Urban Decay Midnight Emergency Kit Review, Photos, Swatches

Christine — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 14:00:34 +0000

Urban Decay Midnight Emergency Kit

Urban Decay Midnight Emergency Kit

Urban Decay Midnight Emergency Kit ($39.00) is a limited edition set that features four eyeshadows, one lipgloss, and one travel-sized brush. It will be available at ULTA and select Macy’s in-store and online at ulta.com and urbandecay.com. The four eyeshadows included are: Midnight Cowboy (champagne with silver glitter), Midnight Rodeo (brown pearl with silver glitter), Midnight 15 (pearly oyster with silver glitter), and AC/DC (smoky grey/purple with shimmer).

It is all housed in a champagne-colored pleather case with a zipper enclosure wrapped around it. It’s fairly heavy (feels heavier than it looks) and definitely sturdy–it’s not easily crushed by any means–but the heft of it is not something I’d want to stash in my bag. The overall size is nice, and I’m sure some will have no problem stashing it in their bag.

Midnight Cowboy is a pale champagne pink with a frosted finish and chunky silver sparkle. The underlying base color has good color payoff, but the sparkles cause major fall out. I wish I knew of a dupe for the color, but the only thing I could think of was Safe Bet Annette which is still a bit pinker.
Midnight Rodeo is a sparkly taupe brown. It does have glitter, but it’s subtle and doesn’t seem as large as Urban Decay’s other glitter-finished eyeshadows but may still have some fall out. The color payoff is good, and the texture is fairly smooth. I thought Urban Decay Toasted might be similar, but it’s not–much browner, less of a taupe. theBalm Insane Jane is grayer (more cool-toned), while Inglot #402 is nearly indistinguishable from Midnight Rodeo. This shade is a repromote from the 15th Anniversary Palette and BoS 4.
Midnight 15 is a soft champagne with a hint of gray and frosted finish. There is a subtle amount of glitter which has a touch of fall out. Initially, I thought it might be similar to Urban Decay Virgin, but it’s grayer–looks taupe in comparison. It’s a little darker compared to the beige in Chanel Prelude and less yellow compared to Urban Decay Ruthless (this is the closest).
AC/DC is a smoky purple with a very subtle red undertone; it’s more of a neutral purple. It was in the BoS 2. Am I the only one who expected to see another Midnight-themed shadow here? Don’t get me wrong–I’m so glad at least one shade isn’t fall out city. Urban Decay Gravity is a little purpler but similar. theBalm Kissy, Kissy is a touch darker. Bare Escentuals Encore has a stronger red undertone.
Midnight Cowboy Lip Junkie is a sheer champagne-tinted gloss with lots of champagne shimmer. It’s mint-scented and virtually colorless on the lips but imparts shine and shimmer. You can check out my full review of the formula in my original review.

Each eyeshadow is 0.04 oz., which is just shy of full-size (0.05 oz.), while the gloss is full-sized (0.34 fl. oz.)–plus the travel-sized Shadow brush ($26 for the full-sized version). The value is at least $73.40 (the value of the eyeshadows and gloss) but likely closer to $85 or so because of the brush.

Urban Decay’s eyeshadows with “sparkle” are problem children. Sometimes they’re sweet and you can get them behave, but most often, they’re unruly, frustrating, and wreak havoc upon your eye/face because of the glittery fall out. Of the three sparkly shades here, Midnight Cowboy is the worst offender. The other two are lesser offenders but still have some issues with fall out.

My advice for working with eyeshadows prone to fall out is to use a stiffer brush and pat on, rather than sweep. You might also want to lightly tap the brush against your forearm after you’ve picked up the eyeshadow to loosen any excess product (and glitter). It’s best to apply eye makeup first in this instance, so you can easily remove any residual fall out without removing foundation and the like. A stickier base (mixing mediums, sealers, etc.) can also help the glitter to adhere rather than to fall away or generally disappear. I just don’t think you should have to work that hard. I’m also surprised that–given how much Urban Decay enjoys themselves glitter eyeshadow–they haven’t come out with their own adhesive base/sealer.