Shaka Hologram Sky

Could I leave this in the store when I saw it? Hint: the answer is no.
A legendary holo I craved for a while, when I saw it I knew I had to get it immediately.
Application was ok, no great issues, and the color is wonderful.
Of course when I decided to wear it we had no sun for days, and it's quite a pity to take a photo of a holo indoor with flash.
Under sunlight it would've been so much better.
But alas, here it is in all its glory.

Very pretty, isn't it?
And it's always good to have a good holo collection...

Shaka Stone Like Sky

I've been stalking the local OVS for the new Shaka polishes for a while, and finally, my patience was rewarded! I haven't seen the duochromes yet, only the Stone Like polishes which, as you can guess, have a liquid sand finish.
Quite frankly, this color is awesome. A peacock teal based polish with yellow, blue and lime microglitters that make it shine incredibly well - for the first time I felt the curiosity to wear it with a topcoat, but then I'd have to wear sunglasses all the time because damn, the shine!

Without flash

The color is really wonderful, and the drying time was wonderfully short. Definitely recommended! I can't wait to find more colors and other finishes of the new series...

Color Spotlight: White

Welcome to a new episode of the Color Spotlight series! I originally planned to do white and black together, but I have enough white products for a post on its own. Black will probably go with grey when it will be its turn.
There are my white polishes: Kiko Rock Top 615, if it were less sheer it would be awesome, Sinful Colors Snow Me White, my tipical white polish, China Glaze Texture There's Snow One Like You, potentially awesome but not long lasting enough, I need to experiment putting it on a different base, Shaka Sugary White, a very cute (a bit sheer) super shimmery white, and Kiko Cupcake 647, a white sand effect polish with red/green/blue micro particles.

My white makeup products! (not including white eyeshadows that are part of other palettes)
Manic Panic Goth White is a multi-purpose white cream, it can be used mixed with foundation, as concealer, as highlighter if you're really pale (on me it works nicely) and, my favorite use, as an eyeshadow base. I purchased it online after having used my other Manic Panic products long enough to be enthusiastic about them.
The Kryolan white eyeliner doesn't mess around, it would probably survive the apocalypse, along with cockroaches and Nokia 3310 phones. Super long lasting and awesome, I don't want to use it as a base because I don't want to waste it (and because it would probablu glue my eyelid still), but as an eyeliner it's pretty amazing.
I also added my Neve Cosmetics Ivory eye pencil, I don't use it that often but when I do, the effect is really nice, my E.L.F. matte white eyeshadow (it's always useful to have a matte white eyeshadow) and my Shaka white lipstick, that also happens to be a great base for lip pigments.

Tell me people, do you like white? Do you use it often? I think it's a wonderful, underrated color.

Black and white

I was in a "argh, I don't know what to wear on my nails" moment yesterday, and since I couldn't decide on the color, I went for black and white!
I hadn't worn Shaka Sugary White for a while and had forgotten how cute (and how sheer) it was. A really lovely polish, very shimmery. Under sunlight you can catch its actually very colorful shimmer.
I added Maybelline Color Show Polka Dots in Chalk Dust over it. A bit of a salt and pepper effect perhaps, but still cute. And it's always nice to use polishes that had been neglected for a while.

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!

Tag: The Lip Product Addict

I took this from Drama, I haven't posted anything for a while so I decided to give you something about my lip products..

Favorite Balm/Treatment

As a night treatment, I sometimes use Neve Cosmetic's Lip Nectar (not pictured here), but the lime flavored Baby Lips is what I usually keep in my bag. It's not perfect as the overseas bloggers depicted it, but it's not that bad either, plus, I love the smell and the packaging is super cute.

Best Eye-Catching Red

I haven't worn a red in quite some time, but Catrice's It's a Matt World is the one that looks best on me. It's matte but not lip drying at all, and looks stunning.

Best Luxury / Best Drugstore (And Best Mac Lipstick)

My best luxury... is also my best Mac, since I don't have any other Mac lipstick, and it's the luxury-est one I own. It's Rebel, and it's definitely worth the price. Stays all day, eve after meals, looks fantastic on me, doesn't dry lips at all. I love berry/violet lipsticks and this one is probably the best one in the world.

For the same reason, I included as drugstore product a Maybelline liptint with a great scent and great color payoff. The other liptint is Catrice's Megan Fuchsia, another recommended product. The color may seem excessively flashy, but it's actually an office-friendly shade.

Most Disappointing

Nothing! No real disappointments in my lip purchases.

Liner Yay/Nay

I don't usually use a lipliner (except when I wear a black lipstick), but the Perfettina transparent/white lip pencil is useful if I want a flawless look. The two Neve Cosmetics Lip Pencils you see, well, I use them alone as lipsticks. They're pigmented and not too much lip drying, but it's better to prime and scrub the lips because they'll highlight any little flaw.

Best Gloss

I have no doubt that this is the best lipgloss on the planet. It's the lovechild of a lipstick and a lipgloss, and it's INSANELY pigmented. Like, capslock-worthy pigmented. More than certain lipsticks. See that wonderful shade of violet (called Underworld Amethyst)? Well, this is exactly what will appear on your lips. A lot of violet lip products turn pink or pink-ish on my lips, this doesn't. I can't recommend it enough.

Something Extra

Kiko's black lipstick and Shaka's matte white lipstick. I am really upset by the fact that they aren't the norm as nude and red lipsticks are, because they can be quite great. Plus, the black lipstick looks fantastic with my hair, and it very pretty. Those colors don't have to be weird or goth, they can be worn with class, depending on the rest of the makeup and the outfit.

Orange and Blue

May has not been a good month for blogging. But here I can show you a pretty Shaka polish, Juicy Pumpkin, that should have appeared before in my blog because damn. Shimmery in the bottle, like some OPI polishes the shimmer is not much visible on the nails. It gives it light without being a "ooh look at me I am clearly a shimmer". Here I used 3 coats, but 2 would have been enough. It's a magnificent shade of orange, almost a neon orange. Definitely recommended.
Kiko quick dry 830, one of my favourite blues, covers the tips creating a nice color and finish contrast.
Simple nail art, but I love it.

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..)

I am Loki of Asgard...

and I am burdened with glorious nail art!

 Polishes involved in the process: Kiko 629, Shaka Emerald, Pupa 209 & Essence Stamp me! Black.

I swear, this is all Tom Hiddleston's fault. He did a magnificent appearance at San Diego Comic Con that made the geek world go insane. And I also have a friend who's obsessed with Loki and she posts a lot images of him, and that was surely an influence. No, I am not a Tom Hiddleston/Loki fangirl, but he surely does a great job playing Loki. Plus, I've always been a mythology geek and when I studied germanic philology at the uni we talked about the Marvel comics as well!

Make Up Moments: summer alternatives for your face

Yeah, I know, this is meant to be a nail polish blog. Since a year, with the help of my sister, I have however started learning more about make up. It's a cheap kind of shopping (at least for me) that I find extremely relaxing- a sort of color therapy, if you wish.
So I'm gonna talk more about make up here, I guess. I'm no make up artist, but I can still give honest reviews.

Onwards to my first make up post, then. One of the many reasons why I hate summer is the fact that I can't wear much make up or my face will melt. Therefore, no foundation. Are you pale as hell and want to see some alternatives?

1) Garnier BB Cream. They call this shade light, but it's not. Pale skins, this is not for you, as you'll see in the swatches. It smells very nicely and has a good moisturizing effect, so if it fits your skin tone it could be a nice alternative.

2) Shaka powder in 01, Ivory. I didn't like this one at first, for the yellow undertone and the fact that, applied with a brush, it was too dark. Using a sponge or a puff you'll get a better coverage and it harmonizes with the skin color in a different, better way. It has a good long lasting power, too.

3) Essence Mineral Compact Powder in 02, soft beige. Still a bit too dark for my skintone, but, as the Shaka one, it can be used better with a sponge and covers pores and imperfections fairly well. It gives a good matt finish and a good lasting power, about the same as the Shaka one. The main difference between the two I'd say is the undertone, this one has pink undertones but is darker.

4) Essence 2 in 1 Make-Up & Powder in 10, soft beige. First and foremost let me say that I am a bit confused by Essence's color policy. Is there really the need to have two shades with the same color but different number that are also very different on skin?
Apart from this, I'd say this one is my personal favourite: as you can see in the photo, I've already used it a lot. A very light shade that creates more coverage if applied with a wet sponge- don't expect miracles, it's not a foundation, but it has a good coverage and lasting power. I also noticed that mixed with a bit of day cream it could make a nice concealer. In the box there's also sponge and mirror, it's perfect for travels.

And here's the swatches, from left to right: Essence Mineral Compact Powder, Shaka Powder, Essence 2 in 1, Garnier BB Cream. It's hard to make recommendations for those, since it depends a lot on your skintone.

Shaka Sugary white, Emerald and Peacock review

The main reason why I didn't post anything this week is because I wasn't satisfied with the results.
I will, however, post my last two nail art (more like fail art), because they were still good occasions to review my new polishes, especially the news Shakas of the family.

What was I expecting: a peacock-style nail art
The result: An aztec-style something
The base color is Shaka Emerald, that I find great. Unfortunately Shaka Peacock didn't contrast much with Emerald so the result is, well, not what I wanted. Maybe they would make a nice gradient together.
(Violet: Pupa 410, Gold: Kiko 628)

What was I expecting: A candy effect
The result: A sports team t-shirt effect
The white is Shaka Sugary White. Should you buy only one polish of the Shaka Sugary Collection, go for this one. It's very candylike and has small silver glitter that makes it really look sugary...
(Yellow: Max Factor Mellow Yellow, Green: Mint Cream, Orange: Kiko 356, Violet: Kiko 338, Pink: Catrice Pimp My Shrimp)

Overall, even if I am not satisfied with my nail art, something that comes more from my mood than from an effective failure, I have to say that Shaka polishes have always an overall good quality, and a low price (usually 1.99 euros, I paid them 1.79 because there was a make up sale at OVS).
Shaka Peacock was part of my birthday gifts.

Lava nails

Hello everyone! I wanted to try a lava effect on my nails, so I used an orange base, Juicy Pumpkin by Shaka and sponged red (Super red, H&M ) and yellow (Little miss sunrise, Essence) on it
Then I applied Kiko's rock top coat in black.

I really love the top coat effect, but perhaps I should have used only red and yellow, more contrasting colours would have been nicer. Either way, it's certainly a mani I like and it really reminds me of fire.

Shaka Burlesque

I'm not a pink nail polish person, but hell, this is gorgeous.  A pink basis with such a strong golden shimmer that it's almost a duochrome, hard to capture in photos but really gorgeous.
This is 3 coats and topcoat, maybe 2 coats are enought but with 3 the gold really stands out. It could make a really nice layering polish.
Honestly, it makes me think of fabric, maybe of indian saris, more than burlesque... but, hey, it's gold and bright pink, it's perfect for burlesque too!