L&rsquo;Officiel speaks with makeup artist and Issy Creative Visionary Slo Lopez about her collaboration with the innovative makeup brand and why it&rsquo;s meant to be a disruptive launch above everything else.

There are days when you want to do a typical neutral makeup look, but there are also instances when you want to explore color and iridescent finishes. Though this is not the case for many, there are creative souls out there who desire high-performance makeup at an affordable price. The problem is finding makeup that actually lets you flex those explorative urges. Most often than not, &ldquo;bold&rdquo; and &ldquo;unusual&rdquo; eyeshadow palettes with interesting color stories are not available locally and usually need to be shipped from abroad at quite a cost. But that&rsquo;s no longer the case thanks to the Issy x Slo Lopez collaboration.

The Issy x Slo Lopez SURREAL palette

The 12 shimmer and duochrome eyeshadows

The Issy x Slo Lopez SCREAM palette

The 12 bright matte eyeshadows

Made for those willing to play with makeup beyond the browns, peaches, and terracottas, the Issy x Slo Lopez eyeshadow pans are meticulously crafted so each color &mdash; whether that be a bold metallic shade or unapologetic matte hue &mdash; performs with superior pigment but is easy to use. The collection comes in 12 shimmer and duochrome eyeshadows as part of the curated SURREAL palette, 12 bright matte shadows as part of the SCREAM palette, and highly potent and tacky eyeshadow bases that come in both black and white.
In an interview with L&rsquo;Officiel, Slo talks about the very personal collection, working in a truly collaborative environment, and why getting creative with makeup should be experienced by many.

Hi Slo, to start things off, what made Issy decide to create eyeshadow palettes with you?
It honestly happened very organically. The product development work I do under my Creative Visionary title is always ongoing and I think in passing I had half-jokingly mentioned that I would love to do a collaboration with a local brand but I would want to do something true to me and that I honestly don&rsquo;t have the numbers or engagement to justify the risk and investment.
Issy being Issy of course, they simply said nothing is off the table. Joel Andrade, Issy's Creative Director, also said that honestly the most natural thing would be to collaborate with you because we do it constantly and your personal POV really is unique. So I&rsquo;m so grateful for the chance, and I really did approach this as a love letter to the creative in all of us.
Can you tell me more about the formulation of each product? Like what are the key performance factors for the metallics and mattes?&nbsp;
For the mattes it was important to be that they be high pigment but easy to work with. Have various undertones that translate how I approach color. A lot of other colorful eyeshadows I had tried were made with a lot of filler so I couldn&rsquo;t get the effects I wanted even if I had tried so many techniques. I also wanted the shimmer textures to be multidimensional and ones that were hard to get locally. I&rsquo;ve been a makeup consumer for 20+ years now to be honest and I&rsquo;ve always had to shop abroad for the matte pigmentation and shimmer shadow textures I wanted.&nbsp;Meanwhile, the eye bases are also a technique I&rsquo;ve always used. It makes brights and metallics just appear how they do in editorial photos.

We all know that you're so creative when it comes to makeup, what was your decision process like when coming up with the final shades?
It was also very natural, the idea had been in my head for so long. I have also done my style of makeup and how I create looks for so long that I just had to think of what colors and textures I always used and why. I also knew that this grade of shadows with this much flexibility hadn&rsquo;t been made accessible locally because people think the market doesn&rsquo;t have a demand for it and I really wanted to change that.
The eyeshadow bases can be daunting to use because they're quite opaque, what's your advice to first-time users? Any techniques or hacks you can share so people can maximize the usage?&nbsp;
The setting quality is one I really need since I do long-haul shoots but actually you can put a tiny little bit of face oil or baby oil to prolong the setting or make it more of an emollient cream. As long as you set it with the powder shadows you can prolong play time and it will still prolong the wear with an eye primer underneath it. If you can work in sections you can maximize output too by layering the shadow in the few minutes before they fully set.
Can you talk about the formulation of the eyeshadow bases?
They are basically a high-pigment cream eyeshadow that sets but you can also sheer out. You can use them as a liner since they can be opaque or as a base when sheered out.

What sets this collection apart from other local eyeshadow launches?
I think the flexibility of the palette is one for sure and quality for the price. I had so much collaborative control as well over the product and even the marketing so I think that&rsquo;s another part of this launch that is really beautiful. From conception to execution it&rsquo;s really a partnership and it&rsquo;s so me, no compromise.
Who would you like to speak to or imagine using the eyeshadow palettes?&nbsp;
Honestly, anyone that just wants to have fun with makeup. I&rsquo;m a makeup obsessive who doesn&rsquo;t think of beauty as serious or prescriptive. I wanted the shadows to be sold as individual pans for this reason, I want people to break apart the sets and make it their own. Mix it with the original insert shades, get that one duo chrome and crush it into that tube of clear gloss, make a colorful foundation with them. Sky's the limit.
What's your advice for people who are scared to experiment with eyeshadow? Especially metallics and vibrant matte shades?
It&rsquo;s all about what works for you, no best way really. There are so many ways to do a smokey eye or a colorful cut-crease. There are so many tutorials so I won&rsquo;t go into the technicals but just have fun and it&rsquo;s ok to make mistakes, makeup washes off.

These Local Eyeshadow Palettes Aren’t for the Faint of Heart and That’s the Point

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