The extremely lovely Celia - the Laura Mercier SA - saw my initial fascination with the Caviar Stick Eye Colors, and wasted no time in showing me their wondrous qualities. Needless to say, I walked out with one from the limited Summer collection, and only escaped getting (many) more things due to a waiting friend.
I don't recall seeing the "Belle Nouveau" Summer collection Caviar Sticks at my local Sephora, though the regular shades are available on Sephora.com (and quite possibly I had Brand Blindness when I did browse, since Laura Mercier is not a brand I generally gravitate to). If you do spot them, I highly recommend giving the Caviar Stick in Turquoise a quick swatch. Your mind will be blown.
If you're thinking this bears a striking resemblance to the MAC Shadesticks, you are quite correct. It is, however, a MILLION time better. (Slight exaggeration for dramatic effect.)
You know how the Shadesticks tug at your eye, have inconsistent payoff and generally feel harder than something that's supposed to be smooshed all over your delicate eyelid should feel?
Yeah, none of that with the Caviar Stick. It goes on like butter. Or silk. Silky butter? Meh. Smooth and easy and wonderful, is what I'm trying to get at here. The color just glides right on, and is immediately opaque. There is also no 'peel-back' when you go over the same spot a second or third time.
This does have a longer set-time, so it can be worked - blended, buffed, spackled - for a good five minutes or so. For that time period, it is smudgable, but once set, it takes a dual-phase eye makeup remover to get it off. (Bi-Facil
is my weapon of choice.) This lasted an entire day with no problems.
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| Indirect natural light. |
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| Artificial light. |
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| Direct sunlight. |
Celia assured me that this can also be used in the waterline, though I have no tried that yet. She also demonstrated that the pigment can be picked up with a fine liner brush for a more precise and narrow application. This way it can be used as both an eyeliner and an eyeshadow (or eyeshadow base), despite the chubbiness of the stick.
Availability: Currently at Holt Renfrew and Nordstrom. The regular Caviar Sticks are available at Sephora.com. Price is 30$ CAD.
Pros: Incredible color, especially for summer. Very creamy texture, easy to work with while it sets. Once set, crease-resistant and long-wearing.
Cons: Can be a bit of a pain to take off.
(I purchased this item at Holt Renfrew.)
I saw this in a video recently and made a mental note to check it out. Now I'm already convinced that I need it haha. This looks amazing
ReplyDeleteWas it the Dusty Hunter video? I just saw that one and was nodding the whole way through the part about the Caviar stick. :P
DeleteOMG Maggie...don't know how I missed this gem - and I practically live at Holt's, lol! I'm calling them tomorrow to hold it for me! I have this insane love-love relationship with all things aqua & teal! Thanks for the tip!
ReplyDeleteAnd yeah, comparing our Holt's to that of TO, is well...apples & oranges!
OMG, me too with the insane teal/aqua love! With brown eyes, it's one of those shades that just WORKS, you know?
DeleteI really hope they have some left - I think Celia said that it was one of the last ones they had at that location. BUT. She can probably get one transferred in from one of the other Holt's. (I'm semi-tempted to call her and as her to get one of the LE Lip Glacé items. The colors were so gorgeous!)
I guess they can only do so much with the architecture of the building, right? I'm just annoyed that Burberry is a Toronto exclusive as well. Come on, Burberry! Montreal is a Mecca of style! On the plus side, the SA at Tom Ford said they maaaaaayyyyy be getting the full TF beauty line sometime this year.
Mmmm yea, loving that!!!! I like that it's more of a teal than an aqua - I think the difference is that aqua is lighter? - so this soo appeals to me. I got a bit turned off LM products because two of them that I bought I found out afterward contain lanolin, which I'm allergic to, but I'll give 'em another shot and check this one out (and the ingredients) because it is just gorgeous! And love the good wear time too, thanks Maggie!
ReplyDeleteToyarosie, I think you're right about the aqua - it's usually more of a pastel-y shade, whereas teal has more depth. I adore pretty much all shades of blue-green, no matter the iteration (classic Pisces!), but this one in particular is stunning, I agree.
DeleteI just checked the ingredient label, and it doesn't contain lanolin, so you might be ok! Do you have a counter you can test it at first?