I received two of Za's new Dramatic Eye Color palettes and Wide Eyes Mascara courtesy of Shiseido to review. This is the first time that I'm trying Za products. Za is quite a popular drugstore brand in Singapore, especially for their 2-way powder foundations which work well in Singapore's tropical climate.
There are five Dramatic Eye Color palettes (S$19.90 each) and these are supposed to be available in Watsons starting from 28 January. (Watsons is currently having a 20% discount on Za.) These are formulated with a "Poreless Powder" for a smooth even finish, plus Vitamin E to help nourish the skin. Not surprisingly, I found the texture of the eyeshadows to be very similar to Majolica Majorca, which is also owned by Shiseido, except that the Za palettes are made in China while Majolica Majorca's palettes are made in Japan.
I received the Green and Gold palettes. These also come in Purple, Blue and Silver. The texture is smooth, finely milled with a soft glimmer which makes these suitable for work. There are no chunky glitter bits and the texture is not overly powdery. I've only tried the Green palette and found that the level of pigment varies between the shades. The light gold-tinged beige and dark green shade are the most pigmented and show up well from the very first layer, while the two shades in the middle took a few more layers to get them to show up.
Each palette comes with a dual-ended sponge tip applicator. These work quite well in terms of 'packing' on the colour but for a more polished finish, I had to use a makeup brush to blend the shades at the end.
Like most gradational palette, working out how to apply the various shades is virtually idiot-proof and the shades apply and blend easily with one another.
The Wide Eyes Mascara has a very fine comb applicator that is supposed to help separate the lashes. There are no fibre-clumps, plus it is smudge-proof and waterproof. It is formulated with Lash Treatment Ingredient and Vitamin E, and Gloss Oil for glossy, vivid colour. It is made in Japan and assembled in Taiwan.
What I liked about the mascara is that the comb applicator comes out of the tube without too much excess product and it applies very cleanly and smoothly. There was zero clumping even after combing the applicator through my lashes several times. It helped to separate and add length to my lashes and did not weigh down my lashes, but was less impressive in terms of the volumising effect.
The mascara lasted well over 8 hours of wear without smudging or flaking. As it is waterproof, it should be removed with a cleansing oil. I also liked the jet black shade which has no hint of ashiness or grey.
The eyeshadows also lasted quite well with minimal creasing (I used Urban Decay Primer Potion as the base).
I'll review the Gold palette separately.
There are five Dramatic Eye Color palettes (S$19.90 each) and these are supposed to be available in Watsons starting from 28 January. (Watsons is currently having a 20% discount on Za.) These are formulated with a "Poreless Powder" for a smooth even finish, plus Vitamin E to help nourish the skin. Not surprisingly, I found the texture of the eyeshadows to be very similar to Majolica Majorca, which is also owned by Shiseido, except that the Za palettes are made in China while Majolica Majorca's palettes are made in Japan.
I received the Green and Gold palettes. These also come in Purple, Blue and Silver. The texture is smooth, finely milled with a soft glimmer which makes these suitable for work. There are no chunky glitter bits and the texture is not overly powdery. I've only tried the Green palette and found that the level of pigment varies between the shades. The light gold-tinged beige and dark green shade are the most pigmented and show up well from the very first layer, while the two shades in the middle took a few more layers to get them to show up.
Each palette comes with a dual-ended sponge tip applicator. These work quite well in terms of 'packing' on the colour but for a more polished finish, I had to use a makeup brush to blend the shades at the end.
Like most gradational palette, working out how to apply the various shades is virtually idiot-proof and the shades apply and blend easily with one another.
The Wide Eyes Mascara has a very fine comb applicator that is supposed to help separate the lashes. There are no fibre-clumps, plus it is smudge-proof and waterproof. It is formulated with Lash Treatment Ingredient and Vitamin E, and Gloss Oil for glossy, vivid colour. It is made in Japan and assembled in Taiwan.
What I liked about the mascara is that the comb applicator comes out of the tube without too much excess product and it applies very cleanly and smoothly. There was zero clumping even after combing the applicator through my lashes several times. It helped to separate and add length to my lashes and did not weigh down my lashes, but was less impressive in terms of the volumising effect.
The mascara lasted well over 8 hours of wear without smudging or flaking. As it is waterproof, it should be removed with a cleansing oil. I also liked the jet black shade which has no hint of ashiness or grey.
The eyeshadows also lasted quite well with minimal creasing (I used Urban Decay Primer Potion as the base).
I'll review the Gold palette separately.
4 comments:
wow, you are becoming the spokewoman of ZA..must be feeling good they are sending you freebie to review..that show you have power in blog!
shake hand, shake hand, congrats :)
hi nobi,
I'm not a spokesperson for ZA and I don't get paid for these reviews. ZA only provided the products, and they had no idea what I would write about them.
omgah! hi, new follower here. XD i just saw that you have the same kind of eyeliner-eating* asian monolid i do!!! (so of course i followed right away) do you have any tips? XD
*i mean, you put eyeliner on but once you open your eye you can't see it anymore xD on my eyes this generally means i get a loooot of smudging / transfer...
hi pfefi,
For eyeliner, I try to use smudgeproof/water-resistant/long-lasting liners like Maquillage Gel Eyeliner, Majolica Majorca Neo Automatic Liner or Stila Smudge Pot. These eyeliners last very well over several hours of wear, after they dry, and do not smudge or transfer.
For my eyelid shape, I have to draw the liner along my upper eyelid with a width of about 2-3mm, so that the eyeliner is visible when I open my eyes. It's quite easy to get the hang of it, with a bit of practice with eyeliners that don't dry too quickly but instead give you some time to work with. You can look through my EOTD posts to get an idea of how I draw the eyeliner. Hope that helps!
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