UPDATE (June 17, 2021): Unfortunately, the Coastal Scents brand has gone out of business.

UPDATE (JUNE 17, 2021): Right now, the only affordable, build your own palette, single eyeshadows that I have personal experience with are Makeup Geek ($6.49 – $8.49). You can check out my review and swatches of their most recent formula by clicking here. Syndey Grace is another brand with single eyeshadows ($5.00 – $6.00) and they get rave reviews, although I’ve never personally tried them. I do not currently know of any single eyeshadows that are priced as low as Coastal Scents was priced.

Coastal Scents recently had a 99 cent sale on their single eyeshadows and I decided to place an order.  If you’ve been into makeup for a while, you may remember when Coastal Scents’ eyeshadows were always 99 cents when they went on sale.  At some point, the eyeshadows went up to $2.95 each.  Now the popular 99 cent sale has become the 50% off sale with a cost of $1.50 each.

If you are looking at this picture and thinking that the yellow sticks out like a sore thumb, I agree with you.  This was actually a mistake with my order.  I ordered the shade Amber Bronze and somehow was sent Midas Gold in its place.  No Worries, Coastal Scents has already shipped me the correct shade, but I decided to go ahead and swatch it with the rest in case anyone wants to see that shade.

I also just want to quickly add that even though there was a mistake with my order, that is not typical in my experience with the brand.  I have been ordering with them since 2015 and this is the first time I’ve ever had an issue.

If you are interested in knowing my thoughts on the formula, you can find that information at the bottom after all of the swatches.

On to the swatchfest!

1st Row (chamois nude, new penny, canyon coral, oatmeal tan, redstone, deep merlot, maroon berry)

If you used to follow me over on Sensitive Beauty Blog, then you likely saw this review on that site in the summer of 2019.  I wanted to post this one again because it still feels like one of those underrated products that deserves more attention.  This palette is also something that I still use and enjoy, so it feels appropriate to shine some light on it again.

I’ve had this little palette for just over a year now and I really enjoy the simplicity of it.  The textures on these are smooth (almost creamy feeling) and nicely pigmented.  The shimmer shades work well with both fingers and a brush.  I’ve only used the mattes with a brush and they blend easily, but I do have to be light-handed with the deepest shade.  In terms of formula, it is much softer than my preferred type of eyeshadow formula (MAC, MUFE), but I didn’t notice any fallout.  I personally don’t like the really soft creamy metallics and loosely packed mattes that are popular lately.  This seemed to strike a good balance between the two.  Although the shimmers feel creamy, there isn’t any excess powder kick-up or chunks to smooth out.

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I had high hopes for the **Milani Baked Highlighter ($11.99) because I really enjoy the quality of Milani products.  Unfortunately, I do not like this formula.  Rosa Italiana has a chunky texture, and I have to be very careful, or it accentuates any texture I have on my face.

It can be worked with if you can manage to use a tiny amount.  So, if you want to give this a try, I would suggest using a fluffy brush to avoid applying too much product.  Once applied, I think it looks decent, but it’s just too intense for my taste.

I’m pretty sure that this was my first experience with a blush by L’oreal and I am not disappointed.  I feel like they did a great job with the level of pigmentation.  You can go into the pan with any brush shape without being careful, but it still picks up enough color to show up.  In my experience, this blush works great with both synthetic and natural hair brushes.  The formula is easy to blend on the skin and despite the inclusion of emollient ingredients (i.e. coconut oil, mango seed butter), it behaves like a traditional powder formula.