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5 Beautiful Gray Eyeshadows
Gray can be a very versatile shade to have in one’s stash, as it can be used to darken (without overwhelming, like a black eyeshadow might) any shade, but it can also be used to add depth and dimension. What are your favorite grays?
- Makeup Geek Galaxy — a medium-dark, shimmery gray
- Urban Decay Desperation — a medium-dark, lightly shimmered gray with warm undertones
- MAC Typographic — a matte, medium gray
- MAC Nehru — a matte, medium-dark gray with cooler undertones
- Inglot #451 — a shimmery, cool-toned gray
A few of my faves are Sephora’s own brand in “Winter in London”, Stila Diamond Lil which is a good dupe for MAC’s LE Smoke&Diamonds (long discontinued, it’s one they should bring back again and make permanent), Inglot 444P (another good S&D dupe) and TooFaced Garter Belt (from the Boudoir Eyes palette – it’s a great shade that they would be wise to make available on its own).
Yeesh – how could I forget Typographic – such a great, versatile shade that blends beautifully. Legendary Black is another one that is a standout, as is Keep Your Cool (both are Pro-Longwear and are almost interchangeable…almost)
It’s kind of amazing that Smoke & Diamonds isn’t permanent!
Oh Desperation is pretty! I have Where There’s Smoke from Benefit from a couple of years back which is not completely grey but a nice complex color which thankfully looks good on me! 🙂
Yay for flattering colors! 🙂
I sort of got talked into buying Where There’s Smoke some years back by the Benefit rep who was in-store. I’m so glad I bought it though because, like you, I find it so flattering. But I tend to think of it more as a taupey grey rather than a true grey. But it’s so beautiful.
I agree its not entirely grey which is a blessing! 🙂
This color family is a massive hole in my makeup collection. There’s a grey in Dior’s Incognito quint that I absolutely adore, but the shade is impossible to dupe and I really don’t need the other 4 shades.
I hate when you love one shade in a palette! So frustrating!
Dior’s gris gris palette has some beautiful greys and is a lovely palette. It is still available and because it is an older palette you can purchase it more inexpensively now.
I never used to think much about gray, but lately I’ve really been more into it. My favourite ones are in my Kat Von D Sinner palette. I like to wear it on its own or with a deep burgundy, pretty!
Sounds gorgeous, Karen!
MAC Nehru is so perfect!
It’s a great shade!
I really want Galaxy!
I like the finish on that shade!
Grey isn’t really my thing for eyeshadow (I find it really unflattering on me) but that inglot one is gorgeous – it would make a great nail colour!
Aw, that is too bad that gray doesn’t work well for you 🙁
So many lovely shades! I love Typographic paired with Copperplate as a smokey eye, ah!
What a pretty combo!
I don’t wear a lot of gray shades but there’s one I really like – MAC Knight Divine! It looks great smoked out with black kohl especially on brown eyes!
I like the shimmer in Knight Divine!
Whoa, the one by Urban Decay looks gorgeous!
It is!
The Inglot shade and Galaxy are my favourites here, but from my own stash…well at the moment I’m enjoying Makeup Geek Stealth! 😀
Yayyyyy! 🙂
I should have went with Typographic instead of Print when I was looking for a nice dark gray from MAC…
Print is a nice color, though! I think Typographic has a better texture, but color-wise, Print is nice!
My complexion is warm as well as my eye color tone. I have a hard time with grays. They tend to kill my eye colour especially when used as eyeliner. I might give it a go to “desperation” since it looks a bit browny. Do you have any warm undertoned gray recommendations?
Desperation is a warmer gray in this set, but if you’re thinking about warmer grays, they often are more taupe than gray (and I’ve done some top 5s for taupe in the past).
NARS Lhasa may be worth a try! It’s kind of pricey, but will last ages, and it has an easy texture.
I like all of these. I think the UD, MG, and Inglot are the nicest.
Glad ya liked the list!
Urban Decay ‘Mushroom’ deserves to be on this list more than ‘Desperation’!!
These are my personal favorites, which is why I always ask readers to share their own favorites so we can get a really great list going 🙂 Thanks for sharing yours!
Gray eyeshadows aren’t really my thing. These are very nice shades, though. Good picks. Galaxy and Desparation are very pretty. Typographic looks quite versatile.
Typographic also has a fantastic texture!
Love my greys. It’s a great neutral shade, especially if you want something a little more noticeable than nude tones. I prefer them matte, as I feel they pull silver with too much shimmer. It is surprising how difficult it is to find a good matte dove grey! Most of the ones you find on the market are shimmery or darker toned. I really like L’Oreal Infallible’s Sultry Smoke shade as my go-to matte grey.
I like all of these, but I only own Desperation & Typographic… Nehru swatched more blue when I tried it in a store a while back, but I may have to try it again-along with Knight Divine.
NARS Paris is a duo I love, but by the time I bought it, the temperatures skyrocketed, so it’s been sitting around with Brumes, Namibia, Mandchourie, Eurydice, Lhasa, Underworld… I just realized NARS does some amazing greys! We’ve had more seasonable weather lately, so *hopefully* it’s a sign, and I’ll be ab
e to pull out my “cozy” shades. I don’t go by “season” per se, but there are just certain colors I prefer when wearing cozy sweaters.
I love beautiful greys! Especially the inglot and the Makeup Geek Galaxy. In Too Faced Glamour to Go, they have some really lovely greys there too.
Desperation’s a fave of mine.
I love Desperation for a smokey look. I always loved UD Gunmetal too!
I have MAC Nehru and totally like it better than Carbon. I feel like it applies and blends so much better and it’s a better black for me than Carbon. It’s also not as stark if you use it for smokey eyes.
I have been in search of the perfect gray eye shadow and have yet to find it but I will definitely give these a try.
I love the Inglot one! It really is a pity we don’t have Inglot here. Am so envious right now 🙂
I don’t have any of the shades on the list. I must try Typographic. Not sure why I dont have it, looking at it I think I should have had it already.
I saw Knight Divine mentioned, it was sold out when I wanted to buy it, and I just forgot about it. Goes on to the list!
One of my go to greys is Scene, it’s not so pigmented but it is buildable and it’s easy to blend. I also really like Silver Ring, but I guess it’s more of a darkened silver than a true grey.
I think these 5 whatever it can be are so much fun. I get great ideas form you and from all who posts.
I love all of your picks but especially Galaxy and Desperation. I also love Sugarpill Soot & Stars.