Cargo Vintage Escape Palette | Swatches

Some of you may know that my obsession with this palette started in November last year when people started finding these palettes at their local winners! I tried SO HARD to find one, I basically called all the Winners within a 100km radius of where I was, I even ended up getting a hold of the Winners/TJX Distribution Center and still no luck (obsessed, much?). I also called a nationwide search for this palette in one of the Canadian beauty groups I'm a part of on Facebook, and no one could find one either... 

Fast-forward to present day, 4 months after the initial love and loss of this palette, someone posted a different Cargo item in that Facebook group that has the same name as this palette but it was a makeup set, and after expressing how deprived I was of this palette, another one of the ladies in the group (she has her own blog, check it out: www.swatchandreview.com) saw my post and told me she had a Vintage Escape palette that's never been used and would sell it to me....  I BASICALLY DIED RIGHT THERE. THUS, BEHOLD THE BEAUTY THAT IS THIS EYESHADOW PALETTE!

LOOK AT IT. LOOK AT IT RIGHT NOW.

OH IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL. I'M WEEPING.

YAAS CARGO YAAAAAAS.

DO YOU, BOO. DO YOU.

ASDFGHJKLDFSSKJD. 

Okay, I've calmed down... time for some close ups and swatches.

Harvest Moon, Crisp, Cuddle, Hot Cocoa

Frolic, Autumn, Cinnamon, Withered Leaves

Twigs, Rustic, Black Crow, Chestnut

Dual Ended Eye Brush: Eyeshadow Brush side

Dual Ended Eye Brush: Eyeliner Brush side

This brush that comes with this palette is a dual-ended eyeshadow and angled eyeliner brush which seems to be well made. The eyeshadow brush is soft and a good size to apply and blend out eyeshadow, and the angled side is nice and stiff (in a good way) for proper defining of the upper or lower lash line.

I absolutely adore the shade selection in this palette, it's truly the perfect warm palette for Autumn. I know it's like March and Spring is around the corner but this palette is just so gorgeous and would really work year-round... if you're into the warm neutrals. I love that it has mainly neutral shades, but has a couple pops of colour in there like a warm olive green (Withered Leaves) and a nice steel blue shade (Twigs) for more versatility.

The names of the eyeshadows really make me want to curl up beside a fire with some hot chocolate and just all the warm and fuzziness of the Autumn season... (you'd think I was ready for Spring but I'd be pretty happy going back to the Autumn season).

Harvest Moon: semi-matte almost satin pale cream

Crisp: shimmer white

Cuddle: shimmer pale pink

Hot Cocoa: matte medium brown

Frolic: shimmer reddish brown

Autumn: matte pale orange-brown

Cinnamon: shimmer gold

Withered Leaves: shimmer olive green

Twigs: shimmer steel blue

Rustic: shimmer copper

Black Crow: matte black

Chestnut: matte dark brown

You can see in the swatch pictures that these shades are stunning. I know that the three lightest shades look like they aren't pigmented, but they truly are pigmented. They're just so similar to my own skin colour that they don't show up very well in the pictures. I can assure you that this palette is extremely pigmented, all these were swatched with no base/primer underneath.

This palette has a nice big mirror which helps with makeup application. It's a little bit on the larger size in terms of thickness, but it's honestly not that bad. Obviously you aren't going to be carrying it in a purse but if you're travelling and put it in a carry-on, it's perfect for that. I personally wish it was a bit slimmer though, as I love extremely sleek palettes, but the thickness allows it to house a dual-ended brush. In this case, the palette is even more travel friendly because the dual-ended brush is fits right inside the palette without a fuss. 

When I got this palette, it seemed like quite a sturdy palette, and it is. The brown leather is nice because it won't get dirty very easily, and the housing where the eyeshadows are is plastic, not cardboard like most other palettes. The only weird thing about the durability of this palette was that the magnetic closure in the flap was a bit loose (the leather wrapped around the little magnet wasn't very secure) but all I did was get some super glue and glue down the magnets so that the palette would close properly. Make sure not to get any glue on your fingers if you need to do this because I did and it wasn't fun peeling it off along with the outer layer of my skin... -___-

Overall, this palette is freaking BEAUTIFUL. I can't express how excited I am to finally have it after months of searching for it. I'm unsure whether Cargo discontinued it or not, as it's not on their website anymore but I think there are a few online retailers that sell the palette if you really wanted to get your hands on it... but you may have to pay a bit more for it.

They also have a new palette called The Essentials Eyeshadow Palette and it looks so freaking beautiful as well. It's themed around NYC and has a lot of neutral grey/cool shades which seems to be the opposite of this palette. I think I may hunt it down at a local Rexall and swatchy swatch.

Have you tried this palette out? What are your thoughts on Cargo Cosmetics in general?