MAC Masat al Lail Eyeshadow Quad Review, Photos, Swatches

MAC Masat al Lail Eyeshadow Quad

MAC Masat al Lail Eyeshadow Quad ($40.00 for 0.21 oz.) contains these shades: Rondelle (platinum silver frost), Waft (deep navy with pearl), Gentle Fume (dirty concrete grey with silver pearl), and Carbon (intense black). Long-time MAC collectors may remember this composition, as it was originally launched in Smoke Signals (2007) as the Gentle Fume quad.

Rondelle is a gray-tinged white with a frosted finish. It had decent to good color payoff, but it was a little dusty, though I was able to get it to apply smoothly for the most part. Tarte Silver Burst is brighter, whiter. Guerlain Les Aquas #4 is more metallic. Bobbi Brown Iced Blue is cooler-toned.

Waft is a dark, bluish-gray with a subtle, frosted finish. The texture is rather dry, which is why this shade looks a bit patchy (and it does look dry, too) when swatched. It has so-so color payoff, but it was buildable and when used with a soft, fluffier brush, it did seem to apply better and more smoothly. theBalm Matt McDonald is very similar. MAC Warm Thunder is more metallic. Tarina Tarantino DIamond DUsk is more metallic, lighter. MAC Weathered is bluer.

Gentle Fume is a medium-dark matte gray base with silver sparkle. The silver sparkle doesn’t adhere or bind with the base color very well, so it flakes and disappears the moment you go to blend out the color. If you want any sparkle to survive, pat the color on, and then leave it alone. There will be fall out during the day, though. MAC Fabulous Fit doesn’t have the sparkle and is a touch lighter. MAC Silver Gull is much lighter. NARS Delphes #2 is close to the base color but doesn’t have the silver sparkle. Chanel Gris Exquis is a darker gray with no silver sparkle.

Carbon is a medium-dark black with a matte finish. It is part of the permanent range, and it varies in its dryness. This isn’t the worst iteration I’ve seen of it, but it’s certainly not the best and is by no means a favorite of mine to use. The beauty world can do better black eyeshadows now, so Carbon could use a reformulation to put it on par with current black eyeshadows. It’s just so dry and stiff, so the color payoff is sheerer and patchy–even applied on the lid, it can be a pain to blend out. You can find numerous black eyeshadows that compare to this (in terms of color).

It is a cool-toned, silver-and-gray smoky eye palette. Over the years, I’ve grown frustrated with Carbon, so the inclusion of it in the quad is tiresome, as it is so often released in quads and palettes, so you very likely have one already (and it’s just not a great quality eyeshadow to begin with, so why have doubles or triples of it?). I think the color of Waft is the most interesting, but it turns out that Weathered ends up looking more nuanced on the lid because it is bluer. I wish the silver sparkle stuck to Gentle Fume, because then it would be something harder to dupe or find, but it just disappears and gets everywhere else. Rondelle is the best performing shade in the palette. I’m going to be wearing this quad for wear today, so I’ll report back with the results this afternoon–based on my experience with MAC’s drier/sheerer shades, I don’t get great wear (between seven and eight hours, some fading), I’ve assessed a rating but if it is better/worse, I’ll be sure to let you know.

Where to Buy: MAC, $40.00

The Glossover

The quad just requires too much work. I think that eyeshadows have significantly improved over the past five years, and I feel like these are too dry and stiff and lack color payoff.