Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II
Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II
Today I’m sharing my Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II review with you. I purchased this palette quite a while ago but only recently had time to try it out. It’s touted as a cool-toned eyeshadow palette and as a matter of fact I’m a fan of cool-toned eyeshadows, so I decided to give it a try. In addition to cool tones, I was also told it had a different, better formula than the Tarte Tarteist Pro and Swamp Queen palettes.
About Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II
Tarte says, “Crease-free eyeshadow palette with the best-selling creamy powder formula in eight new, cool-toned shades.”
- Rainforest of the Sea™ Complex: Proprietary blend of algae and marine flower extracts that helps reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles; smooths and softens skin.
- Coconut: Delivers intense moisture and is known for its antibacterial and conditioning properties.
- Vitamin E: Natural preservative that acts as an emollient and antioxidant.
- Mineral Pigments: Soothe and soften skin.
Price
$36 for 1.5 g / 0.05 Oz x 8
pearl Ingredients
Mica, octyldodecyl stearoyl stearate, kaolin, dimethicone, talc, zinc stearate, pentylene glycol, caprylyl glycol, cetyl dimethicone, bis-diglyceryl polyacyladipate-2, sorbitan sesquiisostearate, dimethicone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, sodium dehydroacetate, dimethicone, cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, algae extract, gardenia taitensis flower extract, tocopherol, carmine (CI 74570), iron oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), titanium dioxide (CI 77891).
conch, sunset, marina, seaside, siren, breezy, riptide Ingredients
Mica, octyldodecyl stearoyl stearate, talc, kaolin, dimethicone, zinc stearate, cetyl dimethicone, bis-diglyceryl polyacyladipate-2, pentylene glycol, caprylyl glycol, sorbitan sesquiisostearate, dimethicone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, sodium dehydroacetate, cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, algae extract, gardenia taitensis flower extract, tocopherol. (+/-): Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), titanium dioxide (CI 77891), ultramarines (CI 77007).
From the top clockwise – Conch – Sunset – Marina – Seaside – Siren – Breezy – Riptide – Pearl
Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II Swatches
In the hope that I could see how the eyeshadows would perform before I tried wearing them, I swatched the Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II on Too Faced Shadow Insurance primer. I used my Urban Decay Moondust brush. While Tarte claims that this eyeshadow formula doesn’t need primer, given that I have hooded eyes, I know that my eyes do. So in order to give these eyeshadows the best chance possible, I wore primer when I tested them out.
Sunset is a light warm metallic gold. This is a pretty lid shade. It would make a nice highlight on deeper skintones.
Marina is a soft warm caramel brown with yellow tones. The yellow tones were really apparent when worn. This was the only color I could use as a transitional shade in the palette.
Seaside is a medium warm brown. This is a pretty popular warm shade we’ve seen a lot.
Siren is a dark warm brown. I feel like it’s a staple shade in a ton of palettes.
Conch is a creamy beige with peach undertones matte. This is a nice base shade.
Pearl is a warm white pearl. This is a nice shade, perfect for highlighting.
Riptide is a blackened grey with blue undertone pearl. I really like this color.
Breezy is a medium grey taupe shimmer. I really love this color.
Row 1 – Breezy – Riptide – Pearl – Conch
Row 2 – Siren – Seaside – Marina – Sunset
Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II Look
In the photos above I used Too Faced Glitter Glue primer. I applied Conch as a base shade to set the primer. I put Breezy on my lid, lower lid and blended it into the smoky dome shape on the hood of my eyes. I tightlined with Riptide. I used Marina for the transition on the hood of the eye. I lined the lower waterline with Nyx Vanilla pencil and set it with Conch. I highlighted at the inner corner and under the brow with Makeup Geek Celestial.
Despite using a heavy duty primer, I still had eyeshadow wear away from the outer half of my lid. I also experienced transfer with Riptide at the outer corner. No bueno.
Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II Review
The Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II eyeshadow colors look darker in the pan than they actually apply to the skin, which I found surprising. They have a very dense, firm formula, so I almost felt like I had to dig it out. The eyeshadows also looked like they were wet when I was trying to load up my brush. The eyeshadow formula is not thin or powdery, like the Tarteist Pro or Swamp Queen palettes. It seems creamier by comparison. I found that this formula was easier for me to work with. While the eyeshadow formula did have to be built up to opacity, it did blend together without a lot of effort.
I’m a sucker for Tarte’s round eyeshadow palettes and the Rainforest of the Sea Vol. II is no exception. I love the packaging. It’s small and easy to toss in your makeup bag for a trip. I also love the nomenclature for this palette. Simple, but cute.
Now, tarte calls the Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II a cool-toned palette. This is not a cool-toned palette to me. It’s still stuffed with a ton of warm shades. On me, 6 of the 8 shades are warm. Breezy and Riptide are the only cool-toned shades. I feel like it’s misleading to call this cool-toned.
While I found the tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II formula easier to work with, it did not last on me. I had several problems with it. It easily transferred onto my hooded eyes. It wore away, despite me using primer.
In short, despite having high hopes for this palette, I was disappointed with it. Between the lack of cool tones and the formula that just doesn’t last on my hooded eyes, it just doesn’t work for me. I wish I could return it.
This palette may work for you if you don’t have hooded eyes like I do. If you’re a fan of warm tones and just wanting to dip your toes into cool tones, this might be a great palette for you. It has plenty of warm staple neutral shades.
What do you think of the Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Eyeshadow Palette Vol. II?
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I just picked up this palette and so far love it! I actually picked it up because to my eye (and on my complexion thankfully), it has a perfect split of four cool and four warm shadows. Plus where they’re all staple neutrals, it’s perfect for travel in my opinion. I do find the formula to be stiff and dig my brush in too but it’s actually refreshing to not have thin buttery shades with tons of fallout. I totally understand the cons on this though, especially when it’s marketed as a cool-toned palette. But for what it is, it’s exactly what I was wanting!
Happy to hear you love it! I gave this palette to a friend because it creases on me no matter what I do. I’m hoping it works better for her. I do think this shadow formula is better to apply / blend than the thinner formula of my other tarte palettes.
Cool toned? NOT. I looked at this at Sephora and thought they must be kidding. Since one does a few cool toned shades amid the usual bunch of warm tones make it a cool toned palette?
Bummer! I too am drawn to those round palettes. I would have been lured by those shades that look like cool/warm hybrids. Why can’t you return it? Also, I bought the Swamp Queen palette a few weeks ago but haven’t used it yet. You didn’t like the formula of that one? What should I look out for?
I was curious about this palette but I really want some shades that aren’t dark/brown; like some purples, peaches, corals – maybe with a gold shift. Maybe I will revisit the volume I palette. Have you tried Zoeva? They have a taupe palette that looks gorgeous and is on my list. Thanks for the review!
That packaging is to die for and almost worth the purchase just so I could look at it! The fact that they couldn’t figure out what cool-toned colors are is a little troubling though. C’mon guys, that’s pretty basic stuff, lol. Great review!
Yes, I have to tell you I’m not a Tarte shadow fan-this palette does appear to have a smoother and not as much of a thin, powdery/too chalky formula that I personally find with their other palettes-they’ve never grabbed me so I’ve never purchased one for myself, but I did buy one a good while back as a gift for a friend(it may have been the predecessor to this palette) I know a lot of people do love their shadow, but I really love a texture that’s a lot richer and creamier-and also more pigment-like packing more of a pigment punch. And Glitter Glue is a really good, substantial sticky base, which should really make those shades adhere, so that’s a big bummer. But you were still able to do a really lovely look with it! Thanks for the tip of setting Glitter Glue with a matte base! What I do currently is use reg. TFSI, use my mattes and then apply it on top for any shades with texture-but I’m going to incorporate that! xoxo