MAC Brownluxe Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadow: An Unsung Makeup Hero

mac brownluxe palette — MAC Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadow in Brownluxe ($40, available now in the MAC permanent collection)

One of the downsides of deep-cleaning one’s office (yes, Operation Get My Sh*t Together is still ongoing) is finding a huge mound of stale cat treats behind a box of eye palettes and realizing, “Holy freaking crap! I’m the woman who had a pile of stale cat treats in her office and has no idea how long they were there!”

It could have been days, weeks or even years, and frankly I’m surprised that Tabs didn’t find them, because I’m sure he would have “removed” them for me.

T-Money insists on being hand fed when it's snack time — Hey girl, haaaay!

Before you click away thinking, “This woman is crazy,” I do have a point, and it is this: one of the upsides of deep-cleaning one’s office is rediscovering long-loved and lost gems like MAC Brownluxe Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadow.

If you like wearing eyeshadow but feel like your blending skills are lacking, and/or you’re often in a hurry to get out the door, and/or you can’t bear the thought of buffing out three layers of Soft Brown with your 217, YOU NEED THIS IN YOUR LIFE.

“Five complementary shades that glide on and blend beautifully for infinite day-to-night looks: egg shell, frosty orange gold, light yellow chocolate, deep bronze, blackened plum with pearl. Matte to highly pearlized finish.”

— maccosmetics.com

MAC Brownluxe belongs to the Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadow family, a group of powder shadow palettes in the MAC permanent line. It’s one of eight Veluxe Pearlfusion palettes available now for $40 each.

A few of the MAC Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadows…

The MAC Veluxe Pearlfusions have a different formula than the regular MAC powder shadows that come in the round pans. Softer and silkier, they feel almost creamy to the touch.

Each Veluxe Pearlfusion palette (Plumluxe, Copperluxe, Peachluxe, etc.) has its own distinct color theme, and within each palette, you get five Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadows hand-selected to work together in that particular theme.

Browluxe, one of my favorites in the Veluxe Pearlfusion fam, has a soft, shimmery eggshell beige; a satiny, medium golden tan; a glittery, orangey gold; a shimmery chocolate; and a shimmery, deep plummy brown — all colors that I could happily wear daily for the rest of my life based on how I’ve been feeling lately, ’cause I’ve been all about #datneutrallife.

But it’s not just the Brownluxe colors that I like. The Veluxe Pearlfusion formula is also just plain fab. It’s really, really easy to blend. Even if you’re completely new to eyeshadow, I think you could do a look incorporating two or three (or maybe even all five!) of these colors, and have it turn out looking like you know exactly what you’re doing.

I don’t know what kind of cosmetic witchery is at work, but it’s probably related to the creamy formula. Erasing edges between the colors and creating diffused gradients that seamlessly transition from light to dark, which are telltale signs of someone who’s been blending for a while, is easy with these shadows.

Brownluxe is the best if you’re always running late (story of my life). I wore it yesterday to a meeting in the city with some beauty folks, and I only had 20 minutes to do a full face of makeup from start to finish. Brownluxe helped me quickly do a neutral cat eye, which I paired with a bright hot pink lip (MAC Pink Pigeon), and I think it turned out looking like I spent 45 minutes instead of 20.

I really do believe that Brownluxe would be great for anyone new to blending shadows. Newbies, I’m talking to you! You’d have a good time with it, and later, after you’ve explored and experimented more with color, you’d be able to work these same neutrals into your brighter looks. 🙂

There are a couple of other things I should also mention…like the shape of the Veluxe Pearlfusion pans. They’re long and thin, so don’t even bother trying to use a big eye brush. It would just pick up color from neighboring pans. When I work with these, I always use brushes with smaller brush heads like the MAC 239 and MAC 217, and occasionally I’ll get a pencil brush up in the mix, like if I’m smudging out my lash lines.

Also, be sure to tap your brush first to remove any excess and reduce fallout. I say again: tap your brush first. TAP YOUR BRUSH FIRST.

You really ought to tap your brush first. 🙂 Because some of these shadows do exhibit a little fallout. But it’s not a huge amount.

And then there are the flattering finishes. Girl, as I grow up (haha), things like the way a shimmery product reads on my skin really, really matter, and I love the way these shimmer. They look silky smooth on lids, even lids with fine lines (ahem, like mine). It’s almost like you’re wearing softly glowing crushed pearls… It’s very elegant, and akin to what you might find over at Chanel.

The wear time is also wicked. I had a long day yesterday, and even after 12 hours, I could still see the Brownluxe shadows shimmering softly on my lids (for reference, I have combination oily/dry skin).

I feel like I should spread the Brownluxe love. I’ll talk about it with anybody who’ll listen, and if you’ve made it this far down this post, I hope you give it a try. 🙂 I think you’ll find something wonderful.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF!

The MAC Unsung Heroes series (a subset of my regular Unsung Makeup Heroes series) features some of my all-time favorite products from MAC’s permanent collection

Comments

Kelly B. says
May 29th, 2015 at 10:45 am

Those long, thin eyeshadow pans would drive me insane! I love my big fluffy brushes for eyeshadow 😀 But these formulas look gorgeous even though!
Kelly B. recently posted … My Favorite Drugstore Palettes (at the moment)

Jessica says
May 29th, 2015 at 10:49 am

I LOVE that pic of Tabs! CHOMP CHOMP!
Chow down, Kitty!
Jessica recently posted … Duo-Tone Rainbow

Lulle says
May 29th, 2015 at 10:52 am

The picture of Tabs ready to eat his leaf just cracked me up! My kitty boss is asking where he gets his professional teeth whitening treatments. He’s been using dental Greenies regularly but he thinks his teeth are not as white as Tabs’, and now he’s questioning my pet assistant skills for not getting him better dental care.

I haven’t tried the Veluxe Pearlfusions yet, but you make it sound like I probably should! What lipstick are you wearing in these pictures? It’s so flattering on you.
Lulle recently posted … French Friday: Yves Saint Laurent Gloss Volupté in Nude Carat

Tulipthecat says
May 29th, 2015 at 11:00 am

I’m always running late and I’m not the best at blending so I’ll have to give this a try. I wish I knew about it before I placed my MAC order the other day 🙁 I find cat treats everywhere…especially all over the bed. I put Tulip’s nightly treats on a pillow on the bed so that she can snack during the night but when I wake up it’s all over the bed and on the floor. My house has cat treats everywhere….hahahahaha

I love the eye look you have on in the pictures above!

Cherie says
May 29th, 2015 at 11:27 am

What lipstick are you wearing – that’s a beautiful color.

I find blending daunting…I’ll have to give these a try the next time I’m nosing around the MAC counter…

- Karen says
  May 29th, 2015 at 1:03 pm
  
  Hi Cherie,
  
  It’s MAC Persistence. 🙂
  
  - Casey says
    May 31st, 2015 at 8:47 pm
    
    Thanks for asking this Cherie – I was coming here to ask the same thing! It looks beautiful, Karen
    
Lauren S. says
May 29th, 2015 at 12:27 pm

These are super pretty! I love the shimmer. That picture of Tabs is hilarious!

Also, a few of my favorite brands are Tarte, Clinique and Maybelline, to name a few. Sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner, but I’d really appreciate the help! 🙂

Miradan says
May 29th, 2015 at 12:30 pm

What lipstick are you wearing, it’s lovely!

Lauren says
May 29th, 2015 at 12:36 pm

Tabs is adorable in this pic!!!

Your lipstick is gorgeous! Is that the Matte Whirl?

- Karen says
  May 29th, 2015 at 1:02 pm
  
  Hi Lauren,
  
  He knows he’s working it in this pic, LOL!
  
  I’m wearing MAC Persistence. It’s from the new The Matte Lip collection. 🙂
  
tirurit says
May 29th, 2015 at 1:21 pm

And here I have been turning up my nose and deeming them too glittery!

Damn, it seems that I need to get off my high horse and give them a chance/try
tirurit recently posted … First purchases from the Essie Professional line

Allison C says
May 29th, 2015 at 1:49 pm

MAC is underrepresented in my mu collection, so these pretties will go on the list for when/if I get a cash infusion, lol. I love buttery easy to blend shadows on my older skin and the shimmer isn’t too wild on these. So pretty and good to know about
Allison C recently posted … MyChelle Natural Sun Protection Products

Dee says
May 30th, 2015 at 1:30 pm

SOOOO super pretty .love the pics and looks here Karen. Im convinced I need yet another neutral eye shadow palette/quad/whatev now!! What lipstick do you have on in the pictures here? That is just gorgeous!
Dee recently posted … Summertime Corals

Fancie says
May 30th, 2015 at 1:41 pm

You’re definitely selling me on these palettes lol. I already had my eye on the green one from the summer collection but now I’m kinda really wanting it. To the counter I go..
Fancie recently posted … Saturday Morning Skincare

Katherine T. says
May 31st, 2015 at 10:35 pm

Wow, love the eye look you did. I’ve swatched some of the Pearfusion shadows in stores and wasn’t that impressed, but this kit looks great