I don’t think so. I still find I prefer more pigmented eyeshadows than ones that are sheerer, though I don’t mind having a more buildable formula so long as it’s still more medium/semi-opaque to begin with (sheerer than that I have found really don’t build up that well).
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Not really…I still like reasonably well pigmented shadows that blend well and don’t have a lot of fallout. I guess my preferences have “expanded” (rather than changed outright) in terms of colours. I have always preferred neutral toned shadows (MAC Tempting, Sumptuous Olive, Satin Taupe are but 3 examples, as is the entire UD original Naked palette) and that hasn’t changed but it has expanded to include more plummy brown shadows like UD’s Weirwood Leaves or Tarte’s Sinful. These aren’t outright RED shades – I still can’t wear those and really have no desire to wear those – but they’re that brownish burgundy that screams “autumn” and which I really have started to embrace a bit…
I have always felt uncomfortable wearing purple and yellow eyeshadow looks. I also tended towards buying pallets for the gimmicks rather than the quality and I fell into a trap. Something happened when I turned 36 and I no longer reach for brighter or more adventurous color stories. My looks tend to be more subdued, neutral. I am a firm believer in that fashion and make up has no age limit and that you can wear what you want with confidence. But for me, something shifted and brighter or flashier looks just don’t work for me much anymore. Celestial Odyssey is right where my heart is–it is basic with an edge that I am comfortable inching towards.
More colour. I’ve only been wearing makeup regularly for a few years, but a matte medium brown used to scare me. As I’ve become more confident with my application and how I look, I’ve expanded both darker and brighter.
When I first discovered the world of makeup, I’m embarrassed to say… I went through a “white and/or grey” super shimmery (verging on glittery, think of elegant… it was the opposite!) phase. Thank you to the powers that be for allowing me to go through that before selfies became a thing and every Tom, Dick, and Harry got a really good phone camera- I can’t even put into words how happy I am there isn’t much evidence from that time and I escaped mostly unscathed.
Then I must have scared myself looking in the mirror after getting home a bit tipsy! haha! And for a long time I was a one and done sort of person, the more neutral the better (BB bone was my thing), and I preferred them on the sheerer side of the spectrum (I had a pretty heavy hand). Pretty much always went for matte! When I wanted to live the life I had these MAC eyeshadow sticks in a light pink and a darker fuchsia, both shimmery, and that’s what I called walking on the wild side (looking back they weren’t that bad actually in terms of quality)!
Time went on and I went through a (very loooong) phase of not really caring. Sometimes I’d put on BB in Bone (how’s that for not so great quality?!) but mostly I’d put on eyeliner with no eyeshadow as I just wanted to avoid my oily lids looking a bit messy… In the evening I always stuck to a Bobbi Brown (or Shiseido) glittery silver cream eyeshadow with a usually smoked out BB gel eyeliner in assorted colours. This went for close to a decade!
In between I’d try different things but nothing ever really captured my heart for long!
These days I’m venturing into different colours, finishes and textures, but I still prefer powder. I still love matte but often wear shimmer. I’m still not fond of glitter (I don’t like the fallout as I’m prone to pink eye). I don’t do powdery eyeshadow anymore! I like bright colours but still prefer them to be darker. I’ve also learnt to blend so I expect them to be super blendable and not look patchy.
I don’t have a lot of space under my eyebrows, if I did I’d probably be more adventurous. My eyes are very picky and that’s always (unconsciously) at the back of my mind – am I going to scratch my eyes and end up with a rainbow running down my cheeks? I’m still learning what I like and I’ve realised smaller travel brushes make a huge difference.
I keep writing essays! I promise to keep it short from now on!
Don’t! I like reading your posts!
Ohhhh! Thank you 🙂 They always look smaller before I hit send and then it’s like ohhh, I’ve done it again!
I still prefer opaque, bold colors in a satin or shimmer finish.
BUT in the last few years I have gotten an appreciation for a good opaque blendable matte!
My preference is for no tugging and minimal fallout and that has never changed.
Not really. I still prefer pigmented or buildable shadows that blend easily.
My preferences didn’t changed from the get go.
I still prefer easy to work formulas. I’m not an expert at makeup, I want eyeshadows that blend easily and don’t require special techniques or brushes to look good. I don’t like metallic shades or anything too glittery. I don’t want to deal with fallout, I always do my base first. I need the eyeshadows to be buildable, not too sheer, not opaque from the first touch, something that’s versatile enough that I can get various results depending on much I build them.
Maybe a little bit. I have been more into Korean beauty brands, so the sheer aspect doesn’t bother me that much so long as it is smooth and not patchy. I have figured out that I don’t necessarily like a rainbow on my eye. I like color, but I prefer monochromatic looks or neutrals with a pop of color. I don’t hate glitter as much anymore, as you can’t get a Korean palette without glitter 95% of the time. I’ve been using my fingers to apply shimmers or glitters most of the time these days so I don’t need a formula with little fallout (except for the glitter).
Nothing I can nail down positively? Because I can still get away with wearing full-on metallics on my lids (for now), I do still enjoy using them on my mobile lid the way that Patty Alonso has demonstrated in her tutorials; going up to the socket line, not the crease line. Something I’ve always done. Glad to see someone else doing it!
I have a preference for buildable, yet smoothly applying, mattes for my transition. So that hasn’t changed at all, either. The only thing I can think of at all is that I now am getting my feet wet with multi-chrome shadows? Unfortunately, duochrome and multi-chrome e/s’s can age my eyelids a little bit. Well, at least close up.
Yes, my preferences for eyeshadow shades has completely changed over the past decade. Once upon a time it was only navy and grey toned shades, now I embrace golds, olives, bronzes, soft neutral browns and even a burgundy. I still love a good navy and some grey tones though.
In recent years I have moved away from darker shades to more mid tone shades and have enjoyed more neutral eye looks with a pop of colour.
Oh yes!!! Since I am now a ‘mature’ woman I go with matte eyeshadows. It was heartbreaking to give away all my beautiful shimmery, glittery eyeshadows. But time moves on.
I tend to go mostly one and done .. midtone and matte. I can’t be bothered with all the colour anymore so I pick a shade and do tone on tone looks. If I want to make it more interesting.. I will brighten with a shimmer liner or tap a shimmer on top of a one and done blown out matte. I really like how simple it looks which defies the amount of work it takes to get it looking good and blended well on aging/hooded eyes.
I also tend to go for a limited colour story in terms of what I pick.. copper/reddish orange/red/burgandy.. These are shades that show off my eye colour best. I have green eyes with a copper burst and a grey outer ring that are getting lighter as I age.
Figuring out how to add texture without making my eye lids look more textured has been key. I find certain brands of shimmer compatible, but generally speaking, I tap on top of a matte so I do not lose the much needed dimension.
Yep. I realized today actually that I’m going to stop dropping so much money on eyeshadow. The creases in my eyelids make EVERYTHING crease. Primer, no primer, wet, dry, fingers, brush, cream shadow (stick/pot/gel liner/etc) as a base, powder first, bare, etc.. etc.. I have tried all the different ways imaginable over the last few months only to conclude that everything is going to crease when you have an actual fold in your skin that moves every time you blink. I dropped a pretty penny on some of JD’s multichromes over the last year just to have them be a creased mess. The only thing that “works” is just dealing with my eyeshadow always looking like I applied it the night before. It stopped being cute and now I’m just kind of resigned to enjoying lips and brows instead.
Not really. I’ve come to work more neutrals in alongside them, but I’ve always been drawn to brighter colors and medium-to-high pigmentation, although I’m willing to wear a sheer shadow and build up several layers if it’s the exact shade I’m looking for.