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Sugarpill Eyeshadows Review & Swatches

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Acidberry Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadows ($12.00 for 0.14 oz., each) currently has a range of thirteen permanent shades, which I have covered as they’ve been released. Because the initial launch was a few years ago, I’ve been wanting to re-do swatches so that they can be included in the Swatch Gallery (which requires everything be shown individually). This morning, I was like, “DO IT!” And so it has been done. I’ve also included four shades that were more recently released in the Heartbreaker palette (which didn’t need to be redone) for completion. Note that the photos of the eyeshadow pans are old (just updated the swatches).  (There is also @#$%!, which was a limited edition shade, but need to take full photos of it prior to swatching, as I’ve never used it before!)

  • 2AM is a pink-plum with a very subtle satin finish (looks mostly matte applied).
  • Acidberry is a light-medium green with yellow undertones and a satin finish.
  • Afterparty is a medium blue with a cool undertones and a frosted finish.
  • Bulletproof is a black with a matte finish.
  • Buttercupcake is a brightened, medium yellow with a matte finish.
  • Dollipop is a bold, fuchsia pink with a matte finish.
  • Flamepoint is a bright, red-toned orange with a matte finish.
  • Love+ is an orange-toned red with a matte finish.
  • Midori is a subtly cool-toned, medium-dark green with a pearly sheen.
  • Mochi is an aqua blue with a subtle satin shimmer over a matte finish.
  • Poison Plum is a deep purple-plum with strong red undertones and a matte finish.
  • Tako is a white with a matte finish.
  • Velocity is a bold, cobalt blue with a satin finish.

Sugarpill is a fantastic brand, and I’ve had the pleasure of meeting the creatrix behind the brand, Amy, and she is as fun in person as she seems online. It’s a brand that you can tell takes their time to development new products and shades; that has a goal in mind and doesn’t waver from it. I very much remain impressed by Sugarpill’s range and how they’ve grown over the years. If you like bolder shades, definitely consider their pressed eyeshadows, which tend to be bold, bright, and have mostly matte finishes.

You’ll notice that all of the shades have good pigmentation, with some being incredibly intense and others being mostly opaque. Many of them will stain if applied over bare skin, so I recommend applying over a primer which will bridge the gap between 90% opacity and 100% as well as minimize the potential to stain. They have a soft, finely-milled texture that blends easily and smoothly. Not so soft that they turn powdery, but not dry or stiff so they aren’t problematic to blend. When worn alone, I get eight to nine hours of wear without fading or creasing; with primer, I’ve seen wear as long as twelve hours.

Sugarpill Eyeshadows Review & Swatches

A
9.5
Product
9.5
Pigmentation
9.5
Texture
9
Longevity
5
Application
94%
Total

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill 2AM Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill 2AM Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Acidberry Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Acidberry Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Afterparty Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Afterparty Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Bulletproof Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Bulletproof Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Buttercupcake Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Buttercupcake Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Dollipop Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Dollipop Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Flamepoint Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Flamepoint Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Love+ Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Love+ Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Midori Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Midori Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Mochi Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Mochi Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Poison Plum Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Poison Plum Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Tako Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Tako Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Velocity Eyeshadow

Sugarpill Eyeshadow
Sugarpill Velocity Eyeshadow

46 Comments

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Michelle Avatar

All of them are so pretty! I can’t wait for the two new palettes to come out so there will be more colors. I feel like we’ve been waiting forever for Cold Chemistry and Sparkle Baby…but I know it will be worth it when they come out.

Wwendalynne Avatar

OMG..didn’t realize they were still working on them. It seems like eons ago I had heard some rumblings and saw a promo for same, kept checking their website for months and months and didn’t see anything new so thought they had dropped them from their plan. Good to know they are still in the works!

Natasha Avatar

Thanks so much! I love when you give attention to indie brands. I hope you can do swatches of the loose eyeshadows in the near future. There are some pretty colors there I’ve had my eye on…

Christina Avatar

You’re really lucky, Christine! All of your shadows have great texture and wonderful pigmentation. I’ve heard a lot of people mention there are quality control issues for certain shades–that their shadows are dry, patchy, hard, and with very little pigmentation (I’m one of the unlucky ones who received 4 of these…).

Sugarpill makes some fantastic eyeshadows. When they’re good, they’re great, but when they’re bad, they’re really bad…I purchase their pressed shadows with a little bit of apprehension each time, but I still own all of them. Haha! Gotta love their colors!

Christina Avatar

It seems to mostly center around Poison Plum, Flamepoint, and Love+, but I’ve heard Tako and Dollipop can sometimes have issues. It’s really hit or miss, though, and Sugarpill’s customer service is top-notch if you should have any problems.

I think if you purchased the colors around the time the brand was first introduced, the shadows were consistent in quality (soft, smooth, etc.); it was about a year later that I started reading about the problems. I know certain shades are hard to get right because of the pigment used, but my Poison Plum and Love+ were really hard and had absolutely no color pay-off at all on the lids, but they did strangely stain my fingers. I received an exchange, and one was better but the other was not. Ah well!

Mel Avatar

I had this issue too. Neither Love+ nor Buttercupcake pick up on any of my brushes.

But the rest of my pressed shadows perform so incredibly well that I overlook it knowing I will one day stumble on the perfect red and yellow.

Anna Avatar

Same here! I’ve got Heart Breaker pallete. All but Mochi are powdery, and when applied looks really uneven, specially 2AM. And works this way even with primer.

Christina Avatar

That’s too bad! At least only my 2AM was problematic. But I agree, Mochi has the best texture for me.

It’s so frustrating to buy when you don’t know if you’ll receive a dud each time. 🙁

Patch Avatar

Holy cow those all look super pigmented!

I don’t know if I’ll purchase them…but if I did, I feel like I would want to use them as an under-eye eyeliner with a wet makeup brush!

Jenna Avatar

I have Sugarpill’s Heart Breaker palette and it’s one of the best makeup purchases I’ve made.
I’m not a fan of buying single eyeshadows, especially when I have to pay for shipping, so the next time I have another $40+ to spare I’m going to buy the Sweetheart palette. So excited about it.

xamyx Avatar

I may bite the bullet and order Love+, 2AM, & Poison Plum. I’ve wanted them for a while, but it really irks me to not have any other choice but to order online, so I really try my best to avoid those brands.

EvilStepQueen Avatar

I’ve discovered that I love using Dollipop as a blush! I just barely tap my brush into it, it’s sooo pigmented that a little bit goes a long way. I put some of that on, then smooth it over with some Benefit Hervana, which is more of a light powdery pink on my skin!

Heather Avatar

I was about to place an order but too many people on this thread are talking about these being powdery. I’m scared. Someone assuage me!

Jane Avatar

Some of the shades (the more pastel ones) can be a little powdery, but I’ve found them to be really useable anyway as long as you use a good eyeshadow base! I like to use them with UD’s primer potion, but I’ve heard good things about the Milani and Wet n Wild (Fergie collection) primers as well.

Also, Sugarpill has a good return policy. Full returns are accepted within 14 days, so there’s nothing to lose. 🙂

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