London

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette ($75.00 for 0.28 oz.) is a deflating release from a collaboration that was known for its higher quality–that while incredibly expensive, the majority of products delivered on their promises, but this was a total and utter disappointment.

The eyeshadows did not apply well, nor did they stay on for longer than three hours, without primer. I had to use primer just to get enough product to show up visibly on the lid to give you an idea of the “look” one could create from the palette, and even then, it still turned out poorly with unevenness, patchiness, fading within mere minutes. The “look” above is using as much as eight layers of product, packed on, and pressed on with fingertips or with the product used damp over primer (Smashbox 24HR). I have dents in my pans from jabbing and scraping at the surfaces in an attempt to get something usable out of it.

Now, one thing to keep in mind is that Blanc was supposed to be “sheer” and Gris was described as “translucent” so the lack of coverage not entirely unexpected, but the formula itself was also described as “buildable” and “blends easily” and “smooths on evenly.” Unfortunately, regardless of whether one prefers sheer or more pigmented eyeshadow, the quality of the application, blendability, texture, and wear of all four shades was dismal. None of them were worth the money, and none of them were even worth the words I’m wasting my time writing here.

Ingredients

Blanc

Blanc is a bright white with a sparkling, metallic finish. The consistency was dry and flaking with chunks of eyeshadow coming away from the surface, creating a mess in the pan, and was incredibly difficult to use on the lid dry with a brush as the eyeshadow clumped and dropped underneath my eye with sheer coverage (as marketed) that was not buildable at all (which it was marketed as) and always looked uneven and emphasized the texture of my lid. I could only get a fraction of color to adhere when I jammed my finger into the pan and pressed against my lid, and then it lasted for a good two hours before creasing and almost disappearing entirely. When I tried it with a dampened brush, it applied with semi-sheer coverage that lasted for an hour (creased horrendously).

Gris

Gris is a light-medium gray with neutral-to-cool undertones and a satin finish. It was supposed to have translucent coverage (though the formula was also described as buildable), and translucent coverage was only achieved by digging and scraping off powder from the pan as the texture was dry, sandpapery, and incredibly stiff. This did not blend out evenly at all; it darkened in places and dusted away in others. It faded within an hour of wear on bare skin and within three hours over primer.

Noir (London)

Noir (London) is a medium-dark black with neutral-to-warm undertones and a satin sheen. It had good pigmentation, but it was a real challenge to blend out the product–it did not want to diffuse at all to create any semblance of a gradient or softened edge. It was patchy and balled up in places, which resulted in chunky fallout during application despite the eyeshadow having a much denser consistency and no powderiness or kickup in the pan. It started to crease within an hour and a half of wear.

Bordeaux

Bordeaux is a medium-dark plum with warm, copper undertones and a pearly sheen. It had mostly opaque color payoff with a soft, smooth texture in the pan, but it faded within five minutes of application. It could not retain any of its intensity and started to darken unevenly as it sat on the lid. It did this over primer, not just over bare lids (and my lids are normal-to-dry, not oily). It did not blend out that evenly, though it performed better than the other three shades in the palette. It had almost disappeared within two hours of wear on bare skin and made it a whopping four hours over primer.

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

With Smashbox 24HR Primer + Packed On (4+ layers) + Shimmery shades used Damp

With Smashbox 24HR Primer + Packed On (4+ layers) + Shimmery shades used Damp

Estee Lauder Blanc Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Blanc Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Gris Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Gris Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Noir (London) Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Noir (London) Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Bordeaux Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Bordeaux Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

Estee Lauder London Victoria Beckham Eye Palette

With Smashbox 24HR Primer + Packed On (4+ layers) + Shimmery shades used Damp

With Smashbox 24HR Primer + Packed On (4+ layers) + Shimmery shades used Damp

Estee Lauder Blanc Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Blanc Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Gris Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Gris Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Noir (London) Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Noir (London) Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Bordeaux Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow

Estee Lauder Bordeaux Victoria Beckham Eyeshadow