Japonesque
About the Brand: They've been around for quite a while and are known for their makeup tools like brushes and lipstick pan palettes, but have just recently launched a full cosmetics line.
Where to Buy It: ULTA
Price Point: High End, similar to MAC, Smashbox, Urban Decay, etc.
Why did I try the brand: Honestly, this was a total surprise to me. I was wandering my local ULTA and out of no where I noticed a new display for Japonesque set up next to the Laura Gellar stuff. On a whim, I picked out a product to try blindly without knowing anything about the line.
Packaging: The compacts and foundations have a lovely acrylic packaging with the main color being black. The eyeshadow compacts however have a pretty blue case and come in your standard white and black cardboard packaging similar to the boxes that Japonesque makeup brushes and tools come in.
First Purchase: Velvet Touch Eye Shadow Palette in 02, $34 , Pro Performance Lip Lacquer in 01, $20 (received as promotional free gift)
Pros/Cons of First Purchase: The eyeshadow quad has a lot of product (6g) and I love all of the colors in it. There's not many choices in quads at the moment, there's only three, but hopefully they will be expanded upon as the line develops. The shadows are buttery smooth and are not powdery at all. The lip lacquer texture is a little thick in my opinion and for that reason you can see some of the brush strokes if you aren't careful. It isn't drying or uncomfortable to wear on the lips.The color I have is a peachy nude which is not something I would have necessarily selected for myself, but when you get a full size product for free, you don't complain!
Unique Items/Qualities of the brand: There's actually two ranges of foundations, which I find surprising for a brand new cosmetics line. There's an enormous range of eyeshadows (many many duos) but only four blushes all of which seemed to cater towards lighter skin tones. I have an olive/tan complexion and only one of the blushes seemed like it could maybe be worth trying on my face.
Other Items that caught my eye: Velvet Touch Foundation, $36
Overall First Impression Grade: I'm going to rate Japonesque at a B+. The main reason I didn't give this an A rating is because I think the line is a bit limited in what it has to offer at the moment. The eyeshadow quad I purchased I love, but I'm still undecided on the lip lacquer. I think the pricing is reasonable given the price points for their tools and the packaging is simple but beautiful.
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