Middling Metropolitan

The new Revlon PhotoReady Primer + Shadow eyeshadow palettes weren't hugely enticing to me, but after a foiled trip to Chemist Warehouse for 50% off the newly released Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains in Crush and Rendezvous (for whatever reason, the powers that be decided to deprive Australia of them until recently), I ended up turning to Myer as a last resort. Though I baulked at the idea of paying full price for them, at the very least Myer were offering a Revlon gift with purchase that included the Metropolitan (501) Primer + Shadow, normally $25.95. Let's just begin by saying the Revlon PhotoReady Sculpting Blush Palette in Pink Rose (001), also in the GWP, is such a huge product fail that it's hard to believe it passed any kind of quality control. Believe the hilariously negative reviews on MakeupAlley and stay as far away as possible. Despite the disappointment with the blush, I hoped the eyeshadow would be something worth writing about, especially as the colours seemed promising.

l-r (numbered per diagram at back of palette): 1, 4, 2, 3, 5

The eyeshadow palette consists of 5 shades, though one of them is supposed to be a primer. I don't really get the idea of using another powder eyeshadow as a primer, as I'm more used to clear, creamy primers like Urban Decay Primer Potion or cream eyeshadow bases. The primer (shade 1 according to the diagram at the back of the palette) could double as your standard highlighting shade. It's a frosty pale pink with a slight peachiness to it, very similar to Urban Decay Sin, though Sin is more beige-toned and a little darker. The top highlighting shade (4) is a shimmery pale sherbet orange with a subtle golden pearl. The crease shade (3) is a cool, grey-toned medium taupe with white shimmer that flashes almost a duochrome green. The lid shade (2) is an almost matte bark brown with sparse, nearly undetectable silver glitter. Finally, the "sparkle top coat" (5) is an antique bronze with iridescent glitter particles, basically the poor man's version of the gold leaf shade in Clarins Eye Quartet Mineral Palette in Odyssey.

Maybe I'm now more discerning or demand more of my eyeshadows, but I found the overall quality to be uninspiring. The color payoff is acceptable (especially when layered) but fundamentally, they aren't very vibrant or richly pigmented. The shadows feel quite powdery and could easily be wiped away when I swatched them on my arm. The primer shade was surprisingly the standout in terms of pigmentation and texture, though I don't picture using it regularly and I already have multiple eyeshadows similar to it. Perhaps the shadows would be more impressive to me if applied wet, but let's face it, I won't ever be bothered.

The shade selection puzzled me somewhat, mainly because the lid shade is so dark for the daytime. I instead use the crease shade for my lid, but the colour is a bit too grey and cool to complement my colouring. I do like the subtle green duochrome quality that it has, which adds some unexpected interest. The glitter top coat seems more for special occasions to delicately dab onto the centre of the lid as a finishing touch. This shade was the most powdery, least pigmented and most susceptible to being wiped away to nothingness (be prepared for loads of glitter fallout), but the purple/blue, green, orange and diamond sparkles are pretty, though not all that pronounced. At first I thought it might be a more affordable version of the glitter top coat in the Clarins Odyssey quad, but the richness and density of the Clarins is simply incomparable.