MAC Archie’s Girls Spoiled Rich Eyeshadow Quad ($44.00, MAC Counters and maccosmetics.com) - An Eye Shadow Quad in four shades: Ron Ron Run, Spoiled Rich, Pin-Up Purple and Gravel. The highly pigmented powder formula applies evenly, blends and builds beautifully. Limited-edition Archie’s Girls packaging.
Spoiled Rich comes packaged in the MAC Archie’s Girls packaging, an all white quad with Ron, Betty, and Veronica on the front. The compact itself has some heft to it, and is really similar to the MAC Wonder Woman quad’s from last year. The logo is printed onto the front which is nice (I know MAC has used stickers a few time on LE packaging like this and a lot of people don’t like it). I actually really like the mirror that comes with the compact, it’s very long and you’re able to see both eyes easily at the same time, rather than having to turn your head this way and that.
Pin-Up Purple- is a muted pink-lavender with a frost finish, though it looks more satin when worn. This shade was dry, a little sheer, and patchy. It also didn’t hold up to blending very well, so I found myself having to reapply it to bring back some intensity. It worked a lot better with a base, and I’d imagine EVEN BETTER with a like colored one, maybe a paint pot or one of the Maybelline Color Tattoos.
Spoiled Rich- is a vibrant grape with pink sparkle and a frost finish, though the sparkle doesn’t translate well to the lid, it leans this shade away from being a true grape purple. This one was more pigmented than Pin-Up Purple though it had some of the same application issues, being dry and patchy. This held up better to blending and worked very well in the crease.
Ron Ron Run- is a dark, navy blue with pink and purple sparkle and a satin finish (though it looks matte when worn). Even more pigmented than Spoiled Rich, Ron Ron Run was a bit smoother, still a tad dry, and applied more evenly. This one didn’t really want to blend though, so be careful how you place it as it will pretty much just stick put. This was my favorite shade in the quad.
Gravel- is a is a medium charcoal grey with a matte finish, and the only shade in the set that actually has the finish MAC claims! Though this wasn’t as pigmented right off the bat, it tied with Ron Ron Run in terms of color blendability and smooth application. This help up the best to blending, acting like a regular shadow (gasp!).
Gravel and Ron Ron Run in the crease, Spoiled Rich and Pin-Up Pink on the lid.
Overall
MAC’s LE quads like this are notoriously not awesome. While I am a big supporter of MAC’s permanent range of shadows, I agree with most artists and bloggers that aren’t impressed by these. They are supposedly a good value, but in the end you’re paying more for sub par shadows when you would probably be happier to shell out full price for 4 astounding shades. What gets me most is that a lot of permanent shades make their way into these palettes and they still suffer from a lack of quality (case in point, Carbon). In the end I enjoyed the palette. It was a good way to insert some purples into my routine, the packaging is cute, and the shadows do work if you put in a little bit of planning and elbow grease. I think you shouldn’t have to, but if you’re a collector or picked this up hoping it would change the way you feel about these quads (like I did) then do not fear! These aren’t a total lost cause, just not the great quality that one expects from MAC.
Glad I passed this one up!