On the Cheap: Femme Couture Mineral Effects Eye Shadow Quad in Lovin' Lilac

This week's On the Cheap features a great little quad from Femme Couture, which can be found at Sally's Beauty Supply. I've been very impressed with this line. Pretty much everything I've tried (with the exception of a defective lip gloss) has been very high-quality, easy to use, and the price point is amazing. I believe this quad cost me about $10.99. It's large, has generously-sized shadows, and the colors are outstanding. 

From top, you have a bronzy-topaz, a pale lavender, a vivid lilac (forgive the nick...I dropped it), and a deep neutral purple. 

This particular quad is called Lovin' Lilac, and it's a beauty. As you all know by now, I love my purple eye shadows, and this one didn't disappoint. The colors are fairly finely-milled and blend easily. Although the pigmentation isn't as dense as you might get with some of the department store lines, it's definitely workable. The shadows apply and blend well and don't crease or fade when worn on top of a primer. This particular quad reminds me a lot of Estee Lauder's Surreal Violet palette. The purples are very similar, particularly the violet shade at the bottom of the quad. However, Lovin' Lilac adds the warmth of the topaz to the look, and it works quite well. 

Here's a swatch of the colors taken in daylight: 

 As you can see, the colors are vivid and shimmery and show up well on the skin. The only minor complaint I have with any part of this quad is that the pale lavender (second from bottom) has glitter in it. It's not a lot of glitter, so it isn't too over-the-top, but it's there and apparent, especially in sunlight, and I think they could have done without it. 

Here are a couple of shots of the eye look I did with Lovin' Lilac:

In the top picture, you can see a bit of the glitter. However, on the bottom shot, it's not apparent at all. 

To achieve this look, I used the lilac color on my mobile lid, with the topaz in the crease. I used the dark purple in the "V" at the outside corners of my eyes, and used the pale lavender as a highlighter. I finished with Bobbi Brown Denim Ink Gel Eye Liner and Diorshow Iconic Mascara. 

Bottom Line: This is a very wearable palette, and I intend to use it frequently. Although I could do without the minor amount of glitter in the highlighter color, it isn't too distracting and certainly won't keep me from getting a lot of use out of this quad. I did find the dark purple to be slightly less pigmented than the other colors, but it was easily built and wasn't difficult to work with--if anything, its sheerness made it easier to blend. I recommend you give it a shot!