Eye Stories 21 : Catrice Cosmetics Instant Glam Eyeshadow Palette

Hey guys!

It's been a while (and far in between) since my last eyeshadow review... Since the last time i reviewed any eyeshadow, i've been using and playing with more and more eyeshadows (which also means i go crazier over palettes *sigh* , which is bad - but if my obsessions means more reviews for you... I think at least i can justify that LOL) and also try more and more daring colors (like red or reddish purple) which i used to be pretty scared of.

But the lazy girl inside me still love products that can make me look like i've actually put in more effort but in reality it takes me 5 minutes to complete - and that's exactly what this eyeshadow palette i am going to review is all about. It's the perfect travel buddy eyeshadow palette, my current go to : Catrice Cosmetics Instant Glam Eyeshadow Palette!

Catrice Cosmetics Instant Glam Eyeshadow Palette

About Catrice, i don't know if you're familiar with this brand but it's actually a pretty popular drugstore brand from Germany, according to their US website - Catrice has been around since 2004 but only arrived in US in 2015 - for Indonesia i think it's been available since 2016. I remember getting super duper excited when they became readily available in local drugstores like Guardian or Watsons - if you know me at all then you'd know my love for affordable and drugstore makeups with great quality - and Catrice is definitely a very affordable makeup brand with very vast varieties of products of high quality!

I've heard about Catrice long before they arrived in Indonesia (thanks to British Youtubers mostly) and i've also got some products from them overseas, i already knew of their quality so the fact that they are now very easy to access is a song from heaven for me hahaha. I also personally have purchased some of their products myself and loving them - and last year i developed a closer relationship with Catrice Indonesia as we collaborated for makeup demo in Guardian GM (if you follow my Instagram then you'd know about this already since i posted a few pics of that event there). They have kindly sent me a box filled with their newest product from the Holographic Collection.

Now, there are quite a lot of products inside the box and i like a lot of them, but since i've been using this eyeshadow palette nonstop and keep on reaching for it, i think it's only right that it's the first product that i'm going to review from them.

Catrice Instant Glam Eyeshadow Palette - 8,8g
I don't know the exact price of the palette but a quick search on Google says that the price ranges from IDR 106,500 to 185,000, depending on the store (can't find it in their official Shopee store so i can't say the official price. It's IDR 125,000 in Sociolla).
Also, in the palette they put the shade as "010 It's A Match" , but i don't think there is any other shade from this line (please do let me know if you know otherwise) as it seems to be a stand-alone palette and not from a series.

The palette itself is mid-sized, it's slightly smaller than the size of my hand and made of light weight (but not too flimsy) plastic with clear cover so you can see the eyeshadows inside easily

Unlike conventional eyeshadow palettes with one shade in each square, this eyeshadow palette comes in a much longer rectangle. There are four rectangles in total and in each rectangle there are two shades that are meant to use together, one light and one darker. The idea of this palette is to make you eye makeup routine much faster and easier as they already provide the two shades that would definitely work together that you can wear one all over the lid (the light shade) and the other that is meant for the crease (the darker shade) - ofc they are all also can be mixed and match with other shades from this palette (there's no rules in makeup you know, but for beginners who are unsure which shade would work together, this kind of palette can be a great help)

They also provide this very chunky sponge applicator with the biggest sponge ever, this is meant to use to swipe the two color in each rectangle and you can swipe it on your eyes to create gradient eyes instantly. Ofc, this kind of idea is always better in theory than reality as i don't think anything instant like this can look good. Nothing would beat proper application with brush and some blending! I never used this applicator and i don't intend to...

Information and ingredient list. You can follow the instruction on how to use the applicator, but trust me... Just use your finger and blush, the result would be 10x better and it wouldn't take that much longer either!

Now, when i really want to doll up then i wouldn't mind spending hours and 10 different eyeshadow colors on my eyelids, but realistically speaking - most of the time i couldn't be bothered and i also tend to always be running late. Whenever i need to look decently made up with minimum time, i would always reach for this eyeshadow palette (it's works similarly to my 16 Brand Eye Magazine but with more color choices in one palette) as any two shades of palettes would make me look event-ready in no time. Like i mentioned earlier, i only need 5 minutes to apply and blend the two shades and it would look like i spent a lot more time finessing than i really do!

Now, let's see the swatches of all 8 shades :

Catrice Cosmetics Instant Glam Eyeshadow Palette swatches under natural sunlight

Under artificial light

As you can see from the arm swatches, all 8 shades are shimmery. While i don't mind it, if you are the kind of person who are into more Western style makeup, there is just no way that you can come up with a complete, full makeup look only using this palette as there is no matte color whatsoever. But for those of you are more like me, are more into Korean or Japanese makeup style (which is lot softer using a lot more shimmer) then it would work well for you. The end result would be very shimmery, but very pretty :D!

The texture of the eyeshadow's not too soft that it crumbles but it's also not too hard that you need to dig to get the pigment to show. I find the brownish and berry shade to be pretty pigmented, but the light shimmers are quite soft. In general, the pigmentation is not super strong but it's not super weak either (dare i say... so so for pigmentation?). I always use them with eye primer and they would be a lot more intense when you do use a primer so i would recommend using primer ofc. Fallout is pretty bad, i always find excess powder on my palette after i use a brush and i notice the darker shades to have a bit of a fallout on my face - nothing too major and alarming tho as a light swipe of fluffy brush would clean my face without any issue. I find no other problems other than the fallout, they don't smudge, shift, crease or fade even when used all day long.

Let's see how each pair works on my eyelids

The first shade pair :

Consists of a deep bronzy color and a light champagne shade

Swatches of the first pair

How it looks on the eyes

The first pair is definitely the everyday pair, you can apply it fast and it would look good for any look. It would not look out of place if you just go to the grocery store, but can also look pretty and soft if you have an event to attend

I think i use this pair the most 

It's a fail-proof duo

The second pair is slightly similar to the first one but deeper and more cool toned.

Consists of a darker, ashy brown and silvery brown shades

Swatches of the second pair

The brown is a lot darker in this pair so i don't reach for this one too often because it's too dramatic for an everyday kind of look

This is a very night-appropriate look, with just two shades! So whenever i have an evening event of a more formal event to attend, this pair is the one i go to

You see how this pair gives my eyes such dimensions and gradations? I do love it for a more sultry look

Paired it with bold lips and you're ready to party!

The third pair is the softest shades :

Consists of a very soft rose gold shade with pinkish-champagne shade

Swatches of the third pair

As the rose gold is very soft, it's actually a bit harder to use because the two shades look very similar and you can't really make dimension of your eyes with these two

I went deep with the rose gold and after a few layers, you can create a soft look like this

If you're into a more natural look, the third pair is perfect for you

I need to work harder when i use this third pair because the shades are so soft, if you want it to be more visible like this look then you'd need a few layers of the rose gold

And fourth and final pair is the boldest, most different pair :

It consists of a burgundy, berry shade and a light pink shimmer shade

The swatches of the fourth pair

Honestly, i was pretty scared of the burgundy pair at first, but it turned out to be my actual fave (although i use it the least because not everyday is a burgundy-appropriate kind of day hahaha)

Very fall-winter appropriate

The pink shimmer is also the most different compared to the other 3 light shades that are more champagne-ish

As it is a palette, you can use it in any way you want - for a more elaborate, special occassions i would mix four to five shades for a more sultry look.

But as all the shades are shimmery and there is no deep matte brown (which is the shade that i almost always use to deepen the corner of my eyelid), i find it hard to create a very "made up" kind of look that i like for formal occassions

My New Year's Eve look using 5 shades out of the Catrice Cosmetics Instant Glam Eyeshadow Palette

So yeah, you can see that i've been using this palette a LOT (and it shows. If you see how the palette looks like now you'd know it's really been used!), it's just very convenient, easy and fast! I especially love to travel with it because not only it is pretty compact and light weight, when i travel i prefer to spend as little time as possible for my makeup but i also want to look good for photos - this palette definitely helps. Also, with four different easy-to-use shade pairs, i can make it so it looks like i am putting a real effort, with different eye looks everyday - all from the same palette, haha!

Compared to Catrice's other products, the palette is not super cheap (most of their products are under 100k), in fact i first find it to be a bit pricey but for the quality, final result and how easy it is to use, then i think the price is still acceptable. I would definitely recommend this palette for beginners, or those of you who are not too into makeup but have to use them. It is also recommended for those of you who ARE into makeup (like me) but need a safe friend to use on those rush-days. 

Although the palette itself doesn't make me super excited (coz it is pretty basic), i do find it extremely useful therefore i have come to appreciate it a lot more.

This only makes me even more interested to explore Catrice products and i really want to get my hands on their other palettes (i own mostly single shadows from them)!

Have you ever tried anything from Catrice Cosmetics and how do you like them? Is there any products from Catrice that you think i need to try?

#Pink