Indie Thanksgiving Week: Mad Lab Cosmetics Metallurgy Collection Review

Mad Lab Cosmetics is another indie company that's having a Black Friday sale, and I just got my Metallurgy Collection to review before the sale! The cheatsheet for all the indie Black Friday sales I made is here. The Metallurgy Collection is made up of two parts, the Elements Collection Part 1, and the Alloys Collection.

Mad Lab Cosmetics specializes in precious stone and periodic table themed eyeshadows, and Catherine the owner, also does monthly birthstone colors. They are located in Southern California, and there are currently two collections; the Semi-Precious Collection, which I reviewed already here, and this Metallurgy Collection.

Shipping - I placed my order the first day this collection went live, and it shipped 2 days after I ordered. It arrived via USPS 2 days after shipping from Southern California to Northern California.

Product Size - This collection and all their other shadows are available in sample bags or full size jars. I ordered the sample bags and depotted them into jars for photography purposes.

Free Samples - I received two free samples with this order, which I actually thought I bought because Catherine included the other two shades that I didn't own already!

Admiralty Brass - "Warm, brassy gold with a high shimmer finish."

This shade had probably the least adhesion and pigmentation of the collection, but the shimmer was really noticeable. Not my favorite shade, because it leans pretty orange, but it goes with the collection concept.

Blush Gold - "Delicate peach with a gold shift."

Rose gold...I love rose gold shadows, they are one of my favorite neutral shades. This one has a beautiful golden shift, and I think it would work perfectly as an all over shade or as a transition shade.

Bronze - "Mid-tone bronze with a shimmery, almost-satiny finish."

I just love how matte this shade looks in the jar, and then you put it on and bam it's crazy soft and metallic. I would definitely describe it as satiny, and the golden shift is very pretty. Just a great all around neutral shade.

Copper - "Red-orange with a shimmering finish."

By now, I'm sure you all know how I feel about orange shadows, but this one is so coppery that I think I can forgive it.

Electrum - "Light olive, wears as dull gold blended over a aged silver base."

This shade reminds me of one of the Shiro Halloween shadows, but I love that this is just a touch on the green side. It almost reminds me of green rust.

Gold - "Bright, yellow gold with a shimmery finish."

Wow is this shade yellow. I thought this had the least metallic shimmery finish of the whole collection, and I would have really loved a really shiny gold shade. Not my favorite, I would say pass on this one, there are so many other great gold shades that don't look like straight yellow.

Lead - "Dark, heavy grey shining with a dull, metallic glint."

I thought this shade was really accurate and true to what lead looks like, kind of a dull metallic finish. Probably the coolest shade of the collection, which otherwise leans very warm toned.

Palladium Gold - "Off-white, with an almost pearlescent finish and golden tint."

Now this is pretty, a golden white shade that would work well as a highlight with some of the other warm toned shades in this collection.

Rhodium - "Blindingly pure white, with a shimmering metallic finish."

Now this is a metallic white shade! Blended out a lot it would be great as a brow highlight, or even used wet as a white eyeliner shade. I found when swatching this shade you could be really light handed with it, or really pack it on. I chose to pack it on for the swatch.

Zinc - "Sparkling mid-gray."

I love this gray shade, it has a really strong silvery shift, and it's so buttery and metallic during application. This would be a really great shade for a gray smoky eye.

Overall, I thought this collection had some real winners, but the collection was very warm toned with just a few cool toned shades mixed in. There are a few neutrals I would totally buy again, including Blush Gold, Electrum, and Zinc. Do I think you need the whole collection? Probably not. Too much orange for my taste, and I had a hard time with the application of Admiralty Brass. But I think the formula for these shadows is really good, so even though Mad Lab Cosmetics is a fairly new company, I will definitely be keeping an eye on it, and buying the new collections. It's a unique concept and the shadows are so buttery soft.

Customer Service - I did not have to contact Catherine about any issues with my order, but she actually contacted me asking if it made it ok because the tracking was showing something weird about it both being delivered and not. It had made it, but I thought that was so great that she was keeping an eye on it, and took the liberty to check.

Availability - This collection is available in a set in sample bags or full size jars. You can also buy sample bags of individual shades, or the shades in the full size jars.

Overall Satisfaction - I like the formula for Mad Lab Cosmetics shadows, and I will order again. My favorites from this collection were Blush Gold, Electrum, and Zinc.

What did you think of the Mad Lab Cosmetics Metallurgy Collection? Let me know in the comments!

For all other Mad Lab Cosmetics reviews, click here