Coffret D'or Lipsticks from Spring 2010

It's official. I am in LOVE with Coffret D'or's lipsticks. Over the past few months (NOTE: I wrote this in June...), I've been branching out more into the lip makeup arena and trying out different brands of lipsticks. Because my lips are dry and very pigmented, there is a very small population of lipsticks that work well on me. Plus, I don't like lipsticks that completely cover up my lipcolor (unless they are nude-colored) because I think the effect looks fake, so my selection is even more limited.

After going through the reviews, I picked out a few brands (Dior, Maquillage, and Coffret D'or) that are really popular with the Asian crowd since I tend to identify more with their makeup style. I first tried out Dior Addict High Shine Lipstick because it was the easiest to get in the US. The Dior lipstick wasn't bad, but it was still a bit dry for me and contained shimmer/glitter bits that were too rough. Then, I tried a Maquillage Spring 2010 lipstick, which was definitely creamier/more moisturizing. Still, the shimmer/glitter bits were too scratchy for my liking. Finally, I tried Coffret D'or (CD), and although it's not extremely different from MQ, it has become my favorite.

The packaging for the Spring 2010 line of CD lipsticks is pretty simple and sleek. I'm sort of on the edge about the design, so I don't particular like it but I don't hate it either. The one thing that's annoying about the packaging is that I can't tell which lipstick is which from the outside unless I read the label. I guess that's a minor problem right now since I only have two of these lipsticks, but it would be a nuisance if I buy more and I have to pick up every one of them to check the label.


Previously, I mentioned that the CD lipsticks are not that different from the MQ lipsticks. The minor difference between the two is that CD lipsticks are slightly more moisturizing and doesn't accentuate lip lines as much. I still have a slight problem with the roughness of the shimmer in certain shades of CD lipsticks, but it's minor enough that I can live with it.

The two colors that I bought from CD's spring 2010 Aqua Rouge line were PK 247 (right swatch in below pictures) and PK 248 (left swatch in below pictures). I was originally looking for a versatile neutral pink, and PK 248 seemed like the most neutral color out of the PK series. However, the color turned out to be a neutral-cool medium pink color that's fairly pigmented. I wasn't completely in love at first with the color since it seemed too bright for me, who is used to muted lipcolors, but after working with it, I'm liking the color more and more. In fact, now I love the color when I don't feel like wearing too much eyeshadow since it really brightens the face.

Swatch picture taken in direct sunlight:

Side note: For those not yet familiar with Asian/Japanese lip product naming, PK stands for pink, OR is orange/peach, BE is beige/nude, and BR is darker nude/brown.

I bought PK247 during the phase when I was still experimenting with PK248. I wanted a more muted pink for makeup looks that focus on the eyes, and PK247 was a perfect choice. It's a nude, almost beigey pink. With my pigmented lips, the color looks pinker on my lips than it does on bare skin, but I very much like the effect.

Swatch picture taken in indirect sunlight:

In short: Coffret D'or lipsticks are a great choice when you're looking for moisturizing lipcolor that's not completely opaque. At $28 a pop, they are a bit pricey, but worth the money IMO.

Inspiration - Shibasaki Kou II

I recently encountered this picture from Coffret D'or's Fall 2009 and was seriously blown away. How did they make Shibasaki Kou look so doe-eyed and adorable? I've always thought she had a tougher and more fiery image rather than the sweet, cute type of image this picture conveys. In any case, the ad tempted me into checking out what eye products she used, but I will most likely refrain from buying anything since I'm not big on buying eyeliners or mascaras and I don't want to buy any more single eyeshadows since I like sticking to palettes. Still, if Shibasaki-san is truly not wearing any false lashes in the picture as the Coffret D'or website implies, I would definitely consider checking out this miracle mascara, which, by the way, has been receiving good reviews on a couple of the blogs I read.

Comparison Swatches - Lavenders & Purples

In the final installment of my comparison swatches, I will be showing my growing collection of lavender and purple eyeshadows. Lavender is my favorite color, so it's not a surprise that I have a lot of lavender/purple themed palettes and shadows. Still, compared to the beige/brown shadows I've swatched, my lavender/purple collection is still fairly small =P

First, here are the highlighting/base shades as well as some of the shading colors:


Color D from Maquillage's VI367 looks very white here, but you might be able to see the slight violet tint in the shadow. Similarly, color A from Lavshuca's PU-2 appears beige, but it also has a slight lavender tint, though it's fainter than the tint in color D from VI367.

Next, we have the purple-tinted neutrals, which can also be found in my earlier beige/brown comparison swatch post:


Many say that MJ's single eyeshadow in SV821 is a purple-tinted taupe, but I don't really see the purple in the color so I've chosen to leave that color out here.

It's hard to see the purple-ness of the above two colors just by themselves, so I've also included a picture of the two colors along side some of the purple shading and lining colors. The two purple-tinted neutrals are on the far left.


Following is the labeled swatch of the remaining lavender/purple shading colors as well as all of my purple lining colors:


The L'Oreal HiP shade here is the only completely matte shadow that I have (for a good reason since I prefer shimmer over a matte finish). The Shiseido eyeshadow is little bluer than the Shu Uemura shade shown here, but I wasn't far off in my review of the Shu Uemura palette when I said that the Shu Uemura shade is pretty much a powder version of the Shiseido eyeshadow (which is the only cream eyeshadow shown here).

For reference, all pictures in this post were taken under natural light. All of the Lavshuca swatches here are from a Eye Color Select quad, all Maquillage swatches are from a Eyes Creator (3D) quint, and the Coffret D'or swatch is from a Trance Deep Eyes quad. The Dior swatches are from a 5-Couleur Iridescent quint, and the Shu Uemura swatches are from a LE Winter 2008 palette. Finally, the L'Oreal HiP swatches are from a Concentrated Shadow Duo. For the Shu Uemura and L'Oreal HiP swatches, the colors are numbered from the left (i.e., the leftmost color is Color 1).

Inspiration - Sawajiri Erika

Despite her attitude problems, I still admire Sawajiri Erika as a cosmetics spokesmodel even if only for her looks =P However, unlike Shibasaki Kou, her Coffret D'or looks could be hits or misses. I've definitely seen really weird makeup (and expressions) on her as a model for Coffret D'or. However, the following picture shows a look that I really like on her.

Inspiration - Shibasaki Kou

My favorite spokesmodel for Coffret D'or has to be Shibasaki Kou. There is rarely a makeup look that I don't like on her, and I became interested in the Coffret D'or line after I saw this picture of Shibasaki at a department store in Asia. I even wanted to buy this palette (3D Lighting in 03 Silver Variation) because of how good it looked on Shibasaki. However, in the end, I restrained myself since I have similar eyeshadow colors already, and I'm actually not that into the color combination of this palette.

Comparison Swatches - Grays, Silvers, and Blacks

I never realized how many beige/brown eyeshadows I have until I started doing these comparison swatches. Compared to the five pictures I took for the browns, there are only two pictures for the grays/blacks. Of course, I included the taupes with the browns so that made a difference, but even then, I still have twice as many brown shadows as blacks.

Here are the highlighting/base shades:


Most of the colors except for the L'Oreal HiP shade look very similar. In fact, most of them are the same except for the texture. Shiseido Whitelights and Coffret D'or's color D are more sparkly, MJ's color A is more shimmery, and Coffret D'or's color A and L'Oreal's color 1 are more pearl/satin. The only shade that has a slightly different color is Kate BR-1 color A, which is slightly more beige and pink. So even though this color looked white when swatched with the real beiges (see swatch post for beiges, golds, and browns), it still belongs to the beige family.

Here are the shading or liner colors:


I remarked in the review for L'Oreal Sterling color 2 that this color is slightly blue-toned, which is why it's hard for me to pull it off. Here, you can see how it looks bluish when compared to the other grays.

For reference, all pictures were taken under natural light. The Shiseido swatch is for a hydro-powder cream shadow shade. The Coffret D'or swatches are from a Trance Deep Eyes palette. The Kate swatches are all from Deep Trap Eyes quints, the Lavshuca swatch is from a Eye Color Select quad, and the MJ swatch is from a Trick On Majolook. The L'Oreal swatches are from a Wear Infinite Duo and the L'Oreal HiP swatches are from a Metallic Shadow Duo.

All That Shimmer

I had some time today so I took flash pictures of my palette collection to show you the shimmery-ness of these babies. As such, this will predominantly be a picture post with very little text. Please refer back to my reviews to read more about each of these palettes.

MJ Trick On Majolooks BR742 + BR751



Kate Deep Trap Eyes GY-1



Lavshuca Eye Color Select PK-1 + BU-1 + PU-2



Coffret D'or Trance Deep Eyes 04 Grey Variation



Shu Uemura Winter 2008 LE Palette (Ninagawa Mika Collection) Secret Luscious Rose

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As a preview, here are some flash pictures of my small birthday haul...

Kate Deep Trap Eyes BR-1



Maquillage Eyes Creator (3D) VI367



Can't wait to try these!

EOTD - Coffret D'or Trance Deep Eyes 04

Coffret D'or Trance Deep Eyes in 04 Gray Variation

(A) White line
(B) Purple line
(C) Black line
(D) Gray line

1) Apply B in the crease
2) Use C to apply a thick line above the top lashline
3) Apply D to the inner corner of the eye, just a little bit in the crease right above the top lashline and on the inner 1/3 of the lower lashline
4) Apply C to the outer 1/3 of the lower lashline
5) Apply B to the middle of the lower lashline, smudging the edge out a little where it touches colors C and D
6) Use the big brush in the palette (or any small, loose brush) to sweep A lightly above the crease, on the browbone, and below the eye
7) Curl lashes

The result is a very elegant and radiant look. The lavender shade (B) is not too obvious so this palette is perfect for a spring/summer look that's office-appropriate. For a more dramatic look, you can apply the lavender shade higher and/or line more of the lower lashline with the pewter shade (C).

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Please click here to read my review on this quad.

Coffret D'or: My First Japanese Dept Store Experience

My beautiful cousin who had a cameo role in my last post also bought me a Coffret D'or eyeshadow palette while in Malaysia. I've been eyeing Coffret D'or palettes (as well as other Japanese dept store brand palettes like Maquillage's) for a long time, but haven't actually bought one since they're too expensive online >.< So imagine my excitement when I saw this classy palette in the bag of gifts she gave me!


This Coffret D'or palette is one in the Trance Deep Eyes line. I love the pretty silver with pink rhinestone packaging, though it does get dirty easily from fingerprints. The palette comes with two dual ended applicators, one wider and one thinner, and each with a brush on one end and a sponge-tip applicator on the other. The brushes are very soft, and the sponge-tip applicators work well to pack on the color, so you really don't need to have another brush or applicator to work with this palette. The eyeshadows are very finely milled, with gorgeous shimmer that is not tacky. The colors are sheer but buildable. However, these eyeshadows crease very easily, pretty much within 1-2 hours without UDPP. Therefore, you definitely need to apply these over UDPP to get long-lasting color.


My cousin got me the Trance Deep Eyes in 04 Grey Variation which is a silver and lavender palette. The palette contains a shimmery white (A), a shimmery cool toned lavender (B), a shimmery dark gray (C), and a very shimmery silver (D). I was pleasantly surprised that C was as shimmery as A and B since in most palettes, the darker liner color will usually be less shimmery. Also, using the brushes to apply A and D, I really couldn't tell the difference between them as they both just look shimmery. However, if I pack on the color with my fingers or an applicator (as I did in the swatch), I can see that A is whiter than D and a little bit more subdued with the shimmer. The overall finished look of this palette is a ladylike, cool-toned neutral look with a touch of lavender. Although the shimmer is very obvious in all 4 shades when I'm applying the shadows, from a distance (about how far you would normally stand apart from someone when talking), the shimmer just gives radiant glow as opposed to looking glittery.


The following is the suggested method of applying the shadows, which I followed and had great results.


All pictures in this post were taken under natural light.

In short: I love my first encounter with Coffret D'or! The Trance Deep Eyes palette in 04 Grey Variation is gorgeous, glowy, and not garish. I'm not sure I love it more than my cheaper drugstore palettes, but it's well worth your money if you don't have or don't want to use separate applicators.

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Please click here to see this palette used in an EOTD.