Essence Gel Eyeliner London Baby - Review

I have to own up to the fact that I let Makeupalley's message boards carry me away sometimes. Whenever people post raves about a product, I start feeling that my life will not be complete without it. Rarely, however, have I found whatever that item is to be the be-all-end-all product I thought it would be. Usually, it's a mediocre product for me, or just doesn't suit my skin type or coloring. Sometimes, however, the product is really all they promised. This is one of those products. Kind of.

I picked up this liner at the same time I got the Stay with Me gloss I reviewed here. MUA had been just raving about how life-changing this liner is that when I saw it, I swear, it was a shiny bauble and I was a crazed crow, snatching it up and running to the cash register.

Ulta's website says:

It's ultra-smooth gel formula allows an accurate application similar to liquid eyeliner. The range offers various effects, such as matte or shimmering. Simply dip the special Essence Gel Eyeliner Brush into the pot and effortlessly paint a perfect quick drying line. You're left with an ultra long-lasting, smudge and waterproof look! Available in three colors.

The bolded sentence above is what bothers me. Only 3 colors. Black, purple, and this grey-taupe color. That's it. Give me brown, gold, green, something more than 3. These are new, so I can hope they come out with more, which I hope they do. I also would like someone at Essence to grab a clue and seal their products, because out of the 3 jars my Fred Meyer had out, 2 had been molested. Since I'm fairly certain Essence has to eat that loss, it'd behoove them to invest in a shrink wrap system.

London Baby is a shimmery, deep charcoal with the slightest hint of brown, making it a taupe shade. On my lash line, it might as well be grey. It's very pretty. It looks pigmented, but I've found that it doesn't really apply in a pigmented fashion. I usually have to go over the liner at least once to achieve opacity. Not a huge deal, but it's worth mentioning. The shimmer appears to be multi-colored, and is very fine. It's enough to soften the liner, but it's not going to really pop.


The texture of this is interesting. It's very... airy, I suppose. It's really easy for me to get too much product on my brush, and thus need to remove some before I go to apply it. Again, not a huge deal. I wonder if the texture affects the way the liner applies, though.


One thing I can attest to is how long these wear: All. Day. Seriously. My "all day" at this moment in time runs from about 4:00 AM - 6:00 PM or so, maybe a smidge more, if I'm feeling particularly lazy. These retail for $3.49, and wear as well as my Fluidlines and Long Wear Gel liners. They remove easily, as well, which is very nice. 


I am impressed by the product, but I like the idea of being able to buy someone and not have to wonder if someone's stuck their finger in it. I'm almost positive that the MAC SA's at Nordstrom don't stick their fingers in the Fluidlines when they're bored. Almost. But, what about those tween-age girls who seem to be confused about whether it's okay to sample a product before buying it at the drugstore? Please carefully check your liner before you buy it! I know I have!