LORAC Mega Pro Palette Review, Photos, Swatches
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette ($59.00 for 0.62 oz.) includes 32 eyeshadows–16 matte, 16 shimmer from white to black to plum to teal. The palette is very warm-toned–only a handful of shades are neutral to cool–and it is a more light to mid-tone palette, but a lot of the shades run together. I don’t think the color composition is as good as it could be. Overall, the formula used in these eyeshadows had a very soft, silky feel, but it was soft enough that it is powdery and lots of excess product gets kicked up in the palette but also drops below the lid if you aren’t careful.
I found the eyeshadows in this palette didn’t apply as well to bare skin as the ones in Pro 1 and Pro 2; many eyeshadows had a tendency to blend away to a very sheer layer of color, so I would recommend using a primer with this. Even the more shimmery shades seemed to have this problem. There were a couple of shades that had a drier consistency that showed on the skin. I was able to use the eyeshadows both wet and dry (including the mattes), but blending some of the matte shades out when damp was more difficult than dry. I would just use a good eyeshadow primer underneath rather than use them with a dampened brush. Though they often looked faded from the get-go, it didn’t fade much from there, so wear time clocked in around eight hours on most shades.
The palette is the size of two Pro palettes, and it is very slim. Interestingly enough, but as a reader had asked about where it was made, I couldn’t locate the information. The palette only indicates that it was assembled in the U.S., but it uses U.S. and non-U.S. materials. It has a large mirror underneath the lid, but it doesn’t stand up, so it may not be that useful.
It’s a limited edition, holiday palette that will only be available on Amazon–LORAC confirmed that there is a shipment “in transit” that is Amazon’s, so there will be more available, but it seems like it goes in and out of stock, so it may be difficult to get. It’s been disappointing to see how the launch has been handled (confusion with launch dates, limited availability, slow to ship/communicate, broken palettes galore), and I really wish LORAC would simply do another run of the palette and earn some goodwill with customers.
On comparison to Pro 1/Pro 2: There are some shades that are more similar than not (from Pro 1: Lt. Brown, Black, Beige, Rose, Cocoa; from Pro 2: White, Cream, Taupe, Espresso, Black, Gold, Lt. Bronze). If you like the formula of Pro 1 and Pro 2, you’ll probably find the formula of Mega Pro to be comparable–at most a little more powdery/soft.
Cream is a pale, brightened beige with a matte finish and soft, warm undertones. It was mostly opaque but was stiffer–it had a thinner, less silky texture compared to most other shades in the palette. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Fawn is a light, peach-beige with warm undertones and a matte finish. It had good color payoff but was somewhat powdery, though it was very silky. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Camel is a muted, meidum-dark orange with hints of tan/brown and a matte finish. It had semi-opaque color coverage and was powdery. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Sepia is a muted, medium-dark brown with warm, terracotta undertones and a matte finish. It had good pigmentation, and it was nicely balanced between soft and blendable without being powdery. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Dusty Plum is a muted, medium-dark plum with warm undertones and a matte finish. It had fairly good pigmentation, though it was somewhat powdery. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Orchid is a lavender-pink with cool undertones and a matte finish. It was somewhat powdery, and it had decent to good color payoff. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Mulberry is a medium-dark, berry red with cool undertones and a matte finish. This shade was very powdery and sheer applied to the skin–it just refused to adhere well, so it really needs something to help it stay on the skin. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Espresso is a dark brown with subtle, cool undertones and a mostly matte finish–there is a tiny, tiny amount of shimmer that’s not really noticeable applied. It had good color payoff, but it was somewhat powdery and didn’t adhere well to bare skin (it sheered out a lot). The version in my Mega Pro is lighter and more shimmery (in the pan) than in my Pro palette. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
White is a bright white with cool undertones and a matte finish. It is quite powdery, as it is almost like a loose powder in the pan–it just gets everywhere. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Khaki is a softened, light-medium brown with a hint of gray and a satin finish. It had good pigmentation, and it applied without too much trouble. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Brown is a medium, yellow-toned brown with a matte finish. It had semi-sheer pigmentation, and the texture was on the powdery side, so it didn’t stick well to skin and just blended away on the skin. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Stone is a muted, grayed purple with cool undertones and a matte finish. It had fairly good color payoff, and the texture was only a little powdery. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Lilac is a light-medium, cool-toned lavender with a matte finish. It had decent pigmentation but was powdery. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Wisteria is a muted, medium plum with a hint of gray and a matte finish. It was sheer and very powdery–it is not a shade that can be workable on bare skin whatsoever. It is still challenging to use even with a primer, but a primer is the only way to save this (NYX Milk, in particular–LORAC’s was pitiful paired with this shade). See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Gray is a muted, msoked bluish-teal with a matte finish. It is not what one would think of as traditionally “gray.” Like Wisteria, it was quite sheer and quite powdery, so little color stayed on the skin, and what did, went on unevenly. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Black is a medium-dark black with a matte finish and subtle warm undertones. It was semi-sheer, a little dry and stiff (similar to Cream), and it was difficult to blend and apply. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Opal is a warm-toned, white gold with a frosted finish. It had good pigmentation, though it was still on the powdery side like the matte shades–it had a softer, almost crumbly texture. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Sand is a light-medium, yellow gold with warm undertones and a metallic sheen. It had fairly good color payoff, and it wasn’t too powdery to work with. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Copper is a medium-dark, golden copper with warm undertones and a metallic finish. It had good pigmentation, and it was a little dry but blendable. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Sienna is a medium brown with warm undertones and a soft, frosted sheen. It had nice color payoff, and the texture was soft without being powdery. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Apricot is a brightened pop of tangerine orange with warm undertones and a frosted finish. It seemed to have good color payoff, but the texture was rather powdery, which made it hard to apply on bare skin. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Blush is a light pink with warm, yellow undertones and a frosted finish. It had decent pigmentation, but the texture was somewhat powdery to work with. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Merlot is a medium-dark, warm-toned plum with a metallic sheen. It had good color payoff, and the texture wasn’t powdery, so it went on smoothly and evenly. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Indigo is a blackened navy blue with blue sparkle over a matte finish. The sparkle sits on top, so it doesn’t bind with the eyeshadow, and as a result, it’s mostly just a matte black eyeshadow on the lid. It had good color coverage, and the texture wasn’t powdery. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Vanilla is a warm, white with yellow-y undertones and a frosted finish. It had nice pigmentation, and the wasn’t powdery, so it was easy to use on the skin. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Cashmere is a muted, yellow gold with a metallic finish. It had a slightly dry, crumbly consistency, so it didn’t go on smoothly as one would like. It seemed to emphasize texture on the eyelid. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Smokey Topaz is a medium-dark, golden bronze with warm undertones and a metallic finish. It had nice color payoff, though it was a little dry and dusty. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Dusty Rose is a muted, rosy brown with warm undertones and a satin finish. It had semi-sheer pigmentation and was powdery. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Granite is a rich, dark bronze brown with a frosted finish. It had excellent pigmentation, and the texture was soft, smooth, and buttery–best eyeshadow in the palette, easily. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Maroon is a medium-dark, reddish brown with warm undertones and a frosted finish. It had good color payoff, and the texture was soft without being powdery. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Deep Teal is a blackened green-leaning teal with cool undertones and a frosted sheen. It had nice color payoff, but it had a drier texture–it takes a lot of buffing to work away those dry edges on the skin. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Caviar is a medium-dark black with a very subtle sheen. It had good pigmentation, and the texture was only a little powdery. It was easier to use than Black. See comparison swatches / view dupes side-by-side.
Mega Pro (Original)
LELimited Edition. $59.00.
Cream
PiPPermanent in Palette. $19.00.
Khaki
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Brown
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Stone
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Lilac
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Wisteria
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Gray
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Black
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Opal
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Sand
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Copper
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Fawn
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Sienna
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Apricot
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Blush
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Merlot
PiPPermanent in Palette. $19.00.
Indigo
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Vanilla
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Cashmere
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Smokey Topaz
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Dusty Rose
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Granite
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Camel
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Maroon
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Deep Teal
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Caviar
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Sepia
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Dusty Plum
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Orchid
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Mulberry
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
Espresso (Mega Pro)
LELimited Edition. $19.00.
White
PiPPermanent in Palette. $19.00.
See more photos & swatches!
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
Click to Enlarge: LORAC Pro 2 vs. Mega Pro vs. Pro
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Mega Pro Palette
LORAC Cream Eyeshadow
LORAC Cream Eyeshadow
LORAC Fawn Eyeshadow
LORAC Fawn Eyeshadow
LORAC Camel Eyeshadow
LORAC Camel Eyeshadow
LORAC Sepia Eyeshadow
LORAC Sepia Eyeshadow
LORAC Dusty Plum Eyeshadow
LORAC Dusty Plum Eyeshadow
LORAC Orchid Eyeshadow
LORAC Orchid Eyeshadow
LORAC Mulberry Eyeshadow
LORAC Mulberry Eyeshadow
LORAC Espresso Eyeshadow
LORAC Espresso Eyeshadow
LORAC White Eyeshadow
LORAC White Eyeshadow
LORAC Khaki Eyeshadow
LORAC Khaki Eyeshadow
LORAC Brown Eyeshadow
LORAC Brown Eyeshadow
LORAC Stone Eyeshadow
LORAC Stone Eyeshadow
LORAC Lilac Eyeshadow
LORAC Lilac Eyeshadow
LORAC Wisteria Eyeshadow
LORAC Wisteria Eyeshadow
LORAC Gray Eyeshadow
LORAC Gray Eyeshadow
LORAC Black Eyeshadow
LORAC Black Eyeshadow
LORAC Opal Eyeshadow
LORAC Opal Eyeshadow
LORAC Sand Eyeshadow
LORAC Sand Eyeshadow
LORAC Copper Eyeshadow
LORAC Copper Eyeshadow
LORAC Sienna Eyeshadow
LORAC Sienna Eyeshadow
LORAC Apricot Eyeshadow
LORAC Apricot Eyeshadow
LORAC Blush Eyeshadow
LORAC Blush Eyeshadow
LORAC Merlot Eyeshadow
LORAC Merlot Eyeshadow
LORAC Indigo Eyeshadow
LORAC Indigo Eyeshadow
LORAC Vanilla Eyeshadow
LORAC Vanilla Eyeshadow
LORAC Cashmere Eyeshadow
LORAC Cashmere Eyeshadow
LORAC Smokey Topaz Eyeshadow
LORAC Smokey Topaz Eyeshadow
LORAC Dusty Rose Eyeshadow
LORAC Dusty Rose Eyeshadow
LORAC Granite Eyeshadow
LORAC Granite Eyeshadow
LORAC Maroon Eyeshadow
LORAC Maroon Eyeshadow
LORAC Deep Teal Eyeshadow
LORAC Deep Teal Eyeshadow
LORAC Caviar Eyeshadow
LORAC Caviar Eyeshadow
Sepia, Orchid, Dusty Plum, Merlot, Espresso, Fawn+Cream (brow bone) (No Primer)
Blush, Apricot, Copper, Maroon, Fawn+Cream (brow bone) (No Primer)
Cashmere, Stone, Deep Teal, Gray, Fawn+Cream (brow bone) (No Primer)
For some reason, I just can’t get excited about this product. I feel like I should be, but I really don’t think I’d use it. The colors aren’t ones that I’d see myself reaching for (and it seems like there’s a lot of similarity, throughout), and I’d get overwhelmed with that many shades in one palette.
Yes, about 2/3 of the palette feels redundant in some way – to the point where since most of the shades are warm, they could have at least done say light beige in warm AND cool, medium brown warm AND cool, etc.
The shades are all so beautiful! Especially the plums. Wish it were better quality
If you use ’em over primer, you’ll probably be OK, but they weren’t so great alone (and I didn’t have as much trouble using Pro 1 or Pro 2 on bare skin, which is standard operating procedure around here).
It’s sad to admit, but it doesn’t seem like the year for the eyeshadow palette. It’s like everyone of them gets poor grade 🙁
I pretty much feel like the Grinch this year. I just feel bad 🙁
It’s not your fault, you are just being honest. It’s the company’s fault for making poor eyeshadows’ quality and to expect us to buy it anyway. 😛
All I want for Christmas this year is one good holiday palette, LOL! Something with more than 10 eyeshadows, of course.
At least MUFE slayed it with the Artist Shadows. That’s successfully prevented me from massive disappointment this year. Chances are, MUFE has the color I want from a dud palette done better 😛
LOL! I love, love that palette, but I feel like it doesn’t REALLY count, since it was $295. I’m tempted to get the Studio Case, just to see a good palette, but I fear I have all the shades…
Oh yeah the 30 Years palette can’t count. It’s more of a full-on kit than a palette. But at least everyone can get the shades they like most from it if the (terrifying) price tag didn’t seem appealing whereas not all the Lorac Pro shades eventually make single status.
And I know your feels on that Studio Case. I had a moment of, “You should not buy this, Celia. You have some of these. Stop buying 300 dollar MUFE palettes…” But it’s tempting!
Yeah, so I just bought the Studio Case anyway, because if it’s good quality… then it would be a nice option for readers who don’t feel good about $15-21/shade! I’m weak.
I have the studio case. I snatched it up as soon as it hit Sphora’s website which was actually a few weeks ago. Other than, trying on in-store, it was my first chance to really use the mufe shadows. They are are dream! I love the case except there are no matte midtone shades (brown,grey,etc). Only matte is a vanilla color and black. Still good palette I think. I wound up ordering a 3 pan set with some neutral mattes to add.
Hehe. I’m actually kind of glad they are all getting bad grades. I’m trying to simplify and clean out my makeup collection to just what I love and use all the time. This curbs my addiction to the Christmas palettes. :). Thank you again for the great review!
All the shades I liked the most seemed to be the worst… The rest of the shades are kind of “basic”. I don’t think I’m going to bother trying to get this anymore, I’ll look for something else! I’m considering a couple of Sleek palettes. 🙂
Sleek is great! 🙂
I’ve only tried their Face Form so far but I love it so much! I’m considering the Sunset palette after reading your review of it, and also Arabian Nights 🙂
Sunset is amazing!!
I know so many bloggers rave about Lorac but its kind of disappointing to see such few pieces available and with difficulty! I wish it was easier to get hold of the palettes if they are as good as people say! This one though does not seem all that good from your review.. probably ill stick to my quest for the original palettes! 🙂
Honestly, I think they should just do another run – the launch was pretty shoddy, and there was miscommunication galore. I know that there are many who ordered via Amazon who received dinged up palettes, some with broken eyeshadows and some not, but there are no replacements to be had, just refunds (as far as I have heard, Amazon’s CS is being good, but Amazon didn’t package these up well).
I love palettes with a greater balance of lighter shades though I seem to be in the minority. But I’m thrilled that a few this season, including Mega Pro, were weighted toward lighter shades. I also like the sheerness of some of the shimmery shades. Different people like different things. And that’s the true value of your reviews…you show and describe in detail…so people can choose things that fit what they like.
I don’t think you’ve been a grinch at all. I really liked a few things you didn’t, this palette and Vice 3. But overall I’ve been lukewarm on much of the holiday sets/collections. Sadly, I’m making up for it with Nars, MUFE, scents and skin care…so no savings on my end.
Glad you’ve found some things to love!
I actually agree, though I’m a ‘mid-tones’ fan. I have soo many palettes with maybe one light or highlight shade and multiple very dark shades that I just don’t get as much use from or they all look a bit the same on me. The other thing is so many palettes include a matte black, which I understand from the point of view of making it a one and done type of palette for someon who only owns one or two palettes, but I feel like I have enough intercnageable blacks to wear full panda eyes eyeryday for a lifetime.
I think it must be pretty hard to nail the perfect shade selection given that there seems to be a huge number of people that want neutral or barely there looks and a huge number who want smoky or very dramatic looks, and in a holiday palette they are probably shooting for both markets.
Oh man I ordered this too! Maybe it differs from palette to palette? (Wishful thinking I know) Mehhh
Do you use a primer, Jean? I think if that’s part of your regular routine, you will find it easier to work with 🙂
I ordered this on Oct 7, and I still haven’t gotten a tracking e-mail yet. Their launch was so bad, and even yesterday trying to call them, I couldn’t get through. This was so poorly done, and just for a B-grade eyeshadow palette? Ugh. I feel like I’ve been duped!
Hopefully you have more luck with yours when it arrives, Kelly!
I ordered mine from LORAC’s website when it wasn’t supposed to be available – but it took them a full 2 days to process, and another day or two before I actually got the tracking #. I did 2-day shipping, but it didn’t seem to improve the process other than guaranteeing the shipping days (which was stupid for me to do, since they ship from California).
I ordered mine tuesday and haven’t gotten anything about a shipment yet. I emailed them thursday checking because when I made an account it said no orders but I was charged; the person assured me that the payment meant it was packaged and just waiting to be shipped and once UPS got it then I would get a shipping email, but 3 days later I guess it’s still sitting in their warehouse waiting to be shipped? Their company has been extremely frustrating. Don’t make a palette only available from two retailers if you aren’t equipped to get all of the inflow of orders yourself!!!
I ordered it as well. I always use primers, so that won’t be an issue. Hopefully it will turn out to be like the MAC Gravitas palette, which I love in spite of its mediocre grade. 🙂
Well if you decide against it (even if you’ve swatched it) I will gladly buy it from you
I’m a huge fan of LORAC eyeshadows but this just doesn’t excite me enough. So glad I didn’t spend the $60 and bought Vice 3 instead. Deep teal is nice, but that’s about it 🙁
Deep Teal is such a cool shade, and of course, it had to have that odd dryness that so many teals have!
There are some colours that are really pretty in the pan, som swatched as well, but as a whole I find it a bit disappointing. I think there are just so many neutrals, and I have dupes for all the colours I’d want to use. While I’d love to try LORAC, and this is available through Amazon, and easily obtained, well in theory at least, I will not buy this. If it had gotten excellent reviews, perhaps but as it is with most of the shades i’d use frequently having quite bad grades, this is a no for me.
I really like the photo where you had LORAC Pro and Pro 2 on eiter side of this palette. Excellent, as it made it so easy to compare!
I think they had plenty of spots in the palette where they could have done more interesting shades – even more interesting neutrals as well as just more variations on color.
Now I don’t feel that bummed out for not getting this. Thanks Christine for the review 🙂
No problem, Irish!
So glad I didn’t spend my money on this. Thanks for your honest reviews as always, Christine! Mulberry is the one shade I was most interested in seeing and, wow. Yep. Well, I hope those that have already bought it enjoy it!
I have found that matte eyeshadows are usually the hardest to use on bare skin (despite so many brands touting long-wearing, pigmented, blendable, etc. for their formulas), so the fact that sooo many of these are the softer kind of mattes makes primer SO, so necessary. I know I was chatting with Leesha (xSparkage), and she’s enjoying the palette with NYX Milk as a good base!
Deep Teal still looks nice to me but that might be because I’ve been fantasizing about the Chanel quad with teal/green in it it. Other then that I’m not impressed. Giove might be tempting though!
It’s interesting, but this year, I have noticed a few teal eyeshadows that all have this dryness along the edges – from Gucci to LORAC!
If you were an average customer would you get this? I’m on the fence. I collect makeup and I do go through neutral palettes (I do own a ton of them though), but I can’t decide if this is a must have or collectible enough to try to track down. Your opinion?
I don’t know that I would have the patience to deal with trying to snag it when it was on Amazon, LOL. Do you have LORAC Pro or Pro 2? I feel like while they don’t have 100% overlap, if you already have both, you are quite covered in the neutral territory.
A part of me still wants this, but mainly for Mulberry (although it’s very similar to NARS Grenadines)… If it’s still available next month, I’ll consider it, but I won’t be disappointed if I miss it. There’s just too much overlap, and I think I can get similar looks with the Pro palette, Pro 2, and Unzipped…
And I’m sure between your NARS eyeshadows, you can get ’em all.
Yeah… Rajasthan=Deep Teal, Brumes=Indigo, Dogon=Caviar… And those are just the more “unique” shades, LOL! I won’t even go into the neutrals! Although not exact dupes, translated onto the eye, they look similar enough.
I still get that “gotta collect ’em all!” itch, sometimes, which is why this is calling to me… However, one reason I got into LORAC in the first place was because the products were paraben-free, but the more recent stuff isn’t. Not being paraben-free isn’t a deal-breaker in itself, but I do find it very disappointing…
I really love this palette despite the fact that it’s dominated by warm colors, because they’re usually the ones that I navigate towards when doing my make-up. I’d really want to buy it but every time I check on Amazon it doesn’t show me any results and I can only find it on ebay, but the prices are like 2x or even 4x the original value….they go up to $300! and I really don’t want to be buying from ebay due to hygiene reasons… 🙁 sad times!
And it’s definitely not worth $300 :/ You could buy all of LORAC’s permanent palettes and the new eyeshadows released in the rest of the holiday collection for the same price probably!
Whoa! I wasn’t expecting such low grades. Lorac must have gone the same route with this as they did the skinny palettes. Good thing I wasn’t planning on getting this one.
Definitely not QUITE as powdery as the Navy palette (which was more of a dry powdery), but there were definite issues that cropped up!
Good to know it’s not as bad as Navy Skinny. More like original Skinny? 🙂 That’s not horrible, at least. Plum Skinny is actually pretty good. With this big palette, it looks like it just really depends on which color you’re using. If it weren’t so light and neutral heavy, I would consider using primer and going for it. But I don’t need those kind of colors; I have too many as it is.
Especially since you returned the Kat Von D palette, the last thing you want to deal with is another powdery palette, lol!
LORAC has definitely re-formulated at some point-the fact nothing is paraben-free pretty much proves that… I have several of the older palettes, and some singles, and they are all so buttery! Even the “original” Pro palette is pretty good, but I haven’t bought any since that first came out…
XamyX, I got the Pro (first) palette recently, and it’s really good; just like you describe. I also have the two GLO palettes and the Mint Edition Collection, and they are very good. The Skinnies were a real mixed bag. I’m glad they were cheap.
Amen to that!
I don’t have any LORAC eyeshadow yet, so getting this would be like hitting the LORAC jackpot for me, haha 🙂
That is true! You’d have so many LORAC shadows, lol!
I was falling asleep. The best part were the eyes. Kudos to you, Christine. That palette is ridiculously boring. In my opinion..
It’s certainly dupable – the wow factor is more quantity/price point, I think.
Lorac Pro 2 has been on my want list for awhile. I think I’d still rather have that.
And that one is so much easier to procure!
Wow. This is really disappointing! Every holiday palette I’ve been eyeing has earned a poor grade. 🙁
🙁
Ugh I know. I was so excited about VICE 3 because the colours and the design. And then MAC, but those ones look specially bad! And then about this… So sad 🙁 Are there any more brands releasing holiday palettes that you know of Christine? Or have we seen them all? Also, would you say Vice 3 is better than Mega PRO?
I think Vice3 is easier to use without a base!
I didn’t realized you are never wearing primer in the eye looks you create! I always look at them and just assumed you were wearing primer!
Yeah, I was talking with a blogging friend, and she said I should make a bigger deal about not using primer than I do, as she felt more didn’t know that than did. I don’t use primer since brands market their eyeshadows as pigmented, long-wearing, crease-resistant, blah blah, so the reality is that if you use a primer, put on eyeshadow, it’s hard to say if the eyeshadow is truly long-wearing – it just says your primer is working, lol! (And sometimes, certain primers play better with certain formulas, but the formulas may wear the same without primer.)
Yes, it does make sense if you are truly reviewing the quality of the eyeshadow. I was a little embarrassed to not know you didn’t use primer in your reviews / looks though, just because I have been following your blog for so long. For someone like me though, who always uses primer and more often than not, a light base as well, it’s wrong of me to assume everyone does the same. Your blog is by far my favorite, but I do notice some of the other bloggers I follow write with every review/look “swatches without primer” “eye look without primer” etc.
Yeah, I only write if I’ve used primer, since my baseline is no added help 🙂 Per my friend’s suggestion, I thought I would try emphasizing it since it never occurred to me someone might not know. Thanks for the feedback!
It’s weird how primer has become almost a necessity these days, When I first started wearing makeup, there was no such thing. I wonder if the companies assume everyone wears primer, so the formulas have changed and don’t wear as well for those of us who don’t?
I feel like primer was necessary 10 years ago, but I am constantly surprised at how well eyeshadows wear *without* primer these days. That being said, I don’t have super oily eyelids, but mine aren’t dry (normal for the most part).
I’ve always had oily lids unfortunately, so I can’t use any type of shadows without a primer! 🙁 So your “B” rating shadows would be more than acceptable for me personally 🙂
Noooooo Mulberry you were the only shade I wanted!
Aww!
That was the biggest disappointment to me, too.
Hi, I love you review! Would you recommend getting this palette or the Lorac pro? I don’t have either and I only want to get one! 🙂
I found the original Pro palette to be easier to use!
Thanks for reviewing this so fast! Do you happen to know if any of those shades will be released individually? That way I can skip on all the misses on this palette and maybe buy a couple of the hits:)
I haven’t heard anything about LORAC releasing singles!
I’ve been waiting for your review to go up, but I’m still quite excited to get my palette in the mail! I like the warmth of the entire palette and I think I’ll get quite a good use out of the mattes!
Enjoy, Stephanie!
I purchased this palette off Lorac’s website the day it launched and it is still processing. I am almost tempted to cancel my order and spend my 60$ on something else! What a bummer.
Aww! 🙁
Thanks for the swatches! I agree -way too many light- colored shadows, too many colors that look the same as the other Lorac palettes, wish they had added in some cooler-toned shadows and colors ( purples, greens, and blues) to make it more interesting. Love Lorac but thanks for saving me money!
I would have loved to have some cooler-toned shades in this palette!
Christine, thank you so much for doing this! What I was hoping for from this palette was a good value on a variety of workhorse neutrals, and, since I always wear a primer and usually like LORAC’s formula on me it sounds like it could still be that, if a bit warm… but, with availability being such a big issue, now I won’t get all upset about missing it, if it doesn’t re-appear when I’m looking!
Happy to help, Fran! 🙂 Sounds like you’d probably like this, but if you have Pro 1/Pro 2, you should have some good neutrals between the two already!
I knlw it got a poor rating… But it seems perfect for me, almost only warm shadows, almost only neutral-nude eyeshadows with half matte shadows. The kind of palette I can use daily for work and dont think too much (I do my eyes half sleep). So I hope when it arrives didnt dissapoint me 🙂
I hope it works for you, Lucy! 🙂 It’s tough for these massive palettes to get to the A-range, since there are usually a handful of misses!
Thanks Christine. Normally I dont get a palette if you didn’t gave it at least a B+. But I dont have neither of the Lorac Pro palettes and I’m happy using brown/beige shadows daily 🙂 Like you said with 32 eyeshadows there must be some dudes 😉 I had already bought it 😛 so I will make the best of it. Had you review the Lorac Unzipped palette? Is my favorite. 🙂
Yes, I have reviewed Unzipped! 🙂
Dear Lorac, please make a palette from just columns five, six and seven and up the quality. I’d buy in a heartbeat. Thanks! K
Guess I’m now back to deciding between pro 1 & 2.
Which one are you leaning towards?
I am leaning more towards 1. That Garnet color always catches my eye and I think I’d wear more of the midrange colors in it. That Navy blue in 2 scares me. LOL!
LOL! 😉
Ughh, I was so excited about this palette too! It seems like all the holiday stuff coming out so far aren’t as good quality as a brand’s normal releases which really sucks. I was really looking forward to getting either the Too Faced holiday set, UD Vice 3, or Lorac Mega Pro, but it seems like none of them are really as stellar as they could have been. Thanks for the review!!
Sure thing, Nina! 🙂
Such a shame that this palette is SO disappointing – the shades are very similar to each other and every other palette on the market. Some of the shades (eg gray) looked positively woeful. The only shade I was interested in was the dark teal… Lots of palettes have that one. Given that there is confusion regarding availability and problems processing orders, this seems like a very big miss to me. All the makeup creators know that that their products are reviewed by beauty bloggers such as yourself Christine, so they should make the effort to at least present a useable palette. Bad luck for the customers. I think it goes to show that before you buy, read the reviews here.
I don’t know why this launch was done so badly 🙁 It’s really unfortunate.
Does anyone have any idea if they will restock this palette? Even if the quality isn’t amazing, it’s a great value, especially when you’re still building up a makeup collection. It’s difficult for me to buy many neutrals at once because of my budget (and I gravitate toward colorful shades when buying eyeshadows lol) so this is a way to have a variety until I can afford full size ones.
They seem to restock randomly :/
I was one of the lucky ones who managed to grab this on Amazon as soon as it was released – I live in New Zealand so it was an extremely long night for me haha. I’m so nervous that mine will arrive broken or damaged in some way – fingers crossed that it doesn’t.
I always appreciate your honest reviews, Christine, they are really the only ones that I trust so I am disappointed to see that the palette isn’t of the highest quality ): I do have extremely oily lids though so hopefully that may help with the powdery-ness of the shadows.
Thank you so much, Savanna! 🙂 I would be sure to use a primer (you probably do!), and it should be okay.
Ohhh…yes, I can safely pass on this because on first impression I didn’t feel pulled toward it and with this review, I can put that moolah elsewhere. Vice 3, though I was interested, will be getting a pass on quality.
At the moment, holiday palette-wise….I’m looking at the Tarte Bon Voyage Palette. That one looks particularly appealing to me.
Let’s hope Bon Voyage works for ya!
I kind of wanted this to be mega-awesome, because then it would have been worth my while to go to the extra effort to get it so I could really try the LORAC formula that people rave about so often. However, when I saw the inside, I realised that while there are many shades that are ‘nice’ in their own right as colours, the palette has waaaay too many pale matte neutrals in it for my personal taste. (or at least it feels that way). Now that I hear that the formula isn’t up to the general LORAC standard (at least based on the Pro palettes), I think I can safely pass. It’s a shame, though – would have been a great way to have an ‘instant wardrobe’ of LORAC! 😛
LOL! Mega Pro. Mega Awesome. THat should have been their tagline!
Well at least my checking account is happy that this isn’t so great!
Haha!
Ugh. Im regretting the mad scramble I did to get in on this..true junkie! Lol. I do use primer typically. So hopefully i wont have to return. I ordered mine the 7 th from Lorac and got a shipping confirm fri.hopefully its not broken. But if so,at least it wont hurt to return. I got the Too faced everything nice palette when it launched too. I hastily didnt wait for your review and am regretting it now. I may return since i havent used the mascara..which i think is an awful formula. Christine,have you used coastal scents? Their shadows are all over you tube and rated pretty high om there. Also, in your opinion,are luxury brands better quality? I see you use a lot of TF. That is not available at any counter here. I would have to order online.What luxury shadows do you reccomend?
I actually don’t LOVE! Tom Ford’s eyeshadows overall. Sometimes they’re really nice, but they’re not my favorite. I’m really loving Make Up For Ever’s Artist Shadow range. bareMinerals Ready eyeshadows are fantastic. Charlotte Tilbury’s quads are nice, though I don’t always enjoy the glitter shade in them. Le Metier de Beaute’s formula is divine.
I love TF for blush in particular, and the brushes are incredibly nice. Also a huge fan of the fragrance lines.
I ordered this from Amazon on Wednesday. I must admit when I opened it I was a little underwhelmed, so many of the colors on the left side of the palette are very similar. With that said I think I’ll get good use out of the matte colors on the right side and the darker more vibrant shimmery colors on the bottom two rows. Those darn limited edition palettes get me every time. By the way my palette did arrive damaged, the cardboard is dented and crunched up a bit on the bottom left corner and there’s another spot of damage between two of the colors. The cardboard looks raised and torn like something scraped over it, luckily known of the shadows were broken or damaged in any way.
I’m glad yours will still work well for you, Naomi! Thankfully, only spot damage on the actual colors – I heard so much about broken ones 🙁
The mattes look kind of dry. Which is surprising to me since the mattes in the original Pro Palette are buttery soft and pigmented. Now I don’t know what to do
They’re really soft – powdery but not really dry.
I put this in my cart MANY times but never pulling the trigger because I feel like I have ENOUGH palettes, but this one is too pretty to resist. Too bad it didn’t apply like the Pro 1 & 2s.
Aww!
I love Lorac Matte shadows, I think the idea to have so many mattes in one palette is genious. But the packaging of all three Pro Palettes is annoying! Hold fingerprints, and turn so dirty even if we take some precautions. I just hate it!
Oh, bummer 🙁 I really like the slimness of their palettes, at least.
I’m wondering if the palette that you reviewed came from a different lot than mine? I have had no issues that you have mentioned. Thank goodness! The shades that I’ve tried so far go on smoothly and stay on perfectly for at least 12 hours with no primer. I’m so happy with this palette! The only shadow I don’t really care for is Indigo. I wish it was in a blue base. It just looks black on my eye. I’m not fond of glitter shades anyway. I love your blog Christine!
I’m glad you’re loving yours, Nicole!
I had a horrible experience trying to order this palette. I placed my order last week on Lorac’s website because Amazon was sold out. I received a confirmation from Lorac saying they were processing my order and that it would take two business days. My credit card showed a pending amount for the product until today. Now, there is nothing on my credit card transaction showing I purchased the palette and I never heard anything from Lorac. I guess my order was dropped? I see that Amazon has them in stock but after reading this review I don’t even want to bother. Poor customer service on Lorac’s part.
I haven’t heard much good re: customer service from LORAC lately, and though Amazon is doing what they can (refunds for damaged palettes), it is a real shame that they’re showing their lack of experience in shipping them.
Thank you for saving me $59. Money is tight so I have to pick and choose expenditures carefully. I appreciate your honesty and would rather read a truthful review no matter what. There was a lot of hype for this product, and the problems that have followed its release are frustrating and not acceptable for a prestige makeup company that doesn’t seem to want to accept any responsibility for what has happened. I really wanted this (was at the top of my holiday wish list), but now my wish-list is very small, so that’s a good thing. 😉
No problem, Lyn! I really think LORAC needs to do “the right thing” here, which is to try and see if it is feasible for them as a company to do another run. I understand there are a LOT of factors that go into production and manufacturing, but sometimes, the right thing isn’t the easiest or most profitable thing – but it needs to be done.
How can I get this palette.
Amazon is the only way!
I was so excited when I saw this palette but after a deeper though i guess most of the shades are repeatable here and would look almost similar on application .. and the quality doesn’t seem to match with earlier pro Palettes.. so I guess better skip it!!
I would rather buy Pro2 and Pro1 seperately.. 🙂
Pro 1 and 2 are nice!
I got this on Friday. It’s beyond lovely, the pics don’t do it justice! Like the other LORAC shadows I’ve used, the quality is excellent: silky, highly pigmented, and long-wearing. Yes, it was hard to get, but TOTALLY worth it! I absolutely understand a person not loving a product because it sold out before they could snag one.
Glad you’re loving yours!
I sorta wanted this palette but had some doubts about it. Before I knew it it was sold out. There really were many issues surrounding the launch of the Mega Pro and I really loathed Lorac’s sorry-not-sorry attitude about the whole thing. It turned me off and now I’m not the slightest bit interested. I’m sure they don’t care, but just saying.
Too many issues, and with the Amazon shipping (not properly packaging cosmetics) fiasco, they really should be looking to earn goodwill, IMO.
Wow, I was absolutely APPALLED when I went over and read all the comments/reviews on Amazon, who the heck ships an eye shadow palette in a manila envelope?? So sad for all those people and of course Amazon can not replace them because there are no more to send! I was obviously one of the lucky ones who ordered from Lorac on the morning of the 7th and actually GOT my palette in perfect condition on the 10th, and that was with free shipping! Now I am seeing that others who ordered from Lorac STILL have not received their palettes! This was the worse launch EVER, what were they thinking! And also Lorac and perhaps Amazon was letting people order up to 10 palettes, they are on Ebay going for as high as 300.00. I actually love the palette and have been using it constantly, but I do feel Lorac and Amazon need to make this right. What will really be crazy is if we actually see this palette at Ulta or Kohls in a few months, can you imagine those who paid the Ebay price then?
Lorac Mega Pro is back on Amazon for pre-order! And great news it ships to Canada! I’ve already placed my order yayyy!
Hello,
I am new on your platform. This is very very helpful. I love it. I decided to write you to suggest to make a review and swatch of new launched Estee Lauder Color Portfolio 2014. I am coming from Romania (Europe) and i must see if it worth the effort to get it. Can you make till Christmas a top 10 palettes of the 2014 Holiday season?
Thank you
ordered this today and the studio case 😀 hopefully this one doesn’t disappoint
I got lucky and ordered this from amazon right away but since I love so close to border I just picked it up at a holding address 🙂 it was nicely packed I was so worried.
But now I’m unsure if I want to keep it since I could resell and make money. There are a few shades I really like but I could probably find dupes for less. I have both the pro 1/2 anyway.
I’m finding it tough for a nice holiday palette as well. I wish mufe had a palette that was cheaper than the 30/30 but had more variety than the studio.
I almost considered vice 3.
I actually really like this palette for the price and the quality. I have both the Lorac Pro Palettes and this palette, and I think they’re all so buttery and easy to work with. It’s definitely worth it. And even though I’ve heard so many bad things about Lorac’s launching of this product, I would still support Lorac just because they make great products.
I almost wasn’t able to purchase this product, and I still wouldn’t have been bitter about it. But I was so happy I was able to. I refreshed Amazon’s last restock for over 4 days and was finally able to buy it.
Thanks for the great review! =) Love the swatches.
Hey Christine, how are you?
Seen the buzz that was the launch of this palette and being one of the many that couldn’t put my hands on it :(, today I was looking for it on amazon and as well as on ebay I saw many sellers that despite charging seriously amount of money for this palette registered it as been from China.
So I went to take a look on my other Lorac’s palettes and saw on two of them (skinny palettes in in the nude and in the navy) that they are made in China, but my pro palette does not contain any information about where it was made in.
So, I was wondering if you could be kind enough to help this brazilian reader of yours and take a look on yours (probably on the back) to see where it was made.
Thank you so much!
Xoxo.
Mega Pro says assembled in U.S. of non-U.S. and U.S. materials, which is the same as pro. Pro 2 doesn’t say anything other than distributed from the photos I have – I do not keep boxes, sorry!
Thank you very much for your help!!! 🙂