I tend to oohh and ahh over eyeshadow palettes even though I can barely ever hit pan on even one shadow! There are a ton of super cute eyeshadow palettes out there although I find the market is quite saturated already with a handful of cult favorites.
Stila brought out a new contender this spring with the Matte n Metal Eyeshadow palette that mixes half matte shades with metallic shades. The brand already has a very popular palettes from the Eyes are the Window line up. Let’s see how this one compares!
Basics
Name: Stila Matte n Metal Eyeshadow Palette
Price: $64
Size: 12 grams
Available at Sephora.
Packaging: The size of the Stila Matte n Metal palette is the same as the other Eyes are the Window palettes. It’s almost in a square shape and is in a gold casing. For this one, the lid is in a checkered print which adds a bit more interest while keeping in line with Stila’s classic designs. The hinge is really smooth and there’s a full size mirror inside. 9/10
Formula:
Matte- All of the shadows were very smooth to the touch. They’re not as creamy as some other brands but definitely very smooth. However for me, the top 3 shades are too light for me to do anything with them. The pigmentation on these are medium. 7/10
Metal- The bottom contains colors I was more attracted to! I love shimmery shades but these actually are more metallic (hence the name) than a sheen. The shade selection is gorgeous! You can use these dry or wet but unfortunately when used dry, it does not give the same effect. When I use it dry the pigmentation is quite soft which is fine but I would have glittery beneath my eyes halfway through the day!
When I used it wet as seen in the demos below, it gives a beautiful liquid metal type of look and strong pigmentation. However, I prefer if eyeshadows can perform well dry as using it wet might not be everyone’s choice.
6/10 when used dry, 9/10 when used wet
Swatches
Top: Vintage, Velvet, Feathered
The top row has 3 of the lightest matte shade which pretty much swatches to look the same on my skin. I don’t usually have much use for these types of shades in my eye look.
Bottom: Fringe, Suede, Velour
I have been enjoying using matte shades in my crease in the first step of my look. But as you can see, Fringe barely shows up so really I only have 2 shades to work with.
Top: Bohemian, Retro, Sequin
I love all three of these shades and these are the type of colors I tend to use all over the lid. However, I probably have many multiples of all of these with better pigmentation when used dry.
Bottom: Smolder, Sizzle, Flare
I really like the variety of deep shades they put in this palette and I enjoy all three.
Although I swatched the colors horizontally, I feel like this palette was actually made to use vertically. The left column is the cool silvery look, middle column is the warm rosey look, and right column is a neutral bronze look.
Demo
I decided to use the left and middle columns to create two different looks! I’m wearing Ardell
#1- Fringe, Bohemian, Smolder
I started by putting fringe all over the lid to give the other shadows something to blend with. Then I used smolder and started at the crease and worked my way in. I picked up bohemian and spritzed my brush with a face mist and dabbed it in the center of the lid.
#2- Suede, Retro, Sizzle
I used a fluffy brush and blended suede in my crease. Then I used retro starting from the inner corner and making my way about 1/2 across the lid. I connected it with sizzle on the other half and blended everything with suede again. Then I went back with a wet brush using retro and sizzle to make the colors pop.
I’m pretty happy with the looks I came up with but they’re not easy/fast enough for every day. When I use the shadows dry I end up with glitter down my face and unfortunately only 2 out of 6 matte shades show up on my skintone. If you do not currently have a lot of eyeshadows, this palette would be very versatile! However for those already with many netural palettes, this may not be unique or high quality enough. Although I love the concept with half matte and half metallic, the performance missed the mark for me and I much prefer the Perfect Me, Perfect Hue palette.