If you're a regular visitor to Penneys, you'll probably have noticed their Opia makeup line of cosmetics and bath products, packaged in a kind of faux-Philosophyesque packaging. I was never tempted to indulge: the extremely cheap prices and the naff branding put me off.
Fickle yoke that I am, the newly rebranded makeup bits did pique my interest, because they're done Pop Art style, and sure who doesn't love a bit of Roy Lichtenstein? Prices are still super-wee: €2 and €3 quid for concealers, souffle eyeshadows and all manner of mascara, blush and gloss. There's more than a little nod to Benefit here too, especially with the blusher/bronze combo, which is a dead ringer for 10.
Stylin' aside, is any of it any good? Now look, I'm a Sensible Grown Up Person and know that something that costs that little is not going to deliver Chanel quality. It just can't. So you do get cheap, disposable bits that are a lot of fun, and which offer you choice for statement makeup or a new shade for a night out when you don't want to lay down €15 on a MAC eyeshadow in virulent purple that you'll never use again.
Advertised
Ta Ta for Now is a Touche Eclat-alike brush concealer that's very similar to Aldi's in quality - not that amazingly pigmented, though quite moisturising. I tried the light shade, which is too pale for even ghostly me and very pink-toned, so won't suit someone with a sallower colouring. Souffleye Mousse Eyeshadow is disappointing: colour payoff is poor and it creases and slides quickly.
The Happy Couple is the aforementioned Benefit 10 knock-off and is very cute: packaging is great, you get a ton of product and it's definitely my pick of the bunch.
My verdict? I won't be swapping out my posh products for any of it - I'll readily admit to being a makeup snob, and a spoiled one at that - but if you're on a budget, looking for something fun or you're under the age of 20, my reckoning is you'll probably like this line a lot.
