I know I’m a bit late to the party on this one, but I don’t like to write a review on a product until I’ve done at least 6 weeks of testing. So, I feel finally ready to give my thoughts on Glossier’s Lidstar. I gave my initial thoughts over on Instagram Stories – which is what I generally do when I get new products – so please feel free to give me a follow on there, too.
Initial Thoughts
As the strapline ‘less shadow, more glow’ suggests, the product is meant to give you a ‘sheen’ rather than the more cakey formula that comes from a shadow. Given that this is the exact look I go for in spring and summer, I decided to opt for Lidstar in the shade ‘Moon’. Moon is the sheerest cream-based formula; the other five colours looked a bit too dark for my skin tone.
I’ve tried various brushes to blend it in, but my personal favourite is the Look Good, Feel Better Shading Brush.
My initial thoughts were largely positive. In the light of my bedroom, it gave the sheen I was looking for. The applicator is too cumbersome for me, though. I do like the packaging and the test tube it comes in, but the applicator is thick and leaves lumps of product on my eyelid.
The Colour
This product looked great in the whiter lights of my bedroom. I did notice, however, that as soon as I went outside, the blueish opalescent glimmer comes through a lot more. The blue glimmer just doesn’t work for me. If the light catches it in a certain way it looks almost baby blue.
You can see from the colour of the tube that the blue shimmer isn’t immediately apparent. Even when I apply the product, the blue doesn’t really show up until it has dried onto the lids. For me, that opalescent addition really puts me off of the shade Moon.
Blending
The product is made up of ‘ultrafine multicolour pearls and coated pigments in a buttery base for the silkiest most blendable formula’. I would agree with this description. It is really easy to apply – as long as you use your own brush and not the applicator it comes with. The rubbish applicator isn’t new information as far as any beauty product goes – I rarely use the option a product is sold with.
It does cake onto the eyes, though, so you have to be quite rigorous with your blending. The picture below shows the product pre-blending. On this particular occasion, I applied the product using the applicator Glossier provides, just to give you an idea of what it looks like.
It does suggest using your finger to blend onto your lids, but I’ve found that the skin-on-skin approach seems to rub most of the product off entirely. I’ve found a brush much easier to work with. One plus I have uncovered under the blending heading is that it doesn’t clump up in the crease like some other cream-based eyeshadows have done.
How Long Does It Stay On?
According to Glossier, it stays on ‘all day’ and it doesn’t need a primer in order to make that happen. I would disagree. I’ve found the product tends to go through three stages; 1. When first applied it looks like a nice, light sheen for around half an hour. 2. It starts to congeal into the lash line within the first hour. 3. Past the first hour, there are no traces of the product on my lids.
I have found that using a primer has given slightly better results, but it certainly doesn’t last all day.
In the two pictures below, you should be able to see what I mean by the different lighting giving the product different effects. In the first picture, it looks quite pleasant and neutral, but in the second picture, the blue opalescent effect is coming through stronger.
Similar Products
There are two products I’d recommend more than Glossier Lidstar. The first is just a good old-fashioned pot of Vaseline. When I bought Lidstar, ultimately I was looking for a more official product for what I regularly use on my eyelids; Vaseline.
Vaseline is obviously not meant as eyeshadow, so it doesn’t last very long. If you’re looking for something that lasts longer and is a bit of a multi-tasker, I’d recommend the Marc Jacobs Glow Stick. It can be used as a general highlighter, but it also acts as a sheen for the lids and brow bone. It works in the exact same way as Lidstar. They’re both cream-based formulas but the formulation of the Lidstar is a lot creamier, whereas the Glow Stick is solid. It looks identical to Lidstar when it’s on but it doesn’t have the blue undertones.
Would I Repurchase?
It’s a no for this one. I do love Glossier and I’ve very much enjoyed a number of its products, but this one just doesn’t fill a gap for me. I think the similar – and better formulated – products mentioned above would be better suited to anybody’s needs.
