE, that I really love, and two that I WANT.

1. Urban Decay Ammo Palette is one of my favorites. It has ten eyeshadow colors, which are in my opinion some of the best UD makes. You can do both bright and more neutral looks with this palette, so it’s quite versatile.

2. Cargo PlantLove Green Goddess Kit is my go-to palette when I want an all-in-one thing for travel, especially if the reason for the travel is something that requires more neutral colors (like work). I really love the soft, almost creamy quality of the colors in this set. This palette has four eyeshadows and two blushes.

3. The Cargo PlantLove Green Glamour Kit contains 18 eyeshadows, a mix of pearly colors and mattes. The colors are all very wearable and flattering. This palette is the one to grab when you’re not sure what you’re going to want to wear so you better bring ALL THE COLORS!

4. The Cowboy Junkie set from Urban Decay falls under the “don’t really NEED it but really WANT it” category. It has four eyeshadows, an eyeliner, and a lipgloss and at $24 is currently A STEAL. I may give in and order it…

5. This Sephora palette of neutral colors is SO PRETTY. ME WANT.

My friend Luna at Toxid-Lotus issued a Makeup Challenge on her blog, so I decided it would be fun to participate. This week’s challenge is Hello Kitty. Rather than trying for classic hello kitty (which is white, red, and yellow to me) I figured I’d just shoot for cute and girly and see where I landed.

I decided to pull out lonely, forgotten makeup for this, so all the eyeshadow is Urban Decay. I have the Ammo Eyeshadow Palette, which in my opinion is still one of the best things they’ve done. 10 colors, all the best ones. This is often the only eyeshadow palette I’ll take with me if I’m traveling, because it’s so versatile. Hey, I should do a 5 Things Best Palettes post one of these days, hmmm…

Anyway. Today I used Shattered (bright green/blue shift) in the inner corners. Grifter (lavender with lots of silver microglitter) went in the middle part of the lid, as well as under the lower lashline. A dab of Last Call (plum punch) went in the outer corners. The black crease color is Oil Slick (black with silver glitter) and the highlight is Polyester Bride (white with silver glitter). I used a Milani eye pencil on the upper lashline.

With all this eye action going on, I used a soft pink powder on my cheeks. It’s actually one of the Hello Kitty MAC beauty powders, with a tiny bit of a Body Shop blush.

It seemed like bright fuchsia lips would be the thing, although now they seem a little clash-y. Oh well. The lipstick is Sephora Rouge Lips in Mr. Lover (R10). It’s a great formula and color, nonetheless.

Right now, I’m blonde. It’s not my favorite thing. I bleached my hair yesterday, and then decided I should get a haircut BEFORE re-dyeing it purple so the stylist wouldn’t have purple hands from the dye. She thanked me, lol, but I didn’t feel like sitting with dye on my hair for hours today so I’m still blonde. Maybe tomorrow I’ll feel like doing it…

2011 was an interesting year. I stopped buying a lot of corporate cosmetics and started buying a lot of indie cosmetics, which was really satisfying. I didn’t buy as much perfume as I have in the past, but what I did buy I really love. One the minus side, some of the companies I reviewed have closed, but on the plus side others have thrived. Overall, it was a pretty good year for beauty.

I found a lot of products to love this year, so my list is kind of all over the place. Here are my picks for Best of 2011.

Best New Eyeshadow Color: This one is easy. It’s THEO! The lovely Rosa at Black Rose Minerals created Theo for me, a color inspired by my kitty’s fur and green eyes. It’s like taupe with a bonus.

Best Eyeshadow Collection: By collection, I mean a group of colors meant to go together. This is a tie, between Linnaeus Cosmetics’ Echidna and Ruby Throated Hummingbird collections. The Echidna colors are wonderful neutrals, and the Ruby Throated Hummingbird has bright, VERY sparkly colors. I love them both.

Best New Lip Color: My favorite this year is Morgana Cryptoria’s Hibiscus Lip Balm. Last I heard, the lip balms were probably going away, but I bought this same shade in the Lip Gloss formula. Whatever formula it’s in, I hope the shade remains permanently! It’s the best baby pink I’ve found.

Best Eyeshadow Name: Nutella Whore from RockABetty Beauty. I was there when the name originated, so it’s fun being “in” on the joke. Also? It’s a great sparkly brown.

Best Product I Still Can’t Live Without: Urban Decay Primer Potion. I still haven’t found anything that works as well for me and my crazy-oily eyelids. Without Primer Potion, wearing eyeshadow would be impossible.

Best New Mascara: I love Maybelline’s Volum’Express One By One mascara. It’s the perfect combination of volume and separation in one tube.

Best Face Care Product: Annmarie Gianni Skincare’s Herbal Facial Oil for Oily/Acne Skin is amazing and splurgeworthy. I love how my skin looks when I use this regularly.

Best High End Perfume: I try a whole lot of high end perfume this year, so it’s pretty easy to give this to Balenciaga Paris. I love how sophisticated and interesting it smells.

Best Cheap Thrills Perfume: All of One Hand Washes The Other’s Solid Scents in the Private Stock collection. At a mere $4 each, they’re like Pokemon – gotta catch ‘em all!

Best Body Care Product: Aveda’s Composition oils are probably my favorite body care product I discovered this year. I have the Energizing, Calming, and Men Pure-Formance varieties, and they are all equally wonderful. They are wonderfully versatile: apply to your scalp and leave overnight for a deep treatment, apply to your skin after your shower for a body oil, add a little to your bath water for a lovely aroma… I primarily use them as an after-shower moisturizer and love them.

Overall, 2011 was a pretty good year for beauty shopping! What are your favorite products that you discovered last year?

I hardly ever write negative reviews. It’s because I try to select products to try that I have a good likelihood of actually LIKING. I just tend to avoid products that I’m quite confident aren’t going to work with my skin, or that have a formula I know I don’t like (I rarely review cream eyeshadow, for example). But sometimes I try something, expecting to LOVE it, and it’s a major FAIL. This is what today’s report is all about!

Urban Decay’s regular Primer Potion for eyeshadow is one of my Holy Grail products. I don’t apply eyeshadow without it, ever. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT. So it was with no small amount of anticipation that I purchased a tube of Urban Decay’s newest, Primer Potion Eden. Eden is supposed to be Primer Potion with the addition of yellow pigment, to brighten the eye area and correct any purplish discoloration. And I quote:

An eye prep product that provides smoother, longer-lasting, and absolutely crease-proof eyeshadow—and is now offered in a very-wearable, tawny, matte hue.

And thus begins my tale of woe. Regular Primer Potion ROCKS MY SOCKS. My eyeshadow will stay crease-free for up to 12 hours, more if I don’t sweat much. Last time I flew to New York City I had applied eyeshadow the morning before the flight, for work, and it only needed light retouching when I landed, 24 hours later. It’s THAT GOOD. But Eden…

I want to love this product. I like the color-correcting effect, and my shadow looked lovely on top of it this morning. BUT! It barely made it past my lunch break for it all devolved into crease city on my eyelids! SOB! Yep, not even six hours later… Whatever they did to the formula, it definitely doesn’t have the same anti-crease magic of regular Primer Potion.

I may give it another try, or perhaps try it on my dark circles instead. But it was a FAIL at performing its primary function, keeping my eyeshadow in place. Perhaps someone whose lids don’t get as oily as mine do will find it ok.

I’ve been waiting rather impatiently for new stuff to start coming out for spring, and it looks like I’m finally in luck! Sephora.com has several new items that look particularly interesting to me…

First on the list is this Kat Von D palette called Memento Mori. I haven’t really checked out the other products in the Kat Von D lineup as the colors are a little too deep to be my thing. But these lighter, more pastel colors are right up my alley, so I’ll definitely be checking this one out in person.

Urban Decay’s new Primer Potion in Eden is really floating my boat. I love Primer Potion and this looks like it would probably be a good color corrector for my dark eyelids. Want!

Also from Urban Decay, these Stardust Eye Shadows look like fun. I wonder what the texture is like? UD’s other sparkly eyeshadows are guilty of major fallout (leaving sparkles all over my face) but these claim to be fallout-free. Must investigate further!

I am kinda sorta wanting a small bottle of Vera Wang Glam Princess. I’m such a sucker for cute and the stars on the bottle are really getting to me. Hmmm… must get a sample and see if it’s actually wearable!

What new stuff are you wanting?

LOL sounds like a halloween party! But no, it’s just Claire playing with some more Fyrinnae eyeshadows. I am SERIOUSLY in love. If you like vibrant colors, you MUST check out Fyrinnae (and I don’t work for them, promise!). I’ve used a lot of eyeshadow and I am consistently impressed with the impact of their eyeshadow colors. They blend pretty well too, and they wear all day long. They have a nice selection of more neutral and pastel colors too if the bright shades aren’t your bag. The samples are VERY generous and come in jars, which is another factor making me LOVE the products. I’m just not a fan of the baggie and I’m willing to pay more for a jar.

On my last day off, I paired Sea Otter (medium green with soft blue highlights) with Cupcake Sprinkles (satiny lavender with a subtle aqua shimmer), and used Urban Decay Liquid Liner in Crash (purple with silver sparkle), and Nijiro under the browbone. I brushed TBS Roseflower Blush in Pink on my cheeks and I’m wearing Hard Candy’s Piglet Lip Gloss. Sea Otter is more vibrant than MAC Aquavert, which is more pastel. I just adore Cupcake Sprinkles, it is the BEST purple ever.

Today I used Kitten In Heels (bright fuschia with violet and blue shimmer) and Wicked (deep, dark purple with turquoise shimmer), with a little Twinkle Twinkle Little Bat (somewhat pink, somewhat lavender, and very sparkly). I put the Kitten on the inner half of the lid, with Twinkle on the outer half and blended. I put Wicked in the crease and blended some more, with the result being the whole eye looks quite purple. On the browbone and blended around the eye I used Techno from my Hard Candy palette, a white with purple sheen. I lined with Benefit Bad Gal on the lower lashline and UD Crash (again) on the upper. On the cheeks went Samba from J. Lynne, and a mark. juice gems on my lips. It came out more dramatic than the pictures really show. I love these colors!

I’ve got a bunch more colors on my wishlist, including Arctic Fox, Dryad, Red Panda, and Lip Lustres in Bounce and Fanservice. I need to review Whee, Visual Kei, and Melty – I used Melty the other day with Love Potion but didn’t have time to get it photographed. There are also a bunch of Aromaleigh colors I want… This loose eyeshadow habit could really become a problem!

I look totally crankypants in this picture… I’m really quite cheerful, honest! LOL.

I have a pile of stuff to write about (MAC Hello Kitty, Maybelline Lash Stylist, Cargo PlantLove, Bare Escentuals stuff…) but we did inventory at work today and I’m beat. So I’m taking another break (yesterday’s post was pretty lazy too!) and following the lead of Oh…pretty!, which is a blog I like to read. Because I use and have SO MUCH product, this is going to be what I used today. I tag everyone who reads and wants to do this, like Oh…Pretty! did. If you put a link to your list in the comments, I’ll read yours too!

* Shampoo: Aveda Shampure
* Conditioner: Nature’s Gate Pomegranate Sunflower Hair Defense Conditioner
* Styling products: Living Proof No Frizz for Thick Hair, TRESemme hairspray
* Shower Gel: Suave Exhale Lively Juicy Tangerine Body Wash
* Body moisturizer: L’Occitane 15% Shea Butter Body Lotion
* Deodorant: L’Occitane Purifying Deodorant
* Fake Tan: none
* Cleanser: 40 Carrots Carrot + Creme Cleanser
* Moisturizer: Cosmetic Surgeon In A Jar Firming & Tightening Cream
* Eye makeup remover: none
* Exfoliator: Cosmetic Surgeon In A Jar Ultimate Skin Exfoliator
* Primer: none
* Foundation: Stila Oil-Free Tinted Moisturizer
* Foundation brush: none today, but usually EcoTools
* Concealer: Benefit Erase Paste
* Powder: Clarins Lose Powder
* Blusher: The Body Shop Roseflower Blush in Pink
* Bronzer: none today
* Highlighter: Guerlain Meteorites
* Eyeshadow base: Urban Decay Primer Potion
* Eyeshadows: MAC Hello Kitty Lucky Tom
* Eyeliner: MAC Hello Kitty Lucky Tom (purple color used as liner)
* Eyelash curler: Tarte Picture Perfect Lash Curler
* Eyelash base: none
* Mascara: Maybelline Lash Stiletto
* Lipstick: none today
* Lipgloss: L’Occitane Honey & Lemon gloss
* Nail Colour: Citra Formaldehyde Free Healthy Nails
* Perfume: Fresh Patchouli Pure

I love palettes, especially eyeshadow palettes and face/eye combos. I’m not much of a fan of ones that include lip colors just because I always seem to get powder in the lip parts and it looks gross. Plus, who wants to carry the whole thing with you during the day to retouch your lips? If they’re small enough to carry in my purse, I make an exception though – especially if the colors are versatile enough to go from day to night.

First up is Too Faced’s Glamour To Go palette, which includes eight eye shadows, four lip glosses, and a blush. This one is small enough to carry, and the shades have lights and darks – good for day, then glam it up for night without going home to touch up your face! Love it! Plus, at under $20 the price is right.

The Cargo PlantLove Green Goddess palette is full of pretty shades, and the formulas are great for women with sensitive skin. I wants!

Sephora still has this Smashbox set still in stock, so I’m mentioning it again – it’s the Pink Power Eye & Lip kit, and it’s SO PRETTY! Do up your eyes in the morning, and take the lip set to go with you! *sigh* I want this one too.

This Fresh palette (Island Reverie) isn’t new, but it would also make a great gift. The shades are perfect for a soft look, and Fresh’s quality is great.

I love this combo set from LORAC because the glosses are separate in their own tubes! This is a great one for travel, with sixteen eyeshadows, a highlighter, bronzer, two blushes and three lipglosses. Bring your own mascara and you’d be set! Plus, the colors are flattering for a variety of skin tones.

Urban Decay tempts with two offerings this year: the Book of Shadows (sixteen eyeshadows, two premium brushes, and a travel-size Eyeshadow Primer Potion) and the Sustainable Shadow Box (ten shadows, a brush, and a travel-sized Eyeshadow Primer Potion). The Book of Shadows wouldn’t travel well since it’s huge, but the other one would. The colors in both are typical bright, stunning UD colors. On their website, UD is offering a great set called Urban Essentials, with a full sized Goddess shadow, a full sized Midnight Cowboy shadow, and an extra large Eyeshadow Primer Potion. Since Primer Potion is only THE BEST PRIMER EVER, this set would rock.

Not wanting to neglect cool indie brands, do check out Skinn Dimitri James’ Luxe Premier Eyeshadow Palette. I’ve been very impressed with the eyeshadows from this brand. They go on silky-smooth, the color payoff is great, and they wear as well as any other high quality brand. Plus, these colors are so pretty!  The Patina Eye Shadow palettes are awesome too – I have the one pictured, and would like the others.