Coastal Scents REVEALED 1 & 2 Eyeshadow Palettes

Once upon a time, I was makeup hoarding shopping like a bankrupt maniac bride-to-be and faced the dilemma of - "To Splurge or To NOT To Splurge" on Urban Decay NAKED palettes. This debate was closely followed by WHICH Naked palette to splurge on - 1, 2, or 3. 

I would look at reviews, swatches, dupes, raves, rants, and what-nots. To add fuel to my misery, NAKED 3 was recently released and was all over my social media feed. The hole in my pocket was the size of an huge meteorite hitting a barren land. I had to place an order and make it fast since the package transit & customs delay are inevitable. I needed it to reach me before the wedding. 

Amidst all this chaos was Coastal Scents newly-launched REVEALED palette which had the dupes of Naked 1 AND 2 in the same palette. There was hardly a Youtube video review and a couple of swatches online at that time. It was something around $20, so I only placed an order for "value-for-money" reasons - Both Naked 1 & 2 shades $105 worth for $20 ONLY. What's even more alluring was - a 50% off sale making this gorgeous palette to be $9-10! I barely do eye makeup and love neutral shades, so I didn't care much about how the palette for perform in the dirt-cheap price tag. 

IMPORTANT - The original price of these palettes have been hiked to $39.95 at Coastal Scents. As of 26/11/14, Revealed 1 and 2 are on 50% off sale for $19.95.

ROUGE made it possible for me to lay my grubby little hands on this one after a bit of technical struggle. This awesome lady has always come through for all my shopping needs! Big Thumbs Up for Nida at ROUGE before I unleash the swatches & review!

Since I had the Fairy Godmother fetch me a sweet deal on Coastal Scents REVEALED, I managed to splurge on NAKED 3. So, the awesome-ness of all NAKED shades at my disposal. 

Win-Win. 

*cue bridal smugness*

:-D

A little while later, there have been rumors about REVEALED 2 launch by Coastal Scents. The new palette was supposed to dupe shades of NAKED 3. 

Well, Hallelujah!

...she said with pure joy! :-) 

I nudged the shop-partner-in-crime ROUGE to get this as soon as it goes on 50% off sale. Another $9 and REVEALED 2 came home to mama!

Left - Coastal Scents REVEALED 2
Right - Coastal Scents REVEALED

Top - Coastal Scents REVEALED 2
Bottom - Coastal Scents REVEALED

My point-and-shoot camera could not capture the gorgeous-ness that is these palettes. 

<3 The actual review shots taken for each of them were lost during data transfer. These were a few imperfect bed shots that I have edited to an acceptable level for sharing with you guys. Let's get to the individual review & swatches for these bad boys.

Coastal Scents REVEALED Palette

Coastal Scents REVEALED palette containing 20 nude matte & metallic shades now retails for $39.95 at the Coastal Scents website. They have doubled the price in less than a year of its launch. I'm sure that was due to its sky-rocketing popularity with people like me who wanted maximum bang for their buck in neutral shades. A single Urban Decay NAKED palette costs around $54 for 12 eyeshadows. Its total eyeshadow content is 0.6 oz. Skip this part if you're not into technical stuff, but NAKED 1 & 2 would in total be $108 for 24 eyeshadows and a total weight of 1.2 oz. REVEALED palette is now roughly $40 at full price with 20 eyeshadows with the total of 1.0 oz. 

The comparison is skewed because Urban Decay has superior packaging, primer samples, eyeshadow brushes, and palette mirror included in their deal. However, if you could compromise on those, REVEALED palette is a cost-effective pick even at its full price of $40. The best thing is, Coastal Scents goes on flat 50% off sale frequently which lowers the price of the palette to $20. It makes a great deal to invest in, if you're on a budget fix.

From the price comparison to the palette itself, let's see what it offers - A slim cardboard packaging with a magnetic closure, REVEALED palette does not come with a palette mirror or a brush. Its light-weight but reliable closure make it travel-friendly. I have taken frequent trips with this one stuffed in my purse & luggage. Never faced any depotting or eyeshadow damage till date, fortunately. 

The palette is a mix of warm & cool toned neutrals that you can use for both day & night looks. I love it for its variety. The finish range from matte to metallic. Some shades lean more satin than metallic. 5 out of the 20 shades were matte - which is okay, but I would have preferred a more diverse matte range instead of a couple of similar metallic shades in the palette. Since Coastal Scents is trying to deliver no-frills value for your money, they decided not to name the shades. I don't feel strongly about that, but the MUA and bloggers teaching/doing makeup tutorials might face issues in referring to the shades. A simple numeric shade would have been better, if they didn't want to spend time naming them. This isn't a dealbreaker for me though. 

Top Row Swatches

Bottom Row Swatches

Considering the not-so-high expectations from these shades, I was pleasantly surprised to find most of these decently pigmented. I have been reaching for this palette for my daytime office look to the after-wedding dinners. From honeymoon Desert Safari to Sweat-fest Summers of Pakistan, this palette has been my go-to. I have used the eyeshadows the following ways:
- Dry without primer
- Dry with Kryolan Stick as Primer
- Dry with Urban Decay Primer Potion
- Dry with NYX HD Primer
- Dry with NYX Jumbo Pencil - Milk
- Wet without primer
- Wet with Kryolan Stick as Primer
- Wet with Urban Decay All Nighter Spray (no primer)
- Wet with MAC Fix+ Spray (no primer)
- Wet with MAC Stageline Makeup Fixer Spray (no primer)

This may look like one of those permutation or probability problems :-D

No, I have not use wet eyeshadows with any fixer spray AND the primer. That would surely give the best color payoff though. Wet eyeshadows up the intensity as notch and the primer also aids it further for being more vibrant and long-lasting. The swatches above are taken with wet eyeshadows with Stageline fixing spray and no primer. I wet the brush with a pump-ful of fixing spray before picking the product up. Since the lighting was poor indoors, I wanted the color to show properly. Wet brush applications should not be too frequent in daily routine because it causes hardened surface of the eyeshadow pan when the moisture dries. Moreover, you need a more expert hand to perfectly blend wet eyeshadows befor they dry (and not budge).

Overall, the eyeshadows were buttery and pigmented. The matte ones are slightly powdery and need some effort to build up. I mostly use them as the gradient or transition shade in the socket as they're closer to my skin color. The first (matte) color has been frequently used by me for highlighting under my brows since I have bulging hooded eyes. I don't think it shows up to my desired level.

The shimmery/metallic shades are the most pigmented. Some are soft & buttery, so they are prone to fall out in the pan. When applied, I don't experience any shedding/fallout - usually because I either set them with a fixing spray or primer. There is a huge variety & shades of warm shades - copper, shimmery taupe, champagne, rose-gold, earth-browns, etc. One metallic grey shade with cool/blue undertones and a mid-intensity black. On its own, the black shade looks pigmented, but it is not as intense as I'd want it appear. In the flash, the black appears to be a dark grey on the eyes. If i need to do a pump up the black, I usually use it wet over a base of pencil/gel black liner. I've found that it always helps if I don't have any other color underneath because that shade with peek through and not let the black be...umm... blackest.

The lasting power of these eyeshadows is amazing. They do tend to fade a little (without primer) in about 3-4 hours. They are improved with primers & wet applications, of course. They fully come off with a makeup remove or even cleansing face wash. I have oily eyelids and they're hooded so the creasing is my main issue with most eyeshadows. REVEALED palette creases 20% without primer on me after 3+ hours. UD Primer Potion and NYX HD Primer work better in controlling the creasing, the NYX Jumbo Pencil is not meant to be a primer itself, so when worn underneath, it does make the eyeshadows brighter, but doesn't help the longevity or creasing in my case.

As I mentioned before, the pictured swatches were taken with Stageline Makeup Fixing Spray applied on the brush. The intensity of the eyeshadows improved by 30-40% than the dry swatches. Not only that, the makeup fixer also "set" the eyeshadows wonderfully. This was my first time trying this and I was surprised to see even when I simply wiped with the tissue, the color remained until I cleaned it with makeup remover. Although I'll try to review Stageline Spray in detail, but for PKR 600 only, this could be the best bet for your makeup fixing needs. Have a look!

After cleaning the swatches with a tissue multiple times

Even after using the REVEALED Palette frequently, it looks as good as new. I do tend to use wet eyeshadows less because didn't want the surface to harden like it did when I went overboard with the mists and sprays a couple of times. I don't own NAKED 1 and 2, but I have swatched and worn them from Sephora stalking in Dubai. They do look lovely and buttery, but I couldn't spot much difference. I have tried other NAKED dupes as well in MUA, Sleek, NYX and Sivanna, but this has been the best in terms of quality for the price paid. My only concerns were inclusion of more matte shades and mirror in the palette, if not the brush to make it more travel friendly. Still, a total WIN for me

Coastal Scents REVEALED 2 Palette

Coastal Scents REVEALED 2 Palette retails for $39.95 originally at Coastal Scents website now. I did get it at the 50% off on old price - $9.99. Right now, there is a sale going on the Coastal Scents website where you can grab REVEALED 2 for 50% off at $19.99. In terms of packaging, it is identical to REVEALED palette (without brush or mirror) and contains 20 eyeshadows in a skinny cardboard packaging. 

If it isn't obvious - REVEALED 2 is a close dupe of NAKED 3 (and more). The color palette is similar to NAKED 3 with more shades added. I have not done a detailed comparison yet, but here you go with the peeks of their similarity:

While the NAKED 3 palette is too neutral for my taste, I do prefer REVEALED 2 due to its neutral-to-bold color range and value-for-money, of course. In general, I find the rose-hued colors more flattering on fair skinned beauties. For medium to dark damsels, subtle differences in the pinks & rose gold tones might not be as flattering or diverse in terms of different looks. This is just my personal observation & experience. I have still seen various stunning combos online using colors similar to REVEALED 2 & NAKED 3. 

6 out of 20 shades in the palette were matte while others were satin-metallic. The two on the bottom-right corner corner had the most beautiful shimmer. Especially the violet-black one with magenta shimmer. I usually don't fall for the berry-toned matte color in terms of eyeshadows, but this one makes it way too exciting. As for the pale pinks, I see a lot of repitition like the champagnes and browns in REVEALED 1. These don't excite me much because you're unable to tell the difference when they're on your lid.

Top Row Swatches

Bottom Row Swatches

Again, the swatches were done with a wet brush using Stageline spray. You can see how intense the color payoff is except a couple of shades. The top row was not my favorite due to its color range. The 2nd swatch from the left is a pale pink matte color which I found to be particularly chalky. Similarly the 6th from the left was less pigmented than the remaning colors. The texture of the eyeshadows was buttery overall, but I noticed slighly more fallout in the palette in REVEALED 2 as compared to the first palette. 

These were mostly worn dry with and without primers over the Eid and my trips to Lahore. The blendability of the eyeshadows is not a big challenge either. However, I sometimes need to layer up more to show the difference when different pinks are applied on the lid. The types of eye makeup combinations that I am comfortable wearing were limited with this palette. To have the colors complement each other while creating a balanced look is what I tried with this. Eventually, I would end up looking like I have applied the same colors without much difference. I need to venture into bolder yet wearable choices. Especially when this one does have more range than the muted rose-toned NAKED 3 colors. 

In terms of longevity, the color lasts unless removed by the wipes or makeup remover. I found it slightly creasing when compared to the REVEALED palette. It could just be the contour and shape of my hooded eyes, but the primer solves that issue. I found the color to last longer when I applied concealer over my lid as well and then set it with the powder. It doesn't keep the natural oils at bay for over a couple of hours, but does help in less humid weathers like the Autumn/Winter. 

Would I recommend this palette - Yes. Especially for those who like NAKED 3, but are in a budget and find the shade selection in the Urban Decay's palette to be underwhelming. You can experiment with bold neutral shades unlike the browns and golds found in most NAKED 1 & 2 dupes. Full price might still be a little steep for this one and the eyeshadows were marginally less exciting for me than the REVEALED palette. My final verdict for this one is:

Bravo, Coastal Scents on making these wonderful palettes. REVEALED & REVEALED 2 can be shopped directly from Coastal Scents if you live in US/UK. People in Pakistan can place their orders via ROUGE. Watch out for the sales! 50% Off is going on right now!

I have not used any other Coastal Scents products yet. Have you? How do you find their eyeshadows specifically? If there are any other products I should try from their brand, let me hear the recommendations in the comments below!

Cheers,

Bia