Overview

Rating: 3.5/5 stars ★★★☆☆
Price Tag: $11.99-$14.00
Palettes Available: 2 palettes
Weight: 0.25 oz
Where to Buy: In Target stores; online at beauty.com, pacificaperfume.com

The Pacifica Enlighten palette is a warm based eyeshadow palette found at Targets nationwide. If you are looking for a vegan product that doesn’t contain questionable ingredients like mineral oil or parabens—such as e.l.f., also found at Target—this is the product for you.

Packaging

One thing Pacifica usually nails is the packaging, and that’s true with the Enlighten Eye Palette. Not only is the outer product box a beautiful Indian inspired design with gold foil accents, the palette itself is also a pretty white design with similarly styled Indian design in yellow.

Packaging for Pacifica Radiant Shimmer Coconut Multiples and Enlighten Eye Brightening Shadow Palette

The paper packaging has a sleek design with a clear plastic window on the lid that exposes all four shades. Once open, there are the words, “you are so pretty” printed above the window. The white design is a nice change of pace from the all too common black fare.

The Enlighten palette closed.

The palette also doesn’t waste space by adding a useless eyeshadow applicator. On the down side, however, is the noticeable lack of a mirror.

The inside of the Enlighten palette.

The paper palette has a glossy finish and while not as sturdy as plastic cases, is still tough enough to handle daily use.

The back of the the palette.

Formulation

The formulation is good, but I do have some gripes. Though the shadows are creamy and buttery smooth, I would have liked a little more consistency in pigmentation for the price.

Close up of the Enlighten palette. The shade Coral Sand is pinker and less orange in person.

Because of the pigmentation issues, you’re not going to be able to pull off a lot of complicated eye looks. It’s more suited for a lighter and simpler look.

Shades

Of the two palettes that have been officially released so far, the Enlighten palette is the warm version whereas the Mystical palette is on the cooler end of the spectrum.

The colors are well suited for the spring and summer months.

Swatches of the Pacifica Enlighten Eye Brightening Shadow Palette:
Skinny Dip, Coral Sand, Golden, and Urchin

Skinny Dip [pearl]

Though Pacifica calls this a matte finish, it’s definitely a pearl.

Skinny Dip is a light, neutral pink. It’s your standard highlighting color. You can see from the photos that this shade is very close to my skin tone. It’s probably more dramatic on those with mid to dark skin tones.

Coral Sand [shimmer/metallic]

I think this is a gorgeous color in the pan, but it unfortunately doesn’t translate well once applied. Coral Sand has some problematic pigmentation issues. It’s very creamy and applies well, there’s just not a lot of color.

It looks more orange in the photos than it actually is. In person, Coral Sand is pinker than what is shown in my photos.

Golden [shimmer/metallic]

Your standard gold color, but it does have a little bit of added glitter for sparkle. It’s a very pronounced yellow, so those with cool under tones take note, since Golden probably won’t work well for you.

This shade also has some pigmentation issues.

Urchin [shimmer]

All of the shades so far are relatively neutral and then bam, you have Urchin. I expected it to be the usual vegan purple that looks awesome in the pan but without fail applies sheer (and kind of grey), but this is a surprisingly pigmented dark purple. Definitely the most pigmented of the four.

I find Urchin to be too dark for my pasty white skin, and it seems at odd from the rest of the palette. Also, since purples are generally on the cool end of the color spectrum, putting Urchin with a bunch of warm shades is an odd choice. I would have gone with a chocolate brown.

Images

Final Thoughts

Pros: Pretty packaging, good selection of shades, buttery smooth consistency, widely available in stores
Cons: No mirror, pricier than similar eye palettes, some payoff issues

It’s exciting to have so many vegan options at Target. Not only does Pixie and Physicians Formula have some vegan offerings, but the e.l.f. and Pacifica lines are (nearly) completely vegan.

If you are willing to pay a little more for your eyeshadows, this palette by Pacifica is a good choice. Sometimes Target has moderate price cuts on Pacifica products, and you can get an additional 5% off if you have a Red Card connected to your bank account, to make the palette a little more affordable.

While it’s not a palette I reach for all the time, Enlighten is a nice addition to my ever growing palette collection. It’s a good fit for those looking for a more natural eyeshadow, and willing to pay for it. This palette is definitely one of the better eyeshadow options out there. There aren’t a lot of quality vegan eyeshadows that you can purchase in stores that I recommend, but Enlighten is one of them.