Review and Swatches: LORAC - Box Office Sensation Holiday 2010 - Gift Guide Series
Continuing with our Holiday Gift Guide series, here are some swatches of LORAC'S Box Office Sensation set. In case you missed it, here is our First Look review. Box Office Sensation is described as a "full face train case," which I think is a more applicable description than "palette."
This set contains:
- 36 x 0.05 eyeshadow (mix of matte and shimmer)
- 9 x 0.04 lip colors
- 3 x 0.15 blush
- 1 x 0.15 bronzer
Retails for $56 ($660 Value according to the box).
Available at Sephora (exclusive and limited edition).
This is a great gift for someone who loves makeup and maybe wants to expand their collection. I could see a college student taking this to their dorm. It's a small kit, but there are tons of options for creating color combinations. The packaging is very tough and sturdy (unlike Sephora's Blockbuster or the Tarte Jewelry Box, see the Holiday Gift Guide tab for more details).
My girl Jbrobeck reviewed this palette on her blog Polish Insomniac as well. Check out her post for more photos and her thoughts!
Palette opened.
Top layer has two sides of warm shadows. Middle layer contains cool shades of eyeshadows. Bottom layer has lip and cheek colors. 
Warm side 1
Remember to click on image to see them in closer detail.
Warm side 2
I love how there are more than just neutrals here. Blue, green, yellow. I love the variety.
Cool side 1
Cool side 2
Overall, the eyeshadows in this palette are so far the best quality I've seen in a holiday kit (see our Holiday Gift Guide tab for other reviews). The mattes and satins are very smooth and buildable. The more glittery and shimmery shades are slightly grittier, less silky. There are colors that would work well for day, as well as some fun shades for going out or if you're just in the mood for a more colorful look. 
3 blushes and a bronzer.
The bronzer was a little too red to work all over the face for most skintones. But the pigmentation on these were amazing. I also like how the blushes were both cool and warm. All three blushes are slightly shimmery. Texture and application were very good. Colors were very blendable.
9 lip colors
I was actually really impressed with how pigmented these were. They are definitely all more like lipsticks vs lipgloss. I would have liked to see a "nude" taupe, flesh color. The eyeshadows in this kit just scream "do a smoky look!" to me, and I would probably rather pair that with a nude lip vs a peach, pink, red lip. 
Similar eyeshadows shadows
36 eyeshadows is a lot. But.... there were a few too many colors for my liking that were too similar. Above are four separate shades swatched (one from each side) that are all relatively similar. There are tiny variations in the amount of shimmer vs matte etc, but I think I could have lived with two of them... and maybe have a bonus of two other fun shades.
To Review:
Pros: Great value. Sturdy packaging. Good for travel or for someone who wants a lot of color options and not a lot of bulk. Eyeshadows have good pigmentation and texture, good variety of matte and shimmer. Blushes and lip colors are pigmented.
Cons: 4 very similar eyeshadow colors. Bronzer has a reddish tone (may not work all over face for most). Would like to have seen a "nude" color for lips.
Overall Rating: A-
