Are the Urban Decay Naked palettes worth the money? (Review & Swatches)

Hi there!  I own the Urban Decay Naked 1, 2, and Basics palettes.  I’ve had all three for quite some time now so I think I can give a fair assessment to the ‘Are they worth it?’ question.  How about some swatches first though? (Please click on the photo to enlarge it!)

Urban Decay Naked 1 Palette:

Virgin (Satin)

Sin (Metallic)

Naked (Matte)

Sidecar (Metallic w/ glitter)

Buck (Matte)

Half Baked (Metallic)

Smog (Shimmer) <-- MISSING SWATCH OF THIS -_- . Sorry!

Darkhorse (Satin)

Toasted (Metallic)

Hustle (Satin)

Creep (Matte w/ tiny barely noticeable glitter particles)

Gunmetal (Metallic w/ glitter)

Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette:

Foxy (Matte)

Half Baked (Metallic)

Bootycall (Satin)

Chopper (Metallic w/ glitter)

Tease (Matte)

Snakebite (Satin)

Suspect (Metallic)

Pistol (Metallic)

Verve (Metallic)

YDK (Metallic w/ microglitter)

Busted (Satin)

Blackout (Matte)

Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette:

Venus (Satin)

Foxy (Matte)

W.O.S. (Matte)

Naked 2 (Matte)

Faint (Matte)

Crave (Matte)

I’ll start by saying that for me personally, the Naked 2 was not worth it.  I really like some of the colors in it but I find myself hardly reaching for it as I don’t think it’s a great stand-alone palette.  I always have to grab my Naked Basics or other matte colors to use along with the Naked 2, which kind of defeats the purpose of a larger palette – I mean, you’re supposed to be able to use it completely on its own.

The Naked 1, on the other hand, is most definitely worth it.  While I’m not overly fond of the 2 glittery shades, it’s a great stand-alone palette with essential neutral eye shadows that anyone would need.  There’s no wonder it’s been Urban Decay’s best-selling palette since its release 3 years ago and it’s still one of the most talked about beauty products in the industry.  I even saw it being used on a behind-the-scenes look at the set of House, M.D. by the makeup artists!  That is one of my favorite TV shows of all time btw.

As for the Naked Basics, it depends on the person really.  Yes, the 2 lightest matte shades, Foxy and WOS, are a bit redundant but I use those shades to blend out the edges of eye shadow looks all the time.  Then I use the med-dark brown shade Faint to fill in my brows sometimes anddd I use the black shade Crave to set my lower lash eyeliner and create an outline for my winged eyeliner (blog post coming eventually for this).  You probably could find dupes of these shades in other palettes but I love the fact that I have these important basics all in one palette.  It’s so convenient!

In terms of packaging, they're all quite sturdy.  Naked 1 is made of durable cardboard with a felt exterior, which looks nice but picks up lint like crazyy.  Naked 2 is made of metal tin, which feels heavy and feels the most durable of the three.  (It's like those metal pencil tins kids used to use in elementary school.  Remember those?  Or am I getting too old?)  Naked Basics has that rubberized plastic feel, which reminds me of Nars' packaging but it's less prone to fingerprints.  I actually like the packaging on the Naked Basics the best as it doesn't get dirty that easily and isn't so heavy but still feels solid enough for safe travel.

Also, has anyone noticed the price increase of the Naked 1 and 2?  It went up to $52!  I paid $50 (also had a 20% off coupon though) for mine.  It sucks how high-end beauty products have price increases every 1-2 years.  I will tell you though, it is possible to save money on those products and I’ll let you know how to in my next blog post.  Stay tuned!

Bottom line:  Excellent textures overall, great longevity, and good packaging.  Naked 1 and Basics are totally worth the money!

A Bit About Me

First, here’s a little about me.  I graduated from college already and I have plans to become a physician in the future.  Aside from all the academics, I love all things beauty from skincare to makeup to nail polish.  I’ve been following beauty blogs and YouTube beauty channels for almost 2 years now.  While making videos isn’t really my thing, I’ve always been interested in starting a blog.  Why not start sooner?  Well, honestly, I just didn’t have the time while I was in school.

So here I am now to talk mostly about beauty but I might throw in some stuff about baking, books, and even superheroes (random? Yes, that’s how I roll).  I hope you don’t mind.  Most of all, I hope you find something intriguing and possibly helpful from the standpoint of someone whose career isn’t necessarily in the beauty industry.

On this blog, you’ll find reviews, swatches, lots of photos, and probably some rambling as I have a tendency to talk a lot.  I’ll be applying to medical school next year and I may even talk about that, if you’re interested in reading about it.  Anyway, I’ll be posting regularly from now on.  Please join me and give me feedback on anything you like or that I can improve upon since I’m new to this! :)

Sincerely,

Katrina