It Cosmetics It Girl Palette for Holiday 2017

This is probably the palette that grew on me the most this year. I was first entranced by the sparkling packaging, but when I saw the neutral insides I decisively dismissed it.

Yet I couldn't get it out of my head.

Say hello to the It Cosmetics It Girl Palette for Holiday 2017, retailing for $48 at an Ulta near you.

The holo-reflective box and crystal-studded top of the palette would seem naturally to pair with bold, vibrant shades inside, right? At the very least, glitter, right?

Sigh.

Yes, it's anti-climatic, but I've come to love this palette and think it's going to be an at-home workhorse for me.

One quick piece of advice- keep your box to protect that palette top! Those crystals are glued on.

Oh yeah, the glue. This palette reeks when you take it out of the box at first. It's the glue that bonds the crystals to the palette. I highly recommend taking it out of the box for three-to-five days and airing it out before using it. I've left mine out of the box for about three weeks at the time of writing this (six days before it publishes), and the stink is now gone.

Back to the palette- I wouldn't travel with this, but I'm going to store it in the box in my Alex 9 drawers in order to protect the crystals for as long as possible.

Putting aside the inevitable disappointment of this being a neutral palette, let's dissect. It's actually incredible for the everyday makeup user- and for someone who can't wear bold colors to the office. I find myself reaching for this day after day for office-friendly makeup. In that way, it really does have, as it claims, "it's your IT Girl essentials, all in one!". I'm not nearly as perky but I think it's a solid palette that would make a fantastic last-minute gift. Or would be a great Boxing Day usage of Ulta gift cards.

There are two Superhero eye foundations (aka bases)- the two large matte shades above the quads. YES to making these lovely matte shades twice the size of the others. They weigh in at 0.07oz each. I think they're superb.

There are two quads- one more brown neutrals and one rosy neutrals. Each has two shimmer and two matte shades, each weighing in at 0.03oz.

In the middle, you have a gradient blush that I have to be very careful with not to grab too much pigment. Yes, she's pigmented.

Let's look at this. First up, the left (brown) quint.

I'm going to call it right now, I'm likely to pan Beautiful and Lovely. I've worn this quint to work four different times, and they lasted all day. I didn't photograph at that point, and I'm writing this the day after having the allergic reaction so I can't put anything on my eye to recreate it. These are good.

Now, the rosy quint:

These are all really nice and I've tested them once. I found that they performed the same as the other quint- but I'm not into rosy hues this time of year. I'll dip in probably in February if I'm being honest.

Here's what the blush looks like, all mixed up:

It's a beautiful, cool-toned pink.

This isn't the most exciting palette, but I think it's fantastic. I had no idea that It Cosmetics eyeshadows were this silky, lovely, and pigmented. It makes me want to pick up another palette- darn it. I hadn't tried anything from the brand before this year and I've been really pleased with everything in my collection at this point. I'm glad I couldn't get this out of my head- if not for the fragile crystal top, I could totally travel with this and do my entire face. It really works for me as a fair-complected individual.

I'm so glad I gave this a shot after laughing at first. It Cosmetics, I've got my eye on you!