Recently I discovered the Hard Candy baked eyeshadows. For those of you who have never heard of this, you're probably thinking "Baked eyeshadow? What is that?!". I had the same reaction, so I decided to try the stuff and see what I thought, as well as look up just what makes these eyeshadows "baked". In my research, I found that these eyeshadows are made of mineral pigment shadows and then baked into cute little domes (hence the baked). The baking process eliminates the moisture and leaves you with beautiful shimmers, as opposed to regular eyeshadow, which just has individual sparkles added. These little beauties can be applied wet and dry. Dry gives you a gorgeous, soft metallic effect. Applied wet, the shadows give you an amazing foiled effect that's intense and stunning, or at least, so legend has it. Obviously with Hard Candy being a drug store brand that you can get at any Walmart or cosmetic's counter at the nearest drug store, these aren't as high quality as ones you could buy from companies like Sephora or MUA, but I decided I'd give it a try. I bought the "brownie points" palette.
The white on this palette is a little sheer for my taste and I find even with a primer, I really have to pack it on. Not the way I like to wear my eyeshadow! None the less, it's still a lovely color. Wet, it's still pretty sheer, but the color is intensified and looks much better, so if you really want the white to stand out, apply it wet.
I'm not sure what to call the color of the second shadow, it's kind of a grey-beige shade. Dry, this one has quite a neutral look to it and on me, it adds a little shimmer to my eye area, but there really isn't much to say about it. Wet, it has a lovely foil look. Personally I prefer it wet to dry as it intensifies the color and adds a little more pop to it. If you want something a little more understated for fair skin, this is the way to go.
The third color is my favorite. It's a gorgeous, well pigmented copper. It isn't a particularly sparkly shadow, but it is very metallic once applied. Dry, it's an absolutely beautiful color just by itself, added in with the others it really makes a statement. When applied wet, it's even better. It's metallic coloring is intensified to the point where it's almost like thin foil on your eyes! I think this one is by far, my favorite eyeshadow. Out of all the eyeshadows I have ever owned, this is my all time favorite. Hard Candy, you did a good job!
Finally, is the chocolate brown. This one is a little different from the others, rather than just being metallic, it has a little bit of sparkle added in. Applied dry, it's quite simple and I personally like it best as a crease color for every day wear. Wet, the sparkles really stand out against the metallic base. For every day, it's really too much wet, but it would be perfect for a dramatic evening look. While it isn't exactly my favorite, I do like it very much.
As far as packaging goes, Hard Candy usually does try and make a statement by covering their palettes in lace or colored satin, glitter, or something like that. The packaging for this one is fairly simple, with a snake skin pattern border. While this isn't really my thing, Some people would probably quite like that, and I do appreciate the effort to make their products stand out. Inside it comes with four sponges, one for each color, however I haven't tested them, seeing as how much I really dislike sponges. I never really use them and they frequently end up in the garbage. There's also a small mirror, just big enough to do your eye makeup when you're rushed, or just need to touch up. On the back, there's also a guide of how they suggest to wear the products, a very good addition for someone new to makeup. Personally, I tweaked it a bit, but the guide does suggest a quite flattering makeup style.
This palette has a lot going for it, seeing as how the colors are all stunning in their own ways and are very versatile. You can use them for both every day (like I have been) and you can adapt them for more dramatic evening wear. If you're getting more serious about makeup and planning to wear it every day and don't want to spend a lot, are buying makeup as a gift, or just want something inexpensive for every day, this is the way to go. I would highly recommend this product for anyone. Hard Candy has mod quads in five other themes as well. You can get them in neutral (brownie points), pink, purple, green, and black. While not all of these work for everyone's eye colors or skin tones, they do provide a variety. Hard Candy products are also cruelty free, so if that's important to you, these are a safe bet.
The things it's got going for it:
Affordable
attractive packaging
good colors
Okay quality
cruelty free, they don't test on animals
decent selection for every skin type
I think I'll probably try out the purple palette next, but as far as the brownie points mod quad goes, I like it and it will probably stay my every day makeup for a long time. As always, if you want me to test a product, let me know!
The white on this palette is a little sheer for my taste and I find even with a primer, I really have to pack it on. Not the way I like to wear my eyeshadow! None the less, it's still a lovely color. Wet, it's still pretty sheer, but the color is intensified and looks much better, so if you really want the white to stand out, apply it wet.
I'm not sure what to call the color of the second shadow, it's kind of a grey-beige shade. Dry, this one has quite a neutral look to it and on me, it adds a little shimmer to my eye area, but there really isn't much to say about it. Wet, it has a lovely foil look. Personally I prefer it wet to dry as it intensifies the color and adds a little more pop to it. If you want something a little more understated for fair skin, this is the way to go.
The third color is my favorite. It's a gorgeous, well pigmented copper. It isn't a particularly sparkly shadow, but it is very metallic once applied. Dry, it's an absolutely beautiful color just by itself, added in with the others it really makes a statement. When applied wet, it's even better. It's metallic coloring is intensified to the point where it's almost like thin foil on your eyes! I think this one is by far, my favorite eyeshadow. Out of all the eyeshadows I have ever owned, this is my all time favorite. Hard Candy, you did a good job!
Finally, is the chocolate brown. This one is a little different from the others, rather than just being metallic, it has a little bit of sparkle added in. Applied dry, it's quite simple and I personally like it best as a crease color for every day wear. Wet, the sparkles really stand out against the metallic base. For every day, it's really too much wet, but it would be perfect for a dramatic evening look. While it isn't exactly my favorite, I do like it very much.
As far as packaging goes, Hard Candy usually does try and make a statement by covering their palettes in lace or colored satin, glitter, or something like that. The packaging for this one is fairly simple, with a snake skin pattern border. While this isn't really my thing, Some people would probably quite like that, and I do appreciate the effort to make their products stand out. Inside it comes with four sponges, one for each color, however I haven't tested them, seeing as how much I really dislike sponges. I never really use them and they frequently end up in the garbage. There's also a small mirror, just big enough to do your eye makeup when you're rushed, or just need to touch up. On the back, there's also a guide of how they suggest to wear the products, a very good addition for someone new to makeup. Personally, I tweaked it a bit, but the guide does suggest a quite flattering makeup style.
This palette has a lot going for it, seeing as how the colors are all stunning in their own ways and are very versatile. You can use them for both every day (like I have been) and you can adapt them for more dramatic evening wear. If you're getting more serious about makeup and planning to wear it every day and don't want to spend a lot, are buying makeup as a gift, or just want something inexpensive for every day, this is the way to go. I would highly recommend this product for anyone. Hard Candy has mod quads in five other themes as well. You can get them in neutral (brownie points), pink, purple, green, and black. While not all of these work for everyone's eye colors or skin tones, they do provide a variety. Hard Candy products are also cruelty free, so if that's important to you, these are a safe bet.
The things it's got going for it:
Affordable
attractive packaging
good colors
Okay quality
cruelty free, they don't test on animals
decent selection for every skin type
I think I'll probably try out the purple palette next, but as far as the brownie points mod quad goes, I like it and it will probably stay my every day makeup for a long time. As always, if you want me to test a product, let me know!