MAC Powerchrome Eye Pencils Reviews, Photos, Swatches
MAC Copper Strip Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Powerchrome Eye Pencils ($21.00 for 0.055 oz.) are a new product being launched in the collection. The new formula will be available in four shades: Copper Strip (frosty mid-tone copper), Life’s Luxury (deep bronze brown), Polished Jet (charcoal with pearl), and Rich Glance (light gold).
Copper Strip is a warm, coppery bronze with a soft, frosted finish. It had good color payoff in a single pass, and it was creamy enough to apply without tugging or pulling on the lid. Make Up For Ever #22E is a bit lighter. Clinique Fuller Fudge looks nearly identical. MAC Eclair is also very similar. Maybelline Bad to the Bronze is less coppery.
Life’s Luxury is a deepened, warm-toned bronze brown with coppery-red pearl. It had nice color payoff in a single pass and was buildable on the lid. I don’t have it myself, but a guest swatched NYX’s pencil range here, and Black Bean seems rather similar. Benefit Bronze Have More Fun is warmer. Bobbi Brown Bark doesn’t have the frost/shimmer finish.
Polished Jet is a soft, gray-black with silver sparkle. It had decent pigmentation in a single pass but was more buildable. Urban Decay Mercury is bluer. Urban Decay Barracuda is similar. Maybelline Audacious Asphalt is lighter.
Rich Glance is a warm-toned, champagne beige with a metallic sheen. Urban Decay Midnight Cowboy is a bit darker. Urban Decay Sin is pinker. NYX Yogurt is also pinker. Maybelline Barely Branded is lighter. MAC Mooncake is darker and more glittery.
The first thing I noticed was these seemed small; smaller in overall size compared to other jumbo eyeshadow pencils, but the weight is only 0.055 oz. To put this in perspective, consider these competing brands’ jumbo pencils: Make Up For Ever at 0.14 oz., NARS at 0.14 oz., Urban Decay at 0.10 oz., and Clinique at 0.10 oz. It’s only slightly more than your average eyeliner pencil (which is usually 0.04 oz.)–and MAC is more expensive, by the ounce, than all of those brands but even just ignoring the size, only NARS’ is more expensive ($24).
I wore all four shades yesterday, and they lasted for eleven hours without creasing. There was some very slight fading, but it was minimal and all four shades looked mostly intact.  These set nearly instantly, which makes them harder to blend together.  I recommend working very quickly if you use multiple shades and one eye at a time.  I ended up “blending” by lightly stippling color over the shade next to it and using the pencil’s tip to sort of blend the two together, because most of the brushes I tried weren’t getting the job done.  As far as brushes went, NARS’ Small Dome Brush worked the best for blending. The formula is lightly creamy; each pencil glided across skin well and didn’t pull or tug, and there was a good amount of color payoff without having to go back and forth. Â
If you used this as a base or only one or two at a time, I think they’d be easier to use. I also tried using two shades as eyeliners, and they held up well–there was some slight thinning apparent after eight hours of wear but no migration or smudging. Lastly, these do require sharpening, so there will be some waste (which is certainly a bummer, given how little product there is!).
Copper Strip
LELimited Edition. $21.00.
Life's Luxury
LELimited Edition. $21.00.
Polished Jet
LELimited Edition. $21.00.
Rich Glance
LELimited Edition. $21.00.
MAC Copper Strip Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Copper Strip Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Copper Strip Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Copper Strip Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Copper Strip Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Life’s Luxury Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Life’s Luxury Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Life’s Luxury Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Life’s Luxury Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Polished Jet Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Polished Jet Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Polished Jet Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Polished Jet Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Rich Glance Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Rich Glance Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Rich Glance Powerchrome Eye Pencil
MAC Rich Glance Powerchrome Eye Pencil
Rich Glance (inner lid), Copper Strip (middle of lid), Life’s Luxury (middle of lid), Polished Jet (outer lid, crease)
I’m looking away as I’m on a no buy for eyeshadow pencils. I buy and end up using cream shadows in pots instead. I find, for me, they last longer and are easier to apply.
And I think you end up with less product with pencil eye shadows.
I need all of these! lol, they seriously look so pretty. Since this is a new product, do you think MAC will start making them as a permanent product in other shades?
With MAC, you just never know. Products that get amazing reviews never see the light of day again, products that flop are made permanent – and vice versa, of course, but there’s no rhyme or reason (to an outsider, at least!).
Rich Glance is definitely my type of shade! But these are all pretty!
Hi Christine, sorry for the off topic but i found your picture here: [link hidden]
Thanks, Isa!
I’m a huge fan of the MAC greasepaint sticks! Are these similar to those ones?
Kind of – not quite as creamy!
I was all prepared to get Polished Jet and maybe one of the others, then I saw the size/cost information. Sephora has the most amazing fat eye shadow/liner pencils for a fraction of the cost of these. I’ll have to check how much product you get but they are much better value and they are excellent pencils and I am pretty sure they have dupes or near-dupes for all of these shades, including Polished Jet.
I was going to list the oz. for those, but it didn’t say online – I presume between 0.10 and 0.14, which are fairly common.
Christine (et al): I just checked and the Sephora ones are, indeed, 0.10 oz. I also took a look at the Tarte ones I got in a special set at Xmas (so the size might not be the same as their “regular” pencils) and they are roughly the same weight as these pencils from MAC. Christine, I’m not sure if you said or if anyone asked but are these twist up or must they be sharpened? I’m guessing the latter….
They require sharpening – I think I mentioned it in the post!
These look gorgeous, and I like shadow pencils, but I’m not thrilled about the lack of product and the need to sharpen them. I’ll stick to Milani’s instead.
Rich Glance looks beautiful as an inner corner highlight. 🙂
This came out a few years ago and they were terrible! I still have them and never really got to use them. The’re stayin power was horrible!! and they were not “true to color” I like the new “light gold” shade and I really hope this time they’re better. I love MAC but I hate how inconsistant they are with their products…. its a hit or miss for me. 🙂
Hi I work for Mac and just wanted u to know this is brand new product..it’s never been released before…
These did come out a long time ago I still have them. You had to push hard on them to get the color on because they were waxy and they crayon would break. If you want proof and a photo I can email you the photos. Im sorry to say it but my mom had been taking me with her to the mac counter for years. Im 22 and I probably got it when I was 13.
In fact I just found it and they were not chrome they were called shade sticks but very similar to how these look with a metallic look. Look up “Gracious Me” Shade stick I think 2008 so I was off by the year.
Shadesticks are different than these, these are a more improved version.
Exact what I was saying earlier in my post above. the shade sticks were harder to use but they were still the same metallic colors. I still have a few so I was able to compar real easily.
I want it for the packaging, but I have so many colors like this, even though they’re mainly in pots…which I think are personally to use anyway. Very nice though. Great pigmentation.
I’m lemming about Rich Glance. You don’t get alot of product in there pencils and it reminds me of the Estee Lauder one from 2 summers ago (Bronze Goddess 2011 ShadowStick Duo in Pink Teal ) in terms of packaging and amount of product but on both ends.
http://www.temptalia.com/estee-lauder-pink-teal-shadowstick-duo-review-photos-swatches
Christine, does Rich Glance look like I get no kick? I was waiting for them to repromote that color, but I’m disappointed that it’s in a chubby pencil.
Darker, not quite as champagne as I Get No Kick!
For that pricepoint, they should have been a twist-up. Too bad, as I like the look of Life’s Luxury.
Did you change you eyebrow shape Christine? It looks really fabulous, although I thought it looked great before. I think it was fuller if I am not mistaken. I think you have the prettiest face in blogdom! There is not one look you cannot wear 🙂
Nope, same ol’!
I think I’ll just stick with Laura Mercier’s caviar sticks.
These looks so pretty! I love the light gold colour, and they look great all worn together 🙂
shades looks super kool ….
I want to have the polished jet too! A MAC MA used the tugging black pencil in the Beth Ditto collection on me, I always look for a shadow pencil to do the look again.
I may indulge in one of these if they’re at the counters when I’m home, because I love the darker shades and am not that fussed about amount of product -I’m terrible at finishing products anyway.
These are nice, but certainly not unique..for less than 1/2 the price I can get all the color tattoos or stick with my NYX or Milani Jumbo eye pencils..and for that price..they should not have to be sharpened! Great pics and review tho..I like your honesty:)
xoxo
Ann-Marie
I have the perfect dupe for this brown one! The Milani Shadow Eyez stick in Brown Deluxe is gorg
How’s rich glance compare to bare study paint pot? thanks! 🙂 and do you know when will they be available internationally?
Bare Study is lighter and less warm! I was just told May – I believe this is already out in the UK!
THese are very similar to the Shade stick collection from a while back and they to had that metallic look
I swatched these today and they seemed nice, but wow they are tiny! I didn’t find out the price until just now and I think that’s absolutely insane. I can definitely picture these popping up in CCO’s, and even then, they will be too expensive!
I got this pencil in Life’s a luxury and absolutely love it but…how in the heck can I get it sharpened now? I have the MAC duo size sharpener and this pencil is too thick for the larger hole! Any tips for other sharpeners? Have you had the same problem?