For Holiday, Suqqu again released two limited edition quads in coffrets, the details of which you can find on Rouge Deluxe. As I dislike Suqqu skincare, find their mascaras either mediocre or curl-wilting, am happy with my 70p plastic apple mirror, and share Haru's thoughts on the polysatin bag, I jumped at the chance to try just the quad, thanks to a makeup fairy :D You can find also find swatches of both Suqqu quads on Swatcharama!: EX-18 Aoboshi and EX-19 Touryokuzora.
Suqqu EX-10 Touryokuzora (冬緑空, wintergreen sky) sits in another limited edition compact -- like those from this Autumn and Spring there's a 'hidden' iridescence which becomes visible at certain angles, though, as this holiday collection is inspired by starry night skies, the iridescence flashes across a generous sprinkling of embedded blue glitter:
![Suqqu EX-10 Touryokuzora quad case]()
Included applicators are as usual -- the two excellent squirrel-hair brushes and wide'n'narrow spongetips, and pans are the standard size, and depot as usual, so let's go straight on to the shades.
![Suqqu EX-19 Touryokuzora Christmas Set B quad]()
![Suqqu EX-19 Touryokuzora Christmas Set B quad]()
![Suqqu EX-19 Touryokuzora Christmas Set B quad closeup]()
Clockwise from bottom left:
1. matte white primer/base shade -- sheer, evens out skintone/texture, improves adherence and wear of other shades
2. pigmented, warm copper-peach shimmer, very smooth and buttery
3. pigmented, warm bronze-taupe shimmer, again so dense and buttery as to be almost wet-feeling, slightly more satinny/less sparkly than the peach
4. very pigmented forest green satin base packed with glitter in a variety of gold tones, sizes and shapes; slightly drier in texture than the shimmers, but still richer and denser than e.g. Armani ETK Intense/ Estee Lauder Cyber / Diego Dalla Palma Smooth shadows
^This fuzzy pic is to show the tones of microshimmer in the bronzetaupe and copperpeach: both very interestingly incorporate orchid pink and lime, alongside the more expected tonal gold/bronze/copper metallics. The bronze-taupe also contains odd flecks of ruby, while the peach features a plentiful sprinkling of white glitter to add a more delicate, snow-frosted aspect.
On me, the white is...skin-tone shade :P But I left it in in hopes you can see it doing subtly perfecting things to the skin texture on my wrist, and outlined its stripe here:
Some comparisons with the shades I have with me (travelling sans Fyrinnae 40 palette this time :/), all swatches made by patting onto bare skin with a fingertip.
Suqqu EX-19 Touryokuzora forest green with Kiko Automatic Precision Eyeliner and Khol 709 Forest Green, the darkest shade from KATE Deep Trap Eyes GN-1 (dc), the complex moss cream shade from THREE 02 My Blue Heaven, and the golden-green cream from Shu Uemura x Karl Smoky Velvet palette (LE holiday 2012).
![]()
The Suqqu shade is both the darkest and the lightest, thanks to its densely packed sparkles -- in fact I don't have anything comparable in my stash in terms of effortless impact. Just as it makes the creams from THREE and Shu (which I happily wear as complex one-shade washes) look drab, it would make an Illusion D'Ombre seem like a flat, almost transparently lightweight glitter without heft. This pan is the reason I purchased this quad (remember my flailing over the tiny glitter sliver in the autumn palettes?), and I couldn't be happier with Suqqu's interpretation of the all-that's-best-of-dark-and-bright starry night sky.
![]()
Suqqu EX-19 Touryokuzora copper peach with Charlotte Tilbury Champagne Diamonds colour chameleon crayon and two discontinued Suqqu shades: the light peach from 01 Kakitsubata and the shadowing orange from 07 Komorebi.
![]()
Touryokuzora's shade is again the darkest, and also the warmest of these; closest to the Komorebi orange, it has stronger red tones tipping it into copper, and a more solid burnished patina versus a delicate sparkle. Bearing in mind that the Touryokuzora shade is the second lightest in the quad, and that the Komorebi one the second darkest darkest, and it's clear that though the two quads share a predominant colour combo of green/orange/brown, Touryokuzora's heft and sumptuousness is miles away from Komorebi's delicate watercolour play of light, rendering it an inarguably weighty wintry palette.
![]()
Suqqu EX-19 Touryokuzora's bronze taupe, with RBR Abyssinian Catbird, and another two shades from those discontinued Suqqu quads: this time the bronze shader from 01 Kakitsubata and the dark brown liner from 07 Komorebi.
![]()
![]()
Suqqu EX-10 Touryokuzora (冬緑空, wintergreen sky) sits in another limited edition compact -- like those from this Autumn and Spring there's a 'hidden' iridescence which becomes visible at certain angles, though, as this holiday collection is inspired by starry night skies, the iridescence flashes across a generous sprinkling of embedded blue glitter:
Included applicators are as usual -- the two excellent squirrel-hair brushes and wide'n'narrow spongetips, and pans are the standard size, and depot as usual, so let's go straight on to the shades.
In natural light:
With flash
Angled, full sun, close-up:
Clockwise from bottom left:
1. matte white primer/base shade -- sheer, evens out skintone/texture, improves adherence and wear of other shades
2. pigmented, warm copper-peach shimmer, very smooth and buttery
3. pigmented, warm bronze-taupe shimmer, again so dense and buttery as to be almost wet-feeling, slightly more satinny/less sparkly than the peach
4. very pigmented forest green satin base packed with glitter in a variety of gold tones, sizes and shapes; slightly drier in texture than the shimmers, but still richer and denser than e.g. Armani ETK Intense/ Estee Lauder Cyber / Diego Dalla Palma Smooth shadows
Swatches in the same order
(one swipe each with included sponge applicators, over bare skin)
 |
| natural light |
 |
| full sun |
^The full sun pic illustrates the range of sizes and shapes of glitter in the forest green shade -- larger round gold sparkles, medium flecks of celadon, teal and cool gold, and a finer dust of moss, white-gold and occasional bronze microshimmer, all sitting atop a cool greyed-green satin base. While you can see stray powdery bits on the edges of this swatch, bear in mind this is ONE SWIPE with a sponge. After three days of wearing this without a base (patted on, edges blended) I have experienced 0 fallout throughout the day -- and with my dry lids adherence is often an issue. |
 |
| flash + deliberate fuzz |
On me, the white is...skin-tone shade :P But I left it in in hopes you can see it doing subtly perfecting things to the skin texture on my wrist, and outlined its stripe here:
 |
| full sun |
Some comparisons with the shades I have with me (travelling sans Fyrinnae 40 palette this time :/), all swatches made by patting onto bare skin with a fingertip.
Suqqu EX-19 Touryokuzora forest green with Kiko Automatic Precision Eyeliner and Khol 709 Forest Green, the darkest shade from KATE Deep Trap Eyes GN-1 (dc), the complex moss cream shade from THREE 02 My Blue Heaven, and the golden-green cream from Shu Uemura x Karl Smoky Velvet palette (LE holiday 2012).
The Suqqu shade is both the darkest and the lightest, thanks to its densely packed sparkles -- in fact I don't have anything comparable in my stash in terms of effortless impact. Just as it makes the creams from THREE and Shu (which I happily wear as complex one-shade washes) look drab, it would make an Illusion D'Ombre seem like a flat, almost transparently lightweight glitter without heft. This pan is the reason I purchased this quad (remember my flailing over the tiny glitter sliver in the autumn palettes?), and I couldn't be happier with Suqqu's interpretation of the all-that's-best-of-dark-and-bright starry night sky.
Suqqu EX-19 Touryokuzora copper peach with Charlotte Tilbury Champagne Diamonds colour chameleon crayon and two discontinued Suqqu shades: the light peach from 01 Kakitsubata and the shadowing orange from 07 Komorebi.
Touryokuzora's shade is again the darkest, and also the warmest of these; closest to the Komorebi orange, it has stronger red tones tipping it into copper, and a more solid burnished patina versus a delicate sparkle. Bearing in mind that the Touryokuzora shade is the second lightest in the quad, and that the Komorebi one the second darkest darkest, and it's clear that though the two quads share a predominant colour combo of green/orange/brown, Touryokuzora's heft and sumptuousness is miles away from Komorebi's delicate watercolour play of light, rendering it an inarguably weighty wintry palette.
Suqqu EX-19 Touryokuzora's bronze taupe, with RBR Abyssinian Catbird, and another two shades from those discontinued Suqqu quads: this time the bronze shader from 01 Kakitsubata and the dark brown liner from 07 Komorebi.
These swatches are a bit biased since I'm swatching a warm taupe against absolute bronzes/browns; next to a moderately warm taupe like RBR Bohemian Waxwing (or on its own as in the swatches towards the top of this post), the Touryokuzora shade would look decidedly orangey/bronzed. In any case, I think you can still see that unlike Abyssinian Catbird's green, Kakitsubata's gold and Komorebi's yellow notes, this shade sits on a ruddier, rosier base.
Finally, a quick look, heavy on the GIANT GLITTER PAN OF MY DREAMS (patted all over lid and lower lashline with a Shu Uemura N 10 brush), with a bit of the copper-peach to shade inner socket and a little of the bronze-taupe in a half-moon shape joining the outer socket and lower lashline.
For some reason, the other two shades showed up best in my worst-lit pic:
 |
| dark, gloomy natural light |
But this one is more accurate for the tones (see the rosiness of the bronze-taupe coming through?) and the GLITTAH:
 |
| weak sun, natural light |
While artificial light really brings out the bling:
 |
| bright artificial light |
Full-face context, paired with Guerlain Rouge G Girly on lips. (Fuzzy because dim light + glitter = camera has palpitations but posting anyways because shameless it shows the green looks sparkly even in natural light!)
 |
| natural light |
Base: Shu Underbase Cream Pink, Koh Gen Do Maifanshi Moisture Foundation 001, Burberry Sheer Concealer 01 under eyes (finally they haz restocked!), RBR Sea of Tranquility highlighter. Brows: Suqqu brow powder 03. Lashes: L'Oreal Telescopic False Lash WP.
I apologise for the poor and variable light in these pics, but I wanted to post a review before/in case this set comes back in stock on selfridges.com to help those still on the fence to make up their minds.