The Makeup Box

Illamasqua Naked Strangers Collection

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The Naked Strangers collection is a total departure from the Spring/Summer collections you see around, and made up primarily of neutrals and foiled gold tones.

While I don’t think the eye shadow palette is anything to crow about since these are common colors, it IS a very well-composed one that includes a black for definition and lining, and two medium-toned shades which aren’t too light to make an impact. The texture is predominantly matte, with only the antique gold a metallic. (Most palettes on the market don’t give enough darker shades for definition.)

If you’re looking to invest in one single high-end neutral palette for both work and play, this is a very versatile one to look into. But again, if you can find this color-combo among drugstore palettes, by all means get that.

The one real standout for me is the the pale-gold gloss, Stranger, worn in the image above. Stranger is similar to Lime Crime’s limited edition Carousel gloss, Golden Ticket, but paler and less yellow. If your skin is quite fair or more olive-based (without any pinks), this is actually a color you can wear with a very matte, very smoky eye, in place of the typical nude gloss.

Other items:

I like the Liquid Metal cream in Electrum but it’s part of the regular collection anyway. Just remember this is like a very soft Cream Color Base that doesn’t set, so it WILL crease if you try to wear it neat as an eye shadow.

As for the nail varnishes, the colors are pretty, but I’ll be honest; I never buy polishes from makeup collections because I personally don’t feel it’s worth the money (£13.50 in this case) when you can get more consistent quality and bigger color selections from nail brands such as Essie, China Glaze, Orly and OPI.

What I DO recommend when MAC, Dior, Chanel, Illamasqua and other high-end makeup brands come up with a new collection is just to look out for similar shades among the Essies, China Glazes, etc. 

Bourjois So Laque! “Paris Show Time” Nail Enamels

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Aren’t these bright shades just absolutely gorgeous?!

I’m not sure why these Summer 2011 colors only just hit the shelves, but I’m not complaining.

I had a hard time choosing between Jaune Trendy #39 (mustard yellow), Orange Creation #42 (beautiful orange) and Bleu Model #44 (turquoise blue), but finally went with Bleu Model because it’s just that shade of Tiffany Blue; not too green and not too blue. I’m still tempted to go back for Orange Creation, but we’ll see how that goes.

Bourjois So Laque in 44 Bleu Model

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The mustard yellow is cool but I have a feeling the world will be over that color long before I go through the bottle. 

View the whole range of colors here!

Shu Uemura Nova Diva (Autumn 2011)

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The amazing lashes(US$28) and that drool-worthy limited edition “lace-print” custom palette ($15) is gorgeous. It also helps that the eyeshadows are great quality.

Available for US$15 at Shu Uemura counters for a limited time.

(Image source: http://www.beautylish.com)

Clarins Neo Pastels Collection 2011 

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What’s not to love about soft, cloudy pastels, aside from the fact that there seem to be a million and one variations of the same thing from all the makeup lines?

The publicity shot above, however, I love.
The very dark, very defined liner around the eyes just stops the look from being too insipid and predictable. The pairing of soft, smoky lavender with peachy, orange cheeks and lips is something I like as well. A similar and even more edgy version was done by the brilliant Lisa Eldridge previously.

Very few people would be able to pull off Lisa’s uber-matte version, but the Clarins look is much more accessible for everyone.

[Photo source: pretty24-7.com]