Urban Decay’s Naked 3 Palette Review (+ Look Inspirations)

Dun dun dunnnn…!

My boyfriend got me this palette as a half-Valentines/half-random present! I’m so happy to have it. It’s so gorgeous. I could have posted about this sooner, but I wanted to make sure I had something to say aside from just raving about how beautiful it is!

I also wanted to film and edit a video review, so if you’d like to watch that first, click here for the HD version on YouTube, or watch below:

Otherwise, let’s get onto this review…!

First, let’s look at the packaging, shall we?

I didn’t like it at first, but I think it’s grown on me. Partly because I’ve been able to feel it and use it now, and the metal box just feels really sturdy and nice. Also, that little packet thing, in case you don’t know too much about this palette, is just four little samples of each of the four Primer Potions that Urban Decay has, which you get when you buy the Naked 3 palette. I think it’s a little disappointing getting these little samples instead of the mini like with Naked 1, or the little lip gloss like Naked 2, but hey, at least you get to try out a few random products from them, instead of just one, right?

And here’s the inside:

*Angels sing*

But seriously, isn’t it gorgeous?! Ugh. To be honest, I wasn’t convinced until I swatched it in store, so if you haven’t swatched and you aren’t convinced, go swatch it. Seriously.

Anways, I think it has a really nice mix of rosey and bronzy shimmer shades. One each of matte highlight, lid, and crease shades. And a couple darker shadows that would work great as either crease or lid shades, or as liners, depending on the look you want. Also, the black at the end has a gorgeous red/purple shimmer in it, which I’m absolutely in love with.

Primer Samples:

As I mentioned before, these are just the primer samples that come with the palette. Each one is fairly large, and good for multiple applications, but they don’t seal, so you probably wouldn’t want to keep them around too long once you open them! I’m currently working with the Anti-Aging primer for no particular reason.

Swatches:

Above are all the colours in the palette, swatched  on my arm on their own without any primer or anything.

Above: the first 6 colours, from left to right = Strange (almost matte; satin?), Dust (extreme shimmer), Burnout (shimmer), Limit (matte), Buzz (shimmer, almost metallic), and Trick (shimmer, almost metallic).

Below: the last 6 colours from left to right = Nooner (matte), Liar (shimmer), Factory (shimmer), Mugshot (shimmer), Darkside (shimmer), and Blackheart (matte with microglitter). Also, I apologize for the weird swatches of Darkside and Blackheart, but I have a bit of a thing about touching the veins on the inside of my wrist, and that’s where those are swatched. They are definitely not showing as pigmented as they should be.

Without primer:

Even though I didn’t have much makeup on or with me, I couldn’t help but try out the shadows as soon as I got them. This look is just with the shadows, no primer. I used Buzz on my lids, Strange as a highlight on my brow bone, Nooner in the crease, and Blackheart to darken up the outer V, and as liner under my lower lash line, which you obviously can’t see in this picture. The colours don’t look fantastic, but they still behave really nicely even without a primer to make them pop and stay put. They are great for blending, both the mattes and the shimmers.

With the Anti-Aging Primer Potion:

This look here is my first time playing with the palette over a primer, and I am absolutely in love with this look. Here I’m wearing Strange on my brow bone and inner corner, Trick on my lids, and Factory in my crease, outer corner, and thinly under my lower lash line.

Two more looks I’ve done with this palette:

My Thoughts:

Before even trying them on my eyes, my favourite colours in the palette were probably Buzz, Trick, and Blackheart, and those haven’t changed, though I’ve also learned that I really love Strange for highlighting, and that Dust is a gorgeous (if fallout-y) colour on the lid or to highlight. And everything from Nooner to Darkside is great in the crease.

These shadows are definitely up to the standards that just about everyone seems to expect from Urban Decay, myself included. The first Naked palette and the Naked Basics  have both really sold me that UD is pretty much the best brand when it comes to eyeshadows, and this is absolutely no different. I know that I will get a lot of use out of this palette. I don’t think it’s quite as neutral, perhaps, as the first two Naked palettes, and much less neutral than Naked Basics, but the pinky/rosy colours are absolutely gorgeous and just so feminine and pretty. Looking at these colours, they definitely make me think about spring-esque makeup looks, whereas the other two Naked palettes feel darker and make me think more about Fall and Winter, though of course lighter looks can be done with them too.

At any rate, I think if you have the money and are looking at getting this palette, then I definitely recommend it. I don’t have anything to complain about, and I’m sure you’ll love it!

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Let me know what you think of the Naked 3 palette in the comments! I’d love to hear about what your favourite Naked palette is, or even if you want to tell me who you think is better at eyeshadows than UD!

Thanks for reading!0