EOTD: Essence Frosted Apple #2, 3 & 4...

As promised, I did a bit of playing around with essence Metal Glam Frosted Apple using different bases. The results were mixed, but here they are:

Base: Maybelline Color Tattoo in Pomegranate Punk

Verdict: Disappointing. Came out kind of a grubby reddish brown rather than pink, and the gold sheen is somewhat muted.  Boo!

Base: Camouflage Colour in Cool Pink

Verdict: Disappointing. A bit wishy-washy, and once again, the metallic sheen leaves a lot to be desired. Boo!

Base: Maybelline Color Tattoo in Too Cool

Verdict: Yay! Success at last - I KNEW this pink was gorgeous, but it took a white base to bring it out, and the gold is still shimmering there in sufficient quantity to make it interesting :-)

In summary, if you want more of the gold metallic sheen to stand out, then use a gold base. But if emphasis on the pretty pink is what you're after, then use white underneath :-)

And for comparison purposes, here is the original look using MNY Color Tattoo in Bold Gold...

Well gals, which one do you like best?

Take care of you,
kats xxx

EOTD: Lemon and Lime...

A case of the dreary drizzles here in Sydney today, so what better way to brighten the boredom than with a juicy lemon & lime eye look :-)

So I started by laying down a base of MNY Bold Gold Color Tattoo - I've been giving this deliciously creamy and sparkly gel quite a workout since it arrived, and am kicking myself for not buying it when this range first came out. This particular one is brilliantly versatile, and will give a soft glistening lift to just about anything applied over the top :-)

Next I automatically reached for my bhcosmetics Take Me To Brazil palette, but the yellows were all too yellow, so I cracked open the 120 box and found a pretty pastel lemon I hadn't tried before, plus the two greens below...

I'm always fascinated to watch youtube vids of how gals apply their shadows, and in what sequence - I've decided that it doesn't matter too much which way you go about it, so long as it works for you, but I always start with the inner corner, press the shadows on, and then blend backwards from the outside in...

Just about every eye look I create is an experiment, and looking at these two greens in the palette, I wasn't 100% sure they would work together - I classify the deeper green shade as coolish because it contains some blue, and the brighter one is certainly leaning towards the warm side of the spectrum with a fair amount of yellow in it. As a rule I don't usually mix cool & warm tones together, but I'll be playing around with this concept in the future as I suspect the combination will work just fine if I stick to the same shade family. All up I was pleasantly surprised with the result...

I used the cool green along the lower lashline instead of the lime because it's pretty close to my natural eye colour, and then added essence white kajal on the waterline...

I love how colour can change my mood - some shades are definitely calming, but I always find green to be refreshing and energising. Do you find colours affect you in different ways?

Take care of you,

kats xxx

REVIEW/LOTD: NYX Creamy Round Lipstick - Thalia...

Well aren't I a happy little bunny now that NYX has come to Australia, and is available at a fair number of Target stores! I held my breath when I went in to my local the first time after I heard the news, as I'd read that not all outlets were stocking it. But to my delight, there was the stand, and it was positively overflowing with testers :-) I surprised even myself with my restraint and only grabbed a Wonder Pencil and this absolutely divine Creamy Round Lipstick in shade #529, Thalia...

Although I wear a wide range of lipstick shades, mauvey pinks seem to be the most flattering of all, and I was so enamoured with this particular hue, I went back the next day and bought another to keep as a spare. I've never been game to order any lipsticks from the NYX site in the past because I have zero faith in the colours I see on my monitor, so to have the whole range available to test-before-I-buy is pure bliss...

I'm head-over-heels in love with this lipstick - it's just so creamy and moisturising! Doesn't last very long on my pout, but I don't give a hoot because the colour, shine and softening properties are just so perfect for what I'm after, plus it has very little fragrance and minimal taste (just a wee bit perfumey). 

The gloss finish is almost mirror shine, in fact I really don't need to apply anything over the top. However, being a self-confessed gloss addict, and after scouring through my collection, I discovered that Mirenesse Velvet Lip Lift Moisture Shine in #17 (Rose Musk) is an almost exact match. That's Thalia on the left, and the Mirenesse gloss on the right - there's  barely any difference :-)

And here is Thalia with Mirenesse #17 over the top - a smidgin pinker, and the glossy finish raised a notch. Just out of interest I googled "Thalia", and in Greek Mythology, she was one of the nine Muses, the goddess of festivities and luxurious banquets, and the name itself means rich, plentiful and abundant - well I reckon that about sums up this lipstick nicely :-)

Have you tried any of the NYX creamy lipsticks yet? Which one is your favourite?

Take care of you,

kats xxx

EOTD: Not Radiant Orchid...

Bit of a jokey title, but to be honest I wasn't even attempting Radiant Orchid, in fact I deliberately used a purple base to it wouldn't turn out so pink :-) I have to say that I'm somewhat torn between my existing passion for regular orchid, and the Pantone Colour of the Year. Sure it's early days, and although I love Radiant Orchid, I can't see myself going ballistic over it, mainly because it has so much red in it, which can be dangerous for this old chooky's eyes. Orchid on the other hand is pretty much risk-free, plus I have quite a few items of clothing in this more lilaccy hue already, and well, I think it's far more flattering for my particular skin tone...

Of course colour is SO incredibly subjective, and open to such a wide range of interpretations and tags - I've noticed that some online writers seem to be classifying anything vaguely purple as Radiant Orchid, when in fact Pantone reveals the shade to be quite distinct. I don't know how you see it, but to me it's way more pink than purple (pictured again below)...

Anyway, as part of my (ongoing) search for a true Radiant Orchid eye shadow, a fabulous forum friend pointed me in the direction of L'Oreal Chrome Intensity in Purple Obsession (thanks to my precious Petal ♥). While I don't think it's a perfect representation of this hard-to-find hue, it's pretty darn close in certain lights, and in any case, I'm thrilled to have it in my collection. Here are some photos of it taken under various conditions - cool light, warm, flash, no flash. To be honest it's quite the chameleon, and I couldn't figure out which of these pics shows it's true nature, so I included all of them...

So for this orchid look, I used MNY Colour Tattoo in Painted Purple as a base, and then applied the L'Oreal Purple Obsession all over that, with a teeny bit of palest lilac from the L.A.Colors Venus palette close to the top lashline...

There's no doubting Purple Obsession is a beauty - richly pigmented and you don't need to build it very much to get a dense coverage, and blending is a walk in the park. It's actually almost magenta in some lights, but the purple tattoo keeps it from wavering too far into the pink zone...

One bonus is that either of the orchids seem to go well with my eye colour - both tend to make the green stand out more yay :-) I do love the softness of this particular shade though - it's feminine and elegant, yet bold enough to make a statement, with not even a whiff of OTT. I can imagine this working beautifully for brown, grey and blue eyes too :-)

And here's the whole not Radiant orchid look...

Yep...I'm definitely an orchid gal, and while I'm still actively seeking the one that's currently in the spotlight, I reckon this version is radiant enough for me :-) What say you gals?

Take care of you,

kats xxx