Arena is a lovely soft peach colour with a hint of shimmer. It is lighter and less orange than Samoa Silk but the two get along pretty well. On my NW15 skin it provides a natural look that would be simply perfect if I didn't wear glasses. Sadly with specs it doesn't show as much more than a clean "no makeup" look, which I find boring. It is however still one of my favourite eyeshadows and I feel it brightens green eyes. It pairs well with other oranges, browns - particularly Mulch! - and even a few greens.

I agree with the reviewers (who like this color). It is very pretty and a nice surprise. To look at it in the pan you wouldn't think it'd be much more than an okay lid color. Yet for a light, not bold color it does add an extra something to your eyes. It has the tiniest, very, very light bit of sparkle. It adds a bit of warmth to the eyes and opens them up. I paired it with cork in the outer v and that was it, with lots of mascara, and it was a pretty weekend look. I have green eyes, medium/fair skin and brown hair and I thought this was a nice color on me. While it's not my most favorite color ever (like Era is), if I broke it or lost it and I wasn't low on cash, I'd probably repurchase.


By the way, I went out with my husband after I wrote this review and I added Mulch to this look, to the outer v area, and a little under my eyes. Then Estee Lauder walnut brown liner in the waterline and under my upper lashes. This was a very striking look. My husband even told me later that I looked hot.

Nc30, warm olive skintone

"Arena" is a gorgeous, light peachy gold shade with a satin finish. This color Is perfect if I want just a wash of color on my lids with the perfect amount of shimmer. Consistency is smooth and pigmentation is awesome. Brightens up my eyes and i love wearing this color with bronze, gold, brown and copper shades. Def would repurchase this shade! :)

Arena is GORGEOUS, it has made my HG list. A warm, peachy apricot with a bit of sheen (satin formula). I wear it on my lid with cross cultural (a cool matte brown) or copperplate (a matte grey) in the crease. It's beautiful paired with copperplate. I'm NC25 with hazel eyes. I will repurchase when I run low (and I will hit pan since I use it so much). BONUS it makes an excellent peachy highlight for the cheeks.

I have a love hate relationship with a lot of MAC shadows. This one looks so pretty on the lid. Its a simple way to brighten eyes. Beautiful!
For reference I am MAC C4 studio fix Dark Blue eyes Dark hair

This is a really great natural looking eye shadow for people with pale skin and green eyes! I got it recently in a swap and have been wanting to try it for a long time and it's become one of my favorites. It's a very light peachy brown color. It's maybe two shades darker than my skin tone (nc15-20).

I like to pair it with Mac Orb and Mac Texture. These colors are all in the same color family- natural peachy brown shades. Orb is beautiful on the lid, with Arena in the crease and outer v, and Texture in the outer V and smudged under the lower lashline. This will really make your eyes green pop, while looking completely natural, try it!!!

For a more dramatic but still natural look, Arena looks great with grey colors in the crease, like Mac Print or copperplate.

The only con to this shadow, is the staying power of this shadow...I find that it seems to lose some of it's color and fades a bit by the end of the day. This is wearing it with either TFSI or Mac painterly p/p, which I use under every eyeshadow. I usually don't have any probs with Mac shadows and fading, but this one doesn't seem to last as long.

I use this shadow very rarely - it's one of those shadows I wouldn't mind not having. The quality of the shadow isn't bad - it's nice and soft, applies evenly, but the colour I get on my lids isn't as in the pan. In the pan this is a very light orange brick colour, while on my lids it's much lighter. To me it kinda looks like my whole eye-area is too light, like after applying concealer. Some people like to brighten up their eyes, but since I don't have particularly deep set eyes, I need shadows that create depth and not highlights. Furthermore, the colour makes me look a bit tired - I don't think I suit oranges peaches or pinks on my lids in general (I have light coloured olive skin, ranging from NC-15-25). I understand why some people like this, but it's not for me.

PERFECT subtle highlighter for my NW45 skin. I have used it with plenty of different color combinations and it has the same effect

A great and strangely overlooked neutral. This is a warm peach/apricot satin with just a hint of shimmer. To me this is a colour cross between Tissueweight and Pollinator. It goes on smoothly, blends well and is friendly with other warmtoned es. I mostly use this as a wash with brown el for a fast not too 'done' look.

I have recently decided to move towards more natural looking eyeshadows rather than very frosty or glittery shadows as I am now in my early 40s. I have fair yellow toned skin, brown eyes, red hair. I was wearing mac rubenesque paint pot on the lids, a touch of mac all that glitters in the center of the lid to brighten it up, and ricepaper as highlighter. I have replaced rubenesque with arena for a more natural apricot look on my lids. I apply it rather liberally. Then I add a touch of Mac Grain e/s in the center of the lid to brighten it up the way I used to with All that Glitters. I still use ricepaper to highlight and I add Mac forever green e/l for a natural daytime look.