Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette ($59.00 for 0.24 oz.) contains seven eyeshadows housed in a black, plastic palette with a very slim, curvy look. When the preview went on, I bought this palette and The Tease, because if they were going to do a good job, the metallics and browns of The Starlet would show the line in the best light, and if they were really, really phenomenal, the brand would not just excel at golds and bronzes but purples? I’d have a good idea about the overall quality of the brand. I’ll be reviewing The Tease soon, but this post is just about The Starlet. (As a preliminary morsel, The Tease is good but not as near-to flawless as The Starlet.)

Overall, it’s an excellent palette with rich color payoff, creamy, buttery textures (but the formula is powder!), and wears well. On bare lids, the eyeshadows lasted eight hours fairly well with very minor fading–and slight creasing after nine hours. Over primer (I used NARS Smudge Proof), I had no signs of wear after nine hours. What I noticed about this particular palette most was the texture, because nearly every shade was so buttery and smooth that they felt like creams, even to the touch. This made them incredibly easy to apply and intensely pigmented. They blended beautifully with each other and across the skin. For all it seemed like a warm-toned, almost earthy, palette, it’s not really. There are two cool-toned taupes, the bronze is only slightly warmed-up, even the gold has a dirty cast that gives it a tarnished appearance rather than a molten yellow-y hue, and then there’s a bright, metallic silver–distinctly cool-toned.

My only gripe would be about the packaging, as it’s not as luxe as it looks, and it’s not without flaws. On one hand, it looks nice as a sleek, glossy black compact, but for all of that, it is just a medium-weight plastic. It doesn’t hold fingerprints as badly as metal would, but some were visible. It comes in a thin, black cloth case, and it comes with a single sponge-tip applicator that’s stuck at the bottom of the black cloth case. Since the applicator doesn’t fit in the case, and you only get one, I would have preferred they didn’t include it (it just seems cheap). When you open the palette, there’s a thin piece of black plastic that covers all the eyeshadows that can be removed, and then there is a mirror that spans the length of the interior side of the upper portion of the palette. The palette, technically, opens by pressing the metal tab in the middle along the side, but I was easily able to pop it open by getting my nail between the two halves of the palette. The mechanism for releasing the palette is too readily released, and it would easily open up in a makeup bag if it jostled around enough. The hinge, though, does take more pressure to actually fully open the palette, so if it does happen to get opened up, it should only open up partially (a few millimeters) rather than spring open.

Each eyeshadow is just over 0.03 oz. in weight, and the average full-sized eyeshadow is around 0.05 oz. Most palettes at this price point from other designer brands (like Dior and Chanel) also retail for $59 or so and come with about the same amount of product. Marc Jacobs Beauty has positioned themselves as a designer/high-end brand, not as pricey as a true luxury brand (like Tom Ford), nor as an affordable range.

The Starlet #1 is a muted, mauvey-taupe with a very subtle golden shimmer and a frosted, metallic finish. The color payoff was fantastic, and the texture was smooth and soft. Dior Constellation #5 is less metallic, darker. theBalm rem is purpler, darker. NARS 413 BLKR #1 is lighter, less metallic. MAC Hypnotizing is a touch darker. MAC Smoky Mauve is pinker, warmer. See comparison swatches.

The Starlet #2 is a light peach-beige with copper flecks of shimmer and a rich, frosted and metallic finish. It had warm undertones, and the texture was soft, smooth, and easy to apply. It looks much darker in the pan, but I think the metallic finish is what makes it appear so much lighter applied. MAC Summer Honey is slightly lighter. MAC Warming Heart is darker. MAC Summer Haze is darker. bareMinerals Custom Made is pinker. See comparison swatches.

The Starlet #3 is a medium-dark, chocolate brown with subtle warm undertones and a sprinkling of very fine gold shimmer. It had excellent pigmentation and a soft, buttery texture. Urban Decay Bewitch is less shimmery. Le Metier de Beaute Autumn Rust is more golden. MAC Friendly is warmer. Urban Decay Snakebite is similar. MAC Havana is warmer. Dior Fairy Golds #5 is lighter. See comparison swatches.

The Starlet #4 is a brightened, orange copper with a frosted, metallic finish. The color intensity is fantastic with fully opaque color in a single stroke, and the texture is very, very creamy and rich in feel. Guerlain Cuivre Ora is less frosted. NARS California is darker, browner. MAC Star Myth is less frosted. MAC Mythology is browner, darker. MAC Brash is similar. bareMinerals Bragging Rights is more orange. See comparison swatches.

The Starlet #5 is a tarnished, yellow gold with a frosted, metallic finish. It is not a true yellow gold; there’s a dirtiness to it–a muted quality that keeps it from being a really honey gold. It had great color payoff and a smooth texture. Sephora French Riviera is yellower, less metallic. Urban Decay Spell #1 is darker. Urban Decay Blitz is more muted. Urban Decay Stargazer is greener. MAC Gorgeous Gold is lighter, less metallic. Chanel Topkapi #4 is warmer. Make Up For Ever #11 is a cream product, slightly darker. See comparison swatches.

The Starlet #6 is a light-medium silver with a smooth, metallic finish. It had rich pigmentation, and applied very evenly and smoothly. Maybelline Cool Crush is a cream product. Urban Decay Oz #2 is darker. L’Oreal Primped & Precious is slightly darker. Lancome Style Section is similar, slightly less metallic. Buxom Chihuahua is similar but a cream product. See comparison swatches.

The Starlet #7 is a darkened taupe with a subtle, warm-toned brown base but a cooler gray shimmer/sheen. It had good pigmentation, and the texture was soft and smooth–not quite as creamy as the other shades but still nice. MAC Bossa Blue is less shimmery. Disney Midnight Hour is darker. theBalm Selfish is similar. Urban Decay Armor is darker, grayer. Urban Decay Mushroom is grayer. Giorgio Armani #4 is similar. See comparison swatches.

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet (204) Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #1 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #1 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #2 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #2 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #3 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #3 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #4 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #4 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #5 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #5 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #6 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #6 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #7 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet #7 Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palette

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet: #2 (inner lid), #2 (middle of lid), #3 (outer lid), #7 (outer crease)

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Starlet: #2 (inner lid), #2 (middle of lid), #3 (outer lid), #7 (outer crease)