Nail Colors I'm obsessing over for Fall 2013

Favorite metallic Fall polishes: Chanel Bel-Argus, Taboo and Butter London Knees Up

Metallics are incredible. They are able to look bright AND dark at the same time, and different in different lighting conditions.

Here are 3 of the ones I find the most incredibly beautiful.

• Chanel 667 Bel Argus - rich nuanced sapphire that shifts to an azure blue sheen
• Chanel 583 Taboo - Black, and purple, and red, with hints of copper AND flecks of gold. This polish looks like the night sky.
• Butter London Knees Up - Best metallic red in the universe. Well, MY universe anyway. This is so rich it shifts from bright ruby to blood red.

OCC Lip Tar in Sybil, a true chocolate sauce brown, with Chanel Bel-Argus on nails

Cremes, on the other hand, are solid colors that make a strong statement. I particularly like these 3 blues and greys that still echo a bit of Summer’s bright blues, but with a touch of Fall’s cooler, more somber skies.

Creme polishes for Fall: Dior Vernis in Blue Denim, China Glaze Secret Peri-wink-le, and Sally Hansen Greige Gardens

• Dior 607 Blue Denim - Looks like a primary blue but actually goes on with deeper, more grey, and not bright.
• China Glaze 683 Secret Peri-wink-le - Periwinkle is usually a word associated with Spring, but this shade has just that hint of chilly grey to it, like the sky when Summer is transitioning to Fall.
• Sally Hansen 404 Greige Gardens - Grey-beige with just a hint of lavender. More of a typical Fall color, greys always look cool and atypical, but still classy. If blue is a little inappropriate for school or work, go for a nice grey!’

Simple and Polished: Basic Everyday Neutral Eyes and Warm Bright-pink Lips

Just because you have a quad or palette with 4, 5, 6, shades doesn't mean you need to think of how to incorporate every color every time. It can be extremely overwhelming. For daily wear, 2-3 shadow shades is plenty.

Here's a very simple look that I very often wear when I want to look polished but don't want to spend too much time. You can recreate it whether you own the same eyeshadow palette I used (Lancôme Hypnôse Star Palette in Brun Adoré), or a neutral eye palette that you already own.

Tutorial

Tips and Tricks: What To Do with a Blue Lip Mix!

The idea of blue lips always sounds so ridiculous. Until you actually wear it and realize it looks pretty cool.

I'm demonstrating with Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetic's Rx Lip Tar, which is a rich creme cobalt blue. It's quite deep and strong in real life, but for some reason in white fluorescent light, it looks bright blue.

In 2 of the images, I applied Lime Crime's deep indigo-blue glitter, Aquarius, over the Lip Tar. The glitter is darker than the gloss, so it created a deep metallic-looking effect. To see the intensity/depth of the final color, check out the low-light image above. (I apologize for the unfocused image; for some reason my camera doesn't want to focus without light. I probably should have tried an indoor setting.)

If you're taking photographs with it, remember 2 things will happen:

1. In indoor light, the sharp contrast of the blue against your skin color is going to create a dark border right around the lip color. 
2. In flash, the blue is going to GLOW.

Tools and Tips:

• Use a small concealer brush. There is no way you are getting this on using your fingers or directly from the tube. You will need plenty of precision because any streak, smear, or uneven lines is going to show up instantly.
• It's best to apply a lip primer or clear liner first. This is because lip tars will rapidly bleed into fine lines around your lips (as you can see from the slight fuzziness on some of the images above).
• For an extra precise lip, pick up a little concealer on a small brush after you apply your blue lip, and then go around the border of your lips just to clean up and get an ultra-neat line.
• OCC Lip Tars AND MAC Lip Mixes will go on glossy, but eventually set to a matte finish. If you want to apply any glitter to it, do it quickly while it is still glossy, because once it sets it goes matte and it will no longer be as tacky.

Some Ideas for Mixing

Wearing a cobalt blue lip isn't practical for everyone. So what else would you find useful in a Lip Tar or blue lipstick?

Color adjusting/mixing!

A strong blue can do 2 things:

1. Add cool tones to a color that you find a little too warm (yellowish, orange) for your liking. Adding this to a basic red lipstick allows you to make it almost berry-ish or blood-colored. Very cool if you're going for a glam look or have deeper skin and find most reds showing up orange on you.

When added to a pink or mauve, it intensifies the bright magenta/violet tones so you can add a twist to your regular bright pink lipstick.

2. It adds depth to an already-deep color. Try adding a dot into a dark plum or liver colored lipstick. Instant Noir. This works the same way that a translucent blue-toned hair dye can turn brown hair black. 

Final reminder:

Don't over-apply when you're using it as a lipmix! The color is extremely pigmented and can overtake the original lipstick you're trying to adjust. 

How much do you need?

This little. That's ALL I used for the 3 lip color adjustment swatches above. One tube is probably going to last you for years if you're only using it on yourself.