Types of Eyeshadow

They say the eyes are the window to the soul.  Take a look at your eyes in the mirror.  No, seriously, go. Ill wait.

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Aren’t they gorgeous!? Our eyes are an amazing feature of our bodies, and when applying makeup, I love making the eyes the focus.  Depending on how you apply your eye makeup and what colours you choose, you can be glamorous and classic or wild and creative.  There are endless possibilities!  Today, I’m going to talk about the different types of eyeshadow out there.

• Powder – Comes in pressed or loose (pigment) forms.  These are easy to apply and blend, and can last a long time because they are dry–most say that you can keep powder from 2 to 4 years, as long as you haven’t had an eye infection and clean your brushes regularly.  They’re also great because they’re small enough to take with you if you buy them singly, or you can buy a travel palette.  Loose pigment powder can be a little more messy, but can give a really great look.  I love powder forms of all makeup, so as usual, this is my go-to choice.

I absolutely love Urban Decay Eye Shadow.  I previously had it in the shade above, called Chronic.  I finished it last year (that reminds me.. I need to get more of this!).  It lasted me quite a long time and was very pigmented.  It didn’t take much to get a really great colour.  I also had it in a beautiful purple shade, but the name escapes me.  I’m going to be going through my makeup collection later today and finding all the gems I forgot about so I can tell all you ladies about them!

In terms of palettes, I have an e.l.f. Studio Endless Eyes Pro Eyeshadow Palette that I got about a year ago during a promotion for $10 instead of $20.  In the last year, they came out with new palettes and lowered the price of this one to $10.  I highly recommend this, because most palettes are $30 and up, and this is an eyeshadow bargain.  Mind you, a few of the shades on the palette aren’t extremely pigmented, but most are really great as long as you use an eyeshadow primer, and I’ve grown to love this palette (it was my first).  I’m going to do a completely separate review for this product soon.

• Cream – Also comes in gel form which is quite similar.  They are normally in a pot.  Most eyeshadow pencils or sticks are cream eyeshadow.  These can be a little harder to apply and blend.  They won’t have as long of a shelf-life as powder (about half), because they are moist–this provides a great place for bacteria to grow.  They also may settle into your crease throughout the day, but again, wearing an eye primer is a great way to combat this.  I’ve never been a huge fan of these, just because of the crease issue, but that was back when I didn’t wear a primer.  In my next order to e.l.f., I’m going to order the e.l.f. Essential Jumbo Eyeshadow Stick in a colour or two.  These look really interesting, the reviews look pretty good, and I want!!

I also found some Too Faced Lockdown Ultimate Creaseless Cream Eye Shadow.  Creaseless, hmm?  Has anyone else tried these?  The reviews say that they really live up to their claims, and that they last a long time.  Now I’m curious!  Let me know what you think in the comments.

• Liquid – These can be the messiest to apply and blend.  However, newer liquid eyeshadows claim to have ‘long wear’ and apparently look very nice when carefully applied.  Again, you shouldn’t keep these for much more than a year or so because they are liquid.  I don’t think I’ve ever tried a liquid eyeshadow before, all of mine have been either cream or powder.  Have any of you tried liquid? Did you like it? Let me know!  If you’re interested in trying it out, I found Lorac Cosmetics 3D Liquid Lustre Liquid Eye Shimmer.  The reviews look pretty promising, and Lorac is usually good quality.

There you have it!  The 3 main types of eyeshadow.  Using a mixture of different types could probably give a really pretty effect, and also make it last longer.  I’m interested to hear what kinds of eyeshadows you use, and why you love them!  Leave a comment below 🙂

That’s all for now, see you soon!

xox The Beauty Bard ♥