Makeup Geek eyeshadows (satin finish): review and swatches

My Makeup Geek eyeshadow collection, Part Two! A few weeks ago, I introduced you to my favorite MUG matte neutral eyeshadows. Today, let’s take a look at the brand’s satin finish eyeshadows if you will! smile

I’m a die hard fan of Makeup Geek eyeshadows, which in my heart, have completely replaced my MAC eyeshadows, I must confess. For me, they’re one of the best value for money in the market!

They’re great quality (talc-free, cruelty-free, made in the USA), they have an excellent pigmentation and are easy to blend. All of this for a very reasonable price (6 dollars per pan).

However, I must admit that the satin finish eyeshadows are not all my favorites. Some are excellent, and I use them very often but others don’t have a great pigmentation, and they are sometimes a little bit dry or stiff in texture.

So I wanted to take the time to introduce them one by one and also to give you at the end of the post a list of my favorites, my “crème de la crème” if you will. wink

But first of all, let’s talk a little bit about makeup technique, shall we?

How I apply my satin finish eyeshadows:

I already spoke in my previous article about my “eye contouring” technique that I use with my matte eyeshadows. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, feel free to check out this post: My Must-Have Makeup Geek matte neutral eyeshadows.

So I use my satin finish eyeshadows as a second step after I have sculpted my eyelid with my matte ones. I use my shiny eyeshadows (satin, shimmery, glittery or metallic) to give some light and dimension to my look.

So, in short:

• 1. First step, I use lighter shades to catch the light and make the eyes pop:

I use them:
– on the brow bone,
– in the inner corner,
– on the center of the eyelid.

• 2. Second step, I use colored or neutral eyeshadows on all the mobile eyelid to emphasize the iris color.

Here, the idea is to highlight the eyes’ color. I won’t go into too much technical colour details, but some colors emphasize the eyes color more than others. In general, you need to avoid using the same color as your eyes because it makes your eyes look dull. It’s better to use some shades which your eyes’ color contrast with!

For example:
– for blue eyes: all colors with an orange or red undertone (warm gold, amber, coral, peach, etc.),
– for green eyes: all colors with a purple or purple undertone (pink, purple, berry, burgundy, etc.),
– for gray eyes: pink, plum, khaki green,
– for brown eyes: the lucky ones, everything works with them! smile

Obviously, if you have mixed eyes’ color (example: blue-green, or brown-green, or gray-blue, etc.), you have more choices. Anyway, the best way to know which color suits you is to experiment with different shades! smile

I have very light blue-green eyes, so I usually prefer warm tones and red, pink or purple undertones. The MUG eyeshadows I’m going to talk about revolves around these kind of shades.

• 3. Third step, adding definition with darker shades:

These are in a way the “liners” of makeup. I use them along the lash line (lower or upper) to give the impression of fuller lashes.
But I also use them in a more diffuse way in the outside corner of the eye (the outer V), as a kind of elongated V shape to give an impression of an almond eye shape

This technique works equally well with matte or shiny shades.

My Makeup Geek satin finish eyeshadows collection:

– Vanilla Bean:

I was hoping it would be a perfect base shade, and to be honest, I would have preferred it to be matte. It’s a creamy beige flesh shade, in a light satin finish. I love the color, which is the exact color of my skin but it really lacks pigmentation. Too bad, because I would have liked to use it as a base eyeshadow on the entire eyelid. And for this type of shade, I prefer to have a little bit more coverage so that it can hide my small veins on the eyelid.

– Bling:

An iridescent flesh shade. Perfect to highlight the eyebrow bone area. It’s very creamy and has a great pigmentation.

– Rapunzel:

A very beautiful light beige champagne, with a slightly golden undertone. I use it very often to highlight, especially in the inner corner. It’s well pigmented and has a creamy texture.

– Bleached Blonde:

A slightly glittery sandy beige. Ideal for a natural makeup, it’s quite subtle.

– Homecoming:

A very nice neutral shade, which I wear very often, applied on the mobile eyelid. It’s a light metallic beige/ brown with a slightly coppery undertone. It’s very easy to wear and well pigmented and it has a creamy texture.

– Pretentious:

A very pretty bronze, quite warm. It has a slightly metallic finish. Like Homecoming, I like it very much, and I wear it often applied on the mobile eyelid. It’s also well pigmented and has a creamy texture.

– Bada Bing:

A chocolate brown with a matte base and tiny gold glitter flecks. I’m very fond of its color, but less of its texture, which I find a little dry. The glitter is barely visible when you apply the shade on your eyelid. I use Baba Bing like a matte shade.
It’s not my favorite. I will love if Marlena (MUG’s founder) comes out with the same color in a creamy matte version!

– Pocket Change:

A stunning golden amber bronze with a warm, slightly orange, undertone. It’s a gorgeous shade and very flattering. Its texture is very creamy, and the pigmentation is perfect.

– Glamorous:

A shimmery golden orange. This shade is not my favorite. Its texture is quite dry, and its pigmentation is not the best.

– Cosmopolitan:

A golden peach/ salmon shade. I love it in summer, it’s beautiful and vibrant. It has a very good pigmentation, and its texture is very creamy.

– Roulette:

It’s a burnt orange, almost like a reddish brown with a metallic finish. It’s very pretty when you are aiming for warm smoky eyes. It’s well pigmented and has a creamy texture.

– Country Girl:

Apparently, this color is discontinued, I can’t find it on the MUG website. It’s a slightly pinkish reddish brown with a satin finish. It’s well pigmented, but its texture is a little dry.

– Lucky Penny:

One of my favorite shades from MUG. Yes, I know, I’ve only had it for a few months, but I’m obsessed with it! It reminds me of MAC Sable, but I find it even more beautiful (and I love Sable!). It’s a beautiful pinkish metallic brown, not too dark. I apply it on all the mobile eyelid, and it makes my eyes pop, but in a very subtle way. I adore it. Its texture is very creamy, and the pigmentation is perfect.

– Brown Sugar:

Unfortunately, this color is discontinued. It is a shame because I love it. It’s a very nice shimmery chocolate brown, with a light pink undertone. It’s stunning all over the eyelid. It has an excellent pigmentation, and it’s very easy to blend.

– Pillow Talk:

A frosted lilac rose with a silvery shift. It’s very luminous! I like it very much to highlight and for my cool makeup looks. Its texture is very creamy, and it’s super pigmented.

– Cinderella:

A very pretty color: light warm shimmery pink but I find it quite dry in texture, and its pigmentation is a little weak. Too bad because I love its color!

– Twilight:

A pretty mauvy pink. Its pigmentation is average, it could be more pigmented. It blends rather easily, on the other hand.

– Sensuous:

I have mixed feelings about this shade. I love its color, a pretty light dusty purple with silver glitter. But its pigmentation could be more intense, and the glitter tends to make a few fallouts. But if you know how to apply it (you must tap your brush to remove the excess glitter and apply it in several layers to build its coverage), it’s very pretty. It is still one of my favorite MUG shades.

– Drama Queen:

A very pretty shimmery dark purple, almost black. It’s perfect to give dimension to the look. I use it a lot along the lash line or in the outer corner of the eyelid.

– Anarchy:

A light pinkish red with a slightly orange undertone. Its finish is rather metallic. This one is a more recent addition. To be honest, I didn’t really play with it too much. But I can still tell you that its texture is very creamy, and it’s very pigmented.

– Burlesque:

A very nice burgundy shade, with a slightly brown undertone and a satin finish. It’s very pretty applied all over the eyelid, in the outer corner and along the lash line to give dimension to the look.

– Shimma Shimma:

An absolute must-have! This is probably one of my favorite highlighting shades of all time for the inner corner, all brands included! It’s a stunning beige champagne with a very slightly pink undertone and an intense metallic finish. It’s very bright and perfect to give a lot of glow to the look. I love it!

– Prom Night:

A medium dusty mauve, with a slight pinkish taupe undertone. A very nice color to enhance green eyes, in a subtle way. It has a satin finish.

– Moondust:

A beautiful cool beige taupe, with a platinum undertone. It’s quite metallic, but subtly. I’m usually not the biggest fan of cool shades but I adore this one. It’s such a beautiful color. A favorite!

– Hipster:

A beige sand, slightly taupe but quite light. It has a shimmery finish. It lacks a bit of pigmentation for my taste, and its texture is a little dry. Not my fave.

– Taupe Notch:

A brown taupe, with a satin finish. It’s a little powdery at first, but it has a good pigmentation and blends very easily.

– Venom:

I love this very beautiful golden metallic dark green. I really have a soft spot for golden green shades. On the eyelid, it is less dark than you would think by looking at it in the pan. I find it beautiful, and it’s perfect for a more dramatic makeup look. It’s very well pigmented, and its texture is very creamy.

Here are some makeup looks I did with some MUG satin finish eyeshadows:

– Look 1:

For this look, I used:
– matte MUG shades: Mirage, Cocoa Bear, Beaches & Cream, Peach Smoothie,
– satin MUG shades: Rapunzel, Pretentious, and Venom.
On my lips, it’s the Hourglass Girl Lip Stylo lipstick in the shade Activist.

– Look 2:

For this look, I used:
– matte MUG shades: Mirage, Beaches & Cream, Wild West, Cupcake, Frappé,
– satin MUG shades: Shimma Shimma, Lucky Penny, and Brown Sugar.
On my lips, I’ll tell you more about it soon. wink

– Look 3:

For this look, I used:
– matte MUG shades: Mirage, Latte, Americano,
– satin MUG shades: Rapunzel, Pocket Change and Homecoming.
On my lips, same thing, I keep this shade secret for now! smile

And if I had to choose only 10 colors?

A difficult choice for the eyeshadows hoarder that I am. I cheated. This time, there are more than 10. Here are my favorites:

Shimma Shimma (and Rapunzel, I couldn’t choose)(you need both lol), Homecoming, Pretentious, Pocket Change, Lucky Penny, Pillow Talk, Sensuous, Burlesque, Moondust, Venom.

(no Brown Sugar in the list because it’s discontinued but it’s also one of my faves, I love it!)

I hope this blog post is useful to you, if you consider buying some Makeup Geek eyeshadows! wink
They’re available on the Makeup Geek website for $6 or on Beauty Bay for 7,20 euros (or 6 pounds) if you live in Europe.

And you, are you a fan of Makeup Geek eyeshadows? What are your favorite satin finish MUG shades?

Photo credit: bonnie-garner.com