COLOUR BLOCKING!

Last weekend I and a few of my blogging friends (check picture #24 in the slideshow - that's us!) were given the opportunity to sit front row (squee!) at a catwalk show for 30 Days of Fashion and Beauty. The show was styled by the lovely, very pregnant and glowing Nicole Adolphe, Fashion Director at Cosmopolitan. The clothing was sourced from Seduce and Dotti, the shoes were from Lipstick and Siren, and the bags were from (my favourite bag designer for many years) Olga Berg.

The makeup and nails were designed by Elsa Morgan for Revlon, who were our kind hosts for the show. 

Else shared her top makeup tip, and that is to make your products work harder by multi tasking them. Her suggestions? Use Lipsticks as a cream blush, and eyeliners as a cream shadow / eyeshadow base.

The obvious trend in this show was colour blocking - for the uninitiated, colour blocking is putting together large panels of colour in your look, often clashing, and somehow it all works! If you would like a better idea of how to pull off this colour blocking trend, I found a great article on MamaMia.

Here are a few of the looks from the show:

I absolutely ADORE the ruffled dress in the last image, it's so pretty!

Now, this is a beauty blog, not a fashion blog, but colour blocking is not just for clothes. One really easy and safe way to incorporate this trend into your beauty regime is with your nails. As a part of this event I was gifted with a selection of Revlons newest Top Speed Nail Colours, most of which are perfect for colour blocking.

010 Sheer Cotton is a very sheer milky colour, and the only neutral/natural polish in my Top Speed collection. Not really a colour blocking polish, it dries to a glossy finish.

210 Jelly. A VERY bright colour. A fabukous dark pink that is almost, but not quite red. Probably my favourite Revlon polish colour, it dries to a glossy finish.

305 Electric. This retina burning, slightly metallic yellow is SO on trend for this season. It can be a difficult colour to wear, but if you rock a tan this would be absolutely divine! Not so great on my pink and pasty hands. It dries to a glossy finish.

430 Chili. Another shockingly bright colour, this "not quite red" is a fabulous orange. This colour feels like summer on your nails, and dries to a glossy finish.

510 Fire. This is the red you have been waiting for. It's a neutral red, so it doesn't really have discernible blue or yellow undertones. It's a universally flattering colour, and probably the safest way to dip your toes (or fingers) into the colour blocking trend. Dries to a glossy finish.

730 Royal. This is a beautiful deep blue, and my second favourite in the collection. It dries to a satiny matte finish and really benefits from a high gloss top coat.

I found these polishes to be mildly difficult to work with, due to their fast-drying nature. My tips for a smooth application are to work fast and use as few brushstrokes as possible (try and keep it to maximum 3 each nail). I also found that applied alone they are somewhat prone to chipping, but this is greatly improved by the use of a good base and top coat.

All the polishes swatched in natural shaded light (swatched in numerical order L-R).

 
All the polishes swatched in natural sunlight (swatched in numerical order L-R).

Will you be dabbling with colour blocking as the weather warms up? What wonderful colour combinations do you plan on rocking?

This post contains products provided for consideration. I have no affiliation with any organisation mentioned in this post and have not been remunerated for this review. All opinions are my own.