40 Days and 40 Nights Of Beauty Brand Reviews

Day 35 , Shu Uemura

"Touch your inner expression with cosmetics." Mr Uemura

Cavewoman: One of the best and biggest cosmetic lines I've ever discovered is Shu Uemura. I was shopping in SoHo with my cousin Elaine about ten years ago, and we found this little store with the exotic name. When we entered, we found beautiful items from basic, everyday shadows and lipsticks to truly unusual and theatrical colors. And brushes. I had never seen such an array of brushes, tiny liner brushes and fluffy powder brushes and everything in between. We started to browse. Elaine headed over to the eyeshadow display, and I was going to try on a few lipstick shades at a counter with a huge mirror. When I decided on a color to try, I noticed a nice young man next to me, testing out a lipstick on himself. We chatted color and helped each other to decide which to buy.
I also bought a palette that day, and several of the beautiful brushes. I've filled and refilled that same palette over the years, and it still serves me well.

But I had not paid much attention to the skincare line, until I started to read about Shu Uemura cleansing oils. I've had oily skin almost all my life until recently, so the idea of adding oil to my face seemed rather unappealing. But people kept telling me to try it, it would not make my face oilier, and in fact it would cleanse off my makeup better and more thoroughly than just my usual facial cleanser alone. So, I caved. They were right, and I am a believer.

Shu Uemura cleansing oils come in many types and strengths, in convenient pump bottles of different sizes. I tried the Skin Purifier and was delighted with the results. I tap the cleansing oil onto my face and then gently massage it over my skin. Adding a bit of water after that, I continue to massage lightly, and the cleanser foams up a bit and becomes water soluble, removing all my makeup and rinsing off easily. It leaves my skin feeling totally refreshed and moist. Sometimes I use my Payot cleansing gel after using the Shu oil. In colder weather, when I want as much moisture on my face as I can get, I omit the second cleansing. Shu cleansing oils clear the pores of all makeup and primer, even the most stubborn oil-based foundations. Sometimes when I want a quick makeup removal, I pump out some of the cleansing oil onto a cotton pad and just wipe it over my face. It does not cause breakouts, in fact it seems to keep my pores very clean and clear. A bottle of Shu cleansing oil lasts forever, too. Now that I am a regular user of Shu Uemura cleansing oils, I can't imagine being able to remove my makeup completely without it. If you head to the Shu counter, try out one of the oils, and maybe you'll find a lipstick testing buddy there, too.

Storybookheroine: Shu's a brand of spacial economy and ingenuity. Blushes and eye shadows are housed in tiny pans pact with highly pigmented color and delivered in clear plastic squares and rectangles. At first the packaging seemed cheap to me but I have come to appreciate the design and idea of this products. The clear plastic cases literally look like they suspend the pans. The coolest thing is they a made to be depotted so you yourself can custom design you own personal palette of blushes, eye shadows and powders. Shu is a fantastic way to have many colors in a small amount of space and the quality and range of colors are wonderfully wide.

My favorite item from Shu is the summer 2006 Amaterasu palette. This premade compact is a golden bronze metallic square containing a mirror , three buttery soft eye shadows (snuck into the equivalent of 2 e/s pans or one glow on) and a second pan containing a glow on (blush). The entire thing is so small I can easily fit it in the palm of my hand. It's close to 2 inches by 2 inches! Can you imagine? The glow on in Coral Flush, a nude coral color perfect for glowing summer flushed cheeks, is my favorite of all my Shu blushes. It brings my complexion to life and adds a bit of a sheer sunny glow with shimmer. The eye shadows are no disappointment to either. P Nude is hands down my favorite Shu eye shadow color and so underrated. It's a super sheer nude golden shimmery glow that brightens my eyes and glistens in the sunlight. It's a funny color because indoors it's not so pronounced but the second light hits it the shimmery pearl takes over and WOW! I wish Shu made this color in their permanent line (are you reading this Shu?). This is one of those wash colors you can do so much with. P Sunset is a warm bronzy color with a faint hint of orange and compliments the P Nude perfectly. It's not as sheer as the Nude but still a stunner. IR Azure flat out it the prettiest bright blue I have tried. As a rule I am not a blue eyeshadow fan for myself but this is a fantastic color! It has this really cool iridescent shimmer/glow and can be layered (as can the others) to be very sheer to a strong solid blue without loosing the properties that make it special. The eye shadows are a funny combo, but they make my blue/green/gray eyes pop like notice else I have. When I first got Amaterasu it took me a few times to get the hang of it but now I can do really pretty summery makeup with the shadows. I love the blue as a liner, nude as an all over wash and sunset on the outer third of the eye lid. It used the Nude and Sunset under my eyes as liner and I even can pass off Azure in the crease (I big deal for my as I have a hard time with doing my crease). The glow on is a great combination of sheer blush and bronzer for me. The shimmer is subtle and the color can be layered. The best way for me to describe the overall look is a sunset at the beach. I absolutely adore it for summer. Sadly the palette was limited edition but check ebay as these things pop up from time to time. (for reference I am Becca Sand or Cashmere, Nars Mont Blanc, Fresh Northern Light and MAC N4 (but I think we all know how well they do at color matching....).


I know the Shu shadows and Glow On's are very popular but something most over look at the lipsticks. These are so amazing you must run to your nearest counter and buy on RIGHT AWAY! The LOLISHINE ROUGE is describe on the shu ws as "the ultimate sheer and shine lipstick. Exclusive thermo-active Shine Amplifier delivers gloss as it comes into contact with skin temperature. Aqua-Lock system ensures adequate moisture to the lips all day. Crystal Clear Pearl reflects and refracts light, so lips are coated in sparkling shine that is clear as crystal" and ROUGE 4 is "a lipstick that provides a smooth moisturizing feel in a lightweight texture while promoting color intensity and vivid shine." LOLISHINE REFLECTS "sheer color with kaleidoscope shine. Exclusive thermo-active Shine Amplifier delivers gloss as it comes into contact with skin temperature. Aqua-Lock system with Ceramide and Depsea Water ensures adequate moisture to lips all day. Crystal Clear Pearl with tri-color confetti pearls coats lips in maximum sparkling shine." Yes you really need to try them! They are so glossy and moist and the colors are unbelievable. Some are solid color, some have shimmer or frost but my favorites have the "tri-color confetti pearls" or the micro glitter/shimmer (these come in silvers, golds, bronzes and even multi-color!). These are truly unique colors and textures for lipsticks.

So my quick favorites in Shu lipsticks are--------

Summer 2006 Amaterasu Lolishine Reflects in 920 and 962 (these are so shiny, glossy and moisturizing it's almost like a gloss in lipstick form).

-920 is a gorgeous sheer bronze nude with reflective micro shimmer particles. A fantastic summer nude bronze. Love it! Formula is creamy, moisturizing and rather lasting for being so creamy and sheer. A must have summer lipstick. Very unique.

-962 is a beautiful sheer pink nude with reflective micro shimmer particles. Normally nudes look like absolute poop on me but this is a fantastic nude. Love it, Love it! The formula is creamy and moisturizing and rather lasting for being so creamy and sheer. Gorgeous and glossy!

Rouge 4 731 (from Holiday 2005). My holy grail warm bronzy, chocolaty brown lipstick with tons golden pearls. It's so shimmery, shiny and lovely I wish this was a permeant lipstick.

Overall Shu is a wonderful brand with many really nice products (but I hate the skin care).

Annieytown: Out of all the makeup lines I love, Shu is the one that I covet the most. There is no local counter so I have to wait to see the products in NYC. The minute I see that display with all the lovely shades of eyeshadows my heart starts to flutter wildly. I have never worn an acid yellow eyeshadow but Shu Uemura makes me want too. All the eyeshadow shades look interesting and wearable. My personal favorite shades are ME Gold 390(the best gold shade on the planet), ME Blue 638(the best MAC Parrot dupe) and ME Brown 850(a taupe that borders on a silverish mushroom color). The shadows are rich in texture and heavily pigmented. They apply buttery smooth and last all day without creasing.

The variety of shades is impressive with gorgeous metallic wines, deep olives, glittery strawberries, and celery greens.

My other favorite product from Shu is their face powders. I have tried a lot of face powders and can judge them harshly Janice Dickinson-style.

I expect and demand a lot from my powders.

Shu powders are among the best in the market. They are not as finely milled as Caron and La Mer but they work just as well. It sets your makeup and gives your face a luminous glow. The matte formula in colorless works very well with La Mer foundation.

It looks fresh for hours.

Shu eyeshadows retail for $20 and the powders go for around $33. They are sold at Barneys and Bergdorf Goodman. Visit the website to see the full range of products along with fairly accurate swatches for the eyeshadows. If you spend $75 or more on the site, you qualify for free shipping.

http://www.shuuemura-usa.com/default.aspx

What are your favorite Shu Uemura products? Let us know in the comments!

Photos: Cavewoman, Storybookheroine and Blogdorf Goodman

Disclosure: The products featured in this blog post were reviewed by the reviewers; Cavewoman, storybookheroine and me!