A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

I don’t own anything else like this shade.  Nails Inc. Battersea Park is a true hybrid.  It’s a cross between army greens and olive, and it really does apply differently on the nails to how it looks in the bottle (I prefer it applied).

1st coat is very nearly opaque, but if you hold your hand to the light, it looks a little uneven in patches… so for me, is a firm 2-coater.  Application is smooth with no dragging at the cuticles.  I do love these slightly murky creme finishes, they don’t feel very spring-like (I’m still craving some Barielle’s for that. HURRY UP BARIELLE!) but I’m loving them nonetheless.

What are your favourite greens?  Forest? Olive? Shimmer? Pea Soup? Emerald? – Come on, spill… I need some more green in my life.

I’m SO behind with posting things from my lovely IMATS weekend, you’ve seen my NOTD with the flakie on the right, and I’ll do one soon using my blue flakie too

They’re soo pretty, and apply far more smoothly than I thought they would.  It’s not regular glitter where you’re left crying out for a top coat to even out the surface.

In other news, I attempted white nails last night a la Lady Gaga at The Brits only to come to a “WTF am I doing?” revelation halfway through.  Yeah, it was streaking badly.

Also found a NARS Purple Rain dupe in my collection, but I’m not sure if it’s still available to buy… I’ll try and find out before posting it up.

’til tomorrow x

Illamasqua have a hot new competition open… I’ll let the press release give you all the information you need to know.

Check it out:

2010’s hottest new nail colour is in your hands!

Whether it’s the standout shade of your favourite killer heels, your must-have cupcake frosting or the glow of the city skyline, Illamasqua want to hear what inspires your soul.

The UK’s hottest and most talked about make-up brand, Illamasqua is famed for its unique and daringly different collection of cult Nail Varnish colours.

And now they want YOU to get creative.

Illamasqua is asking finger fetishists the world over to submit a description of their dream nail varnish colour, for their chance to make it a reality.

Run in conjunction with luxury retailer, Selfridges, this incredible competition is giving nail varnish fans the world over the opportunity to push their imaginative boundaries further than ever before and design their very own perfect shade.

Entrants must explain in no more than 50 words what inspired their unique choice, and provide an image or photograph to illustrate their big idea.

The prize? Two winners will see their dream colour created and sold exclusively at Illamasqua.com and Selfridges in London, Manchester Trafford and Birmingham from October 2010. In addition, they’ll receive a bottle of their winning colour before anybody else!

The winning entries will be selected by a high-profile judging panel consisting of legendary make-up artist Alex Box, nail artist to the stars Sophy Robson and YouTube sensations Pixiwoo.

The rules:

In 50 words or less, submit a description of your dream colour and the thinking behind it – please include pictures to illustrate your inspiration if possible.

Entries must be submitted in one of the following three ways, no later than 14^th March 2010:

Via email: competition@illamasqua.com

Via blog post: email the link to competition@illamasqua.com

Via mail:

NAIL COMPETITION
c/o Illamasqua
6-8 Amwell St
London
EC1R 1UQ

One entry per person. Competition is open to entrants globally.

So, Diamond Cosmetics nail polishes have had rave reviews across the pond, and I thought it was high time I picked up a couple for myself!

The first one I’ve tried is Decadence.  The picture below was taken with sunlight streaming through the window, so looks a bit warmer here than real life.

A neutral toned brown shimmer that goes nicely with a cool skintone.  The shimmer is strong as you can see and I love it.  I suppose it’s more of a cool bronze than a plain ol’ brown because of the sparkles.  Note, this isn’t glitter – just shimmer.

I had no issues with application and applied 3 coats to achieve opacity (I apply fairly thin coats, so it may only take 2 coats for you).  The finish is smooth and glossy.  After 3 days (the photo was taken on the 1st full day) I have no chips, but tip wear is quite extensive on a couple of fingers.  We’re talking 2mm easy.

Still, the polishes are priced at £3 each, so I was still pleasently surprised by the quality of the formula and finish.

Have you checked out Diamond Cosmetics polishes yet?

Application was smooth enough on this 4-coater, but the formula was a little thinner than I’d have liked.  It has an almost semi-jelly finish with a undoubtedly glossy sheen.  Red Alert is an orange-based red that somehow manages to look ok on my skintone.  It reminds me of a 1950s pin-up red and I’m a definite fan of the shade.

I have an issue with longevity, suffering a chip within 24hrs of application is not a way to win me over, but strangely enough tip wear was non-existent even after a full 48hrs.  If you’re looking for a hot red with retro leanings for your tips or toes, definitely consider Red Alert by Models Own.  But maybe employ a good top coat.

Available from the Models Own website, priced at £5

Check out Nonie Creme from Butter LONDON working feverishly in preparation for Jen Kao’s show at New York Fashion Week.

Who’s Wearing What is a discontinued China Glaze shade that I picked up on eBay.  I do like my greyed out purples and this fit the bill perfectly:

It reminds me of a more muted version of OPI’s ever popular Done out in Deco.  I love my durgy colours and this one fits nicely into my ever-growing collection.

It’s a 3-coater to look it’s best and unfortunately it’s a slow-drier, definitely needing a coat of Seche Vite to finish off.  The creme finish is gorgeous, very glossy and smooth.  I’m pleased to have picked up this shade while it’s still available!

It’s stronger and less pastelly than Orly’s Bon Bon, so may suit you well if you’re darker toned too!

If you like your purples, get ready to put a padlock on your purse.

NARS Purple Rain is such a beautiful, beautiful colour.  A warm-toned purple that has that ethereal ‘lit from within’ quality with it’s blackened edges and glowing centres.  Packed full of grown up shimmer (I can see red and blue in there).  2 coats for full opacity with no formula issues at all.  I’m deducting one point for the handle.  I had to do some major q-tip clean up because I found that huge chunky square handle a nightmare to wield with any accuracy.

Longevity is great so far… 3 days with barely any tip wear and not a chip in sight.  I guess I should be going for some lighter more spring-like shades now…. too bad I still have loads of dark polishes I haven’t played with yet!

Follow Nonie Creme, co-founder of Butter LONDON as she shares her daily video diary from behind the scenes at New York Fashion Week Fall 2010.

Nonie is already setting trends for AW/10 fixing up the Vena Cava ladies with what has been described by Style.com as a “curious shade of cloudy, sparkly eggplant”.

Is it bad to be excited for Autumn when Spring is still in hiding?

So, Tsunimee and I were bitching on twitter that we didn’t really like metallic finishes to our polishes, and of course… that same day one of THE MOST BEAUTIFUL metallic nail polishes EVER showed up in my little ASOS haul.

It has that Quality Street wrapper quality doesn’t it?

Of course I had to apply it immediately…

I love it. And this photo… does not do it justice.  In real life, it looks like someone has foiled my nails with this glorious jeweled ruby red.  It’s perfect.  It looks like there are brush strokes in the image… which is hugely unfair, because I’m squinting at my fingertips now and I just can’t see any.

You pop off the clunky square ‘lid’ with a sharp tug and it reveals an altogether easier to manipulate round handle for application purposes.  Unfortunately, the brush is a STUPID thin thing, like in my Orly polishes… but other than meaning it needed about 5 strokes to cover the nail bed, it didn’t cause me any issues.

Application was *nearly* spot on.  Opaque in the first coat, I needed to go back in for a second just to tidy it up…. however, I did experience a couple of bubbles on 2 nails, which sucked especially as I know I wasn’t applying it too thickly.  Still, it’s so beautiful I don’t really care.  Plus, when the polish had dried (very quickly I might add) I could barely see these two bubbles… but I needed to mention it as bubbling isn’t something I usually experience with polishes.  Longevity is amazing for a metallic, I’m on my 3rd day (with no top coat) and it looks as good as new.

This was my first Butter London and I’m smitten.  They’re not cheap at around £10 each, but I want more…

What are your Butter London favs?

…for easy glitter nail polish removal.

No more endless wiping and scraping to get the glitter polish off your nails.  No more sighing and soaking of fingers in pure acetone till your cuticles shrivel up and you develop hang nails that reach your elbows.

At least, that’s what 2 of my lovely readers promised.  Meganne, and Lisa – to give credit where it’s due.

so it goes something like this…

1). Take your cotton wool and dampen it with nail polish remover.  I like to make it quite soggy… I don’t wanna have to be doing this more than once ‘cos I haven’t got enough remover on the pad yano?

2). Hold the soaked cotton wool to your nails and wrap a bit of foil over the top…

It’s at this point you’re wondering if you’re actually the butt of a big fat joke.

Wait 5 minutes, no less… and then remove.

I can happily report – it works! As ridiculous as you may look with your tin foil tips, it saves a hell of a lot of effort and irritation.

Try it!  If nothing else, at least the aliens won’t get to your fingers.

This is another from Mavala’s recently released Mystic Collection that I was sent last month.

Mavala Black Velvet is a dark purple-black with a very subtle shimmer which unfortunately is more apparent in the bottle than on the nail.

There is a great swatch of it over at HeijastusPinta

I’m in two minds about this collection.  So far, I like how they look individually… but now my nails are getting a bit longer, I think they’re a touch vampy for me.  If you have short, well-groomed nails, this would be a great collection for you.

I have two more to show you and I’m gonna hurry them the hell up, because Spring is nearly upon us… and if you give a fig about staying on trend, you might not want to see them ’till next Winter!

You can buy Black Velvet online at Mistrys Pharmacy – £3.95 a bottle.