MoYou Manicure Monday

Hey guys!

I apologise for the lack of posts (again). I've been trying to prepare a lot of stuff for my final year at university so have barely had any time to blog. 

Some of you may have read my previous post on MoYou's stamping kit and this manicure has been created using their kit.

I must admit, I barely do stamping nail art but I'm not quite sure why as they are a super easy way to get beautiful and intricate designs.

I recently received 2 new stamping plates and a nail polish and thought it would be a good opportunity to to try another stamping design.

Normally the kit would contain a scraper and stamp but since I have previously received them, this package came without.

As purple is my favourite colour, I'm a sucker for purple packaging and totally love the envelope in which the stamping plates were enclosed in. 

They also enclosed their most recent catalogue which features all their products and the range of stamping plates available. I've already seen a few that I'm tempted to treat myself to.

As I mentioned, I love the colour purple and oddly enough I don't own a dark purple nail polish so I obviously had to choose the Royal Purple* shade.

I chose these two plates (number 124 and 120). Plate 124* would create such a feminine, beautiful design. Plate 120* would be great for Christmas manicures!

 

This manicure was created using Plate 124. I used the MoYou polish as the base and then used a nude nail polish on the plate to create the design.

I'm loving the nail polish as it doesn't chip easily (I haven't used a top coat) and it also has a matte finish to it so I didn't need to use my top coat.

Overall, I'm loving this. I have tried other stamping kits which have sucked, which I think is one of the main reasons why I don't do stamping designs often but I have no complaints with this one.

I highly recommend it to create affordable, easy, beautiful and fun manicures. Make sure to check out their website.

If you have any stamping designs do leave your link below as I'd love to check them out!

Thanks for reading! x x

Marbled Nails + Mini Update

Hey guys!

Firstly, I must apologise for the 2 month hiatus my blog surprisingly took. It wasn't planned at all but I ended up having a super busy summer and I didn't have time to blog but now I'm back and hopefully will be getting up posts regularly! 

To get myself back into a blogging routine I've decided to do a nail art post (of course). I'm super happy to do this as the places I've been working do not allow nail polish so it has been a hard and sad time for a nail polish addict like me. But to be honest, it's getting me used to life post university as my desired career unfortunately won't allow me to wear nail polish anyway.

I've always wanted to try water marbled nails but it looks like it needs quite a bit of patience which I don't really have time for at the moment so I found a sort of cheat way to get marbled nails. 

 These are the polishes I used to create this effect. I painted my nails half and half with each colour and then used a match (because I had no cocktail sticks at home) and to create the spiral effect.

This has got to be one of the easiest nail art designs I have done and I love the result It also has a kind of metallic finish to it but that might just be due to the colour combo. I then used my matte top coat to finish off the design.

If you would like a tutorial for this design do let me know. You can tweet me or leave a comment below.

If you have any marbled designs of your own (water or non-water) do leave the link below as I would love some inspiration as I seem to be loving marbled designs at the moment! 

Thanks for reading!!!

Tip Top Nail Polishes Review*

Hey guys

This review is super late. I received these over the Easter holidays but back then I was preparing for my exams and super stressed that I wasn't even blogging then. I just remembered I hadn't written up my review for the polishes (only mentally) so here it is.

I received 5 polishes from them, 3 'normal' ones and 2 'special efffects' ones.

 

They are a South African company who were looking for bloggers to review their products and I'm always looking for new nail polishes to try so I contacted them to see if they wanted UK bloggers.

I've only tried 'No Way Rose' and 'Feeling Blue-Tiful' properly and so far I'm liking them. They also contain Vitamin E, which is good for the nails so helps strengthen them as well while having the polish on. I've gone 3-4 days with them and no chipping which I have to say is amazing as I've tried so many polishes, even those that claim to be chip free for 7 days which turn out not to be. However, I have found that they do need a couple of coats which is slightly annoying.

Unfortunately, I don't see as of yet where in the UK you can buy their polishes which is a shame as they have a beautiful range of colours and would be interested in purchasing a few of them.

However, you can check out their website to find out more about them and where you can buy their polishes if you're fortunate enough to live in a place where they are sold.

Has anybody else tried Tip Top nail polishes? If you find somewhere that you can buy them from, do let me know.

Thanks for reading.

(Throwback) Manicure Monday

Hey guys

This week's manicure is a bit of a throwback. I actually did this manicure last month but because of my exams I didn't get a chance to post it up when I wanted to.

For ages I had been saying I wanted to get dotting tools. Then as I was going through my various nail art tools I came across one! I was so happy as it meant I could try dotting designs and could also save a bit of money for the mean time.

I kept it simple as it was my first time and also I didn't have that much time. I was pretty tired from the library and had to get up early but by force I had to paint my nails.

Here is the result:

 I used Bourjois' nail polish is Violet Couture as the base colour

 Then I used 2 Barry M polishes in Lilac and White for the dots

I'm pleased with the results despite the rush and it being my first time using dotting tools.

I think I'll be doing a lot more dotting designs.

Any of you guys fan of dotting designs? 

Thanks for reading!

Beauty Bay Haul

Hey guys

As I mentioned in my previous posts, I did quite a bit of shopping over my exam period. Online shopping is very therapeutic but it is also very dangerous. I definitely spend more online than when in a shop.

However, it has been ages since I've been shopping so I think I did go a bit overboard but gave myself a limit in each site.

My first haul is from Beauty Bay. I actually came across this site by mistake and now I'm hooked. I came looking for a good top coat that I had been recommended by Claire and Nic and as I was looking for a place to buy it cheaper I stumbled across Beauty Bay. I noticed they had a sale and I was trying to comfort myself after bad exams and since it had been a while since I bought nail polish so I thought I'd give the nail polish section a  quick browse. Big mistake. My basket originally hit about £50-60 and I was fully about to pay it and then quickly calmed down and transferred a few to my save for later basket.

I decided on 3 polishes and a clear coat which is actually a base coat (annoyingly didn't know at the time) but am planning to also use as a top coat and see what happens.

As a self proclaimed nail polish addict I'm ashamed to say I have never bought or tried O.P.I or China Glaze nail polishes but I have heard great things and they had colours perfect for summer that I thought I might as well use this opportunity to try them out.

I'm definitely coming back to buy some more.

The shades are beautiful. I particularly love the China Glaze polishes as they are pastel colours and I love pastels especially during summer. 

The Seche clear top coat was originally £6.99 but is now £5.94

 OPI Aphrodites Pink Nightie was originally £11.95 but is now £6.93 

China Glaze At Vase Value was originally £6.95 but is now £4.38

China Glaze Spring in My Step was originally £6.95 but is now £4.38

I'm in love with these colours and I can't wait to do some summer nail art designs with them which I will share with you.

I highly recommend giving them a visit ( I most definitely will again). They have free shipping and even though my total didn't qualify for next day delivery I still received them the next day! It was such a pleasant surprise and exactly what I needed considering the week I was having.

Have any of you got some great deals from Beauty Bay and do you have any shades/brands nail polish to recommend as I'm trying to widen my nail polish collection.

Thanks for reading!

Mani monday

Hey guys

As you may or may not know, I've recently gotten into nude nail polishes. At first, I was quite hesitant but now I only want to be wearing nude polishes.

I used one of my nude polishes from Maybelline's color show 'stripped nude' range. I would recommend this range. These nude polishes are great quality, affordable (£3.99 with Superdrug/Boots always doing offers) and don't require many coats to be opaque enough.

I added a bit of black to make it a bit more interesting

If you too also love nail polishes/nail art and can direct me to designs and polishes do let me know!

Thanks for reading!

Mani Monday

Hey guys

It feels like ages since I've done a mani monday! 

Today, I decided to use one of Maybelline's polishes from their color show Street Artist top coat range that I picked up in my most recent superdrug haul. 

I'm not quite sure why I used such a dark colour because the sun seems to be making an appearance and I should be wearing beautiful bright pastel colours but for some reason I chose a darker colour.

 I used a dark blue polish as my base coat and then used the 'Alley Attitide' top coat.

I'm really loving these polishes. Such a quick and easy way to achieve great looking nails. Perfect for those times that I've feeling to lazy to create some kind of nail art design.

Have you guys used any of the top coats from this range? What do you think of them? Any other top coats you would recommend? Let me know!

Thanks for reading and have a great week!

#2014bloggerchallenge- nail art made easy

Hey guys

This #2014bloggerchallenge is all about nails! As a nail blogger you would think this would be an easy topic for me. However, since I regularly post about nails, I've been trying to come up with a post that isn't similar to my usual nail related posts.

So I thought I would talk about ways to make nail art easy. 

I'm a massive lover of nail art and people have said to me they don't have the time, skill or patience for it. To be totally honest I feel that way too. I've seen some intricate drawings and I definitely don't have the time, skill or patience for that. I prefer designs with shapes and stripes so I thought I would share a few ways I create my nail art:

1. Striping tape

If you regularly read my blog you'll know that I love striping tape. Out of the techniques I'll be giving this is the 'hardest' one because it requires patience and a steady hand but apart from that I wouldn't say it's that hard. It can be of putting because of the patience required but once you get over that hurdle it's simple. You can create as many stripes as you want, with as many layers as you want. You can just go crazy with it! You can read more about it here



2. Top coat

Using a top coat is such an easy way to get an artistic effect. You just put them over the base colour of your choice and you're done! I remember the crackle top coats that I used years ago but at the moment, I'm loving Maybelline's color show street artist range. They create such cool effects, and they last! I would totally recommend them.

3. Textured nail polish

These are another simple way to jazz up your nails. They just add that little extra to a simple mani. These type of nail polishes create an effect on your nails For example, I like to use Sally Hansen's sugar coat. There are loads more out there but these are my current favourite.

4. Nail brushes

These are handy to have and I quite enjoy using these when I can't be bothered with striping tape. 

5. Nail Stamps

I am actually yet to try nail stamps but from what I've seen they are an easy to create those intricate looking designs. As soon as I get my hands on some I'll be sure to let you guys see

6. Dotting/marbling tools

These are another set of accessories that I am yet to try but have seen some beautiful designs with. The dotting tool helps to create uniform dots and the marbling tools create a water effect.


Places to buy accessories:

Born Pretty Store sell great accessories such as nail stamps and striping tape for low prices with free worldwide shipping! I also happen to have a code giving 10% so feel free to use that as well: (ATX31)

eBay also sell great accessories but sometimes you have to search for the cheaper ones and some may come from abroad requiring a longer wait. If you're from the UK like me, there are some UK sellers, and some with free shipping! As a matter of fact, all my Sally Hansen polishes have been bought from eBay at a much cheaper price than from Superdrug or Boots.


I hope you have enjoyed this post. Sorry it's a bit longer than usual, I can talk about nail art for days...
Have you got any other suggestions for nail art? Do let me know. 
And if you've got your #2014bloggerchallenge post up, leave your link below as I would love to read them!

Thanks for reading!

Mani Monday

Hey guys!

I apologise for the lack of posts recently. I've had some intense weeks at uni and didn't have time/feel like writing. Unfortunately my crazily busy weeks haven't ended as I have an exam next week which of course I haven't started revising for... As it stands I'm currently taking a break from the all-nighter that I decided to pull.

It's been a while since I've posted a mani monday so here's my current manicure! I went back to my usual striping tape.

To create this look, I used a simple black from Barry M and one of the 'Polka Dots' polishes from one of Maybelline's limited edition color show.

Thanks for reading! Hope you have a great week!

Nude Mani Monday

Hey guys

A couple of weeks ago I posted about my recent Superdrug Haul. In this haul I picked up a couple of nude limited edition nail polishes from Maybelline's color show range.

I had mentioned my hesitation regarding nude nail polishes as I'm quite a dark skinned girl. However, I'm loving these polishes!

And unlike many of the polishes from this range, it hasn't peeled off and seems to be lasting quite a while which I'm pleasantly surprised about.

Have any of you tried these polishes?

I'd love to know what you thought of them!

Thanks for reading!

Mani Monday- Street Artist Edition

Hey Guys

Happy Monday! (Positive thinking...)

I had an assessment today and one way I like to de-stress and chill is by doing my nails.

Recently, I bought a load of nail polishes which you can read about here

I really wasn't in the mood for waiting for nail polishes to dry so I can do some nail art design but I didn't want plain nails so I decided to try out one of the new polishes from Maybelline's Color Show Street Artist edition.

These polishes are a top coat effect so I just picked out some random nail polish I found in my collection which turned out to be one of the many presents I was given by my blogger secret santa. The polish is from Primark and the first one I've used from there. I don't know if their polishes are any good but I love this colour. I almost didn't want to put the top coat over.

As I was painting the top coat on, I wasn't sure if I was feeling it but the more I look at it, the more I'm warming up to it.

So far I'm loving them. Have any of you guys tried these polishes? What do you think of them?

Do let me know!

Thanks for reading!!

First mani of 2014!

Hey guys!

It's been a while since I've posted a mani post!

I've been on work placement and wasn't sure if I was allowed to wear nail polish or not so I decided not to. Not the easiest decision...

Then I was ill which explains the lack of mani monday posts. But I'm back and here's my first mani of 2014!!! 

A little late I know, but better late than never!

 

I was just messing about with my striping tape and came up with this design.

What do you guys think?

Do let me know. And if you know of any nail accessories do comment below. I'm always looking for new things to keep my nail art fresh :)

And I apologise for the absence. I've been super busy with work placement, assignments and recovering from various illnesses. I'm hoping to post more regular again very soon.

Thanks for reading!

x x

Mani Monday- Christmas edition!!!

Hey guys!!

It's officially Christmas week!!!

Unfortunately I only have Christmas Day off from work but I refuse to let that stop me from getting into the festive spirit!

So what better way than to express my Christmas than to do a Christmas inspired mani!

I didn't have time to some fancy design with Christmas trees or candy canes but I just went with the red (it's actually pink but you can't really tell) and white theme and used my beloved striping tape to achieve this look.

Please ignore the smudges. I was so annoyed when it happened especially as I couldn't start again. I spent so much time and my patience was wearing thin but it paid off in the end.

What do you guys think?

Do you have any festive manis? I'd love to see them.

Please leave your links below!

Have a great Christmas!!!

x x

Nailed it!

Hey guys

I've been suffering a bit from blogger's block so I though I'd go back to the reason why I started blogging in the first place. (Watch out for a lot more nail related posts)

I'm a massive nail art fan and I feel like it's my only opportunity to show my creative side because I can't draw to save my life. I hated art. It just wasn't a talent I have.

But with nail polish I'm able to express myself.

I have great fun just messing about with the numerous (maybe too many) pots of nail polishes that I have. And it's also a great way for me to de-stress and relax.

What do you guys think of today's design?

I've been totally neglecting my other nail polishes due to my obsession with Maybelline's color show range. I had forgotten how much I love Bourjois' nail polish. Their polishes do cost a bit more that I normally like to pay but it's worth the price. The colours are great and don't require many coats and they last. At least I know I'm paying for quality. (Besides I bought it when Boots had some kind of offer on...).
 I used Bourjois nail polish in Violet couture for the base and then Barry m's staple black and white design on top.

Anybody else a fan of nail art?

I'd love to see what designs you've come up with!
Do comment below, I love receiving them and I do take time to reply them.

Thanks for reading 

Don't forget to follow me on twitter and bloglovin and if you haven't entered my giveaway what are you waiting for?

Have a great day!

 x x