Illamasqua Obsidian Eyeshadow (£15.50 for 0.07 oz.) is described as a “rich black.” It’s a medium-dark black with brown undertones and a mostly matte finish. MAC Dark Dare is comparable. theBalm Serious is a smidgen lighter. MAC Carbon has a similar intensity though it tends to be sheerer.
The texture is soft but not powdery, and it blends easily on the lid. I think with black eyeshadow blendability is even more important, because you may just want to darken an existing color and other times, you’ll want the color to play a central role in the look. It had good color payoff, and it applied smoothly and evenly. It’s not the blackest black eyeshadow I have seen, but it has a nice level of darkness that can also be used without looking dramatic right off the bat. When I wore this shade, it managed to stay on for eight hours (without a base) with no creasing or fading.
It's not the blackest black eyeshadow I have seen, but it has a nice level of darkness that can also be used without looking dramatic right off the bat.
Product
10/10
Pigmentation
10/10
Texture
9.5/10
Longevity
10/10
Application
4.5/5
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Where to Buy
This product can be purchased at the following retailers:
Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.
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Plus 4 — MAC Middle Eastern Collection Adds 4 Lipsticks to Permanent Range
MAC Lipsticks ($15.00 for 0.10 oz.) are getting four new and permanent shades: Double Shot (full bodied mocha cream), Mehr (dirty blue pink), Tabla (chocolate brown), and Yash (deep neutral). Mehr and Yash are repromotes from MAC + Mickey Contractor from spring 2011. They’re available online now and will be at stores/counters on September 13th (North America). PLEASE NOTE THAT MAC HAS TITLED THIS SET OF FOUR LIPSTICKS AS MIDDLE EASTERN, NOT ME. If you have problems with how they’re titling the collection, please contact them and voice your complaints–I did not come up with it! You can view the collection information here.
Double Shot is a subdued brown with a hint of rose and mauve. It just has the barest tinge of pink/mauve. It has an amplified finish, so the color coverage is opaque while the texture is smooth and creamy. This shade wore for six hours. CoverGirl Smolder is warmer, more red-orange. MAC Mocha is a smidgen more orange. MAC Kraft is browner.
Mehr is a subtly blue-toned medium pink. It has a matte finish. The color coverage is opaque, and the finish is mostly matte. The texture was soft and creamy, so it didn’t pull or tug at lips when applied. This shade wore for five and a half hours. Tom Ford Indian Rose is darker. Chanel Paradis is shimmery, sheerer, and cooler-toned.
Tabla is an orange-toned brown with a hint of red. It has an amplified finish. This had mostly opaque color coverage, and it felt a little “wetter” than the usual amplified finish–very creamy but slicker. This shade wore for five hours. I couldn’t think of a dupe for this, though I don’t think that means there isn’t one. MAC On the Prowl was the closest in the gallery, but it’s browner, less orange, sheerer.
Yash is a neutral peach–doesn’t read warm or cool. It has a matte finish. The color coverage is opaque, and the texture was smooth and creamy but not slick. This shade wore for five hours. MAC Delectable is darker, more orange. MAC Peachstock is lighter, more beige. MAC Deletcable is similar, slightly darker. Cle de Peau Calliope is a smidgen darker, glossier.
MAC lipsticks are vanilla-scented but have no discernible taste. The range is rather large, and things like wear time, texture, hydration, and so on depend more on the finish of the lipstick. Ampflieds tend to be creamier, more opaque in color, while mattes tend to be more opaque, a bit drier. None of the four were drying, though I wouldn’t say any of them were really hydrating.
All in all, four nice shades to see added to the permanent range. They're all on the more neutral side, wearable, and apply and wear well. If you're afraid of brown, try wearing a pink or red lip liner underneath!
Product
9/10
Pigmentation
10/10
Texture
9.5/10
Longevity
10/10
Application
4.5/5
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Where to Buy
This product can be purchased at the following retailers:
Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.
Disclosure: Temptalia uses affiliate links, which give us a small commission when you make a purchase (given to us by the retailer, at no cost to you). Your purchases help to support the site!
Illamasqua Naked Rose Blush ($24.00 for 0.14 oz.) is described as as “soft neutral pink.” It’s a light-medium rosy pink with a mostly neutral undertone (against my warmer complexion, it seems to pull just barely cool-toned). It has a mostly matte finish and true-to-pan color. MAC Crew is lighter, yellower. Chanel Blush Horizon de Chanel is lighter, more yellow-toned, a bit brighter. MAC Stunner is more yellow-toned and has a strong sheen. Bobbi Brown Pretty Pink is a bit cooler-toned. MAC Dame has a smidgen of plum in it.
The color goes on as it looks in the pan and in any variation lighter than that; it is, obviously, not a dark pink or the like, so the effect on deeper complexions may be subtle. There’s enough actual product and pigmentation for it to show up on a wide variety of skin colors, though. What’s nice about this shade is it works throughout the year and with many different looks. It can be used to complement a soft, barely-there face, but it can work to add color without overwhelming a more dramatic eye/lip (or combination thereof).
It has a soft, blendable texture that’s finely-milled. Not dry nor powdery, it applies easily to the skin, and the color is buildable. When I trialed the blush on my cheeks, it lasted a solid eight hours with very minor fading along the edges of the color. Had I not been looking, I don’t think anyone else would have noticed, it was that subtle.
This is the type of blush that I keep close by, because when in doubt, it almost always works with whatever I'm wearing. I love neutral pinks and soft beiges and browns for their versatility.
Product
9.5/10
Pigmentation
10/10
Texture
10/10
Longevity
8.5/10
Application
4.5/5
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Where to Buy
This product can be purchased at the following retailers:
Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.
Disclosure: Temptalia uses affiliate links, which give us a small commission when you make a purchase (given to us by the retailer, at no cost to you). Your purchases help to support the site!
Urban Decay Dangerous Eyeshadow Palette (2012) ($36.00 for 0.18 oz.) includes six eyeshadows: Gravity (deep violet with multi-colored micro-glitter), Loaded (deep metallic emerald), Evidence (deep navy blue), Deeper (metallic dark brown with bronze pearl), Mushroom (warm pale grey), and Ace (deep grey/blue shimmer) and one Lip Junkie in Naked (pinky neutral).
Gravity is a subdued purple with a hint of smokiness and silver micro-glitter. It was soft, fairly smooth, and had decent to good color payoff–just slightly under-pigmented (relative to the rest of the shades). I experienced just a minute amount of fall out while it wore. Urban Decay Freakshow has a stronger redder undertone. MAC Highly Charged doesn’t have a strong red undertone, but it is there. MAC Drawn to Drama is cooler-toned. Urban Decay Rockstar is smokier, more subdued, less purple. Lancome Perpetual Purple is a bit more vibrant. Estee lauder Cyber Lilac is similar. theBalm lavish Latoya is grayer.
Loaded is a deep forest green with a hint of teal and brown undertones. The color payoff is excellent (almost to the point where a little goes a long way!) with a soft, smooth texture. Bare Escentuals Max Volume is a bit lighter and greener. OCC Poison is greener. theBalm Jealous Jordana is less intense, slightly greener.
Deeper is a dark, chocolate bronze with a lighter bronze shimmer-sheen. It had good color payoff with a soft, smooth texture. This shade felt a smidgen powdery. NARS Paramaribo is more golden. MAC Venetian Tarnish is similar but a cream formula. Urban Decay Snakebite has less of a bronze sheen. MAC Tempting is just slightly lighter. MAC Bronze has a stronger orange undertone.
Mushroom is a gray-brown–it’s a very intense taupe. It had good color payoff, and a really soft, dense texture. This is part of the permanent range. MAC Keep Your Cool is more muted. Chanel Illusoire is less brown.
Naked is rosy light-medium brown with soft pink shimmer. It’s semi-sheer and emphasizes natural pink tones in the lips while adding subtle warmth and shimmer. Chanel Troublant is darker, plummier. This shade wore for three hours when I tested it.
Last year’s Dangerous Palette included Haight, Mildew, Virgin, Oil Slick, Rockstar, and Gunmetal, plus it came with an eyeliner and primer potion. It had a total value of $80.83 and retailed for $34. This year’s palette six 0.03 oz. eyeshadows and a 0.11 fl. oz. Lip Junkie. The value of this year’s palette is $64.80 worth of eyeshadow and $6.15 worth of gloss, which results in a total value of $70.95. The palettes don’t really seem similar to me; there’s no highlighter shade in this one, and it’s generally darker, smokier. It is, however, similar to Urban Decay’s Smoked Palette–given that Smoked is $49 but contains 10 eyeshadows (plus a full-sized Perversion eyeliner), I’d probably opt for that one instead. It has three overlapping shades: Loaded, Evidence, and Mushroom, while Barlust will work as the bronze hue, Rockstar as a purple, and Asphalt for a gray.
Of the three palettes, I think this one is the least worth getting while the Smoked palette is around. You just get so much more (almost double the eyeshadow, plus the eyeliner) for $13 more. The quality is absolutely there; the shades are soft, smooth, and pigmented across the board. Gravity was the “least” pigmented with decent to good color payoff and did have minor, but noticeable, glitter fall out while worn.
Of the three palettes, I think this one is the least worth getting while the Smoked palette is around. You just get so much more (almost double the eyeshadow, plus the eyeliner) for $13 more. The quality is absolutely there; the shades are soft, smooth, and pigmented across the board.
Product
9.5/10
Pigmentation
9.5/10
Texture
9.5/10
Longevity
9/10
Application
4.5/5
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Where to Buy
This product can be purchased at the following retailers:
Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.
Disclosure: Temptalia uses affiliate links, which give us a small commission when you make a purchase (given to us by the retailer, at no cost to you). Your purchases help to support the site!
Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set
One Sweet Deal for Your Eyes
Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set ($59.00 for 0.32 oz.) includes eight shades: Hustle (medium brown metallic), Junkie (teal with bright gold shimmer), LSD (navy with bright turquoise shimmer), Mushroom (taupe-pewter metallic), Perversion (blackest-black matte), Psychedelic Sister (bright purple shimmer), Rockstar (darkest eggplant), and Stash (dark green/gold). It also includes Grindhouse, which is a sharpener.
Hustle is a medium-dark brown with subtly warm undertones and bronze sparkle and sheen. It has good pigmentation in a single pass. Chanel Brun-Cuivre is just a touch darker with a red undertone. Urban Decay Bourbon has less sparkle and a stronger red undertone. MAC Lord It Up is darker.
Junkie is a blue-based teal with gold and teal sparkle. It has decent color payoff in a single pass but needs to be layered to pop. Tarina Tarantino Spark of Envy is greener and has no sparkle. MAC Undercurrent is exactly the same.
LSD is a blackened navy blue with lighter blue sparkle. The color payoff was rather disappointing, and you definitely need to go back and forth to get decent opacity. MAC Petrol Blue is much, much richer and bluer. MAC Industrial is a bit lighter.
Mushroom is a gray-brown taupe with a shimmer-sheen. The pigmentation in a single go is decent. Urban Decay Underground was the only possible dupe I could think of, but it is much browner.
Psychedelic Sister is a medium violet purple with subtle pink-red undertones and a soft sheen. The color payoff was good, and for a purple, noteworthy. MAC Designer Purple is a smidgen darker and has sparkle. MAC Rich Purple is darker, less pink.
Rockstar is a dark eggplant purple with burgundy shimmer. It has good pigmentation in one pass. Chanel Cassis is matte. Urban Decay Crash is very comparable.
Stash is an olive-green with antique gold shimmer. The color payoff is really good in a single go. MAC Buried Treasure is slightly darker. Stila Moray is a bit greener.
If you’ve ever wanted to try Urban Decay’s eyeliners or you enjoy them and want more of them, grabbing this set is a brilliant way to go, because you’re getting $162 worth of product for $59. Grindhouse is the only sharpener I actually use; it’s a dual-sharpener so you can sharpen both regular eyeliners as well as the jumbo-sized pencils. I use it for Urban Decay’s eyeliners as well as any other eyeliner or jumbo-sized pencil I need sharpened. Each eyeliner is full-sized, and normally, full-sized eyeliners retail for $19. Not all of these shades are available individually, so if you want shades like Hustle, LSD, Mushroom, Psychedelic Sister, or Junkie, you’re going to have to pick this up.
The formula is good overall, though pigmentation tends to be mostly opaque, some shades do fall short. All shades in this set are buildable, so you can get opaque color if desired, just not necessarily in one pass. The least pigmented shades from this set were Junkie and LSD. The most pigmented shades were Perversion, Rockstar, and Stash. I usually get around eight hours with no fading or smudging with Urban Decay’s eyeliner formula, and I’ve been wearing them for years. All eight shades felt creamy and glided across the skin easily without skipping.
Of all the holiday items from Urban Decay that they've announced so far, this is the best value, and the one kit I'd recommend putting on your holiday wish list.
Product
9.5/10
Pigmentation
9/10
Texture
9.5/10
Longevity
10/10
Application
4.5/5
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Where to Buy
This product can be purchased at the following retailers:
Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.
Disclosure: Temptalia uses affiliate links, which give us a small commission when you make a purchase (given to us by the retailer, at no cost to you). Your purchases help to support the site!
Urban Decay Whiskey/Zero 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil ($12.00 for 0.02 oz.) is described as a “rich brown” and “zealous black.” It costs less than a full-sized eyeliner ($19), because it’s half the size–but you do get to try two shades. Unfortunately, Whiskey is not available individually, though Zero is, in case that’s the side you would use most often!
Whiskey is a medium-dark brown with warm, orange undertones and a faint sheen. It has good color payoff in a snigle pass, and it’s a nice alternative to black, because it’s lighter and brighter. Urban Decay Bourbon has bronze sparkle and has less orange undertones. MAC Brownborder is darker.
Zero is a soft black. The pigmentation in one pass is decent but I recommend going back and forth at least once to get truly opaque color. MAC Engraved and MAC Graphblack are similar. Urban Decay Perversion is much darker.
I’m a fan of the 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil formula, because it’s long-wearing, pigmented, creamy, and easy to apply. It was my very favorite formula for several years! I still reach for shades from the range often. Both shades wear just around eight hours on the lower lash line for me, with no fading or smudging. Whiskey is creamier and more pigmented than Zero, which feels a smidgen dry in comparison, though I would not go so far as to describe it as such.
Depending on your eyeliner needs, this might be a great travel item or staple. In the long run, if you use a lot of black, it's not the most ideal way to purchase, since you're paying more than if you bought a full-sized black eyeliner.
Product
9.5/10
Pigmentation
9/10
Texture
9.5/10
Longevity
10/10
Application
4.5/5
Login or Register to be able to add this to your Vanity or Wishlist! Plus rate and review!
Where to Buy
This product can be purchased at the following retailers:
Sometimes products are discontinued or limited edition, which means that a product may no longer be available at one or more retailers so you may need to shop around for those hard-to-find shades! We try to update products as they become discontinued, and if you discover a product has been discontinued, please help us help others by letting us know.
Disclosure: Temptalia uses affiliate links, which give us a small commission when you make a purchase (given to us by the retailer, at no cost to you). Your purchases help to support the site!
You can view the collection information 
