Hello loves!
I was hoping to get this post up last week but I got hit with a wicked cold that has knocked me on my ass for the past week and a half. I'm just getting over it but still have a cough that is rocking my body that I severely wish would disappear already.
Subculture hit the market about a month ago. First being released online on the ABH website, then Sephora & Ulta online and finally in Sephors stores on August 15th (the latest release).
This has been the most CONTROVERSIAL palette I've ever seen.
I first saw it pop up on my Instagram feed and was completely taken by the gorgeous and unique color scheme.
Of course owning the coveted Modern Renaissance palette I had to get my hands on this. It's said by Norvina to be the sister palette to M.R. the night to day if you will.
The color scheme is extremely unique and when looking at it there's not many easy to create looks that pop out at me but none the less I've still fallen for its beauty.
The M.R. & Subculture are both cased in velvet packaging with embossed logos. The M.R. one in white which contrasts nicely to the pink while the subculture logo is embossed in gold against a dark teal. I'll be honest I hate velvet packaging, my reason being that it's impossible to keep clean. If you get any trace of makeup on your hands or fingers and touch the palette it wont come off. Velvet may look nice but it's so far from practical. You can even see that my dog's hair even gets stuck to it and she sheds like a monster (her hair is literally everywhere!)
Where the controversy begins...the base ingredient.
The shadows in Modern Renaissance were made with mica. The subculture shadows were made with talc which is known to be a cheaper alternative. A lot of people were upset and shocked that a brand like ABH would even use talc as an ingredient. Now, I'm no chemist and I honestly don't know the difference between using mica & talc but this was one of the things that people were quite up in arms about.
The shadows in these palettes are not the same and I think because it's the "sister palette" people just assumed they would be which is where a lot of the controversy comes into play. They're not pressed or formulated the same nor are they made with the same ingredients so of course these shadows are going to be different.
The shades in M.R. are softly pressed which of course leads to fall out although it's nothing compared to the fall out the shadows in Subculture. Like I said above though the shadows in Subculture are so softly pressed they're almost like pigments which is the cause of the extreme fall out. They were formulated so differently you can't truly compare the formulas to one another.
We all know and adore the M.R. It's a beginner friendly, easy to use palette with a gorgeous color scheme to boot where all the colors work wonderfully and blend beautifully with one another. I bought M.R. when it was first released and I still use it constantly and have yet to hit pan on any of the shadows and I use this almost daily. For me, this was the palette to own in 2016.
I bet you're all wondering how I feel about Subculture aren't you?
It's nothing like the Modern Renaissance and if you go in comparing it to M.R. you will hate it. I think this is the reason there are so many negative reviews surrounding it.
It's not a bad palette you just need to work with it.
I wouldn't recommend it for beginners. In fact, I had to go research a bit about color theory as there are certain colors in here that when blended together are going to come out muddy no matter what you do so beware of that. I had to stare long and hard at the color scheme before I could come up with a look as like I said before if you're not careful or don't know anything about color theory a look can go wrong very quickly. The colors aren't easily paired together so to speak.
These are EXTREMELY soft shadows so heavy handed users be warned. You only need to tap your brush very lightly into the pan and you will pick up more than enough color so be sure after every tap that you tap the excess of because these are ridiculously pigmented and it's easy to apply to much at once.
Heed my advice, build the color slowly and blend after every application.
You need to be incredibly careful when using this palette but I believe with time, effort and practice you can create some stunning looks with these shadows.
Top row swatches from left to right - Modern Renasissance { Tempura, Golden Ochre, Vermeer, Buon Fresco ♥, Antique Bronze, Love Letter & Cypress Umber}
Bottom Row - Modern Renaissance {Raw Sienna, Burnt Orange, Primavera, Red Ochre, Venetian Red, Warm Taupe & Realgar}
{I apologzie for the hair in Electric, I didn't notice it when taking the photo}
Top Row Swatches - Subcultre {Cube, Dawn, Destiny, Adorn, All Star, Mercury & Axis}
I absolutely L O V E cube. It's such a unique color that I've never seen before and looks amazing in the inner corner. I've yet to see anyone use it as a lid shade but I'm interested in giving it a go and seeing how it turns out!
As you can see Mercury is much darker when swatched than it is in the pan so if you're using it on the eyes be aware of this.
Bottom Row Swatches - Subculture {Roxy, Electric, Fudge, New Wave, Untamed, Edge & Rowdy}
Roxy I found to be the softest shade in the palette and the one with the most fall out. The fall out doesn't really bother me though because you can just pick up the excess on the palette with your brush so it doesn't go to waste. I had higher hopes for Electric but if you use it wet or with your finger instead of a brush it's much more pigmented. Edge is like Mercury in terms of it swatching much darker than it is in the pan. It comes out looking like a darker mustard yellow opposed to the brighter yellow it gives off in the pan.
I haven't used Subulture that much. I've used it maybe about two or three times and you can clearly already see dents in the pans of the shadows. My Modern Renaissance has been well loved but it took a long time to see physical use in the pans. I actually got my nail caught in Roxy which is why it looks so rough in comparison to the other colors but yes because of how these are pressed I don't think the palette's going to last as long as others with hard pressed shadows.
I've heard though that Norvina said they will be repressing/reformulating the palettes however I don't know how true that is.
Here was a look I created with Subculture, a halo eye using New Wave in the crease, Fudge in the outer and inner corners and Adorn on the lid with my new favorite inner corner highlight - cube.
Overall I like it, do I love it?
No but I don't think it deserves the negative hype it's been receiving.
What do you guys think, have you tried it?
♥
Bri
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