Before my review let's look at some information about the product from Benefit’s website.
“ It’s the FIRST EVER lash-hugging gel liner in a pen! This matte black gel formula won’t smudge, budge or dry out, and the innovative soft AccuFlex™ Tip hugs your lashline from corner to corner. The closer the line, the bigger the eye!
24-hour* & waterproof
*Instrumental test on 19 panelists
91% said it was longwearing*
88% said it hugged the lashline*
84% said eyes looked visibly larger*
*Results observed in a consumer panel survey on 32 women after 2 weeks
How to apply
For first-time useTo prep the pen, remove the AccuFlex™ tip protector & discard. Twist base until gel appears on tip. Wipe off excess.
For daily use
Wipe leftover gel off AccuFlex™ tip before each use to get fresh liner every time. Slowly twist base until a tiny amount of gel appears on tip. Rest the tip on the base of your lashes and guide along your lashline from either the inner or outer corner. The angled AccuFlex™ tip works both ways. “
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Now time for my review.
Packaging:
The product came in this very very tiny trial size. While i have a personal fascination with anything mini and like the fact that this is very travel friendly, the minisculity still surprises me haha.
Uncap the eyeliner and you will see this black silicon slanted tip that looks so sleek it looks like something Batman would use xD
Take the orange plug out and then push at the bottom to get the gel up. The full size version features a twisting mechanism at the bottom of the pen to get the product out. After that, just line away.
Beautifulbuns reviewed that the full size pen has a nice cube design near the tip that prevents the pen from rolling off table tops. Can't talk from experience since i don't own the full sized version but I'm sure that's a feature anyone will appreciate!
Application:
The pen effortlessly creates a smooth solid line on the back of my hand but recreating that on my eyes proved difficult.I'm not sure if it's my eye shape, unskilled hands or oily lids but the colour doesn't go on as easily as I hoped. I felt that I needed to press the tip into my skin more than I am used to (liquid liners are usually my preferred choice ) to see the colour. Then again, maybe it's just my oily eyelids, idk.
I also found myself stopping every other minute to press for more product and having to be extra careful not to get too much of them out as they just end up crumpling off if i try to use them (the extra product prodding out of the silicon tip) on my eyes.
I don't think this product is realllllyy suitable to create sharp, bold eyeliner looks. I went for a very Korean Popstar look here and I found myself taking very long to get the eyeliner to look as sharp and dark as it does here.
The best part of the design is the silicon tip; it’s incredibly soft and flexible. It definitely makes it harder to stab yourself blind with it.
Colour:
The colour is intense and matte. Loved it!Staying Power:
When I first tried it on the back of my hand, it stayed till the next morning; through a shower and multiple hand washes. Of course it didn't stay a remarkable black line though. At the end of it, it looked more like a speckled stain.
Here’s a picture of the eyes when I just finished the makeup.
I wore it out around evening and stayed in air-conditioned environment most of the time and the makeup remains relatively intact except for the outer corners of the eye where tears and oil collects when you smile and cringe. The below photos are taken roughly 3.5 hours after I applied the eyeliner. Photos taken with Flash.
As you can tell, I have very narrow double eyelids that just folds and covers itself up when I open my eye. Eyeliners are mercilessly put to the test with this test subject here..
I haven't tried a hell lot of Gel eyeliners before as experience has taught my deep set oily eyes not to trust them (gave up on gel and pencil liners long ago ~_~) . But I'd say the staying power of this is pretty darn good for humid Singapore and on a pair of eyes that has a horribly dark (pun intended LOL) past of smudging eyeliners.
By the way, I am using Benefit’s They’re Real mascara here. Not sure if you can tell but the mascara have smudged off on the inner top part of my lids. Well it’s either the liner or the mascara but I think it’s the mascara.
My Conclusion :
When I first swapped it on my hand, I was so excited with the result that I had to stop myself from rushing out to buy it (well, 11pm in the night helped curbed the urge heh).
However just one trial on the eyes with it was enough to convince me otherwise.
I'm not saying this product is by any means bad. It is however, not the Holy Grail I was searching for. I don't know the correct term for it but my eyes are so hooded, so deep set that you can barely tell I have any double eyelids (which i do). And if I were to rub a soldier's signature war paint all over my face with my eyes close I'd open my eyes to at least 2mm of unpainted skin around my eyes, it's that bad. So you can imagine the amount of stress I put my eye products through. I've had eye pencil liners (some Japanese brand that claimed to be a best seller in Japan) smudge so badly on me that my friends asked if I was feeling fine. Coupled that with Singapore's humidity and you get the point.
I spent an entire paragraph illustrating my facial feature's problem because I think this product performs reasonably well but is not suitable for people with needs like mine.
I'd say that this liner is probably good for a Make Up beginner who wants to step into the intense eyeliner field with some reasonable demand for good staying power. Getting an intense and solid eyeliner look might take some time due to the design of the silicon tip. However if you live in a dry climate, this eyeliner might just be the Holy Grail you've been after and might go on smoother than it does in Singapore.
For me, I'm sticking to my liquid eyeliners as they have better staying power and most importantly takes lesser time to apply solid strokes. My biggest problem with Benefit's Push Up Gel liner was the fact that I needed to manually push the product out, reminiscent of dipping a brush into a Gel pot and keep going back and forth.
This product would do well for the waterline and that's precisely what I will do with it next time.
1 comment:
It’s definitely worth the price! :)
xo,
~Pauline @ Benefit cosmetic Philippines
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