This story first appeared on Wednesday, January 15, 2025, in The Strategist Beauty Brief, a weekly newsletter in which our beauty writers share their must-tries, can-skips, and can’t-live-withouts. But we liked it so much we wanted to share it with all of our readers. If you want more first impressions of buzzy launches, quick takes on what’s trending on TikTok and Instagram, and deep dives into the week’s best beauty launches, sign up here. The Strategist Beauty Brief is delivered every Wednesday.
Eye-shadow sticks aren’t new, but recently, I’ve seen an uptick in launches from buzzy brands like Glossier and Half Magic. Not only do the stick formats make them convenient, but they’re also blendable, creamy, and super easy (no fallout, for one). I decided to give the newbies a test run: Were they easy to apply? Did the formula blend well and deposit a good amount of pigment? How did they hold up while traveling? Read on to find out.
Half Magic’s Sparklestiks — beloved by Strategist writer and glitter aficionado Rachael Griffiths — are indeed glitter bombs in stick form. Available in six super-shimmery shades, from icy blue to baby pink, the sticks were kept on constant rotation by Griffiths and myself throughout the month of December, especially for festive holiday-party looks. Now that we’ve entered the more sober winter months, I find them a bit too spirited for everyday. But I’ll certainly be reaching for them ahead of special occasions like concerts and nights out, and perhaps on days when I need an extra mood boost as well.
Laura Mercier’s Caviar Sticks and Bobbi Brown’s Long-Wear Cream Eyeshadow Sticks appear very similar to each other — I wouldn’t be surprised if they share the same manufacturer. They’re nearly identical in shape and size, with shade ranges that skew mostly neutral — soft, smoky taupes; shimmery beiges; and metallic mauves. Both formulas are highly creamy, pigmented, and easy to blend; just one swipe is enough to cover my whole lid with a wash of color, and they’re definitely the ones I use most on an everyday basis. If I had to pick only one, however, I’d go with Bobbi Brown, since it has a wider shade range (28 shades to Laura Mercier’s 15). The one downside to these sticks is that because they’re fairly slim, they’re also quite fragile, and both the Laura Mercier and the Bobbi Brown broke after bouncing around in my makeup bag. They’re still very much usable (you just have to be careful when opening the container to prevent the broken stick from tumbling out), but it’s something to consider if you plan to travel with them.
Glossier’s Shadow Sticks are larger and sturdier, the size and shape of a jumbo crayon. They come in five shades, described as shimmer champagne, tarnished silver, rusted copper, soft bronze, and midnight blue. True to the Glossier ethos, they’re less intensely pigmented than the Laura Mercier/ Bobbi Brown ones, though the formula is still buildable and easy to work with. That makes them an excellent option for beginners who are just starting to experiment with eye shadow. And the more robust stick is less prone to breakage: I took them with me to New Jersey during Thanksgiving, and despite my duffel getting knocked around on a crowded Amtrak train, they were none the worse for wear.
Jane Iredale is a skin-care-forward beauty brand with clean, cruelty-free mineral formulations. The brand’s ColorLuxe Eyeshadow Sticks come in ten neutral shades: five with a matte finish and five with a pearly finish. Unfortunately, they were my least favorite; the formula felt dry and chalky without a lot of color payoff, which made the sticks patchy and hard to blend out. The ones with a lustrous finish seemed to fare a bit better than the matte, but when I tried to layer a few together, it took an undue amount of tugging at my eyelids to get them to meld.
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