Tom Ford Cream Color For Eyes Review

Mr Ford has done it again and blown the beauty industry away with his latest make-up offerings. Soft to touch and simple to use, the velvety cream color for eyes eyeshadows are easily this summer’s must-have make-up buy.

Whether you apply with your finger or with a brush, the cream glides onto your lids with no need to blend or layer up the colour. The finish is a gorgeous, sexy shimmer without a hint of glitter, making it the perfect eye make-up to compliment your summer glow.  Long-lasting with no need to keep reapplying or fear of the colour fading, makes this beauty buy the perfect investment.

Tom Ford’s Cream Color For Eyes is £28 and available from Selfridges.com.

Rating: 10/10 – it is worth every penny and a little goes a long way, so the pot will last beyond the summer.

Aveda Petal Essence Eye Colour Review

A crease-proof finish is a tricky promise for any powder eyeshadow to make, but Aveda’s Petal Essence Eye Colour lives up to its claim. Using the waxes from jasmine flower, the eyeshadow has a silky finish that lasts.

While it does take several layers to achieve a darker, bolder shade, it is doable. Plus the eyeshadow is easy to blend if you want to create a smoky eye effect using just one shade.

Top tip: The eyeshadow doesn’t come with a brush, but using one makes applying much easier and achieves a neater finish compared to your finger.

Aveda’s Petal Essence Eye Colour is £11.50 from Aveda.co.uk.

Rating: 7/10 – My favourite is ‘Amethyst’, the colour is bang on trend for AW11/12 and it does last the day.

Chanel Ombre Essentielle Eyeshadow Review

Burgundy is a key shade for AW11 both in terms of fashion and beauty, which makes Chanel’s Ombre Essentielle Soft Touch Eyeshadow in ‘Trace’ the perfect choice. Flecks of glitter give the rich colour a lift and makes eyes sparkle.

The powdery consistency makes the colour easy to blend, but to achieve a darker shade you need to apply the eyeshadow several times. When you do this watch for the over spill under your eyes.

Despite the powder formula this eyeshadow does last for at least eight hours and you don’t get a crease line, nor will it smudge around your eyes.

Chanel’s Ombre Essentielle Eyeshadow is £21 and available from Boot.com.

Rating: 7.5/10 – It’s a good eyeshadow, but the price is a little off-putting. Although you’re buying into a luxury brand, you are only getting one shade, so you have to choose carefully.

Read other eyeshadow reviews.

Benefit Velvet Eyeshadow Review

The smoky eye is huge beauty trend for AW11 and a Christmas party classic. Benefit’s Velvet Eyeshadow in the new ‘Raining Men’ shade adds an instant glam factor to your look, and taps nicely into this season's metallic eye trend.

The teal shade is not as harsh and full on as your standard charcoal and the flecks of glitter brighten eyes and give them some added sparkle. With a powdery texture, this product is easy to blend and rework until you’re satisfied with your look.

Layer the eyeshadow with a brush along your eyelid following your lash line and concentrating on the outer corners, and then use your finger to smudge and blend across the rest of your lid and under your eyes. Use a brush to touch up and add more colour to the outer corner of your eyes to make them look wider. Finish with lashings of mascara and a flick of eyeliner along the roots of your eyelashes and voilà, a quick and easy smoky eye.

One thing to watch out for with this eyeshadow is it can smudge easily, so try using a good primer before to prevent it from smearing completely. A good eye make-up is also essential, otherwise you can wake-up looking like you’ve done a round with Mike Tyson.

Benefit’s Velvet Eyeshadow in ‘Raining Men’ is £13.50 and available from Benefitcosmetics.co.uk.

Rating: 8/10 – The perfect shade for this time of year, although it will more than likely stay in your make-up bag well into the New Year. 

To get even more out of this eyeshadow, check out Aveda's Color Option Eye Shadow Transformer. 

New CID Cosmetics i Gel Review

It’s easy to see why New CID Cosmetics Long Wear Gel Eye Liner Trio was a finalist in the Beauty Insiders’ Choice Awards for 2010. Each compact comes with three shades, a brush and a handy mirror.

With a soft texture, the gel liner lends itself well to smudging with your finger, so you can use the liner to frame your eyes and as a full eye shadow. Having tried and tested the Midnight Blue I can testify that the liner last all day, however the colour does fade throughout the day, becoming bluer.

The brush that comes with the i Gel’s cannot be ignored. The sturdy slant allows you to draw a fine, straight line or coat your lids with colour. It’s one of the best brushes I’ve ever used.

New CID Cosmetics i Gel is available from Newidcosmetics.com for £21.50

Rating: 7/10 – The staying power of this gel liner was impressive, but the colour fade was disappointing, however it’s worth buying this product just for the brush. 

Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Review

Famous for her tinted moisturiser, Laura Mercier’s other cosmetics are often over looked. However I have a feeling the Caviar Sticks will become a hero product before long.

Launched late this summer, the Caviar Sticks, like the rest of Laura Mercier’s make-up, are high in colour pigment. This means not only do you get a rich colour, but you can also achieve it using very little, making the product last longer.

The real beauty of this product is its simplicity; you can simply roll it across your lid and viola. Whether you want a full lid of colour or just a hint of a tint, this product is a real make-up bag must-have. The colour is flecked with glitter, providing a gorgeous sparkle and the colour actually lasts.

The waxy formula makes it easy to blend with your finger for a sultry smoky eye.

Laura Mercier Caviar Stick’s are available from Urbanretreat.co.uk for £20.50

Rating: 10/10 – Having been a Laura Mercier make-up virgin before, after using the Caviar Sticks I am sold completely. This product works as a great liner or a handy cheats guide to achieving a quick and easy smoky effect.

Burberry Sheer Eye Shadow Review

Burberry’s Sheer Eye Shadows offer some of the best shades around, my favourite for AW11 is ‘Almond’.

Not only is the colour perfect for every day wear and tapping into the coffee tone beauty trend, but it also works as a great base for achieving this season’s subtle take on the smoky eye.

Every Burberry eyeshadow comes complete with a good eyeshadow brush, which makes applying much easier. The texture is creamy at first touch, however it does turn more powdery as you apply, so watch out for overspill under your eye.

You’ll need to apply several layers to achieve the rich shade shown on the palette and unfortunately this product isn’t a stayer, so you will need to reapply.

It’s also worth bearing in mind that although the name mentions ‘sheer’, the finish is more matte.

Burberry Sheer Eye Shadow in ‘Almond’ is available from Harrods.com for £23.

Rating: 6/10 – Mixed reviews on this product, although it doesn’t live up to the hype, the amount of shade available alone is worth perusing the Burberry shopping aisle for.

Aveda Color Options Eye Shadow Transformer Review

The Color Option's Eye Shadow Transformer could well be a new hero product for Aveda.

When mixed with an eyeshadow, the gel like fluid intensifies the colour and gives it an almost metallic finish. Two drops of Aveda's magical formula reworks old eyeshadows into bold shades, it's a must-have product for creating a statement eye.

While the fluid works on all eyeshadows, the results are better on certain types of eyeshadows, especially Aveda's Color Options eyeshadows.

The Eye Shadow Transformer comes complete with a brush to mix and apply the eyeshadow.

Aveda's Color Option's Eye Shadow Transformer is £22.50 and available at Aveda.co.uk.

Rating: 6/10 - If it worked as well as it does on Aveda's eyeshadows as other brands, it would definitely be a 10.

By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Frozen Quartz Review

Creamy in texture, super easy to apply and light enough to carry around in your handbag all day, I'm struggling to find fault with By Terry's Ombre Blackstar eyeshadow pen.

The colour is versatile and suits almost any skin tone, while the touch of glitter gives eyes a real sparkle. 


For an ultra glam look layer up the eyeshadow, apply your eyeliner to the base of your eyelashes and then apply lashings of mascara.


By Terry's Ombre Blackstar Eyeshadow is £27.50 and available from SpaceNK.co.uk


Rating: 10/10 - It stays on and it is a great shade, although the price does make it more of an investment beauty buy. 

Hourglass Visionaire Eyeshadow Review

Since launching in the UK a few months ago, Hourglass has hit the ground running and become a firm favourite of mine.

The Visionaire duo eyeshadows have a creamy texture, which makes it easy to apply and stays on for longer without showing crease line.

It's not just the formula that impresses though, the packaging is super luxurious and unique with the swivel mirror, which makes it easier to apply the eye colour whilst on-the-go.

All of this does come at a price, but it's definitely worth paying. Hourglass duo eyeshadows are available at Liberty for £28.

Choose a shade that you will definitely wear to get your moneys worth. My favourite is the 'Dune' - the cream/sand colour is perfect for channeling a minimal make-up look, while the glittery green will give your evening look the ultimate glam factor.

Rating: 8/10 - this is definitely a product to add to your wishlist.