Smackdown! Makeup Geek VS bareMinerals

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I love eyeshadow and I love love love when eyeshadows come out looking like how they do in the pan. My thinking is that if I didn't want it to be that bold a colour I would have bought a more subdued colour (duh). However a lot of the time I find myself being disappointed at the colour payoff of pressed eyeshadows.

Two products that don't tend to disappoint me however are my bareMinerals eyeshadows (I have 10 minis I received in a Christmas set last year) and my Makeup Geek pigments that I ordered from their website. Neither product is pressed and so are effectively loose shadows. I love them both but today I decided to put them to the test and tell you which one is my ultimate favourite (I know it'll be tough but I'll take the struggle for you guys).


Lets go in chronological order and start with my Makeup Geek pigments which I ordered about a year ago now. First off I want to put in a note for UK residents here; Makeup Geek gets expensive quickly. Because they're a fairly new but growing company they don't have particularly low international shipping rates yet plus they don't pay duties for you meaning that you have to add money on top of that (I think I had to pay an extra £8). Don't get me wrong they are still cheaper it's just something you need to bear in mind when buying from them.

L-R: Insomnia, Nightlife, Vegas Lights, Utopia
That being said: totally. worth. it! I love these pigments so much, especially if I'm going out and want some extra drama in my makeup; these just take you to a whole new level. The colour pay off is amazingly amazing with these and you just get so much of each colour I feel like they could last you a lifetime.

L-R: Utopia, Vegas Lights, Insomnia, Nightlife
The only downside I have with these pigments is that they don't last on the eyes. They're great for a night out but if you want to wear them all day you'd need to touch up or something, especially with Insomnia (a dupe for MAC's blue brown pigment and my favourite of the bunch) which has this amazing dual tone which unfortunately fades to a brown as you wear it throughout the day. If you want these to last longer you need to prep with a primer before hand and you might want to think about wearing them wet too (which looks stunning) but they still aren't gunna last you all day.

Tow Row (L-R): Snowflake, Drama, Queen Phyllis, Waterlily, Celestine
Bottom Row (L-R): Nude Beach, Bare Skin, Sex Kitten, The Gold, Vanilla Sugar
Now in comparison the bareMinerals eyeshadows just don't wow me in terms of colour as much. Possibly because the collection of colours in the set all erred on the neutral side, or perhaps because they don't necessarily have the same sparkle (and I am a girl who loves a bit of sparkle) I just don't get the same joy in my heart when just looking at these shadows. However when you apply them it is a whole new ball game!

L-R: Waterlily, Queen Phyllis, Drama, Snowflake, Celestine
These shadows have such a beautiful texture, they are so finely milled that they don't even feel like anything when you apply them (or if you accidentally stick your thumb in their pot as I discovered while trying to photograph these). They also glide on like a dream and require so little for them to look smooth and not at all patchy, while I would say the Makeup Geek ones need a teeny bit more work.


L-R: The Gold, Sex Kitten, Bare Skin, Nude Beach, Vanilla Sugar
Again, like the Makeup Geek pigments you will have trouble getting these to last all day, though I have noticed with a primer they do stay fairly well while I'm at work in that I leave and it still looks like I'm wearing shadow which is better than some of my pressed eyeshadows. The only complaint I have about these is that they are unfortunately not consistent. Nude Beach (which is easily my favourite and most used one of the bunch) has a gorgeous shinny almost liquid finish when you apply it and lasts a long time on the eyes while Vanilla Sugar has more of a matte texture and tends to settle in creases and bunch up a little bit more.

If I had to pick between these two I would have to choose my Makeup Geek shadows just because of the thrill my heart gets (yes I know how sad that sounds, I do admit I have a problem) when I see their colour pay off. The bareMinerals ones are still beautiful (I would fully recommend either brand) but I do get a bit more frustrated with how inconsistent they can be. 

Have you tried these or any other products from these brands? Let me know in the comments!

4 comments:

  1. they are so shimmery ! loving them :)

    http://allornothing-blog.blogspot.co.uk/

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    1. Yeah they're just so intense I love them! :-)

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  2. I have tried neither, but I love my MAC pigments for a night out. During daytime, it is too much sparkle for my liking.

    LindaLibraLoca: Beauty, Baby and Backpacking

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    1. You might like the bareMinerals ones as they are a little bit more 'everyday' than the Makeup Geek pigments (which are supposed to be dupes for the MAC ones) :-)

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