eyeliner overload!
I’ve done black eyeliner swatches before, and even did a post with a wear test way back when my blog was new, but I have different eyeliners now and I wanted to see how they compared.
Instead of trying to keep track of which swatch was which, I wrote an abbreviation for the brand on my arm. The follow table has the abbreviation, name of the eyeliner, and type of eyeliner. Continue reading
After hearing many postive things about Laura Mercier’s Caviar Sticks ($24 at Sephora with 12 shades available or Nordstrom with 16 shades available), I decided to try one for myself, and purchased the shade Khaki. I loved it so much that I now have two, with several more shades on my wishlist! If you’re not familiar with them, Caviar Sticks are pigmented, long-wearing cream eyeshadow in stick form – they can be used as a base for eyeshadow, as eyeshadow, or an eyeliner.
Khaki
Sand Glow
The packaging is simple – a twist up pen (that also twists down) in a plastic casing. However, Becca over at The Beauty Sample -->noticed something interesting -->; the two Caviar Sticks she bought had slightly different packaging and one appeared to have more product than the other. It turns out that mine are the same. Khaki, which is one of the original shades, has a purple inner casing, product that goes to the edges of the tube, and appears to have more product when twisted all the way up. This is identical to Becca’s experience with Amethyst, also an original shade. Sand Glow, a newer shade, has a black inner plastic, product that does not touch the inside of the tube, and the product is shorter when twisted all the way up. This is the same as Becca’s Caviar Stick in Grey Pearl, also a newer shade.
Khaki above, Sand Glow below
Sand Glow, Khaki
Note that in the above photo, Sand Glow has been used 2-3 times and Khaki has been used 5-6 times.
So, it seems that the packaging has been silently changed to include less product with no change of the label (both say 1.64g / .05oz); my guess is that the older packaging actually had some extra product, and the new packaging does not.
Now, let’s move on & discuss the product!
Khaki // Sand Glow
click to enlarge
Khaki // Sand Glow – blurred to show the finish
click to enlarge
In the photos above, I have a single swipe of the caviar stick on the left (the pigmentation is impressive!) and a blended out swatch on the right.
In terms of texture, the caviar sticks very soft and smudgeable at first, but after about 30 seconds they dry down to a completely immovable finish. They’re actually a bit too drying for me to use as eyeshadow base at this time of year when my skin, including eyelids, is dry. I hear they work well as bases for those with oiler eyelids, and I’ll have to revisit them in the summer when my skin is more normal. I’ve mostly been using Khaki as an eyeliner – it lasts all day long on my upper and lower lashline, and several hours on my waterline. I’ve also worn each of the caviar sticks as an eyeshadow, and they last all day on me (they’re not too drying alone; it’s the addition of powder eyeshadow on top that doesn’t work for me in terms of texture.)
Overall, I really love these. The packaging thing is weird, but it’s not like I finish color makeup very often, so it doesn’t bother me much, and the product itself is fantastic – pigmented, gorgeous finish, creamy and blendable but quickly sets to a long-lasting finish. Highly recommended!
*I purchased the product(s) featured in this post. This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.
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| Laura Mercier Black Gold Kohl Eye Pencil – mini |
I recently cashed in most of my Sephora points for the Laura Mercier 500-point perk. It’s no longer available online, but you might still be able to find it in Sephora stores. The perk was a set of deluxe sample sized Laura Mercier products – a mascara, lip glace lip gloss, baked eyeshadow, foundation primer, and – the sample I was most excited about – the Kohl Eye Pencil in Black Gold, which I am going to review and swatch for you today.
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| Sephora / Laura Mercier 500 point perk |
The pencil’s texture is unremarkable. It’s not super soft, but it’s not hard at all. The texture is nicely balanced – not so soft that it loses the point immediately, but soft enough that it applies easily with little pressure. It is smooth and is not gritty.
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| Laura Mercier Black Gold – swatched |
The pigmentation is medium – as you can see above, one swipte is not fully opaque. The color is an olive-bronze with a black base – very lovely. It reminds me of Rouge Bunny Rouge Abyssinian Catbird, so I swatched them together. They are very similar, though Black Gold has a darker base, and Abyssinian Catbird has more sheen.
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| Laura Mercier Black Gold, RBR Abyssinian Catbird |
Yesterday, I wore those two products together for a daytime bronze smokey eye. First, I applied Abyssinian Catbird to my lid; then I used MAC Patina to blend into the crease. I highlighted my browbone with Burberry Trench. I then used Black Gold eyeliner on my lower lashline, and finished by curling my lashes and applying mascara.
I love how this look turned out, but unfortunately Black Gold eyeliner didn’t last very well on me. It migrated/ smudged down, giving me very unfortunate looking dark circles under my eyes. I will try wearing Black Gold again on the upper lashline, and try it again on the lower lashline but with eyeshadow primer beneath it – however, if you have oily lids or tend to have trouble with eyeliner migrating, I’d suggest you skip this one. As an alternative, I’d line with a black eyeliner and then smudge Abyssinian Catbird over it.
This post is from Project Swatch. All rights reserved.