Dupe Alert: ABH Subculture vs MUR Iconic Division

 

 

One of the most praised makeup companies out there, Anastasia Beverly Hills shook the makeup world to the ground with their Subculture palette last summer.

The product was initially super-hyped and described by Norvina as “Modern Renaissance’s sister”, a ‘night take’ on the super successful palette that has been around for a couple of years now.

 

THE ISSUE WITH SUBCULTURE

Four days after the launch popular beauty guru Alyssa Ashley uploaded her review on YouTube, where she openly showed the problems the palette was causing. She re-started her look three times, with three different eye primers, before finally giving up.

Needless to say, YouTube’s makeup community literally broke in half: while some were saying that the palette was actually bad quality, others claimed that there wasn’t actually anything wrong with it and it worked just fine.

You can check Alyssa’s review here.

 

THE DUPE

What Alyssa (and many others!) claimed and showed in their reviews was extreme cake-back in the pan, as well as oxidization of the shades on the eyes: things never before seen in ABH’s palettes. The negative feedbacks prevented a lot of people from purchasing the articles (which currently retails for 42$ on Anastasia’s website), despite the directions added.

Are you a fan of that color scheme, but do not want to spend 42$ on a “bad” product? I just have the perfect solution!

As we’ve seen before on several occasions, British brand Makeup Revolution (Revolution Beauty) is known for pumping out extremely good quality dupes for a more than reasonable price. And guess what: they’ve done it again!

Their Reloaded series feautures 4 stunning palettes, and one of those is going to be put under the spotlight today: Iconic Division.

 

Is the 7$ palette actually a dupe for ABH’s infamous flop product? Let’s find out!

 

 

 

 

WEIGHT + SHADES

Subculture

• 14 shades total
• 14 x 0.02 oz (0.5g)
• 3$ x shade
• 2 Duo Chrome shades + 1 Metallic shade + 11 Matte shades
• Warm grungy tones

 

Reloaded Iconic Division

• 15 shades total
• 15 x 0.04 oz (1.1g)
• 0.46$ x shade
• 2 Duo Chrome shades + 1 Metallic shade + 11 Matte shades
• Warm grungy tones

 

 

 

 

 

PACKAGING

If we asked a makeup hater to compare the two products and guess which one is more expensive, they would most likely win.

 

Subculture’s packaging has the same felt-like feeling Modern Renaissance has, but this time it’s a blue/greenish color. Just like its big sister, it closes magnetically and is equipped with a mirror and the usual double-sided brush.

On the front the name of the palette is printed in gold, while the company’s name is in a light champagne tone.

The concerns I expressed regarding Modern Renaissance’s packaging are the same here: the mirror size, the felt and the brush.

I am actually a fan of the felt packaging, but it does get dirty fairly easily (especially if you’re travelling), and I am not used to the brush.

 

 

Iconic Division’s packaging, on the other hand, looks and feels way cheaper than ABH.

The name of the company printed in gold on the front, while the various specifics on the back. It does not have a brush nor a mirror.

If Subculture gets dirty easily, Iconic Division’s letters will fade away in the blink of an eye. Additionally, the clear hard plastic lid is quite the accident-prone: you’ll scratch it even before touching it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRODUCT’S FORMULATION

Both Anastasia Beverly Hills and Makeup Revolution are Cruelty-free companies, and their palettes share the following ingredients:

 

• Mica
• Talc
• Silica
• Dimethicone
• Titanium Dioxide (Ci 77891)
• Iron Oxides (Ci 77491, Ci 77492, Ci 77499)
• Ferric Ferrocyanide (Ci 77510)
• Yellow 5 Lake (Ci 19140)

 

You can find the complete lists of ingredients either on sephora.com or anastasiabeverlyhills.com, and on ulta.com and revolutionbeauty.com.

 

 

 

 

SWATCHES

I will point out the colors directly onto Iconic Division’s pans, so you’ll be able to see them more precisely! Also, keep in mind that Iconic Division has a black and Subculture doesn’t.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Cube
2. Dawn
3. Destiny
4. Adorn
5. Mercury
6. Axis
7. All Star
8. Roxy
9. Electric
10. Fudge
11. New Wave
12. Edge
13. Untamed
14. Rowdy

 

 

 

 

 

FINAL THOUGHTS

All in all, is Iconic Division a dupe for Subculture? Yes!

If you don’t want to risk your money with Anastasia, I definitely recommend checking Iconic Division out.

The colors are buttery and pigmented, and also blend like a dream. The only shades that needs a bit of love are the Duo Chromes (‘Cube‘ and ‘Electric‘); however, a wet brush will help it perform at its full potential.

But hey, if you want to buy Subculture, by all means do it: it’s your money and you should manage it as you wish!

 

 

MORE MAKEUP DUPES HERE