Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Review & Swatches: Sephora Collection Nano Eyeliner

You know the feeling of desparate browsing the Sephora website after having realized your order is just a couple bucks short of qualifying for the free shipping (ing, ing...)? Yeah, that is what prompted me to get these Sephora Collection Nano Eyeliner pencils in Azur Blue (no. 16) and Nuage (French for 'cloud', no. 14) on two separate occasions - they have decent reviews on their website and fit the bill perfectly, being just $5 each.


This is what Sephora claims about the product: 'A highly pigmented eye pencil. Sephora Brand Nano Eyeliner glides on smoothly and comfortably, creating a lovely line of color. Shea butter and rosemary extracts make this formula soft and easy to work with.'

What I like:
- the wide selection of shades and finishes (25 in the range) makes it easy to find exactly what you're looking for
- the end of the pencil is marked with the shade of the eyeliner, and it even matches the finish of a given shade (cream vs. shimmer)
- the formula is quite soft and smooth; I was especially impressed with the shimmery Nuage, which had a much better consistency than Urban Decay's Gunmetal, a possible dupe (see swatches below)
- the reasonable price

What I dislike:
- the amount of the product you get is quite small (but I cannot find any information on exactly how much you get, strange); after all, Nano is just a marketing strategy driven way of saying 'mini' or 'travel-size'.
- the size of the pencil doesn't fit into two of my sharpeners (I learnt that the hard way by ruining 1/3 of an already small pencil) - so now I'm forced to buy a Sephora Nano Sharpener for another $3. How. very. annoying.
- the pigmentation is not the best; I need at least 3 swipes to get my line saturated enough.
- the patchiness: the pencil somehow seems smudged and faded in the outer corners of my eyes; however, it doesn't get any worse throughout the day.

Will I repurchase? No, thank you (although the necessary investment in the sharpener might change my perspective). Honestly, I believe there are better eyeliner pencils at the drugstore with a comparable price and shade range (another eyeliner review coming soon!), and if you ever need something to bump up your order total, please add that Jack Black lip balm to your cart - the additional $2.50 is really worth it.

Have you tried the Sephora Nano Eyeliners? Any inexpensive liner favorites you'd like to share?

10 comments:

  1. I tried out a Nano eyeliner when it was a Sephora birthday gift and I wasn't impressed. The colour pay-off was quite poor =/. Ot's a shame because they have such lovely shades!

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  2. the colors are pretty but that sucks about the patchy application and weird sizing. i'd rather just get their liquid liner in that blue which is AMAZING

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    1. I should have gone for that one too - have you seen Nur's tutorial on double lining? So pretty!

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  3. I agree, I think the liquid liners are better! It's a shame these are so disappointing. I just bought a Milani pencil because UD Zero/Perversion smudge like crazy on me. I like it so far!

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  4. The colors are quite beautiful; it's a shame that they don't really live up to high expectations. I'm glad you included the tip about Jack Black--- what a good idea--- I'll definitely try that next time I need a little bump up.

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  5. hi
    dear I was thinking of buying
    PMD(Personal MicroDerm)
    & I have read your 1st review about it
    what do you think of it so far ?can you please update us.
    did you notice any improvments to youe skin?
    cheers

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    1. Hi Dolores,
      I had to stop using mine because I'm undergoing dermatologic treatment and my skin is already getting quite a bit of irritation (and exfoliation). I'd say if your skin is not on the sensitive side (like mine), give it a go! I don't think however that it's an answer to all skin problems. Let me know if you have any more questions!

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  6. What a shame! Azur Blue would have been so stunning had it been made better. I can't understand how they pass the quality control test before being charged to the masses!

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  7. ohh well my skin is very sensitive (Ihave just seen your close photo I have also same skin texture as yours !) Ihave large pores that are very irritating & Idont know how to get rid of them I thought PMD might help in reducing their size or hiding them a little bit :)

    one more question have you ever tried any personal lazer hair removal treatment .
    thanks

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    Replies
    1. Hey lovely,
      In this case, I wouldn't recommend the PMD, it might just be too much and it didn't help with the appearance of my pores. I haven't tried laser hair removal, sorry I can't help with that! In terms of improving the texture, I'll be soon posting about my experience at the dermatologist and in general the treatment she prescribed, maybe that's something you'd want to look into. Hope that helps!

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