This palette is available at both the Kat Von D and Sephora websites and retails for $45.00. It is currently out of stock on the Sephora website, but upon re-stock will be available once again.
As per the Sephora website, this is the description of the palette:
What it is:
A limited-edition eye shadow palette with a gold loose pigment jar and eight rich, jeweled tones, inspired by the essence of Egypt.
What it does:
Serpentina Eyeshadow Palette captures the opulence and beauty of ancient Egypt with a versatile design—unlike any other Kat Von D palette. The configuration features eight pressed powders in matte and metallic shimmer finishes, plus a removable jar of gold loose pigment for ultimate versatility.
This signature triple-milled, high-pigment eye shadow formula delivers instant, true color payoff and silky blendability, so you can experiment with layering and mix and match finishes for a stunning dimensional look. Then, let your creativity run wild with Prophet, the gold loose pigment. From gilding lids to flecking brows, this little pot takes Serpentina to the next level. With exclusive artwork hand-drawn by Kat Von D, this palette will inspire you to channel your inner Egyptian queen to create rich, jeweled eye looks.
What it is formulated WITHOUT:
- Parabens
- Sulfates
- Phthalates
What else you need to know:
"The inspiration for this palette came more from a sentiment versus an actual muse. But if I had to choose a physical representation, I'd say it's inspired by the essence of Egypt—Cleopatra to be specific. Although she's portrayed as one of the most beautiful women in history, the truth is, her most powerful qualities were her intelligence and self-creation. She was the original pioneering woman."—Kat Von D
Serpentina Eyeshadow Palette is completely free of animal-derived ingredients.
Shades and shade descriptions: Bloodmilk (matte brick red), Medusa (bronze shimmer), Ankh (matte black with gold glitter), Queen (rust glitter), Hieroglyph (copper shimmer), Nile (ocean blue shimmer), Scarab (emerald shimmer), Venom (matte royal purple), Prophet (fool's gold loose pigment).
My thoughts:
The packaging is a tomb/casket-like design made of cardboard with a mirror. To the sight, the colors look vivid and beautiful. However, when applied, the color payoff is poor. Typically, Kat Von D has intense and saturated color but this palette did have something lacking: the "true color payoff." I really struggled upon application with the majority of the shades to be honest. I kept layering and layering the color in hopes of getting at least decent opacity but it was a total flop. And that's despite using both primer and a base, which is my insurance policy to guarantee great color. This was a fail, as I had to use Smashbox Primer Water to get any kind of color. I shouldn't have to work that hard to get eyeshadow to work for me. After a lot of time and work, I was able to create some beautiful looks. That being said, if I would have touched the color in any way, it would have disappeared. The orange shade, Hieroglyph, was chunky and applied unevenly. The chunks did not blend out no matter how hard I tried. The purple matte shade, Venom, took heavy layering to get decent color intensity. The slightest touch and it was gone. The blue shade, Nile, had very little color payoff, as well, and I had to use the Primer Water to get better color. The red shade, Bloodmilk, was just ok (at best) since I used it layered over other colors but that as well faded away upon blending. It, too, required a heavy hand of layering product. The dark shade, Ankh, as well as Queen, were ok but certainly did not live up to the high standard previously achieved by the brand. The green shade, Scarab, was the best performer in the bunch but again, it was not the best of life and certainly not enough to carry the entire palette. I will say I loved the loose pigment, Prophet. It was glorious, had intense color saturation, was easy to blend, and is just a great color. Plus, another noteworthy thought, you can't use this palette alone as there are no skin-tone or blending shades. You would have to use whatever you have in your collection to create a complete look. For the price and the amount of shadows in the palette, there is not enough room for there to even be one poor performer, let alone several. Something else that bothered me, when I was finally done with the look, practically my entire face was covered in product. Literally had it in my pores, especially in my nose. I literally was inadvertently inhaling the powder and it burned my nose for some time after I had been done with the application. As far as how long they last, I did notice there was some fading in the crease area at the end of the day.
Another thing that did make me suspicious of the palette, even before I received it, was the lack of presence on social media. Typically, I see tons of swatches all over but this palette only had 1 single set of pics going around. If it were good, if they were proud of it, many people would have posted all kinds of swatches and looks before the release. I am uncertain if it just wasn't sent out to bloggers and social media people or if they were trying to contain it because they knew the quality just wasn't up to par. Ultimately, the palette will be going back. I wasn't satisfied with the palette, to say the least, and I don't recommend it. I simply do not have the space to keep something that I won't use. I am not happy writing this negative review but if I can help someone save themselves the frustration I went through, then I did someone a favor.
Hi girlie! You are quite welcome. I am not happy having to write a negative review but it is what it is. Thanks for commenting! Sorry it has taken me so long to reply.
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