e.l.f. Studio Endless Eyes Pro Mini Eyeshadow Palette vs. Coastal Scents 88 Color Eye Shadow Palette: Review & Swatches

I received the e.l.f. mini palette as a Christmas gift from my mom, even though I had been hoping for the Coastal Scents one - but it worked out fine, because she got me the Coastal Scents one for my birthday (which is actually this Sunday, but I already opened my presents since I won't be seeing my parents this weekend). So I figured even though I don't have the huge e.l.f. palette with 100 colors, I could still use this little one with 32 colors to give you guys an idea of how they stack up against each other.

 

e.l.f. Studio Endless Eyes Pro Mini Eyeshadow Palette

Coastal Scents 88 Color Eye Shadow Palette

First of all, the obvious difference is the size and number of colors. The e.l.f. palette is $5 for 32 colors, whereas the Coastal Scents one is around $20 (give or take a dollar or so, depending on where you but it from) for 88 colors. The e.l.f. are also larger, but the Coastal Scents palette comes with two applicators, as opposed to the e.l.f. one, which comes with one applicator only (not that I use the sponge-tip applicators a lot, but if you do, it might be something to take note of). They do both include a mirror on the inside of the lid.

In terms of packaging, they are very similar. I like the look of the shiny e.l.f. logo printed on the matte plastic, and the clear plastic that lets you see the shadows is also a nice touch, although I can see it getting dirty. In my opinion, the e.l.f. packaging seems cheaper than the Coastal Scents one (probably because it is, e.l.f. is definitely not known for their packaging) and while I would rather have a great product in crappy packaging than a crappy product in great packaging, I have to admit that sometimes, the packaging does sway me. The Coastal Scents palette is slimmer and less bulky than the e.l.f. one, which I really like. I feel professional just holding it, and the e.l.f. palette definitely isn't as sleek.

Part of me wanted to swatch both the palettes entirely, but I realized I probably don't have enough body parts for that (and I'm trying to juggle writing these posts with my roommate's schedule, so I don't always have tons of time at my disposal), so I decided I would swatch colors that were similar in both palettes next to each other, so you could see how they compare.

 e.l.f. palette on top vs. Coastal Scents palette on bottom

These are swatched without primer or anything so you can see that the color payoff is pretty good, but the Coastal Scents colors are a bit smoother and easier to blend. The Coastal Scents black is definitely more pigmented than the e.l.f. ones, but the rest are pretty comparable in terms of pigmentation.

Which one should you buy? Well, that depends a lot on what you want to do with them. If you already have an extensive makeup collection and have been looking into the Coastal Scents 88 palette, I certainly wouldn't recommend switching it out for one of the e.l.f. palettes. Nor would I say that it's necessary to own both, although I wouldn't really consider buying both a waste of money if you were interesting in checking them out yourself. But if I could choose only one, I'd probably go with the Coastal Scents palette just for the sheer amount of colors and the blendable-ness of the shadows.

XOXO, Ally