ColourPop Laurel & Moonbeam Creme Shadows Reviews & Swatches

Laurel

Colour Pop Laurel Crème Shadow ($8.00 for 0.13 oz.) is a light peach with moderate, warm undertones and a flat, matte finish. It had good color coverage in a single layer, but it was the driest shade in the release of four–even after working away the top layer. It was almost putty-like initially, and while normally, I find the warmth of a fingertip aids in application… this formula merely laughed at my foolishness.

Trying to apply this shade with fingertips yielded more product on my fingertip and large patches where product had lifted away because it was both tackier while being dry and clingy. A flat, synthetic brush was better at getting product onto my skin initially, but there was some separation along my crease and finer lines. A fluffy, synthetic brush was better at dispersing the product while laying it down, which made it faster to apply so there was less visible patchiness.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t smooth out or find a way around the product getting into my creases/separating along them–it was a lot like a liquid lipstick that “cracks” after it dries down. The product had faded noticeably after six hours of wear on my lid and lasted closer to eight hours on the area above my crease/on my brow bone.

FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).

Top Dupes

View Swatches View All Dupes

Sephora Latte (LE, ) is lighter, warmer (95% similar).
Sephora Golden Marshmallow (351) (P, $8.00) is lighter (90% similar).
Huda Beauty Momentum (PiP, ) is lighter (90% similar).
Coloured Raine Cloudy (LE, $6.99) is darker (90% similar).
Tom Ford Beauty Naked City (LE, $36.00) is lighter (90% similar).
Bobbi Brown Bijou (LE, $38.00) is warmer (85% similar).
Too Faced White Chocolate (PiP, $16.00) is lighter, warmer (85% similar).
Sephora Magnolia (PiP, ) is less shimmery, warmer (85% similar).
Urban Decay ABC Gum (P, $19.00) is less shimmery, warmer (85% similar).
Coloured Raine Boutineer (LE, $6.99) is lighter, warmer (85% similar).

View Swatches

Formula Overview

$8.00/0.13 oz. - $61.54 Per Ounce

The formula is supposed to be a "primer and shadow in one" that is long-wearing, "crease-proof and water-resistant" that can be used to "even out lid color" or worn "alone for a minimal look" or used under eyeshadow to "intensify color and extend wear." Per the brand, it can be applied with either fingertips or a "larger shade brush."

These were a true struggle to work with. I spent one day just trying to find the right way to apply the cream eyeshadows that didn't look like I hadn't had a drop of hydration in 40 years--they made my lids look shriveled, flaky, and emphasized texture I didn't know was there. I had to give up and try again the next day so I didn't abuse my lids beyond repair.

The next day, I applied them with the "best" method I could figure out and was astonished by how poorly they wore. The brand's Super Shock Shadows, which is a cream-to-powder formula, wear like iron for me; they typically go on just beautifully and last 10 hours without creasing or fading. This is one of the worst cream eyeshadow formulas I've tried and is one of the few soul-crushing disappointments I've experienced from the brand since its inception.

These alternated between sort of drier, stiffer and lightly creamy; the top layer seemed to dry quite quickly--three of the four shades arrived with a drier top layer that became creamier after a second swatch. However, when I went to use them for application and testing on the eyes, that top layer felt a bit drier each time.

The formula is fairly quick-drying, though it remained a bit tacky where my lid peeled away from the area above my crease. There was almost no play time at all; I think using fingertips was the absolute worst way to apply these as fingertip application yielded a faster-drying product that applied unevenly, lifted away as it dried down, and almost immediately gathered into creases and accentuated every fine line and bit of texture on my lid without fail. I also felt my fingertips stick a bit with a slight sensation of my lid coming off of my eyeball as I tried to diffuse the product.

A flat brush led to marginal improvement; a flat brush delivered more even coverage, but typically a thicker layer, and this is where I noticed more tackiness and where I had the issue of my skin sticking together, which created bald patches where the color stuck and lifted away onto a different part of my eye (e.g. from my lid to above my crease).

A fluffy brush was the best tool to use in my experience as it provided a thinner, more even layer of product while simultaneously buffing/diffusing it out, but if you don't blend it out right immediately, there's no forgiveness at all. The product has no ability to endure much blending, rubbing, or faffing or else it flakes off--an accidental rub of the eye will result in an entire bald patch to contend with. It did not take much to flake it all away.

I do not recommend layering or building up, and I certainly don't recommend blending two shades together as trying to blend them together resulted in one taking away the other and leaving behind no product at all in the area.

I could not keep it from getting into fine lines regardless of the tool I used, and I tried to leave my lid closed for two minutes to let it set more but that did not help. I tried using powder eyeshadow on top, and I felt like most shades "ate" a lot of the color from more matte eyeshadows, so whatever was layered on top looked drier, uneven, and faded. With shimmery eyeshadows, they seemed to apply better but had a more frosted, textured look that wasn't as smooth or as shiny as when worn over bare skin or over a traditional primer.

The formula didn't last well on my lids; the lighter shades had started to fade within five hours of wear and two were almost gone within eight hours. They were less prone to fading above the crease area on me (like the brow bone) and there was a decent amount of color still present after eight hours.

Browse all of our Colour Pop Crème Shadow swatches.

Ingredients

Isododecane, Trimethylsiloxysilicate, Synthetic Wax, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, Caprylyl Methicone, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Silica, Phenoxyethanol, BHT, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Hexylene Glycol, Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891).

Laurel

LELimited Edition. $8.00.

0.5

Product

Pigmentation

1.5

Texture

Longevity

1.5

Application

41%

Total

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Moonbeam

Colour Pop Moonbeam Crème Shadow ($8.00 for 0.13 oz.) is a medium brown with moderate, warm undertones and a flat, matte finish. This shade had a creamier feel initially than other shades when I first tried it, but subsequent uses revealed that it had a similar tendency to be firmer and drier on the surface and slightly creamier beneath it after each use.

The formula was more challenging to work with, but this was one of the “better” shades, though not by much and not something I’d want to test out again. It had opaque color coverage and applied decently with a flat, synthetic brush but separated along fine lines and caught on texture, especially as it dried down or if I attempted to layer anything over it. The product started to flake away and leave behind bald patches in its wake.

I still wouldn’t bother with fingertips as the formula dried down too quickly and wasn’t blendable or spreadable almost immediately after the product was applied to my skin when I used my fingers. If I attempted to blend/spread, the product lifted away entirely. A fluffy brush remained the best tool to get more even, diffused edges without risking total patchiness to get there.

The dry down was quick, so you’ll want to work very quickly and go for more minimal blending. It did not seem to apply better as a thin layer; I had a bit less noticeable creasing with a thinner layer but more patchiness, whereas a more medium layer (not heavy! but more opaque) had less patchiness but pulled away fine lines/creases and clung to texture (that I honestly couldn’t see in person… and wasn’t there when I applied another cream eyeshadow later on to check if it was really just a nightmare).

This one lasted longer than other shades; the creasing didn’t seem to worsen until after seven hours of wear and started to fade noticeably after eight hours of wear. It was flaking to begin with, though, and there was some additional flaking over time.

FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).