Battle of the Palettes: Naked 2 and In The Buff

           W7 in the Buff                                                   Urban Decay Naked 2

I love a beauty dupe, who wants to spend a fortune for an item when you can have something similar for a fraction of the price? I heard that the w7 In The Buff Eye Shadow Palette was said to be a very similar dupe to the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette. You can see from my photographs that they are extremely similar in the design of the palette, and the selection of shades they both have. With the w7 palette costing around £4.99-£9.99 (depending on retailer) and the Naked 2 palette a sky-high £38, I wanted to see how much difference the shadows had in quality, colour pay - off, and how long they last. 

I think the Urban Decay Naked 2 shadows are much more shimmery and feel creamy and are very pigmented. The W7 in the Buff shadows are similar in colour to the Urban Decay shadows, but apply much more matte than they appear to be. They aren't quite as creamy or easy to apply as they aren't as pigmented as the Urban Decay shadows. The darker colours in the w7 palette are pigmented but the lighter colours you really have to work at to get any colour pay off from them.  Similarly to the w7 shadows, Urban Decays shadows; particularly the darker shades are very pigmented. In fact, all of the Naked 2 shadows are highly pigmented apart from the lightest shade; Foxy. The w7 palette has some gorgeous shades. I think the shadows blend well together and they last a few hours before fading but I have to be honest and this time, the more expensive product does work better for me, as the Naked 2 palette shadows last around 7 hours.

I think the shadows are similar in colour and design, but I do think the Urban Decay palette has better quality shadows as the W7 palette shadows do not match the quality. I do think the W7 shadows are great and just need a lot more persistence - I would recommend them still for a budget friendly alternative, but Urban Decay wins this battle for me.

Battle Of The Brow Kits

Battle Of The Brow Kits

The contenders:

HD Brows in Foxy

Seventeen Brows That Brow Kit

W7 Brow Bar

MUA Pro Brow Brow Kit

The Results

HD Brows In Foxy

The RRP of this kit is an eye-watering £19.96! I refused to pay for this at full price as I find £20 for an eye brow kit very expensive.  I was happy to find it included in the Latest in Beauty Box, which made it Way cheaper than I could find it anywhere else, and worked out to cost me roughly £4 which I thought was very reasonable. I was really excited to try this kit as I had seen fantastic reviews online. Included in the kit are a nude and carbon shadow and two brown tone powders, and a small brush. There is also a handy mirror on the kit. There are three different coloured kits available - I was happy to find 'Foxy' in my beauty box as it is best suited for medium hair. The pigmentation for this is of a fantastic quality. Admittedly, only one shade is suitable for my brows (the darkest) but I do really like it. The other shades would make great use as eye shadows. It has great staying power, and makes the brows look defined and not over the top. 4/5. 

Seventeen Brows That Brow Kit

When I see new Brow products advertised I get a little excited, so when I saw this new product at the Seventeen stand in Boots for £6 I picked it up. Included in the kit is a powder, wax and highlight shade, as well as a small brush and mini brow pencil. The kit has a small mirror attached which is handy. The pigmentation of the powder is not the best, but this probably depends on your own preference on how bold and dark you like your brows to look. Personally, I like a bold brow, which I don't achieve with this colour. The staying power is quite good, lasting a few hours. The pencil is a handy tool which none of the other kits have, but it isn't quite as dark as I would like, and overall, this product lacks the colour range suitable for a darker brow. 3/5 

W7 Brow Bar

I was particularly intrigued with this kit as it included eye brow stencils, which are something I have never tried before. Also included in the kit are the four powders, an eyebrow comb, a slanted brush and also a mini brush. This is fantastic value for money as it retails for less than £5 (currently only £2.99 at Fragrance Direct if you like a bargain). There is a good selection of colours in the kit as well as a highlight. The quality of the powder shadows is great for the price. The brushes and brow comb are of a standard quality but nothing to write home about. I enjoyed using the stencils as they give a more definitive brow. The product lasts well for a few hours, the only thing I think the kit is lacking is some sort of wax or gel, but other than that I am really impressed with this kit. This is the only brow kit out of all four which doesn't include a mirror. 4/5  

MUA Pro Brow Brow Kit

The most inexpensive of the kits coming in at a mere £3.50 is the Pro Brow Kit by MUA. Included in this kit are three shadows, a setting wax, some small, slanted tweezers and a small brush. There is a small, handy mirror attached to the kit as well which is always a plus. The darkest shade is a dark brown, which is a perfect match for my eye brows. Also included are two highlight shades, personally these shades are a little too dark for high light for me, so I don't really use them for my brows, but I have used them for eye shadow and they are actually quite nice! The dark brown shadow is the perfect brow colour for me and lasts really well. The wax is the best part of this kit as it leaves my brows staying in place without that 'wet' look. I only use the brush for applying the wax as it is a great tool for this, and the tweezers are actually of a fantastic quality, and are the tweezers I use all the time. 5/5

It is a surprise to see that the cheapest product here won hands - down for me! I do like the other kits, but MUA have stood out for me for not only the price, but the quality of the product and the staying power. It just proves that you don't always have to pay for a more expensive brand name to get great results, as this is by far my favourite product which I use every day, and a great bargain make - up find!