You’ve read about my ADDICTION addiction. Let me talk about it some more.

ADDICTION is a makeup brand by makeup artist Ayako, who worked with François Nars. I discovered and fell in love with their products on a Japan visit, during which I brought home 3 types of products: lipsticks, eyeshadows, and cheek sticks. Unfortunately, I didn’t want to sully the products and didn’t get to buy any more items before leaving for Manila.

My friend, Den, kindly muled me some more Addiction goodies when she went on a trip to Osaka a few weeks ago. My Addiction eyeshadow stash grew dramatically, and one of the newest additions was this quad in Sugar Rusk. I was hoping to get this in a limited edition Basquiat case, like two other quads I got, but the pigmentation and colors gave me enough reason to hold on to it.

Sugar Rusk has four colors: three shimmery neutrals, and a beautiful matte. The three shimmery neutrals are a white (with a green-gold duochrome), a cool, light brown that is very sparkly, and a medium pink-brown. The matte is a warm grey with very strong purple undertones. I could be wrong, but that’s how I see ze colors.

The shadows are buttery-smooth, holy crap. They are also quite complex in terms of their “color profiles,” though it is somewhat hard to photograph.

The packaging is not unlike the packaging of individual eyeshadows. The eyeshadows are encased in a sleek black plastic case, though instead of a quietly embossed “ADDICTION” on the top cover, these quads have the name in white text.

At the bottom, you have all the data you need + other stuff you can’t read because it’s in Japanese. There are also four holes through which you can poke the pans out, if you ever want to depot them, though why would you?!

It comes with a dual-ended sponge, one with a narrower tip, like that of Guerlain’s quads. It also comes with a tiny, narrow domed brush. Here’s a standard, soft look I made using all the colors:

It’s a great neutral palette, especially for beginners (since you have little room for error) and for people who are not so adventurous with their eye makeup. It’s very office-appropriate. I know it looks pretty bland, but the complexity of both the texture and the finish really sets it apart from most neutral palettes.

I’ll try to post some of my other ADDICTION purchases soon. 🙂 I’m trying to stagger them, so this blog doesn’t turn into an Addiction love fest. I know how frustrating it can be to want something you can’t readily get.