⇥ AT A GLANCE ⇤
The Milani Shadow Eyez 12 Hour Wear Eyeshadow Pencil is a water-resistant and creaseproof eyeshadow encased in a pencil form. It can be used as a shadow, liner, or highlighter. The range includes 12 shades from neutrals to brights. The pencils comes in a variety of finishes: matte, shimmer, and metallic.
⇥ THE BREAKDOWN ⇤
Each pencil retails for $7.49 USD for 0.10oz/2.8g ($74.90USD for 1 oz).
Golden Bronze is a gold bronze with a metallic finish. It can be worn sheer or built up. When it's sheered out, it has a sheer-ish sparkly finish rather than a metallic finish, if that makes sense. The gold sparkles in this shade don't migrate to other parts of my face or get in my eye, which is highly appreciated.
Almond Cream is a matte neutral beige. I mainly got this to use as a neutralizer for my slightly veiny and dark lids. It serves this purpose well.
Sand Dunes has got to be my favorite shade. It's described as a shimmering taupe and I couldn't agree more. As you can see in the swatches, it does look metallic when built up. With one swipe, it has a sheer shimmery sparkle finish which looks great on the lower lash line if you're into the Korean watery eye look, 애교 살 (my Korean is rudimentary at this stage so I'm sorry if I spelled it wrong!) A lot of female KPop stars have a really glittery lower lash line using real crystals. This imitates that look in a more everyday, wearable version. It is more glittery than both Champagne Toast and Golden Bronze.
⇥ INGREDIENTS ⇤
Isododecane, Cyclopentasiloxane, PEG/PPG-19/19 Dimethicone, Synthetic Wax, Hydrogenated Polydicyclopentadiene, Nylon-12, C20-40 Alcohols, Perfluorononyl Dimethicone, Polyglyceryl-4 Diisostearate/Polyhydroxystearate /Sebacate, Polyethylene, Dimethicone / Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Silica, Isoceteth-10, Tocopherol, Mica. +/- May Contain: Tin Oxide, Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Yellow 5 (CI 19140), Blue 1 (CI 42090), Ultramarines (CI 77007), Ferric Ferrocyanide (CI 77510), Carmine (CI 75470), Manganese Violet (CI 77742)
⇥ PACKAGING ⇤
These are very similar in size and packaging to the NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils. Since they are so large, it's a bit hard to sharpen. I have a large duo sharpener that has a small and big hole that fits these well. I love pencil type products because they're so easy to apply and use. The outer packaging matches the shade of the pencil which is très utlie when you have a bunch and are looking for a specific color.The cap stays on pretty well and I haven't had problems with it cracking.
⇥ FORMULA & FEEL ⇤
These pencils are quite smooth. They are not exactly buttery soft like powder eyeshadows but they aren't firm and dry either. Of course, the matte shade, Almond Cream, feels a bit drier than the metallic Champagne Toast, but both are quite easy to work with. The sparkles in Sand Dunes and Golden Bronze are not obnoxious in the least and look elegant, if sparkle and glitter could be considered as such. All four blend quite easily with a brush or fingers. I of course, recommend the ring finger for a quick and easy process.
⇥ SCENT ⇤
These do have a very slight scent to them but honestly, it could've been my hand cream that I was smelling. Either way, the "scent" doesn't bother me when I'm applying these shadows to my eyes nor have I ever noticed a scent emanating from them thus far.
⇥ APPLICATION & PIGMENTATION ⇤
Application and pigmentation on these 4 that I have a A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! They glide onto the eyes with no tugging, which is very important in preventing premature eye wrinkles. The pencil format means easy to apply if you know how to hold a pencil and color. Almond Cream does drag a teensy bit compared to the easy glide of the other three but it's nowhere as bad as the ones from my NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils. Champagne Toast applies the most smoothly and pigmented out of the bunch but Sand Dunes and Golden Bronze are nothing to sneeze at either. Sand Dunes is a bit less pigmented than the other 4 as I can sort of see my skin tone peeking through a bit with just one swipe. Two swipes of this will completely cover any skin peeking through. One swipe of the other three will leave you with complete opacity. Definitely not lacking in pigment nor ease of application.
⇥ WEAR TIME ⇤
While I don't think they last the full 12 hours looking perfectly intact like upon initial application, they have decent staying power. I tested this on a very hot summer day walking outside in 80℉+ weather. After about 6 hours with no primer underneath or eyeshadow on top, I did notice some creasing but I did sweat a lot that day. On a more normal day of light walking and cooler weather, it creased slightly towards the inner corner after 6 hours of wear. I noticed major creasing at hour 7 but smoothing it out worked until I took off all my makeup at hour 8. Color was still there but didn't look very good. If you want the full 12 hour wear out of these guys, I lightly recommend using an eye primer beforehand and layering a powder eyeshadow on top to absorb any oil. I do have quite oily and watery eyes so if you have drier eyes, you might get the full 12 hours without any extra prep steps.
⇥ OTHER THOUGHTS ⇤
I'm not sure if it was noticeable in the top photo but the tip of Champagne Toast kinda, sorta fell off. I'm not sure how that happened but with klutzy me, you never know. I was able to press it back on and use it so I'm not crushed or anything. As I kept using it, the tip feels like it's mushing back into the rest of the pencil, which is a relief.
I love using these guys as stand-alone eyeshadows. I like a simple eye look most of the time because I have quite oily eyelids and watery eyes that seem to eat up my eye makeup like no other. I'm often rushed in the mornings so a one-step eyeshadow process is much preferred, though I do like to play with color and blend some days. These are easy to apply and blend while brightening my eyes in a subtle way. I have darkness under my eyes and sometimes, I just don't have time to apply concealer and blend. Adding a quick pop of Champagne Toast or Sand Dunes adds color to my eyes while brightening my eyes at the same time. I have not used Almond Cream in the waterline as the chubby pencil is not very conducive to that kind of delicate lining process. I do use an angled liner brush if I want a more defined and precise line but most of the time, I use these as eyeshadows so that's not needed. With the darker browns and black, that might be a necessary step for a thin line.
⇥ BOTTOM LINE ⇤
I'd totally recommend these to everyone! The fact that they can last more than 2 hours on my eyes without any help from other products is amazing. I don't expect my makeup to look as perfect as when I first applied them for 12 hours so I don't mind that they don't live up to that claim. Everyone's eyes and needs are different so take everything stated here with a grain of salt. I'm very glad that Milani decided to make the neutral shades a part of the permanent range. When I first bought these, all of them except Champagne Toast was limited edition for Summer 2012.
A little birdie somewhere that the ingredients list of these pencils and the Urban Decay pencils are exactly the same so these might be a more affordable alternative to those $20USD a pop 24/7 Glide-On Shadow Pencils. However, I think the 24/7 Glide-On Shadow Pencils (the chubby ones) might be getting discontinued as the Sephora site only has one color that is out of stock...
These are in store at CVS Pharmacy if you want to see them in person before purchasing. The online pictures are quite realistic to the products so I wouldn't worry about that too much. Did I mention these pencils are vegan? That's pretty cool considering the increasing concern about animal testing. Cruelty-free is a step in the right direction but going vegan is like achieving makeup nirvana.
⇥ WHERE TO BUY ⇤
MILANI || Buy
Have you tried any shadow pencils?Which ones do you recommend?
What are some tips y'all have for a quick getting ready routine?
XOXO,
MWAH ♥
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Disclosure Statement: All products mentioned were purchased with my own money. I am not sponsored by any of the companies mentioned above and was not compensated for this post. All opinions are my own. Links are not affiliate links and are provided for the readers' convenience. I cannot guarantee that the product(s) will work for you. I do not approve or endorse the products or information available on these sites. Proceed at your own risk.
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