Review: L'Oreal HiP Color Chrome Eyeliner

I mentioned a few days ago that I had picked up one of these new liners to test and review, but who knew that the eyeliner testing gods would give me a freaking 100 degree heatwave in order to REALLY test this baby out?

L'Oreal HiP Color Chrome Eyeliners are part of HiP's new collection, Mattes & Metallics:

I picked up the shade "Green Flash" (retail: $10). The price is a bit steep for a drugstore liner, if you ask me, so I was really hoping it would perform like a high-end product.

Let's compare it to my other new green liner, Prestige Total Intensity in "Intense Olive":

(HiP "Green Flash on top, Prestige "Intense Olive" on bottom)

Here's a close-up:

Now here's what they look like swatched:

(HiP "Green Flash" on top, Prestige "Intense Olive" on bottom)

As you can see, the HiP liner is a lighter shade of olive than the Prestige liner. What you CAN'T see but what you'll have to trust me on, is that the HiP liner does have a chrome effect (very shimmery), while the Prestige liner is a darker olive with a traditional gold shimmer. Put it this way: If you want someone to actually notice that you're wearing a shimmery eyeliner, go with the HiP liner. The Prestige liner wears pretty dark and, to the casual eye, it's harder to detect that shimmer.

Now, let's put these babies to the rub-test! I took my index finger and rubbed both swatches with as much pressure as possible for about 10 seconds and here's what I got:

(HiP on left, Prestige on right)

Now this is important: It's hard too see this in the picture but what you need to know is that they both faired pretty well on the rub-test. BUT, the HiP liner did ultimately smudge away quicker than the Prestige. Also, the HiP liner changed color when it smudged (it revealed a dark, blackish-green underneath the chrome green), while the Prestige stayed quite true to its original color without changing one bit.

So how did the HiP liner perform under the blazing hot San Diego sun? Well let's just say that if I hadn't checked myself in the mirror constantly throughout the day, this liner would have probably been down to my chin by sunset. This seems to be a common occurrence (for me at least) with these new long-wear liners: They don't budge when applied to dry, oil-free skin, but once they come in contact with a little oil, look out because they'll smudge and run like crazy. To be fair, I also tested this liner (today) wearing it only on my upper lid and guess what? It STILL managed to smear underneath my eyes. How does that happen? I mean, I wasn't wearing anything on my lower lids today, not even mascara!

Final Analysis: For $10, HiP Color Chrome liners are definitely gorgeous in color, but not so gorgeous in performance. I can wear them on my upper lids only, but not even on that area if the weather's hot. These might work quite well for those who have very dry skin around their eyes, or are one of the lucky few who can wear any eyeliner they wish and never experience running or smudging. If you are that type of fortunate soul, then totally go for it. But if you normally have issues with smudging or running liners, you may want to look elsewhere, or purchase this liner for winter-only use.

Do you plan to give these a shot? Why? Why not? Let me hear your thoughts!