Tag Archives: blue

Nails of the week – blue/pink duochrome

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This week I am a bit rushed off my feet – my office moved to  a brand new building and I am still a bit lost and until I get used to it, I think I will have this feeling of putting some extra effort into going to work – although, that can be easily explained by the fact I have probably paid a record number of visits to various high street shops in one day; office is near Oxford Street, in London, and the temptation is just too much!

I am  also going to Paris for a long weekend (yay), so that has also contributed to my lack of time…

However, I finally found a few minutes to show you my talons: this week I am wearing Andrea Fulerton’s Smile in a storm. Having used two or her duos in the past, and being very excited about those, I almost forgot I had this one; I bought it ages ago, so decided it was time to try it.

It consists of two polishes on a double ended brush; one is gunmetal grey, super sparkly and the other one is an iridescent topcoat. Together, they become a very pretty, although subtle, duochrome which varies from a light, grey-ish blue to darker blue and then to lilac and pink. Sometimes, depending on the light, you can get a glimpse of the grey, but maybe because I just used one coat of each. The reason for that is because the polish builds up quite thick. I had some problems with bubbles, when adding a third coat (second of topcoat), so removed it all and applied again, this time settling for less.

Apart from the bubbles, and the fact that the double ended brush makes it a bit clunky when applying, I am happy with it. Even with an extra shine topcoat, I noticed the finish is not too shiny, and someone even asked me if I had my matte topcoat on! Colour is fab and durability great!

Really like my new H&M ring, so decided to add it here too!

Rating:

Eye make-up look challenge – electric blue eyeliner

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One of the eye make up looks that caught my eye in recent fashion weeks was Anna Sui’s winged blue eyeliner, with a pretty dot on the lower lash line.

So this week I decided to re-create my own version on it, but with a half circle on the centre of the lower lash line, similar to the half sequins used at Givenchy SS12, instead of Anna Sui’s smaller full dot slightly off centre.

In my treasure chest that is the Sephora palette I bought a while back, there are six gel eyeliners, including an electric blue one, so I decided that it was perfect to execute this look.

I prepped my eyes with a primer, dusted with a bit of pigment to give it a glow, used clear sticky tape to work as a stencil so my line would be sharp and precise and voilá – I drew from the inner corner with a brush, as if applying normal eyeliner, but extended it more towards the end of my brows to make it more dramatic.

Then, I built on it, giving thickness on the lid. I took some pictures of it thinner and thicker, and I like them both.

Bearing in mind this took me literally five minutes to achieve on each eye, I think this look is a winner – especially because of its versatility; you can use any colour you want, make the flick shorter and also drop the dot on the lower lash line! If no gel eyeliner is at hand, it can also be achieved by wetting eyeshadow then applying with an angled brush, it will though, be harder to achieve a good coverage and durability, depending on the colour and the eyeshadow. Wet pigments would also work a treat.

Products I used:

  • Sephora gel eyeliner in electric blue, from palette
  • MAC pigment in Vanilla
  • MAC brushes 209SE and 208
  • Maybelline brush (comes with the  Lasting Drama gel liner)
  • Maybelline One by one Volume Express mascara
  • E.L.F eyelid primer
  • MAC eyebrow set
  • Clear sticky tape

Rating:

Nails of the week – blue with glitter flakes

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Blue, I am obsessed with blue at the moment (again)!

This week I am wearing a metallic cobalt blue with a pretty glitter flakes topcoat.

The metallic blue (Blue me away) is from Collection 2000, and the fact that I wore it before on its own proves it is great, only one coat provides great coverage. The topcoat is from a Brazilian brand I didn’t know: Big Universo, and this one is called Raio Gama;  its flakes are transparent with a laser type effect; a lilac/purple/blueish sheen. The polish is laden with flakes and its base, although translucent, has a bit of the flakes colour too. The effect is really pretty and although it didn’t come out well in the pictures, there is a subtle colour change on the nail surface and the flakes, from light to deep blue to purple…

Application was great; the Collection 2000 blue provided a great base, and then I added two coats of the Big Universo on top. Durability is also great, no chips in sight after five days.

I am very pleased with this combination, I really think the beauty of it lies with the subtlety of the colour and how, in a way, the topcoat softens and adds dimension to the base polish. In fact, I like it so much that decided against trying my nail stamps for the first time, but I shall be doing that soon!

Rating:

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Nails of the week: half-moon black and blue

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Inspired by fashion week, I decided to try something different on my nails, so, for the first time I had half-moons on my talons. And I settled for matte pastel blue and black, after my gold and black attempt failed.

Tip number one: paint the half-moon colour one day and the top colour the other, to avoid disappointment.  Initially, I used Barry M foil effects in gold; it is a thick polish and even though it  seems to dry really quickly, after an hour, I applied the French manicure stickers to the bottom of my nails, painted the rest black and when I peeled them, the gold came off.

So I decided to change colours and used two coats of Nails Inc in Oxford, and the following evening, I used new stickers and applied two coats of Black Barry M over it.  Application was smooth, and the Nails Inc pastel wasn’t a pain to apply, as most creamy light shades; the second coat provided a good coverage, fit for a full 24-hour solo use! The Barry M was also good,  two coats for perfect, smooth and super shiny jet black.

Now, second tip: because I wasn’t sure I wanted matte effect, I waited a bit to apply the topcoat. The adhesive on the strips was very strong, so fluff from a hand towel kinda stuck to the remainder of glue on my half-moons and it was pretty hard to get rid of. I should’ve put the topcoat immediately after painting. You live, you learn!

For the very first time I also tried Gosh’s Matte effect topcoat.  It creates a great matte effect which I loved; the idea of turning any nail varnish into matte is indeed very appealing, but after a few days of wear and tear it started to look shiny again, so a re-touch is definitely recommended after three or four days to take it back to its matte glory.

I had to put four coats of nail polish plus one topcoat. Add to that a topcoat re-touch, and you have SIX layers altogether – way too much for my liking, looks like I am growing a nail on top of my nail! It lasted surprisingly well, I really though all the layers would compromise durability, but there isn’t a single chip in sight, after four days.

Overall,  I love the half-moons; the pastel blue+black combination is great. I know they are not perfect, but I am pleased as a first attempt. I will definitely venture on to other designs, have already some things in mind, so watch this space!

Have you tried it before? How did you find it?

Rating:

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Nails of the week – multicolour gold/green/blue

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This week I am wearing a nail polish I had been looking forward to trying on, as the colour is so vivid: Trendy, another Specialittá polish from the Marinoon Multigirl collection.

Now, one of the colours on this duochrome is definitely gold. The green part gets a bit complicated – I really loved the spectrum of colours on this: from the bright gold yellow, it changes to a subtle apple green, ending on a blue-ish, grey-ish green, with more or less variations depending on the lighting. Truly amazing colour! It is very shiny, the gold very yellow and intense.

The not so good bit is that application wasn’t that straight forward; although I just needed 2 coats (differently from the previous one from this range I tried, which was quite thin), I can still see the brush strokes marks, no matter how careful I was. Although to the untrained eye on a daily basis this is not noticeable, you can still notice in my pictures. This upsets me, I like my polish smooth and shiny, so a big let down. Drying time was slightly above standard but durability is very good!

Overall, love the colour, but a bit of trouble for what it is worth. The brush stroke marks are really bothering me, but a nice choice anyway.

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First pastel of the season

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Well, it looks like I won’t be able to run away from the pretty pastels – not that I don’t love them, but they were super in around 2001, and I had so many that I didn’t think I would bring myself to ever wearing it again. Plus, they are really unforgiving colours, revealing every body imperfection!!!

However, with the imminent pastels overload for spring, I have already given in and purchased an item I fell completely in love with (damn you newsletters!) – the stunning Esme shoes from Kurt Geiger. In one had, you have the delicate pastels, but on the other you have the spikes, which really give them an edge.

Now, you may remember I fell in love with a glittery KG not too long ago, but this one was stronger than me, when I slipped my foot in, I knew I had to bring them home. So I used the Elle KG voucher to take £25 off my guilty conscience and voilá!

Don’t you just love them? What about you? Have you bought any pastels yet or you are not succumbing the the paler palette this season?


Nails of the week – blue/dark pink duochrome

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Specialittá Marimoon, Artsy - dani dutraAfter a whole month of being spoiled by my manicurist Irma, in Brazil, I am sadly back to doing my own manicure. The nail polish I chose to kick off 2012 in London is part of my Brazil nail polish haul. It is from Specialittá, the same as the holographic I used a few weeks ago, but from a different line: Marimoon multigirl, in Artsy colour.

Its colour is amazing, it is duo-chrome, but each one of the predominant colours change into others, so I would really call it a poli-chrome. It is primarily a deep blue, changing into purple and then into a deep reddish-pink which turns into  a warm copper-gold. Absolutely gorgeous – it has been a while since I got this impressed with the colour changing effects of a nail varnish – in fact, since using Petrol in water.

This polish has an amazing finish, it is very shiny and the durability is ace – no scratches or chips. Application was a bit bumpy as the polish is quite thin; the first coat was pathetic and I thought I was going to be bitterly disappointed. It will only deliver its full potential on the third coat.  However, as it is super glossy, there was no need for a top coat, so I am accepting of this three-coat varnish.

Overall very happy, and I cannot wait to try the other bottle of the same line I bought.  I am seriously considering buying the whole line and having them shipped to my family in Brazil, so they can ship it over to London… at R$8 a bottle, I think it is good value, as I can buy all six I don’t have for £20, with postage to Brazil… Should’ve done it while there!

Specialittá Marimoon, Artsy - dani dutra

 

 

 

 

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Nails of the week – blue with glitter flakes

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blue nails - Impala paparazzi and paz e amor - dani dutraFor my last manicure in Brazil, I chose blue. I am wearing two nail polishes from Impala: a lovely dark, slightly metallic navy blue called Paparazzi and a blue and green glitter flakes topcoat called Paz e Amor.

Alone, Paparazzi is a very pretty and shiny deep, dark navy blue. The topcoat effect is lovely and somewhat similar to the Andrea Fulerton Rain fall trio topcoat, the difference being the flakes on this polish change colour, whereas the ones on the Impala varnish are two different colours. The Impala polish also has a clearer base for the flakes.

This brand is very good; applications is always smooth and even, the finish is glossy and durability is great.

Today is my last post from Brazil – sadly, my holidays are over and I am heading to London tomorrow. This means I will go back to doing my own manicure again (you do get used to having them done!) and will start trying out my nail varnish haul, as well as some polishes I had bought before coming on holiday!

Nails of the week – holographic teal

I am thoroughly enjoying my holiday, this “white Christmas” thing is not really for me! With temperatures averaging 30°, I have developed a great tan; add the intense socialising, and my posts have been sparse an irregular! I will return in full power after mid January – I promise!

This week I am wearing a pretty holographic teal nail polish from a Brazilian brand I hadn’t tried before: Specialittá Hits, and the colour is Apolo, from their “No Olimpo” range.

The holo effect is not too strong; it is stunning in the sun, very sparkly and multi coloured, but indoors, it is just a pretty metallic teal! For this reason, on the 6th day of wearing it, I have painted over with the gorgeous topcoat from Andrea Fulerton’s Rain Fall trio, with green glitter flakes, to give it a bit of oomph!

Once again, I didn’t apply myself, but it seemed to glide well. Its durability is very impressive: seven days and not a chip!!!

The price is, of course, as every Brazilian polish, great, although above the average: around R$ 8,00 (just under £3)!!!

Nails of the week – magnetic blue

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17 Magnetic Nail polish in blue - Dani Dutra

Click to enlarge

I got over my disillusion with the Saturday’s magnetic nail varnish and decided to give the 17 Magnetized Nail polish a go. I  bought a few as gifts to friends in Brazil, and I intended to give them all away, but when I cast my eyes on the blue one, I found it so beautiful that I couldn’t let go.

Its colour is a pretty indigo blue and it differs from the other magnetic polishes because the dark colour that ripples has a little tinge of purple. This is very subtle and only visible sometimes. Still, I really liked it.

The brush is of satisfactory width and the polish has a good consistency, but can get a bit thick; you do need a generous second coat for the effect to look good.  Application was alright, not as good as the Nails Inc one, but not as bad as the Saturdays varnish – this really sums up this nail polish; something between the Nails Inc and the Fashionista one (although quite a way away from it, as the quality is much better!)

As per durability, it is quite good; it doesn’t chip easily, and this is a very important point for me.

Overall, I am quite happy with this; priced at £5.99 and coming with its own magnet, I believe it’s a good deal. And it is available in blue, purple, green and gunmetal. Pretty!

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