Update: Pat McGrath launched her eight-piece Phantom 002 kit today, and it sold out in 57 minutes and 12 seconds — to be exact.
This article was originally published on December 11, 2015.
This week, makeup deity Pat McGrath hit us with a seriously cool, yet seriously unrevealing short film in anticipation of her sophomore product release — the follow-up to the gorgeous Gold 001 pigment that dropped in late October. But unlike some who tease things forever before we see the real deal (ahem, Taylor Swift with "Bad Blood"), she invited us to fete the launch of Pat McGrath Labs' Phantom 002 last night — and we got a sneak peek at the new goods right away.
Make no mistake, this was not your average makeup launch party. Every model of the moment was there, including a few who had walked in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show that aired earlier this week (Maria Borges, Stella Maxwell) and plenty we'd guess would never trade in their leather motorcycle jackets and ripped jeans for Angel wings (Hari Nef, Hanne Gaby Odiele). They all crammed into the booths of an old-school 24-hour diner in the epicenter of cool: Williamsburg.
As we snacked on fries, onion rings, and milkshakes under the disco-ball lights, over 20 makeup artists were on hand to give us femme-fatale, punk-rock makeovers using McGrath's new quartet of multi-use pigments, black eye gloss, and black gel liner. The products all launch together in the Phantom 002 kit, plus a blender and flat brush (and, of course, a ton of sequins), on December 15 at PatMcGrath.com — just in time to get your punk rock on at all those holiday parties.
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Like Gold 001, you can use each of these vivid, foil-like pigments (another gold, a blue, a pink, and a deep fuchsia) wherever you choose — the eyes, lips, eyebrows, even the cheeks. McGrath has dubbed the pink hue an "eye blush," as it creates a subtle flush that looks gorgeous on the lids. But, as with all the colors, you can also layer it to increase its intensity. While the new gold pigment looks somewhat similar to the last iteration, this formula is much silkier and easier to use.
"The new gold is much more refined and very bright," McGrath told us at the event. "It glides on like silk, so it’s much easier to use. The shade is richer, deeper, but it’s more about the fact that it glides on and really adheres to the skin."
The kit retails for a whopping $240. But — as demonstrated by the mob of models that surrounded me last night (each with a different look) — there are so many ways to use the product, you may actually get your money's worth if you decide to splurge. Not only can you use the pigments anywhere on your face, but you can also layer them on top of one another or blend them with the black pigment or liner to get that punk look the McGrath crew is going for.
"The inspiration for these colors was all about the dark, the underground, nightlife, clubbing — from the Blitz Kids to punks. But I was really inspired by the kids today, too," said McGrath. Well, now the video from the other day makes so much more sense, doesn't it?
When asked if she has a favorite color in the collection, McGrath laughed and said: "As a woman with 800 bags, you know I want them all. I couldn’t live without one. But everyone is crazy about the pencil, because it is deadly." And after seeing it in action with all the killer shades last night, we know it's true. We die.