Palettes or Pots?

[electra]

Firstly, I want to say I searched for a thread concerning this topic and I couldn't really find anything, but if I missed something, please link me and delete this thread. Thank you.

I am a newb to MAC as well as makeup in general.
So I want to try and be as practical about this as possible.
I probably will not be the one to own more than...maybe 2 palettes tops.

Indeed, I see a lot of people own the 15 pan e/s palette. It looks very nice and seems like a great space saver (though I admit it's hard to choose just 15 shadows...sometimes I wonder if I even need that many, but I digress.)

Anyway, I know about the Back to Mac program and I think it's very great. If only more companies did it. But I was curious to know people's opinions on whether the palettes serve better than the individual pots or vice versa.

I know that people have preferences even if I can't personally understand them, but I'm willing to listen to the reasons. Some people say that they don't like palettes because you can't carry them around...or the shadows get broken easily (and this also includes the quad palettes.)

What are the pros and cons of each?

On another note, since I don't wear makeup (yet) I would hope that the makeup lasted all day so that carrying around e/s wouldn't be necessary, but I think the quad palette would seem to be perfect for that. Yet I heard some say they don't do a good job either. I will probably end up going with the 15 pan palette (because I'm broke and it would provide a place for the e/s from pots so I can get a free item. xD) BUT before doing so I think it would be helpful to me and others here to get an idea of the situations where the pots and palettes do and don't work.

I'd love to hear what you guys think.
Thanks for reading. (Again sorry if this has already been touched.)

 

[InspiredBlue]

I'm for palettes - I like to be able to get a good view of what I got and not have to dig around for individual pots.

Also: Pro pans cost less than potted shadows, and, No, you don't make up for the difference by BTM'ing the pots.

 

[ohdanalee]

I have a 15 pan palette, and I think it's fine to carry around. It's the same size as my makeup bag and super thin so they go in the same area of my purse if I want to wear some colors from it. It is super convenient to see all the colors right there, instead of digging around for individual pots and opening them to see the color. And it makes it easier to mix and match colors that are in your palette since they are all together.

That being said, I do really like how the eyeshadows look in the individual pots and they are handier if you're carrying a small purse, but you could always pop the pan out of the palette and into an empty pot.

It really is just about preference and how you prefer things organized or how you'll use them.

 

[hello_kitty]

I'm a palette girl! I have over 100 shadows, so to me it's just not feasible to have pots. That would take up a lot more room! Even when I just had a hand full I still depotted and did a palette, though.

I don't carry shadows with me on a day to day basis. But for traveling, I love the palettes because everything is right there all together, and I feel like they'd be harder to misplace, lose, etc.

Like the poster above me said, most of it is personal preference.

 

[RedRibbon]

I'd prefer the palette version as you don't have to root around finding anything.

Having said that, if you intend to carry around a shade with you, I'd carry around the pot as it's less painful to lose a pot than it is to lose a whole palette.

However, I don't think you'd need to carry around the whole palette or even a pot if you use a decent base like Urban Decay.

 

[electra]

Quote:

Originally Posted by InspiredBlue I'm for palettes - I like to be able to get a good view of what I got and not have to dig around for individual pots. Also: Pro pans cost less than potted shadows, and, No, you don't make up for the difference by BTM'ing the pots.

I see. Although it's nice that the pots have the names on the bottom and a window on the top, I can see how it would be kind of hassle (especially if you're in a hurry.)

Also I didn't mean anything by the BTM stuff. I didn't want to make it seem like I was trying to be slick. I just like that you can get a lipstick or something when you return the containers. Since I do not have much of a makeup selection (actually it's pretty much non-existent) I thought it was nice I could get something free to add to it. (I understand that the pans cost less.) Unless I misunderstand the whole thing...

Thing is all I can manage to get right now are the pots...I could get the palette, but then I'd have no shadows to put in it (yeah I'm that broke, I have to choose between one or the other right now.)

 

[electra]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedRibbon I'd prefer the palette version as you don't have to root around finding anything. Having said that, if you intend to carry around a shade with you, I'd carry around the pot as it's less painful to lose a pot than it is to lose a whole palette. However, I don't think you'd need to carry around the whole palette or even a pot if you use a decent base like Urban Decay.

Yeah that's what I was thinking.

I can understand if someone might need to carry around some powder to take off shine (even though I hear blotting is better.) But taking eyeshadows seemed a bit odd to me. I thought maybe it was too much to expect a shadow to last all day, but I have heard Urban Decay is the stuff (I've had it applied to my eyes at Sephora and I think I like it better than the paint pots the guy at MAC used on me. UD didn't feel as heavy. With the paint pot I was messing with my eyes all night trying to get that feeling to go away.)

But in the case of traveling I could understand. That's where I guess the quad palette comes in. I would hope it would stand up to a little rough handling (not that I treat my things like crap, but sometimes you're in a hurry and you have to throw stuff this way and that.)

 

[InspiredBlue]

Quote:

Originally Posted by electra Also I didn't mean anything by the BTM stuff. I didn't want to make it seem like I was trying to be slick. I just like that you can get a lipstick or something when you return the containers. Since I do not have much of a makeup selection (actually it's pretty much non-existent) I thought it was nice I could get something free to add to it. (I understand that the pans cost less.) Unless I misunderstand the whole thing...

Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to sound like you said something wrong. That's the problem when you don't have expressions and the tone of ones voice to help show what one means I guess.

The "but I can BTM the depots and get free stuff"-argument often comes up in the palettes vs. pots discussion, so I wanted to get it out there that it doesn't save one money. I didn't mean to make you feel bad.

I don't carry shadows around either. UDPP is great for making eyeshadow last all day. I usually have a mini jar of finishing powder with me and my blush for the day if it's a long day, but my eyeshadow stays where I've put it in the morning.

 

[bcsweetascandy]

I am all for the palettes...I have about six palettes, and so far I've had no woopsies with them (knock on wood!). In the past I have dropped a few pots and shattered some eyeshadows, so I feel more comfortable with the palettes. They are also great for storage and traveling purposes...it used to be such a pain carrying around all the indiividual pots when I'd go out of town.

 

[iaisha26]

I'm all about palettes! When I first started wearing makeup, my mom started me off with a quad, it was only a matter of time until I had to graduate to palettes. I have over 300 e/s; could you imagine all of those pots.

 

[gildedangel]

I much prefer palettes! I travel a lot for long periods of time and for me they are just easier. Plus I like that I can see everything at once!

 

[BeccalovesMAC]

im a palette girl too

 

[lovepotion18]

I was a pot girl until my collection got too big for me. I had to take out all the little pots from my makeup bag to find the colors that I wanted and then put them all back in. I have three Coastal Scents palettes similar to the MAC palettes and the only thing that I didn't like about them was that I'd have to open each one to find the color I needed. And I'm particular about my eyeshadow fallout being all over the palettes. So, I went with the MAC quads. I have 12 of them compared to the numberous little pots before and I can see all the colors now without having to open any of the containers. Also, I can mix and match any color at any time. Have you considered the quads instead of a 15 pan palette?

 

[Ode to Joy]

Are the quads really bad for traveling/carrying around in you MU bag?

 

[GlamQueen21]

I prefer palettes over pots. I myself was too scared to depot my eyeshadows and then when I bought my first 15 Eyeshadow Palette, I started to get over my fear and depotted some. Now I do want to get more palettes so that I can B2M for stuff that I want.

 

[ClaireAvril]

Palettes for sure. Pots are only from warehouse sales, CCO shopping and LE.
I have lots of makeup and at least 5 full palettes of shadows.. imagine shifting through all of that stuff when you're running late.
Plus some other companies have shadows that can fit in the palette too. just easy to organize
When it comes to carrying things around... what I wish MAC would create is a small pallette that can house like 3 or 4 shadow pans and a blush in one so you can throw your look for the day in your makeup bag to touch up when needed. I've emailed MAC about that already. do it MAC.. do it.

 

[nursie]

i have about 50 mac eyeshadows, and they are all in their little pots.
i have a 15 pan pallette that i've never filled.just laziness really, i thought i'd depot, but never did.

since i have the room for all the pots to be spread out in one even layer (top shelf of a large jewelery armoire), i figured i'd just keep them there. i can see them all at once.

when i travel, i just take a premade quad or a couple of pots with me.

 

[YSLGuy]

I started off with pots and quickly regretted it. I much prefer the palettes (I have three full ones and need to start on my fourth) and wound up having to depot over 20 shadows.

Saves space, easy to organize by color families etc.

You can have a spare quad (or two) to put in your favorite ones for travel and take those with you.

 

[electra]

Quote:

Originally Posted by InspiredBlue Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to sound like you said something wrong. That's the problem when you don't have expressions and the tone of ones voice to help show what one means I guess. The "but I can BTM the depots and get free stuff"-argument often comes up in the palettes vs. pots discussion, so I wanted to get it out there that it doesn't save one money. I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I don't carry shadows around either. UDPP is great for making eyeshadow last all day. I usually have a mini jar of finishing powder with me and my blush for the day if it's a long day, but my eyeshadow stays where I've put it in the morning.

Oh it's fine. At first I was like "huh" but yeah I'm not trying to beat the system or anything. I wouldn't go out of my way to purchase something just so I could spend less or whatever. I definitely would just get the pans if that was the case.

(And I did use a little face but I suppose it's not widely known. *too much anime*) I'm also the type of person who does a ton of research before I do anything, so I probably would have found out about that one way or another. But again, just thought since I can only afford pots now anyway, I can turn them in and get something so I won't have to buy it. I don't really have any lipsticks.

(I'm so backwards. I should be trying to get foundation and concealer and face makeup first.)

I think the pots are cute and everything, but if I had a lot I would need to keep them in a better container. I really don't know how many I'd want/need. Being an artist myself, I may want more than just 4 shadows. Although I'm not to the point of making myself look like a bird of paradise, I do like a few of the more "non-neutral" shades.

I thought maybe I could get 15 shadows, 3 of each..(highlight, mid tone and dark tone) for 5 different shades. I sometimes don't understand the point of using so many neutrals, but I'm a novice so nothing makes sense to me. xD

Wow...UDPP must be the wonder primer. I wonder if the MAC artists would get offended if I asked them not to put paint pot stuff on me. >o>

 

[electra]

Ode to Joy,

It's just something I heard from a few people on YT.

I suppose it really depends on how rough you get with them, but as I have never owned either kind of palette, I can't say. But it's something to consider. Then again, as stated earlier, if the shadows stay all day, other than travel, I don't see the need to carry e/s around with you. But that's why I made this thread to find out. I guess that's the main argument. Do they hold up well...and such.

Heck some people maybe just like the feeling of collecting pots, having that be a manifestation of how much makeup they have. I do think they are cute and I can get bogged down by appearances, but I'm trying to learn to be practical. And I just don't have the space for 15+ pots. 4 maybe, but not 15. ^^;