Gareth Pugh Collection for MAC ‘Hyper’ (swatches, comparisons & review)

MAC’s recent collaboration with hot young British designer Gareth Pugh, has resulted in a capsule collection consisting of several limited edition pieces, one of which I bring you today. ‘Hyper’, an intensely gleaming, ultra rich indigo nail varnish, instantly drew me…not only because of the colour itself, but for the vampy mystery it seemed to promise. Without bothering to swatch it at the store first, I basically bought it sight unseen and hoped for the best – and I’m so glad I did! The following swatches are all with Deborah Lippmann’s 2-Second Nail Primer, and Essie’s All In One Base Coat, as well as No Chips Ahead Top Coat.

The above images from Gareth Pugh’s Spring/Summer 2012 collection, exemplify what this eclectic British designer has become known for: edgy, urban, minimalistic, and sophisticated futuristic chic. I love how the “x” design on the bottle, as well as the geometric packaging, mimics and follows the lines of his designs … inspired!

The exterior of the box pays homage to Gareth Pugh’s love of the geometric shape, while giving it a twist by the use of a foil finish. Above photo is from a 2007 Gareth Pugh collection … uncanny resemblance!

The top of the box with the almost camouflaged name sticker!

‘Hyper’, one of three limited edition nail varnishes released in this limited edition capsule collection, is the only one that really caught – and held – my eye. Catching only tantalizing glimpses of the colour through the cut out shapes on the bottle, it totally seduced me with its deep rich blue tones that seemed to morph to a vivid violet before my eyes. The bottle itself is not your usual MAC shape; a square, heavy-gauge glass bottle with a black “x” silkscreened on each of its four sides, the narrow cap also has the MAC logo embossed along its length. The formula seems to be a departure from MAC’s norm, being a touch on the thick side and could be applied as a one-coater if so desired, although I prefer the look of at least two coats, myself. The brush felt a bit short, but was still manageable and while the purple duochrome clearly appears in the bottle, it was next to impossible to detect any such flash upon the nails – my only disappointment with this beauty. On the other hand, the formula was wonderful in every other sense, being self-levelling, bearing a “secret shimmer”, finishing with a nice gloss and leaving behind absolutely no staining.

A sunlight photo, while not capturing any true duochrome flash, still hints at some cobalt influences as seen hovering around the nail edges.

This closeup angle is the only image where I was able to capture ‘Hyper’s’ most apparent violet leanings.

Indirect light does amazing things to the inner shimmer of this shade, and casts a midnight hybrid blue/deep purple hue to the nail tips.

A shaded/backlit view brings your eye towards the center shimmering core of ‘Hyper’, and adds a cobalt tint to the overall colour.

A final view taken with flash, while highlighting the jewel-like gleam of this lacquer, also gives a slight nod towards it violet secondary tones.

I hate it when I believe I’ve stumbled across something new & unique, bring it home, then get that nagging sense that I may have seen it before – naturally, that meant looking through my collection to see if I had anything close to ‘Hyper’. Imagine my surprise when I pulled out 3 possible candidates! Clockwise from the bottom left in the above photo, is Dior’s ‘Tuxedo’ (previously reviewed here), followed by Nicole by OPI’s ‘Listen to your Momager!’ from the recently released Kardashian Kolors Collection (previously reviewed here), and finally an oldie, but goodie, OPI’s ‘Yoga-Ta Get This Blue!’ from the 2008 India Collection. All swatches are with two coats of lacquer, and here’s a quick breakdown of how they compared to ‘Hyper’:

Index finger – ‘Yoga-Ta Get This Blue’: holds the same density of shimmer as ‘Hyper’ and hints of that same purple flash, semi-sheer formula, the runniest in terms of viscosity but the glossiest natural finish.
Middle finger – ‘Hyper’
Ring finger – ‘Tuxedo’: a more navy base colour, deepest in tone that the others, with a similarly thick formula to ‘Hyper’, but the least glossy of them all.
Pinkie finger – ‘Listen to your Momager!’: sheerest in formula (could have definitely used a third coat to look more opaque), with a floppier brush, but in some lights looks the closest.

In sunlight, the OPI’s shimmer appears almost aqua next to ‘Hyper’s’ finer blue bits, with the pinkie looking closest in colour.

In indirect light, you catch slight hints of purple in both the OPI and ‘Hyper’, with the Dior’s obvious darker tone setting it far apart.

Shaded light emphasizes how much sparser the pinkie finger’s shimmer is next to the rest, while spotlighting the more vivid base hue of ‘Hyper’.

A final view taken with flash reveals a much closer shimmer between ‘Hyper’ and the Dior, but you can still detect slight differences with each.

Final thoughts: A while back, I had personally declared that this year shades of blue would undergo a renaissance of sorts, and I still stand by that statement – especially after wearing this gorgeous shade. I really do wish that the duochrome flash one is first introduced to from the bottle, actually translated more obviously once applied, but it doesn’t detract from the fact that this is a really luxurious and richly pigmented lacquer. Is it a unique colour? The fact that I was able to pull out at least three comparison bottles says “no” – however, none of them actually had all the elements of ‘Hyper’. It’s a wonderful formula and non-staining: a total win for me. My only real complaint is that while regular MAC lacquers retail for CAD $18.00 for 10 ml/0.34 fl.oz, the Gareth Pugh lacquers are a much heftier CAD $27.00 for 9 ml/0.30 fl.oz. which explains why I only went for the one…!