By Alison McGill
The year was 2010. The moment was the NAKED Palette by Urban Decay. What a beauty disruptor this now legendary product became.
This lineup of 12 velvety eyeshadows in toasty tones looked beautiful on everyone was groundbreaking in both its simplicity and inclusivity. Packaged in a sleek mirrored compact, the small rectangular shadows were artfully curated, mixing light and dark hues, matte, and sparkling textures against each other. This visual presentation beautifully illustrated how each of the NAKED Palette shades synergized with each other and encouraged us to channel our inner makeup artist by dipping the double ended NAKED shadow brush into contrasting tones to create even more eye-popping shades.
We can trace the onset of no-makeup-makeup back to the launch of this groundbreaking eyeshadow palette. Urban Decay’s original palette gave way to an entire beauty franchise. NAKED Palettes are a billion dollar business; the brand shared with TZR that one palette is sold every six seconds. In spite of the fact we now have many versions of the first NAKED Palette, many of us remain stans of the first one. When it was discontinued in 2018, Urban Decay held a funeral in its honour in Newport Beach, California (true story!). Nicole Richie gave the eulogy and famous admirers of the eye shadow collection attended including Shayla Mitchell and Kandee Johnson.
Thankfully, like all great things in beauty and fashion, there was always the chance of a retro revival of the NAKED Palette…and it’s finally happening this summer!
Yes lovers, Urban Decay is bringing back this beloved classic. It’s just as you remember it, but even more epic. The beloved colour story is there, as well as the beloved mix of finishes. All 12 adored shades are back too: Virgin, Sin, Naked, Sidecar, Buck, Half Baked, Smog, Darkhorse, Toasted, Hustle, Creep and Gunmetal. What’s new is the eye shadow formula is now creamier, longer-lasting, crease proof and totally vegan.
Can I share one of my deepest beauty secrets with you? I still have my first Urban Decay NAKED Palette from all those years ago. Many shadows pans are empty—Toasted and Sin were my faves—and rest assured I am not still using it 14 years later (beauty experts say the shelf life of eye shadow is about three years). I held on to it because it was just so perfect, and a piece of modern beauty history. I have other editions of the palette too—a recent favourite is the NAKED Heat Eyeshadow Palette ($80 at sephora.com) with its fire-tinged mix of neutrals—but nothing ever quite achieved the levels of fandom in my beauty collection as the OG.
I am happy it’s back, but its time with us is limited. The Original NAKED Palette ($70) is available to shop online now at Sephora and Shoppers Drugmart; it will be available to buy in stores beginning September 7th. Get it while you can!
