NARS Marie-Galante Eyeshadow Duo ($34.00 for 0.14 oz.) is described as an “iridescent orchid” and “regal blue.” The left shade is a pale pink lilac with a lavender iridescence. The color payoff is sheer and translucent. MAC Light Violet is a bit similar, though not as pink. Inglot #346 is also more lavender, less pink, and has a matte finish. Wet ‘n’ Wild We’re Blasting Off is similar, though perhaps a little pinker, and has more of a satin-like finish. The right shade is a darkened navy blue with a violet shimmer and sheen, which becomes more pronounced when applied (it looked less blue, more purple). The pigmentation on this is decent, but there is some sheerness in the swatch as well as when applied. Tom Ford Cobalt Rush is very, very similar–less iridescent. MAC Starless Night is much darker, deeper. MAC Imaginary is purpler.
This eyeshadow duo creased after six hours over an eyeshadow primer (NARS Smudgeproof, actually), and on top of the creasing, there was significant fading of both shades from this duo (the blue was on the upper half of the lid and in the crease while the lilac shade was blended above the crease). I have normal-to-dry lids, and NARS Smudgeproof is my go-to primer normally, and while NARS eyeshadows do, typically, have some minor creasing and/or fading when worn without a base after eight hours, the wear here was abnormal. The creasing became more apparent after eight hours, but the fading was surprisingly noticeable after six and steadily worsened as the day wore on. There was some minor fall out from the shimmer in the shades from this duo as well that occurred while it was worn (but I didn’t see any during application). The wear was just as bad without a primer–the creasing/fading just became noticeable at the four hour mark– I thought maybe the glaze-like finish would adhere better to bare lids but no dice.
The texture of this particular eyeshadow duo is unlike anything I can remember seeing from NARS. It has a very glaze-like finish, that’s almost a little wet, but still a powder. If you’re familiar with Stila’s Sparkle eyeshadows, Tom Ford’s Sparkle eyeshadows, or Urban Decay’s Stardust eyeshadows, you may have a better grasp of that kind of texture–these aren’t quite as “wet.” The closest texture would be to Tom Ford’s sparkle-finish eyeshadows. The bluer shade looks really lovely when applied–wet and shimmering–but it actually seemed to disappear as I was applying it. I went back three times to darken the color before leaving it alone. The lilac shade was pretty soft and didn’t want to build up in color at all; the iridescence in it is a lot less noticeable compared to the blue (it just looked like a pink-lilac).
I was exceptionally disappointed in the results of Marie-Galante. As far as wear went, it killed me with three major no-nos: creasing, fading, and fall out. It had issues with color payoff, too, which was really just icing on an inedible cake–like a cake that looks delicious but turns out to be made out of plastic.
I was exceptionally disappointed in the results of Marie-Galante. As far as wear went, it killed me with three major no-nos: creasing, fading, and fall out. It had issues with color payoff, too, which was really just icing on an inedible cake.
Product
6/10
Pigmentation
7/10
Texture
8.5/10
Longevity
4.5/10
Application
3.5/5
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Chanel Chelsea Glossimer ($28.50 for 0.19 oz.) is described as a “brilliant pink lipgloss [that] delivers the ultimate pop of colour, along with subtle shimmer and a high-shine glow.” I have no idea what Chanel was seeing, because this gloss is nearly colorless when applied. At best, and I feel like I’m being generous, it emphasizes the natural pinkness of your lip color, but the reality is it looks like clear gloss with a shiny finish. The shimmer is not just subtle but barely there; there were maybe four or five flecks on my lips when I applied the gloss.
Chanel says that this “striking hue is named for a thriving artistic and cultural area of London.” It’s very, very striking in the tube, but that is where it ends. The whole concept reminded me of Gloss Fluo de Chanel from 2010, where the tubes were vibrant and neon, but the product itself was very sheer. It feels like a Glossimer: smooth, non-sticky, comfortable. It’s thick without being heavy; glides on without slipping around. The wear is about an hour and a half when I tested this shade. If Chanel wanted to indicate this was sheer, perhaps “brilliant pink,” “ultimate pop of color,” and “striking hue” were not the best descriptions. I felt a bit duped myself after I purchased this and then swatched it.
If Chanel wanted to indicate this was sheer, perhaps "brilliant pink," "ultimate pop of color," and "striking hue" were not the best descriptions. If you love the Glossimer formula and want something that really has little to no color and little to no shimmer, you'll like this.
Product
9/10
Pigmentation
1/10
Texture
9/10
Longevity
6/10
Application
4/5
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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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MAC for Miss Piggy Eyeshadow Swatches, Photos, Reviews
MAC for Miss Piggy is a small, online-only collection that will launch November 14th, 2011 both for North America as well as select international locations at maccosmetics.com. There is really only one new product, as the two other pieces from the launch include Rapidblack Penultimate Eyeliner (permanent) and #36 Lashes (permanent).
That new shade is Miss Piggy Pink, which MAC describes as a “mid-tone blue pink” with a frost finish. It’s a cool-toned, blue-based pink that has a little lilac in it; it does pull just a little purple in some lighting. The finish looks more like a satin than frost, because it’s a very subtle sheen rather than an overt frosted finish. Of course, the real issue is the dry, stiff texture that delivers sheer, uneven color that’s as difficult to work with as it is to swatch. It took about eight applications to achieve the color shown in the look pictured below; I don’t mean patting the brush once on the top of the shadow and flicking it against the lid–I mean swirling and jabbing the brush against the eyeshadow to loosen the powder and then patting, not sweeping, onto the lid to pack on the color. Possibly even taking a palette knife and scraping off a layer to pack onto the lid. I can get it to work, but boy, the amount of effort and unnecessary time spent on it, is disappointing when you’re shelling out $15 for it.
In all honesty, this collection looks like something that happened at the last minute. I envision a scenario where MAC HQ gets a call from the Muppets HQ about, “Hey, we’d love to collaborate, can you turn this around in a few weeks?” We’ve seen MAC collaborate many, many times with iconic figures and celebrities, from Barbie to Wonder Woman to Disney’s Villains, and I felt like you could see the thought process, the theme, how things were intertwined. There’s no special packaging, no real MAC spin or take on Miss Piggy and everything she embodies. Pink for Miss Piggy seems expected, and if that is the only product you’re going to put out, it seems like a missed opportunity to do something really special. Or at least knock-your-socks-off quality? I didn’t grow up with The Muppets, and without something more to pull me in, this is a total pass.
For fans of The Muppets, it might still be yet one more piece to add to your collection of memorabilia. With so many collaborations between brands and The Muppets, you might be better off finding another piece, though! For those who are not fans, there's no compelling reason to pick up such an under-performing eyeshadow.
Product
6/10
Pigmentation
6/10
Texture
5/10
Longevity
9/10
Application
3/5
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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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MAC Technakohl Liners: Fancy Moves, Going for Gold, Practice Makes Perfect, Seasonally Spicy, Silver Skates, Smooth Manoeuvre
MAC Glitter & Ice Technakohl Liners
MAC Glitter & Ice Technakhol Liners ($16.00 for 0.012 oz. each) include six limited edition shades: Fancy Moves (purple with pearl), Going for Gold (gold with pearl), Practice Makes Perfect (blue with pearl), Seasonally Spicy (brown with pearl), Silver Skates (silver with pearl), andSmooth Manoeuvre (black with pearl). The collection is slated to hit stores on October 27th.
Fancy Moves is an eggplant purple with silver sparkle. It’s dry, stiff, and not well-pigmented. It’s closer to Urban Decay 1999, though it is purpler, less burgundy. It’s closest to Make Up For Ever #4L, which doesn’t have shimmer.
Going for Gold is a darkened, yellow-based gold with gold sparkle. It’s dry, stiff, and isn’t opaque in a single stroke. It’s a bit darker than Urban Decay Eldorado.
Practice Makes Perfect is a medium-dark blue with a hint of teal. It’s not quite as teal as NARS Kaliste, but it is reminiscent of it. This shade was one of the best performing ones, as it didn’t apply unevenly when you went to build up the color, though it was still on the drier side.
Seasonally Spicy is a warm, medium-dark chocoalte brown with subtle burgundy-brown shimmer. It’s a bit warmer than MAC Brownborder. This one had the creamiest texture, though it was still drier than other Technakohls. The color payoff was better, too.
Silver Skates is a light silver with a metallic finish. It is, quite possibly, the most underperforming silver eyeliner I have ever come across. The pigmentation was poor, and the texture was stiff and dry, so it tugged at the lash line. Consider one of these silvers instead.
Smooth Manoeuvre is a dark black with silver sparkle. I like that it can be built up without causing the color to become uneven, but it does need a few passes to be opaque. I couldn’t think of a dupe for this one (it appears I just have a metric ton of non-shimmery black eyeliner).
I like the Technakohl formula a lot; I used to use Graphblack exclusively, because it was a nice black, smooth, creamy, and wore well. I don’t know what happened with these. The soft, glide-on creaminess of the formula is completely missing from all six of these. MAC touts these not only as “soft and creamy,” but that you should expect “intense, rich colour deposit.” I’m majorly disappointed by these, because they’re nothing like the formula I know. The good news is at least they’re still long-wearing (eight hours no smudging, budging, or migrating).
The texture is just such a miss here, and the lack of color payoff on some is just the kicker of it all. You want an eyeliner that glides across the lash line in a fluid, even motion that deposits even color (and opaque, preferably!) without tugging, pulling, dragging, or skipping. It’s like a scaredy-cat eyeliner, too skittish to move, so it jerks and skids when you force it to go from one side to the other.
The eye area is delicate, and the last thing you want is a dry, stiff eyeliner that pulls, tugs, and skips on the lash line that you need to go over two or three times to get decent color payoff.
Product
6.5/10
Pigmentation
5/10
Texture
6/10
Longevity
9/10
Application
3/5
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Where to Buy
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Wet ‘n’ Wild Fly Me to the Moon Color Icon Eyeshadow Trio
Wet ‘n’ Wild Fly Me to the Moon Color Icon Eyeshadow Trio
Wet ‘n’ Wild Fly Me to the Moon Color Icon Eyeshadow Trio ($2.99 for 0.17 oz.) is a cool-toned mix of white, black, and blue. It’s a shame that this trio ended up being poor performing all around, because I think the color combination is beautiful and could have worked so well together.
The Browbone shade is sheer, frosted cool-toned white. This has a very chunky texture–the shimmer feels like it is in pieces, so it results in fall out when applied to the lid. The color itself is also sheer. It’s a cooler-toned white than theBalm Tempting Tara.
The Crease shade is a mostly matte black with silver sparkle. It’s sheer, chalky, and very dry. The application is poor, because it is difficult to blend out. It’s an inferior version of NARS Night Breed.
The Eyelid shade is a medium-dark navy blue. It is dry and sheer, and the funniest part is that the texture and poor color payoff make it look like a different color than the pan. I did a double-take when I was comparing swatches and photos–I actually re-swatched, and it really is as unmatched as it seemed.
Even for $2.99, I would still pass on this. Wet 'n' Wild does better eyeshadow than this--poor color payoff is one thing, just as drier textures is another, but taken together, it makes for a rather frustrating pairing.
Product
6/10
Pigmentation
6.5/10
Texture
6/10
Longevity
8.5/10
Application
2.5/5
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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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Rescue Beauty Lounge Medium White Nail Lacquer ($18.00 for 0.40 fl. oz.) is a creamy white with a hint of yellowy beige billowing through the shade. It’s streaky and semi-sheer after three coats. My issue with this polish was how streaky it was. It applied unevenly and looked like a big streaky mess even after three coats. You have to let each coat dry completely, because the next count will pull and create bald spots and patches.
The concept of this color is nice, but the actual application was far too frustrating. The photos in this post are of my third attempt to apply this color. Third time wasn’t the charm, but three strikes and you’re out for me. I know that some of you have far more patience than I do and will be willing to work for the color, but I can’t recommend an $18 polish with this many problems.
I had the best results with one really thick coat (as thick as you can get it), but the drying time becomes exceptionally long with that technique, so don’t attempt it right before bed!
It's a shame the formula is such a pain to work with and it takes quite a bit of finagling to even get a decent application, let alone a good one (which I was not able to achieve), because the color could work well on several skin tones.
Product
5/10
Pigmentation
6/10
Texture
5/10
Longevity
10/10
Application
2.5/5
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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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