A love/hate relationship: Max Factor Smokey Eye Effect eyeshadow in Silver Storm

As promised on my last entry, the talk of this post is going to be a product that I love to hate and hate to love: Max Factor eyeshadow duo in Silver Storm (pls excuse that it's one word on the photos, it was late when I edited them).

Perhaps that rings a bell to some of you and allow me to remind you why: it was one of the (most popular) shades in their Smokey Eye Effect eyeshadow range, released last autumn. Those crayon eyeshadow duos claimed to make the smoky eye a fuss-free process that wouldn't require any brushes or major expert skills.

Now, obviously that's not why I bought this, I'm aware that a decent smoky eye requires makeup tools and frequent practice, I'm not delusional. What I am is a...sucker for a new product that comes in pretty shades, an experiment that, let me just say, doesn't always end in a success!

But more on that in a second. So, Silver Storm is a cool toned eyeshadow duo, consisting of a shimmery grey silver and a dusty purple grey colour. The silver end is rounded and it's meant to be used all over the lid, while the purple end is tapered at the tip for more precise work.

The colour combination is beautiful in my opinion, even though it's probably a little too much "inspired" by NARS Habanera duo (which I sadly do not own and cannot compare side by side). But ideal, nonetheless for those with a lighter complexion like myself!

And that's all well and good until the ultimate moment of truth that we call application!

You see, it's a task (and a half) to make this product sorta work: the shadow refuses to apply smoothly and evenly - what you're left with is an uneven film of colour that has a tendency to go patchy at places. Not sure if that's noticeable on the pictures, but it's there in real life and it makes layering (the purple over the grey for creasework for example) an absolute nightmare! Safe to say, no smoky eye can be achieved with this product! Which is why I just used the darker colour as a top-and-bottom liner shade.

The pigmentation is a let-down as well, you can see the huge difference from my hand swatch.

And, to make matters even worse, the shadow doesn't last more than a couple of hours without creasing. Over eyeshadow primer, that is, and my eyelids don't even go that oily during the day!

All in all, quite a dissapointment!

Too bad, because it could have been an amazing product!

Have you tried any of those eyeshadow duos and what did you think?

And I'm curious, have there been any makeup products that you've tried recently that didn't deliver?