Swatches & Review: L'oreal Colour Riche Monos Eyeshadows

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Hey everyone!

L'oreal recently revamped their single eyeshadow range and came out with the Colour Riche Monos line. The range consists of fifteen shades promising a smoother finish and better color payoff for less than six dollars a color.

I have fourteen out of the fifteen shades. I have the shades Little Beige Dress, Sunset Seine, Cafe Au Lait, Quartz Fume, Mademoiselle Pink, Pain Au Chocolat, Violet Beaute, Noir C'est Noir, Argentic, Grand Bleu, Petit Perle, Green Promenade, Teal Couture, and Meet Me In Paris (pictured below in that order).

Do these live up to their claims of having a smoother payoff and better pigmentation? Feel free to watch the video review or continue reading!

Of the fourteen, five were mattes and eight were shimmery, and one had a more metallic finish. The four matte shades are Little Beige Dress, Cafe Au Lait, Mademoiselle Pink, and Meet Me in Paris. The nine shimmery shades are Sunset Seine, Quartz Fume, Violet Beaute, Noir C'est Noir, Argentic, Grand Bleu, Petit Perle, Green Promenade, and Teal Couture. The metallic-looking shade is Pain Au Chocolat.

First row: Little Beige Dress, Sunset Seine, Cafe Au Lait, Quartz Fume, 

Second row: Petit Perle, Mademoiselle Pink, Pain Au Chocolat 

Third row: Violet Beaute, Noir C'est Noir, Argentic, Grand Bleu

Last row: Green Promenade, Teal Couture, and Meet Me In Paris

Where to Purchase: Drugstore.com*, Target.com*/Target stores, Walgreens.com*/Walgreens stores, Ulta.com/Ulta stores
Price: $5.99 for 3.5 grams/0.12oz. The pans are pretty generous; you get double the amount that usually comes in a 26mm round pan/2 grams.
Do they test on animals?: The company does not test on animals, though they do sell in countries that may require animal testing.
Packaging: The individual shadows come in a black compact with a clear plastic lid. 

Formula:

L'oreal says the shadow is:

"...infused [with] gel technology. Intense pigments for exquisite color richness. Soft, velvety texture for an ultra smooth glide"

The eyeshadow is slightly squishy, it reminds me of a drier version of the Colourpop eyeshadows. It's not quite as creamy but it's not dry like a regular powder eyeshadow. It's a little puffy but not moussey. It's really a hybrid powder/cream eyeshadow. 

If you use a regular eyeshadow brush, you'll be disappointed. These apply so much better with fingertips and that's actually how L'oreal recommends you apply it. To pick up the most eyeshadow, I swirl my finger over the surface of the eyeshadow. I did find that Pain Au Chocolat, the metallic looking shade, was really prone to having a "film" form on the surface of the eyeshadow as a result of using my fingers. I think with that particular shade, you have to press a little firmer to pick up the eyeshadow to break through the "film" that forms due to the metallic finish. I had no problems with the other shades, even with the matte eyeshadows.

My favorite colors of the line were mainly the mattes, specifically Little Beige Dress, Cafe Au Lait, and Meet Me in Paris. I think they're one of the better matte eyeshadows to come out of the drugstore and especially from L'oreal's line. I had no problems picking up product with my fingers and applying it onto my lids. It was extremely easy to apply the mattes as a wash of color all over. Admittedly I was worried about blending the colors but getting a little extra onto my fingers and gently rubbing helps create a better transition. Other colors I liked include Quartz Fume, Violet Beaute, and Green Promenade.

I did notice that Sunset Seine, Pain Au Chocolat, and Teal Couture needed a little more pressure in order be built up to the pigmentation seen in the swatch.

The ones I did not like were Noir C'est Noir, Argentic, and Grand Bleu. Noir C'est Noir felt dry and chalky in comparison to the other eyeshadows. Argentic and Grand Bleu look beautiful in the pans but applied sheerly and unevenly.

Wear Time:

These wear about 6 hours before creasing without a primer, 9 hours before creasing with a primer. For me, the primer is necessary to get all-day wear but I am someone who always needs a primer anyway. I have oily eyelids but it may be different for you if you have dry eyelids.

Swatches:

All swatches done dry with my finger over primed skin. 

From left to right: Little Beige Dress, Sunset Seine, Cafe Au Lait, Quartz Fume, Petit Perle 



From left to right: Mademoiselle Pink, Pain Au Chocolat, Violet Beaute, Noir C'est Noir, Argentic, 

From left to right: Grand Bleu, Green Promenade, Teal Couture, and Meet Me In Paris



Conclusion:

I'm really pleased with these eyeshadows, they are definitely an improvement on the previous L'oreal eyeshadow line. If you don't mind applying the eyeshadows with your fingers, then I highly suggest picking these up. For $5.99 a piece, it's not a splurge and you get a variety of colors and finishes. The mattes are especially good for a drugstore line and worth a try!

Have you seen these L'oreal Colour Riche Monos Eyeshadows in stores? Would you pick any of them up?

Disclaimer: I received these eyeshadows courtesy of the brand for consideration. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for the review! The links marked with an asterisk are affiliate links, which provides me with a commission based off your use of the links when making a purchase.