Review – Kate Cosmetics 2012 Spring Summer Collection


Sponsored Review

How many of you have heard of or are users of Kate Cosmetics? I’ve come across their product displays while browsing at Watsons, Guardian and Sasa, but the only Kate product i’ve tried previously is their Quick Eyeliner in Brown which i didn’t really enjoy using (Read the review here). To be honest, i haven’t paid much attention to the brand since then.

I don’t really know much about the brand, or the story behind it. All i know is that they are one of the brands under the Kanebo Cosmetics Group. So I’ve been told, Kanebo was actually established in Japan as a textile company, and only in 1937 did they diversify into the cosmetics business. They offer a wide variety of beauty brands which target different audiences, some of which you may be familiar with. They include Impress, Kate, Lunasol, Freshel and others. And since Jan 2006, Kanebo Cosmetics has been a member of the Kao Group. So the brand does have a rather rich history behind it. On a separate note, I’ve heard several rave reviews about Lunasol’s products, and they are definitely quite high on my list of cosmetic brands to try!!

Anyway, Kate Cosmetics latest Spring Summer Collection has just launched this month (May 2012), and is already available in stores as you read this post. The soft lustrous colors you see throughout their collection is definitely reminiscent of the current season, where they focus largely on creating softly shaded, lightly textured and contoured eyes.

3 of their new, highly anticipated eye products from the Spring Summer collection were sent to me for review, and they include:

  • Kate Real Create Eyes, a five-shade eye shadow palette designed specially to create large ‘real 3D’ eyes. It includes a unique glow jelly makeup base which increases the translucency and lustre of eye shadow, making them last longer.
  • Kate Super Sharp Liner, an ultra fine brush that enables the finest lines to be drawn smoothly at the edge of the eyes
  • Kate Art Dial Mascara, a revolutionary mascara which is fitted with a tilted comb applicator that lengthens, maximizes and curls lashes all at once

First, i’d like to share with you some press images and product information that were provided. Following that, i will share my thoughts on each product and you will see a few other pictures that i’ve taken myself as well. A FOTD to illustrate how i’ve used the products to put together a look will come after that.

Kate Real Create Eyes BR02

Make your eyes look naturally shimmery with the collection’s star product, Kate Real Create Eyes, a five shade eye shadow palette designed specially to create large “real 3D” eyes through a fine balance of light and dark colours. The palette consists of Clear Jelly which increases translucency and lustre, Clear Real Colour that contains light-transmitting pearl powder, and three gradation monotone colors to create deeply contoured eyes. Kate Real Create Eyes comes in five colours, pink, brown, orange, green and blue.

Retail price: S$27.00

Kate Super Sharp Liner BK-1

The Kate Super Sharp Liner comes with an ultra thin brush that enables the finest lines to be drawn smoothly. Higher fade-resistance has been achieved via a newly developed sebum-forming agent, making Kate Super Sharp Liner impervious to sweat and moisture. Increased pigments also allow for better colouration and deeper blacks. Kate Super Sharp Liner is available in three colours, jet black,natural black, and natural brown.

Retail price: S$17.00

Kate Art Dial Mascara


Messy mascara is a thing of the past! Bold and revolutionary, the Kate Art Dial Mascara is fitted with a tilted comb applicator that lengthens, maximises and curls lashes all at once. The comb allows excellent lash separation, preventing possible clumping while fully coating each strand evenly. The lashes are simultaneously lifted from the base and curled or lengthened according to preference, with the lift and curl maintained by a fast-drying adhesive fluid. The Kate Art Dial Mascara also prevents the mascara from drying up prematurely by a special twisting mechanism that dispenses fluid only when the dial-comb is turned. A great choice for lower lashes as well!

Retail price: S$27.00

Actually, there are 2 other products from the Spring Summer Collection which caught my eye. 🙂 I’ll definitely be checking these out at the stores.

Kate Eye Shadow JC – works as a gel eye makeup base, providing a shimmering pearl powder that adheres perfectly to the skin to create long-lasting transparency and shine.
Kate Mineral BB Gel Cream SPF 30 PA++ – The ultimate all-in-one solution for skin coverage. Serving as a makeup base, foundation, sunscreen and emulsion, it comes in a light gel-like texture and has moisturizing effects like a cream. It spreads smoothly without becoming sticky and maintains good skin adhesion for a long period of time. Double-effect mineral powder covers visible press while multiple moisturizing agents prevent the skin from dryness. It is available in 3 shades to suit all major Asian skin types.

You can visit their website to find out what other products are part of Kate Cosmetics Spring Summer line-up.

Here are my thoughts on each product and some real life product pictures that i’d like to share with you



My thoughts:

– This palette is housed in a lightweight plastic casing with a clear window, showcasing the different colors of the palette.
– It doesn’t feel very solid, and might very well give way to cracks if you are the type to drop your things. But having said that, it works well for those of you who tend to bring your make-up out with you most of the time. I mean solid cases are nice and feel good, but the weight of all your make-up really makes a difference and i wouldn’t want to add on to the weight of all the stuff i’m already carrying in my bag.
– Though i typically reach for my UDPP whenever i apply my make-up, i do like the idea of this jelly base that they have provided as part of the palette. It’s meant to to increase the translucency and lustre of the eye colors, but what i like about it is that it amps up the shine factor. The texture of this base is on the sticky side, but after u apply the various eye colors, it doesn’t leave a sticky feel on the lids.
– The different colors of the eyeshadow are very complementary to each other, and they are reasonably pigmented.
– They are quite smooth, easy to apply and blend. What’s great is that i didn’t experience much fall out.
– When all the colors are used together, i like that it has that gradient effect and gives my eyes more ‘depth’. I usually use only 2 colors for my eyes, so this is something new for me. And i like it so far.
– In terms of lasting power, it lasted for about 5-6 hours or so (with primer). i notice that of course, it is less shimmery as well towards the end of the day.
– If i were to choose, i would purchase the green (GN-1) palette for myself instead. The green seems to ‘pop’ more than the rest of the colors.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

My thoughts:

– The eyeliner pen is lightweight and easy to hold, making application easy and convenient.
– Use a light hand, it doesn’t take much pressure at all to line your eyes with this product. Switching from a different product with a different brush, it took me 1 or 2 tries to finally get used to drawing with this eyeliner pen.
–  The brush is soft, but firm enough to draw a solid line of intense color. There is no ‘bleeding’ like what i had experienced previously with the Quick Liner.
– In terms of lasting power, it performed pretty well and did not fade nor smudge by the end of the day (with primer).
– As for overall performance, it is quite on par with my all-time favorite Maybelline eyeliner pen that has been my best friend for 3 years now.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

My thoughts:

– The  first time i tried it, i twisted the dial one too many times cos i didn’t see anything happen. That caused too much fluid to be dispensed and it was messy. But that was my fault. Subsequently, all it took was one or two twists of the dial to dispense just the right amount of fluid.
– I have never used a product like this before, having always used the conventional mascara by dipping the wand into the tube to coat the brush with enough product before using them on my lashes.
– The concept of a mascara in an integrated dial-comb bottle is quite novel to me, and i do like that the sealed mascara bottle prevents the liquid from drying up prematurely. It’s much more sanitary as well this way, which is a bonus.
– It took me 1 – 2 applications before getting comfortable with this product and being less awkward holding this pen-like applicator.
– After the initial awkwardness, it is easy to use and there is indeed less clumping of lashes and more volume, giving me luscious lashes. Oh, and its so much easier to reach the innermost lashes with this tooth comb!
– However, due to the size of the tooth comb, it takes a longer time to finish doing your lashes. Perhaps, with time i will be able to do it faster once i am completely comfortable with the motion of using a pen-like applicator to coat my lashes.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

And finally … here’s a FOTD where i’ve used the Real Create Eyes and the Art Dial Mascara. I will feature the Super Sharp Liner in another FOTD as i thought the black liner was a bit too harsh for this look.

Kate Cosmetics products can be found at selected BHG, Guardian Pharmacy, OG, John Little, Metro, Nishino Pharmacy, Sasa Cosmetics and Watsons stores.

Thanks for reading, i hope the review was useful for you.

Disclaimer: Products featured were provided for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with or  compensated by the company.

Category : Beauty, face of the day, Makeup, Review, Sponsored review
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