Midweek Post: Crescent Moon Mani

I think it has been a little while since I posted my Midweek Post. I do try and post every Wednesday, but as you all know sometimes life just gets in the way! I am not one for nail art per se, but I love the crescent moon manicures that have been flying around since they were first spotted on the runways in 2011 sported by the models at Vena Cava. Since then we've seen it on celebs such as Dita Von Teese and as I had some free time this morning I thought I would give it a whirl. 

I knew I fancied a dark nail polish as I have been wearing Illamasqua's 'Whack' the last few days and while it's been a lovely bright contrast against the icy backdrop of the recent weather I felt the need to go back to near- black. I chose Essie's 'Stylenomics' which is a very, very deep green and was released in the autumn collection of the same title. 

After applying base coat and letting them dry I cut a semi circle shape out of a piece of sellotape and popped it on top, painting the rest of my nail with Stylenomics. I made sure to wait a little more time than I normally do to let these dry, I am a real impatient nail painter but knew I didn't want to mess this up by whipping the sellotape off too quickly and leaving uneven smudges behind. Two layers of top coat later et voila! All in all it took me about an hour but it wasn't as laborious as I had first expected it to be. Making do with sellotape I don't think I did too a bad job (all the online tutorials I read and watched were using stationary circular paper binders as their guide, but I didn't have any of those to hand.) I wanted to leave the cuticle end my natural nail but there is the option to have it coloured you would just need to alter the process slightly.

A nice twist on my normal painted nail. Have you ever done a crescent moon manicure?

Counting down to December 1st...

When Ben told me the other day that he had ordered my advent calendar I was baffled and confused. Firstly, why was he ordering my advent calendar? Just go down Tescos, innit. And secondly, why was he ordering it in October?

As soon as a Selfridges box arrived (damn, I love them yellow boxes) I opened it up to discover an advent calendar, but not just any advent calendar, it's one from Ciaté. If you've not heard of Ciaté before, they're a nail polish brand with the cutest packaging- sweet little bows adorn every rectangular bottle and their shade range is to die for, they are also famed as founders of the 'caviar manicure.'
So, each day on the countdown to Christmas I will open a little window to discover a mini nail polish, how cool is that?
I only wish they hadn't included the contents on the back. Despite this I'm really excited to see what colours I'll get each day, bring on December!

Midweek Post: Essie 'Stylenomics'

Essie Nail Varnish in 'Stylenomics', £7.99 for 13.5ml.

Essie 'Stylenomics'- one coat. Sally Hansen Megashine topcoat- one coat.

Similarly to 'Head Mistress' which I reviewed here, 'Stylenomics' is part of the limited edition Autumn collection from Essie which is available in Boots stores in the UK. It's probably no secret by now how much I love Essie- the wide brush, quick drying formulas, amazing colour range and milky consistency. The only negative factor I can think of is that sometimes they chip too quickly. 'Stylenomics' is opaque in one coat, which cuts manicure time in half. This is the only Essie shade I own that is really dark, so I cannot comment for all of them, but the consistency of this felt thicker and more like a gel, which is probably the reason it only needed one coat instead of two or three.
I would describe the colour as a green infused black. In some lights, or to an untrained eye this varnish probably does look black, but it's certainly got a murky, moss green pigment that makes it so stunning and autumnal, and I hope that this comes across in the photos. I couldn't find any 'dupes' for it on any of the other makeup stands in Boots, so you'd probably have to go high end if you wanted a colour like this, which in turn completely takes the point out of a 'dupe' as they'll be no cheaper.

All in all, another Essie colour that I adore. I think this is my new favourite; it's mysterious, chic and powerful.

NOTD: Deep Autumn Red.

Essie Nail Varnish 'Head Mistress, £7.99 for 13.5ml.

Two coats of 'Head Mistress' with Sally Hansen MegaShine topcoat.

 Hello everyone! How are you all this Friday night?

Just a quick post to show you what colour I have been loving on my nails this week. It's an Essie shade called 'Head Mistress' and while I am not a fan of the name, I am a fan of the colour. I love classic red, on nails and lips but I did notice that my collection was missing a shimmer-free deep red. Obviously a necessity, I popped into Boots and soon sorted that situation!
Like many others I gravitate towards deep, rich shades as soon as Autumn hits. This colour deepens with every coat, and so far on the second day it remains chip free (which is pretty good going for Essie) 

I'm now after a British racing green kinda colour if anyone can recommend one

What are you wearing on your nails right now?

(Also- please excuse a couple of bitten nails in the above picture. Sadface.)

My entry for TravelSupermarket's Beauty and the Beach Competition

I was nominated by lovely Fran from one of my favourite blogs Been There, Done That, Got The Lipstick to take part in a competition being hosted by TravelSupermarket.com

The competition is to document your favourite makeup, hair and nail look for a holiday, and the prize for the winner of each category is £500 cash!! The overall winner is the blogger who creates the best overall look for all three categories as determined by the industry judges, and the winner from that gets £1000 towards their next holiday!! Such an amazing and generous prize, and a holiday is much needed at the moment so the offer is too good to miss in my opinion.

Onto my entry....

I decided to create a simple makeup, hair and nail look that is perfect for a summer holiday, and more specifically this look is aimed towards a day at the beach/by the pool.

Makeup

On holiday, aside from looking fairly presentable poolside, my main priority is sun protection. SPF SPF SPF, I've learnt over the years on my fair skin is without a doubt very important to prevent uncomfortable and unsightly burns. I prepped my face with Avene's factor 50, my favourite product of the summer and a handy 30ml size which is great to travel with. 

With no need for foundation, I applied dabs of Collection 2000's Lasting Perfection Concealer (Fair) where it was needed to cover any uneven skintone and blemishes, and before this dried I popped some Benefit 'Watt's Up' champagne highlighter to my cheek and brow bones and down the centre of my nose and blended using my fingers. I did this so that my skin has that dewy and polished glow. This is a look a strive for whether I'm on holiday or not, however I'm a big believer in embracing your surroundings- there's really no point trying to mattify your skin with dustings of powder, for it'll slip and slide after half an hour in high heat or a dip in the pool.

I quickly filled in my brows using MAC's 'Showstopper' matte brown eyeshadow (limited edition) and applied one thin coat of L'Oreal Telescopic Waterproof mascara to my upper lashes. For my lips I popped on just a small amount of Benefit's 'Benetint Lip Balm', as it contains SPF15 and has a pretty rose tint to it, to help brighten up my face.

Hair 

For my hair I like it to be out of my face, so a fuss free hairstyle is a must. I parted my hair using a comb and parted my fringe into two parallel strands. I wrapped these over eachother, and added more hair to each strand. I continued this process until I reached my ear and secured it with a hair grip, pull your hair back into a ponytail (or a bun if you prefer) and spray with a little hairspray (I used John Frieda's Sheer Blonde Crystal Hold Shape & Shimmer hairspray).

This hairstyle is great for both clean hair and beach hair as it can work with natural, salted curls and is a versatile style that can take you from day to night just by adding a flower hairclip, or turning the ponytail into a top knot.

The hair and makeup takes me under ten minutes everytime, which is ideal as you don't want to be faffing around too long when you've got a holiday to get on with, nor do you want your suitcase to be weighed down with unnecessary products. Makeup and hair products included in this look amount to just 7 items, the makeup look was created using my fingers (make sure they're clean!), a hard angle brush for my eyebrows and my Shu Uemura eyelash curlers. For the hair, you'll need a hairbrush/comb and hair grips.

Nails

On a hot, summer holiday I love nothing more than playing around with colour. Colourful nails are a definite must and nail polish is a cheap and easy way to incorporate a trend. There's no denying that the colour of the season has been orange, so on top of Collection 2000's '2in1 Strengthener Base Coat' I applied a coat of L'Oreal Colour Riche nail polish in '303 Lush Tangerine' and followed it with my go-to topcoat- Sally Hansen's 'MegaShine'.

To add an extra dimension, an interesting topcoat such as Rococo's Gold Leaf topcoat in #7676 will instantly add a bit of holiday glamour to the nails.

As part of the competition I need to nominate 5 fellow beauty bloggers who I think would enjoy taking part in this competition... so I nominate:

1) Hannah from A Little Beauty Spot

2) Chantelle from Dolly Nails

3) Catrine from Unnaked Nails

4) Lydia from Florabundance

5) Beth from Birds Words

Don't forget you can check out the competition on Travel Supermarket's website HERE, where there's all the vital information you need to enter. Good luck!

New nail varnishes from Estee Lauder

So these are new in, it seems Estee Lauder have recognised how popular nail varnish is becomming for women recently and have released a plethera of new, and I've got to say, absolutely stunning shades.

Me, and all the other cosmetics girls painted these on quickly the other day when they arrived, I just couldn't resist so managed to get a load of different colours on each nail rather than sticking to one! Please excuse the photo- it's not too clear as again it was just a quick snap on my break but hopefully it'll prompt some of you to go and check these out yourself as the pictures don't portray how pretty and multi dimensional some of the colours are.
Some of the shades pictured include Bete Noir, Blue Blood, Noveau Riche and Black Plum.

Are you tempted by any of these?

(Please excuse my shabby moonstone ring, I've had it on that finger for 4 years and it's a long story as to how it got to look that way- don't judge me!!)

You are GOLD! (leaf)

Rococo Nail Apparel in '#7676 Gold Leaf', (about £25) for 14ml.

Rococo are a premium, luxury nail polish brand, and this shade #7676 is a glossy top coat that contains real 24k gold leaf. I'll be honest and say that this has been in my 'to review' pile for about 6 months now, and I think I have finally found it's perfect partner- Essie's 'Sand Tropez'.
I mentioned here about how I have gone back to nudes recently, and whilst I do enjoy a glitter topcoat as much as the next girl, most of the time I'll wear a plain nail colour.

The formula of the polish is quick drying, you don't have to wait around too long for it to set before you slap on your shiny topcoat and it does add a different, extra dimension to a nail look.
However, I do feel I should warn you of its potency! The smell is unbelievably strong during application, but this does disappear when it dries. As with many decorative topcoats (glitter, confetti) the finish is irregular so be prepared that one nail may end up more coated than another, also some of the flakes don't sit flat and may stick up here and there. This can be avoided with a firm push down of the brush and another topcoat, though.

I do love the finish of Sand Tropez with Roccoco on top, I think it looks expensive and that they are a match made in heaven, what do you think? Would a gold leaf topcoat be a welcome addition to your nail polish collection?

Summer cupcake NOTD!

Technic 'Carnival' available here for £2.05 for 12ml.

Illamasqua 'Loella' available here for £13.50 for 15ml.

Not one for nail art particularly but like a true magpie anything with glitter and I'm attracted to it! A few weeks ago when my bargainous Technic 'Carnival' glitter topcoat arrived through the post I rushed to my bedroom to pick out the perfect base colour. For the ultimate girly, party nail it had to be paired with Illamasqua's nail varnish in 'Loella'. It's a perfect candy pink with subtle pearl sheen, however the formula of this is gloopy, streaky and takes a long time to dry which is a shame, (however the colour is so gorgeous that I'm never really put off.)

The pictures show (base coat), two layers of 'Loella', two coats of 'Carnival' and a coat of Sally Hansen Mega Shine top coat.

Orange 'Tangy' Nails!

No.7 Nail Varnish in 'Tangy', £7 for 10ml.

Whenever the £5 No.7 vouchers make their way into my life, I buy one item and one item only! Nail varnish! At a usual price of £7, being able to pay just £2 for a fairly good quality varnish is just a bargain not to be missed.

Today's offerings is the perfect summer orange, 'Tangy';

Positives;

-The elongated, fairly slim handle makes the practicalities of nail-painting pretty fuss free!

-The wide brush distributes the polish evenly and makes it a joy to use. 

-The formula of all the shades I own always seems to be opaque in two thin coats

-The polish dries quickly

-Vivid and vast range of colours

Negatives;

-It does seem to chip after a days wear, even with topcoat.

Very similar to Illamasqua's 'Whack' if any of you happen to own that, it's the nail varnish version of 17's lipstick in 'Hot Chilli'. It's an orange infused red, putting a spin on the classic and giving it a fun summer twist. We all know orange is really hot right now, and nail varnish is such an easy way to embrace a colour trend both subtley and on a budget. Like I mention above, it's such a shame that no.7 polishes seem to chip very easily on me, as other than that I can't fault them.

What do you spend your money off no.7 vouchers on?

Limited Edition OPI Vintage Minnie Mouse Collection- Nothin' Mousie 'Bout It!

OPI LE Nail Varnish in 'Nothin' Mousie 'Bout It', £11.50 for 15ml.

I'd been waiting (albeit impatiently) for Lena White to launch this collection for days, so I ended up doing a quick search on Amazon and found that there was a few of these available. I ordered and was so excited when it arrived through the post on Friday! (FYI the collection is now live on Lena White)

I knew I needed this in my life, I'm a huge fan of Disney and Minnie Mouse though I'll be honest and say that the other three polishes in the collection didn't particularly catch my eye. 'Nothin' Mousie 'Bout It' is a glitter top coat with heart confetti. The polish itself is translucent with a very slight tinge of pink. The glitter is abundant in the polish and is very fine, it sparkles a gorgeous lilac pink colour when it catches the light. The heart confetti is fairly sparse in comparison and is medium sized and in the same shade of pink as the fine glitter. I've personally never seen a topcoat like this before and I absolutely love how unique and pretty it is.

Although the heart confetti is fairly sparse, it's actually not too difficult to get at least one heart per nail per layer. A little bit of skill may be needed here and there to get the hearts into a position you're happy with, but this was fairly easy especially if the bottle is shaken before application. I've read a couple of moany reviews about this from US bloggers, but I found the process really quite straightforward when I was expecting it to be quite frustrating. This certainly isn't an 'apply and go' polish, you do have to set a bit of time aside, but I personally think the results are completely worth it. 

At first I applied it on top of OPI 'That's Hot! Pink!' to achieve this look I applied two coats of 'Nothin' Mousie 'Bout It'. It was a bit of a rushed job and they ended up a bit gloopy as I didn't allow much drying time.

A day later I thought it'd be interesting to put it on top of Essie's 'Mint Candy Apple' and the results are a stunning finish that reminds me of a mermaids tail! The pink glitter and confetti compliment the aqua tones of Mint Candy Apple so well. Below shows one coat of 'Nothin Mouseie 'Bout It', which I think I actually prefer to two coats as it is a bit more understated. Apologies that my camera just didn't seem to pick up the glitter very well :-(

Overall, I'm super happy with this polish and cannot wait to try it on top of other colour combinations! I'd recommend it if you love sparkly, over the top nails! Snap it up while it's still available!

NOTD: Essie 'Mint Candy Apple'

Essie Nail Varnish in 'Mint Candy Apple', £7.99 for 13.5ml.

Perfect for my current pastel- crave, 'Mint Candy Apple' fills one of the voids in my nail varnish collection, and I don't have many gaps or voids considering I own about 65 polishes. Excessive? Regular green nails don't do it for me but the injection of white into this colour to create pastel just does, slightly on the toothpaste-y side to look at but I like it, I like it a lot! Pictured above with two coats using Sally Hansen MegaShine topcoat.