Urban Decay kills it when it comes to eyeshadows in my opinion. I own quite a few palettes from the brand but one of my absolute favorites is the original Urban Decay Vice. I haven’t heard anything but regrets from people who didn’t pick it up & I honestly use it so much more than I thought I would. I’m pretty sure Urban Decay was bombarded with demands for a 2nd version & they delivered! Hoorah! All hail the Urban Decay Vice 2 Palette! From the packaging to the pigmentation to the shades themselves…I have a lot of thoughts on this palette so keep reading!

If I had to pick something about the original Urban Decay Vice palette that I’d change it would have been the exterior packaging. I love the push button open & the fact that the mirror area actually stands up instead of going limp. I know a lot of people are big fans of Nars-esque type packaging which is probably why they went with it. I find that it attracts more dust/fallout so when I heard about this new palette I crossed my fingers. Prayers granted!

Not only is this packaging more sleep (in my personal opinion obviously) but also it is completely original! Every single palette is different because they used a special printing process so your palette is one of a kind! Plus…ORCHIDS! For those that don’t know, I absolutely adore orchids & even have them tattooed on my shoulder. Love it! Plus the bejeweled UD is just a fun touch. The first photo is of the cardboard exterior packaging & the purple is the actual palette. Yours won’t look exactly like mine because they’re all unique but you get the idea! If you look closely you can see some of the petals & the layering is just lovely.

I’m not going to compare too much between the original Urban Decay Vice because I’m planning on doing a complete post on that but this is definitely more of a smoky palette. You have 20 eyeshadows, a very generous mirror, & a very useable double-ended eyeshadow brush. The first photo above is in natural, slightly shaded light & the second is with flash.

I find these eyeshadows really look different with flash & allow you as a reader to really see the details like the shimmer & such. You’ll see my photos of the eyeshadows on the left is is natural light & on the right with flash so you can see the differences since many of these shades have shimmer that is a bit hard to catch just in natural light. You see these kinds of shifts a lot more on the eye obviously since it moves & hits different angles. You’ll notice some swatches have angled shots & some don’t, for me that is to shoot the shifting shades correctly so you can see all their glory!

Swatches left to right: Smokeout (very deep blackened brown satin), Lovesick (matte brown with silver micro-glitter), Prank (deep matte navy with lots of turquoise shimmer), & Madness (metallic medium blue).

I really like Smokeout & when i compare it to other shades you can see more of the brown. My favorite thing is the pigmentation & texture. Lovesick is just okay, not as silky & has some glitter fallout. Prank is definitely a favorite & feels like a more refined & smoky way to play with a mermaid-esque shade. Madness looks way lighter in these pictures because it catches the light, it is a lot more wearable in person.

Swatches left to right: Radar (metallic rich brown with micr-shimmer), Damaged (vibrant emerald shimmer with a smoky base), Dope (slightly peach toned champagne satin), Toxic (metallic copper/pink).

Radar looks kind of odd in the pan but I assure you it applies incredibly smooth, not sure why it is visibly different. Damaged is incredible, so vibrant while being very smoky. Dope is the perfect highlight for both the browbone & inner corners. It draws light but doesn’t have fallout or glitter. Not over the top. Toxic is such a unique shade & is probably on of the few copper/pink shades I’ve seen.

Swatches left to right: Shellshock (vibrant metallic silver), Coax (medium soft pink with golden shimmer), Strike (antique pale yellow gold shimmer), Stash (medium olive green with multi-colored shimmer).

Shellshock is a crazy pigmented silver & has great application. Coax is a pink I actually like which is rare in an eyeshadow! Strike is a nice gold that is a lot more user friendly than a bright gold. Stash is the perfect olive shimmer & looks so beautifully fall.

Swatches left to right: Voodoo (smoky purple base with purple micro shimmer), Betrayal (vibrant purple satin with a blue shift), Habit (matte creamy light nude), & Ambush (metallic bronze shimmer).

I absolutely love purple so I was excited that they put two in this palette that are completely different! Voodoo is a smoky, sultry shade while Betrayal is more fun with that vibrant shift! Habit is just the best shade for me, very similar to my Wet n Wild Creme Brulee which can be used as a matte highlight or base shade. Ambush is a gorgeous brown with a great formula that looks more metallic on the eye.

Swatches left to right: X-Rated (baby pink satin), Poison (charcoal metallic with multicolored shimmer), Derailed (medium metallic taupe-y brown), & Rewind (medium brown matte).

X-Rated is just a shade I won’t really use, it isn’t a bad color I just don’t reach for baby pinks on my eyes. Poison is a really great shade & I reach for it a lot more than Lovesick. Derailed is taupe therefore it is probably the most used non-basic shade for me. Taupe fo lyfe. & last but not least, Rewind is an awesome matte brown that goes with pretty much every shade.

Overall I’m very happy with this palette! It does cost $59 but wait! You might be thinking “Wow Stephanie, that’s crazy!” but this is honestly worth every penny for me! If you figure that every eyeshadow cost about $2.95 each & you don’t count the one of a kind packaging, big mirror, or the double ended brush that is more than reasonable for me. Personally, the only shades I don’t really see myself using are X-Rated or Lovesick but 2/20 really isn’t bad. My most used shades over the past 3 weeks are definitely the 2 matte shades Habit & Rewind & also Derailed, Dope as a highlight, & Stash because it really feels fall. Along with those particular shades some favorites are also Damaged, Voodoo, & Prank for some sultry pops of color.

You can purchase this palette from the Urban Decay website, Sephora, Ulta,& Macy’s for $59. This is a limited edition & will likely sell out so snap it up if you’re interested!