Becca Apres Ski Eye Lights Palette Review & Demo
Wow, it’s been a while since I saw so many opposite reviews about a single makeup product! Seems like most people either love the new Becca Apres Ski Eye Lights Palette ($45) or outright hate it. Today I wanted to add to the pile of confusion with my own review, swatches, and demo, and hopefully offer some perspective. Becca Apres Ski Eye Lights Palette was released as part of 2017 Holiday Collection, and was inspired by the brand’s iconic highlighters, reimagined as eyeshadows to use specifically on the eye area.
First things first, how beautiful is the packaging? The gold-toned palette with frosted elements reflects the light almost like a mirror, and it’s an absolute treat to look at. Unfortunately, that also means the palette is a fingerprint magnet, so it will be virtually impossible to keep it looking tidy unless you wipe it clean after every use. It doesn’t bother me much, but I know some people who would avoid buying it just for that quality alone.
On the inside the pans are arranged in a circle, so there is a lot of empty space. Again, this is something that might bother some people, but I’m not one of them.
There are 7 shades in Becca Apres Ski Eye Lights palette:
- Pearl – soft, luminescent white with a satin finish
- Rose Quartz – soft pink with a shimmer finish
- Moonstone – pale gold with a shimmer finish
- Opal – neutral white gold with a shimmer finish
- Topaz – radiant golden bronze with a shimmer finish
- Toasted Marshmallow – taupe brown with a satin finish
- Hot Cocoa – warm burgundy with a satin finish
Swatches top to bottom: Pearl, Hot Cocoa, Toasted Marshmallow, Topaz, Opal, Moonstone, Rose Quartz
After using the palette a few times, it seems that the eyeshadows are less opaque than the Shimmering Skin Perfectors they’re based on. However, since my skin is so fair, it’s like a blank canvas for makeup, so most colors show up true to pan even if they are meant to be sheer. The wear time on my slightly oily, hooded lids was about 7 hours. Maybe the oil on my lids acts as a primer, because I read reviews that mentioned 4 hour wear time at most, and on me these shadows all wear a lot longer than that before they even begin to fade.
Another common issue I heard about is the application. These shades are reportedly chalky and hard to work with, so maybe my Chikuhodo Z-5 eyeshadow brush is part of the success. It picked up the perfect amount of product each time, and didn’t kick up a lot of dust – certainly no more than any other palette in my stash.
The texture of each color varied, but I didn’t find any of these particularly dry, nor did any of them stood out as being exceptional. They felt like decent quality drugstore eyeshadows. The formula didn’t live up to Becca’s standard, but it also wasn’t as dreadful as some reviews made me believe. It was just okay. Now whether or not you guys want to spend $45 on ‘ just okay’ palette is totally up to you. I bet Becca collectors would be all over this palette anyway, regardless of the negative press it’s getting.
I wanted to share a couple makeup looks that I quickly created with Becca Apres Ski Eye Lights Palette. Actually, I did an everyday look on one half of my face, and a bolder nighttime look [more like wash of color hehe], on the other.
For my ‘everyday’ half of the face, I used Moonstone as an all-over wash of color, Pearl in the inner corner and under the brow bone, and drew a wing with a dampened eyeliner brush dipped in Toasted Marshmallow. I left the brows looking natural, and just brushed them a little bit with a tinted brow gel.
For my ‘night out’ half of the face I used Hot Cocoa all over the lid and along the bottom lashes. I swiped a little bit of Rose Quartz on the brow bone, and added a touch of Icicle from Apres Ski Glow Face Palette in the inner corner. Normally I don’t wear liquid liner, but this toasty red eyeshadow totally called for one, so I drew it with my most favorite eyeliner ever. I also made sure my brows are filled in, because for bolder eyeshadow looks they pretty much have to be, otherwise my face looks very unfinished. I don’t think it was as flattering as the everyday look, but whatever who cares, am I right? At least you guys get to see two different looks created with this palette. 🙂
BOTTOM LINE:
So all in all, even though it got a D- from Temptalia [I’m still baffled about that btw, since I usually agree with Christine’s reviews], Becca Apres Ski Eye Lights Palette gets a B- from me. I thought it was easy to work with, all of the colors adhered to my eyelids well even when I used them dry + without primer, and none of the shades sheered out all that much from blending. IMO, it could be a decent palette for beginners, but I don’t think I’d necessarily recommend it.
Let’s just say that if I bought Apres Ski Eye Lights Palette with my own money, I wouldn’t return it back to the store – it’s perfectly functional and will serve its purpose in my makeup looks. However, I also wouldn’t be recommending it to people who don’t already own a lot of makeup. Nor would I advise picking it up if you wanted to try something from Becca for the first time, as this is not a good representative of the quality they offer. Basically, if you really want it – get it, it’s really not that awful. But if you want to try something – anything – from Becca brand, just get a couple of full-sized Shimmering Skin Perfectors, those are the bomb!
What are your thoughts on the new Becca Apres Ski Eye Lights Palette? Would you purchase it: why/why not? If you already own it, do you like it? Let me know in the comments below!
