Eyeliner is a staple in any woman’s makeup cache. Everyone knows this is true. With all the choices in formulations, it’s hard to figure out what’s the best choice for one’s needs.
I think I speak for a lot of women (and some men, too!) when I say that it’s a damn pain to find an eyeliner that lasts more than a couple of hours. For years I’ve tried stuff from the drugstore, from the el cheapo Wet ‘n’ Wild pencils to the goopy Prestige liquid liners, and from the quasi-decent Rimmel self-sharpening pencils to the halfway-passable L’Oréal liquid liner.
With every single one of the eyeliners I’ve tried before, one or more of the following happens:
- It gets “blinked off” – in other words, if I line the inner rim of my lower lid, the pigment disappears after only a few blinks of my eyes.
- It stipples. You know how when you run the tip of the pencil along your lashline the tip will “skid” along the skin? This creates a most unpleasant unevenness to the line and is nearly impossible to cover up adequately.
- It melts. Then I end up with raccoon eyes. I hate it when that happens.
After a lot of experimentation and wasted money on eyeliners that just didn’t stay put, I wandered into Sephora one evening and asked one of their beauty consultants what the hands-down longest lasting eyeliner they sold was. At my wit’s end and desperate for my dream liner, I was prepared to shell out some cash, but that was purely contingent on whether I was convinced that I’d be getting my money’s worth.
The salesperson grinned and actually surprised me when she said Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil. But at the same time, I felt like, “duh! Urban Decay is pretty much THE go-to brand for girls who would need eyeliner that lasts through sweaty rock concerts and stuff…” And being one of those girls, I felt doubly silly.
To be honest, I thought she’d tell me to go for Givenchy’s Magic Khol Eye Liner Pencil or Bare Escentuals bare minerals liner powder, which doubles as a shadow. The thing with the Givenchy is that it’s more than $20 apiece, and the thing with the Bare Escentuals is that it’s a powder, which is messy and gets everywhere, unless you fool with a wet angled brush and that creates a whole new mess to deal with, i.e., buying brushes and brush cleaner, and that equals more dinero.
So at the Sephora person’s enthusiastic recommendation — which included her testing the pencil on my hand (that’s what sold me; the line she drew didn’t come off until I used a lot of remover) — I dropped one of those Urban Decay eyeliner pencils in “Zero,” which if your basic black kohl, into my basket.
This eyeliner has a lot going for it.
First, it lives up to its name. It really does glide on! The formulation is so smooth that you needn’t fear any stippling or uneven line.
Second, it DOES last 24/7! Of course, as with nearly any eyeliner available at a reasonable price, you have to let it set for a couple of minutes before it “dries.” But after that, this eyeliner does not budge. It is totally smudge-proof, unless you try really hard.
Third, you can use it on the inner rim of your eyelids. I love this fact because lining the inner rim is one of the toughest things to do and have last for any sustained period of time. Your eyes are naturally moist, and moisture is eye makeup’s mortal enemy. Though it might take a couple of passes before your inner lid is lined and dried, the end result is well worth the minimal effort.
Fourth, the color is intense! And with the broad selection of colors, plus the fact that Urban Decay’s claim to fame is its funky palette of pigments, it’s obvious that that color will last and last.
Finally, the price is right. The eyeliner goes for $16 per pencil, and it will last long. Throw in the Grind House double-barreled sharpener for $8 and you will be good to go. The sharpener was made especially for these eyeliners, so you need not worry about it eating up and ruining your pencil and, in turn, your money.
Now, I don’t know about you… but to me, that sounds pretty eye-deal. In fact, I’m going to wear it tonight to the concert I’m going to… and I won’t even need to check in the mirror to make sure my liner’s still intact.
Tags: bare escentuals, eyeliner, givenchy, makeup, sephora, urban decay