Illamasqua Paranormal: Nail Varnish

The non-weather of late has had me constantly wearing nude colours on my nails. What do you wear when it's supposed to be sunny, but the clouds are telling you to wait another month before changing-up your seasonal wardrobe? Nudes seem to go with everything and cross one thing off my list in the morning (don't tell me you don't match your outfit to your nail varnish...) but they leave me quite uninspired. Illamasqua are certainly no 'nude' brand, known for their bright colours, extravagant images and out-there concoctions, so it's no suprise these nail varnishes were the ones to well and truly get me out of my mid-season rut. Part of their 'Paranormal' collection, these three shades are strikingly powerful and omit a colour that almost leaves you breathless. Green, purple and pink shouldn't really work together... But on this occasion they totally and utterly do. The formulas themselves are delightfully thick without being gloopy, applying to the nail flawlessly to leave a delicate shimmer that catches the light. You barely need two coats to get a true-to-bottle colour, meaning there's plenty of room for a base and topcoat to keep them lasting flawlessly for as long as possible. I'm quickly falling in love with the nail varnishes from Illamasqua, the formulas and colours being perfect, as everyone else seems to be too. I had great fun creating a bit of nail art with the shades - made even better with a topcoat that makes them shine brightly under UV light. I don't have a UV lamp floating around at home, but I'm pretty sure if I was to wear these out to the Ministry of Sound (or some other hip club I'm probably too old to enjoy) it would be reminiscent of a foam party from 2003. And when was that ever a bad thing?







Nail varnishes available now priced £15.00. Top coat priced £13.50.