Sephora Animal Instinct (01) Eyeshadow ($13.00 for 0.07 oz.) is described as a “smoky khaki with gold glitter.” It’s a deep, dark charcoal-y brown with subtle warm undertones and olive gold sparkle (felt finer than glitter to me). Tarte Volcanic Ash is cooler-toned. bareMinerals VIP is very similar but has a finer shimmer. Cinderella Cinders is similar in color but has shimmer rather than glitter. Too Faced Licorice Latte is more matte. MAC Legendary Black is grayer and has less sparkle.

This formula is supposed to be pigmented, wear for 10 hours, and can be used wet or dry. The color payoff is good but a little under-pigmented whether I used it wet or dry.  It has a soft, thin texture (almost like a drier matte formulation), so I think it actually applies more smoothly and evenly when applied dry than wet.  I wore it yesterday (along with a few other shades from the range), and it lasted a nine hours without creasing or fading; after a full ten hours, it was a touch faded around the edges (no primer).  I did, however, experience some sparkle fall out.  The texture was soft enough to be blendable on the eye but not powdery.

I don’t remember the original formula of Sephora’s Mono Eyeshadows (I’m not sure that I ever tried it), so I can’t speak on how the reformulation compares to the original formula. It was previously priced at $12 and also contained 0.07 oz. The packaging is also a bit different–ever so slightly–as there is a small indent in the outer rim of the interior of the compact, which allows for Sephora’s palette “key” to be inserted to lift out the pan of eyeshadow. This allows you to pop it into a 3-pan or 6-pan palette (or, if you like, whatever magnetized palette system you’re using). The key is included in every empty palette.

The price point seems a little high, though it’s in line with the formula it’s replacing. Sephora’s in-house brand has mostly mid-point prices ($22 face powder, $14 jumbo eyeshadow pencils, $14 blush, etc.), so I still think it would be an easier product to say yes to at $10 or so. I do really like how they worked the palette system into this, as it is really easy to lift the pans out of the individual pots as well as the palettes. Make Up For Ever has a similar, but less intuitive, system, where you can pop the magnetized pans out by inserting a needle through the bottom of the individual pot.

P.S. — I have many more to review (as well as photograph/test), and this is one of the lesser shades from what I’ve tested so far.

Sephora Animal Instinct (01) Eyeshadow

Sephora Animal Instinct (01) Eyeshadow

Sephora Animal Instinct (01) Eyeshadow

Sephora Animal Instinct (01) Eyeshadow

Sephora Animal Instinct (01) Eyeshadow

Sephora Animal Instinct (01) Eyeshadow

Sephora Animal Instinct (01) Eyeshadow (outer lid)