Hi my lovely readers!
I'm sorry I haven't posted on here in more than two weeks now- I've been a very busy gal recently!
So: while the last month has been great for nail polish finds- three shades from the long discontinued China Glaze Kaleidoscope collection for £3.00 each, (WOW!), some lovely duochrome W7 shades, and today Barry M Limited Edition Lilac Foil Nail Paint, (even though it's only supposed to be released in December!) it has not been so good for my actual nails!
I think it must be the onset of Winter- my nails were breaking, so I had to cut them all off! Boooo.
More Avoplex use needed, I think!
Anyways, swatches to come soon!
xx L-L
Friday, 18 November 2011
Monday, 31 October 2011
MAN-icure
This one's for the guys!
Check this article out:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2055867/Johnny-Depp-David-Beckham-wear-nail-polish-guys-sold-Evolution-Man.html
Hit or miss, what do you reckon?
Do you like the colours?
:)
Check this article out:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2055867/Johnny-Depp-David-Beckham-wear-nail-polish-guys-sold-Evolution-Man.html
Hit or miss, what do you reckon?
Do you like the colours?
:)
Thursday, 27 October 2011
OPI early 2012: Nicki Minaj and the Holland Collections
Hi people!
What's the buzz on 2012?
Well, the Olympics are coming here, to London, it's the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, it's my quarter-of-a-century birthday year, and all the nail companies are gonna be releasing some new and doubtless exciting shades for us nailphiles to feast our eyes on!
Start celebrating, it's gonna be a great year!
Ok, so OPI have recently announced that they're collaborating with Nicki Minaj... Expect some crazy colours here and some even crazier lacquer layering combos!
Nicki Minaj for OPI
...And a close up of the shades:
...Ooooh, shiny!
What do you think, good, bad or indifferent!?
Personally, I must admit that on first impressions, I'm not exactly going crazy for this collection... Still, OPI's Spring release is looking quite interesting to me.
We're taking a trip to the lovely land of tulips, bicycles and clogs this year. We've already been to the US, Spain, Australia, India, France and many more so it was about time!
Actually, now that's just got me to thinking where OPI should go next.... on that wishful note, here are my Top 5 OPI 'Holiday' requests, in no particular order:
*South Africa (Rainbow shades to represent the Rainbow Nation)
*Cuba (Dusty 1950s-esque shades-very unique and cool)
*Morocco (Amazing jewel shades here!)
*China (The red shades would be plentiful and amazing, for sure!)
*Brazil (Can you even imagine the Carnival related glitters!? Aaaaahhhh!!! I may be experiencing heart palpitations!!!)
Anyways, back to Holland now. Here is the collection:
OPI Holland
There sure is something for everyone in this collection! ...Having said that... Blimey! Not a true red shade in sight! I can't work out whether this is a good or a bad thing... I mean, I do love a red nail, it has to be said! Still...
Which country do you think OPI should go to next? I'd love to hear what you think!
x L-L :)
What's the buzz on 2012?
Well, the Olympics are coming here, to London, it's the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, it's my quarter-of-a-century birthday year, and all the nail companies are gonna be releasing some new and doubtless exciting shades for us nailphiles to feast our eyes on!
Start celebrating, it's gonna be a great year!
Ok, so OPI have recently announced that they're collaborating with Nicki Minaj... Expect some crazy colours here and some even crazier lacquer layering combos!
...And a close up of the shades:
What do you think, good, bad or indifferent!?
Personally, I must admit that on first impressions, I'm not exactly going crazy for this collection... Still, OPI's Spring release is looking quite interesting to me.
We're taking a trip to the lovely land of tulips, bicycles and clogs this year. We've already been to the US, Spain, Australia, India, France and many more so it was about time!
Actually, now that's just got me to thinking where OPI should go next.... on that wishful note, here are my Top 5 OPI 'Holiday' requests, in no particular order:
*South Africa (Rainbow shades to represent the Rainbow Nation)
*Cuba (Dusty 1950s-esque shades-very unique and cool)
*Morocco (Amazing jewel shades here!)
*China (The red shades would be plentiful and amazing, for sure!)
*Brazil (Can you even imagine the Carnival related glitters!? Aaaaahhhh!!! I may be experiencing heart palpitations!!!)
Anyways, back to Holland now. Here is the collection:
There sure is something for everyone in this collection! ...Having said that... Blimey! Not a true red shade in sight! I can't work out whether this is a good or a bad thing... I mean, I do love a red nail, it has to be said! Still...
Which country do you think OPI should go to next? I'd love to hear what you think!
x L-L :)
Monday, 24 October 2011
OPI Gettin' Miss Piggy With It
Hi people!
Today I have a gorgeous, shiny mani for you to feast your eyes on- OPI Gettin' Miss Piggy With It.
This lacquer is one of the two from the Muppets collection that I had to have! The other one being, as I'm sure you can guess, Rainbow Connection, which obviously is so super popular that it's sold out at the moment on Lena White... I picked my two Muppets bottles up in Selfridges a couple of weeks ago.
Anyway, I'm a huge fan of shimmery and glittery reds, so I was crazy excited when I saw the Muppets promo shots and I had to get my mitts on OPI Gettin' Miss Piggy With It!
Here are some pics:
Today I have a gorgeous, shiny mani for you to feast your eyes on- OPI Gettin' Miss Piggy With It.
This lacquer is one of the two from the Muppets collection that I had to have! The other one being, as I'm sure you can guess, Rainbow Connection, which obviously is so super popular that it's sold out at the moment on Lena White... I picked my two Muppets bottles up in Selfridges a couple of weeks ago.
Anyway, I'm a huge fan of shimmery and glittery reds, so I was crazy excited when I saw the Muppets promo shots and I had to get my mitts on OPI Gettin' Miss Piggy With It!
Here are some pics:
It hasn't disappointed me, but I'm sure it's much better to layer it over another red shade as:
1) You'll only need one or two coats, according to your taste, to make your mani into a red shimmer bomb
2) Your bottle of GMPWI will last a lot longer if you're not using about four coats to make it opaque enough to wear on its own with no visible nail underneath
3) I'm not going to lie, removal is tough enough with two thick coats over another polish- removing four coats of this would be god-awful...
Anyway, loads of small red glitter as well as bigger cerise and silver hex glitter particles in a clear base... What's not to love?
Shrinkage with my Seche Vite was again a bit of an issue with this mani.... Seche does not like glitter, whereas I love it in all its forms! Booo :(
Anyways, I'm a big big fan of OPI Gettin' Miss Piggy With It... Just my thing!
Have a great day, everyone!
:)
Monday, 17 October 2011
OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts
Hi everyone!
It's Monday morning here in London, but it's a beautiful clear blue sky day (so far!) which is always nice!
Seeing as it's the start of the week, I'm gonna post what is reckon is quite a work appropriate shade- OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts. I don't own many real greys really, not counting things like OPI Skull and Glossbones, the 'truest' grey I can think of in my stash is probably China Glaze's Pelican Grey.... Whoops! American spelling! Pelican Gray, I meant!
Anyways, I think French Quarter For Your Thoughts is very nice. It's sophisticated and elegant. I can imagine going somewhere like Paris in the winter wearing this shade.
I got perfect application with this one in a standard two coats, and it's an extremely smooth cream finish. Again, as with the other Touring America Collection Lacquers I have tried, this polish dries darker on the nail than it looks in the actual bottle.... Just something to be aware of.
Here are the swatches: Feast your eyes!
Yup, unfortunately the hands are looking a bit red in this pic...... Hmm. Lucky, it turned out that this this polish didn't have that effect on me all the time....!
Grey Jumper + Grey Nails = A London A/W staple!
Match the sky with your nails!
OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts
What do we think, everyone? Pretty and ladylike, non?
*OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review this polish or to say great things about it. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
It's Monday morning here in London, but it's a beautiful clear blue sky day (so far!) which is always nice!
Seeing as it's the start of the week, I'm gonna post what is reckon is quite a work appropriate shade- OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts. I don't own many real greys really, not counting things like OPI Skull and Glossbones, the 'truest' grey I can think of in my stash is probably China Glaze's Pelican Grey.... Whoops! American spelling! Pelican Gray, I meant!
Anyways, I think French Quarter For Your Thoughts is very nice. It's sophisticated and elegant. I can imagine going somewhere like Paris in the winter wearing this shade.
I got perfect application with this one in a standard two coats, and it's an extremely smooth cream finish. Again, as with the other Touring America Collection Lacquers I have tried, this polish dries darker on the nail than it looks in the actual bottle.... Just something to be aware of.
Here are the swatches: Feast your eyes!
Yup, unfortunately the hands are looking a bit red in this pic...... Hmm. Lucky, it turned out that this this polish didn't have that effect on me all the time....!
Grey Jumper + Grey Nails = A London A/W staple!
Match the sky with your nails!
What do we think, everyone? Pretty and ladylike, non?
*OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review this polish or to say great things about it. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
Saturday, 15 October 2011
The Muppets are finally here!
Hi guys!
Just thought I'd let you know that if you're in the UK, like me, you can now FINALLY get your beautifully manicured little hands on the Muppets collection by OPI at the official online OPI stockist Lena White http://www.lenawhite.co.uk/store/the-muppets/animal-istic or do like me (insanely impatient) if you live in London and go directly to Selfridges to pick up all your favourites!
OPI The Muppets Collection
Which Muppets shade are you most excited about purchasing?
Just thought I'd let you know that if you're in the UK, like me, you can now FINALLY get your beautifully manicured little hands on the Muppets collection by OPI at the official online OPI stockist Lena White http://www.lenawhite.co.uk/store/the-muppets/animal-istic or do like me (insanely impatient) if you live in London and go directly to Selfridges to pick up all your favourites!
Which Muppets shade are you most excited about purchasing?
World's oldest OPI fan?
Last week I went down to my Dad's parents who live quite near to me in London, and gave my 96 year old grandmother a manicure using OPI's classic and very popular shade, I'm Not Really A Waitress.
Here are the results:
OPI I'm Not Really A Waitress
I think they look great! She was a bit worried at first at having such a 'young' colour on, and because of her, in her own words, 'ugly hands' (she has arthritis!) but apparently she has since had lots of compliments on them and is enjoying having some nice painted nails now!
She'll probably want to slap me for posting her 'ugly hands' for all the world to see, but ummm.....
...Sorry Nanny, I think they look great!
:)
Here are the results:
I think they look great! She was a bit worried at first at having such a 'young' colour on, and because of her, in her own words, 'ugly hands' (she has arthritis!) but apparently she has since had lots of compliments on them and is enjoying having some nice painted nails now!
She'll probably want to slap me for posting her 'ugly hands' for all the world to see, but ummm.....
...Sorry Nanny, I think they look great!
:)
OPI Honk If You Love OPI
Hi everyone!
Today I'm going to start going through the OPI Touring America Minis Collection!
Three of the lacquers in this pack I think are very Autumn appropriate- French Quarter For Your Thoughts, A-Taupe The Space Needle and Honk If You Love OPI. The other one, My Address Is Hollywood, to me is more of a Spring/Summer colour.
But anyways, all are very pretty shades that I think sum up the essence of the 'Touring' collection.
So, to start: Honk If You Love OPI.
This colour is a very pretty deep Aubergine (or for my American readers, Eggplant!) shade. To me, it's one of those shades that pops more when you put it next to black- it's easier to see the real colour of the lacquer when compared to black. It's very smoky and murky, which I really like.
Originally when I put it on, I thought it was quite a burgundy sort of aubergine, but no, in the sun you can see that it's definitely purple.
Onto the swatches!
Like the other 'Touring' shades I've tried so far, this lacquer looks at least a shade or two lighter than it dries to on the nail, so that's something to bear in mind when purchasing.
Two things I'm sorry about with these pics: one- I wore this mani for about four days before photographing it, waiting for some nice natural light, hence the scratchy bits on the nails! and number two- shrinkage! I think my bottle of Seche needs replacing asap!
I used three coats of Honk If You Love OPI here to even everything out. Application was smooth and good with this lacquer, also like the other 'Touring' colours I've tried so far.
To be honest, I think this lacquer's nice enough, but I'm not bowled over by it really. It's just the colour that bores me a bit... others may disagree. Just my humble opinion!
:)
*OPI Honk If You Love OPI was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review this polish or to say great things about it. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
Today I'm going to start going through the OPI Touring America Minis Collection!
Three of the lacquers in this pack I think are very Autumn appropriate- French Quarter For Your Thoughts, A-Taupe The Space Needle and Honk If You Love OPI. The other one, My Address Is Hollywood, to me is more of a Spring/Summer colour.
But anyways, all are very pretty shades that I think sum up the essence of the 'Touring' collection.
So, to start: Honk If You Love OPI.
This colour is a very pretty deep Aubergine (or for my American readers, Eggplant!) shade. To me, it's one of those shades that pops more when you put it next to black- it's easier to see the real colour of the lacquer when compared to black. It's very smoky and murky, which I really like.
Originally when I put it on, I thought it was quite a burgundy sort of aubergine, but no, in the sun you can see that it's definitely purple.
Onto the swatches!
Like the other 'Touring' shades I've tried so far, this lacquer looks at least a shade or two lighter than it dries to on the nail, so that's something to bear in mind when purchasing.
Two things I'm sorry about with these pics: one- I wore this mani for about four days before photographing it, waiting for some nice natural light, hence the scratchy bits on the nails! and number two- shrinkage! I think my bottle of Seche needs replacing asap!
I used three coats of Honk If You Love OPI here to even everything out. Application was smooth and good with this lacquer, also like the other 'Touring' colours I've tried so far.
To be honest, I think this lacquer's nice enough, but I'm not bowled over by it really. It's just the colour that bores me a bit... others may disagree. Just my humble opinion!
:)
*OPI Honk If You Love OPI was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review this polish or to say great things about it. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
Monday, 10 October 2011
OPI Parlez Vous OPI & OPI Uh Oh Roll Down The Window
Hi everyone!
I'm sorry I haven't posted in nearly a week! The end of last week was pretty busy and then at the weekend I was down on the Kent coast making a visit to my 102 year old grandmother, who was very curious about my blogging activities! Try explaining blogging and the Internet to a 102 year old! :)
Anyways, I'm back, and showcasing a pretty cool mani I wore for a few days last week.
It's a funky French, using OPI Parlez Vous OPI & OPI Uh Oh Roll Down The Window, both of which I haven't tried before.
Here it is!
OPI Parlez Vous OPI & OPI Uh Oh Roll Down The Window
I thought of this combo as I reckoned that even though Parlez Vous OPI isn't part of the Touring America collection, it's muted and smokey, so I thought it would go quite well.
Parlez Vous' application was literally a dream- it was fantastic, so smooth, and brilliant around the cuticles- no clean up required here!
I painted on the tips with freehand application using Uh Oh Roll Down The Window but I found they were fairly easy to do, despite the fact that I didn't have the benefit of using my smile line as a guide.
OPI Parlez Vous OPI & OPI Uh Oh Roll Down The Window
I really like how this mani turned out- great for Autumn, I think.
OPI Parlez Vous OPI & OPI Uh Oh Roll Down The Window
What do you think?
:)
I'm sorry I haven't posted in nearly a week! The end of last week was pretty busy and then at the weekend I was down on the Kent coast making a visit to my 102 year old grandmother, who was very curious about my blogging activities! Try explaining blogging and the Internet to a 102 year old! :)
Anyways, I'm back, and showcasing a pretty cool mani I wore for a few days last week.
It's a funky French, using OPI Parlez Vous OPI & OPI Uh Oh Roll Down The Window, both of which I haven't tried before.
Here it is!
I thought of this combo as I reckoned that even though Parlez Vous OPI isn't part of the Touring America collection, it's muted and smokey, so I thought it would go quite well.
Parlez Vous' application was literally a dream- it was fantastic, so smooth, and brilliant around the cuticles- no clean up required here!
I painted on the tips with freehand application using Uh Oh Roll Down The Window but I found they were fairly easy to do, despite the fact that I didn't have the benefit of using my smile line as a guide.
I really like how this mani turned out- great for Autumn, I think.
What do you think?
:)
Tuesday, 4 October 2011
Ultimate Grand Supreme: Franken inspired by Toddlers and Tiaras
Hiya!
I some something very special and unique to show you guys right now...
Yesterday I made my first ever Frankens!
The one I'm posting now is my favourite, which I've named 'Ultimate Grand Supreme' as a kind of ode to the American show Toddlers and Tiaras! I've seen clips from the show a few times, and while I'm not exactly sure what on earth I think about its morality and all that, some of the outfits the girls wear in that show are very cute.
This nail polish was kind of inspired by the girls' glitzy dresses and the sashes and crowns they win....
My answer to OPI's Miss Universe collection, haha! OPI should definitely do a Toddlers and Tiaras collection... Or I'll do one instead!
....Anyways, your Ultimate Grand Supreme is:
Sorry my pictures are pretty terrible! Today's really cloudy in London, so no sun pics here, unfortunately. Still, I think the glitteryness of this polish is dazzling enough even without the sun!
This polish is a combination of five different glitters and a few drops of colour in the base. I really like the base colour, it's a lovely pale fuchsia/magenta pink shade with a jelly finish, which is saturated on the nail in two coats. I used a lot of Seche Vite to smooth out this Franken, but it's good and smooth now.
The only problem with using the two thick coats of Seche was the crazy shrinkage, which was pretty bad with this polish, annoyingly enough. I love love loveeee Seche in general, but it does grate on me sometimes!
All in all though, I absolutely love this Toddlers and Tiaras inspired Franken!
What do you guys think about it? I'd love to hear your thoughts! :)
I some something very special and unique to show you guys right now...
Yesterday I made my first ever Frankens!
The one I'm posting now is my favourite, which I've named 'Ultimate Grand Supreme' as a kind of ode to the American show Toddlers and Tiaras! I've seen clips from the show a few times, and while I'm not exactly sure what on earth I think about its morality and all that, some of the outfits the girls wear in that show are very cute.
This nail polish was kind of inspired by the girls' glitzy dresses and the sashes and crowns they win....
My answer to OPI's Miss Universe collection, haha! OPI should definitely do a Toddlers and Tiaras collection... Or I'll do one instead!
....Anyways, your Ultimate Grand Supreme is:
This polish is a combination of five different glitters and a few drops of colour in the base. I really like the base colour, it's a lovely pale fuchsia/magenta pink shade with a jelly finish, which is saturated on the nail in two coats. I used a lot of Seche Vite to smooth out this Franken, but it's good and smooth now.
The only problem with using the two thick coats of Seche was the crazy shrinkage, which was pretty bad with this polish, annoyingly enough. I love love loveeee Seche in general, but it does grate on me sometimes!
All in all though, I absolutely love this Toddlers and Tiaras inspired Franken!
What do you guys think about it? I'd love to hear your thoughts! :)
OPI I Brake For Manicures
Hi!
Here today to show you guys is a mani I had on for the first time last week.
It's I Brake For Manicures, from OPI's Touring America Autumn 2011 Collection.
This was the second colour I wanted after Roadhouse Blues, which is my favourite of the collection. Aside from that one and this polish, the only other TA shade I have is Uh Oh... Roll Down The Window.
I thought a lot of other shades in the Touring collection were much more summery looking, and at this time of year, I'm done with the crazy neons and want something a bit darker, more muted.
So- with that in mind, OPI I Brake For Manicures fits the bill pretty well!
Here are a couple of pics- I made the first pic a teensy bit brighter so that you guys can see the colour more accurately:
OPI I Brake For Manicures (a bit brighter)
OPI I Brake For Manicures (regular)
What do you think?
I like this shade, I think it looks quite sophisticated, and I like the fact that it's fairly neutral.
I will say, this is (I found at least!) one of those shades that you can really appreciate the actual colour of when you put it next to black. The dried eventual colour on the nail is definitely darker than the colour the lacquer looks in the actual bottle.
The colour is a lovely smoked/greyed aubergine- eggplant for my American fans! :) sort of shade, very Autumn appropriate.
Another point about this varnish- for some strange reason, I found my bottle to be very runny, and it was the first time I had used this shade, aside from opening it to put a swatch of a nail wheel... That seemed a bit odd, but it could just be my bottle.
I'm not obsessed with this colour but I certainly like it and I'm sure I'll be wearing it again this coming Winter...
What do you think?
Here today to show you guys is a mani I had on for the first time last week.
It's I Brake For Manicures, from OPI's Touring America Autumn 2011 Collection.
This was the second colour I wanted after Roadhouse Blues, which is my favourite of the collection. Aside from that one and this polish, the only other TA shade I have is Uh Oh... Roll Down The Window.
I thought a lot of other shades in the Touring collection were much more summery looking, and at this time of year, I'm done with the crazy neons and want something a bit darker, more muted.
So- with that in mind, OPI I Brake For Manicures fits the bill pretty well!
Here are a couple of pics- I made the first pic a teensy bit brighter so that you guys can see the colour more accurately:
What do you think?
I like this shade, I think it looks quite sophisticated, and I like the fact that it's fairly neutral.
I will say, this is (I found at least!) one of those shades that you can really appreciate the actual colour of when you put it next to black. The dried eventual colour on the nail is definitely darker than the colour the lacquer looks in the actual bottle.
The colour is a lovely smoked/greyed aubergine- eggplant for my American fans! :) sort of shade, very Autumn appropriate.
Another point about this varnish- for some strange reason, I found my bottle to be very runny, and it was the first time I had used this shade, aside from opening it to put a swatch of a nail wheel... That seemed a bit odd, but it could just be my bottle.
I'm not obsessed with this colour but I certainly like it and I'm sure I'll be wearing it again this coming Winter...
What do you think?
Monday, 3 October 2011
OPI Swimsuit...Nailed It! and OPI Absolutely Alice
Hi everyone, and Happy October!
I hope the month is going very well for all of you so far and that your weekend was a good one!
Here in London, we've started the month with some freakishly unseasonal weather. It was 28c here yesterday! Unbelievable, no?!
Because it's been so hot here over the last few days, I decided to do a summery sort of manicure before all I'll probably be wearing are more Autumnal/Wintry shades.
So- I did a mani with OPI Swimsuit...Nailed It! and OPI Absolutely Alice. It's a very pretty combo, and reminds me of a sparkling blue sea in the middle of summer. I think Swimsuit...Nailed It! should have been called Dive In! if it weren't part of the Miss Universe collection- this colour reminds me of the sea, and as it's a foil, it's very glowy and has a lot of depth.
Some pics:
OPI Swimsuit...Nailed It! and OPI Absolutely Alice
I found that Swimsuit...Nailed It! was a bit thin, so I used three coats in my application, and then did a gradient with Absolutely Alice. The yellow 'Alice hair' pieces of glitter in Absolutely Alice remind me of sand!
I did this crop on my index finger to show off the glitter- and the natural starburst effect my camera captured! It looks really cool! :)
On another note, sorry about the crazy amount of shrinkage and cuticle area rubbishness of this mani! Apparently, Seche Vite and Swimsuit...Nailed It! is not a good combination... The shrinkage was very bad indeed...
...As you can probably see. I had to re-polish the cuticle areas of my nails... Check out my ring finger in the pic above- yes, that ridge on the top of my ring finger came from shrinkage! Not very good....
A blurry pic of this mani to show off the sparkliness of it- it really shines in the sun.
And a close up blurry pic! It's a very sparkly manicure.
So, I really liked this combination, it's very nice for Summer. I think Swimsuit...Nailed It would look amazing with gold shatter as well, so I might be trying this combination with my newly-released Barry M Gold Shatter...
Stay tuned!
I hope the month is going very well for all of you so far and that your weekend was a good one!
Here in London, we've started the month with some freakishly unseasonal weather. It was 28c here yesterday! Unbelievable, no?!
Because it's been so hot here over the last few days, I decided to do a summery sort of manicure before all I'll probably be wearing are more Autumnal/Wintry shades.
So- I did a mani with OPI Swimsuit...Nailed It! and OPI Absolutely Alice. It's a very pretty combo, and reminds me of a sparkling blue sea in the middle of summer. I think Swimsuit...Nailed It! should have been called Dive In! if it weren't part of the Miss Universe collection- this colour reminds me of the sea, and as it's a foil, it's very glowy and has a lot of depth.
Some pics:
I found that Swimsuit...Nailed It! was a bit thin, so I used three coats in my application, and then did a gradient with Absolutely Alice. The yellow 'Alice hair' pieces of glitter in Absolutely Alice remind me of sand!
On another note, sorry about the crazy amount of shrinkage and cuticle area rubbishness of this mani! Apparently, Seche Vite and Swimsuit...Nailed It! is not a good combination... The shrinkage was very bad indeed...
So, I really liked this combination, it's very nice for Summer. I think Swimsuit...Nailed It would look amazing with gold shatter as well, so I might be trying this combination with my newly-released Barry M Gold Shatter...
Stay tuned!
Friday, 30 September 2011
This made me laugh...
Happy Friday, everyone! It's the weekend!
Having a look on Ebay just now, I came across this listing from an OPI seller:
I think you mean, um, No Spain No Gain!?
I'm pretty sure that OPI wouldn't endorse people injuring themselves!
:)
Having a look on Ebay just now, I came across this listing from an OPI seller:
I think you mean, um, No Spain No Gain!?
I'm pretty sure that OPI wouldn't endorse people injuring themselves!
:)
Monday, 26 September 2011
China Glaze Skyscraper
Hi everyone!
It's early morning here in London so sorry if I still sound a bit sleepy and under-caffeinated!
So- now- China Glaze: Skyscraper!
What can I say? I love love love this polish. Adore it! It's so rich and beautiful. It reminds me of a starry sky, and funnily enough when I was putting it on, I was watching Titanic on TV, so the colour also reminded me of the huge 'Heart of the Ocean' diamond Cal gives Rose in the film.
In general, I wouldn't say I wear blue nail polish an awful lot, although I have been trying to get a bit more experimental in what I wear recently. But China Glaze Skyscraper? This one was love at first sight! It's, to me, kind of the blue version of China Glaze's Ruby Pumps, which is probably, at a push, my favourite red.
Anyways, enough of that! -Skyscraper: here it is!
China Glaze Skyscraper view I
Stunning, no? The colour of the base in this polish is beautiful too. I like the fact that the base does actually have a a colour, otherwise it would be like the other glitter in China Glaze's Metro Collection, CG In The City, which despite being very cool for layering, would be pretty tricky to wear alone, probably due to it's clear base.
China Glaze Skyscraper view II
For China Glaze Skyscraper, I used two thickish coats for the deep, rich kind of opacity I was after. If you like to apply your lacquer thin and want the same sort of depth of colour and opacity, I'd apply three coats.
China Glaze Skyscraper view III
Such a gorgeous polish. I was kind of annoyed at myself for only purchasing one bottle!
Try this one out, for sure. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
It's early morning here in London so sorry if I still sound a bit sleepy and under-caffeinated!
So- now- China Glaze: Skyscraper!
What can I say? I love love love this polish. Adore it! It's so rich and beautiful. It reminds me of a starry sky, and funnily enough when I was putting it on, I was watching Titanic on TV, so the colour also reminded me of the huge 'Heart of the Ocean' diamond Cal gives Rose in the film.
In general, I wouldn't say I wear blue nail polish an awful lot, although I have been trying to get a bit more experimental in what I wear recently. But China Glaze Skyscraper? This one was love at first sight! It's, to me, kind of the blue version of China Glaze's Ruby Pumps, which is probably, at a push, my favourite red.
Anyways, enough of that! -Skyscraper: here it is!
Stunning, no? The colour of the base in this polish is beautiful too. I like the fact that the base does actually have a a colour, otherwise it would be like the other glitter in China Glaze's Metro Collection, CG In The City, which despite being very cool for layering, would be pretty tricky to wear alone, probably due to it's clear base.
For China Glaze Skyscraper, I used two thickish coats for the deep, rich kind of opacity I was after. If you like to apply your lacquer thin and want the same sort of depth of colour and opacity, I'd apply three coats.
Such a gorgeous polish. I was kind of annoyed at myself for only purchasing one bottle!
Try this one out, for sure. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
OPI Samoan Sand & Konad M59
Hiya!
I thought I'd post about my current Mani.
I wanted a chic, neutral base this time (in contrast to all the crazy shades I've been rocking recently!) so I used the classic nude shade, OPI Samoan Sand.
I was pretty apprehensive yet seriously excited about doing this manicure, because it would be a first for me- I purchased three Konad plates at the Olympia Beauty Expo the other week, after years of wanting to try Konading out. For some daft reason, in all that time I failed to buy into the Konad system on the Internet, (no real idea why!) so when I discovered that Konad would be at Olympia... Well, the time had definitely come!
So yeah, I was so excited about doing these nails, but a bit worried that I'd screw up my nails, etc. as I'd had no prior Konading experience!
Turns out, I needn't have worried so much!
I decided to do a 1950's themed Mani, so did my Samoan Sand base and then dotted black spots onto all apart from my middle finger nails. On these, I used Konad plate M59 and used the plain bow (also using black lacquer) and honestly, I was so excited and happy at the way my nails turned out!
Have a look:
OPI Samoan Sand & Konad M59 view I
OPI Samoan Sand & Konad M59 view II
OPI Samoan Sand & Konad M59 view III
They're cute, right?
Now that I've finally (!) hopped on the Konad bandwagon, already I can't get enough!
Stay tuned for way more Konading to come!
:)
I thought I'd post about my current Mani.
I wanted a chic, neutral base this time (in contrast to all the crazy shades I've been rocking recently!) so I used the classic nude shade, OPI Samoan Sand.
I was pretty apprehensive yet seriously excited about doing this manicure, because it would be a first for me- I purchased three Konad plates at the Olympia Beauty Expo the other week, after years of wanting to try Konading out. For some daft reason, in all that time I failed to buy into the Konad system on the Internet, (no real idea why!) so when I discovered that Konad would be at Olympia... Well, the time had definitely come!
So yeah, I was so excited about doing these nails, but a bit worried that I'd screw up my nails, etc. as I'd had no prior Konading experience!
Turns out, I needn't have worried so much!
I decided to do a 1950's themed Mani, so did my Samoan Sand base and then dotted black spots onto all apart from my middle finger nails. On these, I used Konad plate M59 and used the plain bow (also using black lacquer) and honestly, I was so excited and happy at the way my nails turned out!
Have a look:
They're cute, right?
Now that I've finally (!) hopped on the Konad bandwagon, already I can't get enough!
Stay tuned for way more Konading to come!
:)
Sunday, 25 September 2011
Color Club Hot Like Lava
Hi everyone!
Hope you've all had a great weekend!
It's now the turn of Color Club Hot Like Lava to get reviewed.
I'll start by saying that, while I love foil/metallic finish lacquers, this wasn't a shade I thought I'd like that much... The colour made me a bit unsure, and I also worried that there would be visible brush stroke issues with this one.
However; when I actually swatched it, I was very pleasantly surprised! The colour is pretty dramatic, (good thing), the pigmentation is great (very good thing), and the sparkliness is brilliant- (great thing!)
Here it is:
Color Club Hot Like Lava view I
This shade is very rich and seems to glow on the nails. It was perfectly saturated in two coats.
Color Club Hot Like Lava view II
Judging by my very happy thoughts on this polish, I now wish I had more shades from this collection. I can't get enough of this finish!
On a side note, I think that it would be really interesting if someone brought out a collection of sludgy foil polishes! You know the sort- mushroomy purples, taupes, sludgy greens and greys.... I think that would be crazy cool!
...Next Autumn perhaps?
*Color Club Hot Like Lava was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review this polish or to say great things about it. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
Hope you've all had a great weekend!
It's now the turn of Color Club Hot Like Lava to get reviewed.
I'll start by saying that, while I love foil/metallic finish lacquers, this wasn't a shade I thought I'd like that much... The colour made me a bit unsure, and I also worried that there would be visible brush stroke issues with this one.
However; when I actually swatched it, I was very pleasantly surprised! The colour is pretty dramatic, (good thing), the pigmentation is great (very good thing), and the sparkliness is brilliant- (great thing!)
Here it is:
This shade is very rich and seems to glow on the nails. It was perfectly saturated in two coats.
Judging by my very happy thoughts on this polish, I now wish I had more shades from this collection. I can't get enough of this finish!
On a side note, I think that it would be really interesting if someone brought out a collection of sludgy foil polishes! You know the sort- mushroomy purples, taupes, sludgy greens and greys.... I think that would be crazy cool!
...Next Autumn perhaps?
*Color Club Hot Like Lava was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review this polish or to say great things about it. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
Friday, 23 September 2011
China Glaze CG In The City
CG In The city from- yep, no prizes for guessing here- China Glaze is a lacquer from their new Metro Collection. It's a complete sparkle fest, and has lavender, gold, silver and black glitter particles in a clear base. The sparkles in this polish are very small, so it looks very saturated with glitter.
Overall, looking at the bottle, it looks like a lavender/pewter colour... And the sparkliness is blinding!
I think this shade is really nice, but if I had one thing to say about it, I wish that the base holding it together was not clear- a grey shade perhaps would have made this one a bit easier to wear alone.
As it stands, it's probably best to use this one as a topcoat. It's still gonna be buildable of course, but you'll have more of a base. Some people using this polish may not mind that you'd probably have to use about seven coats to make it completely opaque, but I really don't have the patience to do a Mani like that.
Therefore, I decided to layer this polish over China Glaze's Street Chic, also from their Metro Collection. I felt these two lacquers would go quite nicely together, especially as they're from the same collection and season.
Application with CG In The City was good. No problems there! I used one thickish coat over my base.
Here is CG In The City over a Street Chic base Mani:
China Glaze CG In The City view I
CG In The City view II
CG In The City view III
Ooooh! Sophisticated and elegant yet blingy- I like this combo a lot.
Could you get away with wearing this Mani to work?
;)
*China Glaze CG In The City was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review this polish or to say great things about it. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
Overall, looking at the bottle, it looks like a lavender/pewter colour... And the sparkliness is blinding!
I think this shade is really nice, but if I had one thing to say about it, I wish that the base holding it together was not clear- a grey shade perhaps would have made this one a bit easier to wear alone.
As it stands, it's probably best to use this one as a topcoat. It's still gonna be buildable of course, but you'll have more of a base. Some people using this polish may not mind that you'd probably have to use about seven coats to make it completely opaque, but I really don't have the patience to do a Mani like that.
Therefore, I decided to layer this polish over China Glaze's Street Chic, also from their Metro Collection. I felt these two lacquers would go quite nicely together, especially as they're from the same collection and season.
Application with CG In The City was good. No problems there! I used one thickish coat over my base.
Here is CG In The City over a Street Chic base Mani:
Ooooh! Sophisticated and elegant yet blingy- I like this combo a lot.
Could you get away with wearing this Mani to work?
;)
*China Glaze CG In The City was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review this polish or to say great things about it. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
Olympia Beauty 2012
For those of you who were wondering, (inc. Nails by Catherina and Manicure Maniac!) the Olympia Beauty Expo 2012 is going to be held on 23rd and 24th September. I just received an email confirming the dates from their PR.
I'm already super excited! :)
I'm already super excited! :)
China Glaze Street Chic
Good morning from London, everyone! It's a lovely sunny day here today :)
Today I'm going to post on a new China Glaze acquisition- Street Chic, as part of the Uptown Set from their new (and may I say very lovely) Metro Collection.
Street Chic is an extremely creamy mushroomy dark taupe shade. It's also very Autumnal and work appropriate too, as it's very neutral, yet fashion forward too. Look at all this point scoring! :)
Get ready for the swatches!
China Glaze Street Chic
Literally this polish is so wonderfully creamy. It applied beautifully and the colour looks very sophisticated and ladylike, right?
It's not something I'd wear all the time because I tend to gravitate to sparkly shades a lot of the time, but sometimes I do like to go back to basics and just wear a plain creme, and this polish fits the bill!
China Glaze Street Chic view II
What do you guys think about this one?
*China Glaze Street Chic was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review these polishes or to say great things about them. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
Today I'm going to post on a new China Glaze acquisition- Street Chic, as part of the Uptown Set from their new (and may I say very lovely) Metro Collection.
Street Chic is an extremely creamy mushroomy dark taupe shade. It's also very Autumnal and work appropriate too, as it's very neutral, yet fashion forward too. Look at all this point scoring! :)
Get ready for the swatches!
Literally this polish is so wonderfully creamy. It applied beautifully and the colour looks very sophisticated and ladylike, right?
It's not something I'd wear all the time because I tend to gravitate to sparkly shades a lot of the time, but sometimes I do like to go back to basics and just wear a plain creme, and this polish fits the bill!
What do you guys think about this one?
*China Glaze Street Chic was provided to me for reviewing purposes. I was not paid to review these polishes or to say great things about them. All opinions, good or bad, are my own*
Thursday, 22 September 2011
OPI Warm & Fozzie
OPI Warm & Fozzie is the last swatch from the Muppettes Mini Lacquer collection.
It's a bronze foil shimmer with gold, rose gold plus greenish shimmer in there. This polish has quite a lot of depth and dimension to it, which is pretty cool.
Check it out:
OPI Warm & Fozzie
This one was a three coater too. Strange that all of these Muppets polishes have been three coaters, but there you go. If you're impatient and lazy like me, two thick coats will probably suffice... Just about!
Like Designer... de Better! I'm not a huge fan of Warm & Fozzie; there's nothing wrong with it at all, it's just that this colour doesn't make my heart skip a beat, but it's nice to be experimental with colours and not always go for the same sort of shade, right?
:)
It's a bronze foil shimmer with gold, rose gold plus greenish shimmer in there. This polish has quite a lot of depth and dimension to it, which is pretty cool.
Check it out:
This one was a three coater too. Strange that all of these Muppets polishes have been three coaters, but there you go. If you're impatient and lazy like me, two thick coats will probably suffice... Just about!
:)
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