Eyeshadow Primers and Bases

Today I thought I would take some time to write about using various products as a base for your eyeshadow. I've found that to get the most staying power, color and opacity out of your eyeshadow you must use a primer and a base. I know this seems like I'm adding an extra step but in my experience it really can help! Now, what do I mean by this?....

First, choose an eyeshadow primer that works for you. This is the product that will keep oil from causing your eyeshadow to smear and evens out the tone of your eyelid. For me, these only slighty even out my eyelid color as I have very dark eyelids. I personally have tried MAC Paint in Bare Canvas, Too Faced Shadow Insurance and the almighty Urban Decay Primer Potion. In my opinion UDPP is the best, however it can be very drying to eyelids and subsequently can cause eye irritation for a very select few people, such as myself. However, as you will learn, my left eye is sensitive to EVERYTHING. For everyday use I have been using the TFSI. So far, so good, it just doesnt last quite as long as UDPP.

Secondly, I choose what I call a base for color. There are tons of products that can be used for this. MAC Paint Pots, MAC Shadesticks, MAC Fluidliners, Fyrinnae Inks, and even things like Wet N Wild Cream Eyeshadows. You may ask, why do the first step and not skip right to these? For me, wearing any of these alone is just asking for creasing about an hour later.

So, the complicated part to this....not all bases work with all eyeshadows. I know, pain in the arse. Luckily Ive used trial and error to take the guess work out of it for you! Here is a list of what works with what the best. You will note that Fyrinnae and Taylor Made Minerals are the main eyeshadows that doesnt really work well with some things. Their unique texture is the culprit. Do to them being more powdery, they bind too much to things especially Shadesticks and you will not get even color.

MAC Shadesticks - MAC pressed eyeshadow and pigments, UD pressed eyeshadow, The She Space, Archetype
MAC Paint Pots - MAC pressed eyeshadow and pigments, UD pressed eyeshadow
Fyrinnae Inks* see note below - Fyrinnae, Archetype, Taylor Made Minerals
Wet N Wild Cream Eyeshadows - MAC pressed eyeshadow and pigments, UD pressed eyeshadow, The She Space, some Fyrinnae, Archetype, Taylor Made Minerals
NYX Cream Eyeshadow Pencils - MAC pressed eyeshadow and pigments, UD pressed eyeshadow, The She Space
Rimmel Shake it Up Liquid Eyeshadow - MAC pressed eyeshadow and pigments, UD pressed eyeshadow, The She Space, Fyrinnae, Archetype, Taylor Made Minerals
Urban Decay Liquid Eyeliners *not completely tested as of 06/09/08

So, there you have it. By no means are these rules, they are pointers...please feel free to try whatever works for you! As you can see below, sometimes it makes a difference and sometimes not...sometimes the camera just doesnt pick it up either :P



Left is MAC Bitter - bottom swatch on skin, middle on TFSI, top on MAC Pharaoh Paint Pot
Right is MAC Parrot - bottom on skin, middle on TFSI, top on MAC Sea Me Shadestick



Left is Fyrinnae Shallow Sleep - bottom swatch on skin, middle on TFSI, top on Fyrinnae Turquoise Tease Ink

Right is Fyrinnae 1.22 Gigawatts - bottom swatch on skin, middle on TFSI, top on Fyrinnae Captivating Cobalt ( I actually like this better just on TFSI)



Left is Fyrinnae Finnegans Wake - bottom swatch on skin, middle on TFSI, top is on Fyrinnae Charismatic Cream

Right is Fyrinnae Optimism - bottom swatch on skin, middle on TFSI, top is on Fyrinnae Lewd Lavender


** When using Inks: the Color Changing Inks are a lot more oily and do not work as well. With the standard Inks, make sure to pat them on the lid, let them dry a little and then apply the eyeshadow while the Ink is still slightly tacky.