Younique Splurge Cream Eyeshadow is a £21 (!) 'high-density, velvety-smooth cream eyeshadow.' The colour
Elegant is a beige/champagne/taupe base (honestly, it looks SO different in different lightings) with a layer of silver micro-glitter. I must mention that I did not purchase this product - my friend is a Younique ambassador and she gave it to me for review purposes. This of course, would
never sway my honest opinion (keeping it real, folks!)
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Formula: This is honestly the strangest texture of eyeshadow I've ever come across (I don't mean that in a bad way, it's very intriguing!). It's a whipped, silky soft mousse that almost wobbles if you poke it. It's nowhere near as stiff as a conventional cream eyeshadow (think Maybelline Colour Tattoos). It's quite thick, but as it's so smooth, it can be sheered out nicely without it becoming patchy. I swatched this on my arm, and even after I removed it, my skin felt s
o soft. I don't think Younique mention that it has any skincare properties, but hey, I wouldn't be surprised if it did! What makes this younique (geddit?) in my opinion is how
dazzling it is, and how the moussey texture manages to lock in that glitter - I've never come across another cream eyeshadow that has such a well formulated glitter layer - you can really create a multi-dimensional eye look with very little effort. That's definitely a massive selling point, I think. One negative would be that if you suffer from textured lids, the thick formula might emphasise that.
Rating: 4/5
Pigmentation: It is
pretty damn pigmented. Although it's a very neutral colour, it was still very opaque, and if opacity is not your cup of tea, it can be sheered out nicely while still retaining a good amount of pigment. This particular colour also makes quite a pretty (though dramatic) face highlighter .
Rating: 4/5
Ease of Use: The formula of this eyeshadow makes it very, very easy to create a one-and-done look, and if you're not an expert at makeup, I would recommend it purely for that reason. It applies nicely and easily to the lid (I prefer to use a flat, synethic brush) and is surprisingly easy to blend out. One thing to mention though is that if you do blend it, you're going to blend the glitter also (you can see I made this oopsie in my eye swatches below). As such, I recommend that you apply any matte shadows before this.
Rating: 5/5
Longevity: This really wears for a surprisingly long time. When I first swatched this my initial thoughts were (there is no wayyyy this is going to wear a long time without creasing) - the formula just feels like it will lend itself inevitably to creasing, seperation, all of that nastiness, but no my friend! I wore this for almost eight hours today, and each time I went to check, I expected a hot glittery mess but it really held it's own. I imagine it would start creasing at some point, but for a glittery cream shadow without any primer to still be pretty much perfect after almost eight hours of wear, that is seriously commendable.
Rating: 5/5
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To conclude... For a single eyeshadow, this is very expensive, and I was completely skeptical at first. How could this be any better than other, cheaper cream eyeshaows? Surprisingly, there are actually qualities that make this worth the money. As mentioned previously, it's pretty fascinating how well the glitter adheres to the formula, and how it's not a
boring glitter either - when it captures the light it is very intense and complex (the pictures really don't do it justice), making it seem like you put more work in than you actually did. Which brings me onto my next point - ease of use. If you're looking for a dramatic eye with little effort that's going to last all night, this really is your guy. With a darker crease colour and some liquid liner, it'd look
beyond stunning.
For those that are looking for a work-horse shadow with a bit more pizzazz than your bog-standard browns, this is really worth investing in, I think. A unique formula that just
works
GRADE: A
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Artificial light
Direct natural light
(On lid with dark brown in crease)
- Soph
