A couple of weeks ago I was asked what my favourite Irish brand is. Without hesitation I said Blank Canvas Cosmetics. I first tried it in December of last year and was so surprised by the quality in relation to the price. The first item I bought was an 88 shadow palette and I love it. I use it every week for my colour challenge. I created my Disney series with it, used it for special fx aging and now I’m using it again for my Halloween looks. I can’t recommend it enough. When I saw that Blank Canvas Cosmetics were introducing eyeliners I was eager to try one although I have to say I had my reservations. I generally don’t tend to like liner pens as they are never black enough and dry up easily. Given my knowledge of Blank Canvas Cosmetics, however, I was sure that these products would be great. I was absolutely thrilled when a package from Una came through my letter box with Winging It and Borderlines to try.
I am a liner fiend. The only time I am without it is when I clean my make-up off at night and first thing in the morning before I put my liner back on. I have been lining my eyes and creating wings and flicks for ten years so I’ve used a lot of liners and I’m very fussy. The first of the liners that I tried was Winging It. Upon opening the lid the first thing I noticed was the length of the nib. It is really long and thin so it glides along the upper lashes and creates a wing with incredible ease. It is perfect for a really quick look as it applies so easily. The colour is very black so there is no need to go over the line several times. The texture and the shape of the nib mean that it is so simple to create a slightly thicker line along the corners or add more definition. It also means that if one makes a mistake it is easily fixed rather than ruining your eye make-up by taking the liner higher and higher only to create a mess (we’ve all been there). I find that the length of the nib also makes it easier to have symmetrical flicks on each eye. Line the lid and then place the nib along each corner, that’s your flick right there. They’ll be perfectly even.
Borderlines has a slightly shorter nib and looks more like a marker or pen. TIt allows for precision in terms of making a very thin or thick line. It can be used purely to line the top of the lashes and also to create a flick. I think for beginners Borderlines might be best as the smaller nib is probably easier to control. I love it because the colour gets right down on the lash line so there are no gaps. As with Winging It, the colour is incredibly black and it is so easy to use.
I wear one of these liners every day and I find them so quick in the morning. I wore Winging It to a wedding last week; I put it on at 7am and it was still perfect when I was leaving in the early hours of the next morning. Both liners are waterproof. One of my favourite things about the liners is that they don’t clump my lashes. Sometimes when applying liquid liner, the ink gets into the lashes as a result of applying so close to the lash line, this means that when I’m putting on mascara, my lashes are clumped with dried liquid liner. This doesn’t happen at all with the Blank Canvas Cosmetics pens and my lashes are in great shape as a result. Both liners are less than €10 and can be bought online at www.blankcanvascosmetics.com.
Winging It
One thing that I need to add to this review is that Una from Blank Canvas Cosmetics is one of the nicest people in Irish business. I loved Blank Canvas before I ever met her and I’m so delighted that I do because she is a joy to support and purchase from. It was an absolute pleasure to meet her for the first time at the Pro Beauty show in the RDS on Sunday the 5th of October and I look forward to continuing to support this amazing brand.
