The Gold Edit: Single Eyeshadows
With a holiday season that looks a little different this year, I am grateful for whatever small joys I can squeeze out of what has been an insane year. One of these joys is everything glittering and sparkling gold. Much like a magpie, it is very hard for me to walk away from a gold eyeshadow and usually, I have to really convince myself that I do not need a 108th sparkling makeup product for my eyes. I own gold eyeshadows in a wide range of shades - champagne gold, yellow gold, white gold, bronze-gold, brown-based golds, green-based golds, and rose-golds. While most people use gold eyeshadows, especially sparkly and glittery gold eyeshadows for special occasions or around the holidays, I like to wear mine all year around. First, they go really well with a red lip - a clean face, no eyeliner or mascara, just an easy swipe of red on the lips and a sparkling wash of gold on the eyelids. Secondly, it’s easy to make a gold eyeshadow wearable on an every day basis by varying the intensity of the application and the exact shade of gold that I use. A bronzey gold can be smudged on to almost disappear into my skintone, a glittering white gold can be applied with the lightest of touches just in the corner of my eyes, and a shimmering yellow gold works beautifully as an eyeliner. Gold is versatile, and when in a pinch, can double as a highlighter. In this post, I want to share some of my favourite gold single eyeshadows - some new, and some so old and well-loved that you can see the wear and tear in some of the photos! Notwithstanding the very real losses that we all have experienced in different ways this year and with the recognition that makeup is at the end of the day, just makeup, perhaps like me, this holiday season, a little sparkle and gold will make you feel just that tiny little bit better.
Chanel Ombre Premiere - 905 - ELECTRUM LAMÉ: This is a shimmery pale gold eyeshadow that has neutral undertones on my skin. The texture is a little powdery, and there is a slight white base to this gold. However, as you build layers, the white base is less obvious and the eyeshadow takes on a true pale gold color. I wear this with a black tightline and a cherry red lip.
Victoria Beckham Beauty Lid Lustre - Blonde (top in image): This eyeshadow is almost the cream version of Chanel’s Electrum Lame so if you can’t get your hands on the limited edition Chanel one, this one is a good dupe. First of, VB Beauty’s Lid Lustres have a deliciously satisfying texture - a thin, light-weight cream, with the sparkle and glitter tightly packed into this dense formula. This particular shade is a pale-gold metallic eyeshadow which actually lookes more white than gold in the pan but is infact, a true pale-gold with slightly warmer undertones than the Chanel. A little goes a long way and while you can dot it into the corner of your eyes, I like a light wash of it over my eyelids and I absolutely love wearing it as a highlighter.
Hourglass Scattered Light Glitter Eyeshadow - Foil (bottom in image): A wonderful creamy glitter eyeshadow formula with a polished, impossibly chic finish. This color is a dark, bronze-gold that looks good with basically everything. It goes on opaque and can be applied very lightly to minimize the sparkle or full-on for a beautiful, expensive looking eyelid. I wear it with warm, orange-toned matte reds.
Pat Mcgrath Eyedols Eye Shadow - Gold Standard (bottom) and Enraptured (top): Pat McGrath’s single eyeshadows are a relatively low-cost way to try her legendary eyeshadow formula ( and I think they are currently 50% off at Sephora and Pat Mcgrath so it is possible they are being discontinued). These two gold eyeshadows are powder formulas but creamy to the touch and apply and blend beautifully in an almost completely opaque layer on my eyelids. Gold Standard is a true yellow gold and Enraptured is a darker, slightly more bronze gold. The quality of these eyeshadows is as good as the ones in her palettes and while the packaging is a little flimsy, the juice inside more than makes up for it.
Mac - Put You on Gold (center): This is one of my most loved gold eyeshadows and a hard one to find a dupe for. It’s a dark, warm-toned, slightly taupe-y gold powder shadow with a texture that to me, gets surprisingly little attention on social media. Packed with glitter and sparkles, the consistency still somehow remains creamy to the touch, and applies beautifully without chunks of glitter seperating and falling off. In fact, this is probably the most sparkly eyeshadow I own that is not straight up pieces of glitter and yet applies like a cream and blends seamlessly.
Bobbi Brown Luxe Eye Shadow - Moonstone (right): While I love thicker, creamier, and denser formulas for eyeshadows, sometimes, you just need a light veil of shimmer. These Bobbi Brown eyeshadows give me exactly that - a lightweight formula that applies as a very thin layer but can be built up. The effect is unique - it looks like I spilled water on my eyelids and the surface shimmers as the light hits it at different angles. There is a “wet” quality to the look but not that of a gloss - this is more of like a light, translucent layer of dew. Moonstone is a pale champagne-peach gold.
Dior Diorshow Mono (top): While this particular shade has been discontinued, it is one of the oldest eye shadows I own and I loved it so much I bought two so I still have a backup. The formula of these Dior eyeshadows is unique and the closest formula dupe I’ve ever found are the Bobbi Brown Luxe Eyeshadows (see above) but even they are not an exact match. This eyeshadow is very sparkly and a little powdery to the touch but the magic is in its effect on my eyelids. This is truly the “wet” look formula before wet looks were a thing. I use my finger to apply it and the shimmer and sparkles are so fine that they almost melt onto my lid leaving a beautiful, even, “wet” sheen behind. This color is a true pale gold and I also love using it as a highlighter when I want a more intense look.
Nars - Etrusque (bottom): This is the oldest gold eyeshadow I own and while it is now discontinued, I used it probably every day for a year and I could barely make a dent in it. This eyeshadow is a powder formula with a frost finish and the color is a dark, bronze-gold with just a hint of a brown undertone. This color looks great with almost every red lip variation I can think of and during the day, I can wear it like a neutral gold because the shimmer in this shadow is very muted.
Swatches
Indoors, under a lamp; from Lto R: Hourglass Foil, VB Beauty Blonde, Pat Mcgrath Enraptured, Pat McGrath Gold Standard, MAC Put You on Gold, Chanel Electrum Lame, Dior Diorshow Mono, Bobbi Brown Moonstone, Nars Etrusque
Facing a window - natural light; from Lto R: Hourglass Foil, VB Beauty Blonde, Pat Mcgrath Enraptured, Pat McGrath Gold Standard, MAC Put You on Gold, Chanel Electrum Lame, Dior Diorshow Mono, Bobbi Brown Moonstone, Nars Etrusque
Natural light, under the sun from Lto R: Hourglass Foil, VB Beauty Blonde, Pat Mcgrath Enraptured, Pat McGrath Gold Standard, MAC Put You on Gold, Chanel Electrum Lame, Dior Diorshow Mono, Bobbi Brown Moonstone, Nars Etrusque
