Nicole by OPI - Roughles Swatches

Hi all,

I've recently been sent some Nicole by OPI polishes. And oh boy I'm in love.  Now it's no secret that I have a slight problem with textured nail polishes.  I love the look of them, I think they're a great change to the normal finishes, but, I can't stop touching them!  However I seem to be overcoming that problem every time I wear one of these Roughles polishes.

I'm Stucco on You is the first polish up, a lovely purple, which dries a little lighter on the nail.  It has navy and hot pink flecks in the mix. This is two coats:

Nicole by OPI - I'm Stucco on You

 

I think probably one of the things I like most about this collection is the sheen of the flat base peeking through from the rough particles, It gives so much dimension.

Next up is Rock the Look, a lovely pastel pink with darker pink and grey specks.

Nicole by OPI - Rock the Look

 

This is probably is my least favourite from the bunch, it's a lovely polish that reminds me of strawberry cheesecake, but it just doesn't do much for me.

The next beauty up is Sand in My Shoe.  I love this colour.  It's my favourite from the bunch of Roughles.  It's a bright pastel yellow with flecks of orange.  This polish totally reminds me of pollen, and it's such a lovely summery colour!

Nicole by OPI - Sand in My Shoe

 
The top picture is in sunlight, showing its full glory.  I probably could have done with dabbing some more polish in places to get an even fleck effect.

And last but not least, a gorgeous turquoise that's almost more of an aqua in my eyes, which has navy and grey specks.  Bright and fun and perfect for summer, this will be gracing my fingertips more than once this month at least.  This is On What Grounds?:

NOPI - On What Grounds?

And just for funsies I wanted to see how this polish would look with top coat:

These polishes, and some more I will be posting soon will be available in Superdrug stores nationwide on 30th July 2014.

Hope you've all had a good week so far.  I've got a couple extra days off as I was hoping to go camping, so I imagine lots of pampering will be occurring!

**These polishes were sent to me for consideration of review**

Born Pretty Foil Review

Hi all.

Hope you've all had a good weekend, I've had a pretty decent one so far, and I'm planning on doing a massive spring clean of my clothes and shoes this evening so I'm sure I'll be feeling marvelous when there's less clutter.

Today I have my first ever experience with nail foils. I was contacted recently by the Born Pretty Store and I decided It was time to finally try nail foils. I was sent numbers 76, and 1, and these can be found here, there's so many designs to choose from though, so good luck trying to pick!

Now, I'm not saying I'll never try foils again, but I had such a hard time with the timing of waiting for the polish to be tacky, but not too wet.  Trying to get the holographic part of the foils to show through was also quite a tough task, and although the nails below were my second attempt at using foils (the first attempt at these was so bad I didn't even take pictures), you can still only see the holo part on the ring finger.

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colour: Barry M - Blackberry

Foils: Born Pretty Store

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

So although I struggled with these, and really struggled with the other colour I tried I love the effect nail foils can give.

If you're interested in any of these foils, or any other products the Born Pretty Store offer use coupon code DS5X31 for 10% off.

**These nail foils were sent to me for review**

Loop the Loop, Gold and Black Stamping

Hi all,

Sorry for being MIA so long, you know how it happens, life and all the fun stuff that prevents me sitting in front of a laptop. Also all the non-fun stuff like work, and gym!

Today I have one little piccah, from way back when (at least a few months) some really simple stamping, trying out a few new polishes.

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colours: Ciaté - Loop the Loop, & an unknown Nails Inc Gold

Stamping Colour: BYS - Black Satin

Image Plate: Bundle Monster BM406

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

That's all for me, I'll try to post again next week :] Hope you're all keeping well!

Ciaté - Loop the Loop & Bronze Stamping

Hi all,

Today I have a really simple mani, really simple stamping, that as always looked better in person.  This was actually my first ever Ciaté polish and I really loved the formula, though as it's a mini, I disliked the brush.  A thank you goes out to one of my managers for getting this for me for a little christmas pressie :] I also got a Ciaté christmas mix glitter (can't remember the name now).

On to the mani:

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colour: Ciaté - Loop the Loop

Stamping Colour: Revlon - Cooper Chrome

Image Plate: Bundle Monster BM410

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

Sadly I forgot to take any swatch shots, but it's a gorgeous creamy pastel yellow. I'll definitely be using this again soon as the Spring weather is making me excited for sunny days!

I really love this image too, I think I may use it next time over a tie-dye type base so it shows through the "arrow head" like space.

That's all from me today, hope you've all had a good weekend :]

A Few Manis From November

Hi all.

I've spent a few hours today editing through some old photos (most of which were taken on my iPhone, so aren't the best quality) so I have a few mani's to show you today, and hopefully will get some more set up to post so I can start posting regularly again!

Base coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colour: NOPI - Pretty In Plum

Stamping Colour: Barry M - Silver Foil

Image Plate: Bundle Monster BM417

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

Please excuse the tip wear in the next one, and the not so great stamping. I actually think that this purple and yellow combo was from mid October!

Base Coat CND - Stickey

Base Colour: Sinful Colors - Amethyst

Stamping Colour: Konad Yellow

Image Plate: BM423

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colour: Revlon - Emerald City

Stamping Colour: Revlon - Copper Chrome

Image Plate: Bundle Monster BM415

Image Plate: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

Not the best pictures, but the first mani I especially loved. The base is Nicole by OPI - Pretty In Plum very lovely shade, and it looks quite different in different lighting.

Other than that there's not much more to say! Hope you've had a lovely weekend, mine has been a let down; as per. But at least I have a busy three days before I have an interview on Thursday, and then I'm not back in work until Monday!

Eyeballs, Bats & Zombie Costume

Hi all,

So I haven't posted for a few days now, and although I've had some photos ready I just haven't had the chance.  Part of that is because It's my favourite time of year - Halloweeeeeeeen! Although technically we've passed Halloween, and are on to Dia de los Muertos I like to take any chance I can in this week to dress up, and I will show you my costume later, but for now, I have some nails for you that I did a couple of weeks back now.

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colours: NOPI - Hit The Lights & W7 - Nightsuede

Stamp Colours: W7 - Nightsuede & Konad White

Image Plate: Bundle Monster Holiday Collection BMH06 & BMH08
Top Coat: Advanced Hard As Nails

Apologies for these almost murky photos, the lens on my phone was dirty and I hadn't realised.

And now on to my costume, this year after a lot of debate I settled on Alice In Wonderland//Zombieland as my bestie was going to be the white Rabbit, and I had no other sort of direction.

Here's my face:

And here's the before and after of the wig, to the full costume. Annoyingly I fell in love with this particular dress because of the collar, but I just couldn't stand the feel of it at all. So I cut that off.

For reference, here are the zombie costumes I have done since I started blogging: 2011, 2012. Last years costume makes me wish I'd done more with the prosthetic piece, but i'm happy with how it turned out. I mean, people didn't know it was me which is always a win :]

You guys do fancy dress this year?

NOPI Selena Gomez - Hit The Lights & Spring Break Stamping

Hiiii all, it's Friday!

I've got some very pretty polishes to show yo today, and more to come!

Recently I got sent quite a few polishes to try from the new Selena Gomez line for Nicole by OPI, and I immediately went for this stunning beauty Hit The Lights. It is by far the nicest yellow I own, it's mega happy and bright, and the formula is great too, three thin coats is perfect.  Nicole by OPI can be found at Superdrug stores and retail at £7.99.

After a day of wearing this on it's own I decided to do a rushed stamp job before work, and while I'm not really thrilled about the turn out, I love the combination, and from afar a quick glance you can see a pretty orange.

It was horrible and overcast when I first used Hit The Lights, and gain when I stamped, so trust this is  beauty!

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colour: NOPI - Hit the Lights

Stamped Colour: NOPI - Spring Break

Image Plate: Cheeky - Viva Mexico

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

Crazy bright bottle of joy below!

And some swatches of Spring Break:

Please excuse the corpse hands!

The coverage was slightly better on Spring Break, using the usual two coats, where as with Hit the Lights I used a slightly thicker two. I'm really loving the polishes from this collection so far. Especially Hit The Lights!

*These polishes were sent for consideration of review*

Saran Wrap Base - We Stamp On Sundays

Hi everyone, happy Sunday and all that :]

I hope everyone's doing good. I've had nice lazy chilled weekend, ready for the chaos of the week ahead.

This week's challenge for Adventures In Stamping - We Stamp On Sundays is to stamp over a saran wrap (clingfilm) base. When I started painting my nails I knew I wanted to do pastel, so I picked up one of the palest polishes from my 'untried' tub and went from there.

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colour: Models Own - Banana Split

Saran Colours: Purple Professional - 53 & 55

Stamping Colour: W7 - Blue Lagoon

Image Plate: Bundle Monster BM 313

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

 Here's the saran wrap base using Purple 53 & 55 over Models Own - Banana Split

Swatch of Banana Split & What I used:

Banana Split was the first scented polish of two I've tried and I wasn't that impressed. Formula was kind of normal for yellows like his, crelly like, but the scent just didn't last an hour. Which is very disappointing as I've had scented polishes that last until they come off. Nevertheless, very pretty yellow, perfect as a base which is why I bought it - so I can't complain too much.

How do you guys like the saran wrap method? I really love doing it, it always reminds me of stone. and it's so so easy.

Til next time!

Spring Flowers - We Stamp On Sundays

Hi all.

Happy Monday, start to a four day week, four day weekend combo - I like! I always feel a little strange posting these on Mondays, but as it was getting so so late last night I decided to take advantage of the fact I can now set up posts in my lunch break!

This week's challenge over at Adventures In Stamping called for spring flowers. When I started these I didn't know what stamp I was going to use, or what colours, just that I wanted to stamp over a gradient. So I was pleasantly surprised by the outcome.

Base Coat: CND - Stickey
Base Colour: Rimmel - White
Gradient Colours: Catrice - London, H&M - Make Me Blush, Revlon - Teak Rose
Stamp Colour: Sally Hansen Fairy Teal
Image Plate: Cheeky CH44
Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

 Two coats of white:

Then I sponged on the three colours at once, and did two coats of this, these pictures were taken without a top coat.

Here's what I used minus the stamping polish: 

Hope you guys like these!

Back to work I go :(

Sally Hansen - Quick Brick & Yellow Stamping

Hi hi all. Yay Friday!

This will be a scheduled post, but I already have that Friday feeling!

Today's nails start with a base, which is actually one of my favourite red polishes because it's so vibrant, and with all the Inst-Dri polishes I've tried the coverage is just amazing. So after a base of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri - Quick Brick I then decided to stamp with Konad Special Polish - Yellow, which at the time seemed like a fun move to make, but I'm not certain if it's the cheeky plates, or the special polish, but things just aren't working out!

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colour: Sally Hansen Insta-Dri - Quick Brick

Stamping Colour: Konad Special Polish - Yellow

Image Plate: Cheeky CH46

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

I had quite a bit of problems with the stamp smearing or more like stretching I suppose. And not picking up the little bits inside the stars. I've just started to work my way through my cheeky plates testing them on paper, so hopefully this was just a bad attempt on my behalf and not some deep engraving!

And this is a shot of Quick Brick without top coat, with flash. Nomnomnom!

That's all from me today :]

Catrice London & BYS Black Satin Plaid

Hi all :]

Hope you've all had a good week. I'm so looking forward to tomorrow night (Thursday when I write this), going out for food and then drinks after work, yessaaah!

So today we have some nails I did back in the start of December when the sun was out one day. The base is Catrice - London, and it's stamped with Konad M60 in BYS - Black Satin.

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colour: Catrice - London

Stamped Colour: BYS - Black Satin

Image Plate: Konad M60

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Advanced Hard As Nails

Invasion of.... - We Stamp On Sundays

Happy Sunday guys!

I've just went over 500 followers! how exciting :D! I have a prize and everything picked out for a giveaway, so hopefully that'll be posted by the end of the week :]

This week's Adventures In Stamping challenge was to let your imagination run wild, and create on "invasion" mani. Unfortunately I just haven't been too inspired or energetic recently regarding everything not just my nails, and I just settled on a mediocre idea that is cute, but not all crazy like i'd originally hoped.

Base Coat: CND - Stickey

Base Colour: Kiko - Cornflower

Sponged Colours: Catrice - London

                                 NOPI - Loyalty To The Royal-ty

Stamping Colour: Konad Special White

Image Plate: Konad M27

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Advanced

And some swatch shots of the pretty Kiko - Cornflower that came to me in my second swap with Susana

For some reason I didn't take any photos of the sponging, but all i did was use the rough side of a kitchen sponge and a tiny bit of yellow, and then the soft side with the blue and tapped it on my tips & worked up to about half way.

Here's what I used:

And that's them! Hardly an invasion, but I've wanted to use this plate for quite a while now, so I did :P