After attending my very first Pat McGrath masterclass this week, I’m spilling 10 things I learned as well as comparing her stunning Mothership Divine Rose and Divine Rose II palettes!
(Contains affiliate links with 100% of commission benefiting the NAACP Legal Defense Fund)
Hello there, beautiful! Last week, I shared a detailed review of the all new Pat McGrath Divine Rose II eyeshadow palette. I love it so much, that I since picked up the original Divine Rose palette (in gorgeous limited edition pink packaging) as well as attended a masterclass led by the fabulous Pat McGrath herself!
Needless to say, the love for Pat McGrath Labs is STRONG here on DreaminLace. It always has been, really, but especially now.
Divine Rose Comparison + Spilling Masterclass Lessons
Earlier this week, I took to my Instagram to ask if anyone would be interested in a post comparing the two Divine Rose palettes now that I have my hands on both of them! Well, the response was overwhelmingly YES!! So, that’s what we’re going to do here today. In addition to that, though, I want to share with you 10 Pat McGrath masterclass lessons I picked up during Tuesday evening’s Zoom session with Pat and her incredible team of makeup artists.
Essentially? Today we’re just having one big celebration of all things Pat McGrath and I am 100% A-okay with that. Let’s do it!
The Pat McGrath Masterclass
Tuesday night I raced home from work to attend my very first Pat McGrath masterclass! It started at 5 pm EST so I was in quite a rush to make it in time but I was EAGER to get her insight on these two beautiful palettes. The class itself was also a benefit, with 100% of the $10 admission fees supporting the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Having previously vowed to donate 100% of my own affiliate proceeds this month to the same worthy cause, I like to think Pat and are I two peas in the same great-thinking pod. Kindred spirits, really!
(Never mind that she doesn’t actually know I exist. Or, maybe she does? She has liked a few of my social posts. #Winning)
A Talented Lineup
The Pat McGrath masterclass featured not only the legendary makeup artist herself, but also an incredible team of MUAs who have worked with her backstage on the high fashion scene’s hottest runways for years! Their looks have been in shows ranging from Maison Margiela to Valentino and Versace as well as graced DOZENS of international fashion magazine covers.
To say the masterclass included an elite bunch of talent would be an understatement and being the studious gal I am — I whipped out my notepad to jot down their tips & tricks along the way.
Naturally, I couldn’t resist playing along either. Using my own collection of Pat McGrath Labs makeup, I was able to put together a full face while following their suggestions right on the spot! Down below, see the look I came up with as well as 10 lessons I learned in the 2+ hour masterclass.
10 Pat McGrath Masterclass Lessons on Smokey Eyes
1. START WITH EYELINER: Groundbreaking. I always look at gel eyeliner as a finisher but Pat and her talented team one-by-one stressed how much they like to use the gel liner as the starting point for an eyeshadow look. It blends more naturally into the look you create which makes complete sense.
2. CONCEALER AS PRIMER: If you haven’t yet tried the Pat McGrath concealer, I wrote a full post about it. It’s creamy with a satin finish and smooths over the skin with ease. The team recommends using her concealer as a neutral base to prime eyes for a smoky shadow look.
3. SHAPE IS THE GOAL: While most think of a smokey eye really being a lot about blending, the Pat McGrath masterclass stressed again and again that creating a beautiful shape to your look is the ultimate goal as it will balance everything together. The drama is in the shape!
4. OUTER 6 SHADOWS CREATE SHAPE: Pat revealed the intention behind her 10-pan eyeshadow palettes’ layout. The 6 outer shades are designed to be used in creating your smokey eye’s shape. The four inner shades on the right side of her palettes are defined as “accents”.
5. START WITH A LIGHTER, MATTE SHADE: Blend the matte lighter shades of your Divine Rose palette into your crease and along the lower lashline. This will both make blending easier all around from that point forward. It also creates a place for darker pigment to go in a way that’s not jarring.
6. WHITE SHIMMERY SHADES RESOLVE ANY BLENDING ISSUES: If you have any dry patches that give you trouble while blending, the white shimmery shades included in each palette are surprisingly great problem solvers! Glide them over the area to help smooth out the texture and then continue building your deeper pigment on top.
7. CONCEALER CORRECTS AND DEFINES: The Sublime concealer is great for cleaning up any areas if needed as well as really defining your shape as a nice finishing touch.
8. ANY BLENDING BRUSHES WILL DO: While Pat McGrath Labs of course does have their own brushes, each artist stressed that you can use whatever you have. What counts is having a blending brush that is soft for building pigment, as well as a second one that’s clean for tidying things up.
9. THE BLURRING UNDEREYE POWDER IS GOALS FOR ALL OVER: While defined to be us an “undereye” powder, Pat’s blurring powder actually works all over the face to smooth over any textures and create a flawless finish. This includes the ability to the powder in smoothing out your smokey eye’s SHAPE. (Told you, shape was the word of the night.)
10. CONTRARY TO POPULAR OPINION, SMOKEY EYES DON’T NEED BLACK: Black shadow is most commonly tied to creating smokey eyes, but the artists all used only the Divine Rose palettes — neither of which have a matte black. Instead, smokey eyes can be created with rich burgundy or deep brown tones.
COMPARING DIVINE ROSE AND DIVINE ROSE II
Following up on everyone’s interest on Instagram in a comparison of Pat McGrath’s Divine Rose and Divine Rose II eyeshadow palettes, I give you an overall look at each palette below as well as share some key strengths and differences I see between them.
Pat McGrath Labs Mothership VII Divine Rose Palette ($125)
Mothership VII Divine Rose Eyeshadow Palette
Key Points:
- Everyday neutral tones that are perfect for any time of year and any occasion
- While you can go more bold with layering, the original Divine Rose palette doesn’t include the deep tones of the sequel is ideal for crafting softer and more romantic looks
- Strongly pigmented shadows in a mixture of textures that work very well together
- Shadow 1 and Shadow 10 to me are a bit too similar. I wish shadow 1 was a matte.
- Overall, I see this as a FLORAL palette
MOTHERSHIP VIII Divine Rose II Palette
Key Points:
- Includes rich pinks and burgundy shadows with gilded gold accents
- Contains VR Sextraterrestial, the finest duochrome shadow I have come in contact with. It’s also the shade Pat McGrath says she’s had the most fun creating today. It plays both pink and green depending on the angle.
- A palette for those bolder days where you want to BLOOM without caution. Definitely not as reserved as Divine Rose I.
- Colors are designed for the summer months and Studio 54 inspired nights out
- The better of the two for creating deep smokey eyes
- Overall, I see Divine Rose II as a ROYAL palette
My Favorite?
Overall, these palettes work compliment each other very well. They’re both in the rose family, but with different objectives. I can definitely see why Divine Rose came out as a true classic — but I am most smitten with Divine Rose II. It truly makes my heart scream with joy I love it and the depth of all its shadows so much.
If you’re a true neutral girl at heart, Divine Rose is one you also can’t go wrong with though. The shadow quality is phenomenal and with each shade really doing the work for you.
Shop My Makeup Look
All the products I used to create my look during the Pat McGrath Masterclass are below. They’re phenomenal!
100% of proceeds of affiliate commission benefits the NAACP Legal Defense Fund
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XOXO
Kelly
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