Build Your Own Palette: An Analysis

For those of you who don't know about "build your own palettes" like the Z-palette or the Unii palette or even to some extent the MAC, Inglot, Kiko (etc) palettes, then this post may come as a surprise to you. However, with the numerous videos on YouTube talking about depotting, this is probably no surprise. 

Before I get into the review, I thought I would talk a bit about the different palettes and what they are basically. For those like MAC, Inglot, Kiko, Laura Mercier, Urban Decay, Trish McEvoy etc; you purchase the brand's own palette and then insert the brand's own eyeshadows/blush/whatever they offer into them. The most common one I hear about are the MAC eyeshadow and blush palettes and the Inglot ones. For MAC, I have heard that if you do not have the insert in palette, then you can put other things in as well (also apparently the Elf shadows are the same size), but I don't really know if that's true as I don't own the MAC palettes. I know for the Trish McEvoy travel cases, you can get little "pages" and those aren't just for Trish McEvoy things either. But usually it works that the brand of palette it is, the brand of makeup will fit in it.

But if you prefer to have a bunch of things from different brands or different items even, then the Z-palettes, Unii palettes and others like them may be for you. I think Makeup Geek do a similar one as well. Basically these are just magnetic containers for your makeup. Yay!

So, the benefits of having these custom palettes include:

1. Having all your favourite colours in one place.

2. Ease of travel as you aren't packing a bunch of single items

3. Save space (this is most true for those of you with many single items)

4. Ease of categorization (Eg all the blues in one place, etc)

5. Allows you to easily compare shades

So now that you think about those benefits, which one do you want to go for?

It depends. 

From my experience/research (as I don't own all the options),

Urban Decay- if you own a lot of the new shadows that can pop out of the casing and slip into the BYOP, then I recommend these as you don't need to depot them and can easily put them back as singles after. 

For example like this where I have the single that I can switch out. However, the BYOP from Urban Decay is limited as I think only the 4 pan ones are available now and they aren't the most streamlined. However, this is a good option if you like having the ease of a palette with your favourite UD shades.

Most branded stuff (eg Inglot, Kiko...) - These you will have to get specific palettes for (unless you want to depot). For Inglot, as far as I know, you need to get the palettes as they don't sell single pots (though you can get a single pot palette thing separately). For Kiko, they have the Clics system where you can get pop in/out shades like the UD ones where the packaging allows really easy switching, but these don't come individually.

For MAC- I don't have much experience with this besides watching/reading/looking longingly in the window.... But from what I gather, this is a great way to Back to MAC eyeshadows if you previously bought a lot of single pots, or a way to save money if you are planning on collecting. MAC do a 4 pan eyeshadow palette and a palette where you can buy inserts for either 15 eyeshadows or 6 blushes. They also have a double sided one where you can get the inserts for 15 eyeshadows or 6 blushes as well. For me, these are the ones I want the most as I don't own them and I think they look really sleek. The packaging is plastic with a clear cover so it is easy to see what is inside.

For other miscellaneous stuff:

Z-palettes: Z-palettes are the most common on YT and blogs (that I have seen). At one stage they were like the most amazing thing ever (until people got bored and found new stuff to play with). These are cardboard boxes with a clear plastic sheet on the top that have a magnetised base. They are slim and come in various sizes to suit your needs. There are even deeper ones in case you want to depot something that isn't in a flat pan.

These are quite pricey and there are a lot of dupes for them on Etsy and other sites. They also sell magnets (to stick on the bottom of your pan so it will stay in the palette) and empty pans (so you can press stuff into it) and a spatula.

The Z-palette almost whatever you want. If you have MAC shadows and don't want to splurge on the MAC palette, then you could put them into a Z-palette. If you only use products from pans, you could even put your entire makeup look into a single Z-palette. This is basically one of the more creative options.

Unii palettes: I am thinking of doing a proper review post on these soon as I own a bunch, but basically these are a similar idea to the Z palette in terms of what you can put inside. However, these come in one size only and do not allow you to put baked/domed products inside. The Unii palette is made of hard plastic and has a mirror within the lid and snaps shut with a clasp making it a bit more secure. They come with a magnetic sheet which you can cut to size and stick onto your depotted makeup, if they are aluminium (most makeup pans are). They also have a movable thumb grip so you can hold onto the palette without having your thumb in an eyeshadow. These are not the most streamlined of the bunch as they are quite bulky.

Trish McEvoy Wardrobing Pages: These  are designed for the Makeup Planners from the same brand and come in various sizes depending on the size of the planner. These are marketed for Trish McEvoy makeup, but from what I can see, it can fit most makeup, though not those that are baked/domed. These come with holes punched on the top to fit the planner and are made of plastic. I think the latest version have a clear panel and a small mirror. These are more expensive, but are also an option.

Wheww... I feel that this was a giant of a post, and I'm sorry I didn't include more pictures. I've just been on a bit of a google spree so I thought I would collect all the info I knew into one comparison post. Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Signing off now

Dusty Foxes