Black Opal

Ever since I was a little girl, I have been fascinated by mother nature. One thing I have always enjoyed was going to the Los Angeles Natural History Museum to check out the gemstones and minerals exhibit. I was always in such awe of the magnificent beauty that this earth can create. I was always so excited and I would get lost in the wonders of that corner of the museum. A favorite gemstone of mine is the opal, especially the black opal. I adore the variety of bright colors and how they look like a mini galaxy encrusted into a rock. Simply beautiful. Here is a rather daring look where I tried to capture the essence of this beautiful stone.

The internal structure of precious opal makes it diffract light; depending on the conditions in which it formed, it can take on many colors. Precious opal ranges from clear through white, gray, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, magenta, rose, pink, slate, olive, brown, and black. Of these hues, the reds against black are the most rare, whereas white and greens are the most common. Black opals are among the rarest and is said to be some of the best examples found in Australia.

*UPDATE*

Many of you have asked for me to explain how I created this effect. I will try to go into a little more detail for you guys. I basically got a teeny bit of each eyeshadow pigments and added it to their cap. I mixed each shade individually with an equal amount of Glamour Dolls Eyes Foil Me, which turns any eyeshadow into a liquid eyeliner. You can also use a mixing medium or even water. You just need to get the pigments to get to a paste-like consistency. After that, I used a small detailing brush to apply each color to my lids. I randomly placed the colors in different sized shapes in a dabbing motion. No need to be be perfect since you're trying to recreate an organic matter. Keep adding different colors until your lids are completely covered and you get the look you desire. I hope that helps! 

FACE:

• Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Foundation in Fair Sand
• Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in Transparent

EYES:

• Lime Crime Eyeshadow Helper
• NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Black Bean all over lids as a base
• Sugarpill ElektroCute Neon Pigments in Love Buzz, Hi-Viz, Sparkage, and Hellatronic mixed with GDE Foil me to create a paste-like consistency and then applied randomly on eyelids with a small detail brush to create an opal effect
• Sugarpill Eyeshadow in Bulletproof in crease and lower lids
• Sugarpill Eyeshadow in Poison Plum above crease
• Sugrapill Eyeshadow in Hi-Viz on tearduct
• Sugarpill Eyeshadows in Midori, Afterparty and Poison Plum on lower lids
• Makeup Geek Gel Liner in Immortal
• FAUX Lashes in Chloe

CHEEKS:

• NYX Blush in Natural
• Face Stockholm Bronzer in Capri #3

LIPS:

• NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Antwerp

I hope you enjoyed this artsy-fartsy look and that you are enjoying the holiday season so far! I cannot believe this year is coming to an end already. So crazy! I'm hoping I have some to create a Christmas and New Years look for you guys. Fingers crossed!

Take care!

 black opal, colorful, smokey, smoky