Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics Palette

Rise and shine, it's a glorious Friday afternoon and brand new blog. After recommending so many products to my friends, they have convinced me to start a blog. So friends, this is mainly for your benefit.

The first post and Product of the Month (enough of an event to warrant capital letters) is the Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics Palette.

What is it?

An eyeshadow palette comprised of 12 matte "nude" shades.

How much is it?

£38.50, available from Urban Decay and Feel Unique online, among other retailers no doubt.

In a nutshell: why should I care?

Because it really is the ultimate basics palette. No, seriously. You will not need another nude palette ever again.

In detail: why should I care?

The formulas are standard Urban Decay - buttery, highly pigmented and easily blendable.

The brushes that come with it are divine. And yes, I do use the brushes that come with it, judge away. There is a longer brush that I use for crease applications and the short little "nubbin" brush that I use to put darker shades just under my waterline.

The colours themselves are all so usable and flattering on my skin tone (pale with cool undertones). I really think this will suit both warm and cool toned skin, which is saying a lot. So often I see someone using a beautiful burnt orange eyeshadow, only for it to achieve a killer clown effect on my face. With this palette, even the warmest shade in the palette ("Extra Bitter") suits me.

The packaging is sturdy and luxe, with a magnetic closure and lovely mirror that makes it great to take on holiday. I hesitate to say "on to go" as you would need to be a make up addict of epic proportions to lug this palette around with you on the daily.

Not to oversell it, but for me this palette was a bit like finding the perfect partner. You hear about people who have great relationships and get to do all these amazing things and have these amazing feelings and you're like "dammit, why can't I find that?" (stay with me, the analogy is stretching thin, I know).

Then you find the person (in this case, palette) that makes you realise what everyone was going on about. That you too can have that happy ending. Yes, I too can now wear a reddish toned eyeshadow and not look like an extra from a Good Charlotte video circa 2003 - praise be!

Formula score

10/10 - it's a knockout if you like mattes.

Packaging score

8/10 -  beautiful but bulky.

Overall score

9/10