I love the depth it can add to a look, and I think you can get a lot of intensity, too, that isn’t always possible with shimmer. The downsides is that matte eyeshadows are often not as blendable as shimmery shades or they can be too powdery/too stiff.
— Christine
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Honestly, I don’t really like matte shadows overall except for when a costume needs non-shimmery shadow. There’s no benefit I get from a matte that a shimmer couldn’t also give me and shimmers are prettier, haha. Since mattes tend to be drier, they often feel awful on my fingers if I swatch them. They remind me of the feel of a piece of chalk sometimes and it makes me want to dunk my hand in lotion. :p
Mattes are everything to me. As someone with hooded aging eyes, it’s my favourite finish. I like satins, but prefer a good quality matte above all. Everything else requires strategic/careful placement. It’s not a very forgiving finish in terms of quality though so I think finding a formula which works (for the most part) well for you is important.
I’m with you, Wednesday. Mattes are all I use these days. Which brands do you like? I wear Viseart, Inglot, MUFE (the old formula) and some MAC.
Natasha Denona is my favourite, but I seem to be quite singular in that. I also like Pat McGrath, but her intense pigmentation means more blending work. I have textured lids too.
I also have hooded eyes and mattes are a huge part of all my eyeshadow looks. They’re what work best to help visually lift & open my eyes, and I love contrasting them with something more shimmery in my inner corner or on the little bit of visible lid.
Ditto 👍
Whose matte formula do you tend to like? I totally agree that the right formula makes a huge difference!
Shani, I seem to be alone in my preference for Natasha Denona, but it’s become my defacto core product. I also love all things Mother, but I have textured lids as well so blending takes longer with her heavier more pigmented mattes. I always wear primer (ABH) and I’ve taken to laying a skin tone base e/s layer (MAC, Zoeva are the shadows which have good skintone for me) from crease upward. It helps me blend transition easier on my crepey eyes. I do this especially for Pat McGrath. I find Natasha Denona a bit thinner and less pigmented and find she buffs out with less effort. Also, I have dry mature skin. I’m sure that plays a huge huge part of what works and doesn’t for people.
Thanks, Wednesday! I like the ND formula also. I only have her $65 palettes and two minis. I have 3 of the MTHRSHP palettes and love the way they blend also. I tend to use the sigma eye shadow bases and really like them. I’ve heard really good things about the ABH one, though.
What I like is they provide a good base of color/shade. I like that they help transition colors. However, I almost always blend a satin or shimmer over them. Only a few brands don’t appear overly dry on me. It also depends on the color of the matte shade. I appreciate a good range of neutrals for different seasons (darker in the summer for me) and lighter in the cooler months.
DISLIKE: Though I’m using and appreciating mattes more all the time, matte is still my least favorite finish. I find a lot of mattes can be patchy, drier, and harder to blend, especially in the colorful shades that I favor. My beloved purples are especially dismal in most matte formulas.. I find most mattes lack complexity and are more boring to look at.
LIKE: Good mattes are a great tool, and I am glad they exist. As someone with somewhat hooded eyes that are getting worse as I age, I have come to appreciate using mattes in my crease more than ever. Mattes are handy for creating more depth and variety in a look, and for de-emphasizing areas.
Love how they give my very hooded, almond shaped eyes contours and can even make them appear less hooded and small. They definitely ground all my eye looks! I tend to prefer mattes that are either buildable or at least easy to move around with my brushes for a seamless gradient.
What I don’t like? When a matte is too pigmented and sticks in spots refusing to blend easily. Or, conversely, one that’s so powdery that it blends away to nothingness or muddiness.
Like: On others, matte eyeshadows can work so well to highlight any shimmer or metallic shade so that it shines.
Dislike: Matte eyeshadows make my eyes look flat and bland. Often the formula is average (or worse) and can be very dry, patchy and faded looking. I don’t reach for them at all.
This is one of the main reasons that I never purchase a CP eye palette – just too many mattes.
I love all matte looks. For so long I thought I ALWAYS needed to have a shimmer or something on the lid. But I have really come to like all matte looks. I like the Sydney Grace formula a lot!
At first I didn’t like matte eyeshadow at all, but once I realized the contrast and color pay off you get when you blend them with a shimmer or satin eyeshadow I feel in love with them…
Likes: Gives shape and lift to my hooded eyes, and the depth that I love. They make a great liner and can really make shimmers pop in an unexpected way, depending on the shade.
Dislikes: Depending on the formula, they can still crease on my outer corner. I don’t like using a glitter glue with them because they tend to look more patchy that way.
I like mattes depending on the color and the only thing I don’t like is if they are patchy.