Urban Decay began in 1996 as a rebuttal to the makeup of the time. Wende Zomnir, the brand's chief creative officer, co-founded it with Sandy Lerner, a co-founder of Cisco Systems, with colors inspired by cityscapes and a deliberate alternative to pink, red and beige. The first range was 10 lipsticks and 12 nail polishes, and the shade names were gritty on purpose: Roach, Smog, Rust, Oil Slick and Acid Rain. The first magazine ad asked a question about pink that I will not repeat here. The eye makeup is where the brand became a household name. The original 12-shade Naked palette launched in 2010 after the team picked their favorite nudes, and the Naked, Naked2, Naked3 and Naked Shaped palettes here are the family, with Naked Sin and Naked Half Baked as minis. The 24/7 range covers the Glide-On pencil, the Waterline pencil, the Liquid Stick eyeliner and shadow singles, and the Moondust, Chrome Melts and Naked Cream formulas are for shine. Tube Job and Perversion are the mascaras, and the Brow Blade is the brow pen. If you want to compare mascara shades, brown mascara and the liners to match is useful.

Face is where the brand turns to staying power. The Face Bond Self Setting Waterproof Foundation is a full base (see foundation sorted by finish), with the Face Bond Blush in Suede and the Luminizer highlighter to follow. All Nighter is the setting-spray family in natural, hydrating and matte versions, with the Ghosting Powder and the Ghosting Paste Primer next to it, and the Quickie 24H concealer finishes the work. The Eyeshadow Primer Potion is the brand's other prize product, with an anti-aging version here. A simple test for any long-wear face: set only the parts that move, such as the T-zone and under the eyes, and leave cheeks alone. What I would skip is using a matte setting spray over a luminizer you chose for glow, because it will flatten exactly what you wanted to keep. The Perversion Fine-Point Eye Pen sits here too for sharp lines on top. For more on mists that lock makeup, see a drugstore setting spray with a long history.

Lips split between the old and the new. The Vice Hydrating Lipstick comes from the Vice collection that launched in 2017 with 100 shades, and the Vice Lip Bond is the glossy long-wear liquid. The Lip Toy line is the newer one, with the pH staining oil, the Lip Toy Long-Lasting pH Hydrating Lip Oil Stain and a staining brush lip liner. Both the 24/7 Glide-On lip liner and the Vice Glide-On liner pencil are the shape-makers, and the full-size Lip Toy liner shows up in a second version too. A good fit test is to line first, fill with the Vice lipstick, then add a drop of the oil in the center only, which keeps the edge crisp while the middle stays glossy. If you want to see how makeup artists use liner, lip liners makeup artists reach for is worth a look.

The last group has the odd pieces. The Face Bond Luminizer glow drops work on face and body, and the Luminizer and Blush Suede come back for more, because the brand sells them in several formats. The Face Bond Luminizer is the one to reach for when a plain base needs a little light. The Lip Toy Sugar Coat lipgloss is the glossy one, and When Sip Happens is a Lip Toy duo set. The 24/7 Inks liquid pen and the All Nighter Ghosting Spray round out the shelf, and the Grindhouse Double Barrel Sharpener is for the pencils above. Keep the pencils sharp and they will keep the line crisp, which is the point of every product on this shelf. For a softer lip, the good pink lip covers balms, oils and tints.

My Urban Decay pick would be a Naked palette for the eyes, a 24/7 Glide-On pencil, a spritz of All Nighter and a Lip Toy oil. A Naked palette sells every seven seconds worldwide, which says plenty about how well the shades were chosen. The brand is now part of L'Oréal, after LVMH acquired it in 2000, but the edgy first idea still shows.

For more in the same spirit, take a look at The No-Makeup Makeup Edit and Lancôme Makeup and Skincare.