The Koolest Kollab ft. Fresh Cushion Blush & Sheer Color Balm from KYE x Shu Uemura for Summer 2016!

I’m always excited by Shu Uemura’s designer collaborations, and the latest KYE for Shu Uemura collection is no exception.  Featuring Kathleen Kye’s trademark illustrations and cool Korea-inspired makeup products, the new collection is full of fun for any beautyjunkie.  Seriously, if Shu Uemura produces charms out of all their quirky limited edition illustrations, I would totally collect them all!

In case you (I meant me of course) were wondering, KYE is a popular high street fashion label favoured by all the cool kids in K-Pop.  My mind is currently too preoccupied with images of Daenerys the Unburnt from GoT to be chasing the latest episode of Descendants of the Sun; but when adorable cushion blushers and poppy-hued lip balms show up on my doorstep, my attention is piqued.

The KYE for Shu Uemura collection consists of 21 limited edition skincare and makeup products, and 3 hair care.  Everything is packaged in the collection’s emblematic prints.  Designer Kathleen Kye wanted to showcase the Kye-wave, and the energy of K-fashion.  Consequently, she has drawn 12 motives that she considers to be representative of Korea right now.

There are some really cool stuff like cappuccino x dark rose brow:palette, tea beige eyebrow manicure, and metallic pink / navy drawing pencils; but for a day in the office, I inevitably go back to the staples.  And if your lifestyle is anything close to mine, I would like to draw your attention to a couple of fun new products from Shu Uemura that are making their appearances for the first time in this KYE for Shu collection.

Just a month back we saw the introduction of the first cushion foundation [reviewed here] from Shu Uemura, and hot on its heels is the all new Shu Uemura Fresh Cushion Blush!  The packaging is similar to any standard cushion with an inner swing lid covering a cushion soaked with the liquid product.  The only difference is that the cushion blush is smaller in size and contains less product (understandably) than the standard cushion foundation.  To apply, simply tap the enclosed applicator puff on the cushion and then dab on the cheeks.  Alternatively, you may use a brush, in which case I like a denser goat-haired one like the Tom Ford Cream Foundation brush #02.

I’m not sure at this point if Shu Uemura will make this Fresh Cushion Blush a permanent item, but there are just 2 shades in this limited edition KYE for Shu collection.  The one I have here is Hibiscus Pink, and it gives a very fresh luminous sheen to the cheeks.  Though it looks rather pink in the pan, it applies more like a very light cool-toned pink-tint with a strong white base.  Whilst there is absolutely no shimmer in this product, it leaves behind a strong sheen that puts my cheeks on fleek!  Below is a heavily layered swatch:

What is interesting about this cushion blush is that it feels cool on the skin upon application, and goes on sheer though buildable.  On me, it is more like a highlighter than a true blush, so I like to wear it just on the high point of my cheek bones under the outer corner of my eye, and then sweep on some powder blush along the entire cheek bone for more color.

The other item that you should definitely check out is the Shu Uemura Sheer Color Balm.  There are 3 shades available, and the one I have here is Hugged in Peach.  Shu Uemura has many many lip formulae, and all of them are incredibly smooth and kind on the lips.  These new Sheer Color Balm are probably the smoothest, and creamiest of them all.  At the same time, though they are billed to be “sheer”, Hugged in Peach gives a generous coat of color, though there is a translucency to it and never achieves full opacity.  Regardless, it gives it that effortlessly fresh-faced look that is perfect for summer!

Perhaps due to the translucency, the actual color on the lips may differ depending on your own lip color.  Though Hugged in Peach looks almost vermillion in the tube and swatches out coral-pink, it applies more like rose on my lips!  What is nice is that in just 1 swipe, there is a good coat of color and a lustrous shine.  And by the way, I’m really loving the black packaging with red illustrations printed all over it!  Completely different from other Shu Uemura lip products, and so so cool.

This is my attempt at a fresh, summer look using a handful of KYE x Shu Uemura products.  Brows were filled in with Shu Uemura’s Seal Brown x Stone Gray brow:palette, and you can’t really make it out because of my heavily hooded lids but I’m also wearing the black drawing pencil along my upper lash line.  What I really wanted to show you is the luminous flash of my cheeks from the Fresh Cushion Blush in Hibiscus Pink, note though that I added a separate blush for some color on my cheeks.  Lips feature the Sheer Color Balm in Hugged in Peach.  Very minimalistic, but lately that’s all that I have time for.

The KYE x Shu Uemura collection is out at all Shu Uemura counters and Sephora Ion now, for a very limited time until 31 May 2016 only.  Be sure to check them out before they’re gone!

_{This post featured products that were kindly provided for my consideration.  Regardless, all opinions expressed here are my own honest, unbiased views.}