Veracious Product Review: Illamasqua Fundamental Palette

Hi, everyone! We all know I like a challenge when it comes to bold colour. There are few things more satisfying than taking an intimidating, vibrant shade and making it totally wearable. Or, in the case of today's product, combining seemingly incompatible shades in a harmonized way. Such is the challenge with the Illamasqua Fundamental Palette. At first sight, it's a bit of a head-scratcher. Contrasting shades, multiple textures, vivid hues. It literally made my boyfriend raise an eyebrow- "so you looked at those colours and though, yeah these would go well together?" I raised an eyebrow right back. Challenge accepted. Little risk, little reward! 

The Fundamental Palette comes in a shiny black box with minimal gold lettering and the Illamasqua logo:

The palette itself is also black and shiny (extra shiny here, as it was a very bright morning) made of lightweight yet seemingly durable plastic. It comes in Illamasqua's signature curved square shape, which isn't exactly practical, but looks quite nice! The nerd in me actually spent a few minutes trying to find out what the name of such a shape is... a concave polygon? a superellipse? Anyone know? Ok, I digress...

The back of the palette features a listing of the products as well as a description of what's inside. It touts "a startling blend of colours and textures... a playground for self-expression". That all sounds about right! 

Fundamental includes four eye colours in square-shaped pans. They are:

Powder Shadow in Hype- a slightly green-tinged matte yellow
Liquid Metal in Surge- a slick creamy, slightly warm metallic silver
Cream Pigment in Bedaub- a thick creamy pastel minty seafoam
Powder Shadow in Inception- a satiny jewel-toned purple

There really isn't a dud among them! Here are swatches of the shades on the inside of my arm (NC15 skin tone). Hype is incredibly pigmented and applies quite smoothly. Surge has quite a wet texture and is full-on at first swipe. Bedaub has a drier texture and builds to full opacity quite easily. Inception is the sheerest of the bunch, but layers quite nicely and has a pretty, subtle sheen: 

Fundamental Palette (L-R): Hype, Surge, Bedaub, Inception

Here's a full breakdown of my thoughts on this colourful, quirky palette:

Pros:

• Extremely pigmented shades- a little goes a long way! Inception is slightly sheerer, but builds up nicely
• Incredibly unique combination of shades and textures
• Perfect for those who love creative makeup looks and relish playing with colour!
• The powder shadow shades have excellent staying power
• Bedaub works wonderfully as an eye shadow base!

Cons:

• Not for the faint of heart. These shades are bold!
• Bedaub tends to crease fairly quickly. Best used as a shadow base, rather than on its own
• Due to the wetter texture, Surge tends to fade and slip off the skin. You might have to re-apply.
• At $45 CAD, this is a pricier palette! Though all Illamasqua is now 25% off at The Bay!

Overall, I'm so happy I picked up this eclectic little treasure. Some of the textures might be a bit tricky, but I find it's totally worth a bit of extra effort. It truly is unlike anything I own, which is saying a lot given the size of my stash! While I likely won't reach for it on a regular basis, I know it'll be my go-to when I'm wanting a proper play with colour.

Keep your eyes peeled for a Look of the Day using this palette on Saturday!

Thanks for dropping by! :)