I know most of you probably already own this product, or have at least seen/heard about it. It’s everywhere! In ads all over the place, pretty much everyone and their mama has one in the beauty community on Youtube, they’re all over Ebay. You cannot escape them. I’m talking about the infamous 120-color eyeshadow palette. The coloring book size double-stack eyeshadow palette with 120 juicy colors.

This palette is sold by many different companies and depending on the retailer, you may see different logos and lettering on the front of each palette. However, no matter who you buy it from — it’s the exact same palette. They’re all made in the same country, just shipped out to different retailers so they can slap their own logos on’em and sell them to you. Seriously. I think there several editions of this palette as well, with each edition having different colors.

You can find this just about anywhere online from $20 – $30 a piece on average. If you pay over $30, you’re being ripped off. Also, be aware that any palette you see like this that has the MAC Cosmetics logo on it, is a fake. MAC doesn’t make this product, so don’t get the rug pulled from underneath you.

Ingredients:
Talcum Powder, Kaolin, Mica Powder, Magnesium Stearate, Titanium White Powder, Colorant, Pearl Lustre Mica Powder, Magnesium Stearate, Silicon Oil, Titanium White Powder.

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette
Each shadow is about the same size as a dime, and come in a slightly mounted dome shape

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette

I did some swatches of just a few of the colors, and it took a little bit of effort to pack them on just to get them to show up properly. As you can see on my fingers, the consistency is very powdery and loose. These shadows aren’t pressed very well. The matte formulas are pressed a little better than the shimmery ones, but they’re still too soft and fluffy for my liking.

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette

120 Color Palette
Chunky, right?

PROS

  • Great value.
  • Easy to find in most countries.
  • Great for the beginners.
  • 120 beautiful colors in the pan.

CONS

  • Heavy factory smell. It’s pretty funky to me, I don’t like it. It smells cheap.
  • Powdery/soft/fluffy eyeshadow texture.
  • Half of the colors aren’t very pigmented, and disappear with application.
  • Because of the soft and fragile texture, lots of people have complained that they’ve received this palette with the shadows completely shattered. That’s no good.
  • Quality isn’t all that great compared to other brands.

OVERALL

I remember seeing this about two years ago and wanting one for myself to see what the fuss was, and I got it a little over a year ago — and I barely touch it. I haven’t used every single color in this palette, but the ones I have tried just haven’t given me what I need to go back to this palette repeatedly. I don’t hate it, but I don’t love it either. I haven’t completely given up on it, but as of now, I don’t think its that great in comparison to Make Up For Ever, NARS or even MAC eyeshadows.

I honestly think this is a great palette for beginners who are interested in playing with different colors, and trying different looks. You have 120 colors to experiment with, so for some of you this may be worth the investment. It’s a good way to introduce yourself to the huge world of cosmetics.

All of the colors are really pretty, but you don’t always get great color payoff with them which is sad. Some of the colors break down on your lid to some sort of colored powdered substance and they just… disappear :| You’re like, “Wait a second, I know I just put eyeshadow on…so where the hell is it??”

At the end of the day, it might be worth trying. It’s definitely not gonna put a hole in your pocket by any means. Many of you may find this is a classic case of “You get what you pay for”. It might work better for you if you use good brushes and a good eyeshadow base, its up to you. If you hate it, give it to your little sister — or brother ;)

RATING

C

Availability: Amazon

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