MAC Paint Pots I own:
Blackground: A dark gray/black paint pot with slight silver/blue glitter
I use this for dark night looks and smokey eyes.
Painterly: A light skinned flesh tone color.
I used this as eye shadow for the no makeup makeup look or as a primer for bright eyeshadow colors.
Rubenesque: My number one requested bridal look is gold & brown eye looks, so I use rubenesque as my gold primer to really make the gold shadow pop.
Bare Study: This is almost a clear, pearl shimmer cream shadow. It doesn't cover your eye skin color completely but it's a great base to increase the shimmer on another shadow used on top.
Groundwork: I use this the same way I use painterly, but on darker skin tones; a flesh tone primer for natural makeup. Or for a brown smokey eye.
Ever since I started using MAC's paint pots, I stopped using all other eye primers. The one I used before was Urban Decay's primer potion. UDPP worked but it's clear, so it doesn't cover discoloration on the eyes or veins.
I have EXTREMELY oily eyelids and MAC's paint pots don't crease and lasts ALL night long. And I love that they come in so many different colors. To keep it sanitary, I use a spatula to dig some out for each client. And a little goes a LONG way. When I use it on myself I just use my fingers. They are blendable, but you have to start blending right after placement because the product dries fast and makes it harder to blend. Another neat way of using these is to use the flesh colored ones as a primer to cover a tattoo.
Now, if you keep these open for long periods of time, they will dry out, but that goes for most cream products, so it's just safe to say, close your cream products as soon as you are done using them. I have heard some people with very dry eyelids say that paint pots highlight the dry flakes, so remember to moisturize your eyes with eye cream before using a paint pot.
