MAC released their holiday sets collection last Thursday, called Ice Parade. Ice Parade will see the release of three eyeshadow palettes. Each palette includes six eyeshadow shades and a mini 213SE brush. The Cool palette includes the following shades: Snowball, Illegal Cargo, Idol Eyes, Warm & Smoky, Howzat, and Set To Dance. Each palette includes a total of 6 grams of product, comes in a limited edition glossy white compact featuring a silver reflective "snowglobe" on the cover and a mirror on the inside, and retails for $45.50.
Snowball, Illegal Cargo, Idol Eyes, Warm & Smoky, Howzat, and Set To Dance
Snowball is a shimmery cool white in a Frost finish. It is a new and limited edition shade. It goes on powdery and uneven. The colour pay-off is also sheer, so a lot of layering is required to get it near pan colour. It is similar to Forgery and White Frost.Illegal Cargo is a medium cool-toned purple with grey undertones in a Frost finish. It is limited edition and a re-promoted shade from 2008's Naughty Nauticals collection. It has a soft texture and goes on quite smoothly, though there is a bit of powderiness to it. The pigmentation is good and has opaque colour pay-off. It's greyer and not as vibrant as Parfait Amour.Idol Eyes is a light lavender purple with grey undertones in a Lustre finish. It is a permanent shade. It goes on rather chunky and powdery with quite a bit of fall out. The colour pay-off is also sheer, so a lot of layering is required to get it near pan colour.Warm & Smoky is a medium-dark vibrant purple with blue undertones in a Veluxe Pearl finish. It has a smooth, soft, almost buttery texture. It has fantastic pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It's darker and more red than Purple Haze.Howzat is a dark blue-tinged purple-grey subtle shimmer in a Satin finish. It is limited edition and a re-promoted shade from 2008's Fafi for MAC collection. It has a smooth, soft texture, with good pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It's slightly darker and more blue than Knight Divine.Set To Dance is a blackened blue-purple in a Matte finish. It is limited edition and a re-promoted shade from last year's Tartan Tale collection. It goes on smooth and pigmented with opaque colour pay-off. It's darker than Naval, and more purple than Nehru.
Whereas the Warm palette has more everyone-friendly wearable shades, the Cool palette is for someone who likes a darker, edgier look. And I was surprised that most of the shades in this palette were more purple-based, 'cause I usually think of Cool palettes with more straight-up blues. Four of the six shades go on smooth and pigmented with good colour pay-off. Snowball has poor pigmentation and powderiness, while Idol Eyes has got to be one of the worst eyeshadows I've ever come across in terms of colour pay-off and texture. It's gritty with tons of fall out and it's really quite hard to work with. I've never been a fan of Idol Eyes, and this has further confirms that. That having been said, the other four shades are lovely and I can see lots of beautiful smoky purple eyes being created with this palette.
I'm a sucker for blue shadows, but I've read a lot of negative reviews for this collection so despite being in the US last week (MAC is way cheaper in US than Norway) and being constantly tempted by this collection, I passed. I'm a bit sad because it means I will have nothing with this packaging, but there'll be other nicer stuff next year, I hope.
ReplyDeleteHey, Fieran! It's really quite a nice palette in execution -- I've done a few make-up appointments using this palette and it turned out really beautifully, as with the other two palettes. I always read reviews online, but I take it with a grain of salt -- you should always swatch for yourself when you're at the counter! Plus, tons of reviewers get these products as samples before the release date, so it may not be the same quality as the ones at the counters! Like, I love Christine at Temptalia but her swatches aren't always the same as the swatches at the counter (she gave one of the MAC Me Over palettes an 'F' rating and called it the worst palette MAC has ever come out with, but when I swatched it, they were phenomenal).
ReplyDeleteThat having been said, these palettes are more for people who don't already have tons of eyeshadows, and you probably already have quite a few blue ones, so you're probably not missing out on much!
That's kind of sad - to know the samples sent out are not as good as the items for sale. I shall note that in future, for 'expectation setting' :)
ReplyDeleteYou have a great eye for colour though and to me, you have the best job, ever. Nothing is more fun than being a makeup artiste (at least I think so..since I'm so makeup obsessed).
Haha, Fieran -- not gonna lie, my job's pretty sweet. ;)
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