Metallic nails

I'm not usually one to go for metallics - i think they can look tacky or cheap if not worn with the 'right' things - but i was catching up on Sammi of Beauty Crush's videos & in one of them she was wearing a metallic gold nail polish with a black cross on her ring finger & i thought it looking really chic and a bit edgy.  I was also looking for a new polish that would go with my homecoming dress & thought silver would go best, so i ended up picking "Silver Dollar" by Revlon, out of the Metallic range.  I was a bit hesitant to buy it since i tend to really dislike the Revlon formulas, but this dried fairly quickly and only required two coats.

For $3-4, i'm super impressed and i think it looks really nice!  I'm probably going to end up picking up the gold one on my next stop at the drugstore.  Since metallics are considered neutrals, this doesn't clash with the clothes i'm wearing & really completes an outfit. :)

What do you all think of metallic nail polish/metallics in general?

♥

Monthly Favorites: May

Have quite a few favorites this month; this is probably because i have been spending way too much on cosmetics & hair products lately... i apologize, bank account.  I also haven't done one of these monthly favorites posts in a while, and that's probably for the same sort of reason, in months past i haven't splurged on anything really as i had been saving up for my trip.  (A little sidenote as i got a question about this on my last post: yes i will be doing a post on my trip eventually, it will just take a while to put together!  Sorry if you're a bit annoyed with me...)

This month i've been using a lot of products i got whilst in London, as well as two i got back here in the States.  If you are also from the US and are wondering where you can purchase brands like Barry M and Sleek Makeup that aren't available here, i suggest Googling them and going to the brands' official websites.  The shipping costs may be a bit horrendous, but in some cases i do think it is worth it!  On to what i've been loving in the past month. :)

♥ GOSH Eyeshadow Quad in Driftwood & Barry M Dazzle Dust in Tan.

The first time i tried this GOSH palette, i was actually really disappointed as the colors all tended to look the same on my eyes and it just didn't stand out to me at all, but now i've been using this most everyday!  I've found a combination of products to use in tandem with this palette to make a really lovely makeup look.  I use Benefit's RSVP as a base, then apply the Barry M Dazzle Dust in Tan all over the lid & slightly into the crease.  I then apply the medium brown shade (top, right) into the crease, the dark brown (bottom, left) into the outer v, and the highlight shade (top, left) in the inner corner and brow bone.

The Dazzle Dust in Tan is very similar to the famous MAC eyeshadow in All That Glitters, but you definitely get more product for your money with the Dazzle Dust!  This shadow is so versatile and i think it would look so lovely on just about every skin tone.

 ♥ Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick in Born With It.

The Color Sensational lipsticks are hands down my favorite lipsticks i've ever tried - yes, i even prefer these over MAC! *shock horror*  The formula, the color payoff, the longevity, everything is just spot on!  Well done Maybelline.  This shade in particular is a fairly new addition to my collection.  It's a super lovely nudey-pink shade, and leaves a bit of a sheen to the lips.  It's one of those lippies that would definitely be described as a "my lips, but better" shades.  It's so perfect and wearable, i think i will repurchase this until Maybelline stops making these (and probably even after...they shouldn't stop making these anyway! ;)

 ♥ Sleek Contour Kit in Light, Too Faced Shadow Insurance in Candlelight, and GOSH Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Black Ink.

I talked about all three of these products in my "Gosh & Sleek Loving" post, so if you want to read my little review on these products, deffo have a looksie.  Thought they were worth mentioning again in this post. :)

(left to right: 264 Pink Iridescent Glitter, 309 Strawberry Ice Cream, 318 Peach Melba, 304 Mint Green)

♥ Barry M Nail Paints.

I have been absolutely loving the Barry M Nail Paints i got (yes, i did get nine... *slap on the wrist*).  I had a laugh at all the comments from some of you saying you literally giggled when you saw how many i bought, haha... i'm so pathetic, i know!  The four above are the ones i have already tried (besides the Nail Effects one) and have been looooooving.  These nail paints have made me actually enjoy painting my nails, they dry so quickly and the colors are so fun!

Swatches (top to bottom): Too Faced Shadow Insurance in Candlelight, Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick in Born With It (is lighter irl!), and GOSH Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Black Ink

♥ Charles Worthington Rough & Tough Front Row Salt Spray.

I've done a post on this showing how i style my hair using this product, which you can read here. :)

♥ Tangle Teezer - Original.

In my London haul post, i said i didn't really know my thoughts on this product, but after a bit more use i've grown to love it.  It's one of those products that you don't really realize how good it is until you've stopped using it.  For instance, i'd been using this for about two weeks and thought it was nothing special, but then i decided to use my regular paddle hair brush.  The regular hair brush made it incredibly painful to detangle my hair and it ended up just ripping my hair out, really!  Since then, i've been using the Tangle Teezer - on wet and dry hair.  I love this and would recommend it to anyone whose hair gets all mangled like mine.  Such a hair and pain saver!

♥

Feeling Peachy

Feeling rather down from jet-lag and a long & stressful day of work, i decided to utilize one of my new Barry M Nail Paints that i bought while in London.  (I had such a laugh at the comments & tweets i got on my huge Barry M spree!  Love you guys :).  I opted for the shade 318 Peach Melba, which was love at first sight really!

It's a creamy, pinky-peach color and almost comes off as fluorescent (without being in-your-face neon).  It makes me smile whenever i look at it (sad i know), such a perfect color for spring and summer!  I quite like the formula as it dries fairly quickly - i get stir crazy if my nail polish takes too long to dry - but it did go on a bit streaky.  It took three coats to get to an opacity i liked, but i didn't mind too much honestly since again, it didn't take forever to dry!
I'm quite impressed with the staying power as well.  I painted my nails Saturday afternoon and it's now Tuesday.. usually my nails would be crazy chipped & peeling by now, but Peach Melba's not budging. :)

This first little dive into Barry M Nail Paints left me feeling very satisfied.  I mean, imagine purchasing £27+ worth of nail polish and hating the formula of it or something!  That would be one big *facepalm* indeed.


Sorry about the delay on my London posts (clothes/accessories haul & photos from my trip) everyone.  As i believe i said before, it would be impossible to take photos of all the clothes, so i'm going to try & film a video, but finding the time & privacy to do so may be a bit challenging!  And i took over 1000 photos during my trip so going through them & choosing which ones to post (not to mention watermarking them) will take a while!  Will try to get on that asap though. ;)

♥

festive nails.

Christmas has to be one of my favorite things ever (by far the best time of the year!) - the snow, the Christmas music on the radio, the decorations, the 'Christmas spirit', the delicious food, the gifts - it's all so lovely :).  I know i'm not the only one who loves to get a bit festive during the holiday season, with pretty dresses and sparkly accessories and such, and nail polish is a cute little way to get yourself in the Christmas spirit, even though it's so subtle!

I was on the hunt for a forest green nail polish and when i saw this sparkling with all it's might in the aisles of Walmart, i knew i just had to get it!  Sally Hansen is probably my favorite brand of drugstore nail polishes, so i knew this would get a lot of use from me.  They also had a few other jewel toned, frosty shades (jewel toned anything is always amazing in my book) which i was really tempted to buy as they looked absolutely gorgeous, but resisted as i didn't want to go completely nail polish-insane haha.  So i ended up picking up this shade, 22 Jumpin' Jade ♥

Sorry as it's a bit messy!

The color itself is obv very pretty and what you see in the bottle is basically what you get, although in some lightings the jade reflex is hidden a bit (which goes for any nail polish really!).  This is one coat, which is crazy - i'll probably be adding another coat tonight though to give it a bit more thickness too it.  The brush is awesome as well, it's wide but flat, which makes it really easy to apply.  These also don't take forever to dry, which is a big thumbs up from me!  The only thing i was a bit disappointed with is that it's already started chipping and i just painted them last night.

Definitely go check these polishes out, i think they're a great value for $4.50 and they have the most gorgeous shades ever.

Hope you're all having a great day & i hope all you girls in England don't get buried in the snow! ;)

xoxo

♥

Eyeko Saucy Polish! ♥

As some of you may already know, i'm currently obsessed with all things red - nails, clothes, you name it!  So when i saw this polish, i knew i just had to paint it on my nails straight away.  The polish i so lovingly glided on my nails is one of Eyeko's newest polishes - Saucy Polish For Naughty Nails!  It's a bright, classic tomato red - the color & the name of the polish actually reminds me of salsa..tehe :)

I had heard a lot of great things about Eyeko's nail polishes, so i had high hopes for some seriously naughty nails ;)

Base coat - Maybelline Express Finish 50-Second Nail Color Base & Top Coat
Top coat - Revlon Extra Life No Chip Top Coat

Saucy Polish actually went on really well, it dripped a bit at first, but overall it was really easy to work with.  You could get away with using just one coat to be honest, but since i really like to pack the color on, i ended up using 2-3 coats, depending how each nail looked after the second coat.  I found it dried really quickly, which of course i loved - i can't stand waiting forever for my nails to dry!



The brush isn't too thin or too thick, or too plastic-y, which is nice, but i did find that since it's so long, it was a bit messy, but nothing a little touch-up with a q-tip couldn't fix.
I did notice a little of wear at the tips of my nails, but that may just be because i'm rough on my nails :)

I really love the packaging, it's not like any other bottle i own!  It's quite quirky, and i adore the cute name :).  I'm a total sucker for cutesy things like that!  I think red nail polish is something every girl should own - it adds a little bit of sauciness to any outfit and can really pull an outfit together, it's like the cherry on top of any look!

Overall, i was really pleased with this polish & would recommend it to anyone who's looking to add a little spice to their look!  Eyeko polishes are available for $5.50 to those in the US on Eyeko's website, and Saucy Polish in particular is available here!  If you live in the UK, i think some Superdrugs sell Eyeko, and you can always order online :)

Look out for some more posts on other Eyeko products in the near future! ♥
Hope you're all having a lovely week!
xoxo
Disclaimer: I was sent Saucy Polish for consideration, but of course this is 100% my opinion, i'm not being compensated for this review, and i'm not affiliated with Eyeko!

Formspring / Twitter / Tumblr

♥

Fall-Inspired Nails ♥

I've been inspired by the recent weather change in just about every way in regards to my appearance - clothes (cue the cardigans & scarves :), makeup, and today - nails!  I love bright, colorful nail polish just as much as the next girl, but i embrace warmer, darker colors just as much.  It was quite enjoyable removing my neon pink polish and giving myself a nice fall-inspired mani!

Sorry for the mess ;)

After taking a brief scope through my polish collection, i landed on OPI's "It's a Doozi, Says Suzi", which i got in a sale at Boston Store last year, i believe :)

"It's a Doozi, Says Suzi" is a gorgeous vampy red, with subtle gold reflex in it.  In most lighting, it looks like a super deep red, almost a bit brown.  In sunlight, the gold really comes through & sparkles with all it's might :).  Suzi is absolutely fab!  I had to apply three coats, but it went on very smooth.

As a base coat i used Maybelline's Express Finish 50-Second Nail Color Base & Top Coat.  Three layers of OPI's pretty polish later, i applied Revlon's Extra Life No Chip Top Coat, which i am absolutely in love with!  Review for it here.

This is probably the best mani i gave myself in a while, hehe.  Look out for some more nail posts ladies!

What's your favorite color to paint your nails for fall? :)

-

I wanted to put a little spot in this post in remembrance of the horrific events on September 11, 2001.  Thoughts and love to all the families and friends who lost the ones the love ♥.

Never forget.

xoxo

♥

Silly Nails of the Week :)

You can probably tell one of my hands is definitely more skilled & able to do nail designs better than the other - oh, to be ambidextrous!

My nails this week were inspired by the lovely Julia at Julest, who did a super cute & super fun nail post a couple days ago.  Her's are about a trillion & a half times better & more awesome than mine, but i still had fun doing them, and i now smile whenever i look at my hands hehe :).

If you look at her nails in the post, you'll see i actually copied some (most) of the designs she did, just simplified a bit - as i have zero skills when it comes to nails (as you can probably tell from the messiness).

I have come to embrace bright colors & cute patterns this summer :)

I wanted to quick mention that i got an award from the lovely Alice, and i also got tagged by the equally lovely Hannahh & Xsmirage to do some awesome tags!  I'm not sure if i can get around to doing them :/, but i just wanted to say thank you all soo, soooo much & give a little shoutout!  Thanks again dollfaces!

Hope you are all having a lovely Monday!

Formspring / Twitter

♥

Nails: Polka Dot Fail! ♥

I got a few comments on my June Favorites post about my nails (haha) & i was planning to do a nails-of-the-week post on these nails anyway, so here we go!  Teehee :)

I was inspired by another beauty blogger who also did polka-dot nails, i literally searched for 15 minutes trying to find who it was so i could link her in here, but i couldn't find her!  Errg.

Products used, in order:

-Maybelline Express Finish Nail Enamel Top & Base Coat - as base coat

-3 coats of Orly "Pretty Please" (this has been in my past two NOTW's haha)

-Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Nail Color in "Blue Me Away" - polka dots

-Revlon No Chip Top Coat - review here

I put on the polka dots with a toothpick, and it was a total fail!  It's really not the nail varnish's fault, it was all mine!  I'm completely impatient when it comes to nails, but i really like my messy polka dots tbh :) - the polka dots are even worse on my other hand!

-

I'd like to say a quick thank you to the girls who've tagged me to do those fun tags & who've given me awards!  I promise i'll get around to them, soo sorry it's taking so long!  Xoxo ♥

Formspring / Twitter

♥

Review: Revlon Extra Life No Chip Top Coat ♥

I am so sooo sorry for the lack of posts lately (once again!), time for the excuses.... i have been super duper busy (standard, right?!) - i have band for three hours a day & am so tired when i get home that i just want to sleep.

I have also been out & about lately - i went to Summerfest yesterday/last night with some girlies and saw Tokyo Police Club & Passion Pit - SOOO much fun ahhhh, i might do a post on it :)

If you want to keep up to date with me though, you can always follow me on Twitter hehe - i'm always tweeting :)

This post is going to be a review on Revlon's Extra Life No Chip Top Coat, which i mentioned in a haul a couple weeks ago & some lovelies were interested in it, so i thought i'd do a review after testing it out!

Now, i've tried quite a few top coats in my nail-polish life, all basically drugstore, and i have to say this is my favorite.  The top coats i've tried have either taken a long time to dry, kind of defeating the purpose, or they've not provided the shine i desire :)
I have to say, i'm usually quite cheap when it comes to nail polishes, so i generally stick to the drugstore!

The brush is plastic & thin, which actually makes it quite easy to apply.

Consistency: The consistency of it is actually quite watery, which some girls may be annoyed by, but i'm personally not because it's really not to hard to work with & every other aspect of this product is really nice.

Drying time: The Revlon Extra Life No Chip Top Coat dries in fairly decent amount of time - i mainly paint my nails a few hours before i go to bed, and that usually means i wake up with big creases & lines in my polish - i didn't get that with this really, and if i did, they were quite subtle.

Shine: The shine this gives your nails is also sooo nice!  It looks really lovely, and it actually stays shiny & pretty for a long time!  Some top coats give your nails shine, but after a couple days it fades a bit, but i didn't get that with this!

Chipping/fading: The main thing this top coat is advertised for is anti-chippage & making your polish last longer on your nails.  I've used this top coat for my last two at-home manicures, and i can honestly say that i didn't get any chipping either times for at least 5-7 days, but i did get a bit of fading at the tips.

Price: This top coat by Revlon is really affordable, in the $4-5 range.

Overall

I would definately recommend this top coat to anyone who's looking for an affordable top coat.  I would definitely repurchase this myself!

-

I hope i helped you girls! (:

♥

Nail Polish Galore! ♥

Say hello to my little friends...

Hahaha ;D

This is all the nail polish i own.  I honestly don't mean to brag and i definately don't want to seem snooty or anything, so i really hope you girls don't take it that way.  This is a pool of all of my mom, my sisters, and i's varnishes that we've been accumulating over the years.

If you're wondering how these polishes are actually stored click here.

Some girls are crazy about polish, and i'm honestly not.  I need to have a color on my nails though, but i've gotten so frustrated with my nails that i just gave up trying to make them look amazing.  When i see many girl's NOTDs, they're nails are smooth, shiny, & amazing, while mine are messy, uneven, and not-so-amazing.  Anyone know they're secret?!  Well anyway...

I'm going to go through each color group seperately & give mini reviews!

So let's get onto it!

R E D S  &  O R A N G E S

left to right:

♥ OPI in "It's a Doozi, Says Suzi", Sally Hansen in "Cardinal", BonBons by Bari Cosmetics - no name, Sally Hansen in "Salsa Creme", and Petits by Scherer - no name
-

I love red nail polish - Sally Hansen in "Cardinal" is almost always on my toes.  The other polishes honestly don't get that much love, but the first OPI color is really pretty for fall & winter.

P I N K S
left to right:

♥ N.Y.C. Long-Wearing Nail Enamel - no name, random polish, Revlon Nail Enamel in 917 Plum Seduction, OPI Nail Lacquer in "You're Such a Kabuki Queen", Sally Hansen Diamond Strength No Chip Nail Color in 44 Rose Amore, Orly Nail Lacquer in "Pretty Please", OPI Nail Lacquer in "Got a Date To-Knight"
-

Pinks have to be my favorite color of polish to wear :)  Whenever i try to branch out and paint my nails a some other color, i always end up using one of these!  My faves are the two OPI ones.  The first two are my least used out of this group mainly because they're quite sheer.  The Revlon (which is probably considered of more of a purple lol) shade i love, but it takes forever to dry so i don't wear it too much.

Y E L L O W S  &  G R E E N S

left to right:

♥ N.Y.C. Long-Wearing Nail Enamel - no name, Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Nail Color in 27 Mellow Yellow, Sinful Nail Enamel in 76 Green Glitter, N.Y.C. Long Wear Nail Enamel in 118A, N.Y.C. Long Wear Nail Enamel in 110A Luxury Lime Creme, BonBons by Bari Cosmetics - no name, random polish
-

I don't wear yellow or green polish very often tbh, mainly because they're not too flattering with my skintone, but it looks great in the summer with a tan :)

B L U E S
left to right:
♥ Jane Nail Color in 22 Up All Night, L.A. Girls Flare Bright Delights Nail Lacquer - no name, Nicole by OPI in "It's Up to You", Pure Ice by Bari Cosmetics in #761 Frosted Ice Calypso, Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Nail Color in 04 Blue Me Away!, random polish
-

(The first one may look black in the bottle, but it comes out a dark navy color :), i really enjoy wearing bluesy colors on my nails!  Blues are great for anytime of the year, in my opinion.  My favorites from my collection are the first one (Jane in "Up All Night"), the third (Nicole by OPI in "It's Up to You"), and the fifth (Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in "Blue Me Away" - they are all super pretty (duh haha).

P U R P L E S

left to right:
♥ Artmatic U.S.A. in 101 Black Plum, OPI Nail Lacquer in Boris & Natasha, BonBons by Bari Cosmetics - no name, Pure Ice by Bari Cosmetics - my friend mixed a couple polishes to make this - the original was called "Cheatin", Sally Hansen Teflon Tuff 10 Day Nail Color in "Violet Frost", Sally Hansen Diamond Strength No Chip Nail Color in 57 Lavender Marquis
-
Making this post, i rediscovered my love for purple polish.  I really want a lilac nail polish - Barry M makes an amazing one, ahh we need Barry M in the US!  Anyway, next time i paint my nails it will probably be with one of these :)

B R O W N S,  G R E Y,  &  B L A C K S
left to right:
♥ In the Mood by China Glaze in "Teal to Peach", The Color Workshop - no name, Estee Lauder Pure Color Nail Lacquer in 69 Frozen Fantasy, U Colors Nail Polish - no name, Wet'n'Wild Fantasy Makers - no name, A Perfect "10" in 395 Black Out
-
I'm not one to wear browns on my nails, i think they would look gorgeous with a tan though.  The one grey i have is really old & is probably all chunky now haha, it's a really pretty color though.  The two blacks i have are really nice, the Wet'n'Wild one is pretty watery though, but they're both fairly pigmented.  I used to wear black nail polish a lot more when i was in middle school & early high school, but i've grown out of it and have been wearing more colors now.  I think black can still look great though :) - so long as it's not chipping!

N U D E S  &  S H E E R S

left to right:
♥ &IsaDora Perfect Nail Polish in 10 Satin Beige, Sally Hansen Maximum Growth plus Nourishing Nail Color in 08 Vanilla Whimsy, L'Oreal Paris Wear Extraordinaire Nail Enamel in 319 Blush Perle, Revlon Sheer Translucide Nail Enamel in 003 Sheer Snowflake Pink, Sally Hansen Diamond Strength No Chip Color in 21 Brilliant Blush, Jordana Nail Polish in 308 Shining Star, OPI Nail Lacquer - label fell off, BonBons by Bari Cosmetics - no name
-
I honestly don't know how i've accumulated so many nudes compared to other color groups - i rarely wear them!  My mom must have gone on some sort of spree...haha.  Most of these are very sheer and they take multiple layers to build colors, hence me not wearing them so much.  I'll have to try some of these out soon!

T O P  /  B A S E  C O A T S  &  T R E A T M E N T S

left to right:
♥ Professional Nail Color Fiber Enriched Fortifier, Professional Nail Color Vitamin E Enriched Ceramics Smooth, Professional Base Coat, Maybelline New York Express Finish 50 Second Nail Color 10 Base & Top Coat
-
I've tried plenty Base & Top coats, and none of them do it for me.  I think i need to invest in a decent one.  Any recommendations?  Anyway, the only product i use out of these every time i do my nails is the second one, Ceramics Smooth - it somewhat smooths out the lines from my nails to make the polish look a bit better.  I think it's important to do treatments once in a while because nail polish can really smother your nails - not good!

♥

Can't Wait for Your Nails to Dry?

I was strolling down the cosmetic and nail aisle in Walgreens waiting for a prescription to be filled, looking for a nice new nail polish to buy when i spotted this bright red can.  I don't know about you, but i'm incredibly impatient waiting for my nail polish to dry.  I've been wanting to try OPI's Drip Dry Drops for quite some time, but just never got around to purchasing it.

I'd never heard of DeMert before, but for around $3, i thought i'd give this puppy a try.

DeMert's Nail Enamel Dryer is my recommended product of the week :)

It's so simple to use - the directions on the back say, "Hold can upright, at least for inches from nail.  Spray once lightly over each nail.  Repeat as necessary."  Pretty straightforward me thinks ;).  I usually spray this enamel dryer once inbetween coats and twice after the final coat.

There is a scent to it, but it's really not that bad.  Kind of chemical-ish/nail salon-ish (which i secretly enjoy, shhhh :).

Once thing i should mention is that right after you spray this on your nails, you'll get little dot marks in the polish (from the force of the spray), but those go away after a couple minutes.

After spraying this, my nail polish dries incredibly faster - even the softness of the freshly painted nails goes away soo much quicker (if you kinda get what i'm sayin'? :).  I find that when i paint my nails before going to bed and spray this, i don't wake up with lines from the sheets ruining them!

The only real downside is that i feel like it dulls down a bit of the shine of the polish, but it may just be the polish itself and not the spray causing this.

-

Overall

I recommend this to anyone who's impatient waiting for their polish to dry or who paints their nails on the go, it really does help :).

For such a fantastic price and nice quality of the product, i'll definately be repurchasing.

DeMert's Nail Enamel Dryer can be purchased at Walgreens or online.

4.5/5

♥

NOTW: Switching it up a bit :)

top - with flash

bottom - without flash

sorry for the messy-ness :)

Instead of reaching for OPI's Got a Date To-Knight, (a light pink, girly color) like i always do, i decided to go for something a bit different.  I landed on Sally Hansen's Xtreme Wear Nail Color in Blue Me Away.  My sister bought this polish a long time ago & i hadn't tried it before today.

I hate to sound a bit cheesy, but i was really blown away with this product!

This is one coat.  ONE COAT!  It was a bit gooey going on, but it was really easy to neaten it up.  I always have a problem with waiting for nail polishes to dry, especially with OPI.  The nail polish will be 'dry' but it'll still be tacky and i'll always end up getting a dent from nicking them, getting fingerprints on them from testing to see if they're dry, or getting 4302 lines in them from going to bed with them still tacky!  This product was un-tacky within one hour!  For me, that's amazing.

Next time i go to Wal-Mart i'll have to have a look at these.  I'm really curious to try out other colors from this line :)

♥