Winter is here, which means that it’s time for snow, warm cozy evenings with your family, spicy gingerbread and hot chocolate. And the gingerbread, which I’m going to review today is the best ever! It’s so festive. And the first open up of the palette, immediately made me nostalgic about my childhood.
The box is of a standard for the Too Faced palettes. The lettering stands out, which makes the design even more interesting and so delicious.
Traditionally, the box has an inclusion with makeup ideas, which I don’t welcome, though it’s still pleasant.
The packaging of the palette is metal as always.
Inside there’s a great scope for your fantasy waiting for you. Mainly, the colors here are warm-toned, even though there are some cool shades and one refill is a true frosted shimmer. I’m flabbergasted with the packaging and its design.
Aroma: it smells traditionally of cocoa, yet still there are some spicy notes as well. I wouldn't say that it smells of real gingerbread. If you wanted to buy this palette mainly because of the gingerbread aroma, then toss it.
A close-up:
Texture: the matte shades are mainly very soft and trouble-free. After use, the palette is always dusted and glittered. If you don’t bother much with blending, then you’re sure to face a fallout. And taking this into consideration, from time to time I prefer to apply my eye makeup first and only after that pass over to my foundation.
A closer look at the shades:
I swatched the mattes with my finger at first and then with a brush.
The shimmering textures have three types of swatches, where the first is done with my fingertip, the second with a brush and the third with a damp technique.
1. Powdered sugar - this one is soft, off-white shade, which is mainly matte, yet with a light satin finish. I apply it all over my mobile lid, brow bones and use for the setting.
2. Spiked eggnog - the gentlest champagne shade. I can wear it for any occasion, even on a daily basis. It’s nice as an accent as well as a highlighter.
3. Gumdrop - dry matte fuchsia shade. It doesn't want to sit well, especially in the swatches. It works pretty well on the eyes though. But remember to pack it a little.
4. Gingerbread - one more soft matte shade, which is a warm and rusty brown. It looks like gingerbread. Good blending, packing and you’ll love it for the crease if you’re into warm shades.
5. Warm & toasty - warm pleasant to the touch yellow gold, which is vibrant and eye-catching. If you apply too much, it’ll fall out because of the chunky beads in the formula.
6. Ooo burn! - shimmering aubergine. It’s filled with big silver and holographic particles. I prefer wearing it either with a sheer layer or pack the color with a damp brush to make it visible.
7. Frostbite me! - You’ll either love or hate it. I love it! I adore its finish, despite the difficult application. I use it as a topper or pack with a damp brush. It’s the most willingly falling out shade.
8. Lookie at my cookie - matte pink, which is a little bit peachy. Not as cool as it might seem. Soft and nice to blend but not still very vibrant.
9. Spice is nice - a rusty matte shade of pumpkin pie spices. It’s excellent and I’ve got nothing else to say here.
10. Oh snap! - warm red-brown shade filled with gilded sparkle. Some people don’t welcome this feature of Too Faced when they infuse matte shades with glitter. I wish this color was more interesting. Again, if I apply it to the crease or blend out, there’s no more glitter anymore.
11. Bake it 'till you make it - fashion metallic shade, which appears dark brown sometimes. It’s rather soft. It has some chunky bits as well.
12. Spice of life - unusual shade, which is unique in my collection. It appears either fair green or dark golden or even brown rusty, depending on the eye color, shades used, light or anything else only God knows. I expected it to be more green-packed but still, I appreciate its finish. Gilded glitter is here as well.
13. Sugar daddy - cool matte, a little bit off white pink shade. I don’t rave about it. I can’t pack it either.
14. Figgy pudding - matte purple, which feels dry and troublesome, looking at the swatches. But it seems to perform better on my eyelids.
15. Hot toddy - a duochrome miracle. It’s a star of the palette! Depending on the angle it either seems rusty red or crimson metal. It’s filled with pink sparkle, which is a pro.
16. Reindeer paws - this one a tad dry dark aubergine color, which usually looks dark brown and matte. But again, you have to take care so as not to stain your skin with it.
17. Gingerbread latte - a matte shade of gingerbread latte. Soft and easy to work with. One more portion of warmth to my cold winter evenings.
18. Spiced rum - deep-toned red-brown shimmer with silver sparkle. This one is the most difficult from the palette. It applies with chunky crumbles and I always have to “massage” it into my skin. The only way of its application that I can bear it with a damp brush. The finish isn’t the most charming and it appears so usual.
Makeup looks:
1. The shades Gingerbread and Gingerbread latte. Warm and toasty is in the center of my lid as an accent. The lash line is done with a black pencil and I also used some Reindeer paws shade for blending.
2. And here you can see all the basic shades applied as for the previous look but with the Spice of life and Warm and toasty all over my mobile lid.
3. Here I decided to test out all the purple colors. At first, I used the shades Lookie at my cookie along with Sugar daddy, which isn’t visible, alas. After that, I mixed it with the shade Gingerbread. Then I blended out the Figgy pudding and a little bit lower, closer to the lash line, I applied some Reindeer paws. I didn’t use any primer or base just a concealer, set with a powder. I can say that in real life this makeup looks harmonious but in the picture, the darkest shade seems to be very active.
4. Here my previous makeup was a base and I made it more evening-like. I added black eyeliner and some Ooo burn! all over the lids. As you can see, all the glitter disappeared during the blend.
5. My favorite pink halo. Sugar daddy and Gumdrop are in the crease. Reindeer paws and Figgy pudding are in the corners. And I applied Spiked eggnog to the center of my lid and Frostbite me! as a topper. This is the example where I adore the way this shade looks in my makeup. So effective!
6. Here I decided to do something interesting but in reality, this is a typical cut crease with a purple liner. Again, Sugar daddy and Gumdrop are in the crease but I didn’t pack them a lot. After that, I cut the crease with concealer and apply the Frostbite me! shade with a damp brush to my inner corners. I blended it out with the Hot toddy color, closer to the outer Vs. I did the line with the shade Figgy pudding and my setting spray.
7. This one is more wearable warm-toned makeup. Gingerbread and Gingerbread latte are in the crease. Bake it till you make it is all over the lid and then I used Reindeer paws for darkening.
8. This is an example of my everyday go-to makeup. I like the Gingerbread in my crease and Reindeer paws and Bake it till you make it as dark Vs. And Spiked eggnog as a delicate accent.
9. I even had a chance to wear the Gingerbread shade for my evening makeup. I applied it to the crease and then packed all the shimmers with a damp brush. The Spiked eggnog is in the corners, Hot toddy in the center and Ooo burn! in the outer Vs.
Who is it for: the palette wins me over not only with its pigmentation but also with its color combinations. The design is fantastic, the aroma is super pleasant and there are so many makeups. If you’re a collector or the brand worshiper, then you’ll fall for it. The palette brings the Holiday mood.
Overall:
Pros:
+ nice design
+ awesome box
+ there are so many unique colors
+ paraben-free. Some shades are even free from talc.
+ great smell (even though I think that it might be an issue for some of you)
Cons:
- price
- fall out
- there are some issues with application
