Thursday, March 29, 2012

Dupe For Urban Decay 24/7 Pencil Zero: Prestige Total Intensity ...

That gorgeous blue-teal eyeliner is Bourjois Contour Clubbing Waterproof Pencil Eyeliner Blue Remix.

Would you give up a few strands of eyelashes – every single time – in exchange for a bold and black waterline?

I wouldn’t! Not even for the blackest of black waterline or lashine! And neither would anyone in the right mind, right?

I’ve stressed on the importance of tight lining in several posts – why you should tightline your eyes, tips on tightlining, and how to tightline your eyes. But as much as I love a nice, bold, black waterline, using an eyeliner that causes the demise of precious eyelashes is an intolerable trade-off. If I continued using the Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner, I’d probably be left with none now!

The Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner in Deepest Black is widely cheered upon as the best dupe for the legendary Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Zero.

My quest for a black eyeliner pencil has never ceased – I haven’t found any near my standard of perfection – so I made an order for the prestige when my Zeros became too short to sharpen.

I took such a long time to review this pencil (I showed it in this haul post) as I wanted to be 100% sure how I felt about it. And now, having put it to test for a few months, I’m READY! Rarrr!!!

Yes, You’re A Very Black Pencil Eyeliner

Admittedly, this Prestige Eyeliner is the blackest of black pencil eyeliners I’ve used. Just at how intense it is against the two Zeros!

The half Zero with the half Whiskey (from the Urban Decay Naked Palette) is slightly less black and more brown than the full Zero pencil. Maybe because it’s under the influence of some Whiskey (silly pun! HAHAHA! :lol: ).

Smudges Worse Than Zero

Precisely because of its intense pigmentation, the black smudge stains from Deepest Black tend to be much more black than Zero.

Prestige’s Deepest Black applies very smoothly and easily on the waterline, but the staying power? Meh~. Actually worse than meh. I only use this on my upper waterline; I have over-sensitive lower waterline that gets irritated easily with pencils. The L’Oreal HiP Chrome Eyeliners had me tearing my eyes out.

On my oily eyelids, the Prestige Total Intensity eyeliner doesn’t stay on at all. It transfers onto my lower lashline, and sometimes when I don’t get enough sleep my left eyelid becomes more hooded and it transfers to above the fold too.

ICK!!! My eye area looks grotesquely oily! This was taken at night, with flash on. Look at the smudged line on the undereye area. And I’d cleaned up a few times outside before reaching home to take this picture.

Transfered eyeliner onto the skin above the fold.

I always, always, always prime my eyelids with UDPP in Eden no matter how heavy or light my eye makeup is, but it seems to serve no purpose with the Prestige Eyeliner in Deepest Black since it still smudges. I’ve tried powder under it, over it, but still end up with a hot, black mess every time.

On top of not being smudgeproof, it is also not waterproof. You know the difference between smudgeproof and waterproof already, ya?

Creamy But Not Exactly Smooth

Many people love the creaminess of the Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner Pencil, and say that one does not have to tug at the eyelid to get the product on.

I beg to differ though. I think Urban Decay’s Zero goes on more smoothly even though it is less creamy. Deepest Black is creamy, yes, but it does not glide back and forth as effortlessly as Zero.

With the Prestige pencil, it is soooooo creamy that it makes controlling the amount of product I get on difficult. Like, I’ve got to be really careful not to apply too much pressure lest too much gets on and it transfers onto the waterline the second I blink.

I don’t know why, but the tendency to poke my eye with the Prestige pencil is higher. Yes, yes, I have my moments too. Lol.

So in order to control the amount I get on, I have to raise my eyelid to reveal the waterline – an action I discourage in this Tightlining tutorial. We don’t want to impose unnecessary stress on our eyes that will expedite premature aging!

Wears Down Very Fast

The Prestige Total Intensity pencil is so creamy and soft that the tip blunts on every application. To have to sharpen it after every use is not only troublesome, but when you think of how much and how often you have to shave product away to get a nice pointy tip, it actually does not come cheap at all. You may eventually end up going through more Prestige pencils and paying more than the Urban Decay Zero pencil.

The pencil is about half of its original length now.

I don’t like to have to sharpen eye pencils, especially one that needs to be constantly shaped, so this is a huge minus point for me. I feel like I’m shaving away money, maybe 20 cents for each twist between the sharpening blades. *heart pain

I can never get the Prestige Eyeliner on the inner section of the waterline, near the tear duct, because I’ll have to get a VERY pointed tip so that it doesn’t get on beyond the small area, and even if I do get a tip after shaving off half of the pencil, it will smudge immediately. Most definitely cannot count on the Prestige Deepest Black to create the inner corner shape of the Native American colors inspired eye makeup look.

Takes Time To Dry Completely

So I have to sharpen the pencil too many times, waste time to be careful during application and still suffer from a smudged eyeliner look… there can’t be anything worse, right?

When I didn’t know earlier on, I was so excited to get such an incredibly black eye line that requires only two layers. Sometimes maybe three because it’s quite hard to control its consistency.

Here comes the horrible truth: The eyeliner is so super creamy and wet it makes my lashes clump together, like a bad or expired mascara. It makes my lashes feel crisp and stupid.

The more layers I have on, the longer the time needed to dry completely. But I didn’t know and wondered why my lash roots were BALDING. Every time I curled my lashes with my beloved Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler, out would come a couple of lashes.

The final straw came when one day I forgot to let the line dry, stuck my eyelashes between the curler, unknowingly let the lashes stick onto the curler and pulled the curler away after crimping, along with THREE strands of eyelashes. I swear I heard the uprooting of my eyelashes.

SPscchheeeeAaccKK!!! (HAHAHA! How to spell an uprooting sound??)

Nooooooo……!!!

Can you feel my pain???

I am not impressed with the Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner in Deepest Black, it is definitely not Holy Grail material for me, and will not recommend it to anyone who has oily lids like I do unless you fancy looking like a raccoon and have to constantly worry about whether people are looking into your eyes or wondering why there are unsightly dark rings under your eyes.

For people who are lucky to have normal-dry eyelids, you will find this eyeliner pencil absolutely smudge proof, that it does not budge from the waterline, will not transfer, and will last you for up to 12 hours. So tempting, right?? These were the positive feedback I read from reviews when I was contemplating whether to get it, and was sold that it worked for so many people. Apparently everyone has difference experiences with makeup products due to skin type, and all these fabulous plus points just didn’t apply to me.

If I had to choose, I still prefer Urban Decay’s Zero over Prestige’s Deepest Black.

Where to buy products mentioned:

Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner Deepest Black (Amazon)

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Zero (Amazon) (Beauty.com)

Bun Bun rates the Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner Deepest Black:

Are you in a love or hate or love-hate relationship with the Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner? Do you own the other colors? Share with us how they perform if you do!

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