Pat McGrath MTHRSHP Subversive La Vie en Rose palette ($55)

Pat McGrath recently released three new 6 pan palettes, inspired by the three Mothership palettes that came out last year. Out of the three mini palettes, this is the only one that I found appealing enough to justify the $55 price tag. I’ve had a lot of conflicting feelings about this palette starting with the packaging.

It’s the same design as the outer boxes of the big Mothership palettes with an inlaid mirror and recessed black panel with the six eyeshadow pans.I was expecting it to be the same luxe black enamel of the full sized palettes. At first I was disappointing because if I’m paying top dollar for a palette, I want the boujee packaging. But now it’s growing on me. It’s a little loud but it’s very unique. I don’t own anything else like it and I’m kinda digging how you can stand it on its side.

It is expensive for a 6 pan palette ($55). However they’re actually a much better value than the big palettes. The MTHRSHP palettes are $55 and have 12g of product and the ten pan Mothership palettes are $125 and only have 13.8g of product. So that’s a plus in their favor. Another thing that disappointed me a bit is that the mini palettes don’t have any shadows with the glitter formula that’s in the big palettes. For me that formula and the packaging are the two main selling points of the Mothership palettes. But I was surprised to find that I prefer the shadows in this palette over the original (with the exception of the glitter shades). I’m not 100% sure that these are new formulas, I haven’t compared ingredients. But they feel different to me.

Pale Fire is a peachy pink with a violet shift. It has an emollient texture and opaque pigmentation. I love this color but I really could’ve done without it in this palette because I own at least four dupes. MUG has this color. So does UD. And ColourPop. And ABH. Plus most of my favorite indies. I love this color and I’ll definitely use it but we’ve seen it before.

Purple Reign is a satiny royal purple. It’s not metallic but it’s got more of a sheen than a traditional satin. This color isn’t especially unique either but it gets a thumbs up from me because of the formula. Purple eyeshadows can be so difficult to use but this one builds and blends flawlessly. It does have a touch of sheen but I’ve been using it in my crease all week and loving the results.

Gold Nectar is an ultra metallic gold. It’s so creamy that it almost looks and feels wet. Again we’re not exactly reinvested the wheel here with the warm gold color but the formula is impeccable.

Paranormal is a dusty plum and the only matte in the palette. I much prefer this formula over that of the mattes in the Mothership palettes. It’s very pigmented and blends smoothly without any patchy spots or sheering out too much.

Rose Risqué is a bright rose colored satin with just a hint of sheen. Like the rest, it’s very pigmented but with a light hand I’ve been using it as a transition color. I like how it pairs with the royal blue and plum matte.

Euphoria is a foiled plum with pink undertones. I love this color and formula. It has the intensity and adherence of a foiled shadow while still applying easily with brush and not creasing over time.

I like every shadow in this palette and they’re colors that I know I’ll use a lot. I can’t think of anything negative to say about the formula. As I mentioned in the beginning, I prefer these shadows over those in the original Mothership palettes. I love when eyeshadows are intensely pigmented and still easy to use. I also appreciate that in addition to making these palettes more accessible as far as price, she also included a larger amount of product making them an all around better value.

The only constructive criticism that I have with this palette is how dupeable it is. I mean there’s always dupes. There’s only so many colors in the world. But these particular shades have been done a lot in the past few years. I’m not going to bitch about the packaging because it’s growing on me. And as much as I love the black enamel packaging, I’m sure that it would’ve driven up the price point quite a bit. Also I would’ve liked a lighter matte or satin for a transition color. The hot pink has sufficed this week while I’ve been testing the palette but for normal use I’ll need a transition color from another palette. But that’s just my personal preference because of how fair I am.

So do you need it? Of course not. No one NEEDS an eyeshadow palette. But if you like the colors and you’ve been wanting to try the brand then I say go for it! If the $55 price tag is too steep for you then check back soon because I’m planning on doing a dupe post!