Tarte Lid Lock Clay Base 12-Hour Eye Foundation

I think I’ve watched too many Lifetime movies about women who are kidnapped and forced to live in terrifyingly small spaces, because I would really like to learn how to pick locks and crack safes.

Something about those skills is very appealing to me.

That reminds me: locks. Tarte has a new vegan, cruelty-free (of course) cream eye primer called Lid Lock Clay Base on counters now for $21.

It comes in a cute little glass pot with a top that looks like petrified amber.

Pretty!

It’s a warm, opaque matte peachy beige, and I love the color. Used as a base, it neutralizes some of the purple or blue on my lids, but you can also use it by itself as a shadow with the cool side-effect of having it even out your skin.

It feels like a MAC Paint Pot to me — dense and a sort of dry, which also means that if I put too much on, it’s “Hello, Cake Town!” It’ll look thick and heavy, and then when you blend eyeshadow on top, your eye makeup looks even thicker and heavier.

Now that I think about it, Lid Lock is like a warmer, peachier version of MAC Painterly Paint Pot.

My suggestion? Use very little, and if it still looks dry and heavy, cut down the amount you’re using by half.

Like many Tarte products, Lid Lock contains Amazonian clay, and it helps powder and cream shadows last considerably longer. Toward the end of the day, though, I usually do see a little fading and settling into my creases. The wear time is comparable to what I get from the MAC Paint Pots, and if you like those, I think you’ll like this.

It doesn’t intensify the color of my shadows as much as NARS Pro-Prime, so I would recommend using Lid Lock with neutrals, although you can totally also use it with brights.

I really like using it with my two Tarte fave palettes — Tartelette in Bloom and Make Magic Happen.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen