My top 5 fave cream eye shadows

(Stay tuned for something special at the end of this post!)

So I spoke briefly about my love for all things cream in this post recently and I promised that I would deliver a follow up on my favorite cream products. I realize now that including all my current favorites in one post would be too long-winded and ambitious. I will be dividing them up in separate posts starting first with my top 5 fave cream eye shadows here.

I decided to start my list with the more expensive items and work my way down from there. Other than that, the following products are no particular order; I love them all equally. This is more about my affinity for particular formulas and cream textures, rather than for specific colors. (Yes, all the following happen to be varying shades of brown, but that’s what I wear most on the day to day.)

1. Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick (farthest left-hand corner in above photo).

– Retails for $30.00

– Available in 18 shades online in varying finishes.

This might be my most recent discovery out of this particular list of products and it’s absolutely amazing! Creamy, smooth and a synch to blend out either with your finger or a buffing brush. It barely tugs at your lids and the lasting power is unbeatable. The official claim on wear time from the Bobbi Brown site is 8 hours, but on me this has lasted up to 12 hours at times.

I’ve brought this with me on several trips in varying climates, and it’s barely if at all creased after all-day wear. Additionally it’s a retractable stick and what beats that? For that reason it’s probably the most convenient of all the products on this list. I have 2 colors in my collection, Taupe and Nude Beach, and both are beautiful. I definitely want to try more!

2. MAC Cosmetics Pro Longwear Paint Pot (right-hand side of ‘shadow-diamond’ in above photo).

– Retails for $22.00

– Available in 7 shades online, but I could swear MAC sells more shades in-store (?). 

This is an OG favorite for me. I remember using my first Painterly Paint Pot back in my high school or college days when I wore it mainly on its own as a nude shadow. Now I use Paint Pots almost exclusively as eye bases for powder shadows. I’ve used other products specifically marketed as ‘eye primers’ like Urban Decay Primer Potion for instance, but I’ve always come back to Paint Pots in the end. They are quick, creamy and best of all they keep my shadows in place all day without creasing.

The official claim on wear time from MAC’s site is 15 hours; they’re also listed as water-resistant. I’m currently out of Painterly so I’m working my way through Camel Coat, a light taupey brown color which is lovely. I used to wear some of the darker shades as shadows, but they always seemed a bit harder to blend so I usually stay away from those now.

3. L’Oreal 24 HR Infallible Shadow (top of ‘shadow-diamond in top photo).

– Retails for $7.99

– Available in 24 shades online. 

This one has been hanging around in my collection for years (don’t worry, not this particular one!). After they first launched I bought the Infallible Shadows in so many different colors because I was absolutely in love with the texture. Since then I wittled down my collection to just the Bronzed Taupe shade pictured above as it’s my ultimate favorite.

L’Oreal describes the consistency as ‘powder to cream’ and I completely agree. It’s almost like a pressed pigment or shadow that glides across the eye effortlessly and sets just like a cream. I’ve never noticed any creasing on this product ever, and I’ve worn it through many long days during all seasons of the year. And I’m never wearing a primer underneath! As is stated in the name, the official claim on wear is 24 hours but I’ve, um, never tested that (does anyone wear makeup for 24 hours??). It’s also listed on L’Oreal’s site as waterproof, which I would agree with.

4. Maybelline 24HR ColorTattoo Eye Shadow in either the pot or crayon versions (left-hand side of ‘shadow-diamond in top photo).

– Retails for $6.99

– Available in 14 shades in varying finishes in the pots & 6 shades in the crayons. 

Like the L’Oreal Infallible shadows, the Maybelline ColorTattoos have been knocking around my collection for years since they initially launched just a few colors in the original gel finish. It was one of my first experiences using such a mega long-lasting cream shadow; before that I mainly used powder shadows or just the MAC Paint Pots. I first fell in love with Tough as Taupe and Bad to the Bronze but since the pots can often dry up after a while, I switched over to the Concentrated Crayon version when they first launched. Those are lovely and creamy, and even easier to use since they are retractable.

However, when I discovered Creamy Beige from the Leather Collection, I found myself favoring the pots again! I wear this color quite frequently all on its own, and I’ve read in several places that it’s a low-cost dupe for MAC’s Groundwork Paint Pot, but I cannot attest to that myself. I didn’t see a waterproof claim on Maybelline’s site but these suckers latch on tight all day so I wouldn’t be surprised if they are.

5. Revlon ColorStay Creme Eye Shadow (bottom of shadow-diamond in top photo).

– Retails for $6.97 at Walmart as of 5/30/18

– Available in 18 shades online.

This is a slightly newer addition to my cream shadow collection but a good one! I presently own 2 in shades 720 and 715 and just like all the products listed above, this one is easily blendable and then locks into place for impeccable long-wear. The colors also keep their intensity throughout the day, which is ideal. Unlike any of the others, this has a nifty little brush built into the cap which must be great for on-the-go application but I’ve honestly never used it myself.

The official claim on wear time is 24 hours (really Revlon?), and again it’s listed as being waterproof. Side story: the first few times I applied shade 720 (which may be called Espresso?), it gave me MAC Quite Natural vibes but the texture is much, much easier and quicker to work with. I wouldn’t call the colors exact dupes of each other per se, but the tones are similar enough.

What are your favorite cream eye shadows?

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And completely unrelated to anything makeup, today is my Yellow Lab’s 9th birthday! Her name is Ava but we often call her any number of nicknames like Bear or Ava Bear or Chubby. She’s our sweetheart girl and every year we’ve been lucky enough to know her has flown by too fast. Happy Birthday darling Ava!!