Urban Decay Afterdark Eyeshadow Palette Review, Swatches, & Eye Look

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Now that I’m not horribly ill & (ANDDD) not not having a severe reaction on my skin to some products- are you ready for more makeup looks? According to my instagram (not following? shuckksss check it out here!) you are! Today I’m finally sharing my thoughts on the Urban Decay Afterdark Eyeshadow Palette including an eyeshadow look I’ve recreated over & over! Keep reading to check this beauty out!

Once the sun goes down, anything goes. That’s the inspiration behind our Afterdark Palette. It’s got everything you need to create a range of after-hours-inspired looks. Loaded with a diverse range of metallic jewel tones (including several that seem to change colors depending on how the light hits them), this palette is full of possibilities.

Can we talk packaging first? LOOOOK! This gorgeous iridescent metallic purple case is everythingggg! It is shiny & looks like a purple oil slick. I had to put it under my ringlight (here’s mine btw!) because it is tough to photograph though! It is a super sturdy hard plastic with their usual magnetic closure.

Inside you have a very large mirror & a double-ended brush. The brush is actually really well thought out to go with the shade’s texture as well. You have a bit stiffer bristles- also great for foiling! One side is a normal eyeshadow brush shape with a curved edge to fit the crease as well & the other is a smaller version perfect for details.

Alter- a brightened white gold with strong gold shift in a metallic finish. I fully expected this shade to have a lot of fallout like many white golds but this actually stuck on & gave me great control. It also actually shows up where you place it & looks incredible applied with a damp brush!

Scene- a brightened pink-based warm coral with coppery gold shimmer in a metallic finish. This might be one of my favorite shades because it gives me summer vibes! It took a little more work to apply because there was a tad of fallout but I actually prefer this applied wet for maximum pigmentation anyway.

Druggie- a medium brightened violet-toned purple with lots of cool notes in the metallic finish. You guys KNOW I love my purples & this one is fantastic- a bit stiff so the color actually is opaque when I apply it. & purples are tough so that’s a big deal!

Backfire- a deepened warm plum with golden flecks in a metallic finish. This shade is permanent. It has a bit of fallout but honestly not very much considering it has a touch of golden glitter throughout that looked more like super micro flakies.

Supersonic- a medium to deep copper-based red in a metallic finish. Another favorite in this palette- the texture is incredible & it really makes my eyes pop!

Sinful- a brightened medium slightly murky goldenrod yellow in a metallic finish. This applied surprisingly smooth & has way better application than most of my golds when it comes to opacity especially.

Off Duty- a warmer deep brown packed with a pearl finish. Not quite as pigmented or metallic but easily buildable & built up.

Lounge- a very pigmented red/brown base packed intensely with green (some instances a bit of blue) shimmer that makes it look like a duochrome metallic. This shade is permanent. It takes a bit more building up but the effect is obviously worth the work.

Fringe- an intense turquoise to teal with a metallic finish. I’m obsessed with the tones in this & the color payoff is stunning. I do recommend using a primer if you’re fair like me because this might stain a little bit.

Paralyzed- a very cool-toned navy with a darkened base & metallic finish. It needs some building up but this color looks so unique!

Swatches of the Urban Decay Afterdark Palette left to right on bare skin wiped with a bare finger using medium pressure:

Top Row- Alter, Scene, Supersonic, Sinful, Off Duty.

Bottom Row- Druggie, Backfire, Lounge, Fringe, Paralyzed.

Swatches of the Urban Decay Afterdark Palette left to right on bare skin wiped with a bare finger using medium pressure with flash:

Top Row- Alter, Scene, Supersonic, Sinful, Off Duty.

Bottom Row- Druggie, Backfire, Lounge, Fringe, Paralyzed.

I love purple eyeshadow SO much. Like…so much. So I couldn’t help myself & went with some of those shades in this palette. Because normally I’m so full glam that people often ask for something more wearable. I heard you! <3

I feel like you can totally go wild with these colors but I wanted to show you an eye look that I think more people would easily recreate for day to day. Maybe without the winged eyeliner for some of you…but not for me! Wings for life! I’m also wearing the Urban Decay Vice Lipstick in Whip in case you were wondering!

I started out with my Urban Decay Primer Potion– I actually pretty much always use the original. I then dipped into my Urban Decay Ultimate Basics Eyeshadow Palette (full review, swatches, & demo here!) because this palette doesn’t have any mattes obviously. I honestly use this palette pretty much every day anyway so you’ve probably seen it a lot. I placed a bit of Instinct (a pink/purple muted taupe) in my crease to carve it out a bit for placement. That always helps when I’m trying not to go full glam because it gives me a start & stop point. I used Alter in my inner corner & patted underneath about 1/5 of the way into my lashline for brightening. On my lower lashline along with Alter I added some Lounge right against my lashes for that cool duochrome effect but I really didn’t extend it very much.

Now onto the fun part- purples! I patted Druggie across my entire lid leaving my outer corner more empty. This shade takes some building if you don’t want to make it more intense with foiling. In the outer corner & up into the outer crease I placed Backfire. I think these two shades work beautifully together & end up looking pretty seamless. I then took Druggie again to blend the line & brighten up the center of my lid. Above the crease I took a touch of Commando in the Urban Decay Ultimate Basics Eyeshadow Palette & then Nudie above that. Right under the browbone I place Blow but if I had a more intense eye look I’d probably go full glam & use Alter again for the gold pop! Then my usual liner, liquid liner, &, of course, mascara!

You can currently purchased the Urban Decay Afterdark Eyeshadow Palette on the Urban Decay site here.

I think the value is pretty insane for 10 eyeshadows that add up to full sizes in weight! That’s $49 for 10 FULL SIZE Urban Decay Eyeshadows! At this point, that’s cheaper than the drugstore most of the time so it is a steal. & all of these colors are fantastic- no duds or anything here at all. You’ll likely need another palette to complete your look with some mattes but that makes this palette a secret weapon which I’m completely okay with.