Is it just me, or have we gone a bit mad for iridescent finishes? It could be just me, but I think I've gone gaga enough for the nation. The release of Chanel's Peridot sent polish enthusiasts into a state of near hysteria. Those who weren't lucky enough to get their hands on a bottle took to twitter, with cries of "dupe, DUPE!". As expected, beauty bloggers across the world dived into their nail polish cabinets, dead set on filling the void in iridescent enthusiast's lives.
Most were appeased with Aztec by Accessorize, Peace On Earth by China Glaze or the untitled greeny-gold offering by Claire's Accessories - read our take on the dupes for it here. Others (ahem, me, ahem) had a more insatiable hunger for the qualities that Peridot had and set about adopting more members from the iridescent family.
My craving led me to the Catrice stand, where I had to slink past a legion of women with more buggies and bulky bags than knowledge of how using testers tiredly on your face spreads infection. Beaut.ies, would you think me mad if I slapped the applicators out of their hands? I got Iron Mermaiden; a sometime green, sometime silver and sometime mauve polish. Next on the list was Dusky Mauve by Barry M. Its iridescence is more subtle than Iron Mermaiden's, only varying slightly from its mud mauve shade to a brighter greyed purple.
Photo finish: Lorraine's small - but perfectly formed - iridescent product collection
Advertised
Iridescent eyeshadows are harder to come by. I think I've only got one in my collection - Mac's Club. In the pot, it looks like an odd greyed green but when applied, it blends to a very flattering medium reddish brown and looks like a deep antique silver where it's concentrated. I lash some on with a fluffy brush and blend, leaving myself an extra ten minutes for that vital second cup of tea before the commute.
While the polishes lend themselves to my favourite hobby, holding my hands up in people's faces, saying "Look! Shiny!" and the eye-shadows make life easier, the real allure of iridescence is found in lip glosses. Those of you who can't cope with the gentle tingling (or, constant burning, if we're being honest) of plumping glosses might want to go for something like Inglot's AMC Lip Gloss range.
At first, I thought they looked like little tubes of electricity and, though cool, not very wearable. This was one of those all to common occasions were I am completely wrong. When applied, they give a sheer, gloss-typical wash of ever-changing colour. I'm not sure of the science behind it but, never one to question a good thing, I just accept that this makes my skinny little lips look fuller and generally less pathetic. My tube, 514, is clear but shines violet - lovely over a cool pink lipstick.
I just can't get enough! I'm on the prowl for more, so suggestions are appreciated. What are your favourites?
Mac club pic credit: beauty-product-junkies.bellasugar.com
