Edit Is SUQQU Worth the Hype? Eyeshadow Quads in EX25 and 19

SUQQU is a Japanese brand that's full of fancy. If you're new to the brand, you'd be surprised that their eyeshadow quads rival Tom Ford in terms of price. Yep, a quad will cost you at least $80 dollars brand spankin' new. 

There aren't many reviews out there from those who don't already love Japanese style formulations, so as your average tacky Westerner (who loves ultra pigmented and frosty eyeshadows) I think you may find my point of view refreshing. 

WARNING: LONGEST POST EVAR. 

Lucky for me, some MUA members decided to part ways with some of their palettes. I was able to score 19 Awafujisukashi and EX-25 Haruhinata. I am not at all familiar with the formulation of these shadows, so it was humorously painful to discover that these two quads are much more er, softly pigmented, than the rest of the quads in their line. Womp womp.

Don't get me wrong, these are excellent eyeshadows with complex multi-shimmers that enhance your eyelids even though they look drab and mundane in pan. Are they are must have? No. Are they magical and pigmented and ultra long wearing? No. In fact, they remind me of another Japanese formula of eyeshadows: Shiseido. If you live the rest of your life only buying Shiseido eyeshadows, you'll be alright. 

I have included swatches of the #19 quad down below: one pass, no primer, under indoor natural lighting and flash. Pigmented, nah. They are very soft and sheer and you will not notice the magic until you see it under flash photography which brings out the different colors of shimmer contained within. 

The shadows are soft in texture but not powdery, do not contain major amounts of fallout or chunky glitter, and do not apply patchily in any way. 

These eyeshadows are also notoriously horrid when it comes to being captured by your average camera. Honestly? It looks like a muddy mess 99.9% of the time regardless of application technique or how goddamn beautiful the person it's on looks. That makes me sound like a catty bitch, but it's true. Not even my camera could capture how beautiful these shadows are in any condition of lighting. I had to zoom in very closely to even capture the color true to real life. 

Excuse the stupid face, but you're probably asking me if I've even placed the eyeshadows onto my lids. You can see a hiiiint of the periwinkle underneath my eyes. Trust me, it looked intense in person. I don't get it. 

Let's try that again.

I hope you see how easy it is to lay down the colors. I barely did any blending and my eyeshadows look diffused as hell. Below is a highly unflattering angle of my face but I hope it shows you another look at how SUQQU looks on the lid. 

But in person? Soft. Pretty. Gentle. They're perfect for every day if you decide to do washes of color or create simple looks. If you do decide the latter, use a gentle hand and don't blend! 

Yes, DON'T blend so much.

The packaging is gorgeous. GORGEOUS. The plastic is not too hefty, but it does lend enough weight to justify the pricing. They include a dual ended sponge tip applicator and a baby brush (like Shiseido) for on the go application. You get a big mirror and a tight clasp closure. If these eyeshadows are to perform on the same level as a mid-range counterpart, at least they're giving me fancy packaging. 

Now, onto the limited edition EX-25 Haruhinata. I expected this one to be super bold, bright, and un-apologetically beautiful for spring. Scroll down to see swatches and laugh at my pitiful existence. 

WHAT the hell. WHAT?! 

Here it is with flash photography. Impressed yet?? *sarcasm*

I used this quad on top of your average semi-opaque beige eye primer and got ZERO color payoff, except for the purple that turned taupe. This is also a common complaint with SUQQU (purples? lulzno, you get taupe.)

After taking these swatches, I actually went back into the pan and really pushed my finger in to pick up some color to swatch. The pink and yellow showed up a little better, but the orange is still as faint and untrue to pan as ever. Here's a fair warning: you'll get more pigment from a brush than your fingers and they definitely look more vibrant on the eyes. 

I don't see any shimmery goodness or color payoff or any semblance of eyeshadow on my eyes. I can already hear the fawnings, "Oh my god, it's so natural!" 

Gurl, that's because it looks like fuckin' NOTHING. 

I'm extremely frustrated, so I'll have to rely on using my NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk underneath hoping to boost the color from 0.001% pigment to at least .01% of color. 

To recap:

• These photography horribly. Every picture I've seen with a SUQQU eye product looks muddy, bruise-y, bland, and generally devoid of shape and definition. I assure you it is not so in real life. 
• They swatch horribly. I want to prove myself wrong and get another permanent quad that's proven to be pigmented. 
• Although the shadows themselves are nicely textured, you can find the same "nice texture" with any other formulation from WnW to Lorac. 
• They wear for about 5-6 hours max before they start to fade, even over primer. This is the factor that slayed SUQQU for me. Why pay all of this money for something that doesn't perform well, as pretty as it looks? 
• They're very expensive for the amount of product you're getting. But y'know, DAT LUXURY DOE.

So you know how shitty Guerlain, Chanel, and YSL eyeshadow palettes and quads are for Western consumers? To a certain extent, the same applies to SUQQU for your Japanese cosmetics purveyors. You're not paying for a superior eyeshadow formulation but rather the packaging and sometimes (not always) unique color combination and selection. And maybe the giddy feeling of using an eyeshadow quad that costs more than your outfit. 

I *may* be purchasing a permanent quad in the collection only if the opportunity to get them less than retail value arrives. Otherwise, meh.

Really. A big fat meh. 

xo Be

First Look| Charlotte Tilbury The Luxury Palette in Dolce Vita

The launch of Charlotte Tilbury in the U.S. happened this last week on September 2nd. I had been curious, but not overly so, when U.K. bloggers raved about her Rock N Kohl liners, the Pillow Talk lip liner, and the Filmstar Bronze and Glow palette. Nice, sure. But they were at high end pricing and if the number is high in British pounds, it's astronomical in dollars.

In any case, I heard some for The Luxury Palette in Dolce Vita ($52) which happens to contain many warm toned neutrals that are right up my alley. My second choice was Vintage Vamp and then Rock Chic. The general reaction to CT in the beauty community is very lukewarm and rightly so, yet I still wanted to try this quad out in the name of science.

The first downfall is the light weight and generally cheaper feel of the packaging. It has the same heft as a Shiseido trio and is made from plastic. I paid nearly $60 for something that doesn't make me feel richbitch when I click open the clasp. 

The inside casing, though it looks luxuriously chrome, is also plastic. There is no included brush or sponge tip applicator, which could be a pro or con depending on you.

Take a closer look. The label isn't even centered *facepalm*

Below are the ingredients if you're interested. 

But it gets better, sort of. The shadows in this quad are indeed very pigmented, soft without being powdery or prone to fall out, and lasts well over a typical primer.

I swatched each shade with two layers and no primer underneath.

Here are the colors in natural and outdoor lighting. The gold shade is VERY fallout prone if applied with a brush but isn't when pressed on with your fingers. The other shades don't kick up in the pan or fall under your eyes when being blended. 

The smoke shade is the most complex in my opinion, but it shows up a little sheerer than swatched on the eyes. It looks almost olive-brown in pan with specks of gold but swatches as a deep bronze.

To sum it up, I'm on the fence about this quad! This is the first time that I don't truly love or hate a palette, but it's just...there. I can see myself using every day, but it's not something that gets my blood flowing. Here's why:

• Three of the four shadows are smooth, pigmented, not prone to fallout, blends easily...but just a tad better than MAC eyeshadows in terms of quality.
• The ultra warm-toned neutrals are perfectly coordinated for every day use...but easily dupe-able. 
• The packaging only *looks* luxe...but it's very lightweight and easily prone to fingerprints and can break if dropped.
• Same goes for the price. At $52 a quad it's barely cheaper than your typical Dior, Chanel, and Tom Ford. What I will say, however, is that Dior quints are of similar quality in my opinion but with much better packaging. 

 Now for some pictures for how it looks on the eyes. I slapped this on after work to capture the true pigment, so excuse the foundation-less face and lack of mascara. Scary.

This is a shot with my full face done. As you can see, it's not overwhelming, garish, or too understated. It's actually quite a polished and subtle eye look with liner and mascara!

I'm most likely going to keep this at work and slap it on if I'm fresh out of time in the morning, but it's not a must have by any means. If you're in the US and thinking of purchasing a quad, be sure to check out true color swatches online. Think very hard on this purchase. 

xo Be