Wednesday 16 November 2016

REVIEW AND SWATCHES: LORAC PRO Palette 3

ITEM: LORAC PRO Palette 3 (U.S. Link and Price HERE)
PRICE: $82.99AUD (Price at myqt.com.au)

So... with Christmas around the corner, I thought that doing a review on this little gem was a perfect idea! And with the differing views that are available out there on this little guy, I would like to put in my little two cents about the palette! And as you can see, the palette is the Lorac Pro Palette 3!



I have had it for a while. But if you follow me on social media (Instagram: @mnh.beauty and Snapchat: @mnhwangg) you would know that FT work has been killing me and just don't have time to play around with makeup much. So despite having had it for ages, this blog post is going up super late. I didn't want to give you a half decent review, but wanted to make sure it was one that was well-informed and after at least a couple of uses. So here goes nothing!

Formula
Now I know some people already own the Lorac 1 and 2 palettes and are familiar with the formulas of the Lorac PRO line. (I own the 1 and the Mega Pro 1 but not the 2 or Mega Pro 2). But just for those that have never felt, owned or used the Lorac PRO line before, I will give you a few things that are quite notable about the brand and this particular line.

Firstly, the colours are usually extremely pigmented. And I mean extremely pigmented. It's one of the best things about the line. Secondly, because of the high pigmentation, the shadows create quite a fair amount of fall out/kick up a lot of powder. It's unfortunately inevitable when something is crazy pigmented like the Lorac PRO line. Thirdly, the shadows are notoriously buttery and soft. It is soooo soft. The mattes and the shimmers are equally as soft and creamy in the Lorac PRO line. Lastly, the Lorac PRO palettes always have one line of mattes and then one line of shimmers. They always have that format and I think that's something that usually appeals to people.

Now for the Lorac PRO Palette 3 specifically, I honestly don't feel that the palette deviates from any of these standard expectations of the Lorac PRO line. I know that there have been some differing opinions - some people think it's not as smooth or as pigmented or as creamy as the other palettes. However in my experience, the palette is just the same beautiful soft, buttery and creamy, highly pigmented product that will have quite a bit of fall out/kick up of powder. But I will iterate that there is a lot of fall out/powder kick up. So if you really don't enjoy that and are pretty fussy about it, this is not the palette for you!

I will say that the shimmers are all absolute perfection. But that there are some mattes which swatch slightly patchy, or when I swatch them they skip a little. But when applied onto the eye, or when used properly, I have absolutely no issues. So let's look at some swatches before I go into the details of any "patchiness".

Top Row (all mattes)
From left to right:
Blanc - Canvas - Cool Taupe - Pink Nude - Clay - Terracotta - Dk Brown - Jet Black
So I had absolutely no issue with Blanc, Cool Taupe, Clay or Terracotta. I would like to note that Terracotta is my absolute favourite shade in the palette. It is an awesome dupe for MAC Uninterrupted, Makeup Geek Dessert Sands, Bobbi Brown Camel. All of which are ridiculously popular shades! So that is an added bonus.

However, Canvas was the exact same colour as my skin so I had to build it up for you guys to be able to see it on camera (therefore this is not an issue with the shadow, just difficult to show because of my skin colour). I had a similar issue with Pink Nude but it also skipped a tiny bit so I really had to build it up to show on camera, plus felt there was a few gaps in between. However I have used it on my eyes as a transition shade and such and have had NO issues with skipping. It was super easy to use and was very blendable. So I really don't have any issues with this shadow.

Dk Brown and Jet Black, as you can see in the photo above did skip a little/was a little bit patchy. But honestly, I think that these are so buttery that when you swatch them with your fingers it just kind of melts into the skin and then it doesn't swatch as beautifully. The reason I think this is because when I use it on my eye I have absolutely no issues. The blendability of all the matte shades (including Dk Brown and Jet Black) is just awesome. The colours also don't just blend into each other and seem like all the same shade. They are distinct from one another, yet very easy to blend and work nicely with each other. It's great. So despite the two dark shades swatching quite unattractively, I think that the shades are actually really good when you use them with a brush on your eye.

Bottom Row (all shimmers)
From left to right:
Lt Gold - Almond Pearl - Medallion - Lt Pewter - Amethyst - Rose Bronze - Dk Mocha - Truffle
So as I said above, the shimmers as expected, were absolute perfection. There is not one that I can find any fault with. There is not one that I think deviates from the normal Lorac PRO line. I really think they are just absolutely gorgeous, pigmented, creamy, soft, buttery and really really easy to blend and use. They stay on the eye all day and are just gorgeous.

Packaging
Now, the packaging. The packaging is like the standard Lorac PRO palettes. Very thin, has a mirror, magnetic closure, the rubbery finish and very light. I love that. I actually find that is another factor which draws me toward the Lorac PRO line. I think this particular palette topped it off because the colour is so pretty! It's a beige-pink-nude colour. It's just so appealing to the eye. Because it is also so thin and light, I would honestly consider this one of the most travel friendly palettes on the market.

I do want to say however that the rubbery packaging I know bothers some people. It gets finger prints and looks dirty quite quickly. However something I have noticed is that unlike the black packaging of the original Lorac PRO palette, this one (beige) is not as likely to look dirty. The original forms like white patches on it from all the shadows, but unless you get a huge black smear onto the packaging, the beige one doesn't show the powdery patches as much as the original. So the beige isn't only a pretty colour, but a beneficial one.

Just note: if you step on the palette, the mirror is very fragile so it will break. (Unfortunately I accidentally dropped it then stepped on it. But obviously, this is my fault and not the fault of the palette.

Colour Range
Now this is the one con that I really have. The colour range is somewhat... strange. I know this may not ring true to everyone, because some people may look at the palette and be blown away by the colour range. I think it's really a personal preference thing. And for me, I just look at the palette and don't get that inspired. I find it a little bit difficult to create looks that are mind-blowing and exciting. I also feel the need to constantly reach for other palettes just to fill in the holes. I would only go to these for either travelling, or to use maybe 1 or 2 shades for a look I am creating.

I do think that it covers the range from skin tones, to whites, to shimmers, to blacks, to transition shades etc. But I don't know why, when I look at the palette I feel like it's not enough. It's crazy. It's the same way that I feel about my other Lorac PRO palettes. And I don't fully understand it because in reality, the palettes do have a lot of range and such, but I just can't see myself using them altogether to create one look. So for some reason I don't end up reaching for this palette too often and I struggle to do an entire look with this palette only.

In say that, I thought I would add a selfie just to show you one look that I created and posted on Instagram using the mattes from this palette. Including the dark mattes that seemed patchy above:

Follow me on Instagram: (@mnh.beauty)
So as you can see, the eyeshadows do blend really well and they are not patchy or difficult to use on the eye. So I think that the swatches most definitely do not do the shadows any justice.

Overall: This palette is really not different in quality to the other Lorac PRO Palettes (in my opinion). The packaging is very simple, pretty, light and travel-friendly. It has a mirror for that added bonus. The rubbery feel of the packaging however is a bother to some people because it can "look dirty". But as I said before, the beige colour masks the white patches that the original Lorac PRO Palette seems to form. As for the formula, I think they are all very beautiful - easy to blend, creamy, pigmented, buttery and soft, and so pretty on the eyes. However for those that don't like fall out, this will not be your favourite. And for those that are a bit like me, the colour range in this palette will not inspire you. It is difficult to imagine what looks to create with this on it's own (for me).

Rating: 7.5/10

1 comment:

  1. Can never go wrong with Lorac. Their shadows are always so amazing. Trangles xoxo


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