Even though this Giorgio Armani Ecailles Luxury Eye Palette from the Summer 2012 collection looks absolutely beautiful from the promotional pictures, I was a bit skeptical about getting this palette at first. It’s USD 95 in the States which is simply too expensive for an eye palette. It’s priced so much higher than the other palettes because of the compact lid. 

The beautifully designed lid was decorated with mother-of-pearl. I admit it’s looks very pretty, but I don’t think I would pay more for it.

I caved though, since in Hong Kong the price for this palette is actually just HKD 600 (about USD 77). It’s still expensive, but the shadows are so pretty that I couldn’t resist. Plus it is handcrafted, limited to only 4000 pieces worldwide, and there won’t be another palette with the exact same design, so what you’re getting is definitely a unique piece!

The first shade from the top is described as algae, a dark blue-teal. Pigmentation was decent, I needed to swatch them generously to get a good color payoff, but with a primer it works much better.

The second shade from the top is described as a deep sea blue, my favorite in the palette color-wise, it is simply gorgeous. Similar to the first shade, pigmentation was decent, and generous application and working it with a primer is recommended.

The third shade from the top is described as lagoon turquoise, the most pigmented in the palette. Color payoff is nice, and goes on silky smooth. Definitely the best performing shade in the palette.

The fourth shade from the top is described as shimmering, crest-of-a-wave white. One of the worse performing shades from Armani as it goes on extremely chalky and the shimmers were chunky. I experienced fallouts not only during application but also throughout the day. I’m relieved that this is not a color that I usually wear, so I’m definitely staying away from it. If you like shades like this, definitely go and check out the Eyes to Kill intense eyeshadows (#20 and #21 from this collection were reviewed here).

This is not an outstanding palette. It’s just a very decent performing palette with stunning colors. I highly recommend using a primer for a much better color payoff, but even without a primer it is very long wearing, so I still do recommend this palette. Do go and check them out in person though, if you like the colors, get them since they’re very limited!