(You can tell that I love my Japanese cosmetics…)
Most of you who read my blog certainly know that I have a passion for Japanese cosmetics. While I do try to keep a balance between western and Japanese cosmetics on my blog, I do think, for me, Japanese cosmetics items do better on my scoreboard in most areas.
If you would like to look through my posts related to Japanese cosmetics, I have made it a bit easier for you by adding the category “All About Japanese Cosmetics“ on the sidebar (under “Read by Topics”). As of now, there are 96 posts under this category, and the number will certainly grow week by week.
Please enjoy!
Here are just a few highlights:
Loving Japanese Brands
(where I highlight 7 wonderful Japanese brands)
Japanese vs. Western…Who’s Winning?
(Which side are you on?)
If I Could Go to Japan RIGHT NOW
(I share my dream shopping list.)
A couple of the items featured in the photo above:
Kanebo T’Estimo Frame Impact Eyes 03
Lavshuca Eye Color Select PK-1
More to come!!
{ 43 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for that!I just love it when you review Japanese products so I know what to buy and what not to.Thanks =))
I think my mom really like Japanese Cosmetics.. She has been using Kanebo for more than 20 years.. :) But she always prefer fragrance from Estee Lauder!
I know this is a bit off topic, but the Japanese Cosmetics Brands led my train of thought to eyelash curlers; they’re quite popular in Japan and among Asians in general, as our lashes tend to be stick-straight. Have you tried your fair share? If so, do you have a favorite that you could share with your readers? I’ve tried Shu Uemura’s (no luck, too pinchy) and Tarte’s (not really an Asian brand, but hey, it is an eyelash curler) and am desperate to try Suqqu’s (which is supposed to be quite popular both in Japan and the UK but isn’t available in the States).
Hi PJ,
I love the packaging! So girly and pretty.
Marie x
Wow! Everything in that stash looks too cute. I recently have been getting into Japanese skincare and am really very curious about Japanese makeup. Thanks for this great round up of info!
Hey PJ,
Noticed you live in the UK, do the japanese companies you buy from ship over here, or do you get them when you’re in Japan?
Loving your blog!
Chica x
Oh PRETTY!
Hello Rini,
Thank you for leaving a comment again!
You are very welcome. I try to write at least one post about Japanese cosmetics every week, so hopefully you will continue to enjoy my blog.
Do let me know if you are interested in reading about any particular line or type of products. I will try my best!
Hello Iry,
It seems that your mother is a truly loyal Kanebo customer!
I have to say that, generally, Japanese cosmetics brands do fall short on fragrances (except for designer cosmetics lines like Anna Sui and Jill Stuart…and Japanese fashion lines like Issey Miyake). Many brands either don’t carry fragrances or don’t really develop their fragrance collections.
Even though one of my favorite fragrances is from AYURA, I simply haven’t come across any other Japanese fragrance (from a cosmetics line) that I really like. (There are just too few of them around….)
Thank you for leaving a comment again! :)
Hello Mandypandy,
Thank you very much for visiting my blog and leaving a comment!
It is not off-topic at all. Shu Uemura’s eyelash curler is indeed popular, but perhaps it doesn’t really suit you. SUQQU’s eyelash curler is one of SUQQU’s best-selling products as well. Another popular one is Shiseido’s.
But actually I have not tried them…
What I am using now is something I bought many years ago. It is from a Japanese drugstore beauty tool line and I can’t really remember its name at the moment. It is basically a narrower curler so I can get a precise curl in different sections of the lashes. I think it is very effective and I never feel I need another curler.
Thank you for your suggestion! I will do a review of this eyelash curler so I can post a photo of it. (Let’s say around mid-November.)
Do check back later! :)
Hello Wild Rose,
Thank you for stopping by my blog and leaving a comment!
One thing that I love about Japanese cosmetics is that they do try to present the products in beautiful packaging. It is a joy to look at! :)
Hello Karen,
You are very welcome! Hope you will find posts under this category that interest you! Do let me know if you have any question or comment.
Thank you again for your comment!
Hello Chica,
Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving a comment!
I get most of my Japanese cosmetics items in Asia. (Some of the Japanese cosmetics brands are also available in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia.)
There are also websites that carry Japanese cosmetics brands and ship globally. One website I have used is Adam Beauty (http://www.adambeauty.com/). It is based in Hong Kong. It takes Paypal and ships internationally.
The price under each item includes the shipping cost. All you need to pay on top of an order is a 2 USD registered mail charge.
Enjoy browsing! Do send me an e-mail if you have any other question. (The e-mail icon is near the top of the blog.)
Thank you again for stopping by my blog! :)
Hello Bjooti,
Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving a comment!
I love your blog! :)
What are those cute little butterflies?
qHey can I ask about that palette at the top right hand corner? The one with 8 colours (i believe 4 are eye colours while 4 are lip colours?) and has that nice beautiful, lovely, ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS silver packaging? Thanks a lot honey! Your blog is really great!
Hello Jeni,
Great to hear from you again!
These butterflies are stickers I bought in a stationary store called Ito-Ya, in Ginza, Tokyo. (I think there are branches of it in the US and Canada.) The branch that I went to is the main flagship store, with floors and floors of stationary goods in three buildings.
They have floors solely for the most beautiful gift-packaging materials (paper, boxes, ribbons, stickers,…), which is by far my favorite part of the store and which is where I got these butterflies (and *many* other things).
They come in packs of 15, with different prints. I decided to use them in the photo to add an extra Japanese flavor to my Japanese cosmetics stash…:)
Thanks again for stopping by! :)
Hello Cosine,
Thank you for stopping by my blog and leaving a comment!
The palette you are referring to is a lip palette from Visée, one of Kosé’s makeup lines. It is a limited-edition palette from the holiday 2006 season.
I have a couple more photos of this palette here.
I also very briefly talked about the palette here.
It is not widely available anymore, but I just happened to find it on a Hong Kong based website called Good Dealer
(http://www.gooddealer.com/). I have not bought from this site at all, so I am not able to comment on the service or recommend the site personally. I shall leave you to explore it then! :)
Thank you again for your comment!
Thanks so much for the info :)
I’ve never been to Japan, i’m trying to bully my boyfriend into going with me next year!
I’m off to check http://www.adambeauty.com now.
Chica x
Hello Chica again,
You are very welcome. Hope that you will indeed go to Japan next year. I might go to Japan next year as well actually! :)
Your Japanese entries have always been an inspiration to me!
Hello The Muse,
I love reading about your posts on Japanese cosmetics as well, since you have many things I don’t have and it is interesting to read what you think of them…
Thank you for your kind words! :)
i totally love japanese and korean cosmetics. i suppose it suits asian skins better. western products are nice too, but i find the colours sometimes unflattering on asian skins. maybe it’s just me though.
i love kate, skinfood, elianto, majorlica majorca, canmake, za, fasio too. from western i think it’s maybelline and revlon .now that i think of it, i don’t have any products from loreal! as i’m still a student, can’t really afford high end stuff. even getting lavuscha is a bother since it’s pretty pricey and i can’t get it in malaysia. have to buy and ship it in. >_< even buying majorlica took me a long time to really splurge. anyway, i will keep coming back to your blog for great reviews! :D do drop by at my blog sometimes, as i do my own reviews also :)
Hello there,
Thank you for stopping by my blog and leaving your comment!
I like ZA too, especially their two-way powder foundation. I have briefly talked about it in my post on my foundation routine
but maybe I should write another post to focus on it.
Objectively, I don’t particularly find that Japanese cosmetics products suit Asian customers more, and for me it is a personal preference to go for Japanese makeup items more than western ones. (But skincare-wise, I tend to prefer western products, as too many Japanese skincare products have alcohol.)
But it seems that some readers of my blog in Asia prefer Japanese cosmetics and I can perfectly understand why.
Thank you again for commenting. Hope to hear from you again soon! :)
(By the way, your Blogger profile is not available through the link. Do send me the link to your blog via an e-mail if you would like to. (My e-mail address is at the top of my blog.) Thank you!)
I am so happy to find your blog. I am also Japanese cosmetic addict.
Hello Emma,
Than you for leaving your comment!
I hope you will continue to enjoy reading my blog, especially my posts on Japanese cosmetics. Let me know if you have any question or comment! :)
I loved your blog
Especially that you review the Japanese Cosmetics
Unfortentaly that we don’t have these products here in Qatar, we only have the westrens comsetics =_=
They are good but I always wanted to ust the japanese ones cuz I read about them alot in the net and I like how they look like @_@
Thank you for this beuatifull blog ^^
Hi Kholoodfantasy,
Thank you so much for your kind words about my blog. I am glad you find it interesting! :)
There are several websites that you can buy Japanese cosmetics from (they are mostly based in Hong Kong and Japan), but I am not sure if you would be interested in purchasing without being able to test them first. Do send me an e-mail if you would like to browse through some of these websites. (Please find my e-mail address towards the top of my blog.)
Thank you again for reading my blog. Hope to hear from you again soon! :)
Hi!
I am just wondering, whether you are japanese or not…
Hi Yamie,
Thank you for your question. No, I am not Japanese.
Thank you for stopping by again.
Hello thank you for this post, I now really want to buy some Japenese cosmetics, but the only problem is, i live in the UK aswell, so can you give me some websites where i can order them from? Thanks and keep up your cute blog, i’m obsessed with cosmetics and can’t belive that i hadn’t found your blog before!
X
Hi Cuteluc,
Thank you for visiting my blog and posting your comment!
There are several websites that carry Japanese cosmetics:
http://www.adambeauty.com
http://www.sasa.com
http://www.gooddealer.com
http://www.bobodave.com
http://www.yesstyle.com
ichibankao.com
The first five are based in Hong Kong and the last one is based in Japan.
The two I have shopped from are Adam Beauty and Ichibankao, and I would personally recommend these two websites.
They both accept PayPal and deliver internationally.
On Adam Beauty, the price under each item includes the delivery cost. All you need to pay is a 2 USD registered mail charge.
If you would like to try Japanese cosmetics without spending too much money, one brand worth trying is Lavshuca. The brand belongs to Kanebo and the quality is generally good. It is sold in several countries in Asia and it has been quite popular. (It is one of my favorite Japanese brands as well.)
Happy browsing! Feel free to let me know if you have any other question.
By the way, if you are interested in Japanese cosmetics brands available in the UK, you can have a look at this post.
You have a fantastic blog! Please keep up with all the photos and the writing. (Love the background of your blog as well.)
Thank you again for stopping by my blog. Hope to hear from you again! :)
Thanks for a great blogs on Japanese brands. I am planning to visit Japan mid year for shopping. Could you recommend some great stores in Tokyo especially with cosmetics and toiletries.
Cheers
Konie
Hi Konie,
Thank you very much for reading my blog!
I will mention two department stores in Tokyo first, which are Isetan Shinjuku and Seibu Ikebukuro. They have two of the most extensive beauty departments in Tokyo. They are definitely worth a look.
Apart from department stores, Japanese drugstores are certainly worth your time. They are various chains of drugstores and most of them are easy to spot. (Most of them scatter around major public transportation stations.)
One of the most popular drugstore chains is Matsumoto Kiyoshi. (The yellow store sign is more or less what you see at the very top of the webpage.) Other popular ones include Ainz & Tulpe and Plaza Style. (It seems that these drugstores’ websites are not available in English.)
In most cases, many drugstores would offer a 15-20% discount on many brands.
One thing worth remembering is that each branch (within the same chain) can put up different discounts on different items, so it is always fun to browse different branches to spot new bargains.
Hope it helps a little. Let me know if you have any other question.
Enjoy your trip to Tokyo! I hope you will have a fantastic time! :) Do let me know about it later!
Thank you again for visiting my blog. Hope to hear from you again soon! :)
It’s so adorable !^-^
Hi Scheharazade,
Thank you for stopping by my blog! :)
I just discovered your blog today while searching up japanese cosmetics (which I am starting to really get interested in and looking online to buy). I am really enjoying your blog btw.
I am curious to know what is that product on the top left (the peachy stem with the clear lid, next to the rectangle package)? It just looks so eye catching but I can’t figure out what it is. :)
Hi Muffins-oven,
Thank you very much for reading my blog. I hope it will be of help for you!
The item you are referring to is from Jill Stuart’s Christmas 2005 collection. Unfortunately it is not sold anymore, and some of the very few possible places to find it would be auction sites in Japan.
If you are interested in seeing another photo of it, please have a look at this post. Also, the shape of the container is the same as that of Jill Stuart’s Blush Powder, which you can see here on Jill Stuart’s website.
Hope it helps! If you have any other question, do keep me posted! :)
thanks for the reply :). The packaging is so beautiful, I find myself more attracted to a product if it has a unique packaging.. Usually I don’t get tempted by packaging but with beauty products I do.
I have ordered the silicon curvy lipgloss after reading your review (recommened site adambeauty)and a few other products so I eagerly await.
I am now searching up japanese mascaras and would like to know do you know which is the best one at affordable prices? I have done some searching and came across Dejavu Fiberwig mascara and fairydrops mascara.. which all look interesting. :)
Hi Muffins-oven,
You are very welcome. I am glad I could help out.
I do like pretty packaging for makeup as well. I like those which are collectible and display-worthy…:)
I don’t have a lot of experience with mascaras, but both mascaras you mentioned are popular and definitely worth trying. Also, Majolica Majorca’s mascaras have been selling very well as well. I think you can also consider trying them.
I hope you’ll like the Curvy Lip Silicone. Do let me know what you think.
Thank you for stopping by again! :)
For the love of Japanese brands!! I love them too!! =D
=( sad that it's so hard to get in Australia, but thanks to online shopping and friends, I can still have some!! =D
Hi Dana,
I am in the same situation. I do mostly rely on on-line shopping and friends for my Japanese beauty items as well. :)
Thank you for your comment again! :)
hi
I just found that blog and i think you can help me. I want to ask u sth that now i will go back to my country soon so i want to buy some cosmetics as presents but i don’t know much about those so i need help to recommend what is good and what should i buy? If u can, can u help me? I want to buy some make-up set and lipsticks with not too expensive. So can u give me advise which one i should buy?
Katie
Hi Katie,
I would recommend having a browse in local drugstores in your area. There are many drugstore beauty brands that have good-quality lipsticks with appealing packaging. Lipsticks from Lavshuca, Kate, Majolica Majorca and Integrate are certainly worth looking into.
In terms of makeup sets, drugstores often carry value sets featuring various products at reduced prices. Sometimes different branches under one drugstore chain are allowed to make up value sets with different contents, so it is definitely worth looking around.
Hope it helps, and thank you for your question! :)
Hi. I’m new to your site. I happened upon it accidentally and it caught my eye because I love Japanese products. I spent 2 summers in Japan and fell in love with their skincare and make up lines. It’s very difficult to get some Japanese products here in the states, like Shu uhmura and I was wondering if you could refer your readers to some sites that will ship to the US for a reasonable rate. Thanks again and I’ll certainly be back as a regular reader.
Dlori
kleimanlaw at aol dot com
Hi Dlori,
Thank you very much for reading my blog!
Regarding purchasing Japanese cosmetics on-line, please have a look at my FAQ page for more information:
http://www.atouchofblusher.com/faq
Thank you very much for your question, and I hope you will stop by again! :)