EOTD: Urban Decay Peace...

Praise the maker! Spring has sprung, the grass has ris, I wonder where the flowers is? Lol my Dad used to say this little rhyme when I was a kiddywink, and I've never forgotten it because it's just so darn cheerful - just like this most precious of seasons. How could I not kick it off with a bold and bright turquoise from those clever folks at Urban Decay...

UD Peace is such a fabulous blue - the pigment is out of this world, and there's very little fallout, even when packing it on as I did here. Actually it's so intense it doesn't really need a base, but I used one anyway - essence BBC All Night Blue gel liner. Love the fact that it's waterproof (vital for someone like me who's eyes water at the whisper of a cool breeze) and of all the gels in my kit, it's probably the best stayer in the waterline department, and an almost perfect match to the shadow, which is why I added it here...

For my lips, I started with Rimmel 1000 Kisses Lip Liner in the shade Indian Pink, topped that with NYX lipstick in (also) Indian Pink, and glossed over everything with Mirenesse 3D Forever Gloss in Lust Me. Cheeks are Benefit Rockateur...

In the crease is Revlon Matte Riviera Blue - yet another one of my ancient shadows that's still performing brilliantly. It has quite a bit of green in it, which is why it teams exceptionally well with turquoise...

Hope your Spring is chock-a-block full of blossoms ♥

Take care of you,

kats xxx

EOTD: Hello Kitty Les Turquoises...

Here's another shadow that's been lurking untouched in my drawer for over 12 months - Hello Kitty Les Turquoises. With so many tealy greens and blues in my kit, I've been neglecting her terribly, and she's such a pretty gal - to me she has too much green to be labelled a turquoise, I think she's more of an "aquamarine"...

So here she is - the only Hello Kitty shadow in my collection. At the time I found her, there was a deep blue that I fancied as well, but my local Priceline never actually ever had it in stock, and now I'm not even sure if they have the single eye shadows any more - they're certainly not available online. Anyways I'm still in love with this vibrant mermaid-hued gal - the pigmentation is astounding, and the consistency is just as creamy as it was on day one, and blends like a dream...

To bring out her best, I laid down Australis Star Bright (white) pencil all over the top lid, and then pressed the shadow over it with a dry brush. In the crease I added MUA matte charcoal...

On the waterline is Mirenesse Mineral Face Gel Colour in Aquamarine - an exact colour match for the shadow. I find these creams far superior to the Inside Out 27 hr Kohl pencils - some of them contain sparkly bits which are downright uncomfortable on the waterline, but the gels are smooth, shimmery, and once dry, they last a good 4 or 5 hours, and don't irritate my eyes... 

I think Hello Kitty is a stunner - not bad for being at least 2 years old, and doesn't look like going off any time soon. The shimmer factor is beautiful, and becomes even more pronounced when applied with a damp brush...

Take care of you,

kats xxx

EOTD: Jewel Up The Ocean (again!)...

I know I posted a look using this unbelievable essence pigment back in December, but I find it IMPOSSIBLE to resist this stunning eye shadow. Every morning she calls to me from her niche in the drawer...like one of those sirens you read about in Greek Mythology, the ones that lured the sailors to their deaths on the rocks with their songs, except this lady just wants to be ON SHOW all the time and whispers "pick me!" ha ha...

So I let her have her way, and laid her down over a base of the new essence Ticket to Paradise cream shadow in the shade Deep Sea Baby, yet another gorgeous ocean hue, and with a name like that, the perfect partner for the shadow...

This cream is so shimmery and sparkly - here's a fuzzy swatch of it on my freckly arm...

Honestly, these two were meant for each other - the cream brings out the intensity of the pigment even more than white or aquamarine, and the sparkle is to die for...

To make it a bit different from last time, I added some Urban Decay Zero in the crease, but lined the waterline with Mirenesse Blue Moon again because it's such a good match, and doesn't irritate my eyes one bit...

Incidentally this didn't fade at all, and I only had the tiniest bit of sparkle transfer to the lower part of my hoods throughout the day...

Have you tried any of the essence Metal Glam shadows yet?

Take care of you,

kats xxx

EOTD: Lavender and Aquamarine...

Here's a cheery splash of color to get over the midweek hump. Some hues just seem to resonate together, and lavender and aquamarine are one such pally pair.

My base was MNY Tattoo in Painted Purple. I haven't used this in a while because I find it quite sheer, but for this particular pastelly purple it was perfect (gosh so many 'p's lol).

Over that on the inner half went a sparkly lavender from the BYS Diamond Shadow Miami Beats palette. There are quite a number of pretty softer shades in this pack, I really should pull it out more often than I do. This range is so cheap and readily available at K-Mart and Gloss - the pigmentation potency isn't always prevalent across all pans (oops more 'p's), but on the whole I find them great value.

On the outer half is one of my true loves, and a regular on my blog - essence Metal Glam in Jewel Up The Ocean. I swear it's so buttery you could spread it on toast! Well maybe not lol...

Love how the join between the two colors came out turquoise :-) I blended both shades over the MNY liner along the lower lashline (left and right accordingly), and the final touch was a faint smear of NYX Eye/Brow Pencil in Seafoam Green on the waterline...

Have you ever had a lavender/aqua moment?

Take care of you,

kats xxx

EOTD: Turquoise & Coral...

Not exactly a Christmas theme, but it's what I wore on the big day :-)  As with the majority of my looks, it was to match an outfit, which in turn was to match a stunning jewellery set my parents gave me for my recent birthday. The colours in the necklace, earrings and bracelet are actually teal, coral pink and dark blue, but in the photos, the teal looks more turquoise, so I'm tagging it turquoise & coral :-)

I used two bases - Mirenesse Mineral Face Gel Colour in Blue Moon on the inner half, and MNY Tattoo in Pomegranate Punk on the outer section. Over the top of the blue and along the lower lashline I applied essence Metal Glam in Jewel Up the Ocean (isn't this just the most stunning pigment?), and the coral pink was from the L.A.Colors Wildflowers palette.

For some extra oomph, I patted the Mirenesse Blue Moon gel onto the waterline...

And here's the jewellery, and the whole look.  For lips I used essence Lipliner in Honey Bun, SAX Rich Lip Colour Lipstick in Coral, and Mirenesse 3D Forever Gloss in Lust Me. Cheeks are ModelCo Blush Cheek Powder in Peach Bellini :-)

Hope your Christmas Day was everything you hoped it would be ♥

Take care of you,

kats xxx

EOTD: Turquoise...

What better way to kick off summer AND December than with a brand new eye shadow (like I needed another one? ha ha) and one that's the colour of this month's birthstone...

Turquoise!

I LOVE this shade and I LOVE this new shadow from essence - it's so vivid and creamy and sparkly and metallic, and there's very little fallout. This was applied dry and my mind is boggling at how it will turn out when applied with a damp brush, so watch this space lol...

It's from a new range called metal glam, and this particular one is called Jewel Up The Ocean - isn't it just divine? Only $4.25, and there's quite a few in the set, although this is the only one that really caught my eye. Apparently there's an orange called Miss Tangerine, but they didn't have it at my local Target - oh how I miss not having a Priceline nearby :-(

I took this photo with a flash so you could see all the pretty sparkles...

It just so happens that this jewel shade is almost identical to my Mirenesse Face Gel in Blue Moon (discontinued) and so that's what I used as a base, and to line the waterline.

 

I smoked the outer corner with UD Zero, and then added a very fine line of MUA matte charcoal (shade #20) along the crease for extra definition. Added MNY Master Precise Liquid Liner on the lower lashline with some Jewel over the top, and MNY The Falsies waterproof mascara.

Such a gorgeous colour, and I'm totally TOTALLY hooked. If only they'd bring out a purple or a green, but then again, the bliss might be too much, even for me :-)

Take care of you,

kats xxx

EOTD: Aqua/Turquoise/Purple...

Couldn't resist this combo - three of my all time fave colours, all in the one look :-) 

In case you're wondering, multicoloured eyes are actually very easy to create - the only difficulty I ever have is in choosing which shades to combine, simply because the possibilities are endless. Even that gets easier the more often you give it a shot, but knowing what's in your kit is a big plus. Because I use my shadows just about every day, I can remember most of what I have, how well they apply (or not so well), and their intensity - this last component is a major one because the whole thing can turn out less than satisfactory if you use one shadow that overpowers the others.

Another factor is the degree of shimmer each one has - again, if one of them is super duper sparkly, you have to be careful where you position it so that it doesn't throw everything off-balance. Similarly, putting a matte directly alongside a shimmer can look a little whacky, unless you do them in layers working towards the back of the lid (patting mattes into the crease will just about always work out fine).

 

So here's the list of ingredients, somewhat longer than usual because of the mix of colours:

bhcosmetics liquid liner felt pen to tightline the upper lid

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Too Cool (white frost) as a base all over the lid

Starting with the inner corner...

essence 3D Irresistible Mermaid Kiss (aquamarine)

Urban Decay Peace (turquoise)

essence 3D Irrestible Blue Sky with a dab of UD Fishnet over the top

W7 Purple

Maybelline Master Precise Liquid Liner on the lower lashline smudged with W7 purple

essence White Kajal on the waterline

MUA matte beige on the hood

MNY The Falsies waterproof mascara

I blended all the joins between the colours with a soft brush - it doesn't take anything more than a gentle pressure to soften the edges so that the hues flow together. And blending works best when you apply the shadows dry :-)

Do you have a favourite colour combo? What's the wildest mix of colours you've ever tried?

Take care of you,

kats xxx

EOTD: Turquoise Butterfly Blue...

I'm calling this look "butterfly blue" because it reminds me of the iridescent wings of those glorious insects I see on nature programs filmed in South America.

The base I used was Mirenesse Face Gel in Blue Moon - sadly they don't make this shade any more, but although I've had it for several years, it's just as viable as it was the day I bought it. This was one of the original range that didn't come with a built-in brush - the colour is just so deliciously vibrant.

Over the top I added Peace from the UD Deluxe shadow Box - such a stunning turquoise with loads of shimmer, then I smoked the outside with Zero from the same palette. Just to make it interesting, I dabbed a smidgin of Fishnet in the middle of the lid. It looks a bit patchy because this is a duo-chrome that my camera doesn't register all that well, but IRL, it was super pretty.

I then lined the lower lashline with MNY Master Precise Liquid Liner and blended a little Peace over the top.  On the waterline, I used the Mirenesse Blue Moon.

Does nature inspire any of your eye-looks?

Take care of you,
kats xxx