bareMinerals The Elements Eyeshadow Quad Review, Photos, Swatches

Christine — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 19:54:31 +0000

bareMinerals The Elements Eyeshadow Quad

bareMinerals The Elements Eyeshadow Quad

Coming in October, bareMinerals The Elements Eyeshadow Quad ($30.00 for 0.17 oz.) will debut, and it features four shades: Air, Fire, Earth, and Water. bareMinerals’ pressed eyeshadow formula contains SeaNutritive Mineral Complex that gives the shadow a “creamy, silky smooth” texture with “seamless blendability” and “stay-true color.” It’s supposed to be long-wearing whether worn alone or with primer–you shouldn’t see any creasing or fading. I’ve tested various combinations of shades from the duos and quads, and I’ve happily achieved ten hours of solid wear without a primer underneath. For a review of the packaging, please read my original review.

Air is a grayish beige with a frosted finish. The color is very similar to Urban Decay Ruthless. Air has good color payoff and a really soft, smooth texture that’s dense and buttery.

Fire is a burnt orange with a satiny sheen. The color is much browner compared to MAC Rule, though it’s the closest shade I could think of. I was surprisd by how smooth and pigmented Fire was, because it almost has a matte-like finish so I was expecting a drier texture. Instead, it’s very workable and blendable.

Earth is a gray-tinted green with a pearly sheen. It has more of a sheen than Fire but not as much as a traditional frost does. I love the uniqueness of this color, but the texture is on the drier side so the color payoff is uneven in places and not as dense as I would like. It seems like what MAC Evil Eye should have been, though Earth is lighter.

Water is muted navy blue with an edging of teal. The finish has a lot of sheen to it but less shimmer. It’s bluer and less silvery compared to theBalm Sensational. I think MAC Bold Babe is closer, but it’s a lot less blue. Water had a really soft, silky texture and applied easily onto the lid.