Almay Shadow Softies Review and Swatchfest

Product Description

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What these are: Almay Shadow Softies have a hypoallergenic, “whipped powder” formula that is supposed to feel super lightweight and “cushiony soft” while offering a sheer, crease-free wash of color.

Price/Quantity: About $5 for 2g / 0.07 oz.

Availability: Drugstores, Ulta, Target, Walmart (in store only), CVS, Walgreens, Amazon.com

Shade Range: 12 Shades

• Creme Brulee – Iridescent pale peach. Looks peachy in the pan but is mostly just a sheer wash of pale golden iridescence on the skin.
• Cashmere – Mostly-matte pale yellow. Sheer but does show up and lighten up my lid a bit.
• Honeydew – Iridescent pale yellow-green. Sheer wash of pale yellow-green iridescence.
• Moss – Golden-olive shimmer. Good color payoff, easy to build up. Has more of a frosty shimmer finish.
• Seafoam – Baby blue shimmer. Good color payoff, easy to build up. Not quite as shimmery as Moss.
• Midnight Sky – Dark blue with a satin finish. Semi sheer but builds up easily.
• Lilac – Pale purple shimmer. Sheer but easy to build up.
• Vintage Grape – Mostly-matte dark purple. Very sheer and doesn’t build up very easily.
• Hot Fudge – Mostly-matte chocolate brown. Sheer but easy to build up.
• Smoke – Mostly-matte dark taupe. Sheer but buildable.
• Peach Fuzz – Mostly-matte light orange. Sheer but easy to build up.
• Petal – Mostly-matte pale pink. Sheer but builds up easily when swatched. Seems harder to build up on the lid.

Packaging: These come cased individually in plastic, dark grey snap-shut compacts. They are easy to open and close and they stay shut securely. The tops and bottoms of each eyeshadow are completely flat so you can stack them together.

Smell/Fragrance: None.

Performance

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All of these feel incredibly silky smooth to the touch. They have a soft, squishy consistency that falls somewhere between a powder and a cream formula. They mostly feel like a powder but they have a moldable quality to them and will become deformed if you press too hard on them.

The pigmentation is pretty sheer but they apply evenly. Usually sheer eyeshadows bother me because they make me feel as if I’m being ripped off but because they apply evenly I enjoy how quick and easy they are to work with. They blend very easily as well and make excellent eyeshadow bases. My lids have a tendency to look dry so the creamy formula works really well for me. If your eyeshadows crease easily, then I’d recommend using a primer like NYX HD Eye Shadow Base underneath to prevent creasing.

The best way I found to work with these was to first apply color with fingers, then go back in with brushes to get more precision in the crease, along the lash line, or in the inner corner. Using my fingers was the best way to get the strongest color payoff and using a brush was best for getting a smooth blend in the crease and between colors.

These are not irritating in the least to my eyes. I’m not particularly prone to eye irritation but I do find that some eyeshadows tend to cause a tiny bit more eye redness than others. These have been some of the most gentle I’ve tried. They don’t make my eyes red and they don’t cause any itching on the skin either.

The biggest pitfall these have is that they don’t last long. On unprimed eyes, these last about 3 hours before starting to show minor creasing. I can get them to last about 6 hours if I wear them over a primer and with powder eyeshadow on top.

Worth Buying?

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Even though these don’t last long, there’s a lot about these that I like enough to look past that. They sit really nicely on the lid, blend really easily and can be applied quickly with just my fingers. I love that they come in a fun range of colors and can be used as eyeshadow bases to help intensify powder eyeshadows. The iridescent shades are especially beautiful and have a different kind of shimmer than what I usually find in powder eyeshadows. The things that some people may not like are that they are pretty sheer, don’t come in very many neutral shades, and they can crease early in the day especially if you have oilier lids.

Most of the shades are good enough quality that they are worth picking up but a two of them were so sheer that I kind of regret buying them. Cashmere was buildable but was such a light shade that it barely showed up on my lids at all. Vintage grape was the only one I’d call a dud. For being such a dark shade it was incredibly sheer and pretty much not buildable at all.