MAC Corol Blush Duo ($33.00 for TBA oz.) is consists of two blushes, with them being split unevenly–the lighter shade covers about two-thirds, while the plum shade is about a third of the compact. It is larger than MAC’s normal blush compact–more like their Beauty Powders. It is packaged in a rubberized black with gold trimmings. What you really need to know is that the texture is incredibly stiff and stubborn to work with: all swatches required use of a metal spatula to scrape off layers of powder. Once layers were dislodged, I was able to jab at them with a brush to loosen and apply, but the powder in the compact felt almost like plastic to the touch. After it was loosened and crushed into a fine powder, the actual texture from there was softer and fairly blendable–but getting to that point required extreme measures. It took a fair amount of product to get “decent” color payoff, even after scraping away at it. It did not improve with use, unfortunately, and I’m pretty sure I caught it laughing evilly at me. I don’t know if I’ve encountered quite as stiff of a powder as this that wasn’t really plastic–I am totally flabbergasted that this made it out of production.

I purchased an additional Corol through maccosmetics.com to see if it would be any better. I’m happy to report that it is better in texture–there was no need to scrape layers off.  The texture was soft, a little powdery, and the lighter shade was almost chalky, but the consistency of the powder was infinitely better than the one I received as a sample.  When I compared the two powders together, I noticed that the lighter side darkens after you remove a few layers.  At first, I thought the shades differed, but after I brushed away several layers from the second powder, the two matched.  A few readers also reported that their powders were manageable, which is great news.  The original rating was 0.5, 3, 4, 6.5, and 0.5 for the powder as a whole; I’m updating the rating to reflect the consumer version available based on the one I purchased but leaving the original review so that we have a complete story going forward.

Corol #1 is described as a “bright coral pink.” It’s a light-medium, peachy-coral with a hint of pink and has a matte finish. I couldn’t get pigmentation to show up with a brush or sponge applicator; I scraped off layers of product, which I was then able to smash into a finer powder, and that is what I could apply. I had two options: show you bare skin, or at least show you what the color could look like (with some extreme measures taken) so we could talk dupes instead, because the product is quite difficult to use. At best, this lasted six hours on me (from what I could distinguish). Hourglass Diffused Heat is pinker, but it is one of the closer shades that is also permanent. bareMinerals Swoon (LE, $19.00) is darker. MAC Lured to Love (LE, $25.00) is darker, more shimmery. NARS Sex Appeal (P, $29.00) is a touch lighter. MAC Immortal Flower (LE, $21.00) is nearly identical. Giorgio Armani Coral Bliss (LE) is darker, more shimmery. See comparison swatches / view dupes.

Corol #2 is described as a “mid-tone neutral plum.” It’s a muted, medium-dark plum with subtle warm undertones and a satiny sheen. The texture of this one was only marginally less difficult to work with, but I still took a metal spatula to it to scrape away product, which I then smashed and manipulated so it turned into a loose powder. The problem is just swiping it with a brush, sponge, etc. yields nothing–it just doesn’t give color out at all. This shade wore well for six and a half hours before fading away. Hourglass Mood Exposure (P, $35.00) is warmer, lighter. theBalm Cabana Boy (P, $21.00) is cooler-toned. NARS Oasis (P, $29.00) is darker, more shimmery. See comparison swatches / view dupes.

MAC Corol Blush Duo

MAC Corol Blush Duo

MAC Corol Blush Duo

MAC Corol Blush Duo

MAC Corol Blush Duo

MAC Corol Blush Duo — Several layers were scraped off to show any color

MAC Corol Blush Duo

MAC Corol Blush Duo

MAC Corol Blush Duo — Several layers were scraped off to show any color

MAC Corol Blush Duo