Shu Uemura Red Authority Lipstick swatches

Shu Uemura recently launched a whole red lipstick collection in Lacquer, Satin and Matte textures recently, with the spotlight on a "universal red for Asian skintones", RD 163 (available in all 3 textures).

The 25 shades in the line-up include a mix of new and existing red tones, but the shades run the gamut from soft warm corals to deep dark browns, so there really isn't too much of an excuse for anyone to not find at least 1 or 2 shades that look good on them, regardless of ethnicity and skintone.

I personally love RD163 in all 3 finishes. Shu touts this as a shade that contains the optimal mix of warm and cool tones to suit a majority of Asian skins. The shade itself is what I consider a warm-neutral red. Something that is close to true scarlet but leans ever so slightly on the warmer side.

I lip-swatched 24 of the 25 shades in my Youtube video linked below (there was one shade missing in the press samples I got so I was not able to swatch all of them) and here are the arm swatches for quick comparison.

Shu Uemura rouge unlimited Red lipsticks in Lacquer finish

Shu Uemura rouge unlimited Red lipsticks in Satin finish

Shu Uemura rouge unlimited red lipsticks in Matte finish

This makes it quite forgiving and in fact, pretty flattering on a wide range of skin tones while staying "red" without going into rose or orange territory.

If you're curious, in the full video review, I also give a breakdown of how Shu Uemura codes their lipstick shades, so that you can easily narrow down shades that suit you as long as you have an idea what sort of undertone you have (warm/yellow, neutral, or cool/pink)

ShuUemura just launched 15 shades of #MatteSupreme #liquidlipsticks today and I got all excited cos these are earth-based shades, so even the pinks and oranges have a little brown or neutral undertones in them to make them flattering on the skin. I lip swatch 5 of their star shades and share my thoughts on who I think they'd look great on: PK 02 - medium rose pink BR 01 - warm reddened brown OR 01 - burnt orange RD 03 - brick red WN 03 - black cherry These rouges are designed to go on like weightless liquid inks, and while they are not transfer-proof matte lipsticks, they are still long-wear and I do love how ultra-comfortable they feel. They will kiss of on your glass but still look pretty intact on the lips, although the center of my lips did not survive a full meal. Still, these are super easy to touch up in spots since they don't clump up or dry down with a strange texture.
They do set and go SLIGHTLY more brown than when first applied but don't worry cos they don't go 2-3 shades darker and more grey like some liquid lipstick formulas can.
My unexpected favorites was WN 03, the deep dark black cherry shade. Sneaked it on IG Story yesterday cos I fell in love with how dramatic but flattering it was.

Here is a quick run-through of their shades AND some footage from my first day of wearing!

My HERA Rouge Holic Collection Lip Swatches

HERA is one of the edgiest brands to come out of Seoul, and their Black Cushion is by far one of my favorite cushions for hot weather or oilier skins. They've launched 34 trendy Rouge Holic lipsticks at the Takashimaya counter in Singapore, and these are divided into 2 textures; cream and matte.

Here are 10 bestsellers, lip swatched for reference. It's a pain to swatch so many lipsticks in a row but I personally love watching lip swatch vids, so maybe someone else will find some pleasure in this LOL.

Cream shades featured

277 Lala Orange - creamy tangerine with a slight pink undertone once swatched.
112 Killing Pink - bright doll pink with a coral hue; more wearable than I was expecting.
247 Stunning Coral - stunning is right; this is more of a coral with MLBB beige/neutral tones thrown in. Extremely flattering.
297 Flame - gorgeous bright orange; total love.
327 Tempting Cherry - lovely wearable rich raspberry shade right between pink and red.

MAC Blue Nectar Lipstick Swatches

Nothing as gorgeous as shiny, brand new tubes of lipstick. Especially with colors like these.

MAC's Blue Nectar collection launches soon (5 Aug) in Singapore, and features lots of floral-inspired shades from orchid purple to gladiola fuchsia to hibiscus red. And these are pigmented as heck. I personally can't pull off the ultra pale pastels anymore, but if you have a taste for dramatically pale lips, these give good pay-off.

Courting Seduction and Riot House are crazy pale marshmallow shades that are so far from natural that you really don't have to think about whether they suit pale or dark skins. They "suit no one", so they could suit everybody depending on whether you have the guts for it.

Same for the ultra deep purple, Lust Extract. I would say you need to be careful about building this color up, or it can look patchy because it is so dark. But it's actually a rather nice shade, and more flattering than you might imagine.

As for all the mid-range colors, they are gorgeous.

I think Sweet Venom will give a soft candy mouth to fair girls and actually gives more of a "pastel" themed effect than the paler shades. Try it with colorful purple or green cat-eye liner and matching peachy-beige blush.

As for the corals, reds, and pinks, I can't see these going wrong on most people. Ablaze reminds me of a deeper Viva Glam Nicki I. Not as milky, but still bright, so it's probably easier to pull off without looking that neon effect. Barbeque was a shade in the Toledo collection and a gorgeous vermillion red that would look gorgeous on girls with a yellow undertone.

And those pinks, Intoxica, Breathing Fire, and Invite Intrigue? I love them. The only reason you might want to skip these would be that they are not especially rare shades and probably easy to dupe or find in many other ranges. But in terms of color, smoothness and intensity, these are fab.

I think there are a couple of shades missing in my press bag so I can't swatch the full range, but let me know what you think of these colors and which you're interested in!

MAC Retro Matte Lipstick Swatches!

MAC Retro Matte Lipstick picks: (from front) Flat Out Fabulous, Steady Going, Runway Hit, and Relentlessly Red

To see lip swatches and a full review, visit this link!

MAC Flat Out Fabulous