High End Beauty: Trying Out Stila Makeup - Review & Swatches

Stila are a makeup brand that I've always been curious about, but never really looked into properly. To remedy this, I was invited to have a special one-to-one makeover with one of their lead makeup artists and these are some of the products that were used on me.

 Stila HUGE Extreme Lash Mascara* (13ml, £18, link)

I'm not usually one to splash out on high-end mascaras, mainly because I feel you don't really need to spend a lot to get a good one on the high street these days. That said, I can see myself saving up the pounds to repurchase this in the future if I was in a feeling spendy mood. Packaged in a supersized chunky tube in blingin' gold, this mascara features an equally supersized bristle brush. It looks like it's going to poke your eyes out in ten seconds flat, but rest assured, the curved design allows you to evenly coat each and every lash without any eye poking shenanigans. 

Great pigmentation, smudge proof, adds volume and length like a dream and best of all, it gives you BIG lashes minus the clumping. My only slight bugbear with this mascara is that it's quite difficult to remove (not as bad as Benefit's They're Real mascara but still annoying), so you definitely need to use a dedicated eye makeup remover with it. Stays put all day and night though!

 Stila Convertible Colour in Lillium* (4.25g, £16, link)

Stila's Convertible Colours are much loved in the beauty blogging and Youtube world, and now I can see what all the hype is about for myself. These dual purpose cream lip and cheek colours are simply gorgeous! I love how the packaging directly corresponds to the colour that you find inside, and I think the embossed floral design is really cute too. Product wise, this cream blusher is easy to blend and work with, and you only need a tiny amount each time. The cream doesn't really set as such (this isn't a typical cream to powder formula at all), so instead you end up with a slightly dewy, healthy looking glow to your cheeks that really helps to lift and brighten up your complexion. I've tried them on my lips and thought they were OK, but I'd definitely just use them more as a cream blusher personally.

The shade I have is one of Stila's bestsellers; 'Lillium' is one of those classic nude pinks that you can happily wear everyday. No shimmer or glitter, just simple plain goodness that's long-lasting too. I like to apply these with either my fingers or a stippling brush and I'm good to go.   

 Stila Eyes Are The Window Shadow Palette in Soul* (12 shades, £30, link)

You guys know that I'm a sucker for a pretty eyeshadow palette, so naturally this palette gets 10/10 for aesthetics alone. It features a dual tone metallic exterior (a rose gold lid complete with Stila logo embossing, all set on a gold base) and there's a large mirror inside for some serious posing whilst you do your touch ups. 

Inside the Soul palette, you'll find 12 eyeshadow shades, all from the warm-toned, earthy, neutral side of the colour spectrum that's sort of similar to the Urban Decay Naked Palette 3. The eyeshadows in here all feel silky soft to the touch, however I found that different shades performed better than others. The 5 matte shades were a little chalky and powdery if I'm honest, which made them difficult to work with, but the other 7 shimmery shades were much, much better. Here's an overall rundown of the shades included:-

1. Light (matte - light beige) - this is one of the better matte shades and a good all over base to brighten up the eye, as well as useful in the inner corner and under the brow to highlight with.
2. Individual (matte - warm medium brown) - wasn't feeling this colour much, a little too orange toned for my liking and not so great pigmentation.
3. Being (matte - warm dark brown) - good colour but felt very chalky, though looked good with an eyeshadow primer underneath.
4. Kitten (shimmer - beige pink) - gorgeous shade, really loved this one! Applied beautifully.
5. Affection (shimmer - warm medium brown) - this was like a shimmer version of Individual but more coppery and easier to work with.
6. Character (shimmer - dark brown with copper) - Character has more of a satin finish to it than a true shimmer and the metallic copper glitter was a little too chunky for my liking.
7. Thought (shimmer - medium bronze brown) - beautiful brown, great all over lid base with even pigmentation.
8. Heart (shimmer - warm rosy brown) - difficult to blend on its own but fine over a primer.
9. Peace (matte - medium coppery brown) - pretty colour but felt a little chalky and powdery.
10. Vitality (shimmer - classic light gold) - gorgeous shade, really 'popped' over a primer!
11. Substance (shimmer - warm toned taupe) - really loved this one, especially for a smokey eye and it blended beautifully.
12. Essence - (matte - medium dark black) very chalky and powdery, definitely needs a primer underneath. 

Whilst the packaging of this palette is undeniably beautiful, the eyeshadows themselves are sadly very hit and miss for a luxury product of this price point. I'll happily use several of the shades (especially Kitten, Thought, Vitality and Substance), but there are a few too many that I feel I won't personally get any use out of or that are a little too troublesome to work with. Swings and roundabouts with this one!

Swatches!

Are you a fan of Stila? 

Have you used any of their makeup?

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