Finish: Satin / Golden beige with icy shimmer
Grain is, in my mind’s eye, is the sister of Naked Lunch, Jest and All That Glitters. Not in color, mind you, but in the finish and the type of results you can expect to achieve with it. It is more the brown version of these types of shades and brightens a look effortlessly. The closest color you could compare this to in terms of finish and color in MAC’s permanent range is Era, although Grain is one step up in lightness to Era. My most favorite placement with Grain is the inner half of the lid or as a highlight in the center of the lid for added dimension in a combination. I find Grain to be very pigmented and easy to work with. If you have struggled with the shades I mentioned in the beginning, do give Grain a try; it is one shade I feel every woman can pull off extremely well. If you don’t have a great collection of neutrals already, this is definitely a must have.
Karah
Beautiful Zabrena! I really like 2,3,6,& 8. Great job sweetie. Thanks for the looks. 🙂
Hot Strawberry
Two and three, oooh la la!
Melisa Meneely
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
goofygurl79
So pretty I have always passed on it thinking I have a similar color in arena…but maybe grain is different after all. Definitely need to try soon. BUT have also been eyeing era…which of the two would go better on my light medium brown eyes brown hair???
goofygurl79
Meant light medium skin 🙂
Robyn
Thank you so much for doing this spotlight Z! I now have some ideas on how to use Grain. I actually have been using Grain on the lid, Era in the crease, Mystery in the outer v (and underline the eye) and Blanc Type to blend. I will definitely be trying some of these too! 🙂
Mariella
Z, these are beautiful looks. I’m wondering if you can suggest any non-MAC similar shades (UD or Stila) – I have the feeling I must have something similar to Grain in my collection. I should check it out the next time I’m at the MAC counter but the problem is that the MAC near me – in a department store – doesn’t sell pro-pans and that is such a pain!
Zabrena
I can’t think of any comparable dupes to it in either UD or Stila; doesn’t mean I won’t find one in the future!
Ugh! No pro pans?! Definitely a pain! I go out of my way to get them too; kinda irks me when I have to get the pot because it’s a limited edition eyeshadow.
LOL! Ahhh, problems! 😉
Mariella
Well, I can order pro pans and empty 4 pan palettes online but I like the women at my local MAC so much that I do like to give them my support by buying there. But there are limits, though it irks me so much that they are treated as “second class citizens” in a way by MAC. I’m going to check out Grain and then maybe order it. Zabrena, do you recall an exchange we had in the past few months about some eye shadow that was a “shade shifter”? I know I used that term when we were discussing some wonderful shadow but for the life of me, I can’t recall which one it was. I tried searching your site for it but, of course, nothing came up. Does it ring a bell with you at all?
Zabrena
Ha! I’m sorry, it doesn’t! 🙁
I immediately thought of Greensmoke or Club though for some reason.
Possibly UD Lounge?
Mariella
Darned if I know. I tried searching the site but couldn’t find anything and then I realized that I can’t search my own comments (that would have showed it up eventually). It was within the past 2 or 3 months and it was about some wonderful shade but for the life of me, I can’t think what shade it was! Darn! Now it will bug me until the next memory lapse kicks in!
anna Christensen
I love grain! There. I said it. It is such a beautiful color, I’ve been waiting for this post for eternity it seems. Ha ha, kidding. You do an amazing job as always. Thanks Z!
Zabrena
Haha! Thanks, Anna! 😉
Zabrena
Hi Devon!
I don’t own SS, but based on the swatches I’m seeing of it online, it looks like it’s worth getting even if you have Grain. It looks like a shimmer-y version with a little bit of a purple base to it, whereas Grain is more of a solid neutral shade. I’d say go for it! 😉
Iris
if i own naked lunch and all that glitter, is it necessary for me to get grain?
does grain pay off on the pale, light skin tone?
what’s the difference between jest and grain