Archived Post

MAC Hyperviolet & Imaginary Paint Pots Review, Photos, Swatches

MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot
MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot

MAC Hyperviolet & Imaginary Paint Pots

Debuting on September 15th (for North America), Posh Paradise contains eight new and limited edition (but of course!) paint pots. Each paint pot retails for $17.50.  I wish I had more to share with you, but these are the only two paint pots I received! I’m flying to NYC this AM and as soon as I have a free moment, I hope to stop by the PRO store to pick up all of the remaining products but please, please be patient – I would really appreciate it!    The two I have to show you are: Hyperviolet (deep violet) and Imaginary (blackened navy).

  • Hyperviolet is a purpled eggplant with red-burgundy undertones. It’s not as brown as Dark Diversion. Going by memory, it’s a deeper, cream version of Nice Vice but purpler than Artifact. It seems redder than Macroviolet.
  • Imaginary is a blackened violet purple. This is supposed to be a blackened navy blue, and it looks purple in the pot, purple under most lighting, but occasionally, in just the right lighting (particularly low/poor lighting), it looks more navy than it does purple. I don’t have it to compare but by memory, Non-conormist seems similar though not as blackened, bluer, and has a cream finish.

I tested Imaginary on the lid for eight hours, and it worked quite well. It applied well, blended out with little difficulty, and it stayed on without creasing for those eight hours (and no signs that it would crease either). Unlike the paint pots from Cham-pale, the shimmer in Imaginary is subtle and more shimmer-sheen than pure shimmer. It is also much finer, so it doesn’t give it a rougher feel or result in fall out.

MAC Hyperviolet & Imaginary Paint Pots Review, Photos, Swatches

A
9.5
Product
9
Pigmentation
9.5
Texture
10
Longevity
4
Application
93%
Total

MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot
MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot

MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot
MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot

MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot
MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot

MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot
MAC Hyperviolet Paint Pot

MAC Imaginary Paint Pot
MAC Imaginary Paint Pot

MAC Imaginary Paint Pot
MAC Imaginary Paint Pot

MAC Imaginary Paint Pot
MAC Imaginary Paint Pot

MAC Imaginary Paint Pot
MAC Imaginary Paint Pot

64 Comments

Comments that do not adhere to our comment policy may be removed. Discussion and debate are highly encouraged but we expect community members to participate respectfully. Please keep discussion on-topic, and if you have general feedback, a product review request, an off-topic question, or need technical support, please contact us!

Please help us streamline the comments' section and be more efficient: double-check the post above for more basic information like pricing, availability, and so on to make sure your question wasn't answered already. Comments alerting us to typos or small errors in the post are appreciated (!) but will typically be removed after errors are fixed (unless a response is needed).

We appreciate enthusiasm for new releases but ask readers to please hold questions regarding if/when a review will be posted as we can't commit to or guarantee product reviews. We don't want to set expectations and then disappoint readers as even products that are swatched don't always end up being reviewed due to time constraints and changes in priorities! Thank you for understanding!

Comments on this post are closed.
Devi Avatar

Yay, I live in the city! ^_^ Would’ve been so cool to meet you (and the various other makeup gurus that will be there today). Why must I have a class today? ;_;

But I could’ve sworn that all of the paint pots were supposed to be frosted. Hyperviolet seems to be nothing of the sort. I almost feel like using it as an eyeliner. o_o I don’t believe the texture of a paint pot allows you to use it as an eyeliner though, correct?

Mary Beth Avatar

Have a great trip to NY! I love these paint pots (even though I’m not normally a paint pot fan) and am thinking of getting to the PRO store as well to see if I can test them as a liner.
I’ll be out in NYC for FNO, too….any suggestions on the best places to go for beauty freebies??
For any Tori Burch fans in NY tonight, she is giving away a canvas tote with a $100 purchase.

Ruth Avatar

I think I need Imaginary. And possibly some other colours when they’re out. I have recently dyed my hair dark blue, a purple based blue, and think this would be great for me. I recently got Marine Ultra chromaline which seems bluer and is not shimmery. You’ve got me excited!! xx

LiAnn - Sparklecrack Central Avatar

I must be weird, because I liked the Cham-pale paint pots…but then again I haven’t been buying MAC paint pots for too long. 🙂 I was initially wavering on Imaginary, but the fact that it looks more indigo or blue-violet than navy is making me like it even more!

Yazmin Avatar

Thank God this collection is being released in the uk in october, ive just blown my budget on the 226 brushes from the mac me over collection, please mac if your reading, stop releasing soo many collections at one time!

daphne Avatar

Weird, they list all of these as frosts in the promotional information, but Hyperviolet is clearly a cream! I hope more of them end up being secretly creams, because I like that much better in Paint Pots. Either way, I am excited to see these really bold sultry colors in the product. I hope I can grab a few.

Vanessa Avatar

OMG. Need them both! I love paint pots! It’s weird that they only sent you two though… hopefully the other colors aren’t as necessary, or I am going to be broke!:(

Renee Avatar

Imaginary looks gorgeous. I might end up purchasing this although I haven’t had much luck with paint pots. They end up looking really splotchy on me *sigh*

Chelsea Avatar

I have the Bare Study paint pot which is kind of frosty and it doesn’t even hold my eye shadow for two hours. I want to try these, but I’m afraid they’ll be the same. Painterly always holds for hours and hours. Has anyone else experienced this with the non-matte paint pots?

Julia Avatar

Oh no. This is not good. I am going to need to buy both of these. And probably the other 6 as well. I am going to be so broke! But these are just too gorgeous to pass up!

Lilly Avatar

I am getting these two for sure, fig.1 would look amazing on top of hyperviolet. Love that are not frosted. Can’t wait to see the other colors.

Chris Avatar

Gawd… MAC sure know how to make you crave for these things.. since they’re limited edition I can’t really think twice about getting them, I just HAVE to, you know! And I’m really hooked on the paint pots I’ve already got these days, so these will definitely find their way into my collection.

Courtney Avatar

Oooh, I really like these! I love doing a purple smokey eye and these would make great bases. Either that or I’d look like somebody punched me…

SHERRY Avatar

I LOVE paint pots from Mac. They are my favorite bases to really make eye shadows more vibrant and cling. I have most of all the ones they have made. I have already asked my favorite sa at Nordies to hold all of these new ones for me. I am very excited about this collection and also plan to purchase a few of the lipsticks.

civa Avatar

Looking at the two swatches I’m so happy! Hopefully the rest of the colors are as nice as these two texture wise 🙂 Can’t wait to get my hands on them!<3

stephanie Avatar

Imaginary looks amazing, and photographs/swaches a little like Contrast. and I can’t wait to see it at the store. I suppose that if it looks a little more on the purple side, it could still look good as a base for navys this fall.

Cara Avatar

Any tantalizing morsel you throw our way, when you can, is most appreciated. You always have something new to look at on here, and your blog has helped me in ways I can’t articulate very well in a comment. Having said that, I love “imaginary”! How does Shiseido’s shimmering cream eyecolor compare to MAC Paint Pots in general?

Nicole Avatar

Hi! I have never tried mac paint pots before. I am in love with Imaginary. (The color reminds me of UD Plague. I love my MUFE aqua creams. Is this anything like that? Thanks! I love your blog.

Michelle Avatar

Some of these are already sold out on MAC’s website!!! Had to place an order on Nordstrom’s website instead but am happy will be able to try them out since I don’t own any of their paint pots! Looking forward to getting them! 🙂

Joan Avatar

I purchased five of the eight paint pots in this collection and while I love them all, Hyperviolet is my absolute fav. I’ll be playing with these gems all weekend.

Hanna Avatar

Is your Hyperviolet a little drying? The one I have is and I own a couple other paint pots and haven’t experienced that with them…hyperviolet is turning out to be more difficult to layer and create a smooth look than I thought it would because it is quite matte. Do you have any suggestions on how to wear it? I’m wanting to love it but I may end up returning it 🙁

Corliss Avatar

Purchased 7 out of 8 paint pots love them so much I’m going back to get that last one. Mattenes are great to purchased 4 out of 10 and going back for more. This collection is a hit for me. Thanks Mac!!!

Mia Avatar

I LOVE the Imaginary PP. I see now, after I layered it with Later, Dark Soul and Starless Night pigments, ALL the pigments are EXACTLY the same. I find Starless Night is the most pigmented at first but after an hour or so they all fade to exactly the same color.

We try to approve comments within 24 hours (and reply to them within 72 hours) but can sometimes get behind and appreciate your patience! 🙂 If you have general feedback, product review requests, off-topic questions, or need technical support, please contact us directly. Thank you for your patience!