By the time this post gets published, Valentine's Day would officially be over. All the gimmicky Kiss Days, Teddy Days and what not would be officially behind us, unable to touch us for another year. What did you guys do for Valentine's Day? I, genuinely, hope it wasn't as lame as mine. My girlfriend has her XII Board exams going on and I couldn't even go drop by considering my Boards are coming up too. So, I just texted her for a bit and then treated myself to some candy (which, strangely, I had bought for her). After that, I just decided to get on with this post. I have been stalling doing this post for the longest time imaginable. I don't even know why - since these particular products are like best friends to me. You've probably seen and heard about these more than necessary by now. Let me just add my name to the people who have used and loved these little darlings.
I had bought my first Color Tattoo in October, 2012. I remember I had bought my first one, called 'Bad to the Bronze', during Durga Puja. I just merely put it on the night after I had bought it and I fell head over heels in love with it. Pretty soon, I went back to buy another one, then another one and so on. I own six of the eight available shades, the remaining two being the green and purple hues. I cannot wrap my mind around why I don't own the green shade ('Edgy Emerald') since it is my favourite colour and the pigmentation of this line is insane. The purple one (called 'Painted Purple') doesn't interest me at all, which is why I haven't even thought about buying it. Also, from what I've seen or heard, the purple one is the only disappointing one from the line.
The packaging of these products is beautiful. The product is contained on a glass jar, which is then covered with a black plastic lid. They are quite heavy due to the glass packaging. Each eyeshadow jar contains 4 grams of product, which is, arguably, the best deal on single eyeshadows out there, at the moment. And for ₹350 each, you can't get anything better than these guys.
They can be used as bases for more complex eyeshadow looks and they can be worn alone. They make amazing bases - they adhere to any shade that you layer over and they make the eye colour pop much more. You can use flat, synthetic eyeshadow brushes to apply these (I got quite a few for free when they were first launched here) but your best bet is to use clean fingers to pack these over your eyelids.
Do remember to close them well. When you don't close the jars tight, they do tend to crack a bit. I have suffered from this little factor in 'Tenacious Teal' and 'Audacious Asphalt'; while they have cracked a little, the pigmentation is still as intense as ever.
These are of a cream-gel consistency and they glide on smoothly, without creasing. They apparently have 'tattoo tenacity', which I understand - they are quite persistent when applied. They are extremely long-wearing, and claim to last for 24 hours. I have, actually, tested that factor out and I'm pleased to say that, for once, a product lives up to its claims. These are vibrant and gorgeous. Most of them have a metallic sheen to them, the only exception being 'Fierce and Tangy', which borders more on the matte side, rather than the metallic sheen side.
Let me try and break down the shades I own now.
1. Fierce and Tangy
'Fierce and Tangy' is a bright, in-your-face tangerine orange. It is matte with tiny flecks of shimmer in it. Unlike its companions, it doesn't have a sheen to it. When applied, it looks completely matte. This is the most recent addition to my collection and has become a fast favourite. I remember texting my friend Gigi when I had bought it (orange is her favourite colour) and being completely unaware of how to actually use such a vibrant colour. To be honest, while it isn't extremely wearable and requires a lot more confidence to rock, it does brighten up brown eyes beautifully. It's a gorgeous spring/summer shade.
2. Tenacious Teal
This shade of blue seems so out-of-place for Indians. But to my utter surprise, it looks insanely good on our skin tones. It's kind of like the blue for us, tailor-made for Indian skin tones. I have used this as a base to recreate many looks and I have worn this alone as well. Takes a bit of guts, but it's well worth it. It has a gorgeous sheen to it. This one had cracked quite a bit because I forgot to close it properly once. The pigmentation and intensity hasn't changed, though.
3. Pomegranate Punk
I bought this metallic cranberry shade on a whim only to fall crazy in love with it. It's my favourite of the bunch. It does look a little intimidating but is very, very wearable. This also works amazing as a base for lighter smokey-eyes. It looks amazing worn alone too. I cannot stress how much I love, love, love, love, love, love, love this shade. I'm sure you can tell by the number of times I used the word 'love' while describing it. (Read: 8)
4. Bad to the Bronze
The first Color Tattoo I purchased. I remember I was very close to buying 'Edgy Emerald' when the salesgirl told me I'd get more use out of this one, merely based on its colour. And she was right - the most wearable of the bunch - I don't know/understand what sorcery this particular colour employs, but everything looks so right when you use it. The shadows, the sheen, everything falls into place. It's sorcery. It's just plain old sorcery.
5. Audacious Asphalt
'Audacious Asphalt' is the metallic grey of the bunch. It looks best when used as a base for a classic smokey eye. This is definitely one of my most used shades. It's a little chalky, compared to its companions. Even so, it's still better than most single eyeshadows out there, especially for darker hues.
6. Bold Gold
It is a a rich gold colour. It is extremely flattering on Indian skin tone. The sheen of this one in particular is unbelievable. It is an extremely bride-appropriate colour. I remember the makeup artist at my sister's wedding using this one as a base to layer other MAC eyeshadows. The final result was absolute perfection. While it seems like a bridal colour, it is definitely more versatile than that. It's extremely day-friendly and looks good worn alone.
(The pearls and gems in the photos are just leftovers from previous DIY projects of mine.)
I love their staying power, their pigmentation, their finish and the financial factors (amount of product, the price). You, basically, cannot go wrong with these. Overall, I'd definitely ask you to grab at least one of these and try them out. While the bold colours may not be your cup of tea, the neutral colours are just as beautiful. If I were to recommend one particular colour, I'd ask you to pick up 'Bad to the Bronze' because of its sheer wearablity (is that even a word?) and its gorgeousness. But if you want to be a little more daring, go for 'Pomegranate Punk', which is my absolute favourite, if you didn't know already.
Until next time,
be bold.
~AB.
