Urban Decay RIFF – Worth The Hype?

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Every once in a while, a product takes the beauty world by storm and everybody wants to get their hands on it. Recently, Riff eyeshadow by Urban Decay became one of those products. Everyone and their granny was talking about it, and after seeing how gorgeous it was on Rosie from Hearts, Heels and Handbags, I had to pick it up. Saying that, it took me three trips to find a store that had it in stock.

I love eyeshadows that can be used all over the lid and blended out, meaning no faffing around with different eyeshadows in the mornings. I’d describe Riff as a burnt orange/brown shade, with a small amount of shimmer. I’d say it’s 10% shimmer and 90% matte, which I love.

It’s quite pigmented and can be applied as opaque or as transparent as you like. I pack it onto the lid with a MAC 239 brush, and then blend it out with my trusty MAC 217. Unlike MAC Woodwinked eyeshadow, another of my favourite one-sweep wonders, more product is needed to blend it out, rather than using what you applied on the lid. I pack, blend and repeat until I get the smoky, smudgy look I like. I use whatever’s left on the 239 under my eye, and blend it out with the 217. If it looks a bit messy, I use something like MAC Orb to tidy it up.

I love how the finished result looks, so much so that it’s pretty much the only eyeshadow I’ve used since I picked it up three weeks ago! Even my dad compliments me when I’m wearing it, which is saying something! So, after hearing everyone raving about it for weeks – I’m now one of those people. I’ve nothing else like it in my makeup stash, and I can see myself using this all year round. It’s perfect for during the day, going for dinner, nights out – anything at all!

If you’ve yet to try Riff, it’s definitely one I’d recommend adding to your collection!  I got mine in Debenhams for €18, as everywhere I looked online was sold out. It’s currently out of stock on feelunique.com, but if you put in your email address here you’ll be notified when it comes back in.

Have you tried Riff before? What are your favourite eyeshadows?