What I'm Not Buying: Tarte Rainforest of the Sea III

Tarte has released the latest in the Rainforest of the Sea palettes, Volume III. 

And I won't be buying. 

I'm not gonna lie—this palette actively makes me kind of angry. And I know that is so lame of me, because this is just makeup. 

You see, I have the Rainforest of the Sea Volume I palette:

I absolutely love the formula of the shimmer shades (not so much the matte), and it is definitely my favorite packaging of any palette I own. I was really hopeful when the first palette came out that Tarte was going to adopt this formula (shimmer) moving forward and was disappointed when they did not. 

My one complaint with the Volume 1 palette is that the colors are all so neutral. And it's not that I wanted a palette with screaming neons, but all the colors were just so similar to each other. I have light to medium skin with a warm olive undertone, and a lot of the shadows in the palette are almost too light on me, and so many of my looks were similar to each other:

(From my one week, one palette post on Volume 1)

When I heard they were going to serialize these palettes, I was pretty excited because I did like the formula (and packaging if we're being honest) so much. And with the theme of "Rainforest of the Sea," I was imaging how creative they could get with the color scheme. Maybe an entire coral-themed palette? (Seriously, how gorgeous would that be?)

But, no. 

Tarte, the brand that perpetually doesn't know who it wants to be, who is stuck literally between boring neutrals and unicorns, decided to make these palettes all variations on the same colors. 

Let's recap. There's Volume I:

Volume II:

And Volume 3:

I guess Volume 2 is slightly different, but Volume 1 and Volume 3 literally look like the same palette to me. In fact, while I've been writing this post, I've had to check to make sure I've put in the correct pictures of Volumes 1 and 3 because they are just so similar. 

What's even more lame of me is that the main reason I want this palette is for this:

YEP. The packaging. That's why I want this palette. Because I like the packaging. 

And had this palette not been practically the same as the one I already own, I probably could have justified that to myself. And I am not a person who buys or keeps products for the packaging, and I always advocate that buying something for the packaging alone isn't really a great reason to buy. 

My Volume I palette is interesting. In terms of the actual colors in the palette, how often I reach for it, and how the entire thing performs, I should have decluttered this palette a while ago. But I haven't, and it is the only item in my entire collection that I won't declutter because of sentimental reasons and because of the packaging. The packaging is so beautiful to me, and it reminds me of a vintage compact. I know the compact itself is something that I will love for years to come, long after the makeup inside expires. And because of this utter rarity for me in terms of loving packaging, I was almost able to justify buying the lovely packaging of Volume 3. 

But here's the thing. 

This palette costs $36, and that is honestly more than I would like to spend on a compact. 

Let's look at swatches. 

I read this review by Beauddiction where she compared Volume 1 and Volume 3:

(Photo: Beauddiction)

While there are differences between the two palettes, for me personally, that difference is far too subtle for me to spend the money, especially when the colors in the Volume 1 are already all so similar on me. I feel if I had both of these palettes, between the two of them, I would only be able to make two distinct looks. 

Finally, repetition aside, the color scheme of this palette is just utterly boring to me. Looking at the colors as just pigments:

I am again just bored. 

I feel like this palette could be good for someone who is brand new to makeup and wants a collection of neutral shimmer shades, but since there is only one matte shadow, it wouldn't be great as a standalone palette. 

This palette also looks so transparently geared toward light skin, which is always so disappointing. This is even more disappointing considering how similar it is to Volume 1, which was also transparently geared toward light skin. Tarte could have easily made Volume 3 something that would work on multiple skin tones, but instead, they chose to churn out a copy of the Volume 1. 

If you own any neutral palette, like Urban Decay Naked:

Stila In the Light:

Too Faced Chocolate Bar:

Too Faced Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar:

Or Wet N Wild Comfort Zone:

You already have all these colors. 

I've said it before, but I think Tarte is really blowing it with the color scheme of these palettes. With the theme of "Rainforest of the Sea," there are so many fun possibilities. But instead, it seems as though Tarte is interested in only exploring the theme of "sand." In that case, I don't know why they didn't just call this their Sand collection. 

There are so many palettes available and brands are pumping out new releases every few months to keep up with the insane demand consumers have generated. Keeping that in mind, a release that will only really work for incredibly light skin, looks like every other neutral palette, and looks nearly identical to a palette of theirs that is still for sale, is just not cutting it. I'm tired of brands selling me the same thing over and over, and this kind of release looks like they're not even trying to convince me they are selling me something different. The only reason for me to buy this palette is for the packaging, and that's not a good enough reason for me. So, I'm not going to buy it.