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Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Urban Decay Ammo Shadowbox.

This set was released as part of Urban Decay's 10th birthday celebrations and it is just perfect.

The box is very slim which means it’s easy to pack in a fairly small makeup or hand bag, and light so it can easily be taken with you when you’re travelling or even going out for the night - if you wanted to do some touch ups and it has a strong magnetic clasp which means that it stays shut; so no danger of it coming open and the shadows getting ruined which is a big plus point in my experience. It is purple with a foil and velvet design on that consists of flowers, leaves, and hearts to skulls and even fish – but it looks lovely and feels nice to touch because of the velvet.

Upon opening the case I notice a decent sized mirror, again with a surrounding foil design that matches the outside of the box. It’s quite decadent looking, and so are the shadows it contains.

Each shadow measures approximately 1.5cm x 2cm and whilst this doesn’t sound very big, I have found that they actually last very well. Because the pigment in them is quite strong, I have found that you don’t need to apply a huge amount to get the coverage and depth you need, even if you want to wear the colours strong and opaque.

The hues contained are beautiful, 10 different colours that are said to be arranged in 5 matching duos, running the gamut from subtle to all out sexy. I actually find that whilst these are arranged into ‘matching colours’ these shadows can be mixed and matched with each other very easily to create a number of different looks suitable for any occasion. Below is a quick rundown of the colours from my perspective.

Smog – A deep coppery bronze, lovely in the eye socket.

Maui Wowie – This is a cool medium gold that has a bit of glitter in it; not over the top though. This is one of my personal favourites.

Mildew – A deep, dirty green. This has the perfect name but is a gorgeous colour, despite the name.

Shattered – A turquoise like hue that edges more to the blue, a classy blue – if you will.

Oil Slick – Black, with glitter. I love this; it’s perfect for smoky eyes with a little bit of fun added because of the very slight glittery particles.

Polyester Bride – White with silver glitter. This is great for brightening the inside of the eyes.

Last Call – ‘Plum punch’ A beautiful medium-light plum colour which nods to a more pink plum hue than full on purple, that will blend beautifully with a number of other colours from this set.

Grifter – Sheer lavender with lots of ‘microglitter’ – a very light colour, but a very lovely one all the same.

Chopper – A coppery fawn hue with silver ‘microglitter’ in.

Sin – A nude champagne hue with probably the least amount of shimmer out of all the shadows included in this set, but this doesn’t make it any less noticeable in my opinion.

All the colours have a sheen/shimmer to them and whilst this would make it seem like these shadows could only be for evening wear, you would be wrong to think this true. These shadows are never overly glittery, and all of the colours can be built up and adapted to suit daytime use as you wish. I personally love using smog and maui wowie or sin together for daytime usage – I just use very thin layers of each of them.

The shadow is very good quality and stays put once applied, even without the use of a primer – which is much better than many others that I have tried previously.  It’s also easy to apply, it blends well and I find it doesn’t dust all over my face when applying like some other shadows have been prone to doing. It has also never caused any irritation with my eyes, and although they’re not particularly sensitive to most things, this is still a plus for me.

It has become a regularly used product in my makeup bag, both when on the move and at home and I would have no hesitation to replace it when the time comes, either with the same set or with the individual colours contained in the set (if the set is no longer available to buy). The set costs £22.50, although I am sure it could be found cheaper if you were to shop around but it’s worth every penny, even at full price.

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