The Urban Decay Smoked Palette is just that – SMOKED! 🙂 If you are considering this palette, please be aware this is more of a night appropriate palette. If you’re looking for something neutral for daywear, stick with Naked1 or Naked2. Just my opinion!
My reasoning for saying this is, as you can see, EVERY color in this palette with the exception of Freestyle, Mushroom and Kinky are DARK, D-A-R-K colors. It’s awfully hard to build a day appropriate look with this palette unless you are of a medium or darker complexion (and in that case using something like Barlust all over the lid would be a great daytime smokey eye!). I was very impressed with the pigmentation of the eyeshadows in this palette and dare I say this might actually be one of Urban Decay’s best.
I personally found Mushroom harder to work with in this palette, which is odd because the Mushroom I have in the Mariposa palette is super easy to blend and work with. Maybe I got a dud? I also wasn’t impressed with Kinky as a blending shade; it didn’t completely blend the colors in this palette, especially the darker browns. So I found myself resorting to my go-to blender, MAC Blanc Type.
(Bottom Row, L to R) Barlust, Rockstar, Evidence, Loaded, Asphalt
Look #1
UD eyeshadows used:
- Evidence (inner half of lid and lower lashline)
- Backdoor (outer half of lid and into outer v)
- Barlust (crease)
- MAC Blanc Type (blend)
boops
OMG those are all gorgeous looks Z-Especially ove looks 2 and 5.
Zabrena
Thanks, babe! 🙂 I do REALLY like #2!
Kay Howard
Is it dupable??
Zabrena
Hi Kay! Somewhat; I feel like the unique colors in this palette are Barlust, Rockstar, Evidence and Loaded. Other than those, Backdoor could be duped with MAC’s Brun, Blackout with Carbon, Kinky with Vanilla, Freestyle resembles Samoa Silk but is lighter in comparison, and Asphalt’s dupe would be Knight Divine or Gunmetal, although it lacks the sparkle in Gunmetal.
Mariella
When this first came out, I was tempted until I realized I have roughly half the shadows already – Loaded (love it), Mushroom, Evidence, Rockstar and Blackout (twice!). So it wouldn’t have been a very sensible purchase for me. LOVE the looks you’ve done with this palette and will be trying them for sure. Can suggest a dupe for “Barlust”?
Zabrena
I couldn’t agree more! Like you, I already own a good number of the eyeshadows in this palette and only purchased it for the site. 😉
I would compare Barlust to something like UD’s Smog or MAC’s Bronze (although it’s darker by a touch). It reminds me a LOT of Tempting too without the glitter. Enjoy! 😀
Mariella
Thanks, Z. I’ve got Smog but I also did a bit of digging last night and found that Barlust is reasonably close to Carbonized, which I have and love, so I should be good with that. Is the Smoked palette the one that includes a fairly detailed booklet of looks? I know one of their palettes does and I wish they’d do that with more of them. When the first Naked palette came out, UD had several “looks” at their site that were really stunning but they were only there for a short time and, of course, I can’t even remember now what they were but they were good! If there wasn’t so much overlap with shadows I already own, I’d have bought this palette for sure.
Zabrena
Yep! That’s the one! The book has about 8 looks in it. I purposefully didn’t look at them so I wouldn’t be persuaded when doing looks for this post, so I just looked at it for the first time. Looks pretty decent. You’re right; many companies I feel don’t take the power of combinations into consideration with palettes like these!
Tamara Lawler
Thanks Sabrina gorgeous palette I would like to see a Esmerald make up with Loaded thanks one more time!
Karah
Hi!
There are Esmeralda tutorial’s on YouTube with ladies that actually have the coloring of Esmeralda. You’re referring to the Esmeralda of Disney’s Hunchback of Notre Dame movie right? I hope you can find what you’re looking for. 🙂
anna Christensen
I bought this palette on a whim and realized the colors were so dark I would need some guidance. Thanks sooooo much for the help!
Monica
OMG all the looks are gorgeous!!
Karah
My dear you always make magic with horrible palettes! 🙂 The colors are way too dark for the average person’s skin. Like you said, this maybe ok for darker skin tones, but if I tried this, with exception of a couple shades, I would look like a clown. UD and their glitter packed shadows again. Can’t they take a little glitter out. They put so much in and it’s not flattering for any age.
Tamara Lawler
Hello my Dear, can you make a make up tutorial with this palette please.
Diane Kaylor
Wow great pallet. Def going to get that one!! Great combos so pretty
Anne
@Mariella – Yes, this is the palette that came with the booklet of various looks.
This palette, in addition to Naked I and II started my UD collection so not too many dupes for me. I love the looks you’ve created!
I would also love to see a tutorial with this palette.
Kay Howard
How would you recreate looks one and five with MAC or MUG shadows?
Mariella
Not Zabrena but….till she shows up and bearing in mind that I don’t have any MUG shadows but with MAC I’m thinking that for look #1, you could use Deep Truth in place of Evidence, something like Brun or Espresso or maybe Handwritten for Backdoor and Carbonized(LE)or, as Zabrena suggested, Bronze or UD Smog in place of Barlust. For Look #5, I’ll leave that to Zabrena as I’m not too familiar with MAC’s purples and don’t know what to suggest in place of Rockstar. Ditto Mushroom – that one seems undupe-able in MAC (maybe Silver Ring?) but I’ll bet Z can come up with some dupes!
Kay Howard
Thank you Mariella!!!
Mariella
You are most welcome, Kay. It is so frustrating, sometimes, feeling we need to buy every eye shadow we see featured in a blog or youtube look when, in reality, we probably own several very similar colours. I’m sure it’s been spoken about here often but my makeup buying used to be quite restrained before I discovered youtube makeup videos. And every time I see a new palette or shadow or look, I just get sort of crazy wanting to purchase what I’ve just seen – this sense that “I HAVE to have THAT; if I had THAT, I’d never need another eye shadow (or palette or blush….)
Zabrena
Mariella is right about #1! 🙂
For #5, there isn’t a purple I know of that compares to Rockstar, but you could use something like Nocturnelle in its place and then Typographic for the outer half of the lid and something like Silver Ring or Print (or Quarry even!) in the crease. 😉
Kay Howard
I LOVE this site!!!
Mariella
Hahaha! Don’t we all? Maybe a little TOO much, sometimes. My family wonders about my sanity when I spend the better part of an evening here, checking out combos and reviews – they simply do not “get” it.
BBFF
I love this palette, though it has not had much use during the summer! I bought it because I only have a few UD shadows and I love colourful smokey eyes. Great post Z!
Laura Sweeney
Wow…all of these looks are just gorgeous! I may just have to go check this one out tomorrow and I’m not really into darks like this at all (they terrify me honestly!).
Melanie Steed
I love every one of these looks. Great job as usual Zabrena.
KristaS
WOW, Zabrena, I absolutely LOVE #6. I guess I’m gonna have to find some Pastorale pigment, unless you can suggest a similar dupe. I’d love to try it if you can.
Samina Nazeer
Hi dear do u ve a look for black out ? I need to see black smoky eye ! Thanks
Zabrena
Hi Samina!
I’d recommend looking at the black/gray section of the MAC eyeshadow directory for some inspiration
As well as the post for Urban Decay’s Naked2 😉
Melanie Steed
I have the UD Rockstar loose pigment but it appears to be much darker than this one. Not sure why 🙁 https://www.google.com/search?q=urban+decay+rockstar+loose+pigment&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=tgU1Up32IKGA2AX-3YCoBw&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1337&bih=582&dpr=1#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=LWvwr_Gs9E3ZJM%3A%3BpX_5agqta4o8MM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fimages.directcosmetics.info%252Fpppics%252F38279.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.directcosmetics.com%252Fdetail.cfm%253Fcode%253D38279%3B400%3B600
Chris G
Oooh, I love this! Can’t wait to try this look out-I don’t have the Smoked palette, however I do have the Dangerous palette, which as several of the same shades in it, and I also have the Vice2 palette, so between the two of those there’s enough dupes for the shades in this look that I don’t have. Gorgeous!
Yuna van Vengeance
This palette is so awesome!! :3 I’m someone who prefers dark colors {mostly black} all the time so this one would totally be my style. 🙂
resham
very lovely!!! I would end up making a hot mess if I use dark colors at one go… You did a stunning job!!!! I just enjoy watching how beautifully you work with colors! Artist!!
Lisa Jolly
Just purchased this when l heard on your latest haul video it is being deleted. Picked it up and put it back down when l was in America in September due to the dark colours. Hubby will just have to take me out for dinners so l can use this palette 🙂
boops
picked this up at ulta for less than 1/2 the original price. Have done look#4 & 6 so far-am quite pleased with it. However not too fond of Kinky or Freestyle for blending or color-which don’t show up well on me. But I love the rest of the colors, I love the darks LOL.
Kiran
I love the look you’ve created. Just bought this palette myself and cant wait to test it :).