Smokey Rose Eyes

I love to play and experiment with different colors in my eye makeup to create different looks. I'm definitely not an expert in any way, which is why I really like to try a ready made palette of shades intended to compliment each other to create a specific look. The latest one I've tried is the L'Oréal Color Riche Eyeshadow Palette (£7.99) which has 4 perfectly matched shades to create a smokey look and it comes with an easy to understand little illustration at the back of the package on how to use each shade. This handy little quad comes in several colors so you can create either a more traditional smokey eye using greys or browns, or you can go for a more colorful look using greens or blues. Since berry shades are all the rave at the moment I got the palette called Eau de Rose, which is a lovely pink and mauve range for a warmer and softer smokey eye look.

All of the eye shadows have a subtle shimmer to them, and the pigmentation varies a little bit not only because of the shimmer but also since most of the shades are supposed to be fairly subtle. The consistency is dry and holds the pigmentation together very well, so you won't risk too much fall out when you apply the darkest shade. Although when doing a heavy eye it's always a good idea to either leave foundation until the end so you don't need to correct too much, or to have lots of loose powder under the eye to catch any loose particles.

The shade in the top left corner is a lovely pale pastel pink intended as a highlighter on the brow bone and in the inner corner of your eye, and it gives a beautiful lift to the finished look. The second shade from the left is a wonderful cool baby pink that goes all across the lid to form the base of the look. The contour the eye a little bit, intensifying the outer half or corner of the eyelid, you use the next color - a subtle dusky pale puce that adds a lovely depth to the look and could also be used in the crease. Finally we have an intense dark raspberry to be used as the smoke over the base of the lashes, both over and under the eye, as you like.

 

Indoors in natural light

 Indoors in artificial light

 Outdoors in sunlight

The combination creates a lovely, feminine and soft look, and you can of course emphasize whichever color you like, but I love to add a little bit extra of the base shade and the smokey dark raspberry, since these pinks and berries completely bring out blue eyes. I've really liked this alternative smokey eye, that you can easily wear in the day time as well, and to finish the look I've worn a matte browny pink lip to balance off the shimmer and berries of the eye. These palettes are so much fun to experiment with, the pigmentation is great and fairly long lasting and I'll definitely pick up another one from this range. Have you tried this quad - and what do you think about doing a smokey eye with other colors than browns and grays?