Hi everyone!
Hope you had a great weekend! Settle in for a long blog post... this is all about the Sigma Enlight collection! It launched last month on SigmaBeauty.com, and I've finally used these products enough to do an all-encompassing review of the collection. These products are all about neutrals, and everything in it is new- even the brushes! A little disclaimer to kick things off: This collection was sent to me by Sigma for review. I'm a Sigma Affiliate, so any links in this post will be my affiliate links. I was not paid to create this blog post and these are my own, honest opinions.
This is how the products arrived- and for $165, you can actually buy the entire collection at Sigma's website. While I think that's a cool option, I don't love each and every part of this kit. Therefore, I also like the fact that every product in the kit can be purchased individually as well. In this post I'll review the eyeshadow palette, 3 glosses, 3 brushes, 3 blushes, 3 eyeliners, and 3 eyeshadow bases. Let's dig in!
Left to right: Cream bases in Awake, Neutralize, Composed
Sigma introduced 3 new cream eyeshadows with the Enlight collection- there's a pearly pink called Awake, a peach called Neutralize, and a medium brown called Composed. These bases are $13 each, and I'm definitely a fan of the consistency. They're smooth, pigmented, and just very easy to spread across the lids. These don't "set" to a point where they're completely smudge-proof... reinforcing the fact that these are bases for powder shadows, not necessarily something you'd want to wear alone on your lids- particularly if you have oily lids that are prone to creasing. I definitely love the Awake shade. It's a sheer pinky-toned color that's really pretty and brightening around the inner corner and as a base all over the lid. I don't own anything quite like it. While the other shades also have really nice color payoff, I just don't see myself reaching for them often. I'm more likely to use a peachy shade in a powder shadow form to blend something out, and the brown isn't anything too crazy different from other browns that I already own.
Top row: Oyster Sand*, Sugar Milk, Mild Mannered, Dove*
Middle row: Fawn, Cinnamon*, Russet*, Balanced
Bottom row: Cozy*, Innocent*, Optimistic, Warm Stone
*= my favorite shades
The Warm Neutrals Eyeshadow palette ($39, sigmabeauty.com) includes 16 neutral eyeshadows and comes in a palette that's roughly the size of one and a half iPhones-- so it's definitely not over-sized, and it comes with a mirror. I've always been pleased with the quality of Sigma's eyeshadows, and this palette is no exception. The shadows are creamy in texture (comparable to LORAC, in my opinion), and blending is a breeze. Four shades are totally matte, and the others range from satin to metallic finishes. The lightest 2 shades aren't showing up well in the swatches (Sugar Milk is really the exact color of my skin), but they come off nicely on the eyes. I love the shade selection, and the balance between deep, mid-tone, and light shades. (I've marked my favorites above with an asterisk*).
Any time I talk about a palette, I get asked how it compares to a number of other palettes. If you already own the LORAC Pro, this might not be a necessary palette for you. I think the mauve, brown, and taupe shades in LORAC Pro can give you a very similar look to what this palette gives. This palette has a gorgeous deep burgundy, and LORAC Pro has a dark plum, and this palette also has a warm pink... so there are differences, but if you're really trying to minimize your makeup purchases, I think the LORAC pro can give you the kind of looks this palette can and more.
Left to right: Eyeliners in Nutmeg, Vintage, Eclipse
There are 3 Eye Liner Pencils in Sigma's Enlight Collection. The shades Nutmeg (brown shimmer), Vintage (matte brown), and Eclipse (black), sell for $9 each. These liners go on easily with full color. However, they are not the same as Sigma's Extended Wear liners which set to a smudge-proof state. These don't last long in my waterline, and are prone to smudging/fading when worn elsewhere on the eyes. The shades aren't super unique, so I don't see these as an essential part of the collection by any means.
Top to bottom: E52 Soft Focus Shader, E54 Medium Sweeper, E34 Domed Utility
I'm loving the three new brushes that have been introduced with the Enlight Collection. They are the E52 Soft Focus Shader ($14), the E54 Medium Sweeper ($12), and the E34 Domed Utility ($12). I don't always warm up to new brushes instantly- sometimes I have to use them for awhile to really get comfortable with their uses and decide if they're "must-haves" (I feel like I'm describing what it's like to make friends- LOL!) Seriously though, I think a couple of these brushes have been needed in Sigma's lineup for a LONG time. The E52 is a nice large, flat brush and I've been enjoying that to apply my highlight. It's nice and I really like it, but it's not ground-breaking.
The other two are total must-haves, in my opinion. The E54 is an AWESOME size for so many things. It's a lot like my Sonia Kashuk small shadow brush, only a little bit more full (you can't really see that from the pic- should've shown another angle). Not only is this little guy great for getting a very controlled shadow application on the lids, but it's awesome for working shadows into the crease. The brush hairs have some flexibility to them, but aren't SO flexible that you can't pack on some color. It's so easy to work with and would be great for someone with small eyes who struggles to get a "neat" application of eyeshadow. The E34 is a terrific little size for building an outer V with your shadow. It fits SO nicely into the crease, and then you can use a more fluffy brush to buff out the edges. I remember early in my YouTube days when I first tried Sigma and had emailed back & forth with the team... I mentioned that I thought the collection needed a smaller-sized crease brush. Now it's here! LOL :)
Left to right: Blushes in Mellow, Serene, Peaceful
Time to talk blush! These new blushes sell for $12 each, and there's a matte tan called Mellow, a matte dusty rose called Serene, and a champagne highlight-type color called Peaceful. I think Mellow could practically be used as a contour shade- although it might be a bit warm for some people. Serene is my favorite of the bunch- it's really pigmented and such a classic shade that I think would be gorgeous on anyone- even if you have a deeper tan skintone. I see myself reaching for this one a lot, and I honestly think it would be stunning on fair skin, too (I'm picturing Lady Mary from Downton Abbey wearing that kind of a shade). Peaceful makes a nice highlight, but there's nothing that really sets it apart from other highlights in my collection.
Left to right: Glosses in Hint, Tint, and Tranquil
I'm very excited that Sigma is making Lip Gloss, but not super excited about these particular shades. I put each of these on today and took some pictures, but earlier I had a very vibrant lip on from my RuPaul Glamazon kit and these are so sheer that too much of that leftover pink was showing through. But I think my swatches give a pretty good indication of the consistency of these glosses, and I'm also wearing one in the look I'll show below from this past weekend. These cost $10 each, and Hint is a dusty mauve/lilac, Tint is a soft coral, and Tranquil is a dusty rose. Hint is a no-go for me. It gives my already mauve lips a gray-ish look and it doesn't bring any life to the rest of my face. It's just not my color. The coral color in Tint is too sheer to show up much on my lips at all. I think this color would be awesome if it came off on the lips the way it looks in the tube. Tranquil is my favorite of this trio, because it actually looks how I would expect it to on my lips. I still don't think it's something I'd repurchase. These all have a lot of shine, but compared to other $10 glosses on the market, I don't think these are worth it.
What I'm wearing in this look...
-Blush in Serene
-Lip Gloss in Tranquil
-Shadow base in Awake
-Shadows in Oyster Sand (inner lid), Dove (outer lid), Russet (outer crease), Cinnamon (lightly to blend out Russet), Sugar Milk (highlight), Warm Stone (lower lashline)
-Eyeliner Pencil in Eclipse
♥
Bottom line: As you've realize if you've read through this whole post, there are some hits & misses for me in Sigma's Enlight Collection. I love the overall concept, but I definitely don't see every single thing as a total must-have. Fortunately each part of the collection can be purchased individually. Here are the products I'd recommend from this collection:
Thanks so much for checking out this post, and I'd love to hear your opinions on the Enlight Collection if you've tried it! Have a great day and I'll see you on the blog again soon! :)
