A Review of The James Charles Palette

Brush and a powder spread out

The James Charles Palette: A Review: Is It Worth the Hype?

“Hi sisters! The tea is good, fresh, and still sister steamy.” For many, you hear phrases like this often thanks to beauty vlogger, James Charles.

Charles Palette

At just 17 years old, he had already has racked up quite the impressive resume including hairdressing, singing, makeup.  And, he became Covergirl’s’ first male brand ambassador.

Since then, the now 19-year-old YouTube beauty guru blew up faster than you could say sister snatched. Of course, he isn’t immune to adversity in the makeup and YouTube world.

He has encountered his fair share of scandals and mishaps. Through it all, the male makeup mogul remains seated in this throne leaving us all pining for his opinions, tips, tricks, and channel content.

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Highly Recommended
jamescharles
  • The colors are bright and bold
  • Sleek matte black design
  • Blends well into each other

Morphe Man

He isn’t shy about his brand deal with Morphe Makeup. It seems there isn’t a video that passes that he isn’t singing praises about their products, and with good reason.

His latest Morphe obsession is none other than the James Charles Palette. Launched in late 2018, the palette set the world on a wild rampage to get their hands on their own.

The palette boasts 39 pressed pigments and eyeshadows, giving you options for (literally) any makeup look you could dream of creating. It covers anything from neutral tones to transitional shades for the crease, sultry shadows. It even has the brightest and boldest of colors to make your look pop.

You can check out the palette on Ulta’s website by clicking here: https://www.teamtruebeauty.com/james-charles-palette

So far, the product has been raved over by even the most experienced of artists and quickly sold during the first launch.

The palette is so pigmented that it offers so many options and possibilities for creating your looks. You can sister snag a palette of your own and unleash your inner artist by clicking here.

Charles Palette

The James Charles Palette

So of course, I snagged a palette of my own. The packaging alone is awe-worthy, but I would expect nothing less from Sister James himself. James Charles looks amazing painted on the outside white packaging.

It’s clear that a lot of attention and detail went into the packaging alone. You open the white box and inside is the palette itself.

The sleek matte black design gives the feeling of luxury without needing to sell a kidney to afford it. You’ve got to love that Morphe price point! Only $39 on the Ulta website!

The colors inside are bright, they’re bold, and as promised, looks to offer just about every look every artist would want. James and Morphe have even included a protective plastic sheet that gives all of the eyeshadows names, which I think it such a sister smart idea.

The upper portion doesn’t include a mirror, unfortunately, but that is pretty standard for a Morphe palette. What they did, however, is the words ‘unleash your inner artist’. Again, I’m loving the little details that went into making this palette.

I’m a simple sister sort of gal when it comes to makeup, but these colors make me want to delve out of the realm of neutrals. Right into a whole new world of colorful eye looks.

colorful eye looks

The Sister Shades

At first glance, the arrangement may look slightly chaotic. After playing around with the shades and colors, I found that they pair up next to shadows that will blend well into and with each other. Again, the details here make me smile. There are metallics included as well as shimmers and matte shades.

The middle row of tones are shades that both James and Morphe deemed the ones you would be privy to reach for more often. He’s included a stark white shade, a beautiful shimmery champagne-colored shade, a banana yellow, a burnt orange, a smoky sienna color, a cool-toned brown, and a matte jet black.

I’m loving using the champagne color, named ‘Face,’ as an inner corner of the eye highlight as well as regular highlight. The white shade, named ‘Flashback,’ didn’t have much color payoff upon swatching. When placing it over a primer, I am much more happy with the pigmentation.

The matte shades all seemed to swatch well and were very buildable. I’m thrilled with the fact that the lighter shade (named Canvas) shows on my not so sun-kissed skin.

Sister Eye Shades

They blend well into each other which makes working with the shadows a dream. An eyeshadow that surprised me was the shade appropriately named ‘You’re Kidding.’

‘You’re Kidding’ is a fiery red shade, and one single swatch pass gave off so much buttery smooth pigment that it made my jaw drop. You guys, I can’t get over how they are pulling off such a pigmented and smooth shadow.

The shimmers do not have the chunky glitter aspect to them. I’ve come to realize that the chunkier the shadow, the more fallout that tends to happen. No thank you.

Charles Palette

James has made sure the shimmery shades are smooth and buttery. Again, they blend well and are very buildable. I prefer working shimmers on top of an eye primer or concealer to ensure the colors stand out and the shine pops.

Overall, my favorite go-to’s in the whole palette are Face, No Beans, Punch Me, and Literally.

Again, if you want to check it out go to Ulta’s website by clicking here!

The Verdict

Although I do love the James Charles palette, I do need to throw a few disclaimers out there. One controversy that has been circling this palette is the fact that some of the more pink/red toned shades are harder to wash off of the face.

Staining is pretty typical as far as pink/red shadows go merely because of the dye that needs to be used to make them so pigmented. It’s a real catch 22. With great pigmentation in the shadows comes a little staining. It’s not drastic, but it is worth mentioning.

The Verdict

I do wish the palette offered more warm brown-toned shades. But, the premise behind it all is to encourage artists to break out of every-day looks. I’m more of a neutral gal, but that’s just me. I do, however, love the fact that many of these shadows can work double duty as eyeshadows and highlights. Score!

There are also quite a few shadows in the palette that I would never have reached for pre-purchase. And now, some are weekly if not daily staples in my collection. I’m literally (ha!) still in awe of ‘Literally.’

To me, it is well worth the purchase and the James Charles x Morphe collaboration palette should be in every artist’s collection.

Whether you are a beginner looking for inspiration to get you going or a well-seasoned artist wanting a go-to palette to achieve nearly any look, this is a great piece to have in your collection.

You can get your James Charles palette here, and I promise it is a sister sale worth having.

Paulina Romain

Paulina Romain is an entrepreneur and artist in the beauty industry. She is the founder and owner of The Art of Ink Studio, where she provides services such as permanent cosmetics, microblading, and artistic ink, focusing on personalized body art. Additionally, she owns Mill Pond Salon, through which she aims to deliver big-city salon services in the comfort of a small town. Apart from her hands-on work in her studios, Paulina Romain is also active on social media platforms like TikTok, where she showcases her fine line and cosmetic tattoo work. Furthermore, she's been in the salon and beauty industry for over 14 years and operates Team True Beauty with Sam Romain. This platform includes a blog on various beauty-related topics and marks the opening of two beauty brands by the couple.

5 thoughts on “A Review of The James Charles Palette

  1. Thanks for your review, normally I would also not touch any palette that includes colors out of my comfort zone. Especially half of this palette is “for the adventurous. ” but now I learned from you the fun of discovering. You have given this makeup fan a new inspiration to just be open to discover!

  2. Are James Charles Brushes worth it?

    Definitely recommend it! I absolutely love these brushes! I loved the set
    so much that I had to buy two! The brushes are so soft and blend out any
    color on your eyes very easily!

    Is James Charles’ platte worth it?

    In terms of price, it is very much a great value, offering up 39 shadows
    for the cool price of $39, a value that would impress even the makeup
    lover. The Morphe x James Charles palette was made with love, and it
    shows

  3. i really dont recommend this product because it’s a waste of money and theres no point of putting on makeup. it’s also rlly expensive and you can buy it from somewhere else cheaper, therefore james charles is a SCAM.

    1. Hi there,

      Thank you for sharing your thoughts on the James Charles Palette. I understand that everyone has their own unique experiences and preferences when it comes to makeup products. In my review, I aimed to provide a comprehensive and unbiased perspective based on my personal experience with the palette.

      While the palette may be on the pricier side for some, its range of 39 pressed pigments and eyeshadows offers versatility for various makeup looks. I also highlighted some of the standout shades and their performance in my review. However, I completely respect your viewpoint and appreciate the feedback.

      It’s essential for consumers to research and find products that align with their preferences and budget. If you have any other product recommendations or alternatives you’d like to share, I’d love to hear them!

      Stay beautiful and true to yourself! 💄

      Warm regards,
      Paulina Romain
      Team True Beauty

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