I Love My Shu Shu! Yazbukey for Shu Uemura!

Welcome to a brand new week! For today’s ManiMonday post, I wanted to show you a cool set of nailart that I got done last week…

The colors used and the design were all inspired by the nail polish collection and artwork from the Yazbukey for Shu Uemura collection. But since I did not actually get to apply the nail polish myself, nor did I create this design, there is not much for me to review. So instead, I thought I’d jump right into the makeup collection, and give you a peek at some of the gorgeous items that I received!

The Yazbukey for Shu Uemura collection is probably my favorite Spring collection ever from the famed Japanese brand. With a whopping 33 piece offering, this is no cursory release, but one that took plenty of planning and design. Looking at the main I Love My Shu Shu Palette, I almost get a Holiday-ish vibe. And the Yaz Red lipstick is pure vavavoom. The Flip Color Yaz faux lashes boast some pretty pinks amongst the black to create those runway-ready spring butterfly peepers. I was literally hopping up and down in excitement when these turned up unexpectedly on a friday night! Everything comes adorned with the funky cool pop illustrations by Yazbukey, a Parisian brand that is known for its playful and imaginative designs.

The centerpiece to the collection is this 8-color eye and cheek palette aptly named “I Love My Shu Shu Palette“. Even though it is very late in the year for a Spring release, the colors are rich and bold, and is something that can be worn through summer and for parties.

The I love My Shu Shu Palette consists of 4 standard sized (1.4gm) eyeshadows, 3 smaller-sized (1gm) shadows, and 1 large (4.5gm) blusher. It also comes with a dual-ended sponge applicator, and another dual-ended brush applicator that has a larger end possibly for cheek or all over eye.

Please click to enlarge

I couldn’t wait to dip my greedy fingers into the palette, and ended up swatching everything in 1 go. Not optimal for light photography, but let’s make the best of it!

The shades from left to right correspond to the following shades on the palette:

• Bottom right blush - Light medium neutral-toned pink with a matte to satin finish
• Bottom left - light lilac with a matte finish. This unfortunately does not show up well on my skin whether applied with a brush or fingers. I had to swatch it several times for the color to show, and as you can see it ended up looking slightly patchy.
• Top left - medium reddened pink that pulls just slightly warm. This in combination with the middle row left shade makes the perfect marsala eye look! Very well pigmented and smooth, neither too red and warm to be difficult to carry off, nor too pink to be boring… this is a wonderful addition to have!
• Top row middle - pale shimmery icy pink. This is the highlight shade in this palette, and is very smooth and works well lightly swept under the brow bone or dabbed in the center of the lids.
• Top right - medium dark purple with a satin finish. This is actually quite a lovely purple, and applies ok with a brush on my lids. However, it does seem slightly dry and has the tendency to go on a little patchy. Not a big issue if you prime your lids before application.
• Middle row left - I believe this is Shu Uemura’s version of Marsala (i’ve seen many different types of marsala!), but to be completely accurate it is medium dark brownish red with a satin finish. Incredibly smooth, beautifully pigmented, the stuff of dreams!
• Center of palette - medium copper with a metallic finish. An interesting shade that complements the marsala - reddened pink duo, blending out the marsala wonderfully.
• Middle row right - medium dark khaki green with a metallic finish. Another unexpected shade, particularly for a spring palette! I really love twists like these that make a palette much more useful than yet another palette of all pastels.

Here are a few simple eye looks I have been playing around with using the I Love My Shu Shu Palette, hopefully they will give you an idea of how to pair the shades.

I used the pale shimmery pink as a base on the inner half of the lid, and the medium reddened pink on the outer half. I darkened the outer corner using the marsala, and very lightly dabbed a touch of the copper on the middle of the lid and blended out in the crease. And just for the fun of it, I lined my lower lash line with the darker purple shade. Finished with black liner and mascara.

As always, I can’t resist playing around with purples! For this look, I applied the lighter purple on the inner half of my lid - as you can see the color doesn’t show up well. I then applied the darker purple on the outer half of my lid, and dabbed the shimmery pale pink on the middle.

Something unusual perhaps, I used the pale shimmery pink as a base all over the lid, and then applied the metallic green on the outer corner of my eye, bringing it up to the crease. Thereafter I applied copper in the middle third of my lid.

If the palette is too big for your preferences, there are also 12 singles that you can purchase, pop them into the limited edition eyeshadow duo case with the Yazbukey illustration on the top, or combine them into one of Shu Uemura’s custom palettes!

I also really loved the Rouge Unlimited Supreme Matte Lipstick in Yaz Red. This is my first time trying this formula, and I love it!! For a matte lipstick, this one is incredibly smooth, lightweight and completely non-drying on my lips! It is one of those silky smooth formula that the Japanese excel at, and very thin unlike the usual cream textures that the Western brands use, so it does not fall into the lines and creases on my lips as the day progresses. Yaz Red is very pigmented, a single swipe covered my lips perfectly. I also found it fairly long lasting, surviving constant sipping action for 4-5 hours. It looks rather intense in the tube, but applies as a beautiful neutral red that is neither too deep to be overly formal nor too eye-popping for work. Perfect red! Hang in there for a moment, and I will show you how it looks on me in a complete LOTD at the bottom of this post!

There are 2 POREraser UV Under Base Mousse in this collection in beige and pink shades. These are part of Shu Uemura’s permanent makeup base collection, just repackaged with the adorable Yazbukey illustrations. The one I have here is beige, and you can see the texture of the product when dispensed out of the bottle. It is a fluffy mousse texture that settles very quickly into a light fluid (you have a couple of minutes to work with it) and then dries down completely. This POREraser UV Under Base Mousse is designed for oil control, and probably works best on those with oily or combination skin.

No fun collaboration with Shu Uemura will be complete without some dramatic faux lashes!! There are 2 in this collection, and the one I have here is Flip Color Yaz. It features black hair on the top and pink on the bottom interspersed. The lashes also grow increasingly long towards the end (my own lashes are probably half or a third of these lashes!) for very dramatic and adorable effect.

And as promised, here is the full works on my face!

I apologize for the poor lighting that these 2 pictures were taken under. It has been intermittently raining here, so I can’t seem to get proper sunlight when I need them! I had applied the POREraser UV Under Base Mousse here together with the Dior Nude Air Serum Foundation, which unfortunately does not seem to be the best combination for my skin. Eyes feature the 1st eye look shown above using the I Love My Shu Shu Palette, and Flip Color Yaz lashes. Rouge Unlimited Supreme Matte Lipstick in Yaz Red on lips and pink blush from the palette on cheeks.

Here’s another look at those lashes!

I’m afraid the POREraser UV Under Base Mousse did not work quite well on my skin. As it is meant for oil control, it probably is better suited for those with oily skin. The photos above were taken about 5 hours after application, and you can see how it has dried up the surface creating more lines and yet there is that tell-tale shine on my t-zone. Also, my foundation had oxidized turning into a deeper shade than my neck and shoulders.

Overall, the Yazbukey for Shu Uemura collection is really fun and bold! I’m really loving the I Love My Shu Shu Palette and I think the color combination is interesting and unexpected for Spring. I do wished the 2 purple shades were smoother, but I’m not in lack of any purples so I can live with it. Yaz Red is the perfect daytime red and I encourage those of you still looking for a neutral shade of red to check it out. Those lashes are super cool and fun, and I say grab them for your stash while you can! Everything in the color collection is limited edition, and feel free to explore more on this incredibly cool site http://shuuemura.com.sg/yazbukey/

Thank you for making it through such a long read, I hope you have enjoyed the looks that I have prepared. If you are interested to get a set of Yazbukey for Shu Uemura inspired nails done at Branche Singapore (there are 18 designs in total!), just mention Silverkis to receive 30% off your first session!

_{^{This post featured products that were generously sent to me by Shu Uemura Singapore for my consideration. Regardless, all opinions expressed here are my own honest, unbiased views.}}