MAC Eyeshadow Swatches – Reds, Pinks, Oranges

These are swatches only!  I am in the process of re-swatching a ton of products, because the Swatch Gallery is designed so you can compare individual products, so all of the swatches have to be done in a way that each swatch can be photographed and shown individually.  I’m going through various brands, so there is some variety as I journey through it all, but here are fourteen MAC eyeshadow swatches, along with my descriptions of the shades and any notes on performance if it was below average.  Unless noted otherwise, shades are part of the permanent range.

Beauty Marked is a blackened burgundy with multicolored shimmer. It has a velvet finish. It’s also a real pain in the behind to use, because it tends to apply unevenly. A lot of the sparkle doesn’t translate as well on the lid as it does in a swatch.
Cranberry is a berried red with a frost finish.
Post Haste is a pinked red with a Matte2 finish. It has been discontinued. It is slightly darker and redder than Passionate.
Passionate is a raspberry pink with a matte finish.
Sushi Flower is a medium-dark pink with a satin finish. It’s hard to build-up color and applies rather sheer.
Swish is a lilac shimmered pink with a frost finish.
Da Bling is a medium pink with subtle yellow undertones. It has a veluxe pearl finish.
Rose is a mauve-tinged pink with a slightly frosted finish. I have no idea what the official finish is, as it is now discontinued and was only a PRO shade before then (there is nothing on the label of mine that indicates the finish). My guess is frost.
Pen ‘n’ Pink is a pale, pastel pink with a Matte2 finish. It has been discontinued.
Coppering is a rich copper with a veluxe pearl finish.  It is one of MAC’s best-textured eyeshadows.
Red Brick is a dirty orange with a matte finish. It’s darker than Orange.
Expensive Pink is a dirty rose with peach and gold. It has a veluxe finish. It’s one of MAC”s more complex shades.
Free to Be is a coral-pink with a matte finish.
Orange is a medium-dark orange with a matte finish. It is part of the PRO line.

Overall, a few of these are excellent eyeshadows (like Cranberry, Coppering, and Expensive Pink), while some are total duds (Beauty Marked, Sushi Flower). Several of these have matte finishes, and my experience with MAC’s matte formula is they tend to perform infinitely better on the lid than when swatched. They are a drier matte, and they’re not a buttery or powdery formula, so you don’t end up with any fall out or fading, but they can be finicky.

The Glossover

	MAC Eyeshadow Swatches - Reds, Pinks, Oranges B
	The best shades in this bunch are Coppering, Cranberry, and Expensive Pink, but mattes like Orange work so well on the lid that it's worth a look at, too. I would skip Beauty Marked and Sushi Flower.
	Product 8/10 Pigmentation 8/10 Texture 8.5/10 Longevity 10/10 Application 4/5
	Where to Buy
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MAC Beauty Marked Eyeshadow

MAC Cranberry Eyeshadow

MAC Post Haste Eyeshadow

MAC Passionate Eyeshadow

MAC Sushi Flower Eyeshadow

MAC Swish Eyeshadow

MAC Da Bling Eyeshadow

MAC Rose Eyeshadow

MAC Pen ‘n’ Pink Eyeshadow

MAC Coppering Eyeshadow

MAC Red Brick Eyeshadow

MAC Expensive Pink Eyeshadow

MAC Free to Be Eyeshadow

MAC Orange Eyeshadow

5 Great Orange Eyeshadows

Here are five of my favorite orange eyeshadows! I wanted to feature really orange shades — no melon or peaches here!

• MAC Rule Eyeshadow
• NYX I Dream of St. Lucia Eyeshadow Palette
• Sugarpill Flamepoint Eyeshadow
• MAC Red Brick Eyeshadow
• Make Up For Ever #5 Eyeshadow

What are your favorite orange eyeshadows?

Summer Makeup: The Bright Sunset – Yellow, Orange, & Red

I just can’t help it!   The latest shades to join the permanent range at MAC are all bright, they’re so *summer* and it’s not even technically spring yet! Oh, well… call it fashionably early? Hm. Whatever. This was just me having a little fun late at night If you want to wear it yourself and make it a little more tame or “everyday” (but I mean, it is bright!), use a more neutral highlighter (maybe Nylon) rather than going with color up to the brow bone.  I’d rock it either way!

You will need the following…

• Eyes: MAC Soft Ochre Paint Pot (neutral beige base), (yellow gold), MAC Golden Lemon Pigment (yellow gold), MAC Going Bananas Eyeshadow (soft bright yellow), MAC Goldenrod Eyeshadow (golden orange-yellow), MAC Free to Be Eyeshadow (coral), MAC Red Brick Eyeshadow (orange-red), MAC Nylon Eyeshadow (golden highlighter), Urban Decay Bourbon 24/7 Liner (brown), Chanel Exceptionnel Mascara (black)
• Cheeks: Dior Vintage Pink Blush (pink with peach)
• Lips: MAC Bronze Shimmer Lipstick, MAC Lychee Luxe Lipglass
• Brushes: 226 (fluffy crease brush), 219 (pointed crease brush), 214 (smudge brush), 249 (flat, firm brush), 239 (fluffy shadow brush), 116 (dense blush brush)
• Substitutes: Going Bananas = Nylon + Bright Sunshine (or Chrome Yellow)

For eyes, start by applying Soft Ochre paint pot as your eyeshadow base all over the lid with the 249. With the 239 and water-based mixing medium (or water), apply Golden Lemon pigment all over the lid portion. Using the 239, apply Going Bananas eyeshadow on the inner third of the eyelid. Next, apply Goldenrod eyeshadow on the middle third of the eyelid and lightly blend with the inner corner. Darken the outer third of the lid with Free to Be eyeshadow with the 239, gently brushing it into the lower crease. Next, define the crease by applying Red Brick eyeshadow with the 226. Lightly tap and brush Going Bananas eyeshadow directly above the crease to soften. To finish the eyeshadow look, sweep Nylon eyeshadow as a highlighter on the brow bone. Bring everything together by applying Bourbon eyeliner on the lower lash line, and Going Bananas eyeshadow lightly patted below the lower lash line with the 219 brush. Finish by sweeping lashes with Exceptionnel mascara.

For cheeks, apply Vintage Pink blush to the apples of the cheeks and sweep upwards towards the temple with the 116.

For lips, apply Bronze Shimmer lipstick first, and then layer Lychee Luxe lipglass for a complementing lip.

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MAC “Pop Colour” Collection:  Review, Photos, Swatches

Debuting today in-store are eight eyeshadow shades, permanent extensions to the freestanding and PRO store eyeshadow ranges. They will only be available in limited quantity and duration at counters (department stores), though. They’re also available online and should be online for as long as they’re permanent (think of online as much like a freestanding store). These are, thus, available in palette form when you purchase through freestanding/PRO stores or through the MAC website. Four shades were already PRO shades, two were previously limited edition shades, and two are brand new.

Temptalia’s Recommendations

Must-have: Lucky Green, Atlantic Blue, Winkle

Nice-to-have: Free to Be, Vibrant Grape

Skip: –

I found the texture and pay off to be pretty good across the board. The mattes tended to needed two or three layers to build up the intensity and make them smooth without a proper base, but since I’ve owned a few of these previously, I can say they work well in practice. I don’t think any of them are poor in quality to merit skipping them based on that; it comes down to whether or not you like a particular shade (e.g. I don’t know if I’m going to love Goldenrod on me). Sunny Spot is the only one of the eight that has a similar shade already in the permanent line (Bitter), but it’s not a dead-on dupe.

Eyeshadows

• Red Brick is a brick red — that’s really what it is. It’s an orange-y red with a matte finish. It can be pigmented, but it requires building up the intensity and/or a good base. Red Brick has been a PRO color for as long as I can remember. As far as I know, it is pretty much the closest to red eyeshadow I’ve seen from MAC (with the exception of Mi’Lady mineralize eyeshadow).
• Free to Be is a satin-y coral-pink. It can go on pink, or it can go on more coral; it will depend on what you use it with or your natural skin tone. Thanks to Sarah, she pointed out that the Free to Be from 2005 is actually a dusky gray-green. It is also going to be released as a limited edition shade (and in special packaging) in Give Me Liberty of London in March, as the description is a coral matte (fits).
• Goldenrod is a brightened golden yellow with a little orange thrown in. It’s much darker and more orange than Chrome Yellow. Like Red Brick, I can’t remember when this wasn’t at PRO.
• Lucky Green is a golden shimmered yellow-based green. This is one of my all-time favorite shades by MAC, and I’m really happy to see it become part of the permanent range. It was originally released with Belle Azure (2005). It has an amazing texture and goes on so smooth and pigmented, but it is a veluxe pearl, so I’ve come to expect that from my VPs! You can looks I’ve done with it here.
• Sunny Spot is a matte textured chartreuse shade. It’s a very yellowed green. It’s decently pigmented (more so than similar permanent shade Bitter–also yellower, by the by), but I’d have rather seen Sour Lemon from the PRO line (though that isn’t matte, to be fair). This is one of two brand spankin’ new shades to debut at both freestanding and PRO stores as an extension of the permanent line.
• Vibrant Grape is a medium dark reddened purple.   This one definitely needs a base underneath it to go on smoothly.  I’ve used it in practice, so I can tell you it’s easier to use than it is to swatch.  It’s been a PRO shade for sometime now, but it will now be permanent at freestanding stores in addition to PRO stores. It was also released in limited edition packaging in Style Warriors last year. And if you’re looking for ideas on how to wear, we have a Look Book for it! You can see the original launch images here. You can see a look with it here.
• Atlantic Blue is a gorgeous shade of deep ocean blue with kind of a violet twist to it (because it’s not just plain ol’ blue, nor is it a navy blue). I love this shade, and I really love that it’s matte. Works excellently in the crease! This was originally part of the PRO line, but it is now permanent at freestanding stores, too. Check out a few reader-submitted ideas on how to use this shade in our Look Book.  Here are a few looks I’ve done with it: here, here, here.
• Winkle is a softened sky blue with an edge of periwinkle. It’s not quite periwinkle (not nearly enough purple), but it’s not quite a true sky blue either (check out the PRO shade Sky Blue if that’s what you’re looking for). This is the second of the two brand new shades.

Any favorites for you? What are you getting? (Or not getting?)

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MAC Red Brick Eyeshadow

MAC Free to Be Eyeshadow

MAC Goldenrod Eyeshadow

MAC Lucky Green Eyeshadow

MAC Sunny Spot Eyeshadow

MAC Vibrant Grape Eyeshadow

MAC Atlantic Blue Eyeshadow

MAC Winkle Eyeshadow

MAC Eyeshadow: Red Brick, Free to Be, Goldenrod, Lucky Green

MAC Eyeshadow: Goldenrod, Lucky Green, Sunny Spot, Vibrant Grape

MAC Eyeshadow: Lucky Green, Sunny Spot, Vibrant Grape, Atlantic Blue, Winkle