Urban Decay Wired Palette | Review and Swatches

I never shy away from bold color so the bright neon hues in Urban Decay’s new Wired Palette ($59.00) don't scare me.

These pretty pressed pigments are perfect for summer and if you want to experiment with electric rainbow shades, put the neutrals away and unleash your creativity.

The palette is divided into 2 sections – one side is for face, body and eyes and the other is for face and body. This is a little confusing because the model on UD’s website is clearly wearing the hot pink along her bottom lash line even though it is one of the colors “not meant for use around the eyes.”

I love the purple, coral, pink and orange so it's a shame I can’t put them near my eyeballs. How often do people use colors like this on their face and body aside from festivals, concerts and Halloween?

I am not sure why the brand formulated the pigments differently nor do I know what will happen if you use the face and body pigments on or around your eyes. Just to be safe you should probably adhere to the directions. 

Despite the confusion I love these shades (with the exception of Glitch because who needs another chalky white?) My favorites are Chaos, Current, Gravity and Slowburn – a vibrant, full-coverage orangey-coral I never knew I needed. Most of the pigments start off sheer and can be intensified with primer and a few layers.

This isn’t Urban Decay’s finest work. I expected smooth velvety application but the texture is neither rich nor creamy. Jolt, Fluorescent and Switch are sheer, dry and inconsistent so coverage is a bit sparse if you don't apply enough. This could be due to the fact that UD is selling this as “an accessory palette” – “something to add a little spice to what you already wear.” The pigments blend well and the effect is still quite pretty.

If you don’t overthink it Wired can be a lot of fun. Mix and layer the pigments with other shades, use them as eye liner and add bold or subtle pops of color to accentuate and define.

(These swatches were done with primer and several layers of color to demonstrate their full potential). 

Urban Decay is available at urbandecay.ca, Shoppers Drug Mart, Sephora, Ulta Beauty and UD freestanding stores.