Nouveau Cheap: Review: CoverGirl Exact Eyelights Eye-Brightening Eyeshadow

July 18, 2009

Review: CoverGirl Exact Eyelights Eye-Brightening Eyeshadow

For me, CoverGirl has always been my "in a pinch" cosmetics brand. In other words, their products often serve as a quick-fix or solution to a desperate situation. If I can't find my beloved Prestige powder foundation, I can always use CoverGirl Fresh Complexion Pocket Foundation in a pinch. If my local drugstore is out of Max Factor Volume Couture Mascara, I can always use CoverGirl VolumeExact Mascara in a pinch. CoverGirl products are good but they're often my second choice. I'm sure a lot of you have a much different experience with CoverGirl, so if you have a holy grail CoverGirl product that you think I should know about, please leave a comment after you've read this review. Thanks!

So when one of my dear readers asked me to review the new CoverGirl Exact Eyelights Eye-Brightening Eyeshadow, I was intrigued but cautiously optimistic.

These palettes come in four easy shades to choose from: Hazel Eyes, Green Eyes, Brown Eyes and Blue Eyes. I like it when colors are selected based on what will bring out the color of your particular eye color, but this type of gimmick has let me down in the past so...again, I was cautiously optimistic.

I chose the Hazel Eyes palette for no other reason than that I have hazel eyes and I really wanted to see if this combo would make my eyes pop:

What I really liked about this palette from the get-go was that it comes with an eyeshadow brush, which, SURPRISE SURPRISE reminds me of my first choice in eyeshadow brushes, the e.l.f. eyeshadow brush.

So in addition to the sponge applicator, you get this brush:

What I first thought when I applied the lightest color (from lash line to brow) was, "Oh no. The brush isn't really picking up the product and this isn't even going to show up on my skin." But I was wrong. Yes, these shadows are light, but they pack a lot of sheer shimmer. Even the colors that aren't shimmery (the two shades of brown on the left side) are sheer but in a good way. You get a wash of color that is subtle yet noticeable.

I applied the lightest shade all over and also in the corners of my eyes and underneath my lower lashes. I used the medium brown in my crease and the dark brown on the outside corner of my eye. The green, which is quite pretty in person, is to be used in the middle of your lid, but I found it almost useless because it doesn't show up at all when you use it on top of the cream shade. You tell me: Can you see any of the green at all on my eyes?

I guess you can kind of see it in this last picture, but in real life you really have to look closely to detect it.

What I was the most surprised with was the brush! It is quite soft and did a great job at blending. I did experience a little shedding with one or two stray bristles, but not enough to make me want to toss out the brush completely. The head of the brush is almost the exact same size as my beloved e.l.f. brush so, once again, if I didn't have my e.l.f. brush readily available, the CoverGirl brush would definitely work "in a pinch". Plus, it makes the $7.99 price tag on this palette a better deal since you get two items.

Now, I did use my Styli-Style eyeliner pencil in "Bronze 111" to line my eyes because I just didn't trust using the darkest shade in the palette to line my eyes. I'm glad I decided to use an eyeliner because, sure enough, this palette lasted about 4 hours in the hot San Diego sun before I saw some fading. But these shadows never faded completely, so if you use a good primer they should last you all day, no problem.

As for these colors making my hazel eyes pop? You be the judge. What do you think?

In my opinion, the bronze eyeliner does more to bring out the hazel in my eyes than the actual eyeshadow itself, but maybe you'll disagree?

Final Analysis: For the price, these palettes will give you a pretty, sheer and shimmery wash of color. The staying power is par for the course for a drugstore eyeshadow but I advise using a good eyeshadow primer beforehand. The accompanying brush is quite good (better than expected), which makes the price more bearable. As for bringing out the hazel color of my eyes, I think the jury's still out on that one.

13 comments:

Arezu, July 18, 2009 4:18 PM: Are all the colours shimmery? Or are some matte? Cause I hate palettes with all shimmery colours :/
Phyrra, July 18, 2009 5:48 PM: There aren't many CG products that I use, but my HG light pink liner for my lips is Covergirls Outlast Smoothwear in Blush. I love it!
Recessionista!, July 18, 2009 7:48 PM: Hi Arezu--yes, the two brown shades are mattes, not shimmers. But they are all pretty sheer, even the mattes. :)

Hey Phyrra--thanks for the tip about the CG Outlast lip liner. If I actually had the patience to use lip liner, I would check this out because I always had a problem finding a good one when I used them. :)
Kitty, July 18, 2009 8:10 PM: Maybe the pictures aren't doing it justice.. but I don't see any eyeshadow colors you put on??
ndoodles, July 18, 2009 10:55 PM: I've seen these but the colors never really drew me in. Nevertheless - I still really like your eye look. Not too over powering w/ the green - which is a good thing :)
Jenn, July 18, 2009 11:18 PM: Gorgeous! The colors aren't too pigmented, but it's still a nice sort of subtle look, especially with that great eyeliner Hazel eyes are so pretty, aren't they? :) Major jealousy! And, I just have to say - for being a "30-something," your skin looks AMAZING from what I can see!

Thanks for the fab review!
Recessionista!, July 19, 2009 10:12 AM: Hey Kitty--I'm sorry that it doesn't look like the colors on my eyes match the colors in the palette. lol! Maybe it's because they're all very sheer and and the cream and green are shimmery when applied (they don't look shimmery in the palette)? :)

Hey ndoodles--I agree. The colors didn't realy make me say "Ooooh!" when I saw them, but I was pleasantly surprised when I applied them because they really give a pretty and sheer wash of color. Thanks so much! :)

Hey Jenn! Um, WOW, thank you! You seriously made my day with your comment! I don't even know what to say except for THANK YOU THANK YOU!! xo
Mookie, July 19, 2009 10:44 AM: Thanks so much for reviewing this product. I love the look on you - I'm terrible at applying eyeshadow - I can never get the corner of the eye color to look right.

I tried the CoverGirl Eyebrights eyeliner in Black Pearl and I must say that I'm quite a fan of it. It works well on my dark dark brown eyes and has a lot of staying power.

Another fantastic post! Thanx.
Amber, July 19, 2009 7:33 PM: I totally dig it! I could notice oodles of green in your peepers ;)
Recessionista!, July 20, 2009 10:17 AM: Hey Mookie! Oh believe me, I still have problems with applying darker shades on the corner of my eyes too, but with this palette it seems easier to do--I don't know why but it does! Thanks for the tip about the eyeliner--I think I'm going to have to pick some up. :)

Hey Amber! Awww, thank you so much! xo
femputer, August 5, 2009 2:07 PM: CG's Super Thick Lash mascara. My HG mascara. NO smudging, NO running, NO clumping, plenty of bee-yoo-tiful volume, all for a measley 4 bucks and some change. If you haven't tried it you simply must. :-)

You did a great job putting on those colors, btw. With more than two colors, I get confused and give up. LOL.
femputer, August 6, 2009 6:14 AM: OH! I almost forgot to mention my favorite thing about CG STL: You don't need an act of God to remove it! ;)
Recessionista!, August 6, 2009 8:58 AM: Hey femputer! OMG, I must try that mascara! I used to use CG mascaras years ago but then I started hopping around and haven't used them for a long time. I think I'm overdue, given your great review. Thanks SO much for rec. And thank you for the kind words about my e/s application! :)