A nail artist from Bradford has become inspired by aliens and spaceships, trying to incorporate her passion into the way she looks.
Lhouraii Li wants to be permanently blue, but has ruled out tattooing herself – as others have done – because she fears she may be allergic.
For now, she is happy with face paint and cites ‘Diva’ from the film Fifth Element and Zora from the video game ‘The Legend of Zelda as inspiration for her look.
And she manages to keep the cost of her unique style to a minimum by using ‘the cheapest good makeup’ she can find, which works out to around £10 a month.
The nail artist also sells her own press-on nails and clothing designs online, working from a brightly-colored canal boat where she lives with her boyfriend of 11 years, Nathan.
But Lhouraii says she has agoraphobia – an anxiety disorder that causes panic when in social situations.
So, as a way to cope, she has also painted her boat in intergalactic colours.
‘I’ve always felt quite alone and like I don’t belong and it’s a really horrible feeling,’ she explained.
‘So I tried to make myself a little world where I kind of feel like I do belong.
‘I’ve got pictures of space in the windows because I’m in here 99.9% of the time, so if I’m feeling down I can pretend like I exist in a place that’s happy and just look like I’m in a spaceship or something.
‘And I think that’s the same with being blue as well – it’s just a way for me to feel like myself.’
Lhouraii started the all-blue look two years ago, but prior to that she would often use white face paint with blue eye shadow and says the latest look is an evolution of her previous Japanese fashion-inspired style.
She said: ‘My style used to be mistaken as me trying to look like a Barbie and I wasn’t actually. The style was a Japanese subculture called Gyaru and I still consider myself Gyaru, but just blue.’
She has previously tried different body paint colours, including purple, which she says didn’t feel right.
But Lhouraii says that blue has always felt like her natural skin color.
Lhouraii hasn’t ruled out having cosmetic procedures to enhance her appearance in the future, such as having her ears shaped to look more elfin.
‘I think my idea of beauty is people being themselves,’ she said.
‘If I see someone with blue skin I’ll think they look 10 times better just because I truly love blue skin.
‘But people being their true selves, living for themselves, and just dressing how they want to dress – I find that so beautiful.’
She is also working on her agoraphobia and wants to be able to go out again.
‘I have a book of things that I want to do when I’m able to go outside,’ Lhouraii adds.
‘See a water fountain, see a statue, see and smell flowers, visit a therapist and visit a skin doctor.
‘They’re the things I’m looking forward to the most.’
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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/03/01/girl-inspired-aliens-wants-permanently-blue-thinks-allergic-tattoos-12327936/?ITO=squid
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