The last time I was this euphorically excited about a newly discovered makeup line was back when I first stepped into a Sephora store back in 2001 and had my makeup done with some dazzling Urban Decay products. I was over the moon then and now, ladies, I'm over the moon and, heck, over Saturn! While I'm prone to hyperbole, I assure you that my effervescent rhetoric is an accurate reflection of my giddy enthusiasm over these products. Yes, ladies, the Illamasqua products I've tested are THAT good.
The line launched in the UK last November, quickly garnering a dedicated following among makeup arists and celebrities like Lily Allen and Adele. Now, 200 of Illamasqua's best-selling products are available to US customers via Sephora.com. The Sephora store in New York City's Times Square is currently the only stand-alone retailer carrying Illamasqua, but 26 additional Sephora stores will be adding the brand's goods to their inventory in October (and there's nothing like Sephora.com until then!).
So why is Illamasqua so illmatic? Well, for one, the colors are bright and daring — the type of hues you expect to see in high-fashion editorials and glossy, edgy ads for risk-taking brands likeD&G. Second, their texture is superb. When I applied the Illamasqua lipstick in Blaze, a deliciously loud Sunkist orange, I kept reveling in the lipstick's creamy texture. I also noticed that the color lasted almost all day long — and my lips never felt dry or rough (as tends to happen with many lipsticks billed as "long-lasting").
The Powder Eye Shadows, meanwhile looked powder-y but felt smooth and almost creamy when brushed onto the lid. The texture is the perfect middle point between powder and cream — you won't have to worry about tiny powder particles winding up sprinkled along your cheek or in other unwanted areas, nor will you have to grapple with the smudging and smearing that can accompany cream shadows. More importantly, the shadows' consistency facilitates a seamless look that gives the impression that your lids were naturally pigmented in those hues.
Pictured below are swatches of some of the products I testes, as well as the look I created using them:
Illamasqua Lipstick in Blaze:
Illamasqua Powder Eye Shadow in Tango (right) and Heroine (left):
Finished eyes (achieved using the Tango and Heroine shadows):
Here's the complete finished Look! I used the Heroine and Tango shadows, the Blaze lipstick, and the Cream Blusher in Betray. Pretty cool colors, right?
Check it out!
Illamasqua Lipstick in Blaze, $20; Illamasqua Powder Eye Shadow in Tango and Heroine, $20 each. Illamasqua Cream blusher in Betray. Visit Sephora.com
