The Review: Too Faced Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar Palette

Anything to do with chocolate and I am in, but when Too Faced released the Chocolate Bar Eyeshadow Palette I wasn't convinced. However, it has quickly become a firm favourite in my collection and when they announced a Semi-Sweet version (£39) I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. After multiple tweets and emails to Debenhams, and six months after the US release, I finally managed to get my hands on this beauty, and it is truly stunning.

Containing 16 eyeshadow, with the two base shades being larger in size, you really do get a lot for you money with this palette. There is a perfect mix of neutral golden brown shades and brighter, more unique colours, like Blueberry Swirl, as well as a great variety of mattes and shimmers. It is a versatile palette with the ability to create many different eye looks. 

In terms of formulation, these shadows are some of the best I have tried. Not only do the smell amazing (like chocolate!) they are extremely buttery so very easy to blend, and they are seriously pigmented. The shimmer shades are so finely milled that, with the exception of Cocoa Chili and Pink Sugar (warm brown with gold shimmer and sheer pink with pink glitter, respectively), they are much more like metallic shadows, my personal favourite finish. 

L:R Marzipan, Bonbon (Semi-Sweet), Hazelnut, Frosting (Semi-Sweet), Crème Brulee, Caramel (Semi-Sweet), Semi-Sweet, Truffled (Semi-Sweet)

Do you need them both? Well, personally I think they are more different than they seem. The Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar Palette is definitely the warmer of the two, but as you can tell from the above swatches, even the 'dupe shades' aren't that similar. They are more alike than Naked 1 & 2, but can you ever have too many neutral palettes? 

The packaging on the Semi-Sweet version is much slimmer than the original and the names printed above the shadows has been a much welcomed addition. But shade range wise, I am really struggling to pick a favourite. I love the metallic bronzes in the first one, however the orangey brick shade 'Peanut Butter' in the Semi-Sweet is unlike any other shade I own, and I prefer the champagne toned metallic base shade in the Semi-Sweet to the pinky shade in the original. The formulations in both are on point, and I would recommend them both, but can you pick a favourite?