Xmas 2008: Shu Uemura Midnight Winter Sakura eyeshadow palette

I was very thrilled to see that Shu Uemura was coming out with 3 new eyeshadow palettes for Xmas 2008. The last 3 palettes they released for the Boutique Birthday (I reviewed Fleur de Source and Fleur de Rose) were really gorgeous and super pigmented/blendable so I indulged in 2 of them. Now surely I was very curious which color combinations they might have come up with for the holidays.


There are 3 palettes, each contains 7 powder shades and a cream liner. The new palettes have the most beautiful flower photos taken by Japanese photographer Mika Ninagawa printed on.


I debated much with myself if I should order Secret Luscious Rose or Midnight Winter Sakura but finally settled on Midnight Winter Sakura as it contains gorgeous muted jewel shades and comes with a dark cream liner. Secret Luscious Rose is probably more safe and easier to wear for work as it contains the most muted/natural colors but I thought it looked similar to the Fleur de Rose palette from Summer and I just liked the colors in Midnight Winter Sakura better.


The case of the Midnight Winter Sakura palette is too pretty to describe. It shows pale pink Sakura blossoms on a black background.
The case is made of a heavy and sturdy metal and comes with a mirror and a dual-sided applicator (which is surprisingly bad for Shu Uemura in my opinion).
The eyeshadows however are so beautiful! I love how the guys at Shu are giving me 7 powder shades and a very usable cream liner so I can come up with endless color variations. I really love their new palettes compared to the older quads and trios they used to release.

Pic taken with flash:


The shadows pack A LOT of intense metallic pigment. Honestly these shadows are some of the best pigmented and most vibrant shades I have come across recently. The color you see in the pan is the color you'll see on your eyes. Each color has a certain glow to it that I just find makes them stand out from other shadows.
The staying power is good, however the shadows creased slightly on me after some hours. not a big problem though and it might be the shadow base I used yesterday.
You can see an EOTD pic in my MUA profile (used the teal, fig and cream liner.)

Pic taken without flash in bright sunlight:


What I prefer about the Sakura palette compared to the summer palettes is that each shadow has its own pan (half the size of regular Shu shadows of course), no split pans. And of course the print on the case is prettier =)

The cream shadow/liner is also great, it's pigmented and glides on smoothly. Please note this is a cream liner, not a gel liner, so it will not dry down. However it stayed on my eyes all day long and didn't smudge (I am very disciplined with not rubbing/touching my eyes though)

The colors are:


Yellow, neutral bronze brown, muted orange, olive, teal (one of the most gorgeous teals I own...I love this color!), royal blue, a pinkish fig color and a very deep purple cream liner (looks black in the pan but applies a deep shimmery plum on me).

The Adorned Marguerite palette has the cutest case in my opinion but the colors are too bright and candy-colored for my taste. Also the cream liner is white or clear which doesn't seem to be of use for me.


The Secret Luscious Rose palette contains browns, wines, blue, purple, green and a deep brown liner.


I paid US$63 for my palette & shipping from Taiwan (it came within 5 days after placing my order, that's what I call fast. Seller was randmideas on eBay).

The palette says it was designed in Japan but made in Korea =)