Product Review: a2o Pressed Powder Eyeshadow Kits

I'd heard a lot about the MissA website for a while, and over the past year or so, I've picked up quite a few products from the website's in-house brands.

If you're not familiar, the brand is focused on budget-friendly makeup items. Many of their AOA products are only $1 (and I've tried some, which are really quite good so I'm sure I'll get around to talking about them at some point), though they do have a slightly more expensive line, a2o Labs, which includes a variety of pressed powder eyeshadows, highlighters, and blushes in pans, as well as empty magnetic palettes, so you can put together custom palettes.

(The empty magnetic palettes have become a real favorite of mine, because the largest size, which holds 28 traditional sized eyeshadow pans, is only $7.50. They're made of sturdy cardboard, feature fun designs, and have a large mirror inside. If you don't need a mirror in your palette, though, they're only $6.  You can also opt for small empty palettes that can hold 9 shadow pans for $4 (without a mirror) or $5 (with a mirror).)

But there are also some curated eyeshadow kits that include 9 shadows and an empty mirrored magnetic palette with the kit's name on the front.

All for just $10.

I couldn't resist picking up all 5 of the kits (because I've been obsessed with pan eyeshadows and making my own custom palettes for the past year or so and am determined to try as many different brands as I can) to see just how well the shadows perform.


The five kits are:

Wild FLWR, which contains Prosecco, a shimmery light golden pink; Soul, a shimmery bronze; Gala, a shimmery blackened teal; Socialite, a shimmery copper; Dust, a matte orange-y brown; Buff, matte light tan; Empower, a matte mid-tone reddish brown; Mossy, a matte dark forest green; and Duchess, a matte deep terra cotta.

a20 Pressed Powder Eyeshadow Kit in Wild Flwer

Top row (l. to r.): Buff, Gala, Empower; Middle row (l. to r.): Duchess, Soul, Mossy; Bottom row (l. to r.): Prosecco, Dust, Socialite

From l. to r.: Buff, Gala, Empower, Duchess, Soul, Mossy, Prosecco, Dust, and Socialite

Love Child, which contains Vintage, a mate mid-tone peach; Cashmere, a matte chocolate brown; Element, a matte reddish brown; Moment, a matte pale peach; Amor; Worth, a shimmery reddish plum; Forbidden, a matte pinky-purple; Twilight, a shimmery lilac with blue micro-shimmer; and Lucid, a shimmery greenish brown with red duochrome.

a20 Pressed Powder Eyeshadow Kit in Love Child

Top row (l. to r.): Moment, Cashmere, Worth; Middle row (l. to r.): Element, Amor, Vintage; Bottom row (l. to r.): Twilight, Forbidden, Lucid

From l. to r.: Moment, Cashmere, Worth, Element, Amor, Vintage, Twilight, Forbidden,  and Lucid

Imma Beach, which contains Jungle, a matte jade green; Limit, a matte mustard; Polished, a shimmery pale gold; Swoon, a matte dark chocolate; Cozy, a matte warm mid-tone brown; Smitten, shimmery pink champagne; Ruffle, a matte red-brown with red micro-glitter; Flamenco, a shimmery red copper; and Reef, a shimmery turquoise.

a20 Pressed Powder Eyeshadow Kit in Imma Beach

Top row (l. to r.): Polished, Flamenco, Reef; Middle row (l. to r.): Jungle, Cozy, Ruffle; Bottom row (l. to r.) Swoon, Limit, Smitten

From l. to r.: Smitten, Polished, Flamenco, Reef, Jungle, Cozy, Ruffle, Swoon, Limit

Foxy, which contains Starlet, a shimmery white gold; Adorbs, a matte salmon; Allure, a shimmery deep bronze;Midnight, a matte black with blue and purple micro-glitter; Exotic, a matte chartreuse;  Sensation, a shimmer blue-gray with purple undertones; Rich, a matte dark reddish-brown; Crown, a shimmery rich gold; and Terracotta, a matte dark terra cotta.

a20 Pressed Powder Eyeshadow Kit in Foxy

Top row (l. to r.): Starlet, Midnight, Rich; Middle row (l. to r.): Exotic, Terracotta, Sensation; Bottom row (l. to r.): Adorbs, Crown, Allure

From l. to r.: Starlet, Midnight, Rich, Exotic, Terracotta, Sensation, Adorbs, Crown, and Allure

Date Night, which contains Buzz, a shimmery rich copper; Strange, a matte black; Sultry, a matte mid-tone tan; Enigma, a matte charcoal Wonderland, a shimmery blue-purple; Fizz, a shimmery champagne; Spicy, a matte deep orange; Perfect, a matte taupe; and Intuition, a shimmery deep golden pink.

a20 Pressed Powder Eyeshadow Kit in Date Night

Top row (l. to r.): Wonderland, Buzz, Enigma; Middle row (l. to r.): Intuition, Fizz, Sultry; Bottom row (l. to r.): Perfect, Stranger, Spicy

From l. to r.: Wonderland, Buzz, Enigma, Intuition, Fizz, Sultry, Perfect, Stranger, and Spicy

Now, right off the bat, I'll say that these shadows aren't perfect. In each kit, there's usually at least one shade that's not quite as pigmented as I might like.

However, even the shades that are a little sheer can be built up pretty easily, and nearly all of the shades blend well. I do have a little blending trouble with Mossy from Wild FLWR, so I find that it's best to use small amounts and only add more when you need it.

Using a shadow primer and possibly a colored base can also help bump up the shadows if you don't find them to be as pigmented as you want. A damp brush can also do wonders.

But all that said, I think that based on the price of these palettes, the shadows really do perform quite well. I've gotten tons of beautiful looks from them -- and they last all day too, which is nice.

My personal favorite kits are Wild FLWR and Love Child, but I would say that Imma Beach is probably the most consistent palette of the bunch -- all of the shades are well-pigmented, blend easily, and last all day.

I think these palettes are definitely worth giving a try if you're a fan of these free-form type palettes. At $10 a pop, there's really not much to lose.

You can buy the palettes on the MissA website.

Have you tried the a2o Pressed Powder Eyeshdaow Kits? Which one is your favorite?