Hey everyone! Kristin and I have teamed up for a four-part series of Collection Spotlight posts on the beautiful matte eyeshadows from Blackbird Cosmetics. Kristin did all the fantastic swatch photos you'll see throughout the posts (thank you, Kristin!), and I've added my comments and comparison eye looks.
Disclosure notes: Brand owner Maleah sent me samples of her original (old formula) line of eyeshadows when we were paired up for a gift exchange in 2014. Maleah recently asked if she could send me press samples of the new formula, and specifically requested a comparison of the old and new formulas. We were not otherwise compensated for this series of posts.
Disclosure notes: Brand owner Maleah sent me samples of her original (old formula) line of eyeshadows when we were paired up for a gift exchange in 2014. Maleah recently asked if she could send me press samples of the new formula, and specifically requested a comparison of the old and new formulas. We were not otherwise compensated for this series of posts.
To test the shadows, I did the same eye look on both eyes; one uses the old formula and the other uses the new formula. I used the same brushes (rubbed clean on a paper towel between eyes) and attempted to use approximately the same amount of eyeshadow and blending effort to minimize variables. I applied Urban Decay Primer Potion to both eyes, but skipped my normal step of a base shadow in order to test how the Blackbird shadows all blended without assistance. I also skipped my normal tightlining and mascara so all you're looking at is the shadows.
Both eyes show Dog Days on the lid, Fiction in the outer crease, Beau smudged along the upper lashline, Fire Pledge smudged along the lower lashline, and Dim Tradition as a browbone and inner corner highlight.
Old formula:
In general, I could see more contrast in the new formula eye between Beau (upper lashline), Dog Days (lid), and Fiction (crease), which means it looked cleaner and a little more complex than the old formula eye. The old formula eye looked a little muddy up close; it looked just fine from normal viewing distance, but it looked darker than the new formula eye despite my best efforts to use the same amount of product on each eye.
I think the general trend for this set of Blackbird shadows is they are lighter in color and... not necessarily less pigmented, but the intensity has been dialed down a bit to provide greater contrast between similar shades. For this set of five, I think I'd call the reformulation a success. We'll see how the other fifteen shake out!
Both eyes show Dog Days on the lid, Fiction in the outer crease, Beau smudged along the upper lashline, Fire Pledge smudged along the lower lashline, and Dim Tradition as a browbone and inner corner highlight.
Old formula:
New formula:
I think the general trend for this set of Blackbird shadows is they are lighter in color and... not necessarily less pigmented, but the intensity has been dialed down a bit to provide greater contrast between similar shades. For this set of five, I think I'd call the reformulation a success. We'll see how the other fifteen shake out!
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From the website: Reddened dark brown.
Eye Shadow Ingredients: Talc, Titanium Dioxide, Magnesium Myristrate, Iron Oxides, Boron Nitride, Isoeicosane, Zinc Stearate, Mica, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Alkyl Benzoate, Lauryl Laurate, Caranauba Wax, Tocopherol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Jojoba Oil, Meadowfoam Seed Oil
Vegan & cruelty free. Eye, lip & face safe.
Personal Comments: The new version of Beau is a little warmer (redder) than the old version. Other than the color change, I don't notice much difference in pigmentation or performance between these two - they're both buildable and blendable.
Applied over Urban Decay Primer Potion This picture was taken outside in natural light.
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From the website: Light, whitened natural golden beige.
Eye Shadow Ingredients: Talc, Titanium Dioxide, Magnesium Myristrate, Iron Oxides, Boron Nitride, Isoeicosane, Zinc Stearate, Mica, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Alkyl Benzoate, Lauryl Laurate, Caranauba Wax, Tocopherol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Jojoba Oil, Meadowfoam Seed Oil
Vegan & cruelty free. Eye, lip & face safe.
Personal Comments: The new version of Dim Tradition is slightly brighter and more white/less tan than the old version, so it stands out a bit better against Kristin's and my warm skin tones. This means it makes a more noticeable brow highlight on my skin tone, as you'll see in the eye look above. I also find the new version blends more easily than the old version.
Applied over Urban Decay Primer Potion. This picture was taken outside in natural light.
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From the website: Medium, mid toned exactly neutral brown.
Eye Shadow Ingredients: Talc, Titanium Dioxide, Magnesium Myristrate, Iron Oxides, Boron Nitride, Isoeicosane, Zinc Stearate, Mica, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Alkyl Benzoate, Lauryl Laurate, Caranauba Wax, Tocopherol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Jojoba Oil, Meadowfoam Seed Oil
Vegan & cruelty free. Eye, lip & face safe.
Personal Comments: The new version of Dog Days is definitely lighter in color and less intense than the old version. It also looks notably smoother on the lid - it smooths over creasing and texture a lot better than the old version. Though I used it as a lid shade in the eye looks above, I've noticed it's easier to blend out in the crease, which is how I usually use it.
Applied over Urban Decay Primer Potion. This picture was taken outside in natural light.
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From the website: Perfect dark gray.
Eye Shadow Ingredients: Talc, Titanium Dioxide, Magnesium Myristrate, Iron Oxides, Boron Nitride, Isoeicosane, Zinc Stearate, Mica, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Alkyl Benzoate, Lauryl Laurate, Caranauba Wax, Tocopherol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Jojoba Oil, Meadowfoam Seed Oil
Vegan & cruelty free. Eye, lip & face safe.
Personal Comments: The new version of Fiction appears somewhat lighter on the face than the old version, and it can look just a little chalky until I fully build it up. Even with the reformulation I don't think Fiction is as good at blending as the other colors; in the eye look above you can see a line of demarcation where both versions didn't quite want to blend out. This would likely be helped with a base shadow over the primer, but I stuck to just primer in the eye look below to see how they performed without any blending assistance.
Applied over Urban Decay Primer Potion. This picture was taken outside in natural light.
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From the website: Vibrant orange.
Eye Shadow Ingredients: Talc, Titanium Dioxide, Magnesium Myristrate, Iron Oxides, Boron Nitride, Isoeicosane, Zinc Stearate, Mica, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Alkyl Benzoate, Lauryl Laurate, Caranauba Wax, Tocopherol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Jojoba Oil, Meadowfoam Seed Oil
Vegan & cruelty free. Eye, lip & face safe.
Personal Comments: The old and new verisons of Fire Pledge look pretty much identical on the eye in terms of pigmentation and color. The main difference I see is the new version of Fire Pledge starts diffusing out with just a stroke or two, whereas the old version seems to stay right where it's placed. This means the new version looks softer than the old version, but also means the new version might need a little more care when you're attempting a precise placement. The only blending I did in the eye look above was a few strokes with a smudge brush per eye, so you can judge for yourself how they differ.
Applied over Urban Decay Primer Potion. This picture was taken outside in natural light.
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Links to the rest of the Blackbird reformulation series: Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
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