Flower Knows makeup review: Is it just pretty packaging, or are the products actually good?

Flower Knows is a makeup brand that has been on my radar for ages. These products go viral on social media because the packaging is insanely beautiful. When Flower Knows launched the stunning Little Angel collection at the beginning of 2024, I decided to purchase some products from the Chinese beauty (C-beauty) brand.

I’d seen so many videos of Flower Know’s intricate packaging but few reviewing the quality of the makeup products. I’d heard that C-beauty brands make the best glittery eyeshadows, so I was most excited to try them. But I was also curious as to how well the other products would perform.

Is Flower Knows simply pretty packaging, or are the makeup products high-quality? I share my honest thoughts, swatches, and a makeup look in this review.

Products in this review

I’m reviewing the following 3 Flower Knows products:

1. Little Angel 9-Color Eyeshadow Palette
2. Little Angel Embossed Highlighter
3. Swan Ballet Liquid Eyeshadow

I share my honest thoughts, swatches, and ratings for each product below before moving on to my overall review of Flower Knows makeup, including a makeup look.

1. Flower Knows Little Angel 9-Color Eyeshadow Palette

£35.63 for 10.5g

I’ve got the Flower Knows Little Angel 9-Color Eyeshadow Palette in shade 02 Weeping Angel. This palette claims to feature pigmented eyeshadows that are easy to apply, long-lasting, and versatile. 02 Weeping Angel features a rich sapphire, dazzling gold and silvers, pastel pinks and purples, and matte brown and greys.

Swatches

To give an indication of the shades, texture, and pigmentation of this eyeshadow palette, I did these swatches on my arm without primer.

I was a little disappointed with the matte swatches. They were a bit patchy, took a while to build up this level of colour payoff, and felt a bit chalky. However, I was super impressed by the shimmer swatches and couldn’t wait to use them.

Review

Despite not loving the matte swatches, I actually really like the Flower Knows Little Angel 9-Color Eyeshadow Palette.

Firstly, the packaging is mesmerising. I love the gothic design, angelic artwork, gold, blue, and black colour scheme, and intricate details. Even down to the embossing on each eyeshadow, this palette is beautiful in every single way.

The main thing that drew me to this palette is the unique colour scheme. I love the mix of blues, pinks, purples, brown, grey, gold, and silver. The palette has a good mix of warm and cool tones. It looks regal and stands out from the sea of neutral, pink, warm, and smoky eyeshadow palettes on the market. Even though it’s not the most wearable of colour stories, I can see myself using this palette quite a lot.

When it came to using the eyeshadows on my eyes, the mattes performed much better. They start with quite light pigmentation, particularly the pastel shades, but they can be built up to medium intensity. They feel soft and smooth on the eyelids. All the matte shadows blend easily too.

C-beauty brands are typically not as pigmented as Western makeup, as the style of makeup differs. The matte shades are a bit chalky and powdery with some fallout. Sometimes, the deeper matte shades could go a bit patchy. However, this was easy to fix by applying a bit more eyeshadow and then blending.

I’m not convinced the matte pastels would show up on deeper complexions, or I think they could look a bit ashy, as they took a fair bit of building up on my light complexion.

But the shimmery eyeshadows are the star of the show.

The sapphire shade is more of a subtle shimmer, while the silver and gold are more glittery and dazzling. All 3 are rich, reflect the light beautifully, and offer intense sparkle. The silver shimmer is especially vibrant. I’m obsessed with the shimmers in this palette. I think these would show up on all complexions.

The eyeshadows are all long-wearing too with minimal creasing or fading.

Rating: 4 stars

I love the gorgeous colour story and ethereal shimmers. The mattes aren’t my fave formula, but they’re still workable.

2. Flower Knows Little Angel Embossed Highlighter

£23.75 for 8g

I’ve got the Flower Knows Little Angel Embossed Highlighter in the shade L02 Paradise Lost, which is a dewy rose gold. This highlighter is supposed to feel feather-light, have minimal fallout, offer a pearly shimmer, and feel velvety on the skin.

Swatch

To give an indication of the shade, texture, and pigmentation of this highlighter, I did a swatch on my hand without primer.

I fell in love with the swatch. It was silky, soft, light, and pearly, without emphasising texture. I also loved the flattering rose gold colour and couldn’t wait to use it on my face.

Review

Okay, so I love the Flower Knows Little Angel Embossed Highlighter.

Again, I love the elegant and angelic packaging. The embossing on the highlighter itself is unlike anything I’ve seen before. It’s so delicate and intricate. I almost didn’t want to try the highlighter for fear of ruining the design!

Typically, I gravitate towards champagne-toned highlighters. I sometimes find that pink highlighters look unflattering on my skin tone. But this rose gold shade isn’t too pink, and it looks gorgeous on the skin! I think this shade would look great on all skin tones.

This powder is incredibly lightweight. It’s silky, velvety, and very comfortable on the skin. As it’s so finely milled, it doesn’t emphasise skin texture, look chalky, produce fallout, or leave a strip of glitter on the skin. Instead, it delivers a smooth pearly shimmer (not unflattering chunky glitter) that looks seamless on the skin.

If I do a light layer, the highlighter is subtle. But it can be built up, without any patchiness or chunkiness, to more intense shimmer.

Rating: 5 stars

I can’t fault this highlighter. It looks stunning both inside the packaging and on the skin. I’m obsessed.

3. Flower Knows Swan Ballet Liquid Eyeshadow

£14.25 for 4g

I’ve got 2 shades of the Flower Knows Swan Ballet Liquid Eyeshadow – 01 Diamond Star, which is a clear base with different shades of chunky glitter particles, and 05 Cracking Crystal, which is a pink shade with big glitter chunks. These liquid glitter eyeshadows are meant to be ultra-reflective, long-lasting, and colour-shifting for a dazzling effect.

Swatches

To give an indication of the shades, texture, and pigmentation of these liquid glitters, I did these swatches on my hand without primer.

I knew from the swatches that I’d love these liquid glitters, as they’re so sparkly.

Review

I’m in love with the Flower Knows Swan Ballet Liquid Eyeshadow. It’s the perfect product to add glam to any makeup look.

While the packaging isn’t as sublime as the highlighter or eyeshadow palette, these liquid glitters are still cute. They have a very slim brush tip, which allows for precise application of the glitter.

These glitters are very easy to apply. I’ve used liquid glitters previously that transfer easily from being too wet, don’t have a good tip for precise application, and simply aren’t that reflective. These Flower Knows ones are effortless to apply, don’t budge once applied, and deliver an intense glimmer. They dry down quickly too, so there’s no concern around smudging the glitter.

Both shades are gorgeous and elevate any makeup look. As the glitter is chunky, it dances in the light in a very special way.

Rating: 5 stars

I’m simply obsessed.

Flower Knows makeup look

To show you what these makeup products look like on my face, I used the eyeshadow palette, highlighter, and liquid glitter in 01 Diamond Star. On my eyes, I used the palette all over my eyes, the liquid glitter on the lower inner corner of my eyes, and the highlighter on my nose and cheekbones.

Here’s how my makeup look turned out:

I’m so happy with how this makeup! I’d never usually do my makeup like this, but I followed this Flower Knows eyeshadow tutorial below and love the results.

The gold and silver glitters and rich sapphire are effective and striking. This eye look was pretty easy to do, so I’ll definitely recreate it at some point. I love the shades, textures, and finishes of all the Flower Knows products.

Overall Flower Knows review

I believe Flower Knows is 100% worth it. Not only is the packaging alluring, but the makeup products are high-quality and deliver beautiful results. This C-beauty brand sits at a mid-range price point, so while it’s not the cheapest makeup brand, it’s not ridiculous either.

I’m really impressed with the products I’ve tried and will make a future purchase. Next on my radar are the blushes, primer, and shiny lipsticks.

Have you tried Flower Knows makeup yet? What do you think of the products in this review? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Sarah Sarsby is the owner of A Woman's Confidence. With over 5 years' experience of writing in the fields of beauty and lifestyle, Sarah is passionate about all things content, makeup, skincare, wellness, and lifestyle. She has oily skin, is obsessed with lip gloss, and loves cookie dough.