MAC Fall Colour: Parlor Smoke Eyeshadow Quad

MAC is releasing a new collection today called Fall Colour, featuring artist Cindy Sherman in three distinct looks on the promotional displays. Fall Colour is a very large collection with the release of 48 products, and is the third collection to launch in September (along with Posh Paradise and Styledriven). The Parlor Smoke Eyeshadow Quad is a new and limited edition eye colour palette including the following shades: Parlor Smoke, Cross Cultural, Indigo Noir, and Steel. Each palette comes in regular black packaging, contains a total of 5.6 grams, and retails for $45.

Parlor Smoke, Cross Cultural, Indigo Noir, and Steel

Parlor Smoke is a light-medium grey-tinged purple with silver shimmer in a Frost finish. The texture is slightly powdery on this one, so it goes on fairly patchy. The colour pay-off is on the sheer side, and it takes some layering to get it to look opaque. It is darker and more grey than Idol Eyes.

Cross Cultural is a warm medium-dark brown with yellow undertones in a Matte finish. This is a re-promoted shade from All Ages, All Races, All Sexes (January 2010). The texture is smooth, and the colour pay-off is good. It looks slightly patchy in the swatch, but it goes on more intensely on the eye with a brush. It is darker than Cork, and darker and less orange than Texture.

Indigo Noir is a blackened purple with blue undertones in a Matte finish. It has a drier texture, and as a result, doesn't go on as smoothly as most other Mattes. It looks slightly patchy in the swatch, but it goes on a little more intensely on the eye with a brush. The colour pay-off is okay; it still requires some layering to get it to look opaque. It is much darker than Nocturnelle, and much more blue than Shadowy Lady.

Steel is a blackened grey in a Veluxe Pearl finish. While it's still smooth with good colour pay-off, it is a little drier than most Veluxe Pearls so it doesn't go on as buttery or intense. It is darker and warmer than Knight Divine, and more metallic than Print.

Overall, this palette is decent, but not great. The colours aren't the most unique or interesting, though they will certainly appeal to those who like a darker, smoky eye look. Like Angel Flame, two of the four shades (Parlor Smoke and Indigo Noir) will require more work to look as intense as they are in the pan, though it will certainly be easier than the shades in Angel Flame only because these shades are darker. Still, the shades in this palette (especially Parlor Smoke) will work infinitely better on top of a good eye primer (such as Paint Pot, which is a little creamier). This is definitely a palette that will be better used in conjunction with other shades, since three of the four shades are dark.