Stepping away from the dark-side for a wee while, Illamasqua have brought their own version of Spring/Summer to the table. And as you might imagine, all is not quite as it seems…
The 17-piece collection comprises of pastels, neutrals and vivid neons… but with a few curveballs thrown in for good measure! Let’s have some piccies…
The campaign imagery depicts a surreal, unpredictable world inspired by a natural world that is retaliating against the mankind that has distorted it. Those feelings are demonstrated by shades that conflict, revel in their hybrid nature and tease with now-you-see-me, now-you-don’t pearl and glister.
6 New Cream Pigments (£17.00) that promise to be more crease-resistant than Illamasqua’s current cream eyeshadows and suitable for use all over the body.
Mould (Grape) / Hollow (Toffee) / Delirium – EU Only (Rose Taupe) / Bedaub (Mint) / Emerge – EU Only (Peach) / Dab (Lilac)
Thanks for lending me your swatching arm Rowena!
Did you spot those lip colours in the top row of the last picture?
Not ashamed to admit they might be my favourite thing about this collection. Well, one of my favourite things… here’s my personal picks from the Illamasqua Toxic Nature Collection:
Torture and Divine are the new Illamasqua Sheer Lipglosses (£13.00) for this collection. Just beautiful for Summer.
Dab and Delirium are my picks from the new Cream Pigment range… lovely, wearable shades.
Atomic is a hot non-hooker pink lipstick (£15.50) that I was excited to receive in my event bag… I’ll bring you a proper lip swatch v. soon. The other lipstick, Flare is a vivid matte orange, canyousayontrend?
and for the nail polishes… Bacterium was going down a storm with nearly everyone. The metallic putty shade flashes with pearlescent blue to give it an edge and Radium is just retina-searingly awesome!
Swatches of my picks of the collection…
Now, one thing that WOULD have also made my pick were it not for the fact that I DIDN’T NOTICE IT in it’s unassuming black housing is this little marvel…
Illamasqua’s NEW Precision Ink (£17.00) in Glister is a skin-toned (obv depending on whose skin!) liner packed full of purple/pink glitter pigment (v. finely milled) that’s bears more than a passing resemblance to their Static Pure Pigment that was such a hit in 2009.
The thing about this liner is that unlike most… to my eye, it gets better with age! The more rubbed-down and worn it becomes, the more that beautiful pigment shows through… glistening… just like its namesake!
Let’s finish off with some nails…
Here’s The Claw (£35.00). The Toxic Claw!
Terrible camera angle there which I appreciate means you can’t see the tips! The Toxic Claw is a play on the original nail quill by Mike Pocock that involves making it look more animalistic and… well… claw-like!
And the nail polishes (£13.50)…
Big thanks to Janaka for being such an excellent hand model!
5 new polishes, 5 fingers! Woot to Helen too for lending her fingers in the name of beauty!
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Illamasqua Toxic Nature will be launching online from the 10th March and instore from the 17th March.
For the chance to win your favourites from the range, register at Illamasqua.com and join the waiting list for your desired Toxic Nature shades. 3 winners will be sent all of the items from this wishlist!
Is there anything there that tempts you?
I want Purity and Gamma!
Cripes!!! The first couple of images remind me of a Ganguro Girl! 😀 I thought I wouldn’t like this collection but I’m liking the look of the cream pigments!
x
I am drooling all over!
Wow! Lots of very interesting products in this collection! And I really like the theme, too!
Surprisingly, nothing in this collection grabs my attention. They’re all quite boring shades and nothing new for Spring. Those nail quills look foul, too! Like armadillos mixed with old men’s finger nails :S
The liner is tempting as that is probably a very near match of my own lid colour.
I quite like the pale green pigment and that gamma polish has my name written all over it!
With this, and the upcoming Quite Cute collection from Mac, there are too many amazing pastels for me to bear!!!
Just a little tip, when swatching nail polishes on your arm it’s easier to do over translucent sticky tape 🙂
Dab is so lovely…
Glister looks amazing. This looks to be a very promising collection. I love the names like Bacterium and Radium (kind of science-y) and embracing the toxic theme but still looking rather wearable. Also it was nice meeting everyone yesterday and chatting about products with people who are just as crazy about beauty.
I like the look of the Precison Ink! I’d be really keen to see the matte orange as well, though god knows I don’t need another orange lipstick. I also liek Torture and Purity.The quills are a bit minging though. I’ll be polite and say they look like pinecones 😛
What a gorgeous collection! I love the lip colors and the green polish. 🙂
Bacterium looks like such an interesting color!
The promo picture is really creepy! Yikes! :S The only thing I like is that liquid liner. I’ve yet to try Illamasqua actually, it hasn’t appealed to me enough to bother yet.
I’m interested in quite a few things from this collection. Esp that amazing liner. I’m really hoping that Sephora will get this stuff in.
Precision Ink, the new “It” product of the season? People (not you, I mean other people lol) are already hailing it as the cure to hunger/poverty etc. as well as the ultimate saviour of the universe. I think it might get big. Not Naked palette big, but still damn popular…
Oooo! I really love Bacterium- but OUCH! 13.50? A bit too expensive for me…
But those nails are a bit odd- they look lice woodlice! xxx
My gosh – I love the first photo with the painted lashes! It’s photos like this which inspire an even greater love for makeup in me – who would have thought that a collection of rather tame colours, when applied in such a creative way, can give rise to something so dramatic yet cute?
Illamasqua has long overtaken Mac in terms of the attention grabbing press release photos!
http://shimmerdreamz.blogspot.com/2011/03/ootd-casual-smart.html
i really wanna see atomic on your lips!!!
WOW!!! It it make up for your alter ego.
I have quite a long list of things I would like from this collection, which I think is saying something considering I’ve seen it in person. Bacterium and Glister are really the standouts for me but I think Hollow, Mould and Atomic are pretty stunning too.
Your pictures are simply amazing Charlotte!
Jane x
I LOVE the fact that Illamasqua is always very daring with its promo and collections in general. It’s usually quite different from what you’d expect that has a great storyline to go with it. I feel that they really put a lot of thought into their collections.
Plus – MAC are doing far, far too many collections. I feel like there’s one coming out every month at least. it’s too much for people to really keep track of things and it gets repetitive quite easily. I prefer a spring-summer collection and an autumn-winter collection with the odd special one thrown in.
Really intrigued by the cream pigments because they’re matt. I’m sick of shimmer right now. And as usual I love the nail polishes. I have a fair few of theirs already and the 13,50 are absolutely worth it. Best polishes I ever tried – hands down. Great to work with, great staying power and unusual shades and not too much shimmer. I prefer a simple glossy finish to all that glitter you get with other brands.
Oh my goodness, alllllll of it!!
I went to the preview bloggers event in Sydney. I received the cream pigment in delerium and the gloss in torture. I’m in love!
Gosh, all of these do swatch beautifully, don’t they???
I was already eyeing a few products from the promo images, but the swatches look a million times better!!!
I’m already thinking a couple of cream pigments, as well as Bacterium (what a unique nail polish shade) and Glister liner (would be a nice change from the standard blacks and much more easy to wear come summer)!!!
Illamasqua surely did a great job this time around by taking a fresh and modern approach to the usual (and often boring) spring pastel theme! I think there’s sth for everyone here!