A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

Moving on from the Eyeko pastels I was playing with earlier in the month…

The new Eyeko range features 5 new shades from sheer pink through to this rather gothic black with red glitter called Vampira.

As with all Eyeko polishes I’ve tried, the first coat applies streaky… my trick to achieving a good finish with these polishes is a thin first coat, followed by subsequent thicker coats.  Don’t worry how crap that first coat looks… just get some product onto the nails and map out the shape you want.  If you start thick then it’s gonna take longer to dry and will be more likely to drag at the cuticles when you lay down that 2nd or 3rd coat.

You can see that I got decent coverage with 2 coats following my method above.  Unfortunately I then needed to add a couple of coats of top coat to smooth out the rough, gritty surface thanks to the glitter.  This fnish might not bother everyone, but it kinda sets my teeth on edge.

Wear has been fine with no chipping (though I never seem to have a problem with chipping and I know other people do), average tip wear and when I did finally remove it (after 3 days) it didn’t give me a TOTAL nightmare considering how packed full of glitter it is.

Overall it’s not my favourite Eyeko polish I’ve tried… the black/red glitter mix is kinda chunky.  Still pretty good value for £3.50 though.

More NOTDS to come from the range soon…

When I saw the Butter London Jelly Collection on sale at ASOS, I made a dive for my handbag and had my order confirmation sat in my inbox in record time!

The trio of polishes were a Spring 2010 release.  3 shimmery sheer jelly shades that promise some layering gorgeousness.  They didn’t disappoint.

The image shows 2 coats of each applied over a black base.

Stroppy transforms into a blackened purple sparkle fest that reminds me of a vampier version of NARS Purple Rain.

Twee completely changes the hue to a slightly dusky purple with a more subtle sparkle.

Chuffed glitters all over the place… just beautful.

I can’t pick a favourite from the three, I thought I’d be able to… but they’re each quite different and totally mesmerizing in their own right.  I can’t wait to try these over other shades… they apply like a dream, dry smoothly and rapidly with a glossy finish (no top coats in the above image).

You can also wear these shades sheer if you prefer, Kelly over at Vampy Varnish has some great nail swatches to show how they look applied alone.  They’re a great option for sprucing up a tired looking manicure when you simply can’t be arsed to redo the whole lot… patch up any chips, grab one of these… 2 coats… brand new mani!

Tempted?  If so… grab ’em while they’re still a fiver each – free delivery at ASOS! *siren/temptress dance*

I’m such a dumbass, it took me ages to get the Oh Tiff reference!

Oh Tiff! is a beautiful “Tiffany Blue”… at least as close as you can get to it without infringing their colour trademark (yes, really!)

For me, it’s a 3 coater… 2 just doesn’t quite give that smooth clean finish that you need to achieve with creme polishes.  It applies well with only a touch of drag and wears even better! 3 days before I even noticed tip wear, that’s impressive.

I buy my Diamond Cosmetics polishes from Flashy Nails and they range in price from £2 to £3.50 depending on whether or not they’re in the sale.  If you’re interested in buying any shades, don’t delay too long as I heard that Jenny (the owner) may be thinking of shutting up shop soon to have her baby!

Do you like this one?

Shade 1…. catchy…

Naming them must have ran the risk of breaking the budget for this new £1 line of makeup from Superdrug

Ok, enough sarcasm…

Shade 1 is a blackened blue.  The best way to describe it is opalescent… a darker-than-navy base with royal blue glitter particles.  The glitter isn’t chunky and a top coat isn’t necessary to smooth the finish.  I had to go and stand in direct sunlight to capture the sparkles for the photo which is why you can see my conservatory roof reflected in my tips!

For a £1 polish it’s a good looking finish.  Formula isn’t the best… it dragged at the cuticles and if I look carefully there’s still a couple of streaks visible after two coats.  However, it’s not horribly gloopy or difficult to actually paint with which is an irritation I often experience with high street polishes.  Yes, I’m a nail polish snob I know (bar Asda!) *hangs head*

Ohh that’s a good comparison actually…. I’ve tried two from the MUA line so far and quality isn’t as good as the George formula.  The MUA polishes that I’ve tried have a denser, thicker formula, but they are fairly quick-drying.

Tip wear is a little worse than average, not by too much though and I haven’t experienced any chipping after 2 days, so I’m very pleased with that.

I think I’ve covered most things… for a £1, you know you’re not gonna get OPI quality… but I think this is a stonking shade and if you like your blues, definitely check it out next time you’re passing Superdrug!  Alternatively, the entire range is now available to purchase from the website.

Do you like it?

A very beautiful pale greige that I was sent a while ago by the lovely Liloo.

Shown here is 2 coats, and I think it probably needs 3… looked fine indoors but a touch patchy in direct sunlight.  Country Club Khaki is a gorgeously sophisticate creamy greige and definitely in my top 5.  If you’re into the trend, you need this polish in your life!

I find Orly’s brushes a touch on the narrow side, but the formula was completely forgiving and I didn’t have any issues to speak of.

Are you a fan of the trend? I personally love it.  There’s a great looking new Nails Inc shade aswell that I need to tell you about soon!

£6.99 from Beauty4Nails-Body.

“What a snore!” I proclaimed, looking at Illamasqua’s latest collection, Body Electrics.

It’s not that it’s a bad looking collection… it’s just… not me.

I don’t really do bronzers…. I don’t want liquid metals (regardless of how lovely they look in their pans)… I don’t go anywhere to warrant slathering myself in sparkly body oils and I’m a bit blued and purpled out in the nail polish world too.

I actually really quite like the theory behind the collection…. the dynamics of movement and light reflecting… all great stuff, but I just felt disappointed seeing the theory put into practice.

I received a parcel from Illamasqua containing a couple of pieces from the new collection and to be blunt, I was expecting to give the products a “these are nice but ultimately dull” review based on how uninspiring I’d found them thus far.

I was wrong.

Initially, when I opened the parcel… my spirits weren’t lifted when I pulled out one of the new Nail Polishes in shade Prism.

“Oh… it’s not the purple” thought I… sounding far too much like a spoilt child to admi… oh

I twirled the bottle in my hands, watching the iridescence and blue flashes catch the light…. yeah, it’s pretty… but I kept thinking about my yellow stained nails and how ugly they’d look combined with this blatantly sheer polish I was holding.

Wanna see?

Admitedly, this is 4 coats… 1 coat was as horrible as I’d envisaged.  But this is beautiful.  After a year of solid, opaque polishes to cover up stains and dodgy ridged nails… this is delicate.  It’s like a veil…. it shrouds all the imperfections, but leaves a hint of nail tip and blue irridescence that simply says…. feminine.

Not only that, but the formula is stunning.  This is my first Illamasqua polish… drying time blew me away.  I was able to apply and finish 4 coats in 25 minutes.  Hand on heart, this is probably the greatest formula I’ve used so far.  Whether or not other Illamasqua polishes are the same, I don’t know.

Prism is perfect for weddings, french manicures… it’s one of those polishes for people that don’t like polishes.  If you don’t paint your nails often but want something for those times when you need to up your game… get this polish.  I imagine it would also look rather lovely layered over a dark base too… I shall have to experiment!

Thanks ever so much lovely Illamasqua makeup fairies, a genuinely lovely surprise that simply made a makeup addict’s week!

Available from counters nationwide or online at Illamasqua priced at £13.00

If I said I didn’t like this polish very much… I’d be being kind.

I actually don’t usually dislike polishes, I can make most formulas work for me with a bit of adjustment in how I paint… either that or the colour is so lovely that it redeems itself once on my nails.

I’ve fallen out with this Eyeko Purple polish and no amount of chocolates or flowers is gonna smooth over the cracks in our relationship.  So what’s wrong with it?

It drags at the cuticles quite heavily… it’s painfully slow drying… it’s gloopy gloop city… it bubbled on the second coat and after all that, the colour is blah and easily dupable in a better formula.

Actually, this feels like Eyeko polishes of old… if I were you, I’d stick to the pastels.

Some of you eagle eyed ladies spotted my nails in yesterday’s Shu Uemura kit review and asked what I was wearing, well shush!  You’re ruining my next NOTD!

Haha, not really, but here it is:

Eyeko Vintage (£3.50) is a pale green… to my eye it’s not quite pastel (especially after 3 coats as shown).

I had to laugh as I was checking out the Rouge Cocos today, the SA on counter asked if it was one of theirs (we all know what she was referring to right?).  In all honesty, I haven’t got a clue if it looks anything like the Chanel Jade… it’s just a nice green that makes a statement without being too “in your face”.

Again, it was streaky… The Eyeko Lilac is still the best formula polish of the ones I’ve been sent, and like the others… drying time = slow.  Speed dry topcoat = necessity.

I’ve got one more Eyeko to show you, it’s a punky purple which will be a bit of a change after all these more spring-like shades.

Hope you’ve been enjoying my Eyeko mini-series!

Continuing my swatch series of Eyeko’s new nail polish offerings… this is Eyeko’s Nude Polish:

To my eye, this polish is more peach than nude… but to be fair, a lot of nude shades turn peach on my skintone, lipsticks being the worst culprits!

The formula wasn’t as smooth as the lilac shade, this required 4 coats before the streaking was disguised.  I do love how this and the lilac look and feel like true creme polishes, once applied they’re almost buttery in appearance.

Again, drying time was on the slow side and I wouldn’t want to touch these Eyeko polishes unless I had a quick-dry top coat ready to be put into use.   I’d probably give this shade a 5/10 for application, it was just a bit too streaky for my liking… but once on, it really is a pretty colour for Spring.

Eyeko nail polishes are available from the website, priced at £3.50 each.

Do you like?

I awoke to a surprise parcel last Saturday…

Courtesy of a very sweet friend, this beautiful chocolate milk of a nail polish now holds pride of place in my collection.  I’d been lemming Zoya Pasha for the best part of a year and with such long-term longings inevitably comes a touch of pedestal placement!  I have to say, it didn’t disappoint.

3 coats for a smooth finish, Pasha is a silvery milk chocolate with a slight metallic sheen.  It applied beautifully with no dragging at the cuticles, my only slight issue was with a couple of bubbles which I think had more to do with my impatience at wanting to see it applied, like NAO! as opposed to any formula problems.

I’m so happy to finally have this in my hands, thank you liloo – your generosity delighted me and I may have been bitten by the Zoya bug!

Sometimes you just shouldn’t be trusted with a bottle of fuschia polish and flakies.  I don’t have too many NOTD monstrosities, but this one is pretty darn ming.

So that you can avoid the same retina-melting combination, we’re talking Nails Inc. – China Town with Inglot #204 daubed over the top.

Had any errors of beauty judgement recently?

I picked this up from the clearance shelves in Boots a couple of weeks ago for around £1.60.  Bright Blue is a super smarties shade, a proper bright blue cream.  Coverage was fab, I was done in two easy to apply coats.  I think it looks a little bit chalky but I am a fan of the shade.

Have you ever tried any Pure polishes? It’s a shame the brand is being discontinued, have a look in your local boots for any remaining stock – I love their Kajal liners too!