A Bit Of Naranja

Orange radiates a niche glamour only held by vivid colours. I’m aware that it doesn’t cause the riot that neon green and fuchsia have proven to be capable of, but doesn’t that make it more stylistically ideal? Orange gives a nod to modernity while embracing the every-day ordinary. 

It’s not a colour here to ruffle feathers or knock new-in neon off it’s throne. Yeezy haven’t drowned Kim K in it, so fast fashion and beauty brands haven’t exhausted it – yet. 

But I do prefer the Spanish word naranja over orange. The extra syllable adds a bit of flair that better represents the pizzazz that the colour possesses. I translated this flair onto my eyelids.

2 Shades of Orange

I wanted my look to be a matte orange only – no crease-deepening browns or lid-enhancing glitters. Which meant that I only used the two orange shades on BH Cosmetics’ Take Me Back To Brazil Palette.I laid a base with the lighter orange shade with the Spectrum Collections B06 tall tapered brush, buffing out the colour and covering my lid. I then packed on the darker orange over my lid with the CO6 brush from the same Spectrum eye set.

The CO6 Tulip brush is my favourite because it’s ideal for contouring as well as packing on colour. The versatility is all down to it’s dome-like shape.
I did a soft look all over my skin to match the ease of orange, opting for dewy complexion with NARS Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation and a subtle highlight by Pixi Beauty.

A major discovery I made in the composition of this look is that an ashy brown lipstick with a warm gloss on top matches orange eye-shadow.

So, I used my all-time favourite liquid lipstick and shade, Jeffree Star Cosmetics Velour Liquid Lipstick in ‘Posh Spice’, and patted on Pat McGrath Labs Clear Gloss (unfortunately no longer on sale) with my finger. Finger application was necessary because I wanted my lips to be dewy like my skin rather than light-catching glossy.

In make-up, orange is an ideal colour to chase because it is close to the burnt tradition that we all know and love (read about that here). It takes burnt and removes the dust, leaving a bright colour that is easier to style and easier to love.