MAC Show Gold Extra Dimension Skinfinish Review, Photos, Swatches
Show Gold
MAC Show Gold Extra Dimension Skinfinish ($33.00 for 0.31 oz.) is a light, yellowed-peach base with peach-to-pink shifting sparkle and pearl. It had a more sparkling, metallic finish than most of the brand’s Extra Dimension Skinfinishes, and you have to like a stronger, more intense highlighter to fall for this one, I think. It had semi-opaque pigmentation that was buildable.
It’s been part of the permanent range for awhile to my memory, but it was recently repromoted with the MAC Strobe collection. I didn’t find that the newest compact of it (shown here) was any different than the one I tried in 2016. The consistency was a bit drier with noticeable texture from the inclusion of larger sparkles in it compared to other shades in the same formula. I also felt that the finish was more noticeable and nuanced in person than in photos, as it did have a visible shift (sometimes looked a bit silvery/gray, though, depending on the angle–this was less of an issue when I layered it with a blush or bronzer). The powder applied evenly and blended out with little work. It wore well for eight hours before it started to fade on me.
FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).
Top Dupes
- Kaja Twinkle Lights (PiP, ) is less shimmery, warmer (90% similar).
- ColourPop Felicity (LE, $10.00) is more shimmery (90% similar).
- ColourPop Frosty (LE, $10.00) is less shimmery (90% similar).
- ColourPop Star Brite (P, $11.00) is less shimmery (90% similar).
- Too Faced Starlight (PiP, ) is less shimmery, lighter (90% similar).
- ColourPop Everybody's Got a Weakness (LE, $10.00) is less shimmery, darker, cooler (85% similar).
- Smashbox Prismatic Petal (LE, $39.00) is darker (85% similar).
- MAC Last Dance (P, $18.00) is more shimmery, darker (90% similar).
- Becca Own Your Light (LE, $38.00) is less shimmery, darker, warmer (85% similar).
- Too Faced Canary Diamond (P, $34.00) is less shimmery, darker, cooler (85% similar).
Formula Overview
$44.00/0.31 oz. - $141.94 Per Ounce
The Extra Dimension Skinfinish formula is supposed to give “the perfect glow to the skin” with a “creamy powder formula” that wears for “10 hours.” It’s a powder highlighter that I’d describe as a moderate to intense highlighter, and they come in varying hues with some that might work as highlighting blushes/bronzers are on some skin tones and true highlighters on other skin tones. In general, the formula is very pigmented, blendable, and wears around eight to nine hours on me.
Browse all of our MAC Extra Dimension Skinfinish swatches.
Ingredients
Mica, Cetearyl Ethylhexanoate, C12-20 Acid Peg-8 Ester, Hdi/Trimethylol Hexyllactone Crosspolymer, Squalane, Glycerin, Chondrus Crispus (Carrageenan) Extract, Ethylhexylglycerin, Dicalcium Phosphate, Polysorbate 80, 1,2-Hexanediol, Silica, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Tin Oxide, Caprylyl Glycol, [+/- Titanium Dioxide (Ci 77891), Iron Oxides (Ci 77491), Iron Oxides (Ci 77492), Iron Oxides (Ci 77499), Bismuth Oxychloride (Ci 77163), Blue 1 Lake (Ci 42090), Carmine (Ci 75470), Manganese Violet (Ci 77742), Ultramarines (Ci 77007), Yellow 5 Lake (Ci 19140)]
Disclaimer: Ingredient lists are as available by the brand (or retailer) at the time of publishing. Please always check product packaging, if it exists, for the ingredient list applicable to the product you're purchasing, or the brand or retailer's website for the most up-to-date ingredient list.
I don’t like it when brands reformulate because the original, and much loved product, gets changed and it’s not quite the same. This is still nice loooking, but there are great A’s out there too.
Such an interesting and complex shade! I quite like it! As for whether I’d buy it, I’m not absolutely sure. Now, if I could eat through pans of highlighter the way Tarababyz does, oh yeah, I’d get this!
Because this leans a bit more pink/less orange, I think I’d enjoy it more than Whisper of Gilt, even though that seems to be a better product (and a much coveted one). I have to agree with Genevieve’s sentiment – if a company is going to repromote or re-introduce a product that was much sought after in past, keep it the same as the original! That’s the whole point, I’d think and in general, LE products become HG or much sought BECAUSE they were good so no need to reformulate or change the original incarnation (and if products once used are no longer available or no longer approved, then maybe don’t bother “repromoting” – give it a new name and let it achieve its own HG status.