Naruko Magnolia Brightening and Firming Night Eye Gelly

Naruko is one of my favorite brands as you may already know -- or not. It is homegrown in Taiwan, created by the island's beauty expert Niu-Er. The brand is famous for its skincare particularly the Night Gellys. I've had good experiences with Naruko products so far, and I readily made the switch from Shiseido Bio-Performance Super Eye Contour Cream, my trusted eye cream of many years, to Naruko's Magnolia Brightening and Firming Night Eye Gelly.

The design of the Magnolia line is slightly different from Naruko's other lines. The product name and description in front is entirely in Chinese text and is presented like an Oriental poem.

The Eye Gelly is described to be anti-aging, repairing, brightening, protecting, moisturizing. Usage: After washing the face, use spatula to scoop out about two pearl-sized amount and spread thinly first on the undereye area, then continue application on the eyelids up to near the eyebrows. No need to rinse with water after application. Suitable for all-skin types, especially dry around the eye area.

Opening . . .

It comes with a spatula. The handle is slightly curved. It fits nicely between the thumb and forefinger.

Out of the box! The jar is made of glass and feels hefty on my hand. It contains 60ml of gelly goodness. Very generous for an eye product. The Magnolia line uses a creamy off-white color label that I find to be the most pleasing among all the other lineups. It looks very grown-up and elegant.

The description says this product is for firming and toning the eye area.

This anti-aging eye treatment also aims to "deeply hydrate the skin and increase cell turnover rate to promote radiance."

It has a separate plastic cover aside from the screw-top cap.

The Eye Gelly has a pale yellow, milky shade. The texture is like gooey gelatin. It has a sweet, candy-like smell. Sometimes I am reminded of Nerds candy during application. The jelly texture makes it easy to spread around the eye area which is a plus because it's better not to tap or rub on the sensitive eye area for too long. With this product on, there remains a cooling sensation on the eyes which feels really nice. I don't think I ever had experienced such a "cooling" feeling with other products, even after putting them in the refrigerator. It feels like the Eye Gelly is draining the eye area of excess heat/stress. When I use this product at night, my eyes feel moisturized, supple, and firm in the morning. The only difference it has from my Holy Grail Shiseido Bio-Performance Super Eye Contour Cream is that it is not as effective in eliminating dark under eye circles. Note: Not as good does not mean it does not lighten my dark circles, it's just that Bio-Performance is really superb in that aspect. Another thing is I would have preferred a pump bottle instead of the unhygienic jar type packaging. Those aside, Naruko Magnolia Eye Gelly is much, much friendlier on the pocket. This Eye Gelly's overall performance is something to sing praises about. I would definitely keep on using and repurchase this product.

Product description on the bottom jar is similar to the one printed on the box.

Above, the ingredients list.

Side of the box.

The pamphlet. The Magnolia line features a whole range of other skincare items.

An introduction to skin care around the eye area.

The Magnolia line step-by-step usage:

And Naruko's products never end without recycling tips.

How to turn the carton/packaging into a box:

 Six steps to transformation . . .

 Ta-da!

 With the lid on : )

Maybelline Eyestudio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner in 02 Brown

Maybelline's Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner scores one of the highest among drugstore eyeliners online. It is well-known for its staying power and for the quality brush it comes with. I've tried my fair share of gel eyeliners when they became popular back in 2008/2009, first from MAC (Fluidline), lots from Kate (Powder Gel Liner), and a couple of Bobbi Brown's legendary Long-Wear Gel Liners. Alas, none of them stayed put on my lids. They always migrated to my lower eye line and resulted to the dreaded panda eyes. Virtually every brand has now released their version of gel liner, but it was hard to resist Maybelline not only because of the friendly price point but also for the odd fact that I can't find a negative review about it.

 

Maybelline's offering is housed in a trapezoid box. The packaging says, "Quick dry intense color lasts all day. Smudge-Proof and Water-Proof for 24 hours." Maybelline holds regular 20%- or 30%-off sales. It didn't hurt at all when I got this for just over 300 bucks during their month-long sale last December.

 

"Long-wearing, creamy gel texture" as described sounds very tempting. I know I shouldn't be associating make-up with food, but some words work their magic. There weren't many colors to choose from; only 2 were available - 01 Black and 02 Brown. I kept asking if there is a purple one, because I know Maybelline Japan released it a few years back, but the SA said they never had any purple shade.       

 

Product description above.

 

Here is the side view of the packaging.

  

From the top. 

Here it is in a tiny (2.8 g) glass jar. The aluminum cap complements the frosted glass nicely.

 

The color in the container is a rich dark brown with red undertones. The littlest dab of liner is all that's needed to create a fine eye line.

The brush included is medium-sized in length.

 

The tip is tapered on the ends. The bristles feel stiff but that is a good thing because it allows for precise lining. I do find this brush very useful. Not many drugstore brushes/tools are made well, but I like this one from Maybelline a lot and always reach for it when I apply this gel liner.

From left to right: The first four lines, in varying degrees of intensity, are made using Maybelline Eyestudio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner in 02 Brown. For comparison, I also swatched Lunasol's Noble Shade Liner in 02 Khaki Brown (the fifth and sixth line). You can see that Lunasol has more golden undertones while Maybelline has more black and red mixed in. The Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner on top of Lunasol Eyelid Base (N) did not smudge on me for around 10 hours. I've worn it for around 15 hours one day and by the end of the day it traveled around the eye are already. However, most people do not wear liners for that long anyway. I daresay this is the best gel eyeliner I've tried. The brush makes drawing fine and thick lines easy. The color applies intensely, dries quickly, and the shade 02 Brown flatters almost all skin tones.

 

The bottom part has a sticker description. I was surprised it was Made in China. Maybelline did not print this information on the outer packaging. I would have hesitated to get this if it were so because I avoid personal care products from the Mainland. (I observe they do not have stringent standards yet.). However since this product is under the Maybelline brand, I figured L'Oreal would make sure this is safe to use.

Notice: Sixteenth on the ingredient list is...Glass! I tried to search "glass in cosmetics" but nothing came up. It does contain aloe extracts, so that calms whatever glass may harm -- I would like to think. Anyway, apart from the slight sting I felt the first time I applied this on my eyelid, I have had no problems of irritation since. Overall, this is a great liner that does almost everything it promises.