Sunday Swatches: Estee Lauder Pure Color Metallics 2013 Review

Estee Lauder has been one of the beauty industry's most established brand for over 60 years now and though I've never really blogged about individual products, it's been cropping up in my makeup wardrobe a lot more these days as I've found the brand is more appealing to both younger and maturer customers.

My most reached for foundation every day is now the Estee Lauder Invisible Fluid foundation (which I will be doing a foundation post on very soon!)

Colour Cosmetics
Pure Color has been a range of colour makeup for the eyes, lips, nails and face for a while and this Holiday 2013 has included the new Pure Color Metallics which feature new:

• High Intensity Lip Lacquers - 12 shades
• Vivid Shine Nail Lacquers - 8 shades
• Vivid Shine Lipsticks - 6 shades
• Instant Intense Eyeshadow Trios - 9 shades 

Although I'm more of a lipstick girl these days, the High Intensity Lip Lacquers (HILLs) caught my eye as they promise the full impact of a lipstick, but with hydrating ingredients that last on the lips.
The Intense Eyeshadow Trios (IIETs) also had my attention as some of them sparkle so brightly, and being a magpie attracts me to things like that!

I've picked my favourite shades from the collection this year to review; of the Lip Lacquers I loved the bright orange "Melting Sun" which has flecks of glitter in it, and also the plummy "Wet Plum" which has no shimmer or glitter.
Of the Eyeshadow Trios the one that stuck out most to me was the Steel Lilacs trio as it's both purple and super sparkly.

High Intensity Lip Lacquers

As aforementioned, these glosses hold all the pigmentation of a lipstick but with super shine and hydration that lasts on the lips.

Colour & Pigmentation: The pigmentation of these glosses are pretty amazing, they do have a major colour payoff and with the brighter shades (like Melting Sun and Wet Plum), they can even stain a little (see non-lip swatches in Intense Eyeshadow Trios review below).
Texture: The texture is quite thick and while I wouldn't say it's really sticky, there is a slight "stick" to it for those who aren't keen on that kind of texture.
Packaging: The classic gold lids with the embossed "EL" logos give a feeling of luxury, whilst the paddle type plastic applicator is curved in the middle to hold a reservoir of gloss and also serves as a fairly precise applicator for the cupids bow area.
Longevity: This Lip Lacquer is said to last up to 6 hours, however I felt the glossiness/stickiness wore away after about an hour or so, but the stain (particularly in Wet Plum) meant the colour was still on the lips at least 3 hours later with eating and drinking.
Scent: I love the scent of these as it's a sweet sugary smell!
Price: At £21 each, they are a more premium price than your regular lipgloss, however because of the lipstick/gloss hybrid and longevity, it's definitely one that would be good to stick in your handbag for everyday if you wanted, or for going out equally.

FrootiFactor: Despite the fact I'm not usually a gloss kind of girl, I adore the scent and colour saturation/pigmentation in these Lip Lacquers, so I'd give them at least a 4:

Instant Intense Eyeshadow Trios

These eyeshadow trios are designed to highlight and define the eyes and contain a little clear plastic guide on where to apply the shadows on the eye to do so:

Colour & Pigmentation: This particular eyeshadow trio was very sparkly and had fairly high pigmentation despite the sparkle (see swatches above). It's hard to try and capture the true sparkliness of this trio but you can see a bit from the middle picture above that it's pretty damned glitzy.
Texture: Due to the glitteriness of the shadows, they are a bit crumblier than a normal eyeshadow, however I find these type of shadows apply best with the finger.
Packaging: Again, the shadows are encased in the classic gold EL packaging with a handy mirror in the lid. The applicator is a regular spongy one.
Longevity: These trios are supposed to last 10 hours but I haven't quite tested that out yet as I'm yet to wear the shadow for that long; the glitter did however stick to my arm fairly well after applying with no primer, so it may well be true!
Price: At £27 each, they are a again a slightly premium price to pay for a trio of eyeshadows, but would make a lovely gift for a true Estee Lauder fan and of course a fan of sparkle, particularly for Christmas!

FrootiFactor: I loved the sparkliness of the shadows, however I found the texture quite dry to work with, so I'd give the shadows a 3-3.5 out of 5:

Estee Lauder products are available to buy from the Estee Lauder website, as well as the regular department stores (Debenhams, House Of Fraser, John Lewis etc) and Boots.

Which is your favourite Estee Lauder product and why?