I’ll be honest and say that when I first heard about Lush’s venture into make-up, named Emotional Brilliance, I was a tad dubious as I wondered why it was that a company who had firmly established itself as a skin and body care brand would, after being around for quite some time, suddenly be capable of producing make-up. The words “gimmick” and “novelty” sprang to mind. It turns out, the reason they’ve only recently launched a line of make-up is because they were clearly waiting until they’d got everything just right, so bring on the gushing…
The idea behind Emotional Brilliance is that you spin a wheel, pick the first three colours you’re drawn to, and these will be the colours that dictate the way you’re feeling. Obviously this isn’t something to take too seriously – the wheel itself starts with the introduction “let’s play a game” – but it’s definitely a different way of discovering new colours and forcing your hand towards a more experimental approach.
Middle: Glamorous
Bottom: Quietly Motivated
However, if you’re stubborn, grumpy and stuck-in-your-ways like me, then you might want to just pick your own shades to work with that you know will slot in with your existing kit. Therefore, all shades are clearly displayed online and instore for you to have a dabble with and decide what you like. I wanted to try a bit of everything, so the three shades I went for are Sophisticated*(eyeshadow), Glamorous* (lipstick and cheek tint) and Quietly Motivated* (eyeliner).
Before I review the individual shades, it would be wrong not to discuss the packaging. Each product is housed in a small “potion-like” bottle with a screw top that looks like it’ll produce a pipette-style applicator. Thankfully, it isn’t an actual pipette and instead there are more suitable applicators housed inside the bottle (depending on what the product is designed for e.g. eyeliners will have a thin brush whereas lip and eye colour will have a sponge applicator) and each bottle comes with a label displaying the product name. I absolutely love the idea that, if you wanted to, you could have pretty much all of your make-up contained in these little potion bottles as they’re so aesthetically pleasing and yet they also prove to be incredibly functional too. I think the best way to describe this style of packaging is “charming”.
Sophisticated
I’ll start with my favourite, which is the eyeshadow shade Sophisticated. It’s just an absolute beaut of a shade that is unapologetically taupe, yet in certain lights it has the tiniest hint of lilac and a slightly frosted finish. The formula itself is *amazing”; it’s a cream product that’s easy to apply thanks to the well-sized applicator sponge.
You have a few moments to smudge out any harsh lines before it’s set in place until you’re ready to remove it, which is thankfully very easy. I can not believe how good the formula is as it doesn’t crease at all and if I had to compare it, I’d say it’s just as good as Bobbi Brown’s Long Wear Cream Eyeshadow.
However, what’s most exciting for me is the shade itself, as there really isn’t anything else I can compare it to and believe me when I say that my pictures do not do it justice. It’s £14.50.
Quietly Motivated
This is an eyeliner that I actually found a lot easier to use than I thought I would, considering the length of the brush. It’s a shimmering bronze/earthy brown shade and again, I don’t know of a similar shade available in an eyeliner format. It’s a brilliant shade for naturally enhancing eyes as it isn’t harsh and instead adds a soft definition.
The added bonus of the shimmer and earthy tones means it really brightens the eyes and is an especially good choice for lighter eye colours like mine. Again, the formula doesn’t budge once set and it can also be blended all over the lid to be used as an eyeshadow. It’s £14.50.
Glamorous
This was my least favourite in the selection I was sent, which is interesting considering I thought it would be my favourite! The reason it hasn’t blown me away as impressively as the two other products is purely due to the fact that it didn’t stay even on my lips for very long. However, it is worth noting that any light or milky shades ALWAYS fade quickly on me as I have very strong red pigment on my lips which determinedly shows through most shades before I’ve even had a chance to leave the house.
Having said that, Glamorous is such a stunning shade; a bright, girly, bubblegum shade of pink that can be sheered out or built-up. The formula wasn’t at all drying, and I understand from reading other reviews that the lip products in general are very long-lasting on most. I haven’t had a chance to use this as a cheek tint yet and I’m not sure I will as it’s too bright for my complexion. It’s £14.50.
So there we have a full 1000 word essay (I kid you not) on my new found love for Lush’s Emotional Brilliance range of make-up. I’m just so much more impressed with it than I ever thought I would be. The range of shades is phenomenal – they really do have every shade you can think of – but what I like most about the colour range is that there are quite a few shades that you wouldn’t find elsewhere, and in our heavily saturated beauty market that is quite an achievement. Add to that the adorable packaging that isn’t only wonderful to look at, but functional and easy to use too and you have something pretty special. On top of that, the formulas for the eye products are absolutely brilliant and comfortably rival much more expensive brands that have been around for a lot longer. Therefore, if you haven’t had a chance to fully acquaint yourself with Lush’s Emotional Brilliance and you’re looking for something a little bit different that’s fun to work with, I strongly recommend heading over to the EB page and having a gander. Okay, I’ll shut up now…
