BH Cosmetics 88 Matte & 88 Shimmer Palette Review

Hello, my friends!  Last week I ordered some makeup palettes from BH Cosmetics, and they have arrived!  I have taken some time to play with the palettes, and I thought I would share my thoughts about them with you, my friends and readers!  

I love these cases- so slim, close tightly, and each has a mirror.

I ordered these palettes from BH Cosmetics , and got them on a "pre-Valentine's day sale".  I have been stalking BH Cosmetics website for a while, and I have to say, that I have NEVER not seen these palettes on sale.  You know me, this only average mom can't resist an above average deal!  They have a huge assortment of palettes available, in lots of different sizes, and even some that you can personalize with your choice of shadow colors.  I purchased both of these palettes for $31.29, shipping included.

If you frequently watch youtube makeup tutorials, then you are no stranger to the concept of the 88 shadow palettes.  I thought I would try both the 88 shimmer and the 88 matte palettes, to save on shipping,  I figured that I would like whichever one I got a lot, and want to try the other one to see if it was even better, and that I might as well save myself the shipping and order them together.

The box was packed really well, and everything arrived safely.  My hubby and the kids had a blast playing with the honeycomb cut brown paper that was used to protect the palettes.  


Let's start with the one I wanted the most, the 88 matte palette, shall we? 

Lots of colors to choose from!

I was a bit sad to see that not every shadow in the palette is matte, there are a few that have some shimmer to them. I like the matte colors because they are a nice, flat base and are better when I don't want a shimmery look.  I probably would have been smarter to get the neutral matte palette, because I think I gravitate more towards neutrals with my matte colors, and shimmers for my vibrant colors.  That is just my personal opinion.  

The pigmentation also seems to be hit and miss- one color will be very very pigmented and one swipe with my brush will be super dark, and another will need four or five swipes to get the color I'm looking for.  The shadows blend well, and with all of the colors, it's easy to create lots of different looks!  All in all, it's a great palette, and I have used it frequently already.  Grade: 4/5

I also purchased the 88 shimmer palette, and I really like this one too.  

As you can see, the color selection is very similar to the matte palette, but not exactly the same shades.

 
The colors have a very nice shimmer, although some have more shimmer than others.  I wanted to try the matte palette because I don't have but a couple matte shadows, but I really wanted the shimmers also because I love a shimmery eye look.  I have the same problem with the shimmer palette as I do with the matte one; some shades are super, super pigmented; but others, not so much.  

They blend very well, and this affordable choice is a great starting point for anyone who wants to experiment with different shimmery eye looks!  Grade: 4/5

Overall, I am please with  my purchase from BH cosmetics.  I think that these palettes are a great starting point for anyone who wants to get creative with their makeup, and can't afford/don't want to invest in an expensive, high end palette from, say Urban Decay, or put lots of money into shadows from, say, MAC.  One downside of these palettes, as the colors don't have names, or even numbers, so although BH offers a selection of shadows individually (and has build a palette sets), it would be very hard to try to get the exact shade to replace a favorite from this palette, if it is even available at all.  

BH has lots and lots of palettes to chose from, both bigger and smaller that these ones.  The shadows seem be of a good quality, and aren't grainy or chalky (at least that I have experienced!).  I haven't done a "dupe check" against any of the high end shadows that I have, but I am fairly certain that there ARE some dupes there, and if I ever have spare time to check them, I would be happy to do a post on it, if there is an interest.

I am also thrilled with BH's turnaround time on my order.  I ordered these on a Saturday evening, and they shipped Monday (MLK Day!), and I had the order on Friday.  I live in Delaware, and the package shipped from California, via UPS.  Considering that sometimes a LETTER takes three weeks to go to the next town, via the post office, I couldn't be more pleased that my BH order arrived a week before their website said it would.  Kudos!

Honestly, the best part of these palettes, is because they are affordable, my girls and I can play in them together!  If my three year old wants to play "make ups" and wants to use MY makeup and not hers, I have no qualms handing over this palette (under my supervision) and letting her choose a shade, dip her brush, and put the shadow on!  No doubt we will have hours of fun playing with these fun palettes.

I didn't do a swatch test for all of these shades, mostly because I don't have enough arm to test them all!  If you would like to see swatches of all of the colors, I would be happy to do so.  Just let me know!


Do you have the shimmer and/or matte BH Cosmetics 88 palettes, or another BH product?  Like it, love it or hate it, I would LOVE to hear from you!
Is there another product you would like to see me review?  Let me know, I would be happy to check something new out, and let you all know my thoughts!


Disclaimer: This review is solely my opinion, on a product I paid for out of my own pockets.  I have not been compensated for this opinion in any way, and it is my honest thoughts on the products listed above.