This review dives deep into the Huda Beauty Desert Dusk eyeshadow palette, a departure from the brand's typical red and pink hues. This new palette introduces warm purples, blues, and peaches, promising a fresh and exciting color story. We'll explore the palette's pigmentation, blendability, and overall performance, examining both its strengths and minor drawbacks. From initial impressions of the stunning desert-inspired packaging to the final, dramatic eye look, this review covers every aspect, including the application process and the products used to complement the palette.Expect a detailed account of the reviewer's experience using each shade, focusing on texture, color payoff, and ease of blending. We'll also explore how the Desert Dusk palette pairs with other makeup products, including concealers, highlighters, and lipsticks, to create a complete, cohesive look. Finally, we'll offer a concluding verdict on whether this palette lives up to the hype and its price point, considering both its impressive qualities and any minor shortcomings.
Pros And Cons
- Good pigmentation
- True to color payoff
- Blends easily
- Variety of finishes (mattes, shimmers, glitters)
- Includes a true glitter shade
- Stunning packaging
- Large mirror
- Some powder buildup in the pan
- Twilight shade is crumbly and loose
Read more: 5 Stunning Cool-Toned Eyeshadow Palettes You Need
First Impressions & Initial Swatch
The Huda Beauty Desert Dusk palette promises a shift from the brand's previous red and pink-toned palettes towards warmer purples, blues, and peaches. Initial impressions suggest a similar formula to previous palettes, but with a more pronounced purple emphasis. The packaging is stunning, as always, with its desert-inspired theme.
Before application, I noticed some powderiness in the pans, but nothing excessive. The pigmentation looks impressive, and the colors appear to be true to their pan appearance – something I highly appreciate.
I started with the shade 'Amber' to define the outer eye, extending the blend lower and straighter than my usual eye shape. This immediate application reveals rich, vibrant color payoff, even before blending.
Blending & Pigmentation Test
The blending process proves surprisingly easy, with the shadows melting seamlessly together. A 2-7 brush is used for buffing out the edges and creating a soft, diffused look.
Even after blending, the color intensity remains impressive. Minimal back-and-forth is needed to achieve a well-blended and defined eye look. This shows good quality in terms of pigmentation and blendability.
While there's a slight powdery build-up in the pan, it's manageable and doesn't affect the application significantly. The shadows are overall well-performing.
Cut Crease & Highlight
A cut crease is created using MAC Select Cover-Up concealer, setting the lid with the shade 'Twilight'. This unique shade is a personal favorite, but is noted for being crumbly and loose in the pan. Despite this texture, the color payoff is still exceptionally rich and unique.
The reviewer adds 'Amethyst' in the crease to enhance the depth and dimension of the eye makeup. A soft glitter is then layered on top to amplify the sparkle and catch the light.
A dramatic wing liner finishes the upper eye look, extended straight out rather than following the natural lash line.
Lower Lash Line & Finishing Touches
The lower lash line is defined with the dark brown shade, 'Uit', creating a smoky, smudged effect. Additional brown glitter is added to the inner corner for extra flair.
Huda Beauty lashes in 'Raquel', along with individual lash clusters, add the final touch. A creamy white product is used to further define the negative space around the eyes, intensifying the overall makeup look.
The reviewer expresses complete satisfaction with the overall look, praising the bottom lash effect in particular.
Face Makeup & Highlighting
The base makeup includes bronzer ('Hoola Lite'), contour ('Rodale contour powder' applied with a KKW brush), and blush ('Bellini bio frappe'). The KKW brush is surprisingly praised for its precision.
The Huda Beauty 3D Highlighter Palette is used, specifically the shade 'Santorini'. This shade requires multiple applications to achieve a noticeable highlight, offering a softer, more buildable effect.
The packaging of the highlighter palette is also lauded for its beauty and unique design.
Lips & Final Look
The lip look involves a nude lipstick ('Socialite by Colourpop') and a layered application of the Huda Beauty Lip Strobe in 'Snobby' for a pink and champagne shimmer.
The final look is deemed stunning, with the dramatic eyes complemented by a subtle yet elegant lip look.
Conclusion & Overall Review
The Huda Beauty Desert Dusk palette is a high-quality palette with rich pigmentation, good blendability, and a nice array of finishes (mattes, shimmers, glitters). It offers a beautiful shift in tone from previous collections.
While some shades are slightly powdery, it doesn't significantly detract from the overall performance. The unique shades and stunning packaging justify its price point for many beauty enthusiasts.
Overall, a beautiful and high-performing palette that deserves a place in any makeup lover's collection.