I know that a lot of us have been looking forward to Urban Decay Ink for Eyes, UD’s new fall collection of cream eyeliners, since we first got wind of ’em earlier this year.
Six to choose from
The Ink for Eyes Cream Eyeliners ($22 each) come resting peacefully in narrow, boxy little gray compacts.
The packaging? — interesting and practical, even though I thought they looked like little coffins at first (they’re actually a lot more useful than that). 🙂
I’ve been playing with three of the six shades…
- Binge: a matte, deep navy blue
- Loaded: a shimmery forest green
- Pyrotechnics: a sparkly white with flecks of purple, green, gold and blue glitter
It’s alive!
If you have naturally oily eyelids, Ink for Eyes might pose a challenge. I have semi-oily lids, and these bad boys move around A LOT, dancing up into my crease and creeping down under my eyes when nobody’s watching — and it happens really fast, too, like within 10-15 minutes!
Starting with a primer like Urban Decay’s Sin Potion beneath the liners makes a huge difference, though, significantly extending wear time.
I tried all three atop Sin, and with help from the primer they stayed put for about four hours before creeping up into my crease.
Get ready to layer!
Because Urban Decay has a reputation for *bold* looks, I was expecting Ink for Eyes to SCREAM with color, but they’re actually pretty sheer.
From left to right: Binge, Loaded and Pyrotechnics. It took four layers to get the colors to look this rich.
To get solid, cat eyeliner-style lines with Ink for Eyes takes me about four layers, but I can use fewer when what I want is a soft, diffused liner look instead.
I think that’s where Ink for Eyes will really shine. 🙂
Urban Decay Ink for Eyes
Price: $22
Use: A sheer cream eyeliner perfect for soft, diffused lines
Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: B
You might like Urban Decay Ink for Eyes if…
- you have dry (versus oily) eyelids,
- you don’t mind taking your time when you apply your makeup, and/or
- you like the look of sheer, diffused liner.
For $22 I was hoping for a little more color and staying power, but the convenient, cute packaging makes me want to keep them around.
Why is shopping for dudes so hard?
El Hub’s b-day is tomorrow, and just like every year, I have NO IDEA what to get for him. I always end doing the same thing — either comics, computer games, something to do with movies or dried meat/chocolate.
Once I tried to get all creative and buy him clothes, but that was pretty much a disaster… Boy’s not a clothes horse at all.
What’s the best gift you’ve ever gotten your SO for a birthday? HELP!
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
lol movies dried meat and chocolate lol now thats hilarious !!!
i had a feeling these liners were going to be problematic but they are so super cute!
hmm el hub and his birthday.. since he enjoyed having his nails painted so much on april fools maybe a mans pedicure service at bliss will do the trick! (sans the polish of course!!)
Hi Yadi,
Hmm…oddly, I think he’d enjoy that. I would probably have to warn the pedi person beforehand, ha! As much as I love him, his toes are hella scary.
Best gift I ever got my SO was signing us up for a Ghost Walk in the city. A guide took the group walking around a section of the city and told us stories of historical events/hauntings at various locations.
Maybe you can get El Hub a clothing gift card?
Hi Tekoa,
That’s a good idea. Maybe I’ll send him to the mall with it and tell him he can’t come home until he brings home a pair of jeans without a hole in ’em, LOL!
Or maybe I could just get him another kitty! But that would be more a gift for me…
Dried meat? Why didn’t I think of that!! But considering all men are still boys at heart, you won’t believe how much adoration you will get for buying him a few James Bond books. Plus they’re $12-15 each, so you can buy several at a time. For his last birthday I bought him a stylish pair of Oakely sunnies that had a thinner wire frame so he could get rid of his big chunky sunglasses tan he got from the previous pair of Oakley sunnies I bought him.
I liked the idea of the eyeliners, but I don’t like that you have to apply 4 layers to get a decent cat eye…Hmm…
Hi Caitlin,
That’s a good idea! He likes JB movies, and I don’t think he’s ever read the books. 🙂
The eyeliners do take some work, but if you’ve got some time to do some time they’re fun.
hrm for my husband one year i homemade everything for him. homemade card, i made him a mixed cd of all of his favorite songs and i made him dinner.
the only thing i paid for was the groceries. he seemed to appericate it more than me going out and buying stuff
Hi Nikki,
That’s a sweet gift. Maybe if I have time I’ll make him dinner. I’m not that much of a cook, though…
I tend to get mine updated versions of stuff he already likes. He’s got an iPod? Get him one with more storage. A favorite hoodie he’s worn to pieces? Get him one in a luxe knit like a cashmere blend (make sure it doesn’t look too luxe tho, he’d probably never wear it if it looked really delicate). If he likes beer, beer of the month club has always looked really good to me. Something to make his shaving go easier?
Hi Christina,
Oh, good call. Maybe I’ll pop by Kiehl’s or someplace to get him some good shave stuff. 🙂
Well those don’t seem ideal for me since I too have semi-oily lids and I have no tolerance for spending more than a couple minutes on my eyes.
I know what you mean about the b-day issue! Every year its a huge struggle for me AND he rarely gives me hints! I got my hubbie a nice little Canon camcorder this past bday which we took to London and he loved. I too once tied the clothes thing and he was HIGHLY annoyed! I was like, well damn I would love all these clothes, LOL!
.-= Vampy Varnish’s last blog post… Kleancolor Nail Polish Part Deux =-.
Hi Vampy Varnish,
LOL, that’s how I felt after the clothes incident! Shoot, I wish somebody would give me clothing for my b-day!
I think I’ll pass on the liners – I don’t like when things migrate into my crease!
Does el hub work at a desk job? I think the best present I ever got for my husband was a digital frame for him to keep at his desk. I also spent a lot of time loading it up with photos for him!
Hi Tiffany,
That’s a great idea! I am putting all these on a list to keep for future reference. 🙂
The best gift I gave the hubs was an Xbox. Man, he loves that thing to death. His birthday is coming up in the next few weeks and I have absolutely no idea what to get him this year. He has all the video games a man could ever need, we already have 4 cats, and he is a hella clothes horse with no more room in his closet.
I feel your pain, Karen.
Hi Angelica,
I’m glad I’m not the only one struggles with this. Sometimes I just wish he’d make me a list!
Karen, did you just admit to buying your hubby dried meat for his birthday?!?! Girlfriend, what were you thinking?!?! HAHA!!! Is he into any TV series or primetime series that you could maybe get him the DVD box set of? Does he have any techy gadgets that you could use a real cool accessory that he wouldn’t think to treat himself to? Food for thought..
Bummer about the UD Ink for Eyes. I, too, totally thought they were little coffins when i first saw the promo pics months ago. Glad i’m not the only one with the morbid mind. LOL! Stinks that they crease even with primer. That’s the thing with cream liners, i can never get them to stay on my lid no matter what priming method i use. Not worth the hassle IMO. Guess when it comes to UD liners, I’ll be sticking w/ the 24/7 Glide-Ons. Thx for the review Karen!!!
Hi Nicole15,
Sure! I haven’t tried many cream liners because I usually wear gel, cake or pencil. I’m starting to think they’d be better as eyeshadow bases…
LOL, yup, I got him HELLA tried meat one year! He gobbled up that spicy beef jerky with enthusiasm, too!
That’s too bad about Ink for Eyes, movin’ and shakin’ is a good thing, but not with eyeliner! 🙁
Most of the best gifts I’ve gotten for Hubby (based on his enthusiasm upon receipt) were movies that he didn’t know were available yet! A boxed set of Escaflowne (epic Anime), and a couple of times I surprised him with newly released sets of his old fave tv shows (The Prisoner with Patrick McGoohan and The Wild Wild West)! Other than that, I try hard to pick up clues over the course of the year, and I’m not always successful! Last ditch prezzie is a Fry’s Electronics gift card! 😉
Hi Glosslizard,
Good call! There are a few old shows I know he likes…hopefully I can find ’em at a store nearby. 🙂
LOL, what is it about boys and Fry’s? El Hub could spend hours in there.
A Jack Spade messenger bag and I also got a hella good deal on it from Gilt Groupe!
Hi Tatiana,
Nice! I like those Jack Spade bags. One year I wanted to get El Hub a man purse, no joke. I get tired of carrying his crap when we go out!
Despite some other positive reviews, I’m glad to see some honest review from you. I have OILY lids. I’ve bought one cream liner from a company and it cost 10 USD and while I like it, it creased on me like many others. As for this UD one, it cost too much for little weeny amount. Second, it takes 4 layers to get this rich.. I’ll pass. thanks
Hi Vivian,
I’m think this might be better as an eyeshadow base…
If your lids are super oily you might do better with their 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils. Now those stay put!
Hey Karen! I just strolled through all of the comments looking for idea’s for my hubs too! His 30th is Sunday and I’m clueless. Some of the ideas I’ve been considering are clothes (boring, but he would appreciate a nice fleece or jacket), planning a weekend getaway (football game maybe?), magazine subscriptions, and that’s all I’ve thought of. I’m feeling the pressure since it’s a special bday!
Thanks for the honest review here. I too have semi-oily lids and I probably couldn’t make these work. There’s so much awesome fall stuff out there – and other UD items – so i think I am ok with that.
oooh i want to try these as i am a big fan of brush-on liners in general.
karen, i recently tried a new pencil eyeliner that WILL NOT BUDGE after 3 hours of dancing in a 95 degree room with 85% humidity. it’s the velvet touch eyeliner by GOSH cosmetics. i was skeptical to try it because all “budgeproof” pencil liners smudged on me… but i got it when i redeemed my loyalty points at the drugstore, so it was no biggie.
i got green grass (a BRIGHT true green with pearl), purple stain (blue-violet, very true) and metallic brass (like MAC glitz n blitz, a gold-pearl infused green-brown-black). these suckers will NOT move, and it takes some skill to remove them too, but that’s fine with me!
they have a huuuuuuge range of colors, like 15 colors or so, so if you can find it in the states (i hear it’s pretty new there, so who knows), you should totally try it. for serious. it’s better than MAC powerpoint OR fluidline in terms of staying power. it’s a little less precise, because it’s a pencil, but oh well. you can smudge it before it sets, but once it dries… even rubbing wont get it off!
.-= ines, felix and kitten (the office kitties)’s last blog post… Dior Creme de Gloss – Holy Grail Lip Gloss? =-.
I thought I was the only one who was unimpressed by these liners! I have Empire (which is a lovely purple), but the product is not very creamy at all, doesn’t apply well (on my dry eyelids, it pills up a lot). I’ve seen swatches on other sites that show the product as being unbelievably creamy, but I just can’t get my product to look like that. Oh well.
Thank you so much for that review – I may hold off all together which is a shame cuz I am loving that packaging! Oh well my wallet won’t be too mad at me!
and the last great gift I gave my Hubs was a Wii and tickets for him a friend to an A’s game – really baller seats!
Thanks for the review, I think I’ll pass on these. The colors look pretty but I take way too long to apply one layer of liner, I can’t be bothered to apply 4, that’s too much!
.-= gio’s last blog post… How Does Oil Free Moisturizer Works? =-.
i really want the green, blue and purple..i too wish they would have had a better color choice..oh well
I got my husband a tattoo last Christmas..he loved that
.-= jen’s last blog post… The "Dirty" Little Blog Award =-.
I think i’ll pass on these, my lids are sorta oily too & to me 4 hours (w/the primer) just aint long enough for the price tag.
I also find it hard to get gifts for my husband, so what I like to do is whenever he comments that he likes something, i’ll file it away for later. Like the other day, we received a Fossil catalog & he mentioned how neat he thought one of the watches looked. His birthday isn’t until mid Sept. but i’m going to order that watch ASAP & hide that baby 🙂 Good luck getting your guy something great!
buy him jean paul gaultier cologne its 2 die for…. or maybe a watch, cute sterling silver or white gold braclet,a super cool handy pocket knife,pocket pepperspray, or classes at a gun place( u know where u shoot guns)…i dont know a lotto ticket???
Hmm these are great ideas! The present my fiance liked the most was a calendar I made on Shutterfly last Christmas. I personalized it with pictures of us and our friends, and even inserted special dates like our anniversary and birthdays (hint hint so he doesnt forget). It does take time to make but its totally worth it! They have tons of great stuff you can personalize but if you need it tomorrow, might be too late to order.
As for the liners, I am disappointed, I usually expect more from UD. Oh well, more money for other stuff!
.-= Kajal Couture’s last blog post… 20 Questions – tell your readers something =-.
Hmm, I had a feeling these wouldn’t work for me. Oh well.
Hmmm, for SO’s last birthday I took him to Bristol Farms so he could pick out some Spanish Ham (I know nothing about it, but he’s loved it ever since he visited Spain)… unfortunately they didn’t have any, so he picked out some nice cheese and a fruit paste instead. I’m still going to get him some Westphalian ham from the Sausage King downtown later though.
The year before that I got him an MP3 player since he didn’t have one, and he really enjoyed that for his commutes (he was so against it saying they were stupid and not useful lol… I thought about it a lot though, and got him the Creative Zen V+ since Linux and iTunes aren’t really compatible)… and the year before that I got a Belgian Waffle maker and made waffles for breakfast a lot. =) HTH and happy bday to your DH. =)
.-= Catherine’s last blog post… Day at Pacific Beach =-.
Karen, I feel your pain! My husband hates birthdays though, and would like nothing better than for me to entirely skip the whole damn thing. Yeah, he can keep wishing. I love birthdays and every year I make the effort to get a good gift, but he gives no hints, insisting I get him nothing. Usually I end up getting him DVDs of movies he likes or box sets of TV series. He usually appreciates that, but I got a great reaction one year when I bought him a car stereo (the stock stereo in his car busted a few weeks before his birthday) so it was just what he needed. Sometimes the practical gifts win out.
Oh, and he gets me awesome gifts. He got me a really nice digital camera last year. He’s really good on picking up on those random subtle hints I throw out months before my birthday. Sigh.
Booo, I was really feeling these liners but my lids are super oily and this would be a hot mess.
Eugh good luck with the present, men are so hard to shop for!
I really like the boxes for Sin Potion. The drawing of the peacock is beautiful. I would get the product just for that.
Did you use them wet? My eyelids get oily sometimes, but the colours of these just look so awesome!! It would be a bummer to ignore them, but I cant justify all the creasing/layering =(