Make up is something I have rather a lot of especially eye shadows that I have managed to collect, despite my rather large collection of eye shadows I couldn't resist purchasing the Accessorize Merged Eye Shadow whilst in Superdrug. I was actually shopping for mascara and foundation but had a quick browse at the other things in the make up section whilst I was there and this particular eye shadow caught my eye as it was totally different to anything else I had at home, surprisingly it was very reasonably priced so I decided to purchase it and give it a go.

Packaging
The Accessorize Merged Eye Shadow packaging is nothing fancy but combined with the colour of the eye shadow it does look quite pretty. The eye shadow comes in a clear round case which allows you to see the eye shadow inside, the top of the case simply flips up to allow you to get to the eye shadow and clips back in place once you have finished. On the front of the lid is the name Accessorize written in gold writing and a butterfly just above it, again in gold, this is it for the front of the packaging but the gold over the top of the colour of the eye shadow inside really does look quite pretty. The bottom of the case has a round gold sticker on it containing a small amount of product information, at the top of the label is the name of the product which is Accessorize Merged Eye Shadow, beneath this is the colour which in my case was Shade 6 Cocoa. The only other information is the ingredients which are clearly written in black so they stand out against the gold background. Whilst the information is limited it does contain what you need to know.

The Eye Shadow
Accessorize Merged Eye Shadow is described as being a baked eye shadow rather than pressed, this is something that I have never heard of and am not sure what the difference is supposed to be, it is also highly pigmented. The eye shadow is a large round dome shape which takes up the majority of the case. The colour of the eye shadow is actually quite hard to describe, the main background colour is a maroon/brown colour with a marble effect of silvery blue shades mixed in, it is this marble effect that caught my eye and drew my attention to this eye shadow. This marble effect of different colours allows you to make slightly different shades of eye shadow depending on what you fancy. The eye shadow has a metallic look to it, however this is quite discrete.

The Merged Eye Shadow can be applied in two ways which I did not know until I looked it up online, you can apply it in the usual way with the eye shadow being dry or you can apply it wet which gives it a more dramatic finish, personally I have only tried it with a dry finish so far but now I know it can be applied in the two ways I will be giving it a go by applying it wet. As I have mentioned I purchased the Accessorize Eye Shadow in Shade 6 Cocoa, however it does also come in a few other colours as well including
* Gun Metal - silver, grey and black shades
* Moon Dust - Creamy gold shades
* Golden Brown - Brown, gold and bronze shades
* Golden Caramel - Peachy, gold and slight light bronze shades
The eye shadow makes no promises of being suitable for sensitive skin, personally I have had no problems with this so far, however the ingredients are on the back of the packaging so you can check these before wearing it just in case it contains an ingredient that you are allergic to.

Price and Availability
Accessorize Merged Eye Shadow is available anywhere that sells Accessorize make up, it is also available from the actual Accessorize shops and online. I purchased my Merged Eye Shadow in Cocoa from my local Superdrug and the 3g pot cost me £2.95 it can be purchased from Accessorize for £4.50. Whilst the eye shadow is more expensive than some other brands you can buy it is not the most expensive on the market. Personally I feel that this reasonably priced as you do get a lot of eye shadow for your money and I always find that eye shadow lasts a long time so you do get your moneys worth with this

My Opinion
I have used my Accessorize Merged Eye Shadow several times now and have been extremely pleased with it. I have never tried the Accessorize eye shadows before so I had no idea how good they were, I was hoping that it was going to be long lasting and look as good as it did in the case. I have only tried the eye shadow with a dry finish and apply it with a small eye shadow brush as it does not come with an applicator. I found that when applying the eye shadow you do not need much at once, you do not need to keep applying more and more coats to get a good finish. When applied the colour of the eye shadow is really pretty it comes out as a maroon/ brown shade, if you wish it to be lighter you can sweep the brush over the silvery blue parts more, when on your eyes the eye shadow doesn't really look that metallic however this does not really bother me.
The Merged Eye Shadow is extremely long lasting, I can apply this in the morning and by evening the eye shadow has not creased and the colour still looks pretty much the same as when I applied it, it may have faded slightly but not so much that I feel I have to re-apply it, the fact that it lasts well and that you do not need much at a time makes the eye shadow long lasting and good value for money. I will definitely be purchasing some of the other colours that are available in this range as they look very pretty in the case and give a lovely finish, this is certainly one I would recommend.