Christmas gift ideas (under 15 €)

Boy, do I love Christmas. But everytime I find myself struggling to find the perfect gifts, and I keep finding things I'd love to receive instead. So I made a little list for you of makeup-related gifts. No, I haven't tried these products - but I'd love to. More than a personal wishlist, it's a list of suggestions, but maybe it's useful for you!

Lip Scrub Set (Kiko) - 11,90 €

Available in Cinnamon&Orange, Red Berries and Candy Canes. I can't resist things that smell nice and I am pretty sure I am not the only one or Yankee Candles would be out of businnes by now. A lip scrub and a lip balm duo can be a pretty useful gift since it's winter, and the packaging looks pretty cool.
Get it in Kiko stores or online.

Dancing til Dusk eye and face palette (Sleek) - 12.90 €

Ah, Sleek palettes are always a pleasure. This one contains eyeshadows, blushes, and two brushes. It would be a good gift for a person always on the move, even for a makeup newbie, since the price is affordable and Sleek quality is usually good.
Get it at Sephora (and on their website).

Travel Brush Set 9,90 (Sephora)

I've never tried those, but hell, a bunch of travel brushes never goes amiss. Sephora brushes are usually good (I've got one) and the price/amount of brushes ratio is honest.
Get it at Sephora.

Duo Nail Kit (Pupa) 9,90 €

I was very tempted to get this with my 20% discount at Sephora. Two polishes and a beautiful pochette? Considering the usual price of Pupa polishes, it's a bargain. And it looks very pretty!
Get it in various makeup stores.

Neve Cosmetics Mistero Barocco palette

I haven't written the price because it has disappeared from the Neve Cosmetics website, being out of stock.  But you can still find it in brick and mortar stores and here, if you're inclined. (Also, check out that website, there's a lot of great stuff).
I actually own this (review soon), and I can tell you the quality is reaaaal good. That pink makes a great blush, it's an awesome multitasking palette and you can't go wrong with it.


That's all for now!

Pupa Made To Last Foundation Review

Yes, yes, I know this is a nail polish blog. But make up matters too, so here's a few words about the new foundation by Pupa. I purchased it using the coupon, so it was just 10 euros instead of almost 20.
Surprise surprise, I got the lightest shade, 010, which really is light enough for me. A miracle, right?
Not only the shade is nearly identical to my skin color, but I have good things to say about this foundation as well. I am used to the idea of applying some setting powder afterwards to get some opacity and make everything last longer. If I didn't do this with the Maybelline Fit Me foundation, it didn't take much for my face to get, well, oily.
With this foundation, however, I can almost forget about it. I mean, immediately after applying it my face already looks mattified and in a natural way. The coverage is, I'd say, medium, and it does very well on the small imperfections of my skin.

It's also as long lasting as they promise, and it feels very lightweight, I almost forget I have anything on my face with it.
It can be applied with your fingers but I prefer to use a brush, like this.
What else can I say? It looks natural, it feels nice, it's the right color... I really have no complaints for now!

Latest purchases

I can finally show you pictures! Yay! And what's better than showing you what I bought lately?
It's not properly a haul, since not everything was bought on the same shopping trip, but still...

The Catrice nail polish is 04 Artful Red, from the Viennart LE. I'm gonna try it this evening, so be ready for a review! The silver one of this LE was also promising, but I only got the red for now.
The foundation is Pupa Made To Last in Ivory (lightest shade) and I got it with the special 10 euros coupon (so I paid 10 euros something that costed almost 20, a real bargain) and I am absolutely loving it, it feels wonderful, lighweight despite the very good coverage and it's really great. I'm not a foundation expert but I could post a review of it as well.
The brush is from H&M, and I am loving it, I use it to apply the Pupa foundation and it works perfectly.
The two Kiko products were the result of an afteroon with my boyfriend, the 30% discount coupon and a lot of patience and help from him xD I ended getting only two products, even if I initally had four of them in my hands. I have chosen the eyeliner in the colour 107, because it was (and is) an important element in my makeup routine and I used it so much that I finished one (I never finished a black eyeliner, for comparison). Whenever I don't know what to wear I choose it, maybe paired with a blue mascara as well. I think it compliments my eyes fairly well and it's really long lasting.
The eye pencil is from the Daring Game LE, I've been craving it since the first time I saw this LE, which was in august, so I waited quite a lot! The shade is 29, Irresistible teal. I can't wait to wear it, since I've been rediscovering the beauty of a dark eye makeup.
I don't have much makeup here yet, I plan on bringing more of it when I go back at my parents' next weekend. I am definitely in need of some brushes!
That's all for now!
Bought anything interesting recently?

Color Spotlight: Red

I thought I had already done this...but apparently I haven't! So here's red, the color of passion, danger, and many other things...

...like my Ikea Lack table.
These are my favourite reds. Overall, I don't own many red polishes at all. I have such a little amount of reds that I included a China Glaze polish that is a black base with red glitters. I did it because it's awesome.
From L to R: Orly Red Flare, Pupa 620 from the old China Doll LE, China Glaze Lubu Heels, H&M Super Red and Deborah Shine Tech 13.
Red Flare is a wonderful, classy red with cool undertones. If you're into reds, you can't miss this. Two coats of it makes you instantly flawless and fierce. Unless, of course, you prefere Pupa 620 which is still the best red polish on the planet. I have yet to find a polish that can top it, it makes me feel like a femme fatale and I love it. China Glaze Lubu Heels is an interesting polish, a sheer black base with red glitter. The glitter really pops out and is veeeery pretty. H&M Super Red is really... a super red. No, really. Almost a crelly, it shines like a gel polish and has a wonderful duration. Deborah Shine Tech 13 has more of a cool undertone, compared to Super Red, and it's another beautiful red creme.

And here's my favourite reds in terms of makeup.
The eyeshadow in the palette (Sleek Lagoon) is a pretty neon matte red, and I used it a lot as eyeliner. I also appreciate as eyeliner Neve Cosmetics Watermelon, a single eyeshadow that I love. I've used it on my lips too, but I prefer it as an eyeliner/eyeshadow.
And three red lipstick. The matte red is Catrice It's a Matt World, I haven't worn it for a while, since I'm currently in love with dark, violet/plum/berry shades, but daamn, it's a beautiful red and I should wear it more.
The same for Kiko Latex Like Lipstick in 04 Plastic Red. A pretty, shiny cyber red that guarantees you a stunning look. This was from the Dark Heroine LE and I am really glad I bought it because it's pretty awesome. The other red is Kiss of Life from Rimmel by Kate, another matte red, but softer tha It's a Matt World and a bit more lip drying.
And that's all for now! What are you favourites when it comes to red?

Lavender and black

And for today, another small gradient experiment, done using Kiko 338 and Pupa 209.

I wanted to create a gritty urban effect, and quite frankly I am satisfied. I still have lots to learn about gradients, and I also want to try gradients with three colors. But for now, enjoy this. I've been having more time for myself, since I'm waiting for the feedback on my thesis, which I'd say it's 95% complete.
I've also planned another color spotlight post, so stay tuned for details!

Violet and stripes

Let's face it, this kind of nail art is perfect when you don't have much time on your hands...to use for your hands, I mean, nails. Bad puns aside, it's a great way to explore new color combinations.
I spiced up the Pupa polish, 410, that I had worn during the second ballot at the elections, with some colorful stripes.
I used Kiko 284, Shaka Juicy Pumpkin and Essence L.O.L. 
Personally I love this color scheme! And the Seche Vite makes it look soo shiny!

Color Spotlight: Blue (pt 1)

Hello! Welcome to the next episode of the "Color Spotlight" series. Blue is one of my favourite colors (along with acid green, bugundy and more), and there are so many shades of it, that I decided to divide the post in 2 parts. The second one will focus more on teal and light blue, while I'll keep this for the most "traditional" shades of blue. I also have a new blue polish to show you, but I'm keeping that for tomorrow... for now, enjoy my 5 favorites.
Kiko 435 was part of the Dark Heroine LE, a blue with strong violet hues (practically a duochrome) absolutely fit for a dark lady. A bit of a wintery polish, but that doesn't make it less awesome.
In its simplicity, Kiko 294 is a wonderful, warm toned blue. I call it Egyptian blue, and it's a wonderful shade. Bit reminiscent of ceramic decorations and jewels. I prefer it with nail art rather than alone.
Kiko Quick Dry 830 was a pleasing surprise, since it's a very pretty metallic blue that looks stunning under the lights. I have nicknamed it superhero blue, because it's a great color for a supersuit!
Kiko 440 from the Digital Emotion LE is a glittery party of awesomeness. Annoying to remove, as every glittery polish, yes, but so pretty I am willing to forgive that.
Pupa 054 really creates on the nails the gel/glass effect it promises. Smells awfully in the bottle, is simple yet classy on the hands.

And now, some blue eye make up. I wear blue eyeliner way more than black eyeliner, so I will be eternally thankful to Concrete Minerals for making the holy grail of blue eyeliner/eyeshadows.
Bulletproof by CM is seriously the best. Irl is a bit darker. Once it sets on the eyelids it stays all day (will stain a little bit, but oily makeup remover does the trick).
The two Kiko eyeliners, 106 and 107, are actually quite different, 106 is glittery and 107 is darker and matte. Unsurprisingly, I like 107 more, but 106 isn't that bad either, even if it seems less pigmented.
And a blue mascara, obviously, shown here is Kiko 07. Beautiful and pigmented, no complaints.
The UD eye pencil in LSD is a personal fave, because it really lasts and lasts and lasts. A dark blue with light blue microglitter, it would look stunning with every eye color.
The Sephora eye pencil in Azur Blue deserves a mention because, before CM's Bulletproof, it was my go-to eye pencil. It still has a place in my heart because it's small, easy to carry and lasts long. The color is less intense than Bulletproof though.




And that's all for the first part! Second part coming soon! Comments and opinions are always appreciated.

Sci-fi fishtail nail art

Aka my very first fishtail nail art. The base is Sinful Colors Snow Me White, the other two colors are Pupa 001 and 002 of the Cosmic Beauty LE. I topped everything with an old, discontinued top coat by Catrice called Prismatic Effect, that adds a blue-ish shade. On the white it's nicely visible but nearly impossible to capture in photos.

It's called sci-fi fishtail because of the colors (shiny white, grey.. they're all colors that make me think of spaceships) and because I did it while rewatching Judge Dredd on tv xD.

And I'm afraid that's all for today, and sorry for the tipwear..

My Valentine's Day Manicure

A quick post with my Valentine's Day mani: I really wasn't in the mood for pink and hearts, but I still wanted something nice to wear for my evening out with my amazing boyfriend. I mattified Orly Red Flare and added a (non-matte) french line with Pupa Black.The contrast is scarcely visible here but far more irl. And I'm afraid that's all for now! Have fun, wheter you've got a parner or not!

Christmas Nail Art

A quick post to show you my Christmas nail art while Trading Places ends... I did the same for the other hand, except I inverted the nail art (red accent). The base is Shaka Emerald, a wonderful festive metallic green. I stamped with my Gals stamping plate some Christmas trees with Pupa 620 and Kiko 628. The Pupa polish stamps nicely, but is not much visible over the dark green, which is a pity. It's still pretty, so who cares? and my fellow nail bloggers have done far more complicated stuff, but with the mince pies to bake and my niece around, well, I didn't have much time... Merry Christmas to everyone!
(I told you this post was quick..)

Stamping over Kiko Venom Teal

As I've already told you before, Kiko Venom Teal is a gorgeous, gorgeous polish.
So I've experimented with some stamping on it, and now look at this hot duochrome on duochrome action. The stamping polish is Pupa 001 from the Cosmic Beauty LE. It's truly a beauty, since it stamps really amazing. It was an one coater, so I could guess that, but the results were better than I expected. The contrast with the dark base really makes the design pop out, and under the right angle or/and light, when the pink/violet hues of the Pupa polishes are visible, well, it's magnificent. For me it's one of those nail days when I can't stop staring at my nails!

I should remove it and wear something else, since I won't have time to do my nails again until sunday, but it's too pretty...

Perfect Palette Tag

It took me an insane amount of reflection time to write this, because, to my shocking discovery, I don't even own that many palettes. And videogames are a distraction too, but let's ignore this and focus on the palettes, shall we?

1) Best Packaging
This is genuinely a hard question. I don't have palettes with pretty but practical packaging, so I really don't know how to answer this. Probably the Sleek ones would win on this, since they have room for a brush and a mirror too, despite being small.


2) Best Color Payoff

Neve Cosmetics Duochrome palette. One of the best palettes I've ever tried, the pigmentation of these shades is insanely high.


3) Most Versatile

I was tempted to answer "the Duochrome again!", because, really, you can create dozens of looks with that. However I've chosen this old Kiko palette, Sensuous Burgundy. Ok, it's not that old. The colors are greatly pigmented, especially the brown, and choosing to use, say, the pink instead of the gold on the lid will change you eye look greatly.

4) Best for Traveling

Look at me shamelessly recycling an old pic

Ok, this should be called "best for travelling in summer and spring", due to the colors. Last summer I've been away for a week carrying only a limited amount of makeup, and this was the only palette I had with me. It's not only great because it has a sturdy packaging and offer lots of shades in a small space, but you can create many different looks with this (even some evening looks).

5) Biggest Regret

This little lovely Catrice palette from the Thrilling Me Softly LE was a total regret. Surely, the shades are nice and go very well together. That is, they would if they were pigmented. The matte brown isn't pigmented at all and a wet brush didn't help. The two shimmery shades cause lots of fallout. Catrice, you're disappointing me!


6) Best Color Names

Ehm, the Duochrome by Neve. Again. Anyone who creates a wonderful green/yellow eyeshadow and calls it Acid Rain wins.

7) Least Used

This greatly pigmented, long lasting eyeshadow palette by Pupa would be great, if it weren't for the typical, evening "social life" colors. I don't have a social life that involves partying, night clubs and such, so I can't use it as much as I would. I used it last year in Lucca Comics and it proved itself to be insanely long lasting, my eye makeup was still perfect even when I came back in the evening and gave me that "yeah I might be exhausted but I still look fabulous" feeling.


8) Most Used, Most Loved (aka the one to bring on a desert island)

This little gem is an E.L.F. mini palette called Luxe, paid less than 2 euros and it contains the only eyeshadow where I've actually hit the pan. The highlighter shade is a perfect My Lid But Better, and combined with the brown and the taupe it creates a gorgeous, shimmery-but-not-too-shimmery daily friendly nude-ish look. The dark taupe is an unique shade of which I've never found dupes, if you look at it very closely it has small warm and green hues. Hard to describe, wonderful to use, recommended if you place an E.L.F. order.

Rainbow Challenge Day 6, Indigo Nails

Ok, in the pic it looks more blue than indigo, but I swear, it is indigo. The base is 07 Nail Art Twins-Chuck by Essence, the french tips are Pupa 002 from the new LE.
I  didn't have much time and energy for nail art lately, but I can still present you indigo, a very complicated color to define, in between blue and purple. A simple french sometimes pays!

A multichrome experiment

I've had this mani in my to do list for a while, so I'm happy to have it finally done.
The base is Pupa 209, and the top coats are Deborah 102 for the blue/greenish parts...and a very old L'Oréal Jet-Set polish for the orange/green ones.. It belonged to my sister, and despite being very old I never threw it away, due to its mighty duochrome powers. I kept it thinking to use it for paintings and art, but how could I resist using it on my nails? It looks like some certain high-end duochrome top coats.
It's really old (I wouldn't be surprised to find out it's 10 years old) but still works magnificently.
It has more duochrome fleckes than the Deborah one, and they're bigger overall: one coat of it was enough, while I had to apply 2 covers of the Deborah one to have a better coverage.
The silvery line is Kiko 617.

Pupa Lasting Color Gel 054 review

By now you all know about Pupa's special offer: become a fan of them on fb and download a coupon to get a Lasting Color Gel polish for just 1 euro. If you invite a friend you can also get a Vamp product for 5 euros, but I wans't interested in that, so I sticked to the polish. I had also received bad reviews of a polish of this line, so I was quite glad of this occasion to get one, since I would've never bought one at full price.

The color is great, a cobalt blue with a hint of indigo: it's like the polish version of Sephora's Azur Blue pencil. The finish is a nice, shiny creme, with a nice glass effect as advertised.
It has a big brush that makes application easier and less streaky (still wasn't very easy, but with a small brush it would have been a mess). I wish Pupa used such a brush in all its polishes.
I don't care about it that much, but keep in mind that it smells badly when you apply it (dried it has no smell).
I've worn it for a day, so I can't tell you much about duration yet.
I can however tell that so far I like it, I'm going to add some nail art soon.

Would I recommend it? Not at full price, the color range is nothing to die for. Otherwise, go for it.

Rainbow Challenge day 2, Orange nails

And today, orange nails! Kiko 356 is the orange, Pupa 209 the black and 203 Kiko the white. Over them, a cot of Essence's matte top coat.
The inspiration for this is the flag of the fictional land of Cresezia, created by my boyfriend. Plus, I love those colors and the geometry they create. It's simple yet stunning. And I love matte nails, I can't help.

Pupa 620 Lucky Red

Instead of showing you what i bought with the Pupa promotion (my 1 euro polish), or of doing my rainbow challenge organge nails...I'll show you this old polish, from the old China Doll LE.
I was going to do the orange nails, but I had forgotten one of the colors I needed at home.
So I put on my favourite red nail polish evah: Pupa 620 Lucky Red. Excuse the tipwear, I had been wearing this for 3 days, and no topcoat.
Here it seems almost christmas red, but the red is more...neutral irl, not too cold, not too warm. I think it looks great on every skintone. Let's face it, it's a great shade of red, that really is reminiscent of China: you know, those varnished little boxes...the dresses...

This is my femme fatale red,  the most seducing red I own. I still remember the happiness of the moment when I first tried it..

Pupa Iridescent Nail Polish 001 & 002- Cosmic Beauty LE review

I picked those two beauties at La Gardenia, where they offer a 40% discount on the second product you buy of the same or lower price. Also, those polishes cost 3.50 euros each, so I ended up paying little more than 5 euros for two polishes: not bad, if you consider that the recommended retail price for those is 5.95 euros on the Pupa website..

I was sure I was going to love 002 Iridescent Blue, but I ended up loving 001 Iridescent Silver more.

002 is surely beautiful: a duochrome that goes from blue to violet/purple. The color is intense, really reminiscent of galaxies. 001, however, is stunning: a multichrome with a silver base that shifts from light oilive green to purple. If you look at it very closely it looks like it has micro-holographic particles or something like that (002 has them, but they're less visible). This is Catrice's Iron Mermaiden as it should have been. It's going to make a great F/W polish. It can also be an office-friendly ladylike shade. So if you should buy just one, I'd say buy 001, and this is really weird from me, because peacock-like colors like 002 are usually a must have for me.

Now, to the problems: application is meh. Used to the flawless application and formula of last year's fall LE (remember, the China Doll one?) polishes, I was a bit disappointed by those. 002, especially: the formula is thick and dense, and the brush seemed unable to carry enough color to cover the nail fully, resulting in a streaky effect and zones of your nails where the color didn't apply just right. I was using a basecoat, my trusty Essence one. Make sure you file your nails and hide the lines on them, those colors make them super visible.
The coverage could be better, I was expecting them to be one coaters, but they're not. Still better than Catrice's Iron Mermaiden.
The formula of 001 is slightly better than 002. I wonder if I had an unlucky bottle (that had been opened before) or that's the standard for the line.
I can't wait to try stamping on/with them.

Would I recommend them?
001 for sure, 002 I'm not sure. It really saddens me to say so, because they look very pretty in the bottles and really have a galaxy/cyber effect. This depends on you, wheter if you are ready to forgive a not so great application for a pretty color. If you can get them for a lower price than 5 euros, they're worth a try.

Pupa Cosmic Beauty

In this sea of new fall LEs, Pupa comes out with a ... cyber/cosmic LE. They make direct references to cyberpunk in their website, talking about a "visionary, cybernetic future [...] inspired by an imaginary metropolis of the future, a city with a surprising charme, where the borders between real and surreal disappear: Cosmic Beauty. The girls of this town with an exceptional lifestyle dress with cybersexy clothes and use a psychedelic make up. The aesthetic charme of a new era."
Now, if this was an ad found in Night City, or the great metropolis that appear in Gibson's novels, I wouldn't be surprised. And I love anything cyberpunk, so if course I am enthusiastic about it
But:
1) if it's so cyber-inspired, why do they talk about space and the products have space-inspired names? First you tell me it's inspired by the colors of the galaxies then you give me a cyberpunk femme fatale. These are two different kinds of sci-fi, my dear.
2) I have now a headcanon: that the creative teams at Kiko and Pupa are best friends and regularly meet together to watch movies. Last year they both created China/East inspired LEs, almost identical in their inspiration. This year they must have gathered to watch Blade Runner all together, or something like that.
3) The collection has only a few products ( I get it's a preview, but I suppose they've shown everyhting), and there's nothing groundbreaking and futuristic for me. Let's see:

An eyeshadow/eyeliner. Comes in taupe, black, peacock green, blue and violet.

Pigments! This one looks cool, I'd admit it. Comes in blue and green as well.

Lip pencils are nothing new. Comes in red and pink too.

There' s a highlighter..

And the polishes. Two duochromes, two more "normal" shades. The burgundy one is great, even if not groundbreaking. The first duochrome reminds me of Catrice's Iron Mermaiden (now discontinued) and the second one..well, I'm interested in that.

Don't you notice something? No powder, no blush, nothing. Apparently in the future there'll be no need for healty and radiant complexions, we will all be cyborgs. Or have biosculpted faces.

Ancient Greece nail art

... or fail art, as I should say. The idea is great, the result not so much. I am starting to think this nail art is cursed: yesterday evening, in applying the black base I did a mistake and, trying to correct it with a cotton pad I messed up all the other nails because that cotton pad, of a brand I never tried, was horrible, it had a lot of, how do you say, loose cotton hair? Anyway the cotton got caught up in the other nails. Oh, and I dropped some black nail polish on my pajama trousers and, in an attempt to clean it I created even larger stains because, despite my care, my newly painted nails touched the fabric, thus ruining both things at once!

And honestly, I don't know what to blame for this stamping fail:  I already suspected that the Kiko 629 polish was not as good at the other of this series, and essence stamping plates are of a lower quality, but come on... I had to redo each single nail countless times, and I lost my patience at the snake nail, essence stamp me black was proving itself really bad so I gave up and used Pupa 209, my black base.

I don't know for how much I will keep this on my nails, but I still wanted to show it to you, if only as a source of inspiration.. plus, you can learn by my mistakes: never paint your nails when you're too tired, never use Quandoé cotton pads (this is for the Italians maily, you'd find it at Acqua e Sapone).

Side note: I really dislike the brushes on Pupa polishes. They're too small for me, and may work well for detailed nail art but when it comes to applying polish on the whole nail, they never work right for me. I definitely prefer the big essence brushes that everyone seems to hate: one stroke and you're done!