Milani Gilded Eyeshadow Palette - Gilded Jewel

Very good product 👌

I kind of regret purchasing this palette. I was hesitant to purchase it at first because I could see its limitations, lack of shade range (light, mid-tone/brights, dark) and versatility (as a result of the shade range) being a few of them. However, it’s a niche item, focusing on the “ember” theme, so I cut it some slack and bought the item. I really loved Milani’s Everyday Eyes in 01 Must Have Naturals, which reminded me of Natasha Denona eyeshadows with regards to texture, pigmentation, and ease of blending at a fraction of the prestige cost, so I thought I’d just give Gilded Ember a go.Upon receiving the item, I was actually a bit disappointed that the eyeshadow palette itself seemed cheap-feeling. It feels like it should belong at Walmart (where Gilded Violet and Gilded Emerald are being released) and not at Target, if you know what I mean. The cover of the palette, which looks glittery in most of the online photos is not glittery at all. I don’t know how to describe it besides just saying that it looks like someone cut out pieces of magazine and stuck pieces onto the palette. I also didn’t like the scratchy texture it had. As most palettes are, this one is held closed by magnetization. Once opened, there is a decent sized mirror on the “lid.”So, here comes the real tea: the swatching. Are these eyeshadows pigmented? Yeah, all except maybe Phoenix and Golden Hour, which seem just a tiny bit chalky. Are some almost too pigmented? Yeah, I would say that the obvious— Pyro— is almost pigmented to a fault. I think there’s a fine balance between giving people pigmented shadows they can layer on and blend out (goof proof) and giving them a shadow that’s so pigmented that it has a small margin of error. I would also say that some of the shadows feel rough to swatch. Rose Ember felt extremely rough, more like pressed glitter? Ignite was also not as smooth as the other pigments.I can’t comment on fall-out at this time, because I haven’t worn them yet. However, I will provide an update when I have done a wear test. I am predicting that the bolder reds will stain my lids, but I feel that is common among other bold palettes.I have included photos of the palette, as well as my finger swatches (didn’t feel like doing brush swatches), taken in indirect sunlight, direct sunlight, indoors, and in yellow indoor lighting. I tried to post photos that were as true to color as I could. The pyro in photos looks a bit more coral toned, but in reality it’s more of a true red. Would I recommend this palette to others? Not really.

The palette is smaller than it appeared online. However the colors work amazingly. I am so pleased with this palette and greens are my absolute favorite colors!

I absolutely love Milani so when I saw this I was so excited to order it! When it arrived it looked beautiful but swatched not so well. The shadows applied patchy on my primed lids and the color faded off by the end of the day. The shimmers are very lack luster and I had to dig in the pan to get anything from them. I had such high hopes for this and it just wasn’t there.

This is a stunning palette of hues, but, sadly, they seem very weakly pigmented and do not last. I also realized that most of these colors are not really practical (at least, not for me). The pinks and lilacs are gorgeous, but there are too many weirder colors (greens, high-shimmer tones) to make this a practical palette for me.

This is a beautiful palette as someone who usually sticks to Sephora M.A.C. Colourpop and Morphe. I've always love Malani make up. This palette is definitely worth it and highly pigmented. Definitely more fall out on some of the matte ones but the foils are very creamy. Happy girl!