Table of Contents
I’m so lucky to have been sent a selection of the newest Illamasqua Eye Paint shades to try out and swatch for you.
When I think of Illamasqua, I think of beautiful dark glossy packaging and vibrant makeup shades, but I didn’t know much more than that. I did a bit of research into the brand to find out the story behind Illamasqua-
The brand was founded in 2008 when the brand creator behind GHD, Julian Kynaston approached professional makeup company Kryolan in the hopes of developing a new innovative professional makeup brand. You might have heard of Kryolan if you watch Ru Paul’s Drag Race, it’s a drag queen favourite as well as a theatre staple. Kryolan make up is designed to stay on through heat and sweat. Creative input came from Alex Box, who is very cool and impressive. The ethos behind Illamasqua is bold fashion forward colours and cruelty free long wearing formulas .
At Illamasqua we are on a mission to empower all with the confidence to
express their true self. Our high-performing colour defies industry
standards with distinctive pay-off and pigment. A passion for artistry is
in our blood, and at the heart of everything we create. Our
anti-conformist attitude and irreverent style rejects the conventions of
the beauty industry and emboldens the brave
The Illamasqua Eye paints were gifted to me for this review and the links are affiliate, which means if you click and spend, I get a small percentage to put back into my blog. Buying a product after clicking through my site is a way of saying thanks- Click here. Check out my other makeup posts for inspiration.
£19 for 5.5ml full price (currently 25% off for Black Friday at £14.25) I also have a code for an extra 5% off ILLAXX5.
Shades available include
- Darjeeling Ink- Warm Nude Brown (I’m Vegan)
- Matcha Chic-Teal Green (I’m Vegan)
- Ginger Mocha- Warm Terracotta
- Lavender Brew- Dusty Purple
- Rose Latte- Mauve Pink
There seems to be other shades depicted on the site that aren’t available to order- Chai Custard, Lapsang Fun and Caffeine Fix. I have shades Matcha Chic, Ginger Mocha, Lavender Brew and Rose Latte to review and swatch.
Illamasqua is a cruelty free brand and has Peta certification, it doesn’t have a parent company like L’Oreal to worry about and they don’t sell to countries like China where animal testing is a requirement. Two of the available shades of the Eye Paint are vegan- Matcha Chic and Darjeeling Ink.
Illamasqua have this to say about their eye paints-
Illamasqua’s Eye Paint delivers up to 12 hours of waterproof, transfer-proof colour. One stroke of Eye Paint gives an intensely pigmented matte colour or it can be blended out for a softer application. This lightweight, comfortable formula can be worn alone or as an eye base.
You can use the Eye Paints in so many different ways- on their own to make a graphic liner, blend them out to soften the colour or as a base for shadow.
Illamasqua Eye Paints Longwear Liquid Shadow and Swatches
The Illamasqua Eye Paints come in sleek black packaging with a doe foot applicator. The colour is very opaque. It dries matte but you have plenty of time to blend it doesn’t dry quickly, which would be a bit of a problem as they are very long wearing.
The doe foot is fine for application although this won’t be the most precise way to apply. You could use a fine liner brush if you wanted a more precise edge or just clean up with a wipe, depending on the look you’re going for. You have plenty of time to blend out the edges before they set. They dry to a fully matte finish with no shimmer. You could totally use them as a matte coloured liner or add some glitter for some sparkle. The Paints have a similar consistency to a liquid lipstick.
On to the shades. The Matcha Chic is a teal colour, I would describe it as a bold blue green. Ginger Mocha is a gingery orange or terracotta, Rose Latte is a dusky blue toned light pink, Lavender Brew is a muted lavender purple. Here are the swatches-
The Lavender Brew is only slightly sheerer than the other shades. In general the Eye Paints are very opaque and impactful, particularly the Matcha Chic.
You can fully use the Illamasqua Eye Paints alone and it creates a bold statement and it also works well as a long wearing base to make eyeshadow colours pop.
They last for a really long time without creasing or flaking. I have really oily eyelids and longevity is an issue for me, I’m happy to report all the shades I tried lasted from morning to evening. Even though they are long wearing the Illamasqua Eye Paints are pretty easy to remove with either micellar water or an oil based cleanser and a cloth.
I definitely recommend Illamsaqua Eye Paints if you’re looking for a colourful matte eye statement that lasts all day. My favourite shade is the teal shade, I’d love to see the Paints in some different colours, maybe a rich purple or mahogany would be amazing. Shop the Paints at Illamasqua.com, hurry to get the Black Friday 25% off deal and take advantage of my extra 5% off with code ILLAXX5 at checkout.
