10 Best Eyeshadow Palettes for Beginners 2024 | UK Makeup Artist Reviewed
From cult favourites such as NYX and MAC to drugstore favourites like Rimmel and Maybelline, we’ve compiled a list of the best eyeshadows to help you get started on your journey. You’ll be surprised at the range available on Amazon, Boots and John Lewis! Moreover, we have partnered with makeup artist Marie Dancer for reviewing and fact-checking the article so that we can deliver the best information to our users.
Quick List - Top Eyeshadow Palettes for Beginners
Bourjois Paris
For the Perfect Fuss-Free, Purple Smoky Eye
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Fact-Checked and Approved by Makeup Artist Marie Dancer
As a professional makeup artist of ten years, Marie's job has taken her all over the UK, working at top events, on TV shows and making up beautiful brides. For all of her clients, she loves emphasising their natural beauty by creating a flawless base that still looks like skin.
Find out more about Marie and what her favourite makeup products are through her Instagram. She even shares some industry tips on makeup application. And if you're interested in getting your makeup done by Marie, you can contact her via her email found at the top of her page.
How to Choose an Eyeshadow Palette for Beginners in the UK
- Choose The Number Of Colours Based Off Confidence And Creativity
- Select Shades Best Suited to Your Skin Tone
- Check The Ratio Of Matte To Shimmer Shadows
Choose the Number of Colours Based on Confidence and Desire to Experiment
Pick Limited Colour Palettes to Create Subtle Looks and Leave Less Room for Error
A smaller palette of colours is much more sustainable and cost-effective than buying a large palette only for one or two shades. The small size will also make it great for travel so you can have your favourite colours anywhere you go.
Try Palettes With More Colours if You're Not Afraid of Experimenting
However, on the flip side, a palette with multiple colours can give you plenty of room to experiment when you're not sure which colours suit you best. You'll find many are often very good value too and may last longer overall.
Select the Shades Based on Your Skin Tone and the Look You Want to Achieve
Generally, darker coloured eyeshadows will create a smoky and sultry effect, while rainbow-bright shades give a more edgy, modern look. Brown eyes tend to look best with deep purples, greens and golds while green eyes suit red-bronze tones and aubergine purples. For blue eyes, anything with a warm undertone will look beautiful, such as warm browns and terracottas to help your eyes pop.
As we're often distracted by pretty packaging and the overall look of a collection, it's easy to forget to check the individual shades. Make sure at least 90% of the set are colours you’d realistically put on your face, or you’ll find yourself using one shadow until it’s empty and ignoring the rest; which is not great value for money.
Why not also find your perfect foundation shade by also checking out our guide on the best cruelty-free foundations.
Check the Ratio of Matte to Shimmer Shadows According to Ease and Desired Look
Go For Matte Shadows to Easily Create a Low-Impact, Natural Look
Your best bet as a total eyeshadow novice is matte shadows. These powders reflect very little light, so they are flat and muted. Matte shadows blend beautifully with your skin tone and each other, so they should be extra subtle and won't' have everyone doing a double-take when you first try them out.
Matte shadows are the perfect base to follow up with a pop of shimmer so you can slowly start introducing more colour and finishes once you've perfected a classic, matte eye. Keep darker matte colours close to the lash line for a natural smokey liner effect.
Shimmers Are Great for Striking Looks Looks but Draw More Attention to Mistakes
You can get different levels of shimmer – some 'sheen' eyeshadows offer a very subtle pearl finish, while others are extremely glittery. Shimmers can be intensified by spraying an eyeshadow brush with setting spray and then dipping into the eyeshadow. Yet, the downside is that if you haven’t quite got the hang of applying eyeshadow yet, shimmer shades are far more striking and will draw attention to mistakes easily.
To enhance a dramatic make-up look, use a drugstore highlighter and long-lasting lipstick.
10 Best Eyeshadow Palettes for Beginners in the UK
Products | Image | Click to purchase | Key features | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Morphe 35o Nature Glow Artistry Palette | | Unrivalled Quality with Subtle Range | |
2 | Bourjois Paris Smoky Stories Eyeshadow Palette Brilliant Prunette | | For the Perfect Fuss-Free, Purple Smoky Eye | |
3 | Dior Diorshow 5 Couleurs Couture Eyeshadow Palette | | A Show-stopping Luxury 5 Colour Palette | |
4 | Collection Eyes Uncovered Palette in Nude Bronze | | A Simple Bronze-Toned Collection on a Budget | |
5 | Maybelline Big Eyes Eyeshadow Palette Luminous Brown | | Foolproof Formula for Big, Bright Eyes | |
6 | NYX Cosmetics Ultimate Shadow Palette - Brights | | Kaleidoscope Fun for Beginner Party Looks | |
7 | Rimmel London Magnif’Eyes Keep Calm Eyeshadow Palette | | Dark and Dramatic Eyes at a Pinch | |
8 | Urban Decay Naked 2 Basics Eyeshadow Palette | | High-Quality Creamy Shadows That Glide and Blend Flawlessly | |
9 | Maybelline The Blushed Nudes Eyeshadow Palette | | A Brilliant Beginner Shimmer Set of Nudes and Pinks | |
10 | MAC Cosmetics Eyeshadow Palette x9 in Dusky Rose | | For Stunning Rose-Tinted Lids Both Day and Night |
Unrivalled Quality with Subtle Range
There’s definitely room to get creative and try different combinations safe in the knowledge they’ll look lovely. If you’re willing to invest in your makeup bag, shell out a little more for this top-quality collection used even by professional make-up artists!
Bourjois Paris Smoky Stories Eyeshadow Palette Brilliant Prunette
For the Perfect Fuss-Free, Purple Smoky Eye
The limited range keeps it nice and easy for beginners, and Bourjois offer 3 simple steps to the perfect dramatic eyelids, so even trying out shimmers doesn’t need to be scary. With a brush included, you’re less than a fiver away from seriously striking, smoky eyes.
A Show-stopping Luxury 5 Colour Palette
From luxury brand Dior comes this five colour palette filled with a mix of gorgeous shimmers and mattes. Each shade is creamy and highly pigmented making it not only easy to apply but long-lasting.
You can create both a natural and sophisticated look using these colours. Luckily, the Diorshow palette comes in 12 different colour stories meaning there is a palette for every skin tone. Perfect for special occasions and nights out!
A Simple Bronze-Toned Collection on a Budget
Fairly long-lasting given the price, and in a limited set of shades that blend and match brilliantly with one another, these collections set you up for lovely eyeshadow looks completely struggle free.
Maybelline Big Eyes Eyeshadow Palette Luminous Brown
Foolproof Formula for Big, Bright Eyes
It’s easy on your wallet with a decent quality brush for the money you’re paying, and Maybelline’s Big Eyes range comes in other shades too, so once you’ve got the hang of one look you can try the same formula in more adventurous shades.
Kaleidoscope Fun for Beginner Party Looks
Yes, you do risk some questionable results as the shades make such a big statement, but if you’re willing to keep makeup remover on hand and practise new combinations before heading out, you’ll discover some really fun, flattering looks.
Rimmel London Magnif’Eyes Keep Calm Eyeshadow Palette
Dark and Dramatic Eyes at a Pinch
As it is a high street brand, the quality isn’t as luxurious as some of the other products and the applicator brush is a little bit feeble, but you get a good choice of colours for less than five pounds.
High-Quality Creamy Shadows That Glide and Blend Flawlessly
It is a very limited shade range, which is good if you’re intimidated by options, but could get boring once you're used to applying them. Considering narrow colour choice and the lack of brush provided, you may find this palette a tad overpriced, but the colours do pair up nicely.
A Brilliant Beginner Shimmer Set of Nudes and Pinks
Moving through whites and creams – which make any eye colour pop – to pinks and purples, the Blushed Nudes collection gives a lovely creamy pay-off as you apply it onto the brush, which is included in this set, but some shades may not suit every eye colour.
For Stunning Rose-Tinted Lids Both Day and Night
The palette doesn’t come with its own brush and may seem like a big investment for your first-ever palette, but even though most of the shadows are shimmers, they’re artfully blended so as not to be too sparkly, meaning they won’t draw any unnecessary attention.
Written and researched by Annie Hopkins
Top 5 Eyeshadow Palettes for Beginners
No. 1: Morphe｜35o Nature Glow Artistry Palette
No. 2: Bourjois Paris ｜Smoky Stories Eyeshadow Palette Brilliant Prunette
No. 3: Dior ｜Diorshow 5 Couleurs Couture Eyeshadow Palette
No. 4: Collection｜Eyes Uncovered Palette in Nude Bronze
No. 5: Maybelline ｜Big Eyes Eyeshadow Palette Luminous Brown
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