Laura Mercier's fabulous new eye shadows, Caviar Stick Eye Colour ($24), arrived at my local Neiman Marcus last week, and I'm impressed. Inspired by Laura Mercier's cult classic Caviar Eye Liner, Caviar Stick Eye Colour offers a superbly easy way to create a smoky eye look - one that can range from subtle to dramatic, depending on your application technique.Available in seven irresistible, creamy shades, the water-resistant sticks offer glamorous color. I find it interesting that the first two shades I purchased, Khaki and Amethyst, reminded me of Chanel's Khaki Platine and Rose Platine eyeliners, even though the Laura Mercier shades are darker. I bought another one of these Laura Mercier beauties on my second round. Steel was calling my name.
We continue to have makeup-melting weather, so I only rolled out the color of my three new shades a tiny amount for the photo at right. Steel is shown at left, Khaki in the center, and Amethyst at right. I did get two decent swatch photos - one in full sun and one when the sun ducked behind the clouds.
The shades on my arm, top to bottom, are Amethyst, Khaki, and Steel. I applied them heavily and directly from the tubes. I did not smudge them, which is recommended. Because the shades set quickly (they are long-wearing and transfer- and crease-resistant), it's best to smudge them quickly, using your fingertip to achieve the intensity you desire. They blend beautifully.
At left above, the three shades are shown in full sun. My "cloudy" photo, shown at right, probably depicts the shimmer level more accurately. The colors are not super-shimmery, but rather subtly shimmery. Once blended, they lose much of the shimmer, leaving behind a gleaming smoke in one of your favorite shades. The problem with my swatch photos is that the actual shades are best portrayed in the full-sun photo. Steel is not as blue as it appears in the photo with the white hydrangea, and Khaki does have a khaki hue, although it's very brown too.
If you want to see more photos, head over to The Non-Blonde. Gaia chose Sapphire, Amethyst, and Khaki. Amethyst looks like a different shade on her skin, but Khaki looks remarkably similar on both of us.
These stunning eye shadows are available at Laura Mercier's Web site and your favorite Laura Mercier counter. I bought mine at Neiman Marcus. Make sure to look at the Classic Smoky Eye Palette too.
Photo at top courtesy of Laura Mercier; other photos by Best Things in Beauty