The Balm Nude Tude Eyeshadow Palette Review + Swatches

I don't know if I'm the only one who saw it, but did anyone see the Buzzfeed article about this palette? I made this review WAY before the article was created (it was prescheduled earlier, but I had other reviews with priority, so it was pushed) and was pretty baffled to see what they wrote about it. It's a funny read in my opinion, for them to think the names of the eyeshadows are name calling women. Please, it's an eyeshadow palette called nude TUDE. Like, attitude. That's not why we're here today. So anyways.

Today I will be doing an in depth review and swatches for theBalm Nude Tude Eyeshadow Palette. Now I bought this palette a while ago when it was available on Hautelook. The regular price for this palette is $36.00USD, and from what I remember I only paid maybe half the price? Still, $36 isn't too bad for a mid end eyeshadow palette.

I'm actually a huge fan of cardboard eyeshadow palettes. It's less bulky, and I love that they're nice and flat. 

theBalm packaging design reminds me of a better version of Benefit products. I love the cute, vintage looking packaging, and the cute characters plastered all over. They also have cute names for all their products! 

Now they recently came out with Nude Dude, which is a volume 2 of nude eyeshadows. The colours in that palette are more warm toned, while this one is a nice mixture of both. 

Inside, you get 12 eyeshadows (11.08g or 0.92g each), and six beautiful half naked women. It also comes with a shadow/liner brush, but I've never been a fan of brushes that come with eyeshadow palettes. 

Now, the thing with being a make-up collector/hoarder is, you get to try a lot of make-up. You learn what products are really good and what isn't. When I first purchased this palette, maybe a year or so ago, I thought it was a great palette. I didn't have much to compare to. Now that my collection has grown vastly, I've learned the difference between a good eyeshadow and a subpar one. 

This palette is only 58% good. Why do I say that? Because only 7 of the 12 eyeshadows were amazing, and the other 5 really sucked. I'll go over each eyeshadow to explain how I felt about them.

Sassy/Snobby

Sassy - I found with the light colours, they were extremely silky to the touch, which was deceiving, because they swatched very chalky. Sassy is just a stark matte white, which could work as a base, and with lots of eyeshadow primer. 

Snobby - I'm not the biggest fan of this shade, and it was also extremely chalky as well. The product kind of crumbled a bit when you swatched it on your arm. I know, some people are thinking maybe it's acting like that because it's old, but no, I have eyeshadow palettes over 2+ years old that are still extremely creamy/silky and don't flake. Snobby could be described as a golden/yellow shade when swatched, but it looks peachy/orange in the pan.

Swatches:

Stubborn/Stand-offish

Stubborn - These two shades also had the same issue with feeling silky to the touch, but being really chalky when swatched. The colour payoff for these were an improvement compared to the first two, but nothing amazing. Stubborn can be described as a shimmery baby pink.

Stand-offish - Similar to Stubborn, this shade felt really silky, but was a bit chalky as well. Stand-offish comes off as a peachy/pink champagne colour.

Swatches:

Selfish/Sultry

Selfish - This is where the eyeshadows start to get way better. Selfish has a smooth texture, and swatches very nicely. I want to say that it's similar to the texture of Urban Decay's Naked 3 in looks and feel. It comes off as a gunmetal/silver/grey.

Sultry - Sultry is a nice transition brown shade. Very smooth, but a wee bit powdery, this eyeshadow is still a lot better than the first two columns. 

Swatches:

Sophisticated/Seductive

Sophisticated - This is where the palette definitely shines. These two colours alone make this palette oh so much better. 

Seductive - Seductive is a gorgeous golden bronze shade with a bit of shimmer to it. These two shades are absolutely stunning.

Swatches:

Sexy/Silly

Sexy - I love this shade the most out of the whole palette. I have a thing for deep plums/purples. That's why I instantly fell in love with the The Tarte Tartelette Amazonian Clay Matte Palette which I also reviewed. It has many purples/pinks in it which are my favourite to work with besides browns. 

Silly - Probably one of the worst shades in the palette. Took me many swipes and rubbing to get a nice swatch, and even so, the pigmentation is terrible. It comes off as a light faded brown with a bit of sparkle to it.

Swatches:

Serious/Sleek

Serious - Now these two shades I believe are suppose to be used as liners, but of course they can be used as eyeshadows as well. These two are definitely very pigmented, and a tad bit on the powdery side. It's still wearable, just don't dig too deep when you dip your brush. Serious is such a nice matte black.

Sleek - I feel sleek would have been a better name for the black, but I guess it still works. Sleek is a nice, dark coffee bean brown, perfect for a subtle smoky eye if you don't want to go all out with a black outer corner. 

Swatches:

Swatches of the whole palette:

My favourite thing to do is to swatch make-up products on my arm. I love photographing stuff like this.

What's your favourite nude eyeshadow palette?

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