Maybelline Color Strike Cream To Powder Eyeshadow Review & Swatches
Maybelline Color Strike Cream To Powder Eyeshadow Pen is a new applicator eyeshadow pen that launched for Summer 2020 in 10 shades. As of now these are a permanent part of the Maybelline core collection they need to get rid of them as soon as possible as they are absolute rubbish.
The idea behind these isn’t new by any means! It’s a simple eyeshadow applicator that’s held within a barrel which is filled with eyeshadow. The tip of the applicator will come out of the barrel saturated with color and if you need more you just dip it right in. Avon, Victoria’s Secret, Lorac, nad many other brands have had eyeshadow packaging like this in the past. It’s convenient and it’s a nice and easy way to swipe, blend and go.
Maybelline’s formula is where things are a bit more unique as they promise a cream to powder formula but….! Well, it’s mostly powder in my opinion.
Here’s my reviews and thoughts.
Ok, trust me, these are a big waste of money. Depending where you purchase them they’ll run you $7 to $9 per shade and each is 0.012 oz of eyeshadow. Ouch! That being said, you might be curious and if you are I urge you to seek out a sale and don’t waste time with the matte shades just go right for the shimmery ones because the mattes are crap. I got two mattes and I got one shimmer and of the three the shimmer was the best.
These are pretty slick. It’s a slim pencil that has a smaller sponge applicator attached to one end. I was concerned the smaller applicator would be an issue with application and it is sadly. It’s a really small applicator that works great under the eye area but on the lid you really have to go over the area a few times to get all the color evenly applied. One of the biggest faults with this product is the way the eyeshadow flows through the barrel. I think the formula is lovely and I THINK given the opportunity these are probably nicely pigmented but since you can’t actually get at all that much of the eyeshadow it’s hard to tell! You have to keep clicking the applicator into the barrel and applying layer after layer after layer after layer on your lid. It’s too difficult to get the eyeshadow out! I tried shaking the barrel, I tried moving the applicator in and out of the barrel, but no matter what I tried the applicator would come out with only a fine little layer of eyeshadow. It was just impossible to get the eyeshadow out. The packaging as you can see in my photos shows vibrant color but that is not at all what you get. The exception here would be the shade Hustle which was a bronze shimmery taupe. I still had to do a few layers with it but it seemed to come out the most pigmented compared to the other two shades I have which leads me to believe the shimmer shades might apply a bit better. The worst of my three shades was Charm which applied completely transparent on my lids. I got no color at all from it!
I’m kind of sad because I actually really like some of the shades in this line. The matte shade Chase is really a pretty rusty brown! I could totally get on board with this shade being available in a single! Maybelline needs to get on that but in this packaging it was too difficult to apply and frustrating to boot.
As for the formula I wouldn’t say these were quite a cream but they do have a certain thin creaminess to them and they do set to a powder without any fall out. They also have a nice smooth appearance on my lids without creasing.
I think the idea is great, the colors lovely, the formula quite nice, but the packaging seems to be the main issue here. I have this feeling they are a lot more pigmented than I’m seeing but the packaging is preventing me from proving that as so little comes out!
In the end, I can’t rightfully recommend purchasing these! If you are curious please do what I suggested and wait for a sale and snag one of the shimmers to try out!
Have you tried Maybelline Color Strike Cream To Powder Eyeshadow?
What are your thoughts on it?
Maybelline Color Strike Cream To Powder Eyeshadow is a new Summer 2020 release that will be a permanent part of the brand’s core collection. These are are a small pen that houses a small applicator which saturated with color located in the barrel. Sadly, the applicator does not saturated well with color which leads to very, very sheer application of color. I suspect the colors are fairly pigmented but the poor packaging prevents us from seeing that. The formula is lightly creamy with a powder finish that looks very smooth and even on lids. I found the shimmer shades applied much better with more pigment than the mattes that I purchased but all in all, the packaging prevents me from indulging further!
- Nice range of shades in both matte and shimmer finishes.
- Applies sheer possibly due to faulty packaging.
- Applicator doesn’t saturated well with color.
- Inexpensive for a small amount.
Maybelline Color Strike Cream To Powder Eyeshadow might appeal to those who want a quick eye look but faulty packaging may prevent most users from indulging!