I’ve always been intrigued by traditional kajal liners…so I was super excited to try out this little guy. It’s the Styli-Style Kajal Bullit in Black ($7.50 CDN), and let me tell you, it’s TINY! But it does pack a pretty nice punch. The tradition of Kajal liners go way back to ancient Egypt, but are still very popular today especially in West African and South Asian countries. Let’s look!

The Packaging

I was totally taken back when I saw the packaging, it’s so tiny I didn’t even know what it was at first!  It really does resemble a bullet, tiny packaging (a bit flimsy to me) with a cap that pops off and a lever that lifts the kajal out of the shell.  Kajal liners are different than typical pencil liners because they have a unique, large cone shape.

Styli-Style Kajal Bullit in Black

Styli-Style Kajal Bullit in Black

Styli-Style Kajal Bullit in Black

The Product

Kajal liners are meant to be soft, incredibly pigmented (like charcoal) and deposit color with ease.  In fact, the shape of the kajal is meant to apply color to the inner and upper rims of the eye in one stroke, by placing the liner on the waterline, closing the eye, and sweeping it over the eye towards the outer corner.  This kajal bullet, while cute, portable and fairly effective, definitely isn’t a traditional kajal liner.  It’s much harder and doesn’t work the way I just described.

This liner is pretty black, and lines the waterline and lash line quite nicely with dark color. I love kajal liners a lot for their ability to smudge beautifully and give a super sultry, smoky look to the liner.  It didn’t last very long on the waterline, but lasted nicely on the skin.  It’s easy to use (I really just used it like a regular pencil).  The problem I see with this liner is that there is no sharpener (when used traditionally, the eyeliner degrades from the sides inwards, not from the tip down, so there is no need)…but since this eyeliner doesn’t work like that, I’m not sure how it would stay precise or how one would be able to sharpen it.

Styli-Style Kajal Bullit in Black

Styli-Style Kajal Bullit in Black

Styli-Style Kajal Bullit in Black (Swatched)

Styli-Style Kajal Bullit in Black (Swatched)

Before & After

Bare Eyes

Wearing the Styli-Style Kajal Bullit in Black

For $7.50 CDN, there are other better drugstore eyeliners out there that last longer and don’t have to worry about sharpening issues, because if you’re looking for the effect of a traditional kajal liner, you aren’t going to find it here. I love the smoky effect, but it just didn’t fulfill my expectations.

Summary

• Price: $7.50 CDN
• Availability: Drugstores and other retailers
• Overall: A cute little eyeliner that does have a nice effect, but doesn’t work the way a traditional kajal liner should. A decent eyeliner, but didn’t live up to my expectations of a kajal.
• Rating: B-