Written Reviews

Before I truly go into how much I love this product, let me clear something up: lipstick is a struggle for me. I love the finish of a good, opaque lip, but as a victim of more or less chronic xerostomia (dry mouth; a side effect of daily prescriptions) my lip texture will always be far from smooth and moisturized. Most lipsticks can't handle that (even though I try to always apply Vaseline underneath before application) and end up looking dry and generally unflattering. The Shiseido formula? Nothing of the sort. As long as my lips are not in an absolutely disastrous form (which can be fixed with a balm), this applies flawlessly smooth, even and comfortable on me. I don't expect a lipstick to moisturize, per say, but I can say that while my lips will definitely be slightly drier after hours of wear than they were before, it's not an uncomfortably severe thing that usually accompanies lipstick wear for me when it comes to the Shiseido formula. It makes me unreasonably happy to finally have a formula that just.. works for the dry lip texture I have to deal with. The color is a stunning warm, midtone brown, and the characteristic "set" of the lipstick changes its gliding sheen at application to a more matte, yet natural finish. This bullet is incredibly soft, and dented by the slightest pressure, due to its "gel" formula. It can be easily blotted to a more sheer coverage, but directly on the lips it will be opaque with a single swipe. The formula is lightweight and surprisingly long-wearing, and tends to leave a more flattering stain behind. It's easy to retouch and reapply, and doesn't glide and slip if a lip gloss is applied over it. Some people have pointed out the imbalanced product-to-price ratio of this lipstick, and while I do get where the complaint comes from, judging from the air-tight double packaging this product had, it seems that the mousse-y, gel formula will be so quick to dry out that the amount of product inside has been changed to reflect upon that, which I personally don't mind. The period after opening is given at 6 months.

If anyone with very light skin and yellow/olive undertones (I'm unsure how this would look on any cooler undertones) is looking for something that's both passably neutral yet offers a twist to the typical color stories of that category, I really do think this palette is worth some definite consideration! The quality of these shades is completely in accordance to the stellar review it got from the editor, and I enjoy all the looks and the ease of use I get from this little gem. My only minor gripe would be with the shade Dark Sepia; the issue is not with the quality but overall the way I personally feel that it doesn't slide with the rest of the shades as well as I'd like to; I'm sure I can figure out how to wear it over time (currently it's just a smoked out liner) but with the ease that comes with the rest of the shades it definitely feels more like a hassle than the others. I feel like the same shade as a matte would have made more sense and given this palette a lot more versatility on the smoky side of things. I haven't tried using it as a crease-deepening shade yet; it might work very well there, but nonetheless, couldn't it have been a matte? The other two shimmers are spectacular - in the dreaded age of pressed glitter I love the ND formula of shimmers that gives me a highly sparkly effect without the microplastic shards. Antheia is insanely pretty and I'd even go as far as to say that for anyone who was looking at the VR Emerald from Pat McGrath's Nocturnal Nirvana Quad, this could be an alternative. It's definitely more neutral and lacks that absolutely breathtaking cool pink flip, but with the sparkle it gets at the right angle it would definitely fulfill a similar role if you're looking for a duochrome green that's less vibrant than VR Emerald while still delivering that amazing sparkle - it really can elevate a standard look. D'or is a standard gold, yet still not. Definitely no justification to stock up on endless gold shimmers, for sure, but it has a yellow tint to it that differentiates it from a typical true gold. It creates an interesting contrast with the other shades while still fitting together well. Nothing much to say about the mattes - they're amazing. A bit powdery in the pan, yet almost zero fallout on the eye and great pigmentation while still blending out easily. Surprisingly buildable in intensity. I feel like versatile is not the way to describe this palette overall; it's definitely got a very defined niche that it delivers spectacularly. It's gotten me to really consider getting some bigger palettes with these kinds of olive shades someday in the future, as I really find it a unique, enjoyable little thing to have. The size is only another bonus - I adore a compact product!