Sweet and simple: Cream Eyeshadows

I'm a big fan of keeping things simple when it comes to my beauty routines: I've talked a gazillion times about getting the five-minute face down, easy beauty staples for traveling, etc. etc. And so cream shadows are a great little product for quick application, especially when it gets closer to the summer and you don't want to pile on the product. (Would you really be piling on the product anyway?)

Today I'm testing out Shiseido the Makeup Hydro-Powder Eyeshadow (that's quite a mouthful!). Specifically, I'm wearing the new Lemon Sugar from their spring collection, and it is a gorgeous pale gold. I like the consistency and the color, but alas, it's creasing after about five hours of wear (I put it on around 7:30 this morning and checked it around 12:30). I primarily bought Lemon Sugar to use as a highlighter, so I'm sure it'll work well for that purpose, but as a lid wash, it's pretty creasy for me. That said, I've also ordered Tiger Eye, which looks like a gorgeous orange-y bronze (awesome for hazel-eyed me!), which I'm definitely looking forward to using this summer for a super-easy smokey eye. (I ordered it before announcing the product diet, so it's okay!)

I've also used BeneFit's creaseless cream shadow/liner, but as I've said, it has creased on me in the past. I even told the make-up artist this at the Viva La Rebel event last month, and her solution was to add a matching powder eyeshadow on top. Still, I love the colors (I've got Skinny Jeans and Birthday Suit -- pewter and platinum, respectively, but I've been awfully tempted by RSVP, their champagne-pink), and I'm also a fan of the Talent Brush that they created specifically for their shadows. Before I picked up the Talent Brush, I just used an angled eyeliner brush; it's up to you what you want to use.

There are a couple more creamy eyeshadow products that I haven't tried; in the same package as my Shiseido Tiger Eye, I've got a Stila Shadow Pot to try out. Like BeneFit, it says it won't crease, but I'm both apprehensive and hopeful. I've tested out their colors at Sephora (on the back of my hand), but things always change when they go from hand to face. It does look like their Shadow Pots aren't really something they're putting a lot of effort into developing anymore, though... Still, I hope I like it!

Finally, everyone has been raving up and down about MAC's Paint Pots since they came out last year; some of them are claiming it's just as good or better than UDPP (Urban Decay Primer Potion) as a non-creasing primer. Wow. That's a high, high claim. I have yet to try out the Paint Pots, if just because I'm very happy with my UDPP, but I've been intrigued since their launch. I don't know if any of the colors are really jumping out at me, though -- Delft (teal) looks really gorgeous, but how often do I wear the teal shadows I already have (hint: I don't)? And I passed up on the one Fafi paint pot I might have worn, Nice Vice (plum), which is now sold out and I'm on my no buy, so no go there. It's something I have to think about for when I'm ready to buy again. Luckily, most of the Paint Pots are permanently in the MAC collection (which is a rarity for MAC; love you guys, but come on!), so I can take my time and think about it.

What cream eyeshadows have you tried out and liked? Do you find that even the "creaseless" ones crease, like they do on me, or are you lucky and don't have the same greasy eyelids I do? Are Paint Pots really that awesome and I'm just a fool for not giving them a chance? Let me know!

images from sephora.com and benefitcosmetics.com