This summer, I was on a quest to find the perfect eyeliner. One that had natural ingredients (important since it sits on such a delicate area of skin), applied easily without tugging, easy to remove, and wouldn't smudge. Unfortunately, this product from Tarte, which was a recommendation from a Sephora staff member, only met my first two criteria.
This liner comes with a smudging sponge on one end. It's a pencil liner, and I got it in the traditional black color Onyx.
In terms of ingredients, I was fairly pleased that it was made free of parabens, mineral oil, and phthalates. I also liked that it glided on easily, making for smooth application, and you could also smoke it out with the sponge.
My main issue was with the difficulty in removing this product. I get that Amazonian clay is branded as a long-lasting product, but honestly I felt like I was almost tugging my eyelids off every time I tried to remove it at the end of the day. Even with designated makeup remover and multiple face washes (including my trusty Kiehl's calendula cleanser) I would be left with smudges of black under and around my eye. Maybe something like Bioderma would have been better, but I never tried it, and frankly I doubt even that would have been enough.
Worse yet, since it's a pencil liner it would smudge by the end of the day, making it impossible to get that perfect smooth line to stay. At a price of almost $20 each, I didn't feel like it was justified. I have since returned it to Sephora.
If any of you have suggestions on good eyeliners, please let me know and I look forward to finding a better product to fit my needs.
