There’s No Stopping The Sass With The Urban Decay Backtalk Eye & Face Palette

Certain lipstick, blush, and nail polish shades become so ubiquitous, so popular, that they reach iconic status and, in the process, their names enter the fabric of pop culture — think of NARS’s Orgasm blush hue, Chanel’s Vamp nail lacquer, MAC’s Ruby Woo lipstick, or Urban Decay’s Naked eyeshadow palettes. Well, just like the Naked palettes, Urban Decay created a frenzy with is Backtalk lipstick, a universally flattering, rosy mauve shade with a matte finish that’s now so popular among beauty lovers that its moniker is as recognizable as that of a  one-named celebrity, the lipstick equivalent of a Cher, Rihanna, or Madonna. This spring, Urban Decay decided to create an entire palette inspired by this iconic lipstick shade and hence the Urban Decay Backtalk Eye & Face Palette ($48 at Sephora.com and UrbanDecay.com), a two-sided palette with eight eyeshadow shades on one side and four blush and highlighter colors on the other — with coordinating shades of soft pink, mauve, and rose dominating the colorscape.

The idea, then, was to help women go beyond their nude eyeshadows and instead think of these rose and mauve shades as a fresh take on a natural look, equally soft and versatile but more modern and on-trend. And, of course, the blushes and highlighters complete any feminine look.

Overall, it’s a solid effort from a brand that’s never afraid to take risks but, admittedly, it’s probably not the palette UD lovers will swoon over — this isn’t the bold, no-holds-barred, edgy AF release we’ve come to expect from the brand, but the eyeshadows are blendable and richly pigmented, even if significantly more muted than usual. Truth be told, my one main complaint regarding this palette stems from the packaging — for starters, it feels flimsier than usual, but my real issue pertains to functionality. While the rectangular mirror at the center of the palette — creating a wall of sorts that separates the eyeshadow side from the cheek color side— is completely removable, that’s not something a consumer will necessarily discern instantly. When at a 90-degree angle, the mirror isn’t the most helpful component and being unable to recline it even slightly can be a hassle.Until you realize that the mirror can be moved around, then, it feels like more of a hindrance than anything Also, the palette never seems to close securely enough similarly, which makes the eyeshadow and plush pans vulnerable, and that familiar scenario of crushed pigments on wooden floor that much more likely to come to fruition.

But if we’re focusing on the colors along, there’s no denying there’s some shades worth talking about here! First, let’s check out some swatches of the four cheek colors, starting with the two blush shades: Cheap Shot, a medium-intensity pink shade with cool undertones, and Double Take, a warm ripened guava mauve hue with a touch of shimmer. Take a look below:

As you can see both shades are acceptable, but not necessarily mind-blowing. That said, the two accompanying highlighter shades are absolutely crush-worthy. Check out Low Key, a Bellini-esque peachy pink with a hint of shimmer, and Party Foul, a champagne pink saturated with shimmer. Both shades are lovely, but the Low Key color just makes cheekbones look incandescent, as if they were being caressed by the sun!

Next, let’s move onto the eyeshadows! First, there’s 3 Sheets, a barely-there, whisper-like, peachy pink shade that’s whitened to the point of being barely there, its satin finish making it great as a base color or to blend more intense hues. Next, there’s Bare, a peachy pink shade that makes me think of spiral seashells and beautiful sunrises by the beach. The next shade, Curve, is quite similar to Bare but it’s a cooler tone, more of a rose pink than a peachy pink, and it’s saturated with silver shimmer (as opposed to Bare’s warm and golden shimmer). In fact, when applied to lids, Curve has more of a metallic finish as opposed to Bare.  Next, there’s Backtalk, a medium-intensity rosy mauve hue with a carnal feel and a matte finish. My one big disappointment here is the Backtalk shade since it’s nowhere near as alluring as its lip color counterpart — in fact, it’s way more of a tawny nude hue than a pink shade. Check out all four of these shades below:

Next, we have four deeper eyeshadow hues: Shade, a bright satin fuchsia shade that reminds me of raspberry sorbet; Attitude, a metallic copper with reddish undertones; WTF, a reddish-brown hue with a matte finish; and 180, a deep brown with scattered red shimmer.

Out of all eight eye shadow shades, I love Shade, Attitude, Bare, and Curve the most. That said, this palette is most magical when you layer the shades together and blend colors to create new shades — that’s when Backtalk really gets people talking!

Here’s a low-key weekend look I created using a few of the eyeshadows in the palette:

To create the look, I used Backtalk on my lower lid and crease, then applied Attitude along the crease and blended it with Shade for a bit more pop. I then added the Curve hue to my lower lids and lined my eyes with the Roach 24-7 Eye Pencil. It’s a really simple, no-fuss eyeshadow look but the point is just to show that colors within the pink-nude family can, in fact, be as soft, versatile, and wearable as any of the usual neutral sand, tan, camel, brown, and bronze, shades.