Urban Decay 24/7 Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner- vegan, cruelty free

On your eyelids, the actual colour is a little more purple and less grey; more like the colour you can see on the tip of the brush.

I was given a Debenhams gift card from work colleagues as a birthday present last month, and still had some money left on it, so last weekend I decided to go and see if they had any makeup that was suitable for vegans. I had a quick look online for some cruelty and animal product-free brands before I set off, and was delighted to find one brand there, Urban Decay. I don't wear a lot of makeup- just a bit for work- but whatever I do wear needs to stay on all day as I don't have the time (or patience) to keep reapplying. None of the Urban Decay products are tested on animals, but not all of them are vegan as although they do not contain lanolin (a quite allergenic oil derived from wool) they may contain carmine (aka cochineal or crimson lake), a purplish-red pigment made from crushed and boiled insects. So really the success of my mission depended on how much I could find out about the ingredients once I got there...

Cute compact mirror from Poundland (of all places)

I was impressed from the start by the friendly but not pushy sales assistants at the counter, who were only too happy to look up the ingredients of any product for me. They were even quite knowledgeable without referring to the catalogue they call their "Bible". Unfortunately the "Bible", although it helpfully indicated the vegan products with a symbol, was not up to date so the newest ranges were not included. I was very taken by some of the intense violet shades of powder eyeshadow, but sadly these all contained carmine, as did a lot of the lipglosses. One of the assistants explained to me that blues and greens were usually animal-free but that pinks, reds and purples often contained carmine. But now I was set on purple, and eventually picked out a metallic deep plum liquid eyeliner from the 24/7 range, a shade called Retrograde. It set me back £14: more than I would usually pay for makeup, but this was my last installment of birthday fun so I didn't mind treating myself.

Eager to test its staying power, I put some on as soon as I got home. It went on very smoothly, probably because the short brush is designed to be easy to hold and control. It makes a very fine line, but you can keep going over it until it is as thick as you like. Although it takes a couple of seconds longer to dry than I'm used to, once on it will not smudge. (I do get the feeling that it could flake if applied thickly, however.) I only put it on my upper lids. The metallic colour of Retrograde is super glossy and its light-catching quality really accentuates the eyes. I was so happy to see that once on, it is quite satisfyingly and unmistakeably purple. Even after I had gone for a run and got all sweaty, it pretty much stayed put, too. The ultimate test was a day at work, however: getting there in wind and rain, working all day and then cooking- it passed with flying colours and was still going strong after dinner, even though the rest of my eye makeup had long since faded. I could easily get used to this good quality stuff; there are some other colours in the range such as silver and turquoise which would make a useful addition to anyone's makeup bag, and I'd love to try a blue or green powder eyeshadow too!

Disclaimer: I was not approached by Urban Decay to write a review of this product, nor offered it as a free sample. This post is just my personal opinion.