I Reviewed The Harry Potter x ColourPop Collection, And It’s Magical

Picture this: In a high-tech, subterranean lab, ColourPop Cosmetics has assembled a team of elite scientists to develop a formula that, if executed properly, will result in a makeup collection so nostalgic it will force even the most cynical beauty editor to shed a tear. I have no evidence that this actually happened, but how else can you explain the magic that is ColourPop Cosmetics’ latest collab, Harry Potter x ColourPop? When I set out to write an honest review of the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection, I didn’t expect to start tearing up while unboxing the products, but that’s exactly what happened. Available on Thursday, Sept. 8, this collection is so specifically calibrated to touch the hearts of Potterheads that I can only conclude it was designed by neuroscientists who specialize in the brain chemistry of Harry Potter fans. It’s either that or, you know, magic.

Too often, beauty brand collections that blend makeup with fandom fall short. It’s easy to slap a picture of a beloved character onto a lipstick and call it something new, but the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection goes way beyond that. It features six of ColourPop’s most popular products redesigned for muggles who wish they’d attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and it goes all out. (You can tell the team behind the little inside jokes on the packaging is packed with Ravenclaws because they did their research.)

This collection features stacks on stacks of Harry Potter references. Since the products are also affordable, I’m already planning on buying up a bunch of liners and lip balms for my Slytherin and Hufflepuff homies. (Gryffindors get everything. The other houses deserve nice things too.) It’s a fitting tribute to the boy who lived and I’ve got all the details ahead in my honest review of the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection.

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Fast Facts

• Price: The products in the Harry Potter x ColourPop Collection are priced between $10 and $30. You can also buy the complete collection for $170.
• Clean/Cruelty-Free? Colourpop Cosmetics is cruelty-free so the Harry Potter x ColourPop Collection is also cruelty-free. Additionally, the Fourth Ray Beauty lip balms are vegan.
• Who this is best for: Anyone who loves the Harry Potter universe will find something to love in this collection.
• What I like: I adore the thoughtfulness that went into this collection. The eyeshadow palette also has an incredible range of shades and finishes.
• What I don't like: I wish the highlighters in this collection had a wider shade range.
• My rating: 4/5

The Harry Potter x ColourPop Collection

There are six products in the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection. If you’re a ColourPop fan, the Graphix Ink Liners ($10 each), Super Shock Highlighters ($12 each), Lux Velvet Liquid Lipsticks ($10 each), Lux Lip Gloss ($10), and Fourth Ray Lip Balms ($10 each) will seem a bit familiar to you. These are high-performance brand staples that frequently appear in ColourPop’s limited edition collabs, but they’ve gotten a magical makeover for the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection. The sixth product, the Back to Hogwarts™ Pressed Powder Palette ($30), is entirely new and also happens to be my favorite piece in the collection.

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The Graphix Ink Liners and Fourth Ray Lip Balms come in four shades, one for each Hogwarts house. The Super Shock Highlighters and Lux Velvet Liquid Lipsticks both come in three shades per product, each named after a beloved Harry Potter character. The 24 eyeshadows in the Back to Hogwarts™ Pressed Powder Palette come in matte, metallic, and glitter finishes, and feature some especially deep cut shade names. Liquid Luck, a soft, shimmery peach, Hungarian Horntail, a cool-toned metallic gold, and Gillyweed, a luminous, pale green, are a few of my favorites in the palette.

The Science

Because these are tried and true hero products from ColourPop Cosmetics and their sister brand, Fourth Ray Beauty, the science behind the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection is consistent with both brands. The makeup delivers high-impact pigment that’s designed to last for hours and the lip balms are 100% vegan.

The Packaging

ColourPop Cosmetics consistently makes great makeup, but the real hero of this collection is the packaging. There are dozens of little easter eggs peppered throughout the packaging of the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection, from the shade names to the little spells and illustrations that decorate the Lux Lip Liquid Lipstick and Lux Lip Gloss boxes. Each of the Fourth Ray Lip Balms and Graphix Ink Liners comes in boxes decorated with the crests of the Hogwarts houses they represent. I cannot stress enough that the packaging of this collection goes the extra mile.

First Impression

I’ve been a fan of ColourPop Cosmetics for years now, so my first impression was mostly centered around the Harry Potter-ization of the products. I immediately started swatching everything to see how the Harry Potter-inspired shades held up in comparison to ColourPop’s standard version of each product. Not surprisingly, ColourPop brought its usual level of pigment and staying power to the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection and I wasn’t disappointed.

The Graphix Ink Liners in the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection come in two finishes. The Slytherin and Ravenclaw shades, Locket and Diadem, are both dark, jewel tones with a matte finish in forest green and navy blue, respectively. The Hufflepuff and Gryffindor finishes are metallic and a bit lighter. Hufflepuff’s shade, Cup, is a rich gold, while Gryffindor’s shade, Sword, is a pinky, metallic red. I expected to prefer the matte shades, but wound up loving the metallics. Like all Graphix Ink Liners, they’re basically budgeproof once they’ve dried down.

The Harry Potter x ColourPop Lux Liquid Lipsticks come in three, neutral shades named after Ron, Harry, and Hermione. H. Granger is a warm, neutral pink, R. Weasley is red with a touch of orange flame, and H. Potter is a rich berry. The Lux Gloss comes in just one shade, Lovegood, as rich and multidimensional as Luna herself. The finish is ultra-glossy with purple, pink, blue, and green glitter flecks. While the gloss is a bit sticky and has too much shimmer for me, I love the beautifully soft, diffused finish of the liquid lipsticks.

I swear by ColourPop’s Super Shock Highlighters because they give the high-shine look of a liquid highlighter, but come in a powder that’s easy to apply with lots of precision. Dobby, Hedwig, and Buckbeak, the three shades in the Harry Potter x ColourPop Collection, are all as bouncy and buildable as I expected. I loved the tie-dye blend of pigments in each highlighter, but only one shade really worked with my skin tone. I have a medium tan complexion and Dobby, the golden shade looked great on my skin, but Hedwig, a purple-hued silver, and Buckbeak, a pinky silver, were too pale for me. I’d definitely wear them both as an eyeshadow because they’re very creamy and buildable, but I would have liked to see a bit more range here, especially since ColourPop does make deeper highlighter shades.

While the Fourth Ray Lip Balms are the least flashy products in the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection, I was delighted by each one’s commitment to its Hogwarts house theme. Each balm features a signature flavor tied to the house it represents: spicy, warm eggnog for Gryffindor, mint for Slytherin, marshmallow and coconut for Hufflepuff, and a blend of berry, basil, and vanilla for Ravenclaw. The flavors are distinct, but not overpowering.

The Results

The Harry Potter x ColourPop collection is great for creating soft glam looks. The eyeshadow palette lends itself to major eyeshadow moments, the liquid lipsticks are statement-makers, and the highlighter can be built up to blinding levels.

For my very soft glam Harry Potter x ColourPop makeup look, I wore two coats of Lux Velvet Liquid Lipstick in R. Weasley on my lips and Super Shock Highlighter in Dobby on my nose, forehead, and cheekbones. I had a blast playing with the Back to Hogwarts™ Pressed Powder Palette and probably used more shades than necessary to create my fall-inspired sunset eyes, but the eyeshadows blend so beautifully that I couldn’t really help it.

I used Pumpkin Juice and Butterbeer to create the orange base on my lids, Golden Snitch on the inner corners of my eyes, and a blend of Liquid Luck and Invisibility Cloak over everything to create a shimmery, sunset effect. Finally, I used the Graphix Ink Liner in Sword, the Gryffindor metallic red shade, to create a simple cat eye. Since each product only required two coats at the most, the whole look took less than 15 minutes to put together.

Ingredients

Like all ColourPop products, the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection is cruelty-free while the Fourth Ray Beauty lip balms are 100% vegan.

Similar Products

There are very few products out there that trigger the same nostalgic dopamine response in my brain as those in the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection, but the ones that do exist come from Warner Brothers. The Wizarding World has teamed up with beauty brands before — remember the Ulta Beauty x Harry Potter collection? — and has its own cosmetics department.

The official Harry Potter shop offers an eyeshadow topper, the Luna Lovegood 'Quibbler Ink' Holographic Eyeshadow Topper, for $9. Like many of the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection products, this eyeshadow topper is tied to a specific character and has a healthy dose of whimsy in its packaging. You can also pick up the Hogwarts House Eyeshadow Palette for just $15. The 10 shades represent the four different Hogwarts houses and the price point is very affordable.

That said, there aren’t many brands out there that deliver affordable quality like ColourPop. Sure, the Harry Potter x ColourPop palette costs twice as much as the Wizarding World palette, but you’re getting twice as many shades. As for the eyeshadow topper, a thin dusting of the Harry Potter x ColourPop Super Shock Highlighter in Hedwig could create the same effect. Still, if you want an entirely Harry Potter-themed makeup kit, you should go ahead and add these two similar products to your collection.

Worth It?

The products in the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection cost just a bit more than drugstore makeup and you get a sizeable amount of product for your buck. Every item in the collection, from the eyeshadow palette to the lip gloss, is reasonably priced and the designs are so clever and thoughtful that there’s no question in my mind that this collection is worth the coin for Harry Potter fans.

Final Verdict

This collection was designed to give Harry Potter fans a one-way ticket into the magical world of Harry Potter. The details in the design of each product are guaranteed to tug the heartstrings of Potterheads, whether you’re a Draco Malfoy apologist or you grew up longing to catch the golden snitch on the Quidditch pitch. If you ever dreamed of waking up to your very own Hogwarts acceptance letter, do your inner child a favor and grab at least one item from the Harry Potter x ColourPop collection.

The Harry Potter x ColourPop collection will be available on ColourPop.com on Thursday, Sept. 8, and on Ulta.com beginning on Sunday, Sept. 18.

About Me

I’m Elite Daily’s beauty editor, and I stood in line at Barnes & Noble with my wonderful dad for every Harry Potter midnight book release. I’ve been writing about, testing, and reviewing beauty products since 2016.