Viseart Eyeshadow Palette in 07 Cool Matte

Over the last year or so, independent French makeup company Viseart has exploded all over the North American cosmetics scene. They've been around for years and are a favourite of professional makeup artists in French TV and film, but weren't widely available on this side of the world until Sephora started carrying them as an online exclusive brand (Viseart still doesn't have a website of their own). Though they make a lot of different products, Viseart is most known for their eyeshadow palettes, which are described as "reliable film-tested professional products, a staple in every artist's kit, and... the workhorse of all professional artists. These palettes have a dynamic cult following throughout all levels of artistry. Manufactured in France, Viseart's proprietary formula is created in small tightly-controlled batches to maintain pigment quality, powder integrity, and consistency. Viseart is the 'secret sauce' for top Hollywood makeup artists, as well as makeup artist enthusiasts of all genres." 

Viseart currently makes seven colour waves in their eyeshadow palettes. The 07 Cool Matte palette contains 12 shades and are described as "light-to-dark eye shades [that] are perfect for adding subdued and chic depth. By softening and echoing the natural contour shadows around the eye, Cool Matte not only draw attention to the eyes, but also to the contours of the lips." Viseart products are not tested on animals, contain organic ingredients, and are made without petroleum, parabens, silicones, butylene glycol or propylene glycol, phthalates, or artificial dyes. Each palette is housed in a rectangular clear-lidded plastic case, contains a total of 24 grams of product, and retails for $100 CAD. 
Cool Matte #1, Cool Matte #2, Cool Matte #3, and Cool Matte #4

Cool Matte #1 is a pale cool ivory white in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 cooler and more matte than Viseart Yves, cooler and lighter than Viseart Ivoire, more pigmented than MAC Gesso, brighter and more white than MAC Blanc Type, and similar to Makeup Geek White Lies.

Cool Matte #2 is a medium cool muted pinked mauve in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 more muted than MAC Haux, warmer and more pink than MAC Quarry, lighter than Too Faced Almond Truffle, lighter and more muted than Anastasia Beverly Hills Dusty Mauve, and similar to Makeup Geek Petal Pusher.

Cool Matte #3 is a light warm malted pink in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 cooler and more pink than Viseart Sable, warmer than MAC Malt, darker and more pink than Too Faced Cashew Chew, lighter and warmer than Too Faced Almond Truffle, and warmer than Makeup Geek Confection.

Cool Matte #4 is a medium-dark cool taupe brown in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 cooler than Viseart Café, darker than Viseart Tabac, more brown than Viseart Cendre, more brown than MAC Copperplate, and lighter and cooler than MAC Brun.

Cool Matte #5, Cool Matte #6, Cool Matte #7, and Cool Matte #8

Cool Matte #5 is a dark cool charcoal brown in a matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 cooler and more grey than Viseart Chocolat, darker than Viseart Cool Matte #4, lighter and more brown than Viseart Cool Matte #12, more brown and more matte than Viseart Diane, and darker and cooler than MAC Mystery.

Cool Matte #6 is a light-medium cool cotton candy pink in a satin finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, buttery, finely-milled 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 darker and more matte than Viseart Peony, lighter and more matte than MAC Swish, darker and more matte than MAC Pink Freeze, more matte than Too Faced Cotton Candy, and more muted and more matte than Make Up For Ever I864 Baby Pink.

Cool Matte #7 is a medium-dark cool eggplant purple in a satin finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 darker and more matte than Viseart Prune, darker and cooler than MAC Fig. 1, lighter and warmer than MAC Indian Ink, cooler and more matte than Too Faced Black Currant, and darker than Makeup Geek Curfew.

Cool Matte #8 is a dark cool slate grey in a satin finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 darker and cooler than Viseart Souris, slightly cooler than MAC Soot, cooler than MAC Print, darker than Makeup Geek Stealth, and darker and cooler than Makeup Geek Concrete Jungle.

Cool Matte #9, Cool Matte #10, Cool Matte #11, and Cool Matte #12

Cool Matte #9 is a medium-dark cool brightened navy blue in a satin-matte finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 brighter and cooler than Viseart Dark Matte #10, brighter than MAC Naval, lighter and brighter than MAC Contrast, brighter and cooler than Makeup Geek Boo Berry, and darker and more muted than NARS Outremer.

Cool Matte #10 is a medium-dark muted taupe-plum in a satin finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 lighter and more muted than Viseart Dark Matte #9, darker and cooler than MAC Blackberry, lighter and cooler than Makeup Geek Drama Queen, more muted and more purple than NARS Brousse #2, and lighter and cooler than Too Faced Black Currant.

Cool Matte #11 is a medium cool lilac-grey in a satin-frosted finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 darker and more matte than MAC Idol Eyes, lighter and cooler than MAC Scene, lighter and more grey than Makeup Geek Fairytale, cooler and more grey than Makeup Geek Twilight, and lighter and cooler than NARS Charade #2.

Cool Matte #12 is a dark cool blackened brown in a satin-frosted finish. This is a permanent shade. It has a soft, silky, finely-milled 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 darker than Viseart Cool Matte #5, lighter and more brown than Viseart Tuxedo, more brown than Viseart Diane, darker and more frosted than MAC Brun, and cooler and more frosted than MAC Mystery.

Overall, I found the Cool Matte palette slightly stiffer and more powdery than the Neutral Matte palette (which go on smooth like butter), but this is still a fantastic cool-toned palette and is incredibly easy to work with as we've come to expect from Viseart. All 12 shades here are soft and finely-milled in texture, have spectacular pigmentation and colour pay-off, and are extremely blendable with no powdery kick up or fall-out. They adhere beautifully and are long-wearing without any primer (over eight hours without creasing or fading in my experience). As the name of the palette implies, the colours here are predominantly cool and neutral with a couple pops of colour (a pink and a blue), but are extremely versatile for all skintones to create all looks from natural to dramatic. This is a great palette to have if you find the Neutral Matte palette just a little too warm but still want a relatively neutral matte palette; this is a particularly great companion to the 03 Bridal Satin palette. The packaging is simple and very no-nonsense — these palettes were designed for makeup artists and are made for frequent use and are meant to be functional rather than admired — and the price, though seemingly expensive at first, ends up being cheaper than MAC and just slightly more than Urban Decay and Too Faced.