I tried Jeffree Star's Blood Lust collection, and think it's one of the YouTuber's best makeup lines yet

• Jeffree Star launched his Blood Lust makeup collection on Friday. I visited a Morphe store in New Jersey that day to pick up most of the products for review.
• In my opinion, Star's purple-themed line is great for makeup artists and enthusiasts alike.
• I particularly loved the eye shadows, which were pigmented and blended beautifully, in my experience.
• I wasn't as big a fan of the metallic lipsticks in the Blood Lust line, though I enjoyed the matte shades.
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Jeffree Star launched his Blood Lust makeup collection online and in stores on Friday.

After picking up most of the collection at a Morphe store in New Jersey that day, I quickly put each item to the test. In my experience, I encountered a few slight problems with some of the products, but generally loved Star's purple beauty line.

Here's what I thought of each item.

I was hesitant to try Jeffree Star's Blood Lust collection after reviewing his collaboration with Shane Dawson in November 2019.

Though I was initially intrigued by the YouTubers' collaboration, I wasn't very impressed by the products. I found the Conspiracy eye-shadow palette to be messy and patchy, and the metallic lipsticks didn't work nearly as well as the matte shades, in my experience.

I expected some pushback from readers, but wasn't prepared for how cruel some fans of Star and Dawson could be. Constructive criticism and feedback are one thing, but people mocking my appearance and body are another.

Of course, I'm far from the first journalist to receive hate comments, but I had never experienced such intense online bullying before. Days after the article was published, I found myself afraid to open my email or look at my social-media accounts, as some people had been sending me edited pictures of myself. I also found it tough to sleep at night, and difficult to concentrate on my work.

So, when Star announced the Blood Lust collection, I didn't know how to proceed. I worried that if I liked the products, I'd be labeled a hypocrite, and that, if I didn't enjoy them, I'd face the same backlash as I did in the past.

Ultimately, I decided to brave whatever criticism might come my way and review Star's latest collection.

The first product I tried from the Blood Lust collection was The Gloss in the shade Sorcery.

Each lip gloss in Star's new collection retails for $18. Though five shades are included — Sorcery, Wizards Glass, Lord Star, Sickening, and Iridescent Throne — I chose to stick with the one that looked most wearable.

Sorcery is described on the Jeffree Star Cosmetics website as a "a sheer icy pink with pink-and-blue shift pearls."

Sorcery's online description matches the actual product perfectly. In my experience, the gloss applied sheer on the lips with pink-and-blue sparkles that shifted in different lighting. 

I appreciated how the gloss felt secure, but not sticky, and also looked neutral enough to wear at work. Though I'm not sure I'd personally reach for it while doing my makeup everyday, I can imagine others really loving a product like this one.

Next, I tested the $54 Blood Lust eye-shadow palette.

The 18-shade palette is packaged in a hexagon-shaped box embossed with gold leaves and a bleeding crown. Inside is a cardboard bumper, which Star designed to prevent palettes from breaking during the shipping process.

Though I wasn't too worried about my eye shadow breaking during the 20-minute car ride from the mall to my house, I hoped the feature worked for customers who bought the palette online.

In my opinion, one of Star's biggest strengths is his creative packaging designs.

Brands like Anastasia Beverly Hills have been creating palettes with fuzzy lids for years. Still, something about the opulence of Star's Blood Lust palette stands out.

The hexagonal shape of the palette is unique, and its spherical golden clasp adds an elegant touch. The reflective crown logo also sits nicely against the purple velvet lining. I was highly impressed by the packaging of this product, and can completely understand why some of Star's fans would purchase his makeup simply to display as collector's items.

I do imagine that some people would be bothered by how large this palette is — as its size could make it difficult to work with — but I personally don't mind.

When I opened the palette for the first time, I could hardly wait to try the shadows.

When Star first revealed the Blood Lust collection on YouTube, I had the same thought as many others online: the palette's pastel eye shadows don't match the "vampire, love, sex, devotion" theme Star said he was going for.

When I saw the eye shadow in person, however, a lot of shades seemed to be deeper in color than they look online. Yes, there are numerous pastel shades in the palette, and some colors still don't strike me as being regal, but I had higher hopes for the palette once I held it in my hands.

Overall, I was mainly impressed by how this eye-shadow palette swatched.

When I reviewed the Shane Dawson x Jeffree Star Cosmetics collection in November 2019, I was shocked to find that my Conspiracy palette didn't swatch very well. This time around, I had the complete opposite experience — most shades looked bright and pigmented on my skin.

However, the first batch of swatches weren't entirely foolproof. Wet Jewel was nearly impossible to swatch, in my experience, and Sworn Enemy was a bit crumbly. Still, I assumed that even troublesome shades would apply better on the eyes.

From left to right, there's: Your Majesty, Take The Crown, Deviant, Beauty Sleep, Wet Jewel, Royal Pain, Dungeon, Scandal Water, and Sworn Enemy.

In my opinion, the only color missing from this palette is a sparkling gold.

As I swatched the last nine shades in the palette, I realized that Blood Lust actually contains a fair amount of deep shadows. In my opinion, the only shadow missing is a sparkling gold to represent the color used throughout much of the collection's packaging.

From left to right, there's: Pink Magic, Bleeding Heart, Executioner, High King, Vivid Mood, Monarchy, Blood Queen, Vile Serpent, and Betrayal.

I loved how shadows from the Blood Lust palette applied on my eyelids.

To prime my eyelids, I first used the Pro Longwear Paint Pot from MAC in the shade Painterly. I then used the shade Deviant throughout and above my crease, and applied Vivid Mood to the outer corner. To complete the look, I added Beauty Sleep across the inner corner.

In my experience, applying these shadows was seamless, with most shades blending beautifully into one another. I also found that the shadows lasted all day without any major fading.

I did have one issue with the palette, though it was slight: Star's eye shadow results in a lot of kickback, or excess powder that coats the palette after a brush is dipped into a shade. This isn't a make-or-break issue for me — as I understand that kickback is the result of Star's shadows being soft and blendable — but I still prefer palettes that aren't so messy.

The pink shades looked just as good as the purples, in my experience.

Obviously, the Blood Lust palette wasn't designed to replace your everyday eye-shadow palettes. It caters to makeup artists, fans of Star, and those who like to experiment with color. Still, I wanted to see how versatile the palette really is.

In my experience, I was able to achieve both bold looks using its purple shades, and more work-appropriate styles using the pink and tan shadows. Though I don't see myself using this product every week, necessarily, there's enough variety for me to use it often.

Ultimately, I think die-hard fans of Star will appreciate this palette for both its extravagant packaging and high-quality shadows. But if you're not a fan of Star or you don't wear purple hues, Blood Lust probably isn't the palette for you.

Finally, I tried the $52 Mini Purple Bundle of lipsticks.

The bundle contains eight miniature liquid lipsticks, two of which were created exclusively for this kit. From left to right, there's: Royal Armor, I'm Vulgar, I'm Royalty, Scorpio, Virginity, Blow Pony, Clout, and Berries on Ice.

Though a little patchy, I mostly enjoyed using the matte liquid lipsticks.

I've tried numerous liquid lipsticks from Jeffree Star Cosmetics, and I'm always impressed by how soft the matte shades feel on the lips. They also last throughout most of the day, in my experience.

I did notice that deep shades like I'm Royalty and Scorpio were pretty patchy, but with a few extra coats, I was able to make them work. 

I wasn't as impressed, however, by two metallic lipsticks in the bundle.

In my experience, the limited-edition metallic shade called I'm Vulgar worked just fine, as did the raspberry-pink color Berries on Ice. 

Royal Armor, however, was extremely sheer, in my experience. It took numerous coats to cover my natural lip color, and even then, the lipstick faded quickly after application. I also wasn't fond of the exclusive shade Clout, which Star suggests using as a topper or on its own. 

Still, I'd recommend the Blood Lust lipstick bundle to people who are interested in trying Star's bolder shades, but don't want to commit to a single color. If you're only interested in the two exclusive colors, though, I'm not sure it's worth buying.

I really enjoyed using most of the Blood Lust collection, and think it's one of the best makeup lines Star has ever created.

Not only are many of the products great quality, in my opinion, but the regal theme matches Star's aesthetic better than any line he's created in the past.

Of course, purple makeup isn't for everyone, but those willing to try it might want to pick up an item or two from the collection next time it goes on sale. 

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