Winging it, with wet eyeshadow (Bobbi Brown, MAC)

Right now it seems like the winged eye is having another heyday (think Kate Moss for Dior). Which, is perfectly fine by me since I've always found a slight wing to be really flattering to my eyes. Normally, I'm a gel person, but recently I began experimenting with powder liners, which led me to wet powder liners. By wet, I mean dampening an eyeliner brush, then picking up the eyeshadow. I'd heard before how Bobbi Brown's dark shadows weren't that striking, unless used wet. So, I recently gave that a go, and am now hooked on using wet shadows as my liners. Wet shadows impart a really opaque line, almost as dark as gel. However there's a lot more control with the brush and the line can be drawn thinner (meaning less running underneath the eye).

First up, here are some of the products and brushes I've been using lately:

1. Bobbi Brown Smoke eyeshadow- Smoke is a really pretty soft blackened brown. It has great texture as a regular eyeshadow, and blends up really well for a dramatic smoky eye.  Smoke is probably the lightest / weakest of Bobbi Brown's dark brown or black shades that are suitable as liners (see comparisons below). However, unlike the other liner shades, it can have dual life as an eyeshadow/liner. I think it's great if you want a more subtle daytime line, or have lighter eyes that would look a unnatural with a stark black line.

2. MAC Soot eyeshadow-  Soot is a great dark charcoal color that leans a bit blue. I'm glad I have it, because it's like Bobbi Brown Smoke, but with blue, not brown tones. Great blendability as a powder shadow--- I like it both wet and dry. (However I think my BB shadows work better wet).

3. EcoTools angled eyeliner brush - This is the softest of the three angled eyeliner brushes and feels gentlest on the eyes. I think the quality is amazing for the price (~$5), and I wouldn't mind using this all the time.

4. MAC 263 angled eyeliner brush- This was a present from my bro and I do tend to reach for this the most. The angled edge is a teeny bit longer than EcoTools, allowing for longer strokes and a more artful wing. However, it is a little stiffer. I also love that it's synthetic (no animals harmed!).

5. Bobbi Brown Eyeliner brush- This brush is also a great eyeliner. It's quite stiff, and synthetic like both MAC and EcoTools. It's not angled, but this makes it the easiest to use as a plain liner brush. You can use short strokes that won't wander off by accident.

Second up, I have some swatches of my Bobbi Brown eyeshadows (both as a wet line, and a dry shadow):

1. Bobbi Brown Charcoal - is the blackest, and is insanely pigmented, and makes an awesome line when the brush is used wet.
2. Bobbi Brown Expresso - is a dark brown, and is also insanely pigmented, making for a dark line as well.
3. Bobbi Brown Smoke - is a soft blackened brown that makes a softer line.
4. MAC Soot - is a soft blue-toned charcoal that also makes a softer line.

I used to have Bobbi Brown Caviar as well. I haven't bought it again yet, but definitely will. It's a black-brown like smoke, however it's more pigmented, along the lines of Charcoal and Expresso.

And finally, a picture of the palettes I used for this entry. Taking out my palettes always makes me happy =). So, whaddya think? Are wet eyeshadow liners something you use regularly too? Any good recommendations for more MAC liner colors? (I've been looking into that, but there are so many!)

Hope you're having a great weekend! What's rest of mine will be spent working on a really important presentation. In fact, I'll probably be mostly MIA for the next couple weeks because of it. I'm sure that won't keep me away from reading your blog entries though =P. Thanks for reading!

Love, Dovey.