Sugarpill Cosmetics review
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Color lovers – take a look at your new favorite line
photos: we heart this
If there is one thing we’re learned over the years on this beauty obsessed blog, it’s that makeup fiends love color. Bright, vivid, deeply pigmented color. If you are a fellow color fanatic, let us introduce you to Sugarpill Cosmetics.
The story behind this knock out line is a “Glam Girl Makes Good in the Beauty Industry” tale after our own heart. This collection of loose and pressed powders was founded by the uniquely stylish Amy, creator of the wildly colorful clothing line called Shrinkle, inspired by “vintage dance costumes and lingerie, Japanese street fashion, and toddler beauty pageants.” Finding that the usual makeup lines didn’t pack enough punch, Amy formulated the Sugarpill shadows to compliment her sweet and edgy fashions.
Saying “Hi” to the one and only Amy at IMATS LA – June 2011
Launched in just 2010, Sugarpill Cosmetics quickly built a word of mouth/internet cult following, Amy has an ever growing army of fans. As a company, Sugarpill offers cruelty-free cosmetics in eye popping hues with many vegan friendly options – all at an affordable price.
While I adore brightly colored eye shadows, I have to admit that I was a bit intimidated upon opening Sugarpill’s Addicted to Beauty 4 Color Palette in Sweetheart ($34). This palette contains four large pans of pressed shadows; Midori, Afterparty, Tako, and Dollipop. I warn you, these are not subdued hues…
As you can see, these shades are bright and vivid and pretty much demand to be worn. And who am I to say “No”? Once I started playing with these shades, I found Sugarpill’s pressed shadows have an awesome, velvety texture, which makes them completely blendable.
Right to left: Dollipop, Afterparty, Midori, Tako
Dollipop, a neon pink, seems scary at first, but is fun to play with. While Afterparty, a true and bright blue begs to be used. (I found that Afterparty blends beautifully with Dollipop to make a great purple.) Midori, an intense grass green, really pops (and I love pairing it with Afterparty for a teal effect).
Tako is a pigmented white that is the best highlighter I’ve used. This is a true white, great for those of us with pale skin – it creates a great canvas to build upon. Tako has become a stable in my eye routine for any colorful eye look.
As far as packaging – Sugarpill has it together when it comes to flair. Bright pink graphics demand attention on a sturdy black, flip style compact with a large mirror inside. I’m a fan of substantial palettes that I can feel confident throwing in my purse. This palette is wonderful, with all the hues working together, and makes a great intro to the company.
Not sold on this exact foursome? All four colors (and more) can be purchased separately in individual pans of Pressed Eyeshadows.
Pressed Eyeshadow in Poison Plum
Featuring more intense hues, like Poison Plum above, this carefully culled collection (nine hues and growing) offers pressed shadows at just $12 a pan.
But where Sugarpill really shines is in their Loose Eyeshadow collection. Offering a dizzying array of unique colors, these powders are full of sparkle and life – and on the face of every It Kid and Drag Queen in town.
Absinthe – A mischievous vivid lime green with yellow undertones.
Weekender – Metallic blue-violet with intense sparkle and sheen.
Magpie – Dramatic silky black with metallic blue sheen and turquoise sparkles.
Loose Eyeshadows: Absinthe, Weekender, Magpie
I had the chance to try Sugarpill’s ChromaLust loose shadow in Weekender, a blue-based, metallic lavender. Like most loose, pigmented shadows this color is build-able. You can have a sheer wash of color or a deep hued, sparkly purple.
Plus while there’s always some fall out with loose powders, once these are set the color and sparkles stays put. Of course, a great primer and careful application always helps too!
Goldilux – Brilliant, highly-reflective metallic gold with breathtaking shine.
Stella – The blackest of jet blacks, bursting with rainbow diamond sparkle.
Darling – Stunning teal loaded with iridescent turquoise star bursts.
Loose Eyeshadows: Goldilux, Stella, Darling
These 5g containers hold a lot of shadow at a good price, $12 per pot. Plus with loose shadows like these, I always just tip the container while still closed and just use what clings to the lid. This makes it last forever and gives me just the right amount of product without worrying about sneezing and blowing pretty purple powder everywhere.
Sugarpill’s bright colors and glitter are perfect for parties and night time events. in fact, pairing a little black dress with a sparkly clutch and bright colored eyes was my holiday look this year.
we heartsters – what do you think about Sugarpill’s color saturated shadows? Intimidating or the perfect party accessory?
Lucy loves Lady Gaga, lattes, trashy television and anything zombies. She’s a geeky girl who likes tech gadgets, reading tons of books, playing with gender roles and is constantly surrounded by a small army of cats.
Disclosure: This review includes products that were provided by the manufacturer/PR firm for our consideration. For more info, or any questions, please see our disclosure policy.
I had my first brush with Sugarpill at last summers IMATS – and I’ve got to say even I was a bit intimidated by the boldness of these colors. But with a little experimenting, and a little chat with Amy (her colorful, playful style is so inspiring – I love how she can play to the extremes yet still look pretty and feminine) I was sold. While the make up colors are bright – they are also blendable and flattering and totally usable.
I’m loving the look of the Sweetheart palette – I’m forever on the search for the perfect white so Tako must be seen, plus Midori and Afterparty look like fantastic eyeliners.
I’ve been meaning to try Sugarpill for a while. I actually remember coming across Shrinkle many years ago and loving the playful, bright designs of Amy’s creations. This is just a reminder that I need to order myself some Sugarpill! Thinking Stella will make an awesome liner :)
I have NO idea why I haven’t tried Superpill yet. I usually stick to more neutral colors, even in MAC, but I’m SLOWLY learning the benefit of a nice bright color as an accent or liner. Poison Plum and Goldilux are callin’ my name!
I also love seeing the face behind a brand, Amy is SO ADORABLE!!
Ok, first of all – what fun to swatch these! It was like a crayon box (occasionally mixed with a shaker of the finest, prettiest glitter ever).
I tested Goldilux, a dark gold. Oh, it’s so, so good! It’s loaded with shimmer and micro glitter, and it’s the perfect shade of dirty gold. And my god, the pigment! You need the tiniest amount and I found if you pat it on, you get totally opaque coverage. Patting also minimizes fall out. Plus, these seem to have almost a slightly creamy feel to them, so it’s not a gritty kind of glitter (which I think has the worse fall out, that gritty stuff).
And while some of these colors seem a bit out there for your average every day use (you know, going to work and stuff!) you can use them in small doses; as a liner or just a dot on the inner eye and they’re very wearable.
5 stars without a doubt. I feel an obsession forming!
I can’t wait to get some of these! Amazing vibrant happy colors!
I got to test out the Absinthe shade–wow, does that pack a punch of color! The color payoff is intense–almost TOO intense for this over 30 gal. The color was a deep mint shade with quite a bit of shimmer–it really made my eyes pop. I applied this two different ways–dry and wet (foiled). I thought the dry version gave the most subtle application–a sheer, yet intense wash of green across my lids. Foiled–I pretty much need to be going to a party or wearing a costume to pull that off because it’s just a little much. In any case, while this is definitely not an everyday eye shadow for me, it is definitely a fun addition to my shadow stash. The only point I’m deducting from this is for staying power–this didn’t last long dry and traveled like crazy when I foiled it. 4 stars for me!
Amy is just so cute, and she pulls off the bright colors so well!
I tested out Magpie. It’s a gorgeous color, a deep navy black shimmer. It’s really versatile and can be worn wet or dry, depending on the intensity you desire. The packaging is fun and punk-y, which I love. And the price is amazing for the amount of product you get and for the quality. My only complaint is one that I have with all loose shadows–it’s potentially messy. If you’re accident prone like me, you might want to stick with their pressed shades! I spilled a bit of Magpie loose shadow all over my makeup bag :( If there were a sifter, that might help…However, the benefits greatly outweigh the cons, and I’ll definitely be snatching up more products soon! Four stars.
I had the chance to try Poison Plum which was so incredibly pigmented at first swipe! While I can’t pull off a bold purple eye, I can surely use this as a liner which would just be the perfect splash of color without overdoing it! It wore okay for me when I tried it as a liner. While I probably can’t wear these colors everyday just due to my eyemakeup choices, I still find these to be incredibly fun and experimental. I’m going to give this product 4 stars :)
My “to-buy” list includes Goldilux, Tiara, Junebug, Magpie, Absinthe, Hysteric and Darling. I’ve also begun doing a normal smokey eye and brushing a wash of Weekender on top of it, looks great and more subtle.
Awww, Amy is so cute! I actually remember being “introduced” to Amy by Twinkie of SG fame back in the day. (By introduced I mean that I stalked one blog to fine the other, hehe.) I was slightly obsessed with her back in 2007-ish and was thrilled when I heard she had a makeup line coming out! I’ve used a friend’s stash before and I love it. The colors tend to be a little too wild and pigmented for me to wear every day, but for a night out it’s a blast!
Oh, and the tipping the jar over and using just what sticks to the cap? I TOTALLY do that! It’s the perfect amount, every time.
I have to say, the only thing that makes me sad about Sugarpill is that I don’t own the whole collection! I am completely in love with Goldilux and have to use it in every look. And Buttercupcake is beautiful! I can’t wait to save up for my next splurge, it’s totally worth the shipping to the UK. Cannot rave about them enough! In fact I had to buy some as a present for a friend.
And Amy is adorable! I followed her as Shrinkle for years and always loved her.
As someone who has wanted to experiment with more colored eye shadow, I was thrilled (and a little intimidated) to receive Darling. That bright teal looked so exciting but I had no idea what I was going to do with it! I tried it a couple of different ways – a line just above my upper eyeliner, as eyeliner alone below my eye and as a straight eye shadow. It gave an awesome pop of color to my look both day and night! I tried it wet also which was super intense but so fun! And it lasted quite a long time. I would definitely love to try other colors too like Absinthe or Weekender. Day or night, these are super fun and definitely worth it! 5 stars for me!