Ardency Inn Purple Hearts Modster Light-Catching Eye Powder ($32.00 for 0.05 oz.) is described as “black pigments with pink, peach, and violet reflects.” It’s a blackened purple with bluish-violet and pink sparkle (I didn’t really see the peach), and it has a satiny sheen with some loose sparkle. NARS Tatar (P, $25.00) is similar but a cream product. Urban Decay Half Truth (LE, $18.00) is lighter. MAC Starless Night (LE, $21.00) is purpler, brighter. MAC Black Poodle (LE, $21.00) is blacker. bareMinerals Daring (P) is similar but less sparkly. See comparison swatches.

Applied dry, it was very sheer and almost looked dry. Applied with a damp brush, it was much more pigmented and appeared smoother, but it still lacked some of the intensity you’d expect from a loose eye color when used damp. The texture was finely-milled but not totally smooth as it did have some larger sparkle/shimmer in it. When I applied it, the shadow lasted without creasing for eight hours but was somewhat faded after seven hours and I had some light fall out overall.

I’m not in love with the packaging: I had tremendous issues with it leaking pigment everywhere and anywhere, even after totally cleaning it, twisting back the cap on (tightly!), it still would shake loose a lot of product that would sit above the rim but underneath the lid, which would spill everywhere. I’m also not sure how feasible getting to the bottom of the jar will be with a brush (my MAC 239 didn’t really fit inside the hole). I don’t know if the one I received malfunctioned or not, but if not, I wouldn’t recommend this based on the packaging alone. It was really quite a mess and there’s not a lot of product in there that you can afford to waste.  I’d love to hear from any readers who may have tried this to find out if they had any issues with the packaging!

Also, a side note (no impact on the rating)… Holy wow! at the price tag relative to the rest of the range. I’m no stranger to a luxury price point, but when the lipsticks are $25 and eyeliners are $19, I’m not expecting to see a $32 eyeshadow. I think it is over-priced, based on the pricing of the rest of the line.

Ardency Inn Purple Hearts Modster Light-Catching Eye Powder

Ardency Inn Purple Hearts Modster Light-Catching Eye Powder

Ardency Inn Purple Hearts Modster Light-Catching Eye Powder

Ardency Inn Purple Hearts Modster Light-Catching Eye Powder

Ardency Inn Purple Hearts Modster Light-Catching Eye Powder

Ardency Inn Purple Hearts Modster Light-Catching Eye Powder