Juvia's Place: The Nefertiti Palettes And Bold Color To Wear With Them

On 6 December 1912, Ludwig Borchardt's German excavation at Amarna, in Egypt, pulled a painted limestone bust out of the sand. It was Queen Nefertiti, found in the workshop of the sculptor Thutmose, and it now sits in Berlin's Neues Museum. A face with long neck, steady eyes and a crown like a flowerpot, still colored after thousands of years. Every makeup artist has borrowed that eye at some point. One woman borrowed the whole queen.

Chichi Eburu, who grew up in Nigeria, started Juvia's Place in 2016, by the brand's own account, from a two-bedroom apartment with two young children, selling makeup tools first to raise capital. The name comes from her children, Juwa and Olivia, and her vision board was full of African queens like Nefertiti and Cleopatra. Her first product was The Nubian palette, with Nefertiti on the packaging, and the brand says it almost went viral overnight. Her point of view is plain: palettes should represent African culture and art, and she names them for culture, food, spices and festivals. That is what makes Juvia's Place different from a brand that adds a few deep shades to a neutral range. Here the pigment is the starting point.

The trick is to choose a palette by mood, not by number of pans. The Nubian Palette is the classic, the one to own if you only own one. The Nubian Earth Palette is the warmer, more wearable sibling for daily eyes. The Saharan Palette, which the brand says was inspired by Fulani culture, is bolder, with 12 shades including Sokoto, a matte orange-red, Wodaabe, a matte gold, Bororo, a burgundy shimmer, and Senegal, a copper shimmer. The Zulu and The Warrior are the two I would try next, Culture 2 is the one to look at once you know which tones you reach for, and The Coffee Shop and The Chocolates, going by their names, are the brown-leaning pair for mornings.

Bold mattes read truest when you pat them on first, and you can always soften them afterwards. Prime the lid, press the shadow on with a flat brush, then blend only the edges.

Then build the face around the eye. I Am Magic Velvety Matte Foundation comes in 42 colors, and I Am Magic Concealer in 24, which is the range that makes a brand feel serious about skin. The Bronzed Cream Bronzer and Blushed Cream Blush are cream formats, so they go on with fingers or a damp sponge and sit softly under a strong eye. The Nubian Loose Highlighter is for the tops of the cheekbones and the inner corner, and the Bronzed J301 Powder Bronzing Brush gives you a tool made for the same range.

For the mouth, The Coffee Shop Lip Gloss is the easy, warm finish, and Luxe Lip Liners are how you frame it. A pairing I like: a deep liner and gloss with a colorful lid, so the face reads as one idea instead of two.

What I would skip: a bold lip and a saturated eye at full strength on the same day. Pick the one you want people to see first.

Swatching the same two shades, a matte and a shimmer, on the back of your hand tells you more than any photo of a pan. You are looking for how much color shows up in one swipe.

Charlotte Tilbury's Luxury Eyeshadow Palette is the polished one, and Natasha Denona's Tan Eyeshadow Palette is the most serious neutral in the set. Pat McGrath Labs' Venus in Fleurs in Voyeuristic Vixen is the glamorous choice, built for an evening and a mirror with good light. Huda Beauty has two here, Empowered and Pretty Grunge, and I would pick by mood: the first for a clean, confident lid, the second for something smudged. Makeup by Mario Master Metallics is for foiled, glossy lids, and Natasha Denona Xenon is the wild card if you like intensity. NYX Ultimate Color Shadow Palette in Paradise Shock is the playful one for trying neon without a large commitment.

These sit well next to a palette from the first grid. Wear a Juvia's Place shade for the wash and one of these metallics on the center of the lid.

What I would skip: a palette you love the look of but cannot swatch. Colors that sing in a pan can go flat on the lid, and you only find out once it is on.

A pencil gives you thirty seconds to fix a wing before it sets, and a gel gives you none, so smudge first and commit second.

Natasha Denona Macro Tech Eye Crayon is high pigment, for a thick line against a soft wash. Danessa Myricks Infinite Chrome Micropencil is waterproof and metallic, and works well laid over a matte shadow from the first grid. NARS High-Pigment Longwear Eyeliner is the classic black, and KVD Beauty Tattoo Pencil Liner is waterproof and sharp for graphic wings. Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On is the old favorite for the waterline, and MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Color Pencil is the one for colored lines. Makeup by Mario Master Pigment Pro and the Marc Jacobs Drawn This Way gel round out the set, the second for a sharpenable, precise tip.

I like a colored liner a shade away from the lid color, like a deep teal under a green shadow, so the eye looks deliberate.

What I would skip: waterproof gel for a quick office morning, when a pencil is faster and easier to take off at night.

My vote for a first step is the original. Buy The Nubian Palette, pick one foundation shade you trust, and learn three looks from it before adding a second palette. Queen Nefertiti is on the lid for a reason, and a founder who built a brand from a two-bedroom apartment knew exactly what she was putting there.

Add a liner from the last grid when you are ready to draw a line. The bust was found under the sand in 1912, and the colors still hold. Yours only have to last the evening.