In holiday marketing season tradition, Tarte has released another giant book-like palette that is overwhelming in size and selection and lacking in quality and practicality for everyday use.
And I won't be buying.
At first glance, this seems to be totally the opposite of the Hourglass holiday offering that was quite (in my opinion) the ripoff. Tarte boasts that this palette is a $418 value for $59. If that seems to good to be true, it's because it absolutely is.
As I mentioned in my post about the Tarte Color Wheel holiday blush palette, the values of these palettes are incorrectly calculated since the quality is not the same as items in their permanent collection. If these shadows were the same quality as the Tartelette in Bloom palette, and the blushes the same as the ones in their permanent line, this would absolutely be a steal. But they're not. At all.
Tarte's eyeshadows and blushes that are a part of their permanent line are made in the USA. These huge holiday palettes are made in China. The formula and quality is not the same as that of their permanent line. And because of that, saying this is a $418 value is wrong.
The Pretty Paintbox looks very similar to last year's holiday offering:
Let's compare close-ups of the two.
Holiday 2016
Photo: Musings of a Muse
Holiday 2015
As you can see, the color selection from the Pretty Paintbox is quite similar, nearly identical, to the holiday 2015 palette. If you have the holiday 2015 palette and were hoping for new colors to add to your collection, the Pretty Paintbox is absolutely not the palette to get.
And these are also shades that we've seen time and again from Tarte. It seems as though very little thought has gone into this palette, which again, doesn't give the palette much value.
If you have much of a makeup collection, you absolutely already have these colors in your collection. And if you're new to makeup and thinking this is a great way to get a bunch of shadows at a low cost, you are better off buying better quality eyeshadows.
Reviews for the Pretty Paintbox have been pretty bad. There have been numerous complaints about pigmentation, especially in the lighter colors. The texture has been described as dry and very dissimilar to Tarte's traditional texture. Some reviewers have even said they are retuning this palette because the quality is so bad that it did not justify the price. And that's the $59 price, not the inflated $418 value price.
To be fair, even as an eyeshadow junkie, holiday palettes have never really interested me that much. And it's because the quality just never felt the same. I don't care about holiday packaging or holiday-themed color names. I don't have the "fear of missing out" because I see all the reviewers get every holiday palette or because the palettes are limited edition and I won't be able to get them once they sell out. I want a quality product, and I've always found the majority of holiday releases to be lackluster.
I have two limited edition palettes in my collection. Both are great, and one of them is from Tarte. It is the Rainforest of the Sea palette, and I purchased mine soon after it was released in March. As of late September, it is still for sale.
Because of this palette, I absolutely cannot give Tarte a pass on such a bad quality holiday release. The Rainforest of the Sea palette is one of my absolute favorites. The packaging is gorgeous, compact, and functional, and the quality is the best I have seen from the brand. The formula of the shadows reminds me of the Make Up For Ever Artist Shadows, and those are among my all-time favorite. I was really hopeful that Tarte was going to adopt this incredible formula into all of their future releases, but it looks as though it is tied exclusively to the Rainforest of the Sea palette. (It is also worth mentioning that the Rainforest of the Sea palette was not made in the USA, like the shadows in Tarte's permanent line. It was made in Italy, and nearly all of the best shadows I have ever tried have been made in Italy.)
Because Rainforest of the Sea is so good, it is immensely disappointing that this huge holiday offering is so bad. But, for what it's worth, even if the Pretty Paintbox had received glowing reviews, I still would not have purchased it. And the reason for this is because I already have all of those shadows in my collection, and this palette is so bulky. It would not be convenient for me to pull such a huge item out to do my makeup on a regular basis.
It may seem simple, but in the future, I hope Tarte learns the simple lessons of less is more and quality over quantity.
If you were really interested in the general color scheme of the Pretty Paintbox and wanted to dip your toes into Tarte's eyeshadows, I really recommend the Tartelette in Bloom palette.
This is the number-one palette I recommend to people. I think it is a perfect palette and perfectly curated. There are shades that will flatter all skin tones, from light, medium, and deep, to those with warm, cool, neutral, and olive undertones. There are only three shimmers, but they are (in my opinion) the perfect shimmers colors to build beautiful looks.
When I see Tarte have the ability to make a palette like Tartelette in Bloom and Rainforest of the Sea, the Pretty Paintbox looks like nothing more than a waste of money. And I won't be buying.
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