Review and swatches: H&M Beauty Colour Essence Eye Pencils
I didn't do a lot of shopping in Europe because most of my money went to tickets for museums and attractions (and gelato). But of course, I couldn't resist picking up a few things, especially from H&M Beauty. We have a few tools from the line in Cebu, but none yet of the cosmetics themselves, so I got quite a rush seeing the displays that took up one pretty big section in Barcelona's Gothic Quarter.I have the Colour Essence eye pencils in Terroir and Over the Taupe, which come individually boxed.
H&M Beauty Colour Essence eye pencils in Terroir (top) and Over the Taupe (bottom)
The tip of these pencils is like the Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliners - not thick like a jumbo pencil, and not thin like a micro liner. Just right for quick and easy use.
Swatches: Over the Taupe, Terroir
Over the Taupe is a shimmery, cool-toned dark gray with a hint of brown (a true taupe). Terroir is a matte dark brown, almost black pencil.
I bought Over the Taupe first to test out; I didn't want to hoard them yet without knowing how good they were. I loved it so much that I had to get another. They're so, SO smooth and creamy. Over the Taupe lasted well over 12 hours without smudging. While both are budge-proof after setting, Terroir doesn't have quite as strong staying power as Over the Taupe, which I found surprising since mattes usually adhere better in general. The pencils are quite soft and can be blended out before setting if you want a softer look, or to use them as an eye base.
After rubbing
These are how they look after rubbing, but you don't need to worry about Terroir coming off like this unless you're one to rub your eyes - which you shouldn't!
These could be the perfect eyeliner for me except for one caveat - they don't fit regular pencil sharpeners. I tried Over the Taupe on my Wet n Wild sharpener and my Urban Decay sharpener, and it just doesn't sharpen properly. I unfortunately kind of ruined the tip with this struggle, so I'm having to use an eyeliner brush to apply the product.
Another thing about this product, but not as a big deal for me as the sharpener issue, is the shade range. There's a black one, a purple one, some green ones and some bronze ones, but I think it would have been good to offer different shades or finishes of brown instead of several green ones. The other liner colors are also quite light, which would serve better for brightening than definition.
