Splurge or save

Shadow liners - a pencil liner on one side and a shading tool on the other for smudging the liner strokes and turning them into a sheer eyeshadow - are made for idiot-proof smoky eyes.

With these, you will not have to bother with brushes and eyeshadow pots. Great for those constantly on the go.

SAVE

Browhaus Heavy Duty Bi-Liner (left)
$12.90 each; $50 for five, from Browhaus outlets

Waterproof, and promises to last up to 24 hours. Available in five shades - Blush, Burgundy, Amber, Noir Shimmer and Midnight Blue - in shimmer and metallic textures.

Review: The shading tool on this liner has a rubbery texture, which I feel tugs on the delicate lids a little too much.

While the five shades are all smooth when applied straight from the pencil, they perform differently when smudged. Blush and Burgundy become really faint when smudged; but the Amber, Midnight Blue and Noir Shimmer blend beautifully.

For best results, the liners must be smudged within 30 seconds of the application, before the colour sets and will not budge.

These shadow liners live up to their promise - they are waterproof and are not that easy to remove, even with an oil cleanser.

I also like the fact that the liners are retractable and come with a built-in sharpener for convenience.

SPLURGE

Eyeko Me & My Shadow Waterproof Shadow Liner (right)
about $25, from Sephora stores and Eyeko.com

Waterproof eyeshadow and liner that promises to be crease-resistant and long-wearing. Available in Charcoal, Chocolate and Taupe in metallic and matte textures.

Created in collaboration with British It-girl Alexa Chung.

Review: These retractable liners are chunky and resemble crayons. They have a cream-to-powder finish, glide onto the skin and are so easy to blend with the stiff synthetic brush smudging tool on the other end.

The brush is gentle on delicate lids and barely tugs on them. All three shades blend well and are great neutral colours for an everyday look.

However, because the crayon is thick, you will not be able to line your eyes with thin strokes.

And the colours are not as long-wearing as the Browhaus pencils; they faded after around six hours on my greasy lids in the heat. Wear a shadow primer to make the colours last longer.

This article was first published on Jan 16, 2015.
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