CUICU Eyeshadow Palette is definitely a well-designed, fun neutral palette. The plastic packaging feels very sturdy, houses a small mirror inside (quite like the Laura Geller Blush-n-Brighten compacts), two sponge-tip applicators and, of course, 5 eyeshadows pressed in the diamond shape. How cute!
All shades are neutral and shimmery, with the exception of the bottom shade (it seems to have some gold sparkles running through it but swatches matte). And yes, true to their name, the eyeshadows are 'soft & shiny'. They're smooth, pigmented and quite long-lasting. No complaints on the formula front from me!
Well, ok, my only complaint would be the shade selection. Firstly, I really wish there were more matte eyeshadows in the palette, and secondly, that copper really seems quite out of place, even though the shadow itself is beautiful. I'm also not a huge fan of the pearly white highlight, I was hoping for something more subtle... Oh yes, I am nit-picking now.
See how nicely they swatch? My favorites are actually the deep olive green (similar to Urban Decay Darkhorse), the antique gold (Wet'n'Wild Dancing in the Clouds trio top shade) and the mid-tone matte brown, for which I couldn't find a dupe in my collection but kind of reminds me of caffe latte.
Here's an eye look I attempted using all five shades in the palette. While I'm not particularly happy with how this one turned out, it demonstrates how saturated and smooth the colors are. I'm actually so impressed with the quality of this little palette that I think I need to investigate Asian make-up further. What are your favorite Asian brands?Disclaimer: The eyeshadow palette was provided to me for review consideration by kkcenterhk.com. I am not compensated to feature it on my blog nor am I affiliated with the brand. All opinions are my own and 100% honest, as always!
My gosh this makes your eye look incredible!!!
ReplyDeleteI have tried a few Asian brands here and there, Majolica Majorca and Kate are nice, Suqqu is great but super expensive... but I've stayed away from eyeshadows because they are always super shimmery and very often very sheer. Looks like there are exceptions, though!
@Mariella: These are definitely not sheer, but quite shimmery! I'd like to try Majolica Majorca at some point too, especially their mascaras. x
ReplyDeleteFrom what I have tried, "Asian eye shadow" are generally sheer (meant to be that way), pearly ones with extremely fine micro-glitter and featuring mainly lid shade/high light without a contour (the deepest color in a palette is usually meant to be an eyeliner). The variety of shimmer/glitter is what they use to create dimension/depth and I think Kanebo brands and generally well-known for that.
ReplyDeleteJust looking at how cuicu(it's funny that it means "to hasten" in mandarin Chinese)swatches, it looks more Western than it is Asian so think it targets at oversea market instead of Asia (where they faces many many competing brands with much prettier packaging, price advantage and customer base).
Asian or not, it's still pretty though, since I like Urban Decay darkhorse quite a bit.
D: That. Eye.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe you're not happy with how it turned out; I think it looks absolutely brilliant! I have to agree with you about the white hilight, though; I usually prefer cream tones as well - a little more subdued, yeah?
I like orange on you, a pop of summer colour on the lids :) Good that we both like how the palettes perform
ReplyDelete@Rae: I think I'm just not a fan of very smokey eyes on myself, black eyeliner in the waterline included. But... at least it's something different :)
ReplyDelete@Halifax: I like orange too, but thought that maybe this one was a bit too shimmery for the crease? Not sure. The purple palette looked gorgeous on you!