Ever since I was a teenager, I loved everything about makeup and skincare. I would often search for answers regarding can you do IPL at home? And what are the best ways to make an at home face mask. My love for it waned after college when I sought financial independence. At the time there were other things I had to spend my money on besides that $30 tube of lipstick (like rent, electricity and food). But now I’m a bit older and I live in a dual-income household with no children to support. I’ve got the expendable income and as a result, my makeup love has been revived. You can also read about the benefits of moringa oil for skin and see how it can help rejuvenate.
So I’ve been buying a lot of makeup palettes lately, especially eye palettes. This week I used the Nude(art)ist Box palette from Nudestix every day. I purchased this set on a whim from Sephora over Black Friday weekend.
Creamy crayon makeup is normally not my thing. I have oily eyelids which are both a blessing and a curse so I often avoid creamy eyeshadow formulas and religiously use eyeshadow primer. However, as this post by the American Acne Foundation points out, this brand claims that their eyeshadow has a built-in primer so even oily lids can use their Magnetic Eye Color pencils.
That sounded like a challenge to me.
Nude Eyes and Colored Lines
For this week I decided to sport the smokey nude eyeshadow look using this palette. However, I didn’t want to go all nude, so I added a pop of color with some colored liner that I’ve had in my makeup stash for a while: Urban Decay’s 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils in Lust (dark purple with pearly finish), Binge (a navy blue with a pearly sheen), and 1999 (reddish plum with bronze shimmer). The colors I have are discontinued. I rarely used them because I was afraid of colored liner for a long time. This week I decided to take a leap and give them a shot. Now I’m obsessed and just bought a new one to add to my collection. There’s an excellent article on Temptalia about finding comparable liner shades to some of these discontinued shades.
And just to complete the smokey look, I lined my waterline with Stila’s Kajal Eye Liner in Onyx, another recent purchase.
The Nude(art)ist Box palette from Nudestix comes with 6 neutral colors in their two formulas, Matte and Luminous. Their colors are:
- Angel (luminous) – Shimmery pale pink
- Lilith (luminous) – Shimmery pearl
- Twilight (luminous) – Shimmery taupe
- Army (matte) – Matte earth brown
- Putty (matte) – Matte medium beige
- Taupe (matte) – Matte taupe
The Experience
Well, the Nudestix creamy eye formula proved to live up to its reputation for the most part. The first couple days I wore the Magnetic Eye Shadow, I would accidentally apply eyeshadow primer beforehand. Because primer is meant to leave a somewhat tacky surface for powder eyeshadows to adhere to, it made it more difficult to blend the creamy eyeshadow sticks. The final result was uneven and splotchy.
The trick is to use the Nudestix Eye Shadow without any primer. The shadows glide on smoothly and remain blendable for several seconds before they set.
And in regards to blending, these shadows blend well with a finger or a brush. I tried both and ultimately I ended up using brushes to blend. It was just easier to control. Plus a couple times I came close to poking myself in the eye with a fingernail.
Once I figured this out, working with the creamy formula became a cake walk. One day I did a pale frosty eye. The rest of the week I did a smokey eye with colored liner. The matte finish held up well during the day. There wasn’t any creasing or fading. The luminous finish did show a tiny bit of creasing. In general though, the luminous finish tended to look oily anyway.
The Verdict
I liked these shadows especially for a simple, everyday eye look. The pencil application was quick and convenient. I could see myself keeping these in my makeup bag for on-the-go use. Also because the eyeshadow primer is built-in, these would make great bases for powder shadow.
Other Products Used
- Tarte Clean Slate 12-hour Poreless Perfecting Primer
- Lush Colour Supplement (Dark Yellow)
- Rimmel Lash Accelerator (Black)
- Amazing Cosmetics Blush (Pink Chocolate)
- Tarte Amazonian Clay Matte Waterproof Bronzer (Park Avenue Princess)
- Urban Decay Naked Skin Ultra Definition Pressed Finishing Powder (Naked Medium)