-Maquillage

Maquillage Lasting Climax Rouge in RS310

by PJ on Wednesday, May 28, 2008

in -Maquillage, -Shiseido, all about Japanese cosmetics, makeup, makeup - lip color, stash focus

(Maquillage Lasting Climax Rouge in RS310)

Since I tried Maquillage‘s Clean Contrast Eyes in SV844, I had wanted to try something else from the line. I decided to go for one of their lipsticks and picked up Lasting Climax Rouge in RS310, from Maquillage’s spring 2008 lineup.

RS310 is medium warm rose and goes on a little more vibrant. It has a natural and slightly glossy finish. It goes on easily and the color and finish last well. While it is not the most moisturizing lipstick I have, it is not drying. (So far, my SUQQU lipstick is probably the most moisturizing lipstick I’ve had.)

I was expecting the Lasting Climax Rouge range to be quite sheer, and I was surprised by the medium pigmentation level when I tried the sample card, which contained five shades (but didn’t contain RS310). RS310 also has a medium color pay-off, while its pigmentation level is slightly lower than that of Coffret D’Or Full Styling Rouge Color.

In terms of the finish, compared with Coffret D’Or Full Styling Rouge Color and Lavshuca Jewelry Lips, this one is slightly glossier and has a tad more micro-shimmer. But it doesn’t have a frosty/metallic finish, which I don’t like.

Shade-wise, it is lighter, warmer and slightly more vivid than Coffret D’Or Full Styling Rouge Color in RS-241 and Lavshuca Jewelry Lips in PK-1. It is quite a girlie color.

Overall, as an RS (Rose) shade, Lasting Climax Rouge in RS310 is relatively vibrant, and I feel it is more of a cool PK (Pink) shade than a typical RS shade from Japanese brands. (Many RS shades I have seen are more muted.) I personally prefer to wear it for the evening (without layering it too much). For daytime, I simply gently dab it on for a mild stained look.

For another review (written in Chinese, with this very shade worn on lips), please check out this post.

Updated on June 6th, 2008:

Please check out the review of RD359 on Autumn Masquerade.


————

Thoughts on photographing lipsticks: I have personally observed that capturing the actual color of a lipstick is a lot trickier than showing that of, for example, an eyeshadow. I think it is because the lipstick itself is more dimensional. A friend of mine commented that it might also be because it is in a semi-liquid form. (Interestingly, I don’t really have this issue with lip glosses. Maybe it is because they are inside solid containers.) The lipstick color in the photo you see above is closest to its actual color under sunlight. (I don’t tend to digitally fine-tune color, brightness, or contrast of my photos for my reviews.)

The two photos below are taken within minutes of the one above. As you can see, in terms of the lipstick color, the first one looks slightly warmer (than the one above), while the second one looks darker and cooler.



(You can see that, in the second one, less light is reflected back to the camera and the lipstick shade looks darker. When it comes to photographing other makeup items, there is usually not this degree of difference (when the amount of light reflected back to the camera slightly varies).)

Based on my experiences, I have also come to understand why a lipstick (in the container, not worn on a model’s lips), compared with other makeup items, can look so different in different magazines or even in different features in the same issue of a magazine.

————

Other Shiseido-Related Posts:

Maquillage Summer 2008 Collection

Can’t Live Without – ZA Two-Way Foundation

Budget Princess: Majolica Majorca


{ 15 comments }

A Splash of Color: More Lilting Lilac

by PJ on Monday, May 26, 2008

in _I Love Colors, -Anna Sui, -Clarins, -Coffret d'Or, -Dior, -Kanebo, -Lunasol, -MAC, -Maquillage, -Paul & Joe, -Shiseido, makeup, makeup - base makeup, nail color/care

My post on Lilting Lilac was back in December, and how time has flown. One of my readers predicted that there would be a Part 2, and she is right.

Here I share with you new faces (since last year), old favorites, and generosity from friends.

Above:
– Maquillage Clean Contrast Eyes in SV844
– Chanel Quadra Eye Shadow in Stage Lights
– Paul & Joe Eye Color in 05 (to be reviewed later)
– MAC Pigments in Violet and Frozen White (off-white with blue/lilac iridescence), in small pots from a lilac-loving friend

– Dior 5-Color Eyeshadow palette in 250 Seascape
– Coffret D’Or 3D Lighting Eyes in 04 Purple Variation
– Clarins Palette Impression in 03 The Mauve Garden
– Anna Sui Pressed Face Powder in 200
– Ferro Eye Candy Shimmer in February

.

– (left) Lunasol Sheer Contrast Eyes in 02 Lavender Coral
– (right) Lunasol Scent Form Eyes in 02

.

…and one more before there is more:

– Revlon Glimmer Gloss Nail Enamel in 610 Grape Shimmer (upper left)

Other Splashes of Colors:

– Girlie Pink

– Citrus Orange

– New-Leaf Green

– Terrific Turquoise

– Aqua Blue

{ 8 comments }

Maquillage Summer 2008 Collection

by PJ on Friday, April 4, 2008

in -Maquillage, -Shiseido, 2008 Summer, all about Japanese cosmetics, makeup

(Maquillage summer 2008 collection)
(image from www.cosme.net)

Maquillage will launch the summer 2008 collection on May 21st. The collection includes:

– Nail Color: 4 new shades
– Full Vision Mascara: waterproof, 1 shade
– Full Vision Lash Base
– Mascara Combing Remover
– Nail Protect & White
– Cuticle Dry Oil

I think the interesting item from this collection is the Mascara Combing Remover. It is designed to remove waterproof mascara and probably works best with the new Full Vision Mascara.

(Mascara Combing Remover)
(image from www.cosme.net)


It seems that the attached comb is used to brush the remover liquid from the tube onto the lashes to dissolve the waterproof mascara. It will be interesting to hear about how well it works.

Other summer 2008 collections:

Dior

Magie Deco

EST

{ 2 comments }

Shiseido Maquillage Clean Contrast Eyes 2 in SV844

by PJ on Tuesday, March 25, 2008

in _Japanese Brand Profile, -Maquillage, -Shiseido, 2008 Spring, all about Japanese cosmetics, makeup, makeup - eyeshadow, stash focus

(Shiseido Maquillage Clean Contrast Eyes 2 in SV844)

I haven’t really been very interested in Maquillage since it was launched in fall 2005. But sometimes, it only takes one item to start my interest in a makeup line, and you are looking at it now.

Maquillage replaced PN (the color makeup line) and Proudia (the base makeup line) and was what Shiseido called a “Super Brand”. The expectation at the time was extremely high, since PN, in particular, was very successful at bringing young people to Shiseido and rescuing the brand’s then aging image. Over the last couple of years, Maquillage, with a more mature image, has proven to be delivering the sales figures.

For those of you that might not be familiar with the multi-layered branding concept in Japanese cosmetics, Maquillage is not a fully fledged brand and is simply the name of Shiseido’s main color/base makeup line. It does not have its own counters and is sold at Shiseido counters in Japan and some other Asian countries (where you will find many other lines like Elixir Superior (skincare/base makeup), UVWhite (whitening), Anessa (suncare), Revital (anti-aging), and Beauty Voltage (youth skincare)).

Back to Maquillage. Since I have been very interested in lilac for the past year or so, I am often excited to see lilac being featured as the main eyeshadow color for a seasonal collection. For spring 2008, this look (modeled by Ebihara Yuri, one of the four brand ambassadors for Maquillage) really grabbed my attention.

(image from www.shiseido.co.jp)
(from www.shiseido.co.jp
via xuzer at Dailymoiton)
After checking some more images of this palette on-line and on magazines, I decided to try it.

Initially, being (a bit overly) excited to try a lilac that was much cooler than most of the other lilacs I had, I used it as the main shade on my eyelids and I used the silvery grey around my lash line. It didn’t work well. Worn alone, the lilac is almost too pale for my eye area and the whole look is not optimally flattering.

When I tried the palette for the second time, I wore the silvery grey as the main color with most of the lilac showing through from underneath and around the silvery grey. This time, it worked a lot better.

A couple of days ago, I happened to find the following application steps on the Shiseido website. They show more or less how I used the palette for the second time. (They are similar to those on the back of the outer packaging of the palette, but the images below give a clearer idea.)

(image from www.shiseido.co.jp)

My own shade descriptions:
1. sheer white with mainly pale multi-color shimmer and relatively little pigment
2. pale blue-ish lilac with very fine and subtle shimmer and an overall satiny finish
3. silvery grey with a semi-metallic shimmery finish and a very slight warm copper undertone
4. dark matte charcoal with very sparse shimmer

With some eye palettes from Japanese brands, the second darkest shade is usually meant to be worn under the crease. But I think one of the best ways to use this palette is to follow the steps above and use the second darkest shade (silvery grey) both under and around the crease and over most of the lilac applied beforehand. (If you don’t have a crease, use the silvery grey as the main shadowing shade over the lilac, which is applied on a slightly broader area on the lids.)

The key is to layer the two shades. Since the silvery grey has a touch of sheerness, the lilac is able to show through and the two colors together create a lovely and subtle depth for the eyes.

Since many eye palettes in Japanese brands are named after the main shade, I was later able to understand why this is a (well-justified) SV (Silver) palette and not a VI (violet), which I did wonder initially. (Note: Kanebo brands would use PU (purple) instead of VI.)

The practical strengths are there as well. The powder is smooth and goes on easily, and the colors are long-lasting.

Essentially, this is a silvery-grey palette with lilac as the accent color. The concept is different from that of my other lilac palettes with gradations of lilacs. For me as a lilac lover, this alone makes the palette worth purchasing. (But I do have to control my fondness for lilac and try not to over-layer it!)

The “silver-greyish lilac” look it creates is subtle and natural, as you see in the ads. It is very good for daily wear. If you want a more dramatic look, layering the silvery grey and putting more emphasis on the dark charcoal will easily give you a smoky effect.

(By the way, in the ad, Ebihara Yuri is also using the new Gel Liner in SV854.)

I did spend quite a few weeks deciding whether to buy this palette or not. But I am very glad I did!

My other two lilac palettes for spring 2008:

Coffret D’Or 3D Lighting Eyes in 04

Lunasol Sheer Contrast Eyes in Lavender Coral

Other related posts:

Must-Try Look for Spring 2008

Spring 2008 Makeup Trend Report

{ 4 comments }

Spring 2008 Makeup Top 10 (Part 1)

by PJ on Sunday, March 16, 2008

in -Anna Sui, -Ayura, -Clé de Peau, -Maquillage, 2008 Spring, makeup, seasonal makeup top 10

Every season, I count down my ten personal favorite makeup collections. This week, I present my top ten for spring 2008. In reverse order:

10: Clé de Peau

(Eye Color Quad in 116 (left) and 117 (right))
(image from www.shiseido.co.jp/cpb)

This is Clé de Peau‘s first time in my top ten in the last few years. I love the ad image and the gentle and feminine look with the blue eyeshadow. The Eye Color Quad in 117 is a delicious combination of purple, aqua blue, and mint green. Apart from capturing the trend, I think this versatile palette can take you right through the summer months.

9. Maquillage

(image from www.shiseido.co.jp/mq)

Maquillage is another line that hasn’t been featured in my seasonal top ten very much. But there is something very striking about their latest seasonal look, which is my favorite look for spring 2008. One of the key items of the collection is Clean Contrast Eyes 2 in SV844, which is used to create the soft lilac eyes we see above:

(Maquillage Clean Contrast Eyes 2 in SV844)
(image from www.shiseido.co.jp/mq)

This palette combines the very trendy grey from fall 2007 and the spring 2008 leading color lilac. It can also be seen as a monochrome palette with lilac as the accent color. It can create a variety of looks, from gentle and fresh to intensely smoky.

This shade combination is not the first for Maquillage. Contrast Eyes in SV862, released in spring 2006, is quite similar (but the lilac looks warmer). T’Estimo’s Grande Shine Eyes in 02, from summer 2007, also has a similar concept. But the release of this color combination in spring 2008 as a key item of the collection reflects Maquillage’s attempt to interpret the current trend. (Teaser: A full review of Clean Contrast Eyes 2 in SV844 is coming up next week!)

8: Ayura

(part of the Ayura spring 2008 collection)
(image from www.ayura.co.jp)

Ayura‘s spring 2008 collection is very visually appealing. I am sure some of the people familiar with Ayura were delighted to see the brand take on a new color scheme for the packing. The intricate patterns against the black cases look exquisitely classy.

The collection includes 4 blushers, 21 lipsticks, and 18 nail colors. There is no item for eyes, but it is almost certain that we are going to see some beautiful eye colors in the new black cases.


7. Anna Sui

(part of the Anna Sui spring 2008 collection)
(image from www.annasui-cosmetics.com)

Anna Sui is probably the princess of vibrant colors. The spring 2008 collection features bright hues for eyes and nails. The three limited-edition Sui Lip Glosses (above) appear to be very bright, but they all go on naturally sheer. (Have a look at my review of the blue-tinted Sui Lip Gloss in 100.)

This is one of the more memorable seasonal collections from Anna Sui in the last couple of years, and I hope there will be more lovely items to come!

See you in Part 2!

Related Posts:

Magie Deco Spring 2008 Collection
(A great collection that just missed the cut…)

Spring 2008 Makeup Trend Report
(before we move into summer…)

{ 2 comments }

Fall 2007 Makeup Trend Report

by PJ on Tuesday, August 14, 2007

in -Chanel, -Clé de Peau, -Cosme Decorte, -Dior, -Estée Lauder, -Givenchy, -Integrate, -Kanebo, -Kate, -Kosé, -Magie Deco, -Majolica Majorca, -Maquillage, -Shiseido, -SHISEIDO (Global Brand), -Shiseido The Makeup, -SUQQU, -YSL, 2007 Fall, all about Japanese cosmetics, makeup, seasonal makeup trend reports

Some distinctive trends in the fall 2007 makeup releases:

– olive green / grey eyeshadows
– intense lip colors
– retro Audrey Hepburn look

Which trend are you going to experiment with this fall?

—Grey Areas—————

In fashion, grey has been hailed as The New Black for a while. I am surprised that it didn’t trickle down to makeup earlier. This fall, grey eyeshadows will be big, among all the neutral tones.

One palette that epitomizes this trend is Shiseido Clé de Peau‘s Ombres Couleurs Quadri palette in 114 (seen below):

(Clé de Peau fall 2007 makeup ad,
Biteki magazine September 2007, p. 152-153)

(Clé de Peau fall 2007 makeup ad,
Biteki magazine September 2007, p.152)

Also, Dior‘s 5-Color Eyeshadow Palette in 060 Silver Goddess features an array of grey hues along with a sensual light blue.

Other servings of grey eyeshadows:
-Shiseido Maquillage: Sparkle Contrast Eyes 2 GY851
-Majolica Majorca: Shadow Customize BK922
-Kate: Gradical Eyes S BK-1
-Integrate: Live Fix Eyes GY812
–SUQQU: Blend Eyeshadow 04

In a way, grey (especially in metallic finishes) is simply a darker silver. The look reminds me of an old-school silver-screen goddess. Very nostalgic and glamorous.

—Green with Envy—————

Another trendy color this season is olive green. Paired with pink, olive green is featured in Lush & Lovely, Chanel fall 2007 makeup collection, as it appears in the latest eyeshadow palettes: Garden Party (Les 4 Ombres Quadra) and Lotus-Cactus (Irréelle Duo).

(photo: from Chanel
at www.bergdorfgoodman.com)

Also, YSL fall 2007 makeup collection features olive green eyeshadows in a couple of the new Ombres Duo Lumières palettes.

In Japanese cosmetics, Cosme Decorte’s new line, Magie Deco, uses pink and olive green in the opposite way, with olive green above the eyes and pink along the lower lash line:

(Magie Deco ad, backcover of makeup booklet,
Biteki September 2007)

Apart from Magie Deco, olive green eyeshadows are also used in:

Kate‘s fall 2007 TV ad (with Gradical Eyes S GN-1)
SUQQU‘s fall 2007 printed ad (with Blend Eyeshadow 01).

Olive green seems to be a relatively masculine color as an eyeshadow, which might be why it has been paired with pink to create a balanced look. But, worn alone, it can be very edgy.

—A La Audrey—————

Givenchy‘s fall 2007 collection, Camouflage Chic, pays tribute to the classic Givenchy muse, Audrey Hepburn. A search in Google Images comes out with photos of what I think is one of the most beautiful people ever, with clean, crisp, and defined eye makeup. Intense color fills between the lash line and the crease line and it is kept clean everywhere else. No smoky eyes here.

Givenchy’s latest Prismissime Eyes in 54 Cache Cache can get you this classic look:

(photo: from www.sephora.com)

Shiseido The Makeup‘s new Silky Eye Shadow Quad in Q9 Lunar Phases is based on the same trend.

Again, this is definitely a very retro look. I think “Less is more” is the key here. Don’t overdo it and keep it nice and simple.

—Strong Lips—————

What if you don’t want to pile on intense eye colors? You can channel the intensity to the lips. Keep the eye makeup fuss-free and choose a rich satiny (not glossy) lip shade. The cover of Biteki September 2007 shows how it’s done:

(cover of Biteki, September 2007)

It can be a wine red, berry red (as in the Chanel ad above), or a warm brownish red. With careful coordination, they can go with grey or olive green eyeshadows, as in Estee Lauder’s fall 2007 look:

(photo: from esteelauder.co.uk)


I quite like this look. Chic and timeless.

What other trends have you spotted?

{ 9 comments }

1st Poll Results Revealed!!

by PJ on Sunday, July 8, 2007

in -Anna Sui, -Aube (Couture), -Ayura, -Integrate, -Jill Stuart, -Kanebo, -Kao, -Kate, -Kosé, -Lavshuca, -Lunasol, -Majolica Majorca, -Maquillage, -Paul & Joe, -RMK, -Shiseido, -Shu Uemura, -Sofina, -T'Estimo, -Visée, all about Japanese cosmetics, makeup, readers' polls

Majolica Majorca, with cute packaging, good quality, and affordable prices, edged Shu Uemura out at the last minute to become A Touch of Blusher readers’ favorite Japanese makeup line!

Shu Uemura, one of the ultimate professional makeup brands, also captured the heart of many of you.

Lunasol, Lavshuca, and Kate (all by Kanebo) shared the third place.

Here is the full result:

What are your favorite Japanese makeup lines? (Tick all that apply!!)
(from June 27 to July 8, 2007)

Majolica Majorca (13 votes)
Shu Uemura (12 votes)
Lunasol, Lavshuca, Kate (11 votes each)
Paul & Joe (9 votes)
Maquillage, T’Estimo, Jill Stuart, Anna Sui (8 votes each)
Visee (3 votes)
Aube, Ayura, RMK (2 votes each)
Integrate (1 vote)

Other favorites mentioned include Inoui ID and Canmake. Great choices!!

Thanks for everyone that has voted and left comments!! There will be more polls to come. (Suggestions are welcome!)

{ 0 comments }

Next Entries →