Japan has always been big in beauty and cosmetics, with big powerhouse makeup and skincare brands such as Shu Uemura, Shiseido, SK-II, and Majolica Majorca to name a few. These Japanese brands are globally acclaimed battling western brands such as MAC Cosmetics, Estee Lauder, Smashbox, and others. The rise of these cosmetics giants came from the rising westernization of Japan and the want of Japanese women to show their creativity and imitate the makeup seen on western media. As the images of different makeup styles, which are vastly different from the theatrical makeup seen in traditional Japanese culture, flooded the nation more and more interest in makeup was seen. Countless of makeup artists, local and international celebrities have deeply fallen in love with Japanese makeup from foundations, powders, and color makeup. So there is no surprise that Japanese girls love their lip products!
The lips are a central feature of one’s physical being. Wearing the right colored lipstick can bring a whole look together and really make someone stand out in the crowd. The benefits of wearing good lipstick go way beyond physical appearance. Wearing lipstick can shield our lips from the natural environmental factors harmful to our skin, particularly the sun, cold, and wind by shaping a defensive shield for your lips. If your lips are in a bad shape, the correct lipstick will likewise repair chapped, dry lips. It is all about picking the right lipstick.
If Kylie Jenner is crazy about matte lipsticks, the Japanese cosmetic brands have perfected the art of having a creamy moisturizing glossy lipstick that brightens up the face. Before Chanel had their Rouge Cocos, Shiseido already got there first!
Reviews on Japanese Lipstick Brands: A Lipstick Guide
Shiseido Maquillage’s Dramatic Melting Rouge (Price: 3,000 yen)
The Dramatic Melting Rouge is a moisturizing lipstick that has a glossy finish. If you would want to have healthy glossy lips, then this lipstick is perfect for you. This lip franchise of Maquillage is amazing and highly recommended by makeup aficionados. The Dramatic Melting Rouge does not only come with a fancy name, it also comes in an intricate gold packaging that will definitely catch your eye! This item is imbued with oil that secures the moisture of the lips to care for dry lips and it colors your lips with excellent shade, gloss, and brightness. Additionally, there is no need for you to use a lip conditioner or lip primer with this lipstick. It easily glides on your lips like butter. It is moisturizing like a lip balm without compromising the pigmentation of the lipstick. Talk about a lipstick, a lip balm, and a lip gloss all packed in one product. What a bargain!
Shu Uemura’s Rouge Unlimited (Price: 2,500 yen)
The Shu Uemura Rouge Unlimited lipstick line comes in different shades. It even comes in a variety of coral shades perfect to wear during March for the spring season. This lipstick has a unique sheer finish that offers a little shimmer making a pearl like illusion on your lips. This lipstick lasts around 4-5 hours without needing to retouch or reapply. The Rouge Unlimited lipstick just like the Shiseido Maquillage Dramatic Melting Rouge also moisturizes the lips. Thus, this lipstick is perfect for dry chapped lips.
Japonesque Pro Performance Lipstick (Price: 2,000 yen)
The Japonesque brand started in the beauty industry with makeup brushes and tools loved by professional makeup artists. Now, the brand also has lipsticks available in the market. The Japonesque Pro Performance Lipstick is a long wearing lipstick which conveys extreme lip pigmentation, integrating a lightweight, hydrating formulation with rich, intense pigmentation. Pro Performance Lipstick is soaked with color which dresses the lips with bold trendy colors.
Shiseido Perfect Rouge Lipstick (Price: 2,000 yen)
The Shiseido Perfect Rouge lipstick comes in sleek black packaging that looks luxurious but versatile at the same time. You will not have a problem applying this lipstick as with its streak free application, it will surely glide easily on your lips even without lip balm or lip conditioner. Although highly pigmented, it is lightweight and very moisturizing. It will keep your lips well hydrated for hours. No need to worry about chapped lips when you have this lipstick on!
Kanebo Sensai Colours Lipstick (Price: 3,500 yen)
This lipstick franchise is impressive! It gives long-wearing color and at the same time, it is dewy and never dry or flaky. It is very consistent with the color even after hours of wearing it. It still looks like it has been freshly applied even after hours from first application. The hues are dynamic yet regular, there is nothing fake or glaring about the colors. In spite of the fact that the cost is steep with the top of the line brands like Chanel and Guerlain, the Kanebo Sensai Colours lipstick is at par or maybe even better!
Lipstick Tutorial: Tips for the Japanese Lips
A lipstick can help make your smile brighter if you are wearing the right lipstick. Those with cooler hints, for example, blues or purples, help decrease any yellow tint of the teeth. So if you are suffering from yellow teeth discoloration from all the coffee and teas then it is time for your to invest in plum and blue-based lipsticks! MAC Cosmetics’ Heroine is perfect for Japanese women who would like to decrease any yellow tint of the tint since the shade also goes perfectly well with the fair Asian skin.
On the other hand, in the event that your eyes are your best element and you truly need them to emerge, you can opt for a nude lipstick and smoky eyes if you want your eyes to emerge as the focal point of your face. On the off chance that they are not your best element and you require something to make them pop, lipstick can actually help you manipulate concentration. You can wear bold dark lips if you want to take away the attention from your eyes. You can never go wrong with a bold red lip!
Still confused on which lipstick to get? One of the best places to get lipsticks is in MAC Cosmetics. MAC Cosmetics is known to have a wide range of lipstick collection with over 200 shades and 7 textures. MAC Cosmetics will surely cater to all types of Japanese women from subtle colors for everyday wear to loud unique colors perfect for the fashionistas of Shibuya! Check out below some MAC lipstick shades that are perfect for Japanese women!
MAC Ruby Woo
You can never go wrong with this timeless red lipstick from MAC. One of MAC’s best selling lipsticks for years since it launched, this orange-based red lipstick is perfect for all types of skin tone. Whether you are fair or tanned, you’ve got to own a Ruby Woo! The fair porcelain skin typical of Japanese women paired with the bright red color of the Ruby Woo gives the user a stunning pair of lips that are sure to demand the attention of the whole room.
MAC Velvet Teddy
Do you want that perfect nude lip? Then you’ve got to get your hands on MAC’s Velvet Teddy. It is a mid-tone beige that goes well with the Asian skin. It will not look to washed up or too pale. This is perfect for the everyday makeup kit of a Japanese office worker. The Velvet Teddy gives a nice toned down color to the lips that does not attract too much attention but is still beautiful and elegant enough when noticed.
MAC All Fired Up
MAC’s All Fired Up will give you that perfect hot pink lip! This lipstick will surely brighten up your smile. This is the perfect pink lipstick for the summer. Perfect for the young and young at heart Japanese women, the All Fired Up lipstick gives the lips the right amount of pop it needs to stand out.
MAC Instigator
If you want to go on the dark side, MAC Instigator is the lipstick for you! MAC Instigator is a deep plum shade with a retro matte finish. It is the most matte you can go for a lipstick! If you want to go gothic this Halloween season, MAC’s Instigator lipstick will complete your goth look! You can also get away with this deep shade of plum lipstick and just an eyeliner on for an easy to do impactful makeup look.
MAC See Sheer
The MAC See Sheer lipstick is the lipstick to go to if you want to have the soft lustre finish for your lips. This lipstick is a color packed lipstick with a soft and gentle finish for a dainty everyday makeup look.
Japanese Lipstick Case: A Must Have!
A lipstick is definitely a girl’s go to makeup. A girl can survive with just a lipstick. A lipstick can change a woman’s look or even express how they are feeling that day. Therefore, lipsticks are really important to women especially to the Japanese women, who often take their outward appearance very seriously. Japanese women carry their lipstick like no other. If other people put their lipstick in their makeup pouch or just put it in straight into their bags, in Japan, lipsticks have their own case and typically these cases come with a mirror. Another major selling point to the female Japanese market are the cute and attractive designs. These lipstick cases will protect your lipstick and avoid it from being opened accidentally. No more mess in your bag and unwanted bacteria for your lipsticks!
Keep Your Lipstick in Place with a Japanese Lipstick Sealer
As mentioned previously, the Japanese love creamy, shiny, and glossy lips! But any lipstick lover knows that lipsticks with glossy, satin, creamy, sheen, and lustre finishes are not smudge proof and as long wearing as matte lipsticks, not to mention lip glosses. Japanese women love their lip gloss! Lip glosses can be really messy and will leave lipstick residues literally everywhere if you are not careful. Thank heavens to our Japanese beauty gods for creating lipstick sealer! A wonderful and super practical innovation that will make sure that any of your lipsticks will be transfer proof all throughout the day. Sealers are utilized for keeping lipsticks intact averting normal issues like staining and melting. Some lipstick transfer is unavoidable yet with a lipstick sealer, it will guarantee that your lipstick holds up and stays put longer than it regularly would. Sealers regularly come in fluid lip gloss type formula but there are other brands that offer lipstick sealers in different forms such as sprays and roll-ons.
Undoubtedly, the favorite is Kose Lip Gel. This gel type product is packaged in a tube just like any other lip gloss or lip balm but the Kose Lip Gel is not your ordinary lip gloss as it magically secures your lipstick and makes sure it stay glossy the whole day! No need to worry about leaving lipstick marks on your coffee cups. The Kose Lip Gel can be easily removed with any makeup remover and it can go with any lipstick color without altering the hues. This awesome product retails for 2,500 yen. The Kose Lip Gel little bit pricey but definitely worth it!
This product will not only save you time but will also save you a lot of product from countless of retouching. Plus, this lipstick sealer will make sure that your lipstick will be intact every February no matter how many people you kiss during love month.
If you will be in Japan soon, all of these products are stocked in Matsumoto Kiyoshi, Tokyu Hands, and Loft all year round. These shops can be found in different parts of Japan but if you want to visit all stores in one visit, then go to Shibuya Station in Tokyo! It is the perfect spot and you will surely find all of these stores there. Shibuya is also home to many fashionable youths and young at hearts and you may definitely see these products in action. Happy lip shopping!