#toolsofthetrade

Being in the beauty industry for almost 10 years made me aware on which tools are best to use professionally to make one's life as a makeup artist easier. For years, I have been using none other than the Shu Uemura eye lash curler and wouldn't try anything else. But then I was told that Shiseido had a good lash curler so I tried that one too. So I left my Shu Uemura curler at home for my personal use and started using Shiseido for work.

But out of no where, I discovered Koji's Curving Eyelash Curler that makes life even easier than Shiseido!

Koji Curvning Eyelash Curler, HK$135 (PhP 776.00)

During my 2007 course in Hong Kong, my teacher uses this eyelash curler and swears by it. Of course, being so biased with Shu Uemura, I refused to switch because I was already so used to it.

If you are a makeup addict like me, or doing makeup professionally, then you are probably using Shu Uemura and is already familiar with how it works and what effect it gives your/your client's lashes. So allow me to compare Shiseido and Koji.


I got this from Sasa Cosmetics in Hong Kong. Actually, I had my sister buy it for me. If you wanna buy one for yourself after this review, Sasa is everywhere in Hong Kong so don't panic. It's HK$135 so it's roughly PhP 776.00. Not bad for a good lash curler.



When my sister bought this for me, Koji had a freebie! You must be wondering why such a big packaging for an eyelash curler but you'll see later.


So this is the freebie. It's a mascara guard/guide that you put the curved part on top of your lashes so you can brush up against it and coat your lashes without any mascara product go to your lids. And you can position this on on your bottom lashes as well so you can put mascara without the mess.


On the other side of the box is the curler case. It's made from sturdy plastic that houses the lash curler perfectly. Fits in like a glove!


You can see the name of the curler embossed on the plastic container too. I love it because it prevents your lash curler from moving about in your kit therefore it doesn't get squished or will it get misaligned.


Here are my top lash curlers of choice side by side: Shu and Shiseido have the same size but Shiseido's is more curved into a graceful "C", while Shiseido's is more on the crescent shape and so is Koji's.


Here is the side view of the curlers. You can see the classic Shu Uemura curler shape that fits most eye shapes perfectly. While it is said that Shiseido and Koji's modern design is catered to Asians with shorter lashes and wider width of the eyes.


The Koji curler is almost flat when looking at it from the side.


Although almost looks the same, if you look closely, Shiseido's curler leans more forwards than that of Koji. Koji "stands" almost straight so you don't have to angle the curler to curl your lashes.


Rubber wise, they are made with the same material more or less. But Koji's is thicker. Actually, Shu Uemura and Shiseido share the same rubber as with all universal curlers and Koji's is wider and thicker.


For my Shu curler, I actually have replaced it several times already with Fanny Serrano's eyelash curler rubber. It also fits the Shiseido curler.

Inside the packaging, it includes 2 extra rubbers for the Koji curler. So don't misplace it!


This Koji eyelash curler is curved when you look at it in front. Sort of like a frown. Most lash curlers form an almost straight line when you look at it from the front. Which is not typical in lash curlers.


This design definitely curls the lashes easier because you don't have to angle the curler to make all the lashes fit. It's easier to move slowly from lash roots up to the tips to curl a natural looking C-shape rather than the L-kind.


Since my lashes are very short at the inner most part of my eye, I don't know if it didn't get curled because it's short or because the lash curler didn't catch it.


From the side, you can see how prettily it's curved upward looking very natural. Really opens up the eyes too because the middle part of the eye is really curled up.


With the Shiseido lash curler, you will have to angle the curler to get the all the hairs in.


More lashes are curled up than Koji. Yes, it's a little bit trickier to control because of the angle of the curler but the semi-crescent shape head of the curler makes curling look more natural.


In conclusion, I love this eyelash curler. It takes a while to get used to but it really creates the most natural looking curl. I can't choose between the 3 brands but this definitely made it to my list!


HERE ARE MY THOUGHTS: