Zero Fall out Shadows: Makeup By Mario Review

Mario Dedivanovic–a name you may not know, but his work? Oh, you definitely do. Makeup artist to Kim Kardashian might ring a bell.

His client list also includes Jennifer Lopez, Priyanka Chopra, Salma Hayek, Chrissy Teigen, Demi Lovato.

For someone so synonymous with high glam celebrity work, you might not expect Mario to be so humble, genuine, hardworking. I write like I know him, which would be a dream, but all of this I’ve learned from podcast interviews and videos.

Mario is 37, the same age as me, which is both depressing and incredibly inspiring, considering all that he’s accomplished. 

He was born in Brooklyn, New York to Armenian immigrant parents. He came out 2 years ago. He is the picture of hard work paying off.

I purchased all of the products with my own money, but do have a pro discount as a working makeup artist. I really love that Makeup by Mario already offers a pro discount, btw.

No matter what these products were like, I’m glad to have spent money on Mario. I highly respect him as an artist and I’m proud to support his brand. I’ve replicated his looks before and I continue to be inspired by his work.

I like the formula of this product more than I like the color. It’s not too buttery or melty, yet glides on easily. However, the Light Medium shade, despite being described as “understated cool”, is not, as you can see in the example swatch below.

I consider to be a very ideal cool undertone for contouring on fair to light skin tones. I consider the Makeup By Mario Soft Sculpt to be more of a cream bronzer than it is a cream contour.

However, the name itself does imply this. It is a “soft” sculpt so I can see why maybe it leans more towards being a bronzer than a true shadow color.

I find the size of the stick too large, and the brush end a bit too stiff.

Would I repurchase? No. I still prefer several cream contours to this.

Pigment Pro Eyeliner

These are definitely my favorite MBM products so far. These liners are so soft and smudge-able, in a smooth-applying gel formula. The flat brush on the opposite end is surprisingly perfect for smoothing liner into easy, pretty wings. Soft Brown is a terracotta color that I love smudging all over the lid and Perfect Brown is, well, the perfect dark brown liner!

Would I repurchase? Absolutely. I want to get the other colors for sure now.

Master Eye Prep & Set

I love that Mario is team tinted eye primer as I’ve often said I see no point of clear eyeshadow primers. This product reminds me of 2 MAC paint pots with a setting powder. I love the concept, packaging and the product itself performs really well.

The Master Eye Prep & Set comes in 3 shades: Light, Medium and Deep. My only criticism is that the 2 shades in the Light palette are still more on the peachy side, and I would have preferred that one of the creams be more yellow toned.

I know the peachy undertone is to cancel out blue/brown tones in the lid, but I actually have more red/purple in mine so would have benefited from a yellow undertone.

Would I repurchase? No. While I really do like this product, I still find Urban Decay Primer Potion in Eden faster and more efficient.

Master Mattes Pro Lip Palette

Admittedly, this is the product I’ve used the least. I don’t see the average consumer needing this, nor wanting to spend $60 on it. However, as a full time makeup artist, I am considering adding this to my freelance kit.

The packaging is so smart. The little side palette swings out and the included brush has one end for scooping out product, the other for applying. The lip brush shape is actually very functional, so not at all a throwaway included brush, as is often the case.

I’ve seen a few criticisms about the size of the palette and the pan sizes, which I want to comment on. I don’t actually find the palette itself to be tiny. As a working artist, I like small, condensed products for working quickly and for packing in my kit, with limited room to spare.

As far as the small pan size, I find the formula to be pigmented enough that you don’t need a lot, especially if you’re mixing, so I think they will still last a decent amount of time. I am curious about the possibility of refills though.

Formula wise, as the name says, this is an all matte . While I do think I prefer a bit more of a satin finish, I liked how long this wore and didn’t transfer onto my water bottle. This has far better wear and is less transfer-proof given the matte formula so it’s more practical for clients attending events, photoshoots, etc. where I will not be available to do lip touch ups.

Would I repurchase? I am leaning towards yes, but I won’t full know until I incorporate it into my kit. I’ve only test the formula on myself so far. Right now, the type of makeup I’m doing on clients lends itself more to colored balms and glosses, so it may find itself more at home in the fall/winter season.

Master Mattes Eyeshadow Palette

This is my second favorite Makeup by Mario product. It may not seem like anything new, given that there are many matte, neutral eyeshadow palettes out there. However, this formula is unique in that it has little to nonexistent fallout. I’ve never worked with a shadow that had no fall out like this. I’ve read that it’s a pet peeve of Mario’s, so fittingly, he found a way to create a shadow to eliminate that problem.

You may see this palette described as “not very pigmented” so here is what you need to know. That’s the beauty of it! It’s not overly-pigmented, therefore, not a mess to work with. You can work easily and quickly, build as needed, without getting in too deep and having to blend yourself out of a corner.

The colors in the palette are all inspired by skin tones, and I do agree with other reviewers that they lean warm, something I consider a good thing. I like the variety of undertones and the only thing I think it’s missing is a more plummy brown.

Would I repurchase? Yes. The formula is unique and unlike any other I’ve worked with.

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