Inspired By... Keira Knightley for Harper's Bazaar (Attempting Gothic with Suqqu Ichijiku)

Ever since I came across this image of Keira Knightley in the Harper's Bazaar UK September issue, I have been somewhat obsessed with finding my perfect autumnal lip colour and recreating the neo-gothic look [don't worry, I won't be imitating the pose or using floral props].

Source

According the Harper's Bazaar credit, the lipstick used on Keira was Chanel Rouge Allure in Déterminée. I'm never convinced by the product listings in magazines as I'm sure the make-up artist has often mixed colours and the picture heavily edited post-production, etc. [the swatches of Déterminée that I've seen look nothing like any of the colours on Keira's lips in the Harper's Bazaar pics] so I looked elsewhere to find my perfect shade. Plus I don't tend to suit lipsticks with strong purple tones so I wanted a warmer red. As I've mentioned before, I have been lusting after Suqqu Creamy Glow Lipstick in 17 Ichijiku for some time now. I eventually settled upon this as my seasonal shade and finally pulled the trigger.

As you can see from the photos, this didn't really work out as a gothic-inspired look as the lip colour isn't quite dark or vampy enough on me (and I'm missing Keira's rose and foreboding surroundings -- pictures from my bedroom just don't create the same atmosphere, who'da thunk it?). Having said this, Ichijiku does read as a slightly rusty blood red on me -- which I suppose is quite gothic/vampiric in its own way.

In any case, I don't really care that this particular experiment wasn't a great success because wowee I *love* this lipstick. I don't often feel comfortable wearing bold lip colours because they tend to highlight areas of redness, but I find this a flattering shade which doesn't cause the rest of my face to suddenly appear traffic-stoppingly crimson. It also goes some way to satisfying my current it's November I want to curl up by the fire /  eat rich stodgy food / celebrate Bonfire Night mood. It's just the perfect autumn leaves colour (I should probably say koyo given my current location).

     

For this poor impression of Keira Knightley look, I started with RBR Metamorphoses Mattifying Primer and Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in 52 Vanille. I concealed redness and blemishes with a combination of Jemma Kidd Ultimate Colour Corrector in 01 Citrus, MAC Select Moisturecover in NC20 and Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage in SC-3. Under my eyes I used Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in 2 and ByTerry Touch Expert Advanced in No.4 Creamy Beige and set this with Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder. I also used a small amount of Laura Mercier Translucent Setting Powder through my t-zone and contoured my cheekbones and forehead very incompetently using Burberry Light Glow in Earthy Blush No.7. I then filled in my brows with Suqqu Eyebrow Liquid Pen in 02 Brown. Finally, for my eyes I started with Urban Decay Primer Potion and whacked some Burberry Earthy all over the lid. To shade the crease I used Bobbi Brown Eyeshadow in Taupe, bringing this up higher than I usually would and also blending it out from the inner corner towards my nose. I finished with a couple of coats of Lancome Hypnose Star Mascara -- a magazine freebie which is on its very last doddering legs.

Onto Ichijiku itself... I harped on about the colour above so now briefly to formula. Suqqu Creamy Glow Lipsticks are hands down the best lip products I've ever tried. They are incredibly moisturising and comfortable to wear, whilst lasting a surprisingly long time (i.e. should survive a cup of tea and a snack mostly intact but will be pretty faded after a full meal). My bottom lip is a cracked dry mess at the moment and Ichijiku concealed this beautifully. They feel extremely comfortable on -- in fact it feels like you have nothing on your lips at all, which is unexpected for such a pigmented formula. This is the sort of lipstick that on first application makes you want to run out and immediately buy every single available shade. I'm besotted.

Just a little tribute to my latest love...

In other Suqqu lip product news, on 7 December two new limited edition Lip Colour Pencils will be released in Japan -- EX-06 Koharubi (小春日) and EX-07 Fuyutsubaki (冬椿). From the promo images these appear to be respectively a medium pink and a deeper pink. The Lip Colour Pencils will retail for  ¥3,360. 

Also soon to be released from Suqqu is part two of its Christmas collection, the Christmas 2012 Special Kit. This is due to be released in Japan on 23 November and will retail for ¥10,500-12,600 (depending on product selection). The set will include: 

• Choice of Frame Fix Foundation (Cream, Liquid, Lasting Pact or Moist Pact) or Dual Effect Powder Foundation
• Musculate Massage and Mask Cream (48g)
• Repair Essence (15ml)
• Moist Flow Lotion (30ml)
• Dual Eye Balm A (1.5g)
• Dual Eye Balm B (3g)

As always, I love to read your comments so please do let me know if you have any questions or requests.