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Most Overrated & Underrated Cream Eyeshadow
Over & Under: Most Overrated & Underrated Cream Eyeshadow
There are always products that receive endless raves, but they don’t always live up to our expectations or work out as well as they do for others. Share your picks for most overrated and underrated CREAM EYESHADOW. Don’t forget to share your whats and whys as to your choices!
- Most Overrated: [answer]
- Most Underrated: [answer]
My Picks
- Most Overrated: A lot of them work really well for me! The ones I’ve had the most trouble with, while not in a jar or pot, were NARS’ Shadow Pencils.
- Most Underrated: Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liners – the shade range is subtle/neutral, but they’re really great to wear-and-go.
I’m probably in the minority, but MAC Painterly really irritated my eyelids. I’ve never had that happen before.
I quite like Maybelline’s Bad to the Bronze for low maintenance days, but I don’t think it’s underrated.
Most overrated: MUFE Aqua creams. They’re nice, don’t get me wrong, but they’re not as mindblowing as some make them out to be. They do crease a bit on me afetr a while, and they’re not that easy to apply.
Most underrated: No idea.
Most overrated : I don’t know any, most cream eyeshadows I tried were good
Most underrated : Nars duo ( Burn it blue etc.. ) highly pigmented and very good, less known as the aqua from MUFE or the Shiseido ones
Most over-rated: tough one for me since all the products I’ve tried have been pretty good. I guess MAC’s GreasePaint sticks, simply because they’re really not blendable at all – once you put them on, they stay put but you cannot blend them out or smudge them or soften how they look
Most under-rated: Either Benefit’s Creaseless Cream shadows – I adore the ones I have – Skinny Jeans, RSVP, Birthday Suit and Busy Signal. I also really like Bare Escentuals cream shadows in the little tubes, which I discovered through you, Christine. A recent find/love is the cream crayon pencils from Tarte – I got the LE Holiday set with 5 jumbo pencils and a black slim pencil liners. The chubby liners are really cream shadows in pencil form and they are amazingly wonderful!
Most underrated: Chanel Illusion d’Ombre. I’ve read too many negative reviews of these amazing shadows. The =key= to application is warming the product — I use a clean spatula to remove a bit of the product, place it in the palm of my hand, close my hand for a few seconds, then work the product into a Chanel #19 blending brush. Illusion d’Ombre shadows last 20 hours without shifting or fading until I remove them. (The tiny brush that comes in the package makes a decent lip brush to carry in an evening bag.) <3
Overrated: Maybelline Colour tattoos. They last 4 hours MAXIMUM on me – even with a primer underneath. I tried UDPP, NARS, bobbi brown cream eyeshadow and even double priming with combinations of the above.
Also I think its a shame how in the UK we only have a small part of the colour range
Underrated: Bobbi Brown cream eyeshadow. In general I think a lot of Bobbi brown make up is underrated because its ‘safe’ or ‘boring’ but these eyeshadows last 16+ hrs on me.
The Laura Mercier Metallic Creme eyeshadows are really underrated – I don’t see them discussed much, but they’re really beautiful, easy to use shadows.
The NARS cream shadows, though, last about five minutes on me.
Overrated: MAC Paint Pots… Even as an eyeshadow base, Rubanesque does nothing for me. It applies splotchy and creases like crazy!
Underrated: Maybelline 24h Colour Tattoo…amazing as a base or alone.
Most Overrated: NYX. These slide all around on my eyes, making me a hot mess 🙁
Most Underrated: ck Calvin Klein – Tempting Glimmer Sheer Cremes. LOVE LOVE LOVE these … esp #311 turquoise blue.
Christine, I agree with yours. NARS shadow pencils are crappy! At least for me. They just slide around, making me a hot mess. And at THAT price point?? I love Benefit’s Creaseless Cream Shadows too! I like that they are light and neutral so I can pack on darker colours without compromising the powder colour.
I giggled at your overrated answer, tbh!
overrated: I don’t know. Maybe… Illusion D’Ombre? Which I actually love, but has some problem/sheer colours (the light blue comes to mind). Part of me wants to say Paint Pots, but that’s just the part of me that loves colour.
underrated: I’d agree with Benefit, tbh! I really like their shadows as a base/liner. And Skinny Jeans is the prettiest thing in the world, and if you disagree you’re wrong. 😐
I went with MAC Paint Pots for the same reason; while I love my neutrals, I like to use cream shadows as bases, and I would love some more colors (Artifact just sits in a box, looking lovely, but I’m so afraid to use it…).
I totally agree with the benefit creaseless creams! I bought my first one the other day in the shade flatter me and I am in love! My eyeshadows always crease no matter what primer, base, or brand of eyeshadow I use, but this product didn’t! Plus the color is gorgeous.
I don’t know what I could call the most overrated. Maybe maybelline color tattoos? Everyone raves about them but I just wasn’t in love with I tried one.
over rated: maybelline colour tattoos, I didn’t like the consistancy
under rated: I’m going to have to agree with you on the benefit ones, birthday suit, stilleto and flying down to were some of my first high end beauty products in general. Even now years later they’re usable and haven’t dried out.
Overrated: Bobbi Brown – good product, but some of the colors tend to be a bit dry… I also think that the amount of product is quite small for the price.
Underrated: Shiseido Shimmering Cream Eye Color – super creamy and really beautiful. Everyone needs these!
Overrated: just about all of them. My eyes tend to be oily so they never last as long as powders, with or without primer. Plus they dry out and they become useless way before powder shadows do. I’ve tested Chanel, Benefit, and Maybelline’s.
Underrated: MUFE aqua shadow eyeshadow pencil. It’s the only one of its kind that actually lasted a decent amount of time. Normally I avoid shadow sticks because I waste product through sharpening but I’m pretty happy with this one.
I know this is off topic, but is that LeVar Burton from Reading Rainbow in your Avatar?
Overrated: MAC Paint pots! I think they’re great products, MAC has done some beautiful shades of these in their collections, however mine seem to dry out so fast! I’ve tried all the little tricks, but they just never seem to last more than a few months.
Underrated: Definitely Essence’s “stay all day long-lasting cream eyeshadow” an absolutely beautiful product, great lasting power and colour payoff. I just wish they came in more colours! I recommend checking these little guys out!
I have to agree with you on the Essence ones. I bought one not expecting much of it because of the price and my oily eyelids and it lasts up to 8 without a primer. Impressive.
Most Overrated: Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow – they crease on me like crazy, I barely get 2 hours of wear
Most Underrated: Estee Lauder Doublewear Shadowcreams – These last 12+ hours on me and are fantastic. I think they are very underrated, I never hear them talked about anywhere
Cream Shadows aren’t realy my favorite medium, so I don’t have a lot of them.
Over-rated: I don’t know. I’ve only tried a few brands and they have performed well enough.
Under-rated: MUFE aqua cream. I don’t feel like I hear and read a lot about them. In fact, L’oreal and Armani are probabyl the only two I see on blogs a lot. I’ve had an aqua cream for about a year. I like the color and it wears well. It also came with a lot of product. I’m pretty impressed that that texture is still good after all this time.
Most Overrated: Mac Paint Pots – some of them can be extremely dry and patchy
Most Underrated: Illamasqua Cream eyeshadows – love the color selection, blend easily, don’t dry out or get patchy
It’s not underrated as far as I know, but my personal favorite is Shiseido’s Shimmering Cream Eye Color. And overrated, hmmm, tough one. I did not have good experiences with e.l.f. cream eyeshadows, but then again, they’re so cheap that I can’t really complain too much.
Overrated: MAC Paint Pots; while they are amazing, the lack of colors in the permanent range are just too limited, and I’m not going to go out of my way to pick up any of the LE shades. I have 2 that I was lucky enough to stumble upon, but at the same time, I don’t use them nearly as often as I’d like.
Underrated: Smashbox Limitless 15 Hour Cream Eyeshadow; for some reason, these just get no mention, good or bad. IMO, they’re as good as MAC Paint Pots, but come in more colors, and you get more product, with great quality.
My opinions are based on the fact nothing creases on me, so as long as I get great pigmentation, along with a beautiful color, I’m happy.
I want to add Revlon, as well; while the off chance they get a mention, and the opinion is always positive, I don’t think they get enough hype, overall. I really do like them, but it seems alot of bloggers shy away from DS brands (granted, there was a point in time most were horrible, but they’ve all really stepped up).
I love the Revlon cream shadows, especially the Not Just Nudes quad!
I actually really like Mary Kay’s cream eyeshadow, though I’ve only tried it in the pink color. It makes a great base! It also stays really well for me with an eyeshadow primer underneath.
I think Make Up For Ever’s aqua cream eyeshadow is not good. Their products usually get such great reviews, I was excited to buy this (I got the lighter beige/champagne color) and it is really hard to get to stay evenly, and while it appears beautifully metallic in the pit and even on the back of my hand, it just does not look that goo on my eyes, it leans glittery.
I’m not a huge eyeshadow wearer but the most underrated cream eyeshadow is by E.L.F. I’m not a fan of their products but their cream eyeshadow lasts me all day and I have oily skin.
Overrated: MAC Paint Pots. Great creamy consistency (on non-matte ones) but even when layered w/ NARS, UD, TF, or Lorac eye primers underneath, they crease within 4 hrs or so on my very oily eyelids.
Underrated: Smashbox Limitless 15 Hr Wear Cream Shadows. Same creamy consistency as MAC, but lasts several hours on me! Also, better color selection from permanent line. I never hear anyone really talk about these but they’re my my new favorite and I definitely plan on getting more.
Overrated: Maybelline Color Tattoo 24HR Eyeshadow. I like them and use them very often but I find that after a few months the texture of the product becomes very inconsistent! It goes on the brush very clumpy and applies unevenly. I work with it because I like how it wears otherwise (especially Bad to the Bronze and Gold Shimmer).
Underrated: Smashbox Limitless 15 Hour Wear Cream Shadow. Goes on very smooth, lasts forever and you don’t need to work hard to build the pigment up! Although it’s a bit pricey you definitely get what you pay for in terms of quality. I’m definitely going to buy more in the future, especially since I have $150 in rewards at Ulta to use still! I’m also a pretty big fan of Estee Lauder’s as well, and pick them up whenever they’re at the CCO 😀
Overrated: stila prime /smudge pots… They’re awful in my opinion
Underrated: sephora brand are pretty nice
Agree about the Stila Prime Pots! It creased on me like crazy but I love how it applied. Wish it worked better for us.
Most Overrated: NYX Jumbo pencils – crease city!
Most Underrated: Laura Mercier Caviar sticks
Like some of the other people, cream eyeshadows really aren’t my favorite to use, so I have very little experience with them. That being said…
Over rated- Not sure it’s overrated exactly but the Covergirl double-sided “smoky eye” sticks: In general I just don’t like CG products they quality is always terrible for me. These smudged and creased like crazy and I hated it. Could be just the amount of advertising that they got that made it feel like an overrated product.
Underrated: I also like Benefit’s cream shadows, they work wonderfully.
Also Bloom cosmetics cream shadow. I can’t recall the exact product name, but I hadn’t really heard of them before and they were on sale at the store (the were clearing out the brand)and I decided to try it out. It is amazing, it applies evenly, the color is build-able and it doesn’t crease. I’m kind of disappointed I haven’t heard more about this brand because the few products I have tried by them are absolutely amazing.
*On further investigation it is an Australian brand.
Underrated: bareminerals primetime primer shadows! how come no one has said this yet?
I mentioned them too. Very few people even seem to know they exist. I discovered them when Christine reviewed them here. Urban Nature is a real “go to” product for me.
Underrated: shu uemura’s cream eyeshadow. They need to be warmed up, but they apply evenly and easily and have a wear time of over ten hours on me.
Overrated: Chanel Illusion d’Ombre and MUFE Aqua Cream. The former creases on me even with my trusted NARS Pro Prime underneath; I’ve tried basically every tip to elongate the wear time and it never worked on me. Considering the price I think I shouldn’t have to go through all the pain of “making it work!” The latter doesn’t crease on me but I can never apply it evenly on my eyelids; no matter how I warm the product up with my fingers it flakes: (
overrated; nyx jumbo eye pencils! i have dry lids and they still crease
underrated; e.l.f. studio cream shadows! they last on day it’s they are amazing for a quick eye look
Over-rated: MUFE aqua creams…pain to apply evenly without flaking or getting scaly looking lids, pain to blend. I’ve not had much luck with the brand in general. Chanel illusion d’ombre…wanted to love these so much but they creased so badly and faded over just two hours of wear! MAC paint pots…apart from Groundwork, Perky and Coral Crepe…I find most of these to dry out quick and behave much like the MUFE aqua creams in terms of how patchy they apply and blend out.
Under-rated: Benefit Creaseless creams are so smooth and easy to apply and blend. Estée Lauder’s are pretty darn amazing. And I also like the few I tried from Bobbi Brown.
Totally agree about MUFE looking scaly! And it was so hard to work with that I wasn’t even that upset when it completely dried out after 3 months and I had to toss it.
I haven’t tried Benefit yet but they have some nice shades so I think I’ll get one.
Estee Lauder are my favourites. They wear really well on me and the jars are really high quality which helps them last.
The hardest thing is finding nice matte creams. The Maybelline taupe one is good so I’m hoping they’ll do more colours.
Cream eyeshadows are a fairly new thing for me, so I can’t really say which ones are overrated or underrated. The first ones that I tried were the Maybelline Color Tattoos, after reading the reviews here, and they are just amazing on me. Regular eyeshadows are an oily creased mess on me by the end of a work day, and these last for the whole day and then some. I recently treated myself to a Mac Paint Pot in Constructavist, and so far so good with it. I haven’t tried MUFE Aqua Creams…yet!!
Overrated would definitely be the Maybelline Color Tattoos… They look and feel greasy/sticky and the pigmentation isn’t great. I don’t have an underrated.
Most over-rated: Almost all of ’em. I’ve had reactions to most that I’ve tried. The Nars soft-touch shadow pencils certainly strike me as probably the least useful, because they pretty much never set and therefore always crease (ironically, they don’t irritate my eyes).
Most under-rated: Benefit’s don’t cause my eyes distress most of the time and do seem to generally stay put.
Seldom see people sharing tips for cream eye shadows, I can only find them in those renowned makeup artist youtube videos. Not a necessity to me. But for brand,
If its about paint pot by MAC, I don’t think intense color ones complicates application, like the black one.
Tried those drugstore brand in Japan, never wanna try again.
I don’t wear them often, since I have hooded eyes and their prone to creasing more than powder, but –
Overrated: NYX Jumbo pencils. The main part of my lid tends to be dry, while the corners are a touch oily. They skip and tug on the main part of my lid and crease in the corners. They’re pretty much useless for me except as a base.
Underrated: Application can take some trial and error, but I love my Chanel Illusion d’Ombre. Lasts all day on me. 🙂 Now, whether people think they’re underrated is up for debate…
Most Overrated: MUFE Aqua Creams
Most Underrated: Shiseido Shimmering Cream Eye Color
Yes, I completely agree! Im amazed that Shiseido Cream shadows don’t have a cult following. They deserve it!
I would say most cream eyeshadows are overrated. They all crease within a couple of hours on my extremely oily lids. The only ones that work for me are MAC Paint Pots, but I they are pretty popular, so I can’t say they are underrated.
I think the Chanel ones are over-rated… I have one and it is pretty and all but it isn’t really anything incredible.
I love, love, LOVE the Buxom cream shadows with the dog names. 🙂 I don’t think they get enough love, but they are gorgeous!
Overrated: is it just me who HATES mac paint pot? Most of the are dry, hard to apply, and axpecially they crease like crazy and the color tend to disappear/change while wearing…
Underrated: benefit and shiseido. Lovely. Expecially the benefit ones, they’re my favorite
Easily the most overrated cream shadows are Maybelline Color Tattoos. They fade, crease, and must be set by a powder. An underrated cream shadow is the Shiseido Hydro Powder cream shadow. They are unique,and set on their own.
OMG! THANK YOU! Everyone keeps raving about these and I find them shocking. I’ve bought all the 10 original ones (that we have available in Australia atm) and I’d say they are a good starting point for building up colour but they crease quite a lot. I’m glad I’m not the only one!!!
Overrated: MAC Paint Pots irritate my eyelids and the pots dry out quickly.
Underrated: I love Estée Lauder’s Doublewear cream eyeshadows. Ivory Lace is a neutral base with a subtle sheen that can be worn alone to brighten the eye or as a base.
Overrated: Maybelline Color Tattoos. The shimmery shades (which are a vast majority of the available shades) are hard to blend properly.
Underrated: theBalm Batter Up Creaseless Cream Eyeshadows. Blend easily and evenly, nicely pigmented, excellent as a base or just by themselves. I’m worried they’re being discontinued though, because most shades have been out of stock on the brand’s website for a while.
totally agree on Benefit cream shadow/liner being underrated. Love it so much! I don’t have an overrated, but I’ll say I’ve tried 2 of the Color Tattoos and they work great on me. Sorry to hear they’re problematic for some people.
Ive really only owned a few cream shadows: Chanel Illusion d’Ombre, I love, have three, but the plum Illusoire my fave! Bobbi Brown, and Laura Mercier caviar sticks, wish they would create a few more colors of these, their staying power is THE best! The amethyst color is my go to (out of my four)
Overrated: GA ETK; Underrated: Shiseido Cream Eyeshadows
I am not a huge fan of cream or gel eye shadows, I find them to be annoying to wear mostly because i have very oily lids, but I have bought many color tattoo eye shadows because of the rave about them and they are by far the best “base/primer” I have ever used, not cream shadow. They are both underrated and overrated. I feel like they are portrayed and marketed the wrong way.. Personally I havent found one color tattoo shadow that looks amazing on its own with nothing over it which seems like how they were intended on being worn, they seem to smudge easier when they are applied alone. I find that if you layer dry shadow over top it sets the cream in place and it stays on for hours longer. They just take a little playing around to get the feel of how they will look best on you.
These are really a hit or miss, product people seem to be 50/50/. You either love them or hate them. Its unfortunate though because they are really great in my opinion.
Overrated: Stila. They dry out so fast and are stupid expensive.
Underrated: Shiseido! They are creamy, and pigmented, basically little disks of heaven.lol
I agree about Benefit, I think they’re fantastic, I’m pretty sure I own at least 7 of the shades. I absolutely hate the Color Tattoo ones especially compared to Benefit and I truly hate Mac paint pots, they crease on me no matter what I put under and over them. for me, Benefit all the way