Sakura Glow

Sakura Glow is a plum with subtle, warm undertones and sparkling, metallic sheen. It's darker than pink, brighter and cooler-toned than most plums, but not cool-toned enough to be a true berry hue either. The texture is silkier and almost cream-like, not quite as dense or as firmly-pressed but not soft enough to really generate much powderiness/excess product in the pan.

Inspiration: In my original 10-pan color concept, I envisioned a muted, burnt red, and when the first round of color samples came through, Sydney Grace had created a warmer, more coppery take and a redder take. They were both stunning in texture and shine, and I ended up incorporating both: one as Phoenix Awakens and the other as Sakura Glow.

Behind the Name: Cherry blossoms have held significant meaning to me at a personal and professional level; my husband and I visited many Japanese gardens around the Bay Area as early dates, and the blossoms were incorporated into early designs of the blog (I recall readers being upset that we removed a lot of them over time, lol!). Hubby and I had cherry blossoms hand-painted on our wedding invitations and the like!

Development

This came out of version B of the first loose color samples of Phoenix Awakens. The finish on both were just so shiny and smooth that it was hard to pick between the two of them. In the second loose color sample of this shade, it seemed slightly too similar to existing shade Ladylike, so I wanted to see if we could change the undertone and type of pearl used a bit to differentiate it better.

Once this shade was pressed, its third version ended up losing a lot of the pearl that made it more dimensional. The fourth version was still too light, not plum enough, and lacked the pearl/shine I wanted. The fifth version was back on track and had the right undertone, depth, and finish and was approved for production mid-March 2021.

FURTHER READING: Formula Overview, which is a detailed review of the range as a whole.

• Brand Description
• Ingredients