By Abby Waterman
On November 1st, Shane Dawson and Jeffree Star Cosmetics (JSC) released a makeup collection collaboration they have been working on this the year. In the collection there were two pig-head handheld mirrors, six liquid lipstick shades, four makeup bags, a mini eyeshadow pallet called “Mini Controversy,” and the “Conspiracy” eyeshadow pallet.
The Conspiracy eyeshadow pallet has 18 different shades ranging from nude to bright yellow to black. The packaging is a black box with a pentagon shaped lid and chrome black clasps. There are shiny stripes with “CONSPIRACY” across the top of the lid in big letters and the new Shane Dawson logo on the top of the pentagon.
I really like the look and the packaging of the pallet because it goes along with Shane’s vibe and brand, but also looks nice next to some of the big pallets that Jeffree has released in the past couple years. I also love this pallet because the shades are versatile. I feel like there is something for everyone in this pallet! The look of the pallet is so new and original, no one has made anything like this pallet - packaging, shades, branding, and all.
The detailing in the shades is also, as Jeffree would say; sickening! Each shade is smooth and creamy to the touch and super pigmented. The shades have good coverage and come off easily with just soap and water. You don’t even need a makeup wipe!
The icons imprinted in each shade are also very creative and fun. Each "eyecon" is related to Shane and his personality, his brand, and his jokes. There are also a few JSC "eyecons" to tie in the collaboration, which I thought was a nice touch. Some of the "eyecons" include pigs, a cup of tea, Shane’s logo, a diet cola can, a root beer mug, and more.
I honestly think the pallet is a home run - the whole collection is! It is fun and creative and good quality makeup for a reasonable price considering how much time and effort was put into this collection. The process of creating this makeup collection was all documented in a video series that was uploaded on Shane’s YouTube channel. The series went behind the scenes showing the process of deciding the shades, the shade names, the design of the packaging, etc. It also went more in depth looking into the business side of things, how the money works, deadlines for different steps in the process, branding, and advertising.
I really enjoyed the series because learning about the business side of these types of things, how much hard work goes into it, and how crazy the process can be was really fascinating to me.
The only downside to it all was on the release date, when all of the websites selling the collection froze and eventually shut down because of all the traffic of people on the sites. The glitches and slowness of the sites - specifically JSC - were so bad that it took some people over 3 hours to order the pallet. I was on the site for 2.5 hours, staring at the screen, in hopes of getting the conspiracy pallet, and thankfully, somehow, I did get one before they sold out!
Since this is a review, I’d give the Shane x Jeffree collection a score of 9/10. I give it a 9 instead of 10/10 because of the website problems from all of the traffic during the release. I understand that the website crashing was not their fault at all, and that they did everything they could to get it back up and running. However, it did make for a very stressful and frustrating afternoon.
Despite this problem, the collection was a total success and I am absolutely in love with this pallet. I can’t wait to try some fun and creative looks with it!