recent nailpolish buys.

i tried to, i tried really hard to resist picking up random polishes when i browse the local drugstores - but these few "accidentally" fell into my shopping basket. i could swear this happens to me all the time! *cough*

Essence Purple Party is part of their toe nail polish collection for summer 2012, it's a red-based purple pearl with pink duochrome shimmer. the finish is almost metallic.
i like these Show Your Feet polishes because they usually have a nice consistency and last brilliantly.  they have a flat brush which makes application really easy.
however this one is a dud. it's a rather sheer shade and not opaque until the 3rd layer, it also wears off uncommonly fast. the pretty pink/red glow that makes this shade so exciting at first lays flat once on the nail and it looks rather unmodern and blah.
it's quite similar to Catrice Heavy Metallilac but is more red-based and doesn't have the pale gold cast of the Catrice polish.

Catrice Heavy Metallilac - Essence Purple Party

EDIT: comparison swatch

Catrice Heavy Metallilac - Essence Purple Party

P2 Flirt With Me! (i hate these dumb self-related names) is a medium pink, with slight blue undertone (it looks more cool-toned in real, my pictures makes it looks quite coral-pink which it isn't). no shimmers, slightly jelly appearance. opaque with 2 layers. doesn't "Last Forever", maybe 3 days if you are manually stressed.
this is a colour that i bought for reasons of precaution since i didn't have a *takeadeepbreath* slightly-cool-toned-medium-pink-creme-finish in my huge collection yet and i sometimes have those funny phases when i crave for a certain pink like this.
in comparison: Chanel Morning Rose is warmer and has these gold flecks, Essie MPOY? is warmer, deeper and more muted.

Chanel Morning Rose - Essie My Place Or Yours? - P2 Flirt With Me

P2 Adore Me! - easy to wear, pseudo-modern (since it isn't anymore) light (!) grurple with a handful of beige thrown in. i sill like such shades 'cause i'm lame like that.
it applies much more evenly than how it appears to on my crappy swatch. it's quite similar to MAC Cool Reserve, but is much lighter.

P2 Adore Me! - MAC Cool Reserve

i was obsessed with the idea of getting Essie Pretty Edgy nail polish since last year, but never came around to do so. since Essie recently made its debut in german drugstores at a much more affordable price point, i stumped into the drugstore on a mission to finally buy it - but it's gone. so Catrice King Of Greens (love the name, love Doug) being the most pure and yellow-based forest green in town became my retail therapy. but it doesn't deliver. not dark enough, not bright enough. and this ugly ugly green shimmer is even uglier when it's applied. looking so nineties makes me cringe.
i don't like their brush, too. it's so wide and flimsy.

have i told you that i hate pastel nailpolish shades? and i hate it when they come up everywhere around easter-time. well, prepare for 4-in-a-row. i have an excuse, though: i had a certain manicure in mind and since i hate pastel polishes so much i didn't have any in my collection. and i don't plan on wearing any of these shades full-on. only one-finger-per-time.

P2 Lovely Moment is really a lovely little girl-colour. milky creme-finish pastel pink. fully opaque with 3 thin coats. don't love it, but it's a purchase to complete the collection.

Essence You Belong To Me is a medium aqua blue with fine blue and white pearl shimmer. it appears almost like a creme-finish, the shimmer is only visible in bright light. it's not too pastelly, i can imagine wearing this shade as full manicure.
it applies evenly and opaque with 2 coats. wears nicely for 3-4 days.
i already own a similar colour to this, but it applied so uneven and streaky that i needed a substitute.

unless being another substitute of a polish in my stash that doesn't apply nicely, this is definitely not my cup of tea. i never tan so dark that a yellow would look nice against my already yellow skintone. but hey, i'm going for diversity in my collection.
Essence Wanna Be Your Sunshine is a true canary yellow with gold and yellow pearl shimmer, only visible in direct lighting.
doesn't apply too well (still slightly uneven with 2 coats).

Astor #135 is a very pale blue creme finish. couldn't imagine to wear it on my fingers unless for a certain manicure and then only on one finger. could look nice and brightening on the toes when my feet are tanned, though. will keep this in mind.
applies with some hassles, opaque with 3 coats.

so this is the beforementioned manicure i wanted to try. and i have to admit that i have drawn my inspiration from british reality-tv/drama/soap/whatsoever Made In Chelsea. i was lured in to watch a few episodes of this tv-show, but to say in their words: i didn't fancy it.
i did enjoy some make ups and manicures, though, in particular a mani Caggie Dunlop was sporting in some early episodes. it's just a mash up of brights and pastels and looks "different". stands out nicely with monochromatic outfits but looks good also when one of the nails picks up the colour of one colourful piece in your outfit (for example i was wearing a red blazer and i found this mani to look very youthful and happy in combination).
it could be any colours but i liked this certain combination.

ingredients: P2 Unforgettable (maybe d/c?) - OPI Red Lights Ahead...Where? - Essence You Belong To Me - P2 Gigantic (d/c?) - Essence Wanna Be Your Sunshine

FOTD with L'Oreal Electrified.

 

i wanted to show you what kind of make up look(s) i liked to wear the last weak. it was mostly a stronger eye make up paired with slightly nuded out lips. i used the L'Oreal HIP duo in Electrified relatively often, i love the metallic taupe in it. it also looks great with any other dark colour like blue, brown or black in the outer corner.


what i used for the face:

foundation: Lancôme Teint Miracle in 01 Beige Albâtre (1 - review) applied with the BeautyBlender (2 - review)

concealer: Rimmel Match Perfection Concealer in 010 Ivory (3 - review) patted on the under eye area with the fingers

powder: MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium (4 - review) applied with Lunasol Powder Brush N (5 - review)

contour: Burberry Beauty Light Glow in #07 Earthy Blush (6 - review) applied with Rouge Bunny Rouge's Blush Brush (7 - review)

blush: Cargo Blush in Polynesia (8) applied with Hakuhodo G5519BkSL Blush Brush (9)



what i used on the eyes:

brows: MAC Eyeshadow in Copperplate (1) applied with Laura Mercier LY30 Brow Brush (2)

eye make up:

for the softer look i used the metallic taupe of L'Oreal HIP duo in Electrified (3 - review) on the inner 2/3 of the lid and the lower lashline and applied the dark purple on the outer parts and into the crease area. everything applied with MAC 242 brush (4) and blended out with Edward Bess Luxury Eye Brush (5 - review).
i also used the purple as a liner shade for the upper lashline. then added a true purple eyeliner (P2 Perfect Look Kajal in 080 Lilac - 7 - review) on the waterline to give it some more colour.

with flash:

for the smokier version i applied the dark shade of L'Oreal Electrified (3 - review) all over the lid and on the lower lashline and added highlights on the center of the dark colour and on the inner corner with the metallic shade. everything applied with MAC 242 brush (4) and blended out with Edward Bess Luxury Eye Brush (5 - review).
a bit of MAC Vex (not on pic, sorry) in the inner corners, too, and lastly black liner for the waterline (P2 Perfect Look Kajal in 010 Black - 6 - review).

with flash:

i used the usual stuff for mascara (Shu Uemura curlers (8), Maybelline False Lashes Waterproof (9) as bottom layer and Shiseido The Perfect Mascara (10 - sample) as top coat).

lips: Manhattan Water Flash Lipgloss in a nude colour (11)

P2 Home Sweet Home cream blush sticks.

who had the glorious idea to that collection name? i can't believe the bad grandma wall-paper design and that name. but i saw these blush sticks at a glance and threw them quickly into my shopping basket because such products in an affordable drugstore range are pretty interesting to test. they are called Hello Gorgeous Blush Sticks and they only had these 2 shades, a warm peach and a cool pink. i don't know how much they contain, but they cost 2.65€ each.
they come in this shabby cardboard tubes with a twist-up mechanism and look as if they were covered in very old-style wrapping paper or wall paper rests. they're not very sturdy as you can see...

both have a hard, waxy and greasy texture and remind me of a lipbalm more than a cream blush. they feel fairly thick and greasy on the skin, so for the summer i wouldn't recommend them unless you have super dry skin. they are quite sheer. i don't apply them directly from the tube but use a small duo fibre brush. they apply surprisingly even and are buildable colour-wise. with the waxy texture, it's quite hard to load up the brush but i don't like to use it with my hands (although the warmth of your hands would be effective in this case). it gives a dewy finish, both blushes are shimmer-free. because of their texture they can be worn as lip balms, too.
they last about 4 hours on me, but then i get so oily that i have to blot my skin and afterwards they are faded almost completely. they aren't smudge-proof at all.

my bare lips for comparison purposes ;)

#010 Soft Pink

is a cool mauvey pink without shimmer.

worn on the lips

worn on the cheeks and lips (no eye make up here)

#020 Fresh Apricot

is a soft pinky peach without shimmer. i find this shade is a bit lighter in texture than the other one.

worn on the lips it lightens a tiny bit.

worn as blush and lipbalm. no eye make up on here either.