Silk Naturals // Great Impressions Eyeshadow Pressing Kit

Photo of Silk Naturals Great Impressions Eyeshadow Pressing Kit
I took a stab at pressing loose eyeshadows and apparently it's not my forte. I'm going to share with you the Silk Naturals kit I used and my results.
Photo of Silk Naturals Great Impressions Eyeshadow Pressing Kit
Silk Naturals Great Impressions Eyeshadow Pressing Kit

Most of my natural makeup is from Silk Naturals (previous hauls: #1, #2, #3) and it was inevitable that I try out pressing because pressed shadows are easier to use and store.

Price: $14.99 (pressing medium is available individually for $5.99)

The kit includes:
- 30ml bottle of Great Impressions Pressing Medium
- 15 magnetic pans
- magnetic palette
- 2 spatulas
- 2 pods
All housed in a black mesh bag.


Pro's:


  • Has everything you need.
    Something that put me off about pressing was the thought of needing to buy a lot of materials from different shops. This kit makes it easier, because I could just add it to my cart along with the makeup I was buying.
  • Good price.
    Buying empty palettes, pans, and various pressing liquids can add up to cost more than this if shopping on other sites.
I can't attest to the following, but they are supposed pro's:
  • Compatible with Silk Naturals products.
    Since the pressing medium has been formulated by SN, it's probably the best thing you can use to press their products.
  • You can press mattes.
    I've heard that mattes are hard to press by other methods and some people have been successful using this.

Photo of Silk Naturals Great Impressions Eyeshadow Pressing Kit

My Experiences


1st attempt: I followed Oxana's tutorial of using less pressing medium and adding alcohol. I had the video playing in front of me while I was doing it, but I didn't get the same buttery, pigmented results. I can still get them to work if I pack them on, but mine lost a lot of pigmentation.

2nd attempt: I thought that since my eyeshadows were slightly used, that maybe I put too much pressing medium, so I tried to proportion it better, but still no luck.

3rd attempt: I decided to leave out the alcohol this time and to stick with the original directions. I followed the amount of pumps of pressing medium listed. No luck.

Photo of my Silk Naturals pressed eyeshadow palette.

What I think I'm doing wrong:


I think I'm either not putting in the right amount of liquid or not pressing it dry enough.

1) Although the directions provide guidelines for what to put in, it doesn't tell you exactly how much. For mattes, it says "start with 4 pumps, most need 5" so my downfall may have been caused by being off by a pump.

2) I haven't seen anyone else get distorted pans and my bf pointed out that I might be using the wrong kind of pliers. If that's the case, then the pliers may not have been distributing force properly.
Swatches of the pink + brown shadows shown in the previous photo. The middle + right swatch are the same shadow, but I heavily packed it on in the middle swatch.


Final thoughts


I've still got about half of the supplies left, so yes, I probably will press again. However, I feel like I wasted a bunch of money since my shadows are basically ruined and just buying pressed ones would have been cheaper. Some that I've had my eye on include the Honeybee Gardens singles (which are $6 on iherb), the Pacifica Power of Love palette, and the Lily Lolo Laid Bare palette.

I don't want to scare you out of not giving pressing a go. I just wanted to show that mistakes can happen and it may not be as easy as bloggers make it seem sometimes! I definitely hope to try again at some point and make a post about my successes.

If you have tips for pressing, I would love to know them!



Instagram: @rosegoldpanda

https://www.bloglovin.com/blogs/rose-gold-panda-14019029

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COMMENTS

2 comments:

  1. What a shame! I haven't tried the SN Pressing Medium, but I had good results with fractionated coconut oil and alcohol. I also never used pliers...just my fingers. I wonder if maybe you made them too dry? The alcohol should evaporate out + my understanding is that you want to leave some of the other (either oil or pressing medium) for a creamy/buttery shadow. Just my 2 cents worth, I'm not an expert :)

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    Replies
    1. Ah, this is very helpful! I may have to try again with just my fingers. Thanks Caitie :)

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