Forever21 Makeup? Swatches and Review

Last time I was at Forever21 with my sister I picked up a little eyeshadow set to try. I've never tried any beauty products from this store before, so I wasn't sure what to expect, and to be quite honest I didn't have high expectations. The palette cost $6.80 (VERY inexpensive) for 10 shadow colors. Here are some pictures of the colors plus the chic clutch it comes in.

I filmed a haul video for the items I purchased (which will go up tomorrow) and while showing off this set I decided to swatch one of the colors... and realized that it had amazing pigmentation. Here are all the colors swatched on NW20 skin with Urban Decay Primer Potion as a base:

The colors are beautiful! This particular palette is a bit pink heavy but they had other palettes with more neutral colors. I looked online and didn't see this one, so it might be that every store has slightly different ones. This one is from their "Love and Beauty" line and I think it is a great deal for $6.80. The colors are creamy (not super powdery) and have a beautiful shimmer to them. They blend easily and came right off with a MAC wipe. Not only would I completely recommend this palette, but I will be picking up more shadow sets from Forever21 in the future. I think they are incredible quality for a super low cost.

One gripe is the packaging... not the super cute clutch case but the actual plastic packaging the product came in... mine was super beat up and looked like the palette had been thrown around a lot (they all looked like that) but that is hardly a gripe when the product is so great.

Overall thoughts? Worth it!

Product purchased by me.

Elle Fowler

ZPalette Review

For the last few years MAC palettes have been my choice for shadow organization, and in many ways they still are. They are affordable, easy to find (if you live near a MAC), and classic... I love the look of my little black MAC palettes all stacked up. I actually use a DVD holder from the container store to organize them which I find works really well. That being said, I have found another palette company that has been giving my little mac ones some competition. I will quickly insert a picture of a filled up MAC palette vs. a filled up ZPalette:

MAC Palette filled with 15 shadows: (note that you can pop the casing out and fit many more shadows if that interests you... personally I have always been scared to break my palettes). (P.S. I actually feel like saying "awww" when I look at this well loved palette).

Leopard ZPalette filled with 26 shadows:

ZPalette with the lid open (I went picture happy):

The MAC palettes are $14 and the ZPalettes are $20. I like that the ZPalettes have a clear lid so you can see the colors that are in it - I have labeled my mac palettes but sometimes the shadows get switched up and then I can never find what I'm looking for! The entire bottom of the ZPalette is magnetic so you can slap a magnet on the back of any shaped shadow or blush and put it in there. The two palettes are the exact same size, and the Zpalette comes in different colors. I'm loving the leopard print - feels much younger and trendier than solid black. It also comes in a smaller size that holds nine MAC shadows: (MAC also has a palette that holds 4 shadows).

Overall thoughts? I like the ZPalette a lot, and will use it especially when I travel since it fits so much. It is a bit more pricy than the MAC palettes but it feels really sturdy so I think that it would be durable. Another pro is that it won't look as dirty as the black mac palettes - mine get so dusty! I will be using these palettes and might buy a few, but as for completely switching my loyalties? Not yet... we will see :)

ZPalette: http://www.zpalette.com

Mac Palette: http://www.maccosmetics.com

ZPalette received for review consideration.