We’ve waited and waited and finally we have them here in Manila! With a whopping 8 shades now in stores Maybelline’s Color Tattoo 24-Hr cream eyeshadow pots (which can also be used as liners) have arrived just in time for summer…and yes we will be needing serious longevity. Call me predictable but yeah, I prefer these four, I won’t pretend. The one that says “Color Ink” which is “Barely Branded” is the same product but probably due to shade availability they had to import from one of the other Asian countries. I personally actually like how it disrupts the uniformity in the photo.
Inked in Pink (rose pink), Barely Branded (a champagne vanilla), Bad to the Bronze (a warm bronze), and Audacious Asphal (cool gunmetal grey) Php300++
I’m wearing just 3 out of the 4 shades mentioned above. Barely Branded all over the lid (applied with fingers, concentrated in the center then softly blended around the edges), then Bad to the Bronze as expected generously in the outer V and crease with an eyeshadow detailing brush. Then just a tiny bit of Audacious Asphalt in the outer deepest corner of the eye just to push in some depth, you can skip the third shade and the look will still work. I also added a stroke of Bad to the Bronze on the lower lash line
When you swipe these on you have about a minute to two minutes to get your blending done before they set and become seriously waterproof. I’m actually hoping they bring in the odd 2 or 3 matte shades that the range released abroad (Musings of a Muse mentioned them here last October) those three are limited edition but there’s also a permanent matte taupe shade I think in the US. I actually don’t think they’ll get here, but one can always hope. All shades in the range brought here are shimmer packed but I wouldn’t call them anywhere near “sparkle vomit”, they’re tastefully shimmery. Read more to get close up photos of this look, swatches, and glimpses of the Maybelline Color Tattoo Launch.
When it comes to swatches, if you take these swimming with you they’ll still be on your arm for certain after a couple of hours. Not too sure about ocean water though. It would be nice to use them also underneath powder eyeshadow however I think the shimmery satin shades are already quite eye-catching on their own so I’m not so sure if they’d overpower the shadow you put on top. The most usable as lid bases are Barely Branded and Audacious Asphalt.
These aren’t coming off unless you scratch, use bi-phase or oil based makeup remover, or sweat non-stop for a day and a half. If you’re oily on the face and in the most humid situation I estimate you’ll still get 6-8 hours of wear out of this minimum if you allow it to set properly before proceeding to do any strenuous activity. I wouldn’t be too serious about the 24hr claim on the product, it’s a case to case basis I think.
To add a bit of pizzazz to the neutral look I used Painted Purple as a liner. It works and since purple is a combined hue of warm and cool it doesn’t jolt the softness of the warm brown eye so much.
At the launch we were invited to participate in a mini calligraphy workshop hosted by Alexis Ventura aka “@inkscribbler”. I got too caught up in the calligraphy and forgot to have a photo with her, Alexis is truly a happy soul. You can find her blessed work at inkscribbler.com
A different sort of before and after 
using ink and gouache. 
The Maybelline Color Tattoo Launch was one of the most creative events I’ve been to. I was sneakily having too much fun, many didn’t know I just happened to have a Fine Arts degree under my belt so I was quite at home using the media given to create stuff…I even asked if I could take home several unused tubes of colored gouache paint from our table (sayang kasi) and the Maybelline team said it was totally fine. I was also give the complete Color Tattoo cream eyeshadow set with two detailing brushes.
By the way, so you don’t get confused they don’t come sold in a box. Maybelline Color Tattoo 24hr Cream Eyeshadows are available individually at major department stores that carry Maybelline products for about Php300+ each.
