Japanese Eyeliners - Swatches and Reviews

Being on MUA, I constantly read about the search for the One Eyeliner to Rule Them All, the one that stays put on the waterline. I've had mixed results with MAC Fluidlines and UD's 24/7s, and even Revlon Colorstay can give both of them a run for their money.

My eyeliner collection from Japan currently stands at four, and they are all of varying prices and formulas.

 

L-R: KATE  BU-1, Majolica Majorca Jewelling Pencil in WT909, Majolica Majorca Perfect Automatic Liner in BK920, Spring Heart Long Lasting Eyeliner in 02.

As you can see, one is a gel liner, one is a standard pencil, one is a liquid liner and the last is an automatic/sharpening pencil.

Onto the swatches! Without flash, and with flash, as the flash really shows the sparkle/shimmer. Swatches are in the same order as the eyeliners in the above photo.

Of the four, the Spring Heart eyeliner is the only one that is completely mate. The KATE gel liner has a slight shimmer to it, and the white MM pencil has very fine sparkles/glitter in it. The MM perfect eyeliner has the most shimmer.

I'll try and be as detailed as I can in my reviews, but unfortunately I have only tried the white eyeliner on the waterline so far. I'll be sure to update this review with my experiences in the future!

KATE Gel Eyeliner in BU-1: KATE is the drugstore line by Kanebo, who does the pricier Lunasol line for department stores. The eyeliner was $14 on Adambeauty. It comes with a small brush which I don't like to use. It's a small shader brush and I just can't get the hang of it. I use my MAC 210 instead. There are 7 colors available including black, black with sparkles (similar to MAC Blitz & Glitz), green, navy (mine), gold, silver, and brown. The gel liner is very pigmented, though it is not quite as creamy as a MAC Fluidline. Lasting power is phenomenal. I wore it Friday to work all day, then to the bar afterward, and it was still in place when I got home around 10PM. 14 hours!

Majolica Majorca Jewelling Pencil in WT909: This is a matte white with tiny sparkles in it. I have worn this on the waterline and to my delight, it stays put! Of course, as with any product with sparkles/glitter, you should use it at your own risk as the waterline can be very sensitive to foreign matter. My eyes are particularly fussy and so I can't wear this all day, but for a pop of brightness I will wear it for a night out without any discomfort. For day looks, I prefer to use my CARGO Reverse Lipliner which is completely matte and is a flesh color. This was $9 on Adambeauty but you can find them cheaper on Ebay.

Majolica Majorca Perfect Automatic Liner in BK920: This is the second generation of automatic eyeliners from MM. The first type was just called Automatic Liner, and the type that came out after the Perfect series was called Neo. This eyeliner is probably one of my favorites. It's a twist-style eyeliner similar to a Stila lip glaze. You twist the bottom to dispense a bit of the eyeliner into the brush. However, unlike the lip glazes, the product dispenses in a much more controlled amount -- one click pushes out enough to do one eye. The tip is very flexible so you can use the tip or use it at an angle. BK920 is a soft black with pearl shimmer to it. It's very pretty but slightly sheer, so I need about two coats on each eye. These are $15 on Adambeauty but I got mine off of Ebay for a bit cheaper (around $12).

Spring Heart Long Lasting Eyeliner in 02: I think I got this from Ebay, I don't remember. Spring Heart is a line by Koji, and their makeup is very inexpensive. I think this eyeliner was about $4. It's a soft matte brown, and it's an automatic pencil type liner similar to MAC's Technakohls or Revlon's ColorStay eyeliners. It's not very pigmented, but it's soft and doesn't tug at the eyelids. It comes with both a sharpener and a smudger concealed in the bottom which is very handy.