Palette VS Palette: MAC, Coastal Scents, Unii Palette and Zpalette

 EDIT: I am no longer making posts in this domain. Please follow me over to www.walkinmyeyeshadow.com to keep following my makeup journey

So as every makeup collector and makeup artist knows, you need good palettes for your collection/kit. Something that will hold all your products and protect them but also minimize the room it take up in storage.

The following is a list of palettes that I have tried in the past and my personal thoughts about them. I am not being paid to write this review and all the palettes I bought myself with my own money. I will be comparing all of these palettes to the MAC palette as I feel that these are the most accessible for most people.




So lets start from the start:
 

MAC 15 Pan Pro Palette and Quad - AUS$28 and AUS$15

The MAC Pro 15 pan palette is made of strong matte black plastic and is approximately 10cm x 18cm. The dividers in the palette are made of the same matte black plastic. The base is a solid magnetic sheet that allows the pro pans to be magnetized into place. Holds 15 MAC shadows when divider is in place, 27 when divider is removed.

The Quad is made of the same matte plastic on the base with a clear plastic lid and is approximately 8cm x 8cm. The divider is made of the same matte black plastic and like the 15 pan palette, base is made of a solid magnetic sheet. Holds 4 MAC shadows when divider is in place, 6 or 7 when divider is removed.

Pros:
- slim and compact, easy to store
- allows you to keep all your shadows in one place, saving on space
- the lid of the palettes are slightly raised so that if you depot your eye shadows and stick a magnet to the bottom of it, even though this raises the shadow higher than the dividers sometimes, it doesn't stop the palette from closing
- because the base of the palette is solid magnet, you can remove the dividers to fit more than 15 shadows

Cons:
- because of the dividers, it limits the amount of shadows you can fit in the palette, unless you remove it
- the solid plastic lid means that you can't see the shadows in the palette
- the eye shadows have "wiggle room" because the pans of the MAC shadows are slightly smaller than the wells of the palettes, this means that the eye shadows can move around more and have a higher chance of cracking
- the magnets of the pro pans aren't really that strong so the shadows aren't really that secure

Coastal Scents 15 Shadow Palette - US$7.95 + shipping

So I used these palettes the most for my collection of eye shadows. The case is matte black plastic and they are fairly compact in size being 5 3/4" x 4 1/4" when closed. As the title says, they hold 15 eye shadows with the wells being made of a black foam and they are the same size as MAC eye shadows.

Pros:
- smaller in size than the MAC pro 15 palette, therefore easier to store
- lighter in weight
- same size wells as the MAC palette so you can fit the pro pans

Cons:
- the foam insert of wells can't be removed so you can only fit 15 shadows
- the base isn't magnetized like the MAC pro palette so you have to stick magnets to the bottom of the well so that the eye shadow pans will fit
- by putting the magnets on the bottom of the wells, the eye shadows are raised higher so the lid of the palette doesn't close properly meaning that they shadows aren't secure

Unii Palette - $US28 + shipping

Sleek small palette made of plastic, smaller than a MAC palette at 3.7" x 6". It has a a rubberized seal around the edges of the palette to prevent spills and a strong clasp on the front to prevent the palette opening up unexpectedly. Like the MAC palette, the base is completely magantized. It also comes with a full mirror and a movable thumb grip. Holds 15 MAC shadows.

Avalable in 5 different colours: Eggplant (purple), Pomegranate (red), Twilight (blue), Lemongrass (lime green) and Snow (white)

Pros:
- small and compact, perfect for traveling
- clasp at the front stops the palette from opening unexpectedly and letting your shadows run free
- rubber seal prevents spills
- no dividers means that you can fit unusual shaped eye shadows or other products in it
- coming in 5 different colours means that you are able to colour co-ordinate your eye shadows (purples in purple, browns in red, blues in blue, greens in lime and silver/black in white)
- comes with a sheet of adhesive magnets the same size of the base, means that you have more than enough magnet to fill the entire palette
- movable thumb grip helps you keep a better hold of your palette
- full size mirror makes applying makeup on the go easier

Cons:
- smaller than the other palettes featured in this post so they don't hold as much
- thumb grip can take up a bit of room if you don't remove it

Zpalette - US$20 + shipping

My personal favorite and what I am currently using for my collection. Made of 70% recyclable cardboard with a clear perspex window on the lid. Slightly larger than the MAC palette 8" x 4.75". Holds 27 MAC eye shadows.

Available in 4 different colours, Black, Cheetah, Zebra and Pink (not pictured)

Pros:
- environmentally friendly with 70% recyclable cardboard
- clear perspex lid means that you can see the eye shadows inside the palette without opening the lid
- strong magnetic base without dividers which means that different shape shadows/products can fit inside comfortably
- strong magnetic closure on the lid
- different patterns means that if you are a makeup artist you can have different patterns for your kit and personal products (ie, black for kit, cheetah for personal)


Cons:
- slightly heavier than all the other palettes due to the strong magnet, meaning its harder to travel with


Hopefully you found this helpful. If you have any comments or would like to add anything else to this, please leave a comment below.