I’ve shared my best tips for beauty shopping in Seoul with you last week, now it’s time to ogle all the goodies I bought. So here’s a little overview and first (or second, or even third) impressions! I also decided to split this up into more than one post, because otherwise it’d become one massive novel. (Next up: lip products and skincare!)


So today’s topic is eyeshadows: Moonshot Jelly Pot and Aritaum Mono Eyes review. Whaaaaaat?! You’ll say. “Didn’t you tell us to skip eyeshadows in your previous post?” Well, yes, I totally did, and it was a gross generalization and there’re totally awesome eye products to be found (liners and eyeshadow sticks for example are mostly excellent as well. I didn’t get any because the colour range didn’t excite me. Powder eyeshadows weren’t too impressing most of the time, though.). I’ve no idea why nearly all the things I bought while in Seoul are red though. I’m going through a phase?

Moonshot Jelly Pot in PO5 moon revenge

red Jelly Pot cream eyeshadow
The gorgeous Moonshot Jelly Pot in moon revenge

Moonshot is a Korean brand under the umbrella of YG Entertainment, a company that’s often called “the cradle of K-pop”, because they’re the home of a lot of famous bands (think Sony or Atlantic). It’s a relatively new brand that came out in 2015. A bit more pricy than Innisfree, Clio etc., Moonshot has a very cool aesthetic, fashionably bored SAs and some seriously cool products. The Jelly Pots were high on my list and didn’t disappoint.

review and swatches of red Aritaum and Moonshot eyeshadows
Swatches in indirect light – left Aritaum, right Moonshot.

These are cream eyeshadows with a cooling jelly texture and mostly a highly metallic finish that come in a pot. (They also come in a matte finish, but of course, I went for the shimmery option.) They are super easy to apply (I just used my fingers) and have a stunning effect – not sparkly, but smooth and reflective on the lids. You can blend powder eyeshadows over them without any problem. Moon Revenge, the one I got, is a red-pink duochrome. Staying power is really impressive – no creasing, no fading at all during the day. Beware, though, to get the formula into/on your lashes – that’ll distribute little flecks of eyeshadow nicely all over your face (not that I did that. I would never!!!). Highly recommended. I paid 22.000 Won for one (18$ on their international site) and that gets you 7,5g/ 0.26 oz.

 

Aritaum Mono Eyes in 117

Aritaum Mono Eyes review and swatch
Argh, look at that pretty shimmer! Aritaum Mono Eyes in 117.

On the other end of the price range is Aritaum’s in-house brand. Aritaum is Amore Pacific’s (think Asian L’Oreal) one-stop shop, meaning it carries all their brands like Iope, Mamonde and Laneige (there’s a post coming up featuring the Laneige products I bought!). They’re also famous for their own in-house brand that is quite cheap. I had a look at their Shine Fix Eyes that are similar to Armani’s Eyes to Kill shadows in the glass pots, but that was a bit too much glitter in too little base for me (basically all glitter). The Mono Eyes are cheap as chips (5.000 Won – about 4$? – for 1,3g) and still suffer from the “glitter in light base” phenomenon, but there’re some interesting colours in the mix. (Mostly, though, you’ll find light peaches and pinks and a lot of brown shades.)

Aritaum and Moonshot eyeshadow swatch
Aaaaaaand swatches in sunlight! Left Aritaum, right Moonshot

I got a gorgeous reddish pink with golden glitters that translates as a peachy pink on my skin and not the pinky-red it showed in the pot, but I intended to use it as a topper for red cream shadows and for the price, it’s a nice one. There’s surprisingly little fall-out from it if you use it over a base and use a stiffer, denser brush to pat it on. It’s gorgeous combined with matte browns and beiges and surprisingly, I reach for it a lot.

 

Etude House

I’ve already mentioned the LE Etude House eyeshadow palette in my favorites post. I’ve no idea if the palette I got is representative for all their eyeshadows and their formula, but I’m divided on them. The colours are gorgeous, but the formula is a pain in the behind. Read more/ see swatches about them here.

 

What I recommend

All in all I think the eyeshadows I bought are a good mix. Cream products generally seem to excel with great textures, while powder products are very glittery and mostly belong to a rather staid colour palette, consisting of nudes and rather “natural” shades in varying degrees. Please convince me otherwise if my impression is wrong!
One thing I know – I’m completely and utterly hooked to Moonshot’s Jelly Pots and want more. There’s a charcoal grey called Darth Vader that’s calling my name!