Beauty | Barry M Matte Nail Paint

Barry M Matte Nail Paint - £3.99 each.

I haven't written a Nail Polish review in what feels like forever, even though I frequently wear it. Recently I picked up two new shades from Barry M's new Matte collection. I had never tried matte nail polish up until now and I love it. I love how the finish is so completely different to any other polishes which I've purchased before. I chose the colours Burgundy Crush and Mocha as I thought that they were perfect winter colours!

I've always loved Barry M Nail Paints as I think they're brilliant quality for their price. From the pictures you can tell that the polishes really do have a matte effect which I love, however in the daylight, naturally, it gives the polish more of a shine. The top photo is the day of application and the second photo is 4 days after I had painted my nails. I wanted to show just how great the polishes last, which to me is something which is really important that I look for in a nail polish and Barry M always keep me happy with their quality of product.

I think Burgundy Crush is going to be one of my new winter favourites with it's deep red colour and Mocha will be perfect for winter, but for spring too, as it's a very similar colour to their famous Mushroom Nail Paint, just in a matte finish. As you can tell I love both these nail paints, although I don't think I'll be purchasing the other colours in the collection as I already own a lot, and I mean a lot of dark nail polishes. However, I will always replace these two and may purchase other colours if they bring out a new colour range. I think Matte pastels would be lovely for spring!?

Have you tried Barry M's Matte Nail Paint?!

Beauty | Sinful Colors Cotton Candy

Sinful Colors is starting to become a well recognised brand which are becoming very popular amongst the beauty industry and blogging community. As far as I'm aware, the best place to purchase Sinful Colors nail polishes apart from their website, is Boots. I'm going to keep this review short and sweet because I could go on forever with my reasons as to why I love this brand.

As you can see from the pictures above I chose Cotton Candy which is a gorgeous, bright, bubblegum pink. It has been my most go to colour this summer. I've even put aside my usual Barry M Gelly Hi Shines. That is how much I love this colour!

The polishes are easy to apply, are very bold and have great lasting power. I have found that these polishes can last up to a week before chipping, and even then; it's only little chips at the tip of the nail. If you have the time to give yourself a good manicure then do it as the rewards will be in your favour by not having chipped nails and not having to keep touching up. I'm currently on day 6 and have only just touched up the tips on 4 of my fingers! What more could you possibly want from a nail polish?!

Finally, the thing which I love the most about this brand is that they have such a huge collection and variety of colours. The polishes also come in 5 different finishes including matte, cream, shimmer, pearl and glitter. There's something there for everyone, especially when they only retail at £1.99. They are one of the best highstreet Nail brands I have ever come across and I'm definitely going back for more!

Have you tried Sinful Colours yet?

Beauty | NARS Nail Polish in Madness

NARS Nail Polish in Madness* - £14.00

I have never brought or tried anything from NARS before, even though there are a few of their products which I'm seriously lusting over, I think it could be my student bank balance hindering me from purchasing any products! So when the lovely Beka from HQhair got in touch with me I was delighted. I am also a massive Nail Polish junky and couldn't wait to try out the quality of the NARS Nail Polishes.

Madness is part of NARS's Opaque Nail Polish range and is a limited edition Electric Orange, which is a perfect colour for the beautiful summer weather we have been having recently.

The application of the Polish is easy and smooth. I found it applied really well, without streaking and it left a nice bold colour. I only used two coats to gain the colour above (because I'm impatient!) But it could of done with three. The finish of the polish is rather matte, and personally I prefer a more glossy finish which just meant that I added a top coat to gain that look, which makes this polish ideal for both matte and glossy lovers. Finally, the thing which impressed me the most about this polish is how long wearing and chip resistant it is. It was only after about day 4/5 after application that it started to chip, which I personally believe is fantastic! There's nothing more which I love than low maintenance nails. I know for some people, you may think that £14.00 is a bit steep for a nail polish, but when it's this good quality and means that you only need to paint your nails once a week and not every few days, then personally, I think it's very much worth it and I can't wait to purchase some other colours. I already have my eyes on a few perfect for Autumn!

The NARS polishes can be found here to buy with a great range of colours!

What's your favourite NARS product? Have you tried their Nail Polishes?

Beauty | MUA Nail Constellation

I've just been having a little blog organisation and found this post still sat in my drafts, opps. A while ago I brought the MUA Nail Constellation after seeing lots of people's reviews about the Ciate Cavia Nails. So I thought I'd pick up MUA's version for a much less price tag at only £3.00

In order to create the Constellation effect you will need:

- Nail Varnish Remover to remove any traces of previous nail polish which you may have been wearing.

- A nail file to shape and polish off those nails.

- A nail polish colour of your choice.

- MUA Nail Constellation, I choose mine in Gemini.

- I forgot to include it in the picture, but you'll also need a top/base coat as this will keep it all in place.

To begin with I choose to paint my nails in a very nude colour in order to emphasise the effect. A while ago I received a set of Ted Baker Nail Polishes which I love and wear very frequently. They last a long time before becoming chipped and they also don't require many coats in order to get a bold, pigmented colour.

 Once you've painted your nails and they are still wet, apply the Nail Constellation to your nails. I chose to do mine just on my ring finger for a more subtle look. Make sure when you're doing this that you have either a pot or a piece of paper at the ready in order to catch all the beads which don't stick straight away to the nails. If you find your nails are looking a little patchy, roll them in the excess beads which have escaped! Once you're happy with the look, apply a top coat over the beads in order to secure them and make them last longer.

I think that this is such a simple yet effective look, which I love. I found that the beads didn't last too long on my nails before they all came off, around a couple of day I'd say they lasted. However, I only really wanted them for a certain occasion, so I wasn't too fussed. For £3.00 MUA have created some great nail constellations in 5 various colours which are very easy too use, not too time consuming and receive great compliments when ever worn.
If you're feeling a bit bored of just the plain old nail varnish and want to vamp your nails up a bit then try the constellations, you've not much to loose!

Have you tried the nail constellations? What do you think?

MUA U R FAB

Now I know it was nearly over a year ago since MUA released their LoveHearts collection, but recently I've been falling in love with nail vanish all over again and realised I forgot to show swatches of a few of the colours I picked up. You can read the original post here.

Now I'm no longer working at my old job it means I can wear nail varnish again and over the past few weeks I've been painting my nails with MUA's U R FAB, and have been receiving some lovely compliments about it. So I thought I'd share it with you.

 Firstly, I love the packaging. It has LoveHearts original logo, and is incredibly cute and girly. The nail varnishes for this collection come in 6 colours, all which are pastel colours and are great for spring and summer. U R FAB is the only colour which I think you can get away with wearing in the winter and Autumn too.

The only down fall to this product which wasn't too much of an issue was that my brush seemed to have not been made well and had almost like another head which luckily I was able to cut off, otherwise it made painting your nails very tricky, I think this must have been a manufacture problem and I hope that it was only with this bottle of nail varnish. The other colour which I brought was perfectly fine.

I really have fallen in love with this colour. It's a cross between a red and a dark pink. Depending on what light you're in, it will show different tones. One which seems like a very dark colour and the other a very light colour. Both which are lovely. I didn't put a topcoat on my nails once I had finished them as I was too impatient to wait any longer and had things to get on with. I now regret not putting one on as after 4 days they have begun to chip quite a bit. But when I do put a topcoat on they last much longer and better.

For £2 these nail varnishes are brilliant for anyone on a budget, and I can't wait to buy the other colours next time I go shopping.

 

Have you tried any of the MUA LoveHearts collection? What do you think?

 

This Months Glamour Magazine Featuring Nails Inc.

Glamour Magazine has become one of my monthly reads which I will always buy. It is such an affordable magazine retailing at £2 and it is jam packed with all the latest fashion, beauty, gossip, interiors and advice ranging from health to careers. From time to time Glamour will also have a freebie which they give away and from time to time this will consist of a Nails Inc nail polish!! It's amazing, I know! Especially when the polishes retail at £11, and here they are giving them away for free!!







I chose the colour Elizabeth Street. The polish is a very light pink, almost nude colour, and it does take quite a few coats to get a strong bold colour. As always Nails Inc polishes leave your nails with the perfect shine finish that lasts for a good few days, as this picture was taken 3 days after the application. Personally I think £11 is a bit too pricey to pay for a Nail Varnish, but I love getting them as gifts. I hope Glamour continue to collaborate with Nails Inc!!

 

Did you get any of this months Nails Inc colours from Glamour Magazine?!

#88 NOTD

Just a quick Nail of The Day post today, as recently I have really gotten back into the routine for making sure I give myself a good manicure at least once a week, and it's working! My nails are growing faster than ever and are in such good condition!

If you read my recent posts you'll know that I was given the Ted Baker From Ted To Toe Nail Beauty set for Christmas and used it for the first time ever, and I have to admit I was really impressed at the quality of the Nail Varnish as I'm always a bit wary when ever I get given products in sets like that.

The first colour which I tried out of the set was this dark brown. I always used to love my dark colours and that's all I would wear but recently I've been getting into pastels and more bright colours so when I wore this colour I remembered why I loved my dark colour and fell in love all over again!

The polishes come up very glossy which I love. It also has a sight red tinge to it when in very bright natural light and then the other times it's a really dark brown. Like most polishes it also needs at least 2 coats and a top coat to give it that perfect finish. I haven't yet tried the other 3 polishes so there are some more NOTD posts to come!

♥



#44 Gorgeous By Gok..

So the New Years Resoloutions aren't going too great, especially as one was to blog alot more, and to be honest it was going great, until I turnt 18, and from then on all I can think about is when I am next off partying! I really can't resist a good boogie on the dance floor with my girls and also I may have a gorgeous young fellow who I've been seeing a few times in a week leaving no time for blogging alongside working too. So yes do feel free to give me a good hard poke in the eye! I do hope you are all well, and I've missed all of you! Please help me get my blogging mojo back! Maybe even a few suggestions on what you would like to see?
On my birthday I was given this little beauty...

This litte gem is from the Gorgeous by Gok collection, and when it's not being a beautiful little clutch bag its an amazing manicure set!

Inside the bag consists of the Gorgeous by Gok Hand Balm, Gorgeous by Gok Nail and Cuticle oil, a nail file and cuticle sticks (not quite too sure what they are called! Haha)

 I have been using this hand balm almost every day as since December my hands have been in very poor condition, mainly because I didn't look after them properly and the cold weather has left them all dry and sore. So by remembering to apply this everyday my hands have felt softer and the patches where they were dry are no longer, plus this actually smells great!

 The cold weather also seriously affected my cuticles and during the days they would catch my attention and I would notice how horrific they looked. Afterall, every girl wants to have perfect long talons painted in a divine red lacquer! Well, I do! So when I kept noticing that every part of my hands and nails were looking awful I knew something had to be done about it. So now everytime I give myself a manicure, which is usually once a week I apply a drop of the nail and cuticle oil to each nail bed and massage well. This has helped to restore some moisture into my cuticles and nails which means they don't horrify me everytime I see them and hopefully they may even make an appearance onto my blog again with maybe a NOTD!

And of course a manicure set wouldn't be complete without these little gems! I'm very guilty of collecting manicure sets and then the nail file and cuticle sticks just being left to one side and not getting used, but now that I am really trying to make an effort I have been using the cuticle sticks to neaten up my nails, and not letting them go to waste by just sitting there. The nail file also isn't really that brilliant, its attractive to look at becauase on the other side it has the same pattern as the lining of the bag but it is very flimsy like most nail files you get in manicure sets. But because it is small and light weight and I am making a conscious effort I am keeping it in my bag, because there are always those occasions where you could really do with a nail file but you may not carry your favourite one around with you (yes, I do have a favourite nail file I like to use!)
So this concludes the Gorgeous by Gok manicure set, which has been my hand and nail life saver! So if any of you ladies were brought this and it's just been left to one side and not even opened, I strongly recomend you start using it, every girl needs that rescue kit, and this is mine!