Top box-sets of palette perfection sorted

From cute quads to sizeable all-in-ones, Katie Wright rounds up the best box-sets.

MAKE-UP artists love them. Beauty bloggers can’t live with out them. But if you happen upon a palette in the average make-up bag, chances are one shade will be almost completely obliterated, while the others remain virtually untouched.

Hopefully, that kind of favouritism will be a thing of the past when you set your eyes on autumn’s multi-hued make-up sets, packed as they are with covetable colours.

And we’re not just talking eyeshadows either — lips, cheeks, brows, and zygomatic arches (that’s cheekbones, dear) are all catered for.

From everyday essentials to glam going-out kits, these are the palettes to get pally with this season...

THE COLLECTION: 

Lift your nude eyes out of the ordinary with a touch of dramatic colour.

Lancome Hypnose Palette, €49, comes with five shades, including a standout colour, that build to create an all-modern look. For newcomers to the layered nude look there is a handy graphic is enclosed bringing through the process — for tutorials see www.lancome.com  onYouTube.

CHEEKY TRIO:

Make a bold statement with Sleek’s trio of blushers. Each tone comes with its own finish — shimmer, deep shade and bright matte — offering a cheeky hue for every occasion.

For pale skin tones, check out Pink Lemonade Blush, €13.49 ( www.boots.ie ).

PINK TONES:

Give your smoky eye routine a seasonal switch, with the Givenchy Vinyl Prisme Quatuor Metallic Reflection set, €55.44, a quartet of pink and purplish tones.

Start with one of three pearlescent shades then add definition with the matte red-black ( www.feelunique.com , free P&P).

QUICKIE QUINTET:

The perfect portable kit for easy eye make-up looks, Clarins 5-Colour Eye Palette Pretty Day, €54.29, pools five wearable shades, from palest nude through to shimmering chocolate. ( www.debenhams.ie ).

SCULPTOR’S SET:

Fans of contouring will adore Illamasqua’s Sculpting Palette, €44, which goes way beyond the usual duo of dark and light powders.

Featuring two highlighters and four darker hues, the line-up cleverly includes ash and bronze shades, so you can tailor the warmth of your cheekbone-enhancing shadow ( www.debenhams.ie ).

SMART ALLROUNDER:

Part of the Swedish fashion brand’s all-new cosmetics range, H&M’s Eye Shadow Palette, is a good place to start if you want to expand your eye make-up repertoire beyond the usual browns and nudes.

The nine-colour collection adds greens, greys and blue into the mix, but the shades are still muted enough to make them easy to wear.

LIPSTICK SIX:

The B Kissable Palette, €13.70, brings together half a dozen of the vegan make-up brand’s best-loved lippies, from the dusky rose Doll’s House to super-bright Lollipop, giving you a whole new lipstick line-up for autumn. Given that a B lipstick usually costs €10.35 a pop, it’s a bargain too ( www.superdrug.com , plus P&P).

GOLD STANDARD:

With its eye-catching gold casing, Yves Saint Laurent’s Pure Chromatics, €53, is one to flash when out and about. Using water-process technology, the colours release an intense shade when applied wet.

And the texture changes too, from satin powder to creamy cream which means a long-lasting finish. You’ll soon find you can’t get enough of the metal finish.

THE MAC DADDY:

Worthy of a YouTube beauty vlogger’s kit, MAC’s comprehensive Warm Neutral Palette, €75, runs the gamut from delicate to dark and matte to molten in no less than 15 shades, giving make-up mavens hours, if not years, of experimental fun ( www.brownthomas.ie ).