June 20, 2008

Summer Collections 2008: Vincent Longo Liquid Shadow Review

Lately I’ve been daring enough to try out various cream eyeshadows. I’m normally not a big fan of cream shadows but I’ve run across some really good ones and this has turned my Nay into a Yay when it comes to them.

I recently blogged about Vincent Longo’s Beautiful Dreamer Summer Collection and one of the main items released with it were some new liquid shadows. Of course, I had to go out and buy them for myself so I could review them here!

I was pretty excited about these as they appeared to be a shimmering liquid shadow plus the colors looked very Summer friendly. I do so admit that product gets sold to me very quickly when the promo images of the model sporting the makeup looks posh, put together, and simply gorgeous. This may stem from some unconscious need to look that flawless, that gorgeous, or it could be I’m hoping to attempt the same eye, lip, or cheek look. Who knows really but I do automatically hunt out a product if I’m liking the way it appears on a model pimping the collection out. The model was looking simply stunning in this particular advert.

The collection, aside from the liquid shadow, wasn’t anything to get too excited about so I ended up purchasing just two colors of the shadow and leaving the rest. The liquid shadow only comes in four shades which is both good news and bad. Bad, if I ended up loving the product and not being able to get my hands on more colors of a great product. Good, because I actually didn’t end up loving Vincent Longo Liquid Shadow as much as I had hoped I would.

I was expecting a shimmering cream shadow but sadly that’s not the case. The lack of shimmer in these lead to the downward spiral that will slowly become my poor review on the product.

Did I miss the trendy boat that said metallics are so in this season? I never got the memo. This goes to show you how much of a non-trendy person I am. I tend to march to a different drum then the rest of the cosmetic society because I had no idea that metallics were so huge this Summer. I guess I should have gotten a hint when Bobbi Brown released it’s Metallic Single Eyeshadows or when Bourjois Paris came out with it’s Shimmer Shine Liquid Eye Shadow.

Which brings me to the fact that these do in fact dry down to a high metallic sheen. Although I don’t mind metallics, I just don’t find I reach for them first thing. These have some good key factors so it’s not all bad. They dry down very slowly giving you plenty of time to build up color and blend as much or as little as you like. I think this is key with liquid shadows and I really appreciate this type of formula when I buy a cream shadow! One of the main reasons I avoid cream shadow is the incredibly quick dry down time which makes blending such a bitch. The fact that these dry down so slowly and give plenty of time for both blending and adding additional product to build up the color is a big plus. They are also very long wearing and have pretty good pigmentation but you do have to slather color on to see a good pop of color. One brush stroke will definately not create a dramatic eye so be prepared to saturate your eye area with cream shadow.

The colors I got were Supple Rose which is a warm pink and Liquid Desire which is a golden peach. Guess what? They look exactly the same on my eye. I couldn’t really tell too much of a difference between the colors once they were on. Swatches appeared really gorgeous and shimmering and you can distinctively tell a difference in color. However, once applied the color melded on and both looked identical. I was particularly taken with the look of Liquid Desire when I swatched it but it ended up just being blah when it was on my eye!

Supple Rose

Liquid Kiss

As you can see from my FOTD’s it looks like I’m wearing the same exact shade of shadow in both photos.

Aside from the drama of color I just didn’t get the wow factor at all. The payoff in the end is very natural, neutral, and dare I say boring? Although you can’t see it in my pictures the effect is that of a high sheen of metallic. The shadow dries down but it still appears somewhat shiny and wet. You’d think this alone would give some sort of dramatic effect. Nope. Not really. Yawn.

I really can’t pinpoint exactly what it is that I’m disliking about these. I’m not thrilled about the price either. $24 USD per shadow isn’t exactly cheap chips and it seems even more expensive when I am not loving the product! Have no fear I imagine I’d be a real sport about the $24 bucks if I was loving these!

When it’s all is said and done I think you can safely skip these. Nice to play with, nice to try, but don’t be fooled by the swatches you might do while in Sephora. As pretty and shimmering as they look on your hand you just won’t get the same effect once the product is on your eyes.

Although the formula is excellent in regards to blending and pigmentation in the end it fails at creating any wow or excitement.

The Muse no likey.

Skip it and buy something else.

Own ’em already?

Love ’em?

Did you want to try ’em?

Tell the Muse!

16 Comments

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Laura

    I always find liquid shadows a bit of a let down with colour pay off and finish.
    Give me powder any time!
    xx

  • Critty

    So great to have you back Ms Muse! These look pretty on you, but I am gonna skip them, they look too similar to my beloved Benefit Cream Creaseless Shadow/Liners in color and nothing can beat their long wearing formula. Looking forward to whatever other cream shadows you have up your sleeve!
    Big hugs,
    Critty

  • millie

    hello hello muse!
    i’m wondering if there are a few concealers for nasty dark eye circles you would recommend for asian skintones that’s avaliable on adambeauty. it’s gonna be my first one. do you think brands really matter or the quality for most concealers are pretty much the same? do you think stick concealers are just as easy to blend as liquid? or is there another brand that’s good for beginners? haha thanks muse!

  • the Muse

    Hiya Laura!

    Ya 🙁 These in particular had to have color built up. Pigmentation was good but I had to keep layering to get good payoff!

    I’m with you! Powder is def my first choice!

    Happy Weekend!

  • the Muse

    hiya critty!

    Thanks lovie! You can def skip as they weren’t fab at all 🙁

    I haven’t yet tried the Benefit ones and have always been curious.

    Since you’re loving cream shadows I’ll keep that in mind for new reviews 🙂

    Hugs!
    Happy Weekend!

  • the Muse

    hello there millie!

    If you have particularly pesky, nasty dark circles I don’t think that adambeauty has anything I’d highly recommend to cover them.

    Brands don’t always matter but I think price does. I find a higher cost always gets me a much better quality concealer. If I’m paying $40 for a concealer it will actually do what it says as compared to if I’m paying $4 for something that really does little to nothing. That’s just my opinion though!

    Stick concealers have alot more tugging involved in my humblest. I’ve never liked them as the formula always tends to be “harder” and difficult to blend. I stick to creams or liquids.

    If you have SERIOUS baggage and I want to keep your cost down you can purchase Circle Rx from Physcians Formula. It’s about $7-8 USD or less if it’s on sale.

    http://www.physiciansformula.com/en-us/productdetail/02725.html

    A little goes a very long way and it flatters the yellow undertones in asian skin very well.

    You want to even the darkness out with a yellow base.

    If you want something for beginners I’d definately try out Benefit Bo-ing as well. It’s very easy to blend a little goes a long way although the concealer is a bit on the pink side and not so flattering to asian skin. I have heard many asian girls rave about it though but I’m unsure how well it will look. It’s a bit more pricey as well!

    Two others to try are Make Up Forever Visble Lifter Concealer and Dior Hydro mositurizing concealer. Both are liquid and blend easily.

    I’d highly recommend buying a very cheap brand to start so you can get a hang of blending your concealer and as you prefect your technique go ahead and splurge on something more expensive.

    I hope this helps 🙂

  • Beauty Addict

    Hi Muse, how do u usually apply/blend liquid/cream eye shadows? I know some poeple use their fingers while others uses brush.

    gracie 🙂

  • ???

    the colour look gorgeous, love the liquid desire colour, but weird, albeit the big difference of colour, it appears the same on your lids! shocking! what a pity!

    loves,
    plue

  • Ann*

    hi izzy!

    i actually like the light natural metallic sheen. nothing drama i know! but its good for quick day looks!

    LOL!

    hand them over instead then!

    *hugs* its good to see you back instead.

  • psychoexgirlfriend

    Hey Muse, sorry to hear that this was a disappointment. I like metallics myself so I may end up checking this out.

  • the Muse

    morning gracie! Happy Monday lovie!

    I normally apply a heavy layer and blend with my finger tips. A brush doesn’t give me the control my fingers do. If the formula allows I build up color before it dries down if not I’m sure to pack on color big time the first time to avoid a crumbly flakey mess if the formula is quick drying 😉

    Those who use a brush I admire because I feel like I have no control over liquid/cream when I apply using a brush! Although I do use a brush with PP’s 🙂

    Hope this helps!

  • the Muse

    morning plue!

    Thanks dearie! I was shocked that the color was identical! It looks nice enough but could have been a bit more shimmery and pigmented for my tastes 🙁

    sigh! Oh well! Another for the toss bin!

  • the Muse

    Morning Ann!

    I believe I owe you an email or three. Sorry for the delay lovie. True! A quickie “am” makeup makes these handy for sure but I was a tad disappointed both shades appeared the same 🙁

    Hehe! I was thinking of selling ’em actually or swapping 😉

    Aw thanks honey! Good to be back and in blogging form!

    Hugs!

  • the Muse

    hiya psychoexgirlfriend!

    Happy Monday!

    You might adore these than! They are worth a quickie swatch for sure. I was a bit disappointed though 🙁 sigh!