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Limited-edition beauty products are our kind of collectors’ items: Because they come and go, you have to scoop them up quickly before they sell out. One prime example is Patrick Ta’s Major Headlines Blush & Highlighter Palette. After volume one of the six-pan palette launched last year, beauty lovers went wild for the product’s array of textures and tones. While you can’t get your hands on that palette, you can shop the second iteration — for now.
Makeup palettes are a smart way to streamline your cosmetics collection so you have fewer tubs, tubes, and compacts rolling around. Eyeshadow palettes are popular, but options for your cheeks and lips are on the rise. Cheek palettes pack the best blushes, bronzers, and light-reflecting highlighters in one sleek package. With a realm of shades to choose from, palettes also make practical gifts for women in your life, whether it’s a gift for your mom or a gift for your girlfriend. Rather than attempting to shade match a product to her skin or find a just-right tone she’ll love, go with a palette to give her all the options. So while you’re out shopping for items like spa gifts, hoop earrings, and winter coats, consider adding the Patrick Ta Palette to your list for your BFF — or for yourself. We put the palette to the test over the past month; read on for our full review.
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- Product Tested: Patrick Ta Major Headlines Blush & Highlighter Palette Vol II
- Key Ingredients: Mica, shea butter, linseed extract, mango seed butter
- Period of Testing: One month
- Price of Product: $68
- Pros:
- Combination of cream and powder formulas
- Built-in clear divider keeps cream formulas fresh
- Long-wearing
- Buildable pigments
- Cruelty-free
- Cons:
- Powder highlighter may feel too glittery for some
- Powder shades may fallout on the pan
- Testing Verdict: The Patrick Ta Major Headlines Blush & Highlighter Palette Vol II is a nice way to upgrade your cheek makeup routine. While the shades look richly pigmented in the pan, they apply sheer on your skin so it’s easy to build up to your desired intensity. The palette includes four blushes and two highlighters that are straightforward to layer on your skin.
About Patrick Ta
Patrick Ta launched his eponymous beauty line in 2019, but the makeup artist has much more to his name than brand founder. Scroll through his Instagram for a taste of his celebrity client list; you’ll see his glam on celebs like Gigi Hadid, Alexandra Daddario, Emily Ratajkowski, Camila Cabello, Miranda Kerr, and Shay Mitchell (who Ta credits for catapulting his career to new heights). Ta’s signature makeup style is fresh faced, bright, and unbelievably glowy, so it’s no surprise that’s what nearly every product in his line helps you achieve in a makeup look at home. The brand’s formulas always err on the creamy side — you can shop illuminating body balms, face gloss, cream blushes, and milky mists that make your complexion radiate from the inside out.
What’s Inside Patrick Ta Major Headlines Blush & Highlighter Palette Vol II
The six-pan palette contains two shades of blush and one shade of highlighter in both cream and pressed powder formulations. Ta designed the palette to work across a variety of skin tones and makeup styles, so you can customize your final look. A breakdown of the shades is below.
- Giving Flirty: A vibrant pink that delivers a post-jog flush. The blue undertones help this shade look flattering across fair to deep skin tones, so it’s a foolproof choice.
- Giving Sunkissed: This shade does exactly what the name suggests. The soft terracotta has a touch of coral to it, and its warmth pairs well with any bronzer you use.
- Giving Glossy: The highlighter shade is a nearly clear caramel tone. The cream formula looks translucent when you apply it, so it’ll match any skin tone. The powder version contains flecks of glitter to amp up the glow.
How to Use the Patrick Ta Major Headlines Blush & Highlighter Palette Vol II
If the thought of six shades and multiple textures just for your cheeks is giving you decision fatigue, stick with us. As soon as you open the palette you’ll notice that the shades align in tone and intensity, which makes it easy to layer the product for your desired effect. We found that the powder formulas apply best with a brush. The cream formulas are flexible to use; you can dab and blend the colors with your fingertips or a densely bristled brush. To avoid clumping or patchy color payoff, apply the cream formula before you follow up with the pressed powder. And you can always opt for just cream or just powder, depending on your mood.
If you’re aiming for a lifted cheek look, sweep the blush on the high planes of your cheeks and out towards your ears. For a sun-kissed effect, blend the blush in a ‘W’ shape to add some color to your cheeks and nose. The highlighter formulas are fair game to apply on your cheeks, nose, cupid’s bow, or anywhere you want some glimmer. And all three of the shades can moonlight as eyeshadow — the cream lends a glossy effect and the powder comes off more matte.
The Verdict
The Patrick Ta Major Headlines Blush & Highlighter Palette Vol II is a must-have palette for your makeup routine. Not only are the shades spot-on for a radiant makeup look, they’re also highly buildable so you can take your cheeks from subtly sun-kissed to vibrant. We love how these formulas feel on the skin: The cream doesn’t feel sticky (even my cheek-skimming curtain bangs didn’t catch on the formula) and the powder doesn’t feel too matte or drying on the skin. I gravitated towards the hot pink Giving Flirty shade for cold winter days — it wakes up my fair skin without looking painted on. The Giving Sunkissed powder formula is a favorite to wear on my lids during daytime, and the highlighters blend well over foundation and concealer. We award this palette five stars.
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Meet the Author
Claire Sullivan is the Senior Beauty and Lifestyle Commerce Editor for WWD and Footwear News. With nearly six years reporting on the beauty industry, she’s well-versed in finding a palette that’s worth every penny. Sullivan tested the Patrick Ta palette for a month, taking notes on the color payoff, wear time, and versatility of the shades.