Beauty for a Bargain: Ebay 88 Shimmer Palette

A few months ago I reviewed my Metal Mania palette, which I absolutely love. While browsing online a few weeks ago I decided to look at some other palettes to add to my collection.

Which leads me to this week's Beauty for a Bargain post!

In the past I had bought palettes from both Coastal Scents and BH Cosmetics. While I was happy with the products I received from both sites, I had heard whispers across the net that they were selling wholesale palettes from China with their names stamped on the case for a jacked up price. I decided to test this theory for myself and headed on over to eBay to look for a palette that I had been lusting after for a while, which was the 88 Shimmer Palette.

Now, I fully plan to do a post comparing all my palettes in a later post, but I do really believe they are all the same. Ebay is just way cheaper. Anyways...

I quickly found multiple sellers offering the palette I wanted. I ended up settling on this one and wound up paying around $10! Considering the same palette runs for $19.95 plus shipping (unless there is a sale), ten bucks is kind of a steal. I expected shipping to be insanely slow, but I ended up getting my package about ten days later.

I was really excited opening my package. It came in your standard brown paper package. When I opened it, my palette was taped between two thick squares of styrofoam. The palette itself was packed snugly in a ton of bubble wrap inside a black box which listed the ingredients in the eyeshadow. Not a single eyeshadow was broken, except for a tiny dent in one of the greens (which you can see in the above picture). It didn't bother me, though. The shadows were gorgeous!

The shadows come in a plastic black case. The case is not the sturdiest in the world, but considering how cheap the product is and how lovely the eyeshadows are it isn't much of a concern. There is a mirror on the inside and two disposable applicators (much like my Metal Mania Palette... hmmm... just saying.) The shadows themselves are super pigmented and go beautiful. There is a bit of powdery-ness to some of them, but I think this could be due to the fact that they were in my mailbox for days before anyone bothered to check it... gotta love the crazy holidays. I tried them out today and, with a primer, I think they are comparable in quality to some of the more expensive shadows I have tried. If you pat them on rather than swipe they powdery-ness doesn't matter at all. They blend like a dream, too! However, there were a few duds in the palette... all were still totally wearable, though. They just didn't have the same color payoff as the rest. I am sure with a good primer and a bit of patience the color can be built up! Also, there is a bit of glitter in these..., but they are a "shimmer" palette, after all.

Overall, I think these shadows are fantastic and I plan to purchase more of these to use on clients in the future. They last all day, too! For the price these absolutely can't be beat. I can't sing their praises enough. If you are a makeup collector like myself, or if you are just getting in to makeup, these are perfect!

Hope everyone had a great holiday!