There's a lot I could post about my trip to Manila (fun!), but I am being lazy so for now I'll just put a mini-review of Shiseido's Anessa town use sunscreen SPF 30 PA++, from Shiseido's Anessa line of suncreens and sun-protecting makeup.
I finally used up my little bottle of sunblock from last year (or 2 years ago), so thought I would give this popular sunscreen line a try. Sunblock in Japan is pretty expensive; I'd say twice as expensive as in the U.S., but Anessa and Kanebo's competitor Allie go for about $26 for 60 grams. Very expensive in my opinion. However, a friend of a friend buys a ton of Shiseido sunblock whenever she visits Japan, so I wanted to see if it was worth the price tag. Also, now is a good time to buy sunblock since it's on sale at certain drugstores. I picked up mine for 30% off. I would go back and buy more, but this tube may last me a year.
I'm very impressed so far. It has a pleasant, light rose scent (a Shiseido trademark, if I'm not mistaken), and feels very light. Apparently it's supposed to provide a nice base for your makeup, hee. I guess that's very important. It is also advertized as waterproof (although it is for everyday use as opposed to the beach, so I don't think it'll stand up too well to a swim). They recommend you remove the sunscreen with makeup remover. I enjoy applying it each morning, which is a plus (the power of fragrance and texture). I'd like to compare this sunscreen with much cheaper alternatives like Banana Boat Faces Plus and Coppertone Spectra, neither of which are available in Japan. Still, might as well take advantage of the local products.
I wonder if I should still look for a moisturizer.
In unrelated news, I was surprised to find Crest entered the dental products market here! Although they've only started with some motorized toothbrushes. No toothpaste.
Has anyone tried out Integrate, one of Shiseido's new cosmetic brands? Angelina Jolie is the spokesmodel, but I'm bothered by the peachy lipstick they put on her (I just looked at the website and the color looks much better. I think the printing job wasn't very good). The line itself seems pretty nice. The glosses and lipsticks are light but pretty, and they have a very tempting gloss in a lip crayon form! The line is very reasonably priced with lipsticks and lipglosses around $10. 1/3 of the price of Maquillage.
I just noticed that Shiseido has an eponymous suncare line also. I wonder if that's what the friend of a friend buys.
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Dear Kuri: how are you? I have replied to your comments in my blog, btw! Thanks a lot!
I use one Anessa sunscreen (not the same you mentioned though): "Perfect Smooth Sunscreen", SPF 50+, coming in a nice silver bottle.
I love it, because it's really smooth and smells nice and does not leave a white cast on your face. It's great as a makeup base too. Or you can use only that alone and that's it.
As for Integrate, I am dying to try those big chunky eye crayons, but none of my Sellers is stocking it yet. I also thought the prices were quite reasonable, no?
I think Angelina looks gorgeous as ever on those pics, however some friends seem to disagree and made hard comments about it, he he. I just think in one of the pics they used too much retouch and her ears ended looking a bit like Dr. Spock's. Why retouching it if the woman is already perfect? Well, I think she is gorgeous anyway!
:)
Talk to you soon!
a.
I thought about buying Perfect Smooth, but I didn't need anything that strong, just something for every day use. I have a huge bottle of Banana Boat sunscreen, but once I work through that I will try the other Anessa products. They smell great! The pearly version looks fun.
Yeah, most of the drugstores only have limited stock too at the moment - one store I went to had exactly one of each color in each product, except for a few colors which didn't go into production with the rest of the line. I will try one of the eye crayons. Maybe they're easier to use than regular eye shadow?
Hee, Angelina is gorgeous, but I do think there's something odd about the pictures. I guess photography is a really difficult job!
Hi Kuri! Good Morning (here at least!)!:
I think if you don't feel safe with the eyeshadows in pans, the crayons might be a good idea. Also, some liquid eyeshadow as Cosme Decorte Eye Fantasit or the Visée ones (in metallic faceted tubes) are good as a base in lighter shades. E.g.: liquid beige over the lid plus a brown crayon near the lashes.
If you buy October's Biteki, there are great tutorials on eye makeup. I was amazed for they are really good and very easy to follow.
I think when Shiseido starts a new line they always start selling few items. I noticed it here with The Makeup new stuff. Annoying! But then again they must have their reasons.
I need to go out now with Mark, but I will reply to your comments on my blog later, OK?
See you later then!
a.
Hi! Good Evening ;)
I went and tried out the crayons; they look very pretty but one brown is goldish and one is quite dark. The gold might be fun but looks pretty similar to my MAC powersurge eye kohl. A liquid beige sounds very nice. I'll take a look at the ones you mentioned.
I love Biteki! It's such a pretty magazine. But I still had trouble following the eyebrow tutorial they had once. I guess I need to practice more. I'll try out the eyeshadow tutorials.
Should be fun :)
No hurry on replies. Real life should always come first.
Hi Dear! Loved the day in town! I splurged on some stuff too, altough I should not really. I keep thinking my makeup will outlive me... I need to write a blog about it methinks... I mean, the new stuff (not the deadly thoughts about makeup lurking around after I'm dead, he he!)
I also bought KenzoAmour today! I saw the bottle and loved it. Then tried it and could not resist. It smeels a bit like Kenzo's Le Parfum, but better.
Oh! The liquid eyeshadow... It's not Cosme Decorte, but Kosé. Kosé Eye Fantasist. It's lovely. The Visée line has a nice beige one, as I said before.
If you need any mu from European brands, let me know, I can get it for you if you wish. Even some pharmacies sell them, which is cool. There is lots of new stuff out for Autumn now, btw.
I tried the new RMK eyeshadows, but they are a bit too sheer (the new Fall quads). I don't like to use layers and layers until I get the desired shade. Thus, I bought none.
You know which eyeshadows are great to use and come with great instructions? Shiseido Maquillage quads. They are perfect. Not too sheer, not too pigmented, just right. And also come with creamy eyeliners that are great and last for a long time. I love to use them for that "smoky" effect. very good indeeedy!
We will now go to a friend's house in Malahide (up north), for some gossip and snacks! I am not very used to do much things in a single day!
Talk to you tomorrow!
a.
Glad you had a fun day!
Congratulations on the KenzoAmour! Kenzo bottles are so pretty. I want to buy some perfume :P
I looked up the Kose and Visee eyeshadows. They look lovely, but there's a double BE30 that Visee makes that I thought I might try: http://www.kose.co.jp/kose/visee/products/eye/dmecolor.html
Although maybe just the beige is best? Ah well, they all look so pretty :D
Thanks! I don't need anything, I just want lots :P If there's anything you are looking for here, let me know! I love shopping for other people. Do you want anything from Integrate? ;)
Yeah, I have way too much lipstick and gloss myself. I want more, but I don't know when I'm going to use up the stuff I already have. I'm learning to mix lipstick and gloss colors at least.
I've never looked at the Maquillage quads closely. I'll go see if the saleslady can give me a mini makeover with them.
Have fun at your friend's place!
Hi Dear!
The Amour bottle is lovely. Since I bought a 50ml one, it is deep fuchsia, really pretty. nd reminds me of a crane, the neck of a crane when it's about to fly.
As for the Visée e/s, you should maybe go for the double-colored one - for more options. They look great. As I told you, I have a single beige and it is very good, easy to apply.
Thanks for the offer, it is a temptation but maybe not now, he he! I would love to try the crayons, but should control the urge a bit! Maybe we could support each other on that, he he (the makeup addicts)! At any rate, don't hesitate if you need anything from here as well.
In another note you mentioned Proudia. I have one foundation from them, the Moist Forming compact (creamy compact) which is fab. Are they really discontinuing it? The compact is the only one I have from them (ah yes, the powder found too) and I adore it. They should at least release the same thing on Maquillage, to replace it. It is very easy to apply, and doubles as a concealer too. Bleah for them, if they don't come up with a similar-but-better thing...
Oh yes! What I bought that Sunday was: Dior quint e/s in 970 (nice purples), Givenchy Prismissime in Chocolat Intense (color 51) and YSL Signes d'Orient palette. I want to review them some time. I just use the palette so far and it's so cool. You have blush and eyeshadow in one! Brown, pink and beige. Brown can be used as e/s only I think. Pink and Beige as both blush and e/s, with a nice sheen. They are great for everyday use, very understated. I don't like those golden boxes though - they are a magnet for fingerprints...
See you soon and hope you'll have a wonderful weekend! Don't work too hard!
:)
a.
Hi!
Sorry about the delay; been kind of tied up cleaning the apt. lately. :(
Pretty bottle! It must be difficult to store them in dark places when you want to look at them. I wore Un Zest de Rose today, and once again came to the conclusion that it's lovely but not me at all. It's funny that I should think it's terribly pretty but not want to wear it at all. :P
Yeah, I want to get the double eyeshadow. I should stick to small sizes until I get to the point where I am actually using up makeup. I've started looking, but I haven't found the double versions yet, so it might be an old product or just not carried commonly. I'll look at the Maquillage quads too. I have quite a few dark eyeshadows and highlighting colors, but not much that is in between. I picked up the Biteki issue but haven't had time to look through yet.
I want to split all my lip glosses in half - I think I get bored of things easily, and they all have so much product that I don't go through them very quickly. Maybe the next time that I get a new lip gloss I will decant half of it into a pot and give it to a friend. I don't know if my friends would appreciate that or not though.
Hee, well, let me know if you want anything! :D The texture of the Integrate products seems quite nice. Sure, I will keep you informed too.
About Proudia, I don't know if they're continuing it overseas (I know my friend uses it too but in the U.S. they just package it as regular Shiseido cosmetics), but the Japanese website says they're discontinuing it and asks the customer to please try out Maquillage. I have one of the moist compact foundations and enjoy it quite a bit, but there seem to be all these new powder foundations from Revue and other brands.
In theory they should be improving stuff, but all I know is that Maquillage seems more expensive :P
Ooh, look forward to your reviews. The palette sounds very nice. I love pinks but they doesn't seem to look very good on me. Hee, you got all French products this time!
Konnichiwa Kuri!
Sorry for this delay, but I was in bed with a cold, lovely...
:((
Ah, but how do you decant glosses? They are so sticky, no? And those that come in a pen? I don't think you could decant it, could you?
Proudia - I did not know it was sold in the US. I buy it with AdamBeauty or my seller Taotailang88 on EBay. Yes, they are replacing it with Maquillage that, by the way, has released a very cool powdery foundation "Moisture Climax Powdery". That must be really good. Powdery founds are also so easy to apply. Maybe they would be good for you. Besides, they look gorgeous on those limited edition cases! I love the Shu Uemura ones. You can even use your finger to apply it only where needed...
(I think that whole "climax moisture" name is hilarious, actually...)
I will reply to your comments on my bloggy now, he he!
Have a perfect weekend and talk to you later!
a.
Konnichiwa!
Seems like a lot of people have been getting sick. Gotta take care of your health!
Yeah, decanting gloss would be quite messy, but I was thinking of pouring them into little pots. Still messy. I guess I would give the remaining gloss in the original packaging to someone else; much easier for them to use that way. Although not so sanitary, hee. next time I buy a new gloss I'll decant before I use it, then see if I want to keep the whole thing or not. I have never owned a gloss in a pen, but yes, those would be pretty impossible to decant.
I've never tried the Shu Uemura ones; I'll have to check them out. Or not; best stay away from temptation. ;) Yeah, the Maquillage Climax cracked me up. Laf, they need to be more careful about the English words the pick.
By the way I bought the liquid eyeshadow (Kose), but haven't opened it yet, as am having a bit of eczema, so thought it'd be best to wait a bit. Also bought kissme mascara (japanese version) as it was on sale. But I still have a huge tube of Fiberwig, so won't get to try out Kissme for a while. Technically Fiberwig is old enough to throw out ...
Have a great weekend!
Konnichiwa Kuri-san!
Ah, now I understand the decanting thing! I don't think it's unhigienic - if you are among friends, they will know you, so, it's not a big deal, really.
I know, Mark was laughing like a wacko when he saw the foundation name! They should really make a bit of research or perhaps have some native English speakers to check these things. Or maybe it's intentional? God knows. I think it's kind of cute, actually. In the end, they manage to get the point - and make themselves remembered... Somehow!
I hope you like the eyeshadow, and get better of that eczema asap. Those things are really annoying. I have rosacea, but gladly not much flare-ups for quite some time.
Well, dear, hope you will have a great week ahead and talk to you very soon,
a.
Hi! I bought some room fragrances too, so I will be decanting those. My friends probably think that I'm strange for buying all these random things and giving bits of them to other people :)
I'm a bit unsure whether I really have eczema or some other kind of allergy, so I will do more investigation :P
Have a great weekend!
Hi Dear! Hope you are feeling better this week!
I posted a note for you in my blog, about the Lippies, he he!
:)
I will now read your other posts!
a.
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