domenica 31 agosto 2014

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...


mercoledì 27 agosto 2014

Essence 04 My Sweet Escape- Road Trip LE

Hello, meet my very first thermo effect nail polish! I am so glad that Essence jumped on this bandwagon, and don't worry if you missed this- there will be some thermo effect polishes in the new Essence standard range as well!
This would be a pretty polish on its own, a pretty shade of nude but not a boring nude, more like a rosy nude, if it makes any sense.
For the sake of science I stuck my hand in the refrigerator. I mean, I had to test if the effect worked, right?
Aaand, guess what, it did!
Capturing it on photos was a bit hard and it doesn't give justice to the real color, but here it is: a dark rose with grey/blue undertones.


And then I put my hand under warm water. The color was a warm, bright salmon pink. The photos don't give it too much justice, though. But you can definitely see the color change!


FAQ:

Why is it of a such dark pink even before the refrigerator thing?

Because I have the coldest hands ever.

Does it work with a topcoat on too?

Yes, I put the seche vite on one hand and nothing on the other. It worked perfectly.

Do I recommend it?

Hell yes. 
 


lunedì 25 agosto 2014

Wjcon 215

I had planned a longer post about another polish, but my fingers hurt ( too much thesis writing) so for this time I'll do a small review of a Wjcon polish I got. It was on sale and it was tempting, I am in an autumn mood and it seemed really like a beautiful shade of grey.






The finish is hard to describe, like a foil but very, very sheer. This is three coats.
The color is a grey with micro green and purple sparkles. Alas, I was fooled by the lights in the store and thought the blue undertones were stronger. It does shine beautifully under sunlight, and its sheerness could make it good for layering. It kinda looks like a cloud's grey.
Still, there's something that disappoints me about it., even if I am not sure of what it could be yet.
Quality is good so far, 4 days and some minor tipwear.

lunedì 18 agosto 2014

Essence 172 Splash!


A simple but beautiful metallic blue with hints of teal/green, Essnece Splash! was given to me by a person who thought the shade didn't fit with their skin undertones, along with another Essence polish.
Quality wise, it's good, I wore it without the Seche Vite above it and it still dried quickly enough, and it lasted for approximately 4 days before the first signs of chipping.
The color is nothing groundbreaking for me... because I love it and already have something similar. But if you don't, it's a little jewel of a polish. You can't go wrong with it.
It's perfect for summer and shines wonderfully under sunlight!

venerdì 15 agosto 2014

Kiko Daring Game first impressions and swatches

It's not a change of season if I don't come up with a post about Kiko's latest LE. This autumn's theme is, according to Kiko, the exciting game of seduction. Or something like that.


Personally, I really dig the Casino Royale theme, and the packaging is really pretty. Can't say the same for the prices, 6,90 for the nail polishes is a bit too much.. polishes have always been the cheapest element of a LE, now there are eye pencils that cost less...
And it's not the only complaint I have for the nail polishes:


From L to R: 02 Irresistible Orchid, 01 Prestigious Taupe, 03 Suggestive Red, 04 Intuition Wine, 05 Exclusive Blue, 06 Slick Bluenoir.

Look at the colors, there is nothing groundbreaking there. The finish is probably a crelly, they're slick but not so much pigmented. Oh and there is nothing blue in 06, I've tried looking at it in various angles and to me it's just a plain black. Oh and yeah, surely, the packaging with the dice effect is nice but you have to remove it, it only covers the cap, it's not part of it. Sorry but for me this is a downside, it makes everything a bit less practical.


 From L to R: 24 Majestic Dove Grey, 29 Irresistible Teal, 20Mysterious Acai, 10 Bold Rosy Taupe, 22 Fine Jade, 11 Charming Champagne, 8 Sinuous Shell, 33 Likable Blackberry
 What I really liked were the Color-Up Long Lasting Eyeshadows (aka the big chubby eye pencils). I hope I got the identification of the colors right beacuse the numbers had faded on all the pencils and some colors are really similar. I also realized right now I am missing the swatches of 31 Tasteful Indigo, but I could swear it wasn't among the testers.
The quality seems very promising because once you wear them, they don't seem to smudge or fade, I've worn a couple of them on my hand yesterday and I had to wash them off at the endo of the day because they were still perfectly there. 29 Irresistible Teal is the most interesting color of the bunch for me (a shimmery teal with cold undertones? hell yeah). 11 Charming champagne seems like a bunch of glitter on a transparent base, 20 Mysterious Acai looks like a glittery nail polish turned eyeshadow and 33 Likable Blackberry is the only matte of the bunch. What a weird assortment of colors.. but they make me wish it were already autumn, sigh! I might be tempted to get the 29, but I will see and wait, for the moment.




You can also see something of the eye pencils: 02 Extraordinary Sapphire, 04 Gritty Ivy, 06 Powerful Burgundy and 13 Wily Bright Wood. 
02 and 13 are glittery, 4 is shimmery and 6 seems matte again. Pretty colors but nothing we haven't seen before.

What do you think of this LE? Tried anything?

mercoledì 13 agosto 2014

Holiday Haul

Woah, long time no write! But I really needed some holiday time, and I spent quite some time away from the computer. I spent a few days in London with my boyfriend, then a few days at his parents'.


Annd, this is what I got, make up-wise.
The MUFE Aqua Cream n 23, a green with golden shimmer, was purchased in a Sephora store in northern Italy. That store had so much stuff, compared to the ones where I usually go, that I didn't know where to start, especially due to the sales. The Aqua Cream was in fact on sale, for little more than 10 euros.
I've already worn it during a very long and hot train trip and it didn't smudge or fade. Perfection.
I've been in love with that Essence eyebrow set since I saw it on the website, disappointed by the fact that they didn't sell it in Italy. They do sell it in Slovenia, and during a trip to Qlandia (yes, the same mall where Aly from Maisenzasmalto went once) I just had to get it. I'm really satisfied, it's exactly what I needed.


But the Lond purchases, well, they're even more interesting. The Kryolan UV lipstick in blue is utter perfection, even if it needs retouching more often than a regular lipstick because, well, it's blue, so it's quite an unnatural color and mistakes are far easier to detect. Mixed with reds it will make great violets and purples. I already have a black and a white, with this blue I will be able to make so many pretty shades!
And it's pretty awesome all by itself.
The Sugarpill Charlotte eyelashes..ah, so splendid! Bought at Cyberdog with the Kryolan lipstick, since they were out of stock of the Heart Breaker palette (it will be mine, sooner or later *evil grin*), because I really wanted some Sugarpill for once. I haven't worn them yet but they're sooo pretty!
And finally, something I've been wanting for a long time! An OCC lip tar! Bought this in that labyritnth called Selfridges, in the shade Black Metal Dahlia. At least I think, there's no color indication over it.
Extremely pigmented and requires some time and patience to get it right, but it's worth the effort.
I have a thing for matte purple/violet lips, what can I say? This is why I got this MUA velvet lips in Kooky. And the quality, man, the quality! If you give it time do dry properly, it resists even a full meal. Really it's extremely long lasting and not lip drying at all!

That's all for now, no nailpolishes since they're not allowed in Ryanair flights.