I have a confession to make and it’s probably a bit verboten for a beauty blogger. Sometimes, I get a bit bored with color cosmetics. Really how many shades of blush, eyeshadow, bronzer, etc. can really be made? Thank goodness for Illamasqua, as one of the few beauty brands that can be counted on to always do something fresh and different and interesting enough for me to go outside of my makeup comfort zone. From their mind-blowing rubber-finish nail varnishes to their Powder Blushers that are so highly pigmented you can create five different shades from blush from the one product, Illamasqua creates products that make their customers want to “challenge their makeup bags” (in Illamasqua’s David Horne’s words).
I recently attended a press preview of Illamasqua’s Spring 2013 Collection. The collection is called “I’m Perfection”, a play on the word “imperfection”. The idea behind the collection comes from the Japanese phrase “Wabi-sabi”, which means appreciating the art of imperfection. The collection includes five new speckled nail polishes - Freckle (brown), Fragile (blue), Mottle (green), Scarce (pink) and Speckle (purple). True to Illamasqua form, the speckles in the polish were inspired by a desire to create nail art in a bottle in a single swipe (no need for steady hands and special tools!) and a piece of old rotting cardboard. The result is a collection gorgeous, multi-dimensional pastel (plus, one beautiful brown) nail lacquers inspired by the natural “imperfections” that are on bird eggs .
Illamasqua’s Limited Edition Speckled Nail Varnish Collection
The speckled theme was carried through to the eyes. Pointilism-like dots of Illamasqua’s Precision Ink eyeliner were used to create a black and white dotted winged look that was reminiscent of a bird’s feather. The look was also created using a flesh-tone (“Glister“), liner which looks fantastic on darker skin.
Illamasqua’s US Brand Ambassador, Joshua Heald, gives the speckled eyeliner look to an attendee.
We were also introduced to Illamasqua’s new Blush Up Brush, which has completely upended the way that I think about applying blush. The ellipse-shaped head of the Blush Up Brush is made for applying blush in an upward stroking motion from underneath the cheekbone, instead of above the cheekbone or on the apple of the cheek. The result is a super natural highlighting of the cheekbone.
David Horne, Illamasqua’s Director of New Product Development, explains how the Spring 2013 campaign sought to highlight things that are typically seen as imperfections.
Illamasqua’s highly pigmented Powder Blushers.
How are you planning to update your makeup look for the Spring?
