MAC Dazzlesphere!: Smoky Blue Pigment Ornament

MAC released their second holiday collection yesterday, called Dazzlesphere!, which features lip gloss and pigment stack sets in sphere-shaped "ornaments." Each pigment set features four new and limited edition shades of Crushed Metallic Pigment. All shades of Crushed Metallic Pigment have, as the name implies, a strong metallic finish. Each ornament of Crushed Metallic Pigment comes with two individual stacks, each stack containing two shades, totalling four shades. It is designed so that the lids can be interchangeable to stack each shade on top of each other. Each container houses 3 grams of pigment, with a total net weight of 12 grams per ornament. Each ornament retails for $38.50.

Clockwise from top: White As Snow, Silver Sleet, Dark Moon, and Wintersky

White As Snow, Silver Sleet, Wintersky, and Dark Moon

White As Snow is a light metallic silvery white. As far as Crushed Metallic Pigments go, this one has fairly sheer pigmentation. It is a fairly gritty pigment as well, so there will be some blendability and fall out issues. It is more white than Forgery, and similar to White Frost.

Silver Sleet is a medium metallic silver. It goes on very smoothly and has phenomenal pigmentation. It is similar to Silver Ring, perhaps brighter.

Wintersky is a mid-tone metallic purple-tinted blue. As far as Crushed Metallic Pigments go, this one has only mediocre pigmentation, though it can get full colour pay-off very easily by padding on some more. It is a fairly gritty pigment, though, so there will be some blendability and fall out issues. It is darker and more blue than Parfait Amour.

Dark Moon is a dark metallic charcoal black with silver shimmer. It has excellent pigmentation but there is a bit of grittiness to it and, as a result, has some fall out. It is like a much more metallic and pigmented version of Black Tied.

Crushed Metallic Pigments look absolutely stunning – in the jars and in execution. They really stay true to their product name, and really do look like crushed metal nuggets. However, both White As Snow and Wintersky aren't as pigmented as I have come to expect from Crushed Metallic Pigments, and three of the shades have fall out issues. The stand-out shade in this set is easily Silver Sleet. Crushed Metallic Pigments work best using other textures, however, since they are super metallic and it might be overkill to use all shades in a stack together. I do recommend using these on top of a slightly more emollient base, just so they have adhere better to the eye area. I use MAC's Vibrancy Eye Primer, but Paint Pot or Paint would work well. I usually don't like loose eyeshadows because I find them messier with more fall out, but as someone who loves metallic eyeshadows, I find these totally worth working with. For those who like more matte shades, you can skip these.