I saw this kit on Sephora's website months ago, and happened to see it near the checkout at Sephora during the Sephora sale at the end of March/early April. I picked it up because it was such a good value at $19.50! (The eyeshadow is $17, and the liner is $14, and these are both full size.)
As you can see, the chrome finish of the eyeliner is quite hard to photograph! Otherwise, it is like any other retractable liner. The retractable portion moves quite easily up and down (phew!) and the cap clicks shut. The eyeshadow pot is small in size, so it is not at all convenient to put a finger in. This is definitely one you need a brush to use, which is ok for me even though I prefer to use my fingers to quickly swipe on these types of shadows.
I was initially interested in this eyeshadow because Christine at Temptalia compared this formula to Chanel's Illusion d'Ombre shadows. The Illusion d'Ombres are quite pricy in comparison, and every time I've played with testers, they are either super super shimmery or somewhat dried out. Because of that, I never purchased the Chanel Illusion d'Ombre shadow that I wanted, and I was especially interested in the shade Illusoire. Temptalia says that Pug is very similar, so I really wanted to try this!
The shadow definitely has a bouncy texture, which is kind of fun. Even when I use a brush, I can see the product bouncing in the pot. Not sure what that accomplishes, but at least I like the texture!
As you can see from the swatch, the liner is quite black, which I always like. The shadow appears more silver than it is in the pot when swatched with a finger, but when I apply it on my eyes, it does appear as a silvery taupe-purple which provides nice definition on my lids.
Again, I will preface this by saying that my lids can be quite oily, especially in the crease area near my lashline. Without primer, the eyeshadow lasted only about 4-5 hours before some minor creasing occurred. With primer (Nars Smudgeproof, which is my favorite!) it was at least 10 hours before minor creasing took place.
The shimmer was manageable, and the color was wearable for everyday, and that's what I had hoped to find in Chanel Illusoire. (Although if you own and love Chanel Illusoire I'd love to hear!) This shadow is more shimmery than the Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze, and I feel that this shade is not opaque in the way that Color Tattoos or some of the L'Oreal Infallible shades are. That's not a good or bad thing, but just something I thought might be worth noting.
I have only tried the liner once so far, and as I mentioned, it is a true black, which can sometimes be hard to find. The formula is very creamy, and glides on SO smoothly. The swatch I made didn't smudge from touching it, and when I showered it did take rubbing at the end of my shower to get it off. However, it didn't fare so well when I used it to tightline - it did smudge in the corners of my eyes as if my top lids had touched my lower lids in some areas. But again, I did not wear primer and I think I rubbed my eyes at least once. I think with primer and/or if I don't use it to tightline, it will fare much better!
What do you think of this set? Have you tried any of these products??
P.S. If you do like these shadows and also want some color, Sephora currently has a set of 4 of these shadows (full size) on sale for $34, which will be like buying 4 for the price of 2. :)