Why I'm Returning the Clay Play Face Shaping Palette Vol. 2 by Tarte

Okay. So, this is going to be an unusual blog post for me, but I feel that this palette -- Clay Play Face Shaping Palette Vol. 2 by Tarte -- needs to be addressed. I recently picked up the  Vol. 2 palette, but I feel that there are some real and serious issues with this palette that need to be talked about. I'm going to dive into that in a minute, but, first, let me explain my "journey" with this palette.

Recently, I found out that Tarte was releasing a second "volume" of their Clay Play palette. I really enjoy their Clay Play palette (as you can read in my review of the palette). So, when I heard about the Vol. 2 palette and I saw that it was going to have shimmer shades and blushes (swoon), I decided I was going to buy it without question. After I got back from my holiday vacation and saw that it was available at Ulta, I cashed in my Ulta points and ordered it without a second thought.

It's 100% my fault for ordering the palette. Honestly, I feel a little silly now for buying it because I really didn't do my research on it and that's embarrassing. I didn't really seek out any reviews of the palette or look at very many pictures or swatches. I heard a YouTuber mention that it was coming out, and I immediately decided that it was going to be the palette for me and that I needed it. Usually, I try not to be impulsive about buying makeup; however, sometimes I do get swept up in the excitement. I mean, we're all human after all.

After I got the palette I noticed some issues with the palette. I also saw a YouTube video that brought up many of the same issues, which made me feel a little more secure in my opinion. Anyway, almost as soon as I got the Vol. 2 palette, I decided I was going to return it. Here's why:

Original Palette on the Left, Vol. 2 on the Right

• The packaging is identical to the first palette. And, when I say identical, I mean identical. When they're close and sitting next to each other, you can't tell them apart. When I was looking at this palette online, I wasn't paying a lot of attention to the packaging. I saw that the Vol. 2 had the same chevron design as the original palette, but I assumed that the colors would be slightly different in person. I was wrong; it is 100% identical. If this was the only problem with the palette, I would probably shrug it off, but it gets weirder. 

• The names of the shades are the same. The names of the shades in the Vol. 2 palette are identical to the names of the shades in the original palette. That's really weird, no? Now, there are repeat shades in the Vol. 2 palette (more about that in a minute), so it makes sense that those shades have the same names. However, none of the new shades have new names. Like, what? Isn't that weird? There is a matte black shadow in the original palette; that shade is called Onyx. There is a shimmery bronze in the Vol. 2 palette (in the same position as the matte black in the original palette); that shade is called Onyx. THAT MAKES NO SENSE. Both palettes are laid out in the same way, and, in the new palette, all the shade names are in the same positions that they were in in the original palette. To me, it seems like Tarte just took a bunch of the original Clay Play palettes, popped a few shades out, and replaced them with new shades. I mean, that's profoundly lazy, but -- wait -- it gets worse. 

Vol. 2 on Top, Original Palette on Bottom

• 7 out of the 12 shades in the Vol. 2 palette are repeats from the original palette. To me, this is the biggest problem. The packaging being the same is lazy, but it's not important compared to the quality of the actual product. More than half the shades in the Vol. 2 palette were in the original palette; that is unacceptable. There is no excuse for that sort of laziness. If you have the original Clay Play palette, you're really paying $46 for only 5 new shades. That doesn't make any kind of sense! All of the matte shades in the Vol. 2 palette (with the exception of the blush called Desert) are identical to the matte shades in the original palette. As I said above, I didn't look at this palette very closely before buying it. It can be difficult to tell what a color is going to look like in real life based on a photograph. When I looked at this palette online, I thought that the matte shades were similar but that they were a little warmer than the shadows in the original palette. I did immediately notice that Solstice was the same, but, I didn't think one repeat shade was a big deal. When you see this palette in person, you can 100% tell that the matte powders are the same as the powders in the original palette. As I said above, I seriously believe that Tarte took a bunch of original Clay Play palettes, changed a few shades, and marketed it as a new product. That's really shady in my opinion. 

• This palette isn't being marketed at all. This palette has had one of the weirdest launches of any palette that I've ever seen. I haven't seen Tarte post pictures of it on Instagram, I haven't seen anyone reviewing it, and I haven't seen it in Ulta or Sephora or Tarte emails. In retrospect, that's kind of weird. Now, I know that it usually takes a product a while to build up some buzz. Unless it's a really big launch, it usually takes a week or two for it to show up on social media. However, I haven't seen anything about this palette, which leads me to believe that Tarte doesn't want to draw any attention to it. That seems to suggest that they know that they're doing something shady, and they want to keep it on the down-lo.

To sum up, I think it's really weird that a big and established brand like Tarte is doing something like this. All in all, the concept, design, and launch of this palette seems incredibly lazy and low budget. I really don't know why a big, successful brand like Tarte would go about launching a palette that way. It seems incredibly strange.

So, what do I think is really going on here? I think that Tarte is discontinuing the original Clay Play palette and releasing this palette as a replacement. I've seen some people point out that the original Clay Palette is currently deeply discounted on Tarte's website, which is weird because it's a popular palette. My explanation for this is that they decided that there were some problems with the original Clay Play, and decided to revamp it and release a new and improved version. I know that brands do this all the time. For example, it looks like Benefit is currently discontinuing the Gimme Brow and replacing it with the 3D BROWtones Instant Color Highlights. I'm sad that they're getting rid of the Gimme Brow, but that sort of thing happens all the time in the makeup universe.

I'm annoyed by the Vol. 2 palette because Tarte seems to be treating it like a new and completely different palette when, in reality, it's the original Clay Play with a few changes. I feel like Tarte is not being up front about this, and I feel like they're trying to pull the wool over consumers' eyes.

If you have the original Clay Play palette, YOU DO NOT NEED THE VOLUME 2 PALETTE. If you don't have the original palette, you might be interested in this new palette. I think the quality of this palette is fine (I mean, as I said, it's basically the same as the original); so I have no complaint in that regard.

As I said above, I'm annoyed with Tarte for the way they handled the Vol. 2 palette. I feel like the brand tried to trick me into buying something I don't need, and that's why I'm returning it. Of course, I'm also at fault for not doing my research before buying. I'm writing this post so that you don't make my mistake, and so that you can be an informed consumer if you're thinking about buying this palette. However, I still think that Tarte behaved weirdly and dishonestly in this situation.