Tag Archives: black eyeliner

Rimmel Scandaleyes Gel Liner Review & Swatches

I find it difficult to write reviews of perfectly adequate products. If I love or hate something, I have plenty to say; when something is acceptable but unexciting, it’s harder.

Rimmel’s Scandaleyes gel liner is fine. The pigmentation is good; the wear is normal for a gel. The texture is acceptable – it’s thicker than the L’oreal gel liners, so I find it a bit more difficult to get a crisp line, but there’s nothing terrible about it.

The included brush is fine. It’s decent for a “free” brush, but it’s a little too firm to be ideal with gel liners – it digs little holes into the gel and gets unevenly coated with liner rather than gliding on the surface of the gel. I may repurpose it as a lip brush.

If you’re looking for a cheap-as-possible gel liner, I’d recommend the Wet n Wild instead – it’s a few dollars less and also a perfectly adequate liner (though it does dry up quickly). If you’re looking for an excellent drugstore gel liner, I’d recommend the L’oreal – it’s a few dollars more, but worth it.

What makeup items do you find acceptable but unexciting?

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Black Eyeliner Swatches, Comparisons, Wear Test

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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 →

NYC High Definition Liquid Eyeliner Review & Swatches

I have several NYC products to review – I was looking at the new NYC display at CVS, checking out the new products, and some of the new as well as some of the older products just jumped into my shopping basket! These will be brief reviews.

First up, the NYC High Definition Liquid Eyeliner, which is a felt-tip eyeliner pen. It has a fairly fine point, though not quite as fine as the Dollywink liner (which I have not reviewed, but is swatched in this post). It applies quite smoothly, even over eyeshadow, and though it’s not waterproof, it lasted all day for me. The major downside – and it’s quite a problem for me – is that it’s not black enough for me. Instead, it’s sheer black that looks quite gray.

one swipe // built up swatch

As you can see, even going over the line multiple times doesn’t make it a dark black. Thus, unless you prefer a sheer black (and I’m not sure that anyone does), this eyeliner is miss. My favorite drugstore eyeliner pen was – by far! – Milani’s limited edition Color Play liner from last summer, but unfortunately mine is on its last legs.

What’s your favorite pen-style eyeliner?

Rimmel Scandal Eyes Eyeliner Review, Swatches, Photos

Taupe, Nude, Deep Blue

Rimmel released its Scandal Eyes liners in the UK a little while ago, but they are new to the US. They showed up first in temporary displays, which had a only a few shades, but now that Rimmel wall displays are being updated, more shades are available. I’ve seen them in-store at all the major drugstores in my area, and they’re already online at Ulta.com – and only $4.49. Per the Rimmel website, seven shades are available in the UK and ten shades are available in the US. Two of the shades I purchased, Nude and Taupe, are available in both countries, and Deep Blue is US-exclusive.

Here’s a quick snapshot of the US shades:

Let me cut to the chase: I LOVE THESE. This review is going to be a complete rave, I love them SO much. They might even replace Prestige Total Intensity pencils as my all-time favorite eyeliners. I will definitely be buying the black and a couple more shades (and will also be trying out the Scandal Eyes Shadow Sticks to see if they’re just as good!

So, what makes them so great? They are creamy but not too soft (the Prestige pencils do have a tendency towards being too soft). They are smudgeable at first, but after they set they don’t migrate, smudge, or move. I tried to smear the swatches on my arm, but was completely unable to – I eventually got them to flake a little, but only after my arm was quite red from rubbing at it! Nude lasts about 5-6 hours on my waterline – I wear contacts, and I’ve never had anything last six hours on my waterline before! And, I get all day wear on my upper or lower lashline.

In the below swatches, the line on the left is a single pass, and the square on the right is a built up swatch. There isn’t much difference, because these liners are very pigmented in one swipe – you don’t need to go back and forth to build them up!

Nude // Taupe // Deep Blue

Nude is a peach beige – it’s great to see more shades like this at the drugstore. Taupe is a light brown – it’s fantastic shade for my lower lashline, as it defines, but isn’t harsh like a darker brown would be. I normally only use eyeshadow on my lower lashline because I find most pencil lines too harsh, but this is very wearable. I think it would also make a great upper lashline color for light blondes who want a natural but defined look. Deep Blue is a very dark navy blue – gorgeous, and a great alternative to black.

Edit: I love these so much that I went back and bought more! Here are quick swatches of the five shades I currently own:

I also have a comparison of my nude (or again, light peachy beige) pencils – the Scandal Eyes one is a bit darker and more orange in comparison to the others, which are the MAC Pro Chromagraphic Pencil in NC15/NW20 (now available online) and the concealer pencil from the Hard Candy Glamoflauge concealer.

Hard Candy // MAC // Rimmel

There’s not much else to say – go buy these now! And tell me what you think!

MUA Makeup Academy 3 in 1 Contour Pen Swatches & Review

MUA 3-in-one Contour Pen — Black, Smoked Plum, Sea Blue

My final MUA post of the day is a review of the £1.50 3 in 1 Contour Pen – which actually seems to be a pencil liner, though the texture is a bit unusual, and it took me a minute to figure it out! The texture is more like a pen, but given the nib twists out (& back in again) and is a couple inches long, it is actually some type of pencil. I would guess that it’s named the 3-in-1 Pen because the angle of the nib allows you to make make thin lines, thick lines, and well – I’m not really sure what the third way to use it is!

3-in-1 Contour Pen: Black, Smoked Purple, Sea Blue

The Sea Blue and Black shade have good pigmentation, but the Smoked Purple shade has very poor pigmentation. Below, I’ve used the different sides of the nib to make a thin line & a thick line – each line is one swipe of the pencil. Then, the rectangular swatch is built up with several passes of the pencil, to see how pigmented it can become – it makes a big difference for the purple shade!

MUA 3-in-1 Contour Pen; Sea Blue, Smoked Purple, Black

These are very smudgeable, which can be either a good thing or a bad thing depending on your preference. Some liners smudge until they set, but these liners never set – they remain smudgeable forever. After I photographed my swatches, several minutes after application, I ran my finger across the swatches firmly, with this result:

Smudged MUA Contour liners

Not surprisingly (give the smudging), these do not last well. I have normal to dry skin, so most eyeliners last well on me – some last until removal, but almost all liners last at least 8 hours, more or less. These Contour liners were very faded by the 4-5 hours mark.

Given the poor pigmentation of the purple shade, given the fading, and given the way these smear, I do not recommend these liners. There are plenty of other budget liners that are far superior for only a couple dollars (or pounds) more!

Birchbox Mini-Reviews

My November Birchbox – probably my favorite one thus far

Beauty sample box services have a mixed reputation. Some love getting samples each month; some don’t understand why samples are worth paying for. I’ve written before about why I think Birchbox in particular is worth it (it’s due to the points system, which basically brings down the cost of each box to around $5). I’ve now been a Birchbox subscriber for seven months, and I like it enough that I’m considering buying the year-long option (pay for 11 boxes and get 12).

Today, I’m going to review several (though not all) of the makeup items I’ve received over the past seven months. Thus far, I’ve received at least one, and often two, makeup or nail polish items in each box – I hope this trend continues!

TheBalm Beauty Queen Staniac – mini size

First up – TheBalm Staniac, which I received in my first box last June. Staniac comes in three shades (“Beauty Queen is a magenta-toned pink, Prom Queen is a lovely rose pink, and Homecoming Queen is a dewy peach”), and I received a mini tube of the shade Beauty Queen, which I would describe as a bright raspberry. It is a true stain – waterproof and very transfer-resistent. It’s very pigmented, but is remarkably easy to blend, given the pigmentation level. I really like it – I wish I could buy minis of all three shades!

TheBalm Hot Mama mini

Next, another TheBalm product – Hot Mama eyeshadow / blush, which I just received in December’s box a few days ago. This is also a mini product. It is a Nars Orgasm like color – peachy pink with golden shimmer, but more pigmented and more shimmery than Orgasm. It is very smooth and pigmented, fantastic quality. It’s far more shimmery than I prefer for a blush, but I would wear it as a highlighter or an eyeshadow.

Pixi Lid Last Shadow Pen – Shell Sheen – full size

The Pixi Lid Last Shadow Pen in the shade Shell Sheen is a full size product from last August’s box. It is an eyeshadow pencil. It is very creamy and blendable, and the shade is perfect for an inner-eye corner highlight. It’s a nice product, but nothing extra-special.

Sumita black eyeliner – full size

November was an exceptionally good box, and part of that was the Sumita eyeliner I received. I have plenty of black pencil eyeliners I love, so an eyeliner really has to be special for me to sit up and take notice. This one is great – it’s very black and intense, and once it sets, it does not budge. I did my best to smudge the swatch on my hand, and it didn’t move at all. Recommended!

Model Co. lip gloss – Showgirl Red – full size

My November box also included a Model Co. Shine Ultra lip gloss labeled Showgirl Red. The gloss is actually a sheer pink, so I wonder if it’s a mislabeled Berry Pink (one of the other available shades) – but it doesn’t really matter to me. It adds a just hint of color. It also has a very fine shimmer that makes my lips look full and glossier, but is not visible as shimmer. I love the texture – it’s very moisturizing and not sticky at all. The one downside is the sweet, artificial fruity scent, which I loathe – but which luckily fades quite fast. I have been keeping this in my purse for a bit of extra moisture and shine!

And, swatches!

swatches - the Balm Stainac Prom Queen ; theBalm Hot Mama Pixi Shell Sheen, Sumita black eyeliner

the Balm Stainac Prom Queen unblended / blended; theBalm Hot Mama
Pixi Shell Sheen, Sumita black eyeliner

And I forgot to include a swatch of the Model Co lipgloss with the others, so here it is alone:

If you are interested in signing up for Birchbox, I would love it if you decided to use my referral link (I pay for my own box). You can, of course, go directly to Birchbox.com to sign up as well.

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