Review: Essence I Love Glam Powder Eyeliner & Eyeshadow and I Love Extreme Volume Mascara

Essence if one of those super-affordable brands that is available at Ulta and, honestly, the only thing keeping me from reviewing more of their products is the fact that I live so far away from my local Ulta store. One of these days I'm just going to place a big ol' order on the Ulta site, but until then I do have two new products to share with you, which I received recently for review.

For those of you new to this brand, Essence is a German cosmetics company that is available at Ulta here in the US. There are five eye cosmetics in the I Love collection, and you can view more info about them on the Essence website.

From the Essence website:

"we can assure you that cosnova [parent company of Essence] neither conducts testing on animals, nor commissions it to any third parties – not in germany or anywhere else in the world. we strongly disapprove of testing on animals for cosmetics products"

 Essence I Love Glam Powder Eyeliner & Eyeshadow and Volume Mascara

So let's start with the Powder Eyeliner & Eyeshadow:

 Essence I Love Glam Powder Eyeliner & Eyeshadow 

(retail: $2.99, 0.02 oz)

From the Ulta website:

Ingredients
Mica, Boron Nitride, Silica, Dimethicone, Polyethylene, Pentylene Glycol, Pumice, Kaolin, Dimethiconol, Ethylhexylglycerine, Carnauba (Copernicia Cerifera) Wax, Tocopherol, Phenoxyethanol, Dehydroacetic Acid, CI 77499 (Iron Oxides), CI 77510 (Ferric Ferrocyanide), CI 77891 (Titanium Dioxide).

 

This product comes in one shade: black. There aren't too many US cosmetics manufacturers who make loose powder eyeliners with this type of applicator (I know there are some by European brands). Off the top of my head, I know that Smashbox and Laura Geller make loose powder eyeliners but those will of course set you back $20+.

The applicator is a soft, sponge material that's flexible without being too "floppy". Here's a picture next to a cotton swab, just for perspective:

What I really like about this product is that you're able to get a nice, fine, precise line, even though it's a powder. Here are some swatches:

Looking closely at the above pic, you can see that there is some sparkle in this product, but it's not excessive.

Here's a picture I took after doing a "rub test". (I took my index finger and rubbed back and forth across the lines with a good amount of pressure for about 10 seconds):

 As you can see, the powder is still a bit visible even after rubbing.

If you're the type of person who likes to apply a layer of powder shadow on top of your pencil or gel liners to "lock in" the color, you are going to LOVE this product. I have yet to find a product that does this so easily and effortlessly. It's like the applicator was MADE for going over your eyeliner--it's the perfect width for that purpose. I also tried wearing this shadow alone as a liner, and if you're going for a smoky eye it's a nice option because it smudges easily yet stays pretty pigmented. The only way I didn't like using it was as a straight-up eyeliner (worn alone and not smudged or "smoked out"). I just found that on my oily skin, the staying power wasn't as good as when smudged or worn on top of a pencil or gel.

And finally, the mascara:

 Essence I Love Extreme Volume Mascara

(retail: $3.99, 0.4 oz)

From the Ulta website:

Ingredients
Aqua (Water), Synthetic Beeswax, Paraffin, Glyceryl Stearate, Acacia Senegal Gum, Butylene Glycol, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Stearic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Polybutene, Vp/Eicosene Copolymer, Carnauba (Copernicia Cerifera) Wax, Aminomethyl Propanol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Phenoxyethanol, Propylparaben, CI 77499 (Iron Oxides).

As with many volumizing mascaras, this one has a very large brush. The brush contains traditional bristles (not the plastic/rubber variety). Here it is next to a CoverGirl Lash Blast Fusion brush, just for perspective:

I think this a pretty standard volumizing mascara. I tend to prefer volumizing mascaras that provide a little "clumpage" to my nonexistent lashes, so this formula worked for me personally but I could see how those without the need for volume might find it a bit clumpy. It's a drier mascara and provides a nice amount of volume (not too dramatic though) but it did not provide much for me in the way of length. This product did not smudge or flake for me during the course of the day, and it removed easily with regular facial cleanser, but some of you may require the help of an eye makeup remover. I do want to note that the brush is very large, so if you're not used to larger mascara brushes, just be prepared for a learning curve.

FINAL VERDICT: I think these are two nice additions to the Essence line, and you sure can't beat the price ($2.99 for the powder eyeshadow/eyeliner and $3.99 for the mascara). My favorite of the two products is the I Love Glam Powder Eyeshadow & Liner, because I just love the way you can use it on top of pencil or gel liners to really "lock in" the color and set your liner. It's also nice for a smoky eye because, due to the small applicator, you can really get down in between your lashes and put this product exactly where you want it. It smudges nicely for a smoky eye as well. As for the mascara, the formula would work best for those who prefer a drier mascara and enjoy using a large brush--this one is not for those who prefer small, narrow brushes.

You can find both of these products at your local Ulta and also on the Ulta website. 

Do you own any Essence products? What are some of your favorites from this brand?

A sample of this product was given to Nouveau Cheap for editorial purposes, either directly from the manufacturer or from the agency that works on behalf of the manufacturer. All reviews on NouveauCheap.blogspot.com are the honest opinion of its author and editorial samples do not, in any way, affect the outcome

of product reviews.