Anastasia Beverly Hills – Norvina Palette
I’ve been on a palette purchasing mission as of late and whilst I have found myself purchasing palettes with that dreamy burnt orange shade I love so dearly, one palette really has stood out for being that little bit different. I’m talking about the Norvina palette by Anastatsia Beverly Hills, the palette that has completed the squad (until Sultry dropped out of the blue), and the one that I think I love the most. I’m really quite lucky in that Anastasia Beverly Hills now has a fab counter in Selfridges at the Trafford Centre where I can stock up and top up on my makeup must haves. No more judging shades over the internet, I can now swatch away to my hearts desire in store. After a visit to the Trafford Centre to meet the legendary Anastasia Soare, CEO of Anastasia Beverly Hills and her lead makeup artists, Alyssa, I came away with a heart full of love and a bag full of eyeshadow, also known as Norvina.
As with the previous Anastasia palettes, Norvina settles into the pack in its lilac hued velveteen case which opens to reveal 14 eyeshadows, a dual ended brush and a substantial mirror. The shades are made up of a row of intensely pigmented shimmer and metallic shades that feel like a gel to powder formula, with the bottom row holding 7 matte shades in various hues. Although the palette is shown as being a pink and purple palette, the amount of shades that fall into this range is slim, with just two of the seven matte shades being a pink a purple and the same with the shimmers.
Looking at the bottom row of shadows, the colours are very well put together with shades that work well together. A neutral base shade, cool toned browns, some very pretty definition and transitional shades and the pops of colour. I’m particularly smitten with Eccentric; a burnt pumpkin shade that has my name written all over it. There has been some talk about the formulation and how after the release of Subculture that the powders were too powdery, with a lot of kick back. I haven’t found there to be a lot of kick back in Norvina, no more so that Soft Glam and even Subculture itself. What I have found is intensely pigmented shadows that take a slight touch to create depth of colour, that blend seamlessy and leave a smooth, silky buttery finish. As you do only need a little and can build up, rather than packing it straight on, I seem to have found that I have need less control and that the shades just buff into the skin beautifully. Working with shadows such as Soul and Love have pushed me out of my comfort zone as whilst I have a huge love for purple, a lighter cool toned purple would never have been my first choice and I have always been scared of using pink around my eyes.
The shimmers within the palette are definitely the show stopping part of this launch. Not only are they incredibly pretty to look at, but the shades are all wearable without thinking that you’re going a bit too over the top. The formulation of these shadows are quite unusual. They do seem to have some sort of gel like formulation to them, as when you do press into them in the pan it does leave an intend into the soft, squishy texture. Putting them onto the eye is a dream and just like the mattes, they blend easily and can be packed on. They can also be used wet and dry to increase the vibrancy of the shimmer and they don’t lose the intensity over the course of the day.
Although I have both Soft Glam and Norvina to hand for day to day make up, I have found that I have been using more Norvina for the very autumnal shades at the far end of the palette. It really has made my day to day application so much easier in that I can literally swipe on a shade or two and it has made a very easy way to create a look that looks like it has taken longer than a few minutes. The shades literally are foolproof to work with as they shadows are a cohesive mix, there are so many combinations that can be made with Norvina. It’s safe to say that this has definitely been one of my most favourite purchases this year.
In this makeup look, I’ve used the Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r foundation in 240 and have focused on dewy, glowy skin with a touch of Harmony blush by MAC, and a hint of a glow with the Anastasia x Amrezy highlight. I’ve also used the Ferne McCann lashes in Astrid for extra volume and length. If you haven’t yet tried the Ferne McCann lashes from Poundland, then you need to try and get hold of them. They are never in stock in my local store but for £1, they really are fantastic lashes. On the lips, a slick of the Too Faced Melted Matte-allics in Sugar Kisses; a pearlescent pale ballerina slipper pink.
Have you tried the Norvina palette? Tell me your favourite shade in the comments.