Suqqu Bright Up Lipstick Part II

When Selfridges UK Online had their annual cosmetics sales event over the holidays, I was pleasantly surprised to find the Suqqu Bright Up Lipsticks reduced from GBP27 to GBP21, and that was with VAT. For international orders, the price excluded VAT was GBP17.46 (~$21.25 at the current rates). Whaaa?! Yes, please!

So I picked up three colors initially, 02 花紅 (Hanabeni), 03 薔薇色 (Barairo), and 07 朱杏 (Akaanzu). All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Don't you just love that fuss-free, slick packaging?

Just as I thought, these three colors differ in texture and finish with 09 薊映 (Azamibae), even among each other. Both 02 and 03 come in a creamy formula that's thicker than the Creamy Glows but not quite balmy either, I'd say somewhere in between. Both have semi-opaque finish and a slight milkiness that comes with this semi-opacity. Thankfully, this milkiness adapts to my lips so it's not too bad. They're pigmented, 02 more so than 03, and two swipes will give me full coverage, complete with a nice sheen.

On the other hand, I have a hard time discerning 07 from the Creamy Glow Moists I own. Bright Up 07 is a much thicker formula than 02 and 03, with a translucent finish, significantly sheerer pigmentation, and leaves a glossy shine, just like the Creamy Glow Moists in the regular lineup! So no, I wouldn't say 07 feels like 09 at all, the latter with a balmier texture in a jelly formula and transparent finish. Wow. Talk about inconsistency within one line of lipstick!

- 02 花紅 (Hanabeni): semi-opaque warm rose. The most pigmented one out of the three colors and 2 layers will give me full coverage.

- 03 薔薇色 (Barairo): a brighter and slightly cooler rose. This one's also semi-opaque and is just a touch less pigmented, but again two layers will get me pretty close to full coverage.

- 07 朱杏 (Akaanzu): a thicker, glossier, and overall markedly different formula than the above two. The color is translucent and shimmer free. It goes on a peachy pink but sets to the namesake apricot with coral undertone.

From left to right: 02 花紅 (Hanabeni), 03 薔薇色 (Barairo), and 07 朱杏 (Akaanzu).

After purchasing the above three colors, I thought about these lippies getting discontinued. This means if I'm ever curious about another color, I'd have to pay some seriously nasty marked up price for the rarity. Urgh. No. So I went back for another three colors, 04 桜桃色 (Outouiro), 06 夕映 (Yuubae), and a backup of 09 薊映 (Azamibae) since I really like the color. And then of course I wanted 08 澄橙 (Sumidaidai) pretty badly. I'd swatched this color in person before and would love me some shimmer-free and transparent orange-red in a jelly formula, just like its 09 sister. So I went back yet a third time, this time making a phone purchase directly with Suqqu UK. Sure enough, a couple of weeks later and the Bright Up Lipsticks vanished for good from the Selfridges UK website, so I'm really glad I made the purchases I did. Will review these three colors later.

I'd mentioned this before, but the Suqqu UK counter at Selfridges is an entirely separate operation than Selfridges UK Online. This means your Selfridges+ Global Delivery subscription does not apply and they will charge the GBP30 international delivery fee. Painful, yes, but I had a running wish-list for several other Suqqu items that the online store just never seems to stock (still doesn't!), like the Blend Color Eyeshadow 15 蜜茶 (Mitsucha) for example. Making this bulk-ish purchase was worth the hefty delivery fee for me, though I probably won't be doing that again anytime soon.

See my previous Suqqu Bright Up Lipstick post.