Marc Jacobs Beauty recently released three different Mystery Kits for sale, each containing 3 full-size products. They offered the same three items in different color variations. The mystery kits were labeled as “#1, #2, and #3” – this is a review of the one that was labeled #2. From Marc Jacobs:
We put colors together that were attractive and beautiful, but that also transmitted the spirit of a type of girl and mood.” – Marc Jacobs
FYI – these sold out fast! But you can see the contents of all three variations in our post here.
The Box: Marc Jacobs Beauty Mystery Kit
The Cost: $39 + $5.95 shipping (free shipping on orders over $50)
The Products: Three full-size Marc Jacobs Beauty items for nails, lips, lids, or lashes
Check out the Beauty Subscription Box Directory for more makeup boxes!
Rate, review, and follow this box on the Marc Jacobs Beauty Mystery Kit profile page.
Marc Jacobs Enamored Hi-Shine Nail Lacquer in New Wave 156 – Value $18
I love Marc Jacobs nail polishes! In my experience, the colors look nice even with just one coat (even though I tend to just be a 2-coat kind of girl regardless), the formula wears well, and they have great shine even without a top coat.
This cobalt blue shade lived up to my expectations, and I really like this color! I don’t wear blue polish a lot but this is a classy, sophisticated shade that I think I’ll reach for. The bottles are pretty, too. The black top comes off to reveal a smaller cap brush.
When this box came, I had just painted my nails (because I also had just received my Julep 12-piece Julep Welcome Kit!) so I added an accent nail with the Marc Jacobs. Even over another polish, one coat had nice opacity and fantastic shine.
March Jacobs Highliner Gel Eye Crayon in Navy Noir – Value $25
(Sorry that I was wearing red when taking photos… you can totally see it in the reflection of the packaging!)
I adore Marc Jacobs’s Highliner formulas! They are so smooth and intensely pigmented. They don’t pull at all during application. These babies also have great staying power!
A word of caution, though: I first discovered these a summer or two ago, and went a little crazy and bought a few different colors. I used them all summer but tend to stick to basic brown or black liner in winter so I didn’t use them for several months. When I revisited my collection the following summer, ready to play with my bold and bright liners again, most had dried up because these are sticks of formula in the twist-up casing. They’re not pencils, so the whole product has exposure to air all the time. I wish I had used them all consistently and not had to waste any product.
Long story short: I adore these liners, but be careful with stocking up/stashing.
Good to know: all these liners have a sharpener on the opposite end of the pencil.
Marc Jacobs Style Eye-Con No. 4, the Punk – Value $39
The third product is a little eyeshadow palette that came packaged in this cute little dust bag case!
The packaging is so sleek and fancy. I’ve never tried Marc Jacobs shadows in person so I was really excited that a palette was included in this mystery kit!
The variation I got was No. 4, the Punk. It’s a bold color selection! The best thing about having a little 3-color palette, to me, is having a go-to eye look ready on hand, in a simple form. I won’t wear these colors all together on a regular basis – I’m better if bold shades like this are included in larger palettes for some variation or something.
The colors are quite pretty, though. The left, largest shadow is a shimmery champagne, the middle shade is a purple orchid shade, and the right shadow is a matte bright aubergine. The formula is creamy, but I thought the two purple shades could have a little more pigmentation. Although, with less intense pigment, they’re a little more easily wearable since they apply more lightly. Definitely still an overall good formula. (I do think you could get more bang for your buck with larger palettes and better pigmentation at a $40 price point though!)
Note: I noticed that this palette looks much bluer in the preview photo on Marc Jacob’s website than what it looks like in person. Had I perhaps purchased this online only based on their photo, it would not have been what I was expecting.
Here’s the eyeliner swatched alongside the shadows for you! The shimmery champagne has the most pigment, the satin orchid (middle shade) has a little less but the matte aubergine has the least. It’s still not poor opacity but it may take a little more product than some other formulas I’ve tried.
And here’s a look using the eyeliner and eyeshadow palette!
And here’s a closer look. As I suspected earlier, the medium-level color payoff made these shadows more subtle and wearable, but that’s only something I don’t mind because of the bold color family. Applied, these are very feminine, subtle, and pretty shades – not so much a bold or intense “the punk” look as the name of the palette would suggest.
Since the opacity/pigmentation seems to be a little inconsistent across the finishes of these shadows, I personally may stick to more shimmers from Marc Jacobs or try my best to stop and play with them at a Sephora or Marc Jacobs counter before purchasing another palette.
For this look, I applied the champagne color to the inner part of my eyelid, the bold aubergine to the center/main part of my lid, and then used the orchid shade in my crease and a little on the outer corner to add some depth.
This eyeliner is just wonderful. The pigment and staying power are phenomenal and the formulation is smooth and creamy. I had fantastic control and zero tugging during application.
Verdict: I really enjoyed exploring some of the Marc Jacobs’s brand through this mystery kit! I’m also thrilled that one of the items was one of my all-time favorite cosmetic items ever, the Highliner eye pencil. I wish I had received a palette with some more day-to-day colors I actually really like how these turned out with a little work (they almost remind me of the holographic/unicorn trend and could be great for Spring/Summer color play). For about $45 shipped, I’m pretty happy with what I received – Marc Jacobs is a pricey brand and I received $82 in retail value here. Are these items the colors/variations I would have chosen myself? No, but I knew that was a potential risk and trade-off with such a discounted price in exchange for mystery items, and I’ll make them work!
What do you think about the recent Marc Jacobs Beauty Mystery Kit?
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