Huda Beauty Desert Dusk Eyeshadow Palette

Huda Beauty was started by Dubai-based makeup artist, beauty blogger, and social media influencer, Huda Kattan. Huda Beauty started in 2013 with a collection of false lashes that soon became bestsellers in Dubai, and later in the US when Sephora started stocking them. Now, Huda Beauty has become a full-fledged makeup line, complete with products for face, eyes, and lips.


Last fall, Huda Beauty launched a new 18-pan eyeshadow palette called Desert Dusk. It is "filled with vibrant, highly-pigmented shades that reflect the exotic landscape of the Arabian desert." They've "introduced three new formulas to reflect all its dazzling mystery and charm, in particular the iridescent duo-chrome formulas just completely capture the mysterious desert mirages. [Huda] spent so much time to ensure that every shade was absolutely perfect. It was also really important to [her] that [they took] all [their] knowledge and feedback from [their] first palette, and create something that would showcase [their] growing experience and knowledge." The Desert Dusk Eyeshadow Palette includes 18 eyeshadow shades in square pans that are housed in a black rectangular mirrored cardboard palette. Each palette contains a total of 25.2 grams of product, and retails for $85. It is apart of the permanent line-up and can be found online and in select Sephora stores as well as the Huda Beauty website.
Desert Sand, Musk, Eden, Amber, Blood Moon, and Oud

Desert Sand is a light warm peachy beige in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Musk is a medium warm-neutral sandy brown in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Eden is a light-medium warm peach in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Amber is a medium-dark burnished orange-brown in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Blood Moon is a medium warm brightened orange copper in a metallic pearl finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, buttery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Oud is a dark warm reddened mahogany brown in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Celestial, Nefertiti, Twilight, Amethyst, Royal, and Retrograde

Celestial is a light-medium warm yellow gold with pink reflects in a metallic duochrome finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque buildable colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Nefertiti is a light-medium warm rosy champagne with gold reflects in a metallic pearl finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, slightly loose texture, but goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Twilight is a medium cool muted magenta pink with blue and gold reflects in a metallic duochrome finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium pigmentation and semi-sheer to semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Amethyst is a medium-dark warm brightened magenta purple in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a slightly drier, stiffer texture, but goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Royal is a medium-dark warm pinked plum in a metallic pearl finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, buttery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Retrograde is a medium pinked purple with teal and gold reflects in a metallic duochrome finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, slightly loose texture, but goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque buildable colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Cashmere, Angelic, Cosmo, Turkish Delight, Saffron, and Blazing

Cashmere is a light-medium warm muted mauve-taupe in a metallic pearl finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, buttery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. 

Angelic is a light-medium warm guava pink with gold reflects in a metallic pearl finish. This is a re-promoted shade from the Rose Gold Edition palette, and is permanent. It has a soft, buttery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Cosmo is a medium-dark warm copper, burgundy, and rose gold glitter. This is a permanent shade. It has a loose, chunky texture, and can go on patchy and unevenly. This shade is best applied with fingers or a stiff brush with glitter adhesive or over a tacky base for a smoother, more even finish. It has medium pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. Due to its chunky texture, it is difficult to layer and blend out.

Turkish Delight is a medium-dark warm plummy pink in a metallic pearl finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, buttery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. 

Saffron is a medium-deep warm burnished red mahogany in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a slightly drier, stiffer texture, but goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. 

Blazing is a medium-dark warm pumpkin orange in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a slightly drier, stiffer texture, but goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Like the Rose Gold Edition palette, the colour story in Desert Dusk is gorgeous; there's an excellent variety of tones and finishes that create beautiful, cohesive looks. Overall, the shades in Desert Dusk are brighter and more saturated than Rose Gold Edition, but they're still firmly in the warm tone category. Generally speaking, the variety of shades and finishes in this palette are definitely more unique than other warm-toned palettes on the market right now, and that alone makes it more worth getting. It contains neutrals to help ground the brighter tones, so that fans of neutrals can get into brighter tones without getting overwhelmed. It's also worth noting that there's 7.2 grams more in this palette than in the Rose Gold Edition palette for the same price.

The three duochrome shades here remind me of MAC's Dazzleshadows; they are more sheer when used dry, but become much more opaque and sparkly when used wet. The mattes, for the most part, perform well — they're soft, smooth, pigmented, blendable — with the exception of Amethyst, Saffron, and Blazing, which are noticeably drier and stiffer. They still have good pigmentation, but they do require a little bit more blending and layering to get a smooth result. The metallic pearl shades in this palette are absolutely stunning, though, particularly Blood Moon, Royal, and Turkish Delight, which are soft and smooth like butter. The only shade that I foresee people having issues with is Cosmo, which is the only glitter shade in the palette and is a new finish from Huda Beauty. It is a straight-up pressed glitter, meaning you have to treat it as such: Use it damp with a glitter adhesive or press it on top of glitter glue. Overall, Huda Beauty can still make some tweaks to their formulas to make them perform even better in terms of smoothness and blendability, but I do think Desert Dusk is a beautiful palette that combines a great variety of finishes and tones to create stunning, dimensional eye looks to suit all skintones.

Huda Beauty Textured Shadows Palette Rose Gold Edition

Huda Beauty was started by Dubai-based makeup artist, beauty blogger, and social media influencer, Huda Kattan. Huda Beauty started in 2013 with a collection of false lashes that soon became bestsellers in Dubai, and later in the US when Sephora started stocking them. Now, Huda Beauty has become a full-fledged makeup line, complete with products for face, eyes, and lips. Last year, Huda Beauty launched an eyeshadow palette called Textured Shadows Palette Rose Gold Edition. It is described as "a palette of highly saturated mattes, chrome pressed pearls, and 3D metal shadows. Talc-free and buildable, the colours deliver maximum payoff for easy on-the-go, or came-to-slay metallic and smoky looks. Consider it a complete wardrobe for your eyes, no matter what the mood or occasion. An ode to Huda's favorite metallic, the sophisticated Rose Gold, this timeless collection will be your new can't-live-without palette." The Textured Shadows Palette Rose Gold Edition includes 18 eyeshadow shades in square pans that are housed in a black rectangular cardboard palette with a clear lid. Each palette contains a total of 18 grams of product, and retails for $85. It is apart of the permanent line-up and can be found in select Sephora stores as well as the Huda Beauty website.
Dubai, Fling, 24K, Rose Gold, Trust Fund, and Angelic

Dubai is a medium-dark warm gilded khaki bronze in a metallic foiled finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, loose texture, and can go on patchy and crumbly. This shade is best applied with fingers for a smooth, even finish. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered easily, but due to its looser consistency, it can be difficult to blend out. 

Fling is a medium-dark warm brightened coppery cranberry red in a metallic foiled finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, slightly loose texture, but goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

24K is a light-medium warm brightened yellow gold in a metallic foiled finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, slightly loose texture, but goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Rose Gold is a medium coppery pink in a metallic foiled finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a loose, chunky texture, and can go on patchy and crumbly. This shade is best applied with fingers for a smooth, even finish. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. Due to its chunky consistency, it can be difficult to layer and blend out. 

Trust Fund is a medium copper in a metallic foiled finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a loose, chunky texture, and can go on patchy and crumbly. This shade is best applied with fingers for a smooth, even finish. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. Due to its chunky consistency, it can be difficult to layer and blend out.   

Angelic is a light-medium warm guava pink with gold reflects in a metallic pearl finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

#Blessed, Bossy, Flamingo, Shy, Bae, and Moon Dust

#Blessed is a medium warm amber bronze in a metallic pearl finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Bossy is a dark warm reddish maroon in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Flamingo is a medium-dark warm vibrant hot pink in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a dry, powdery texture, and can go on patchy and unevenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. Due to its stiffer texture, it can be difficult to layer and blend out. 

Shy is a light-medium warm coral brown in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Bae is a light warm cream beige in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Moon Dust is a light warm peachy champagne in a metallic pearl finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.

Black Truffle, Suede, Coco, Maneater, Henna, and Sandalwood

Black Truffle is a deep dark true black in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. 

Suede is a medium-dark neutral-cool taupe-grey in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. 

Coco is a medium-deep warm mahogany brown in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. 

Maneater is a medium-deep warm crimson red in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a dry, powdery texture, and can go on patchy and unevenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. Due to its stiffer texture, it can be difficult to layer and blend out. 

Henna is a medium-dark warm burnt orange-brown in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily.  

Sandalwood is a medium warm peachy brown in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, finely-milled texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. 

There have been a lot of mixed reviews of this palette over the past year, and I wanted to see for myself what the hype was all about. I actually held off for quite a while because the brand wasn't well-known yet and had never released any eyeshadows before, so I waited until I could swatch it in person before making a decision. (The palette is only available in selected stores.) First of all, the colours in this palette are stunning; there's an excellent variety of tones and finishes that create beautiful, cohesive looks. It's definitely a warm-toned palette, of which there are many on the market right now, but what sets this apart are the distribution of neutrals to brights and the inclusion of metallic foiled eyeshadows.

When used properly, the foiled shadows are absolutely gorgeous. That having been said, they do require some work. Huda Beauty states that these foiled shadows (which they call "3D Metal") should be applied with fingers for best results, and this is absolutely true. I've tried using a flat synthetic brush (which I normally do for looser glitters and pigments and strong metallic shadows) both wet and dry, and with a variety of primers, and the best result is still pressing the shadow on the lid with a fingertip over a tacky base (I would use Too Faced's Glitter Glue or MAC's 24-Hour Extend Eye Base for this). The mattes are, for the most part, really lovely — soft, smooth, pigmented, blendable — with the exception of Flamingo and Maneater, which are noticeably drier, stiffer, and more powdery to the touch. They aren't impossible to use, of course, but they do require a little bit more blending and layering to get a smooth result. Overall, I do think this is a beautiful palette and if you like your warm, red-toned palettes, this is a gorgeous one to have — and has a fairly good value (it's cheaper per gram than Anastasia Beverly Hills' palettes) — but sadly, the shades that make this palette unique are also its shortcomings.