Each year, as Christmas fast approaches, our spending goes wild. It's not our fault to be fair because we're buying presents for loved ones (and ourselves) and there are too many gorgeous things out there for everyone (and us). Yes, 'tis the season for goodwill and all that, but also 'tis the season for eyeshadow palettes galore! I'm all about palettes that will bring me from office to party, that won't break the bank and that do a stellar job of making my eyeballs look fabulous. So I've picked five of my favourite affordable eyeshadow palettes worth checking out and let's be honest, they're cheap as chips and you'll definitely be able to pick up a couple while you're at it. One for you and one for a friend? (Or two for you... Or three for you if they're having a 3 for 2 offer....).

Makeup Revolution is a newish brand to the UK which has just started to appear in Ireland, namely Superdrug in the Omni Centre in Santry. While I like buying online, I still like to touch and feel my makeup before I hand over the cash, so hopefully it'll filter out into more chemists soon. The brand has a huge collection of eyeshadow palettes and in an attempt to be good (famous last words) I picked up these two beauties. The Run Boy Run Salvation Palette houses a massive 18 shades and for €7.75, is a bargain. The top two rows houses 12 rectangular shadows, all buttery soft and shimmery, ready to bring a bit of Christmas sparkle to your look. The six round shades are matte, pigmented and perfect for applying into your crease to offset the shimmer from the other shades. There's not a shadow in there I wouldn't use and can't recommend it enough.

The other Makeup Revolution beaut I picked up was the beautiful Romantic Smoked palette, filled with 12 eyeshadows, six shimmery, six matte and all wearable. If you've got green or brown eyes then this is the palette for you because most of the shades have purple undertones to it and will make your eyes stand out beautifully. The shades are easy to work with, blend effortlessly and I can't fault it! Romantic Smoked was a mere €5.15 and it's definitely worth checking the other palettes in this collection because most of them are heavily inspired by a certain "Naked" range from a higher end brand!

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Physician's Formula is also another newish to Ireland brand, having been launched back in May of this year. It's still proving hard to find in chemists, so if you do come across it, take your time, buy some stuff and tell us where you've found it! The nude palette from the Nude collection is itty bitty, meaning it's great for popping in your makeup bag for touch ups or top ups if you're heading out after work. In terms of pigmentation, it's definitely lighter than the rest of the palettes I'm mentioning today, but for someone like my sister who feels like a drag queen no matter how little makeup I put on her, she'd love this because it's got nine cool toned neutrals and the colour can be built up. If you use a primer underneath or a coloured eyeshadow base then the colour payoff is much better, but if you're a fan of soft, shimmery shades, then check it out. It's the most expensive of the five palettes at €15.39, still not breaking the bank, but something worth noting if you're on a budget in the lead up to Christmas.

Essence is one of the most underrated budget brands in my opinion and this palette, Keep Calm and Go For a Walk from the Hello Autumn collection is dinky, cheap as chips at €4.79 and has six wearable shades from a light vanilla to an almost black shade with hues of bronzes and olive greens in between. While they look shimmery in the pan, they leave more of a sheen on the lid in terms of finish and are definitely office friendly, but can be built up if you need a little more oomph when heading out after work.

Wet n Wild arrived in Ireland this year to much excitement and I've been making my way through lots of goodies from the brand. The Comfort Zone palette is a neutral lover's dream and at €4.79, is a budget lover's dream too! It has eight earth toned shades, half on the brown end of the scale and the other half on the green end of the scale, but all gorgeous, super pigmented and soft. I would buy this palette for the duochrome shade on the bottom left which is a perfect dupe for MAC's Club eyeshadow with it's greeny browny shimmery goodness. So pretty! While I think the brow bone shades are a bit too shimmery for my liking to be placed on the actual brow bone, they make for a great wash of colour all over the lid when you're in a rush.

So there really is no excuse not to go out and treat yourself!

Karen Constantine blogs for the award-winning Lovely Girly Bits. Click here to read more of her reviews and beauty advice.

You can also find her on Twitter - @LovelyGirlyBits