flarosso: Astalift’s New Makeup Line
Our First Impressions?
What an interesting mix of product lines FUJIFILM has concocted with their expertise in colour technologies of photo processing. Besides their primary aim of improving film quality (and hence, beautiful pictures), 80 years of research and development led to a new objective of making “beautiful skin”, leading to the birth of Astalift. Not stopping at just innovative skincare, FUJIFILM is looking at the cosmetics as a whole category, and that means venturing into makeup as well.
We can’t deny that we are impressed by how they have connected the dots using their own technology for skincare (nano, collagen, anti-oxidation, optical analysis and control) and makeup (overlay effect and edge effect technology). flarosso, co-developed with an Italian makeup team (so yes, the products are made in Italy), uses Astalift’s star antioxidant – Astaxanthin – as its key ingredient. No prizes for guessing that Astaxanthin is found in the diet of flamingoes, and responsible for giving them that rich blush shade.
So, can you really flaunt it like a flamingo, wearing flarosso?
As a new makeup line and its only their maiden launch, they have pulled it off with their range of eyeshadows, lipsticks, brushes, blushes and a highlighter. The Astalift flarosso Luci Highlighter is the star product (SOLD OUT in Japan!) and we can see why. The instant magic-in-a-compact brightens skin by controlling light reflection, while adding luster and radiance to the face. Indeed making you a photogenic beauty - glow like a spotlight is shining on you...regardless of the ambient lighting!
The Luci Blush is another of our favourite. We love that it’s pigmented but with a soft and airy finish. What’s unique about it is its translucence, which makes application buildable – especially since it’s blusher and you really want to avoid overdone-ness. We have given it a swatch but not yet on the face (it supposedly smoothens the skin surface for a refined and silky finish without appearing powdery).
Will this work for you?
We probably wouldn’t pay $65 for the Intenso Eyeshadow palette though the shades are pretty and very versatile for day and night looks. While fans of bling might cave in to the gorgeous pearly sheen, their pigment is quite mild, so don’t expect them to give you full color payoff or mirror-like shimmer in one swipe. Our swatches took several swipes to materialize and even then, two of the eyeshadow shades didn’t quite come through on camera.
The Tirabaci Lipsticks are decent at $46 a pop, but definitely on the high side. They tick the boxes for being creamy and moisturizing, but shades are limited (only 4) and there really are more options out there in the market at this price point.
Overall we say “Well done, flarosso!” No clear misses but hits like the Luci Highlighter and Blush will still tempt beauty fanatics. The cute flamingo-focused designs on the packaging tug at our heartstrings, but may we suggest some variations on the lids? Right now, we can’t tell apart our blushes from the highlighter or eyeshadow quads other than the slight size differences.
Price points are a little high for this first collection, but that’s completely expected as Astalift has always been positioned for the premium mass market. We celebrate that with this existing range, you can already create full makeup looks, from the daily “Workaholic” to a “Social Butterfly” to the “Glam Party Queen” (simply with a swap of eyeshadows and lipsticks). Stay tuned to more products to be revealed in the coming months!
Astalift flarosso is available in all Astalift retail stores from 17 May 2018.
- NEX, 23 Serangoon Central, #01-70, Singapore 556083
- Wisma Atria, 435 Orchard Road, #03-30, Singapore 238877
- JEM, 50 Jurong Gateway Road, #01-20, Singapore 608549
