ABH Moonchild - Real vs Fake

I was looking around on eBay a couple of months ago and decided to buy one of these fake Moonchild palettes on a whim, (secretly because i kind of hoped it would be real, which was highly unlikely seeing as it was around £10) but also because I already had the real deal, so wanted to see how it would compare. Of course, it was fake but was fun to see where this palette had some strengths, and where it was quite obviously a rip-off.

To start with: the packaging (in all the images the fake is at the top and real on the bottom.) As pictured above, the Moonchild palette has a holographic rainbow film over it when you move it in the light, and although the fake palette does have this on it, it is much less vibrant and just so much more noticeable on the real one. Below, you can see that the colour of the palette is a much brighter blue on the real one, and the fake just looks kind of dull, and has a strange yellow-ish tinge to it. Also, the Anastasia Beverly Hills is written in black on the real one but in silver on the fake one. I am not sure why they did this, as literally EVERYTHING else they have made exactly the same, maybe it was for copyright reasons so they can say that they didn't copy every single detail? I don't know.

ABH Moonchild Palette

ABH Moonchild Palette

Also, I don't know for sure what is in this palette as the list of ingredients is EXACTLY the same, like word for word. It could be that they actually have replicated the ingredients but they also could have made it using anything and just copy and #pasted the ingredient list. Also, they have added on the part that says it is cruelty-free but I don't know whether or not it is.

Here is the inside of the palettes (top = fake, bottom = real.) The most noticeable difference is the shade Purple Horseshoe,it is much lighter in colour in the fake and just doesn't have the same effect. The texture of the fake palette is actually pretty good and quite similar to the real one, and they are pigmented, just not as much as the real. Also, the pans do not quite fit into the holes properly and have little gaps around the edges, which you will be able to see better with the individual pan photos. Below I will swatch all the shades, the fakes will be left and real on the right.

1. Blue Ice

Blue Ice - Fake

Blue Ice - Real

Blue Ice natural light

Blue Ice LED light

I am only really going to talk about the colours in these palettes and not about the texture and how these powders feel too much with any of the shades, because tbh they all feel quite good and similar to the original - very creamy and easy to blend in and work with. So, on to the colour and looks.... Clearly the real ABH is much more pigmented, and it also has a lot more blue in it when it reflects in the light. The fake one is much more plain silvery which defeats the point of this colour as it is named 'blue ice', and the whole of this palette really as the colours in this are just so unique! Also, there is glittery is the real palette which has not been included in the fake which is disappointing as I loooove glittery highlighters (or just any type of glitter in general!)

2. Star

Star - Fake

Star - Real

Star - Natural Light

Star LED Light

The fake version of Star is a lot darker. This one is actually really pigmented but the colour is just a bit off. I would also say that ABH is a bit more shimmery and has a slightly more blue tone to it, and is definitely a prettier colour on my pale skin tone. Obviously I would not put this much onto my face :)

3. Purple Horseshoe

Purple Horseshoe - Fake

Purple Horseshoe - Real

Purple Horseshoe - Natural light

Purple Horseshoe - LED Light

This is the highlighter that is the most different between the two palettes. The fake one is clearly a much brighter purple and has more blue in it which reflects in the light. The real one does have a little blue, but also has more silver in it too. There is also a fair amount of glitter in the real one which they have no added to the fake, and as I have mentioned a few times I love glitter, so the real would always be my preference. Also, the pigmentation of this fake is not too good, you need to press quite hard and quite a lot to pick up quite a small amount of product even on your finger, whereas with the real one you can just give it a light touch and you will have plenty.

4. Pink Heart

Pink heart - fake

Pink heart - real

Pink heart - natural light

Pink heart - LED Light

This fake has much less of the pink reflection in it than the real. The actual colour is really really pretty and one of my fave's as it is a silvery white and the baby pink will reflect off it when you move or in different lights, and they have not been able to capture this very well as it just looks kind of flat compared to the real one which really pops. This one again really lacks the pigmentation and the glitter and is a really disappointing shade (the fake one.) Also, this one feels really powdery compared to the real smooth texture.

5. Lucky Clover

Lucky Clover - Fake

Lucky Clover - Real

Lucky Clover - Natural light

Lucky Clover - LED Light

I LOVE this shade! It is so unique - of the 73 highlighters I own, I do not have another shade like this (I really should have worn this last Friday because of St Paddy's day... never mind!) Anyway, these two are actually very similar, even more so in person. In the photos, the fake one looks a bit lighter, but that is just the pigmentation (which again isn't too great for the fake, ABH is of course on point.) So if you wanted a cheaper alternative for the Lucky Clover colour, you would have to be prepared to build it up a little, but this is actually a very good colour match.

6. Blue Moon

Blue Moon - Fake

Blue Moon - Real

Blue Moon - Natural Light

Blue Moon - LED Light

Last but by no means least I come onto the shade Blue Moon. The fake version of this one actually has amazing pigmentation, maybe even slightly better than the ABH! However, the actual colour lets it down as there really is little to no blue in the fake. Obviously it is cool toned, but you just cannot see the blue coming through in it like you can with the real version.

Overall, I would say that this is a fairly good dupe for the ABH Moonchild palette, with some shades coming off better than others so if you cannot afford the real deal then this would be a pretty good alternative. In my opinion though, I will always say go with the real thing for a few reasons:

1. The real ones are usually more pigmented, meaning that even though you have spent a bit more on it you use less product each time, and also that you don't need to have as much stuff on your face!

2. You know exactly what is in it. Even though there is a list of ingredients on the back, you don't know if this is necessarily what is in there.

3. The same about the cruelty-free aspect - the fake may have just copied the label word for word so you don't know if what they have stated is true, and there is no real way of finding this out.

4. The colours don't match exactly. I know that no one is going to notice this if it is on your face, but you would know, and I would just rather have the real thing. (And they did not include the glitter, which is a let down!)

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