I have a rather shaky hand at times when it comes to my fine motor movements. That almost always comes out where any kind of liner pencils come into play. I seldom bother with make-up due to an overly temperamental and sensitive skin but an eyeliner is usually my accessory of choice. Thankfully for me then, our Indian markets are overflowing with local and big brand options for eyeliner pencils. I’ve chosen four to review in today’s post.

Let’s start off with the long-standing favorite brand of the country-Lakme‘s Kajal. Initially available in a thicker crayon-form, this eyeliner is value for money, ridiculously easy to source (most neighborhood grocers stock it), this product has introduced a thinner pencil version which is priced higher than its predecessor but is still quite easy to use. However, you will probably have to venture out to a small or a bigger general store to be able to source the thinner one.

The crayon-type retails significantly lesser at Rs.71 as compared to the thinner pencil-type which is priced at Rs.180 at the stores and online. The color options tend to nudge the prices higher.

The second brand which I opted for more out of curiosity than anything else is the Patanjali herbal kajal.

Priced at Rs.150, this product is also fairly easy to find at medium to large stores and of course, online. The tapered tip aids in the application over narrow areas and I find that in comparison to the uniformly thin pencils which can wobble quite a bit and often become loose from the base, the broad-based, tapering kajals are easier for me to use and lead to less wastage. The Patanjali kajal actually does smudge less and is worth considering.

Another Ayurvedic brand I use on and off has a wide range of products is Himalaya and their kajal isn’t bad either. The product which is packaged like a tube of lipstick, also has a tapered tip.

It retails at Rs.135 and is easy to source. I would give it a pass however because it doesn’t lend itself well to sharpening and the residue from the kajal tends to sticks to the kajal sharpener. This product hasn’t ever caused any kind of an adverse reaction to my eyes but the removal of it almost always ends up with 2 applications of Vaseline or any other cream.

The final product for today is a global giant-Maybelline. Now with a huge cosmetics brand certain things are given- the packaging, the higher costs and the ROI. But I found that the Maybelline eyeliner didn’t glide as smoothly as I needed it to and wasn’t sufficiently dark enough to emphasize my eyes post application. Priced at Rs.175, this product maybe the go-to choice for many but I’ve found that even a slight jarring or a drop from the hand causes the liner base to become loose and flimsy.

How do you make your eyes stand out? Is it one of these products? Is it another one altogether? If so, we’d love to hear from you and feature you on the blog. Do get in touch!