(pictured: part of my collection)
Lavshuca is the latest addition to my favorite brands. It was launched in February this year and has foundation and color makeup products. (The flash version of the website is worth a look. It does a great job of attracting potential customers.)
Price-wise, it is also the cheapest. It is a shelf-top (budget) brand rather than a counter-top (premium) brand, so it is in the same league as Maybelline and Bourjois. (A single-color eyeshadow costs 840 Japanese yens, which is about 7.2 USD.) It is launched by Kanebo Cosmetics, so quality-wise, it is on the same level as RMK and Lunasol.
As with all my other favorites, one major part of Lavshuca’s appeal is in its packaging. (Kanebo launched Lavshuca in a bid to lure the image-conscious teenage market in Japan.) It has that dreamy quality, with a lot of curves and filigree patterns.
I have got the loose powder in the 2006 Fall Collection. It has a little light-reflective particles to add luminosity (not greasiness) to the complexion. The single-color eyeshadow I have has a really great texture.
For me, Lavshuca (and Shiseido’s Majolica Majorca) are the only two shelf-top brands that feature both top quality products and great packaging. No western budget brand comes even close. It would have no problem “looking expensive” if it had its own counter in a department store. Maybe this is part of the reason it has been extremely popular with teenagers and young 20-somethings in Japan. Other nearby countries in East Asia have already caught on the trend and many people there want a piece of Lavshuca as well.
As long as it keeps the dreaminess, the fun, and the coolness of the brand, I think Lavshuca will continue to be very popular.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
hi!what a lovely blog:)at the sametime i found it very helpful.i am a Turkish girl and i love asian japanese makeup verymuch. what do you think abaut maquillage and shu uemura?i also love MM they are so cute ,especially eyeshadows are really silky and lasts long.
nice to meet you
Oyku
Hello öykü,
Thank you for your comments. I can tell that you really do like Japanese makeup!
Majolica Majorca didn’t make it to my seven favorite Japanese brands but it is definitely the 8th. I do like it. I have their powder foundation and two blushers, and, just like what you said about the eyeshadows, I also think their blushers are quite silky and long-lasting. The reason why the brand doesn’t rank so high on my list is that some of their recent products are less interesting and their packaging is not as cute as when it was first launched. But it is just my personal opinion, as MM has been having a huge following in East Asia in the past few years.
It is interesting that you mentioned Maquillage and Shu Uemura. They are some of the other major Japanese lines that I haven’t talked about in my blog. (Maybe I will talk about them is the future.) As you might know, Maquillage replaced both PN (color makeup)and Proudia (foundation). It has been a very successful merger in Japan. I have not yet tried any Maquillage product but I am quite interested in their powder foundation.
As for Shu Uemura, it has a great selection of eyeshadows and if you want a specific color, you can always start from there. I have one of their beige blushers that I use for contouring or as an eyeshadow. But for me, what I loved about Shu Uemura was some of their less-known skincare products (while their big seller, the cleansing oil, doesn’t suit my skin). I loved their Refreshing Lotion, which was a great toner for my sensitive skin. But it was discontinued and unfortunately I don’t like the replacement.
Thank you again for your lovely comments. Please feel free to subscribe to my future posts if you would like to.
PJ
Hi! I’ve been addicted to your blog lateley! It’s great and very helpful.
I am going to japan pretty soon, and I wanted to know if there was anything in particular that you suggest I buy, that I can’t get most other places, and is a must-have. (like the curvy lip silicon!)
I am also a fan of pretty, princessy packaging!
Hello Janice,
Thank you very much for reading my blog and leaving a comment!
Fantastic that you are going to Japan soon. (I am planning to go there as well, but not until much later.)
There are a couple of things on the top of my head. First of all, do definitely go to a Jill Stuart counter and have a lot of fun testing all the pretty stuff. (Since you also like princessy packaging, I’d say this is your brand.) The loose powder blusher is one of their signature products and their Brilliance Eyes palettes and Jelly Eye Colors have been so popular as well. These three are definitely must-tries.
Also, try eyeshadow palettes from Lunasol. One of the best-sellers is a palette from the Scent Form Eyes collection (in #03). It is voted as readers’ favorite in a couple of Japanese magazines. It is a beige-brown-plum-olive combination. It is certainly a very unique palette and I think it looks surprisingly elegant.
I’d also like to recommend SUQQU. I am quite partial to this brand because I think it epitomizes the ultimate Japanese quality. Their Clear Veil Powder (which I have talked about) has received great reviews, and I am eagerly waiting for its arrival in the UK later this year. It is quite pricey though, but it costs nothing to have a look. (I have one of their lipsticks. I’d recommend this as well. The texture is wonderful and it is well-pigmented as well.)
If you stop by drugstores, have fun testing brands like Lavshuca, Majolica Majorca, and Kate. They are quite affordable so you can feel more free to pick up what you like. (I recommend Lavshuca Eye Color Select palettes, which I have reviewed. Hope they are not sold out when you are there!) Also, mascaras by Majolica Majorca are very popular too.
Please don’t hesitate to send me an e-mail if you have any specific question. I’ll be very happy to talk you through what I know!
Hi pj, I just wonder how am I able to buy all these amazing stuff if I’m not living in Japan? I want them really bad
Hi Zoe,
Thank you very much for reading my blog.
There are two websites that carry Japanese cosmetics that I have shopped from:
http://www.adambeauty.com
ichibankao.com
Adam Beauty is based in Hong Kong and Ichibankao is based in Japan. Both take PayPal payments and ship internationally. There are some other websites that carry Japanese cosmetics, but I have only shopped from these two sites. I have been happy with their services and I would recommend both.
Hope it helps. Please let me know if you have any other question.
Thank you very much for your comment. Hope to hear from you again! :)