MAC Guilty Passions: Tenderly Warm Crushed Metallic Pigments

This past Thursday, MAC launched their holiday mini kits collection called Guilty Passions. There is a total of six kits in this collection, all of which are new and limited edition, and in special edition packaging for holiday. Guilty Passions sees the release of three Crushed Metallic Pigment sets, each containing four shades in clear stackable jars. Each kit is housed in a round, mint green, chevron-print box trimmed with a black patent bow. Each palette contains a total of 12 grams of product (3 grams of each shade), and retails for $38.50.

Clockwise from left: Darling Coquette, Silk Stocking, Ever Elegant, and Rose Light

Stacked left to right: Darling Coquette, Silk Stocking, Rose Light, and Ever Elegant

Darling Coquette, Silk Stocking, Rose Light, and Ever Elegant

Darling Coquette is a light pinked beige in a metallic finish. It is a new and limited edition shade. It has a slightly gritty texture, but goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered easily, but there is some fall-out when blending. It is lighter and more pink than Naked, and darker and warmer than Pink Opal. 

Silk Stocking is a light golden beige in a metallic finish. It is a new and limited edition shade. It has a chunkier, more gritty texture, and goes on slightly patchy and unevenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered easily, but there is fall-out when blending. It is lighter and more beige than Blonde's Gold, and lighter and more golden than Naked. 

Rose Light is a light-medium warm rose pink in a metallic finish. It is a re-promoted shade from last year's Dazzlesphere! collection, and is limited edition. It has a slightly gritty texture, but goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered easily, but there is some fall-out when blending. It can be layered easily, but there is fall-out when blending. It is lighter and cooler than Rose. 

Ever Elegant is a dark reddened copper-bronze in a metallic finish. It is a new and limited edition shade. It has a soft, silky texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is slightly more brown than Copper, and lighter and more reddened than Chocolate Brown.

I have always been a fan of Crushed Metallic Pigments because they 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. Because they are loose pigments, they do create some fall out and it take some patience to use, but once they are applied, they are long-wearing, non-creasing, and really stay put — as long as you crush the pigment (using a brush in the lid) to create a smooth, even layer of product. I recommend a stiffer eyeshadow brush (e.g. MAC's #239) to pad on the pigment and then using a blending brush to soften the edges. Keep in mind that this is a product for fans of loose pigment eyeshadows in an extremely metallic finish (they almost have a foil-like look). I do recommend using these on top of a more emollient base as well, just so they adhere better to the eye area (I use NARS Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base). 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. Bonus: The boxes are gorgeous and can be kept for storage use!