Laura Mercier is a brand known for its high-quality, luxurious eyeshadows, and the African Violet shade is no exception. This review delves into the specifics of this popular color, exploring its texture, pigmentation, and versatility.
The Laura Mercier African Violet eyeshadow is a shimmering, almost glittery eye color with a smooth texture and light to buildable pigmentation. It's described as a "luster eye colour," providing a wash of shimmering color that illuminates the lid without being overly metallic. The formula is designed for long-wearing and crease-resistant performance, ensuring a freshly applied look throughout the day. Micronized pigments deliver deep color in a single stroke, and the ultra-refined texture provides a soft, luxurious feel.
Color and Finish
African Violet is often described as a versatile, subtle purple with a lovely shimmer. The color is amazing and falls between a dusty plum and a grey. On some skin tones, it appears more like an African Lavender - a delicate, warm-toned lavender with a shimmering light golden overtone.
The eyeshadow has an iridescent, sophisticated frost finish. To accentuate or heighten the color of the eyes, choose shades that offer a contrast so the eye color will stand out. The color is rich and goes on smoothly, making it worth every penny.
Texture and Application
The texture is buttery and smooth, never chalky or dusty, and it blends like a dream. The shadows in Laura Mercier palettes are exceptional in quality. You won’t find fallout-inevitable glitter riddled shadows here. The shadows are praised for their high quality, beautiful colors, and long-lasting wear.
Read also: Experience Fad's Fine African Cuisine
Here are some ways to use African Violet:
- Sweep it over the lid for a casual, easy look.
- Pop it into the inner corner or the center of the lid for a hint of lavender shimmer over another color.
- Layer it onto the lower lash line for an ethereal touch to an eye makeup look.
Comparisons to Other Shades
Compared to other similar shades, Laura Mercier's African Violet stands out for its unique qualities:
- Smashbox Amethyst: African Violet is lighter.
- Too Faced Passion: African Violet is less shimmery and darker.
- Kat Von D Love Letter: African Violet is more shimmery and lighter.
It's an interesting shade, but it seems to have production issues; you'll see a lot of love it or hate it kind of reviews. This was the smoothest and softest version I've come across, but the shimmer separates slightly when you start to blend it on the lid still. It lasted for seven hours on me before fading.
Laura Mercier Extreme Neutrals Palette
The Laura Mercier Extreme Neutrals Palette is a beautifully put together palette with a fabulous balance of warm and cool tones in a variety of finishes. The Laura Mercier Extreme Neutrals Palette has it down perfectly, with the ability to create several full eye looks with just the one palette. The palette itself is classic Laura Mercier in style: Chic, slim and with a great mirror.
The shades included are: Sparkling Dew, Guava, African Violet, Plum Smoke, Kir Royal, Violet Ink, Vanilla Nuts, Primrose, Fresco, Bamboo, Truffle, and Espresso Bean. All the shades are buttery smooth, pigmented, and apply very smoothly onto the lids without skipping across the skin. Even the darker, more matte colors are easy to work with.
Read also: The Story Behind Cachapas
The top row is organized into cool colors, while the bottom row features warm colors. The best part about this palette is that the colors coordinate well with one another, shades can be paired to your liking, and all the colors featured in the palette are usable and wearable.
Here's a look at the shades in the Top Row: Dune, Wind, Rock, Dust, Earth, Bone.
After absolutely loving the Artist Palette, I am thrilled to see the brand release another 12 shadow palette with equally incredible shadows that pair so beautifully with each other. We all know every brand and their dog is putting out a neutral palette or three, but I knew that Laura Mercier would nail it with the Extreme Neutrals Palette. You won’t find dusty mattes that don’t blend here. You won’t find shimmers that blend away to nothing. What you’ll get is a classically beautiful neutral based eyeshadow palette full of high-quality luxury eyeshadows from a brand that has ‘done’ neutrals for decades.
Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Colour - Amethyst
In addition to the African Violet eyeshadow, another standout product from Laura Mercier is the Caviar Stick Eye Colour in Amethyst. This comes in a sleek, swivel-up pen format, with a click on lid, in the same color as the eyeshadow compact. Amethyst is brown with lavender shimmer overtones. I’m probably explaining this quite badly, so let’s take a look at some swatches!
Amethyst has two very important features: firstly, it’s almost offensively wearable and easy to work with. You can use it as an all-over shadow, or as a liner. You can smudge the edges out, or not as you like. It doesn’t smear, and it doesn’t feel tight. The colour is never too much, but holds its own. Secondly, this thing wears like IRON. Seriously - even without primer (my lids aren’t especially oily), I wore this for FOURTEEN HOURS, two of which were intense, sweaty ballet, and when I looked in the mirror at the end of the day the caviar stick on my lash line was *perfect*. Not just ‘decent’, not just ‘respectable’, but *perfect*.
Read also: Techniques of African Jewellery
Essentially what I’m saying here is that Amethyst is phenomenal. It’s basically entered my daily routine, and competes even with the great and mighty UD Demolition. Obviously, they are two different kinds of product (Demolition is a matte dark brown pencil eyeliner), so one won’t replace the other, but I now have two things I reach for on a daily basis, and for me, that’s impressive!
Customer Reviews
The Laura Mercier Luster Eye Shadow in African Violet has garnered generally positive reviews. Here's a summary of what customers think:
- The eye shadows are praised for their high quality, beautiful colors, and long-lasting wear.
- Some customers report issues with color accuracy, stating the actual product did not match the online description or photos.
- The majority of reviewers are extremely satisfied with the eye shadows and consider them among the best on the market.
One customer described it as "This color is amazing. It’s between a dusty plum and a grey. The formula is great." Another praised it as a "Beautiful Lovely color, rich and goes on smoothly. Worth every penny."
Overall Ratings:
- 5 Stars: 32
- 4 Stars: 3
- 3 Stars: 3
- 2 Stars: 0
- 1 Star: 1
90% of customers would recommend this product.
Final Thoughts
Laura Mercier's African Violet eyeshadow is a versatile and beautiful shade that can be used to create a variety of looks. Its shimmering finish and buildable pigmentation make it a great addition to any makeup collection. Whether you're looking for an effortless everyday look or something more dramatic, African Violet is a shade that delivers.
