MAC Peacocky Mega Metal Eyeshadows - Comparisons, Summary and Final Review!


Hand it to MAC to come out with fifteen limited edition eyeshadows all at once.  I'll keep this brief since there are a photos to get through.  Mega Metal eyeshadows are a new formulation of pressed eyeshadow created by MAC for the Peacocky collection.  They have great texture, color payoff, pigmentation.  They are large than regular MAC eyeshadow pans (3.4g, 0.11oz vs 1.5g, 0.05oz), and they are also more expensive, $19.50 each vs. $14.50 each.  However, they are a better value.  

Math Breakdown (Makeup Geek Out Time)
MAC Mega Metal Shadow $19.50 each for 3.4g, 0.11oz =  
$5.37 per gram, $177.27 per oz.
MAC Eye Shadow $14.50 each for 1.5g, 0.05oz =  
$9.66 per gram, $290 per oz.

But if you are like me and know that you will never finish a pan.  To save $, I would skip lighter, paler shades and go for the richer, more vibrant colors.  In summary, get these; you will be happy. 

Here are some comps for you.  I apologize in advance.  I don't own that many MAC perm colors.  I don't think I had ever felt before that I didn't have a lot of eyeshadows before, but when trying to comp, I really felt like I was in short supply.  I tried to keep these in the MAC world of eyeshadows, but many are LE or HTF (hard to find).  I just put this together for those who may have some of these past LE's and may want to skip colors because they own something similar.  But if you just love swatches, as I do, go ahead and knock yourself out too.

There went trying to keep things brief.  I'll be quiet now.  Enjoy the photos.  If you missed other swatches and pictures, here are the links:


*Unless noted, all of these eyeshadows swatched are by MAC.  Captions label swatches left to right.  Formulation is indicated when known.  If it's not there, then I wasn't sure (sorry!).
Peek-At-You, Gold Dusk (Pig.), Provence (Pig.), Femme-Fi (VP).

Prance, Shoreleve (VP), Shimmertime (Pig.), Your Ladyship (Pig.).

Dalliance, Retrospeck (L), Creme Royale (VP).

Paparazz-she, Firespot (VP), Off the Radar (Pig.), Rushmetal (Pig.).

Sexpectations, Bravado (VP), Star Violet (VP).

Tweet Me, Jardin Aires (Pig.), Melon (Pig.), YSL Eclat de Givre #2, Pink Bronze (Pig.).

Ego, Gulf Stream (F), Steel Blue (Pig.), Odalisque, Parrot (F), Teal (Pig.)

Dandizette, Silver Fog (F), Blue Flame (VP), Waft.

 
Noir Plum, Top Hat (SF), Satellite Dreams, Grape (Pig.). 

Mating Call, Stars & Rockets, Lotusland (SF).

Top of the Posh, Apricot Pink (Pig.), Revved Up (Pig.), Pink Venus (L), Gateaux (F).

Spectacle of Yourself, Chocolate Brown (Pig.), Goldstroke (Pig.)

Centre Stage, Magnetic Fields (VP), Mauvement (Pig.)

Unflappable, Smoke + Diamonds (SF), Moth Brown (F), Sweet Sienna (Pig.).

To Review:

MAC Mega Metal Shadow $19.50 each for 3.4g, 0.11oz are limited edition at MAC counters and www.maccosmetics.com. 
Pro: Pigmented, large pan, good value, great color payoff, lovely texture.
Con: (For some, the pro might be con) Large pan.  Limited edition. Paler shades don't have the same level of color payoff. Pricier than regular MAC shadows (albeit larger).
Overall Beautyburg Rating: A

MAC Cham-Pale Soirée Nail Lacquer vs. Orly Rage - Comparison & Possible Dupe?

Are we related? MAC Soirée and Orly Rage.


I recently picked up the two nail lacquers from MAC's Cham-Pale collection (see my review here).  One from the collection, Very Important Platinum, was an epic application fail.  Streaky, thin, blech.  Reminded me of how bad MAC used to be at nails.  Then was Soirée a pretty dusty-rose metallic foil.  Very pretty on, but it seemed somewhat familiar.


Digging through my stash, I found Orly Rage.  A gorgeous rosy silver foil from a few collections ago and still easily available.


I decided to do a side by side comparison since one is about half the price of the other.  From the bottle, they seem almost identical.  You can see that Orly's Rage is more silvery and the duochrome particles seem finer.  Soirée seems more rosy and dustier, but overall they are very, very, very close.  Maybe fraternal, not identical, twins.


Left to right: Soirée, Rage, Soirée, Rage.


I think the ring finger shows off Soirée's dusty, copperiness best.  However, from a distance (of 6 inches), they look almost the same.  I think most people wouldn't even notice a difference.  Click on the photo to enlarge.


 A photo of all Soirée.  
You can see the copper and dustier elements in the shade here.


All Soirée.  Let's party! 

MAC Soirée is $13 for 10ml 0.34oz, limited edition at MAC counters and MAC online.
Orly Rage is about $7 (depending on store) for 0.6oz and available at salons and Sally Beauty supply.


If you missed the review of Soirée and Very Important Platinum, click here.


How close does a dupe, comparable have to be to cancel out the original?  Do you go by price difference, meaning the cheaper one?  Or sometimes do you just have to have it?

OPI Unripened vs. Sinful Colors What's Your Name

OPI Unripened from their Halloween collection for 2010 is an inky black blue with sapphire, turquoise and purple shimmer. It is available in full size bottles as well as in the Go Goth set of minis, but I haven't seen many full size bottles in stores or at e-tailers. So... if you thought that Unripened was the best out of the mini set (which I do) and are having a hard time fining a full size, here is a a good alternative for you.

Sinful Colors What's Your Name(#813) is almost an exact dupe. I think the OPI has a slightly nicer formula and coverage, but at $2, why not? OPI Unripened looks more shimmery and like it has more duochromes, especially in the bottle. But as I said in my review, Unripened doesn't translate on the nail as it looks in the bottle.

Sinful Colors What's Your Name is available at Cherry Culture .

OPI Unripened (left) vs. Sinful Colors What's Your Name (right)

OPI Unripened (left) vs. Sinful Colors What's Your Name (right)




Chanel Paradoxal vs. Castledew 9289


Chanel Paradoxal (Index and Middle), Castledew 9289 (Ring and Pinkie)


Chanel Paradoxal (Index and Middle), Castledew 9289 (Ring and Pinkie)

I know that everyone is always looking to dupe Chanel. For $23-25 per bottle (at retail), you could be getting 4 or more other polishes for the same price. Castledew is a Korean brand. They don't have a website that sells in the states, but I found a counter at a Korean supermarket in LA and thru third party sellers associated with Ebay. I paid $6 per bottle, but I'm sure it's less in Asia. 9289 is described on Castledew's site as "Galaxy Charcoal Brown." I could see that as accurate. It is slightly more shimmery than Paradoxal, but I found in opacity and application to be a very good dupe. The question is what's easier to find? For those in the states, the answer might be the Chanel