Easter Nails

Happy Easter Everyone!

Speckle nails have becoming really popular in recent months and they are the cutest design for Spring.

L'Oreal has recently released the Color Rich Top Coat Confetti* which is perfect and effortless for achieving that Easter Eggshell effect.

It really couldn't be any easier - just pick your favourite pastel colour from the L'Oreal Paris Color Riche range and then add 1 or 2 coats of the confetti polish and, voila', you're left with stunning results bound to draw a few compliments. :)

I chose no201 Rose Paradise* because I can't resist a soft, baby pink and it's ideal in many occasions... but there are so many beautiful shades that will work perfectly for this look; for example, no306 Sex On The Peach - a gorgeous coral - or no622 Soft Chinchilla - a pastel grey.

I love the wee square bottle of this range and the quality also is very good: the polish applies easily and without streaks and the result's extremely glossy!

Here's the piece de resistance!

Confetti is a clear top coat with white and black micro-flecks; the glitter is matte but the gel is glossy so It acts as a top coat, too.

Also, it helps the manicure last longer but be prepared to soak for removal (like any other glitter polish).

L'Oreal Confetti Top Coat, Rimmel Peppermint, L'Oreal Rose Paradise, Zoya Kendal

Hehe... I love this effect so much that I went a bit crazy and started to try it with every colour :)

Which is your favourite? Have you tried the Confetti Top Coat yet?

Easter Bag / My New Baby

My family sent me this bag as a Easter present - I heart it!!!

The bag is from Zara, ideal to accessorize a cocktail dress and the perfect timeless piece.

It has a fabric printed panel in the front and the leather part has the same embossed pattern as the fabric.

It comes with a shoulder chain strap and it's surprisingly roomy, with 2 slip pockets.

Hehe - my sister confessed that she liked it so much herself that she nearly never sent it over... I'm glad she changed her mind! Thanks sis! :P xxx

FOTD - A Snow Day in March

l-r/t-b: ted baker lip crayon, urban decay blush, rimmer scandaleyes, bareminerals' frisson

Face: Benefit the Porefessional, Urban Decay Naked Skin Liquid Make Up in 3.0, Mac Mineralize SkinFinish Natural in medium, Giorgio Armani Master Corrector in pink, Estee Lauder Double Wear Concealer in 07 Warm Light, Urban Decay Afterglow Glide-on Cheek Tint in Crush;
Eyes: Rimmel Scandaleyes in 003 Bad Girl Bronze, Rimmel Scandaleyes in 005 Nude, bareMinerals Frisson eyeshadow (from The Rare Find palette), Soap & Glory Thick & Fast mascara;
Lips: Ted Baker Lip Crayon no4.

OPI Which Witch Are You?

You may have noticed a theme developing between the release of the movie 'Oz The Great & Powerful' and some cosmetics companies; personally, I'm very happy about all the collaborations - a fantasy story like this can only result in exciting products.

OPI is the next in line to come out with a special collection that includes 7 polishes and 9 nail designs that you can create with the new shades (3 for every witch).

When Monkeys Fry is a clear base with gold and silver glitter

Which is Witch? is a top coat with holographic glitter

I Theodora You is a baby pink

Don't Burst My Bubble is a white with a pink undertone

Lights of Emerald City is a clear base with white and colour square glitter

Glints of Glinda is a peachy nude

What Wizardry Is This? is liquid sand effect 

Glints of Glinda* is one of the three sheer shades of the collection. It's very sheer: with only 2 coats you get the 'your nails but better' effect but you should do 4 coats, for full opacity.
Luckly it dries fast so 4 coats don't take that long and it also applies evenly and without streaks.
This shade is just up my street - it's elegant, it's very glossy and lasted 4/5 days without chipping. 

2 coats

What Wizardry Is This?* is a brown and gold liquid sand effect. I was mostly excited to try out this new finish and I wasn't disappointed... I love it!!!

I haven't tried any of these textured polishes yet so I wasn't sure what to expect, especially how rough they may feel on the nails but I can tell that the polish still feels pretty smooth, without subtracting anything from the effect.

 The colour is gorgeous, vibrant and really opaque and I find it very low maintenance because - of course - you don't need to worry about smudges too much... hehe ;)

Now I need to get my paws on Lights of Emerald City too - it looks amazing!

Have you see this OPI collection yet? Did you pick up any shade?

Btw, I still haven't had the chance to see the film... hopefully this weekend!

Ted Baker Four Bow Bangle

Ted Baker Four Bow Bangle

I've been wanting this bracelet for a while but couldn't decide on the colour. It comes in many different pretty shades but I settled for the purple one, in the end. The tortoiseshell was my second favourite.

Anyway, the original price is £45 but I picked it up on ebay for £12... I really couldn't say no to that price! :)
xxx

New In / Neve Glossy Artist Brushes

VERY excited to see more and more Italian brands exported abroad. Last week I was talking about Kiko and today is Neve Cosmetics turn; I mean, I can see why - quality is good and prices affordable!
I already did a wee introduction on the brand few months ago - you can have a read here, if you're interested.
Glossy Artist is the new range of brushes from Neve Cosmetics. They are a rainbow of colours and colour-coded... 3 digits names are boring!!! ;)
Make up is an art and like any artist, any painter you need the right tools AND beautiful too.
The brushes have a wooden handle and - in keeping with the brand ethos - they are all cruelty-free and vegan.

Lilac Powder Brush*

This is the ideal brush for finishing powders and bronzers. Bristles are densely packed but still flexible to allow to deposit the product, without disturbing the foundation underneath.

I find it the perfect shape and size for setting my make up - 4 strokes: around nose, chin and forehead and I'm done!

Red Amplify Brush*
This brush is also very dense and stiffer than the purple one. It reminds me of the Real Techniques Buffing Brush but it's a tad bigger and rounder; it does work just as good with foundations but it's also great for contouring and blending powder products. I have been using it for a couple of weeks now and experienced minimum shedding.

Orange Concealer Brush*

This brush is seriously huge! Personally, I prefer to blend my creamy concealer with my fingers so I have been using it mainly to set the concealer with the powder.

It does work very well with creamy products too and I've been using it to apply eye primers and creamy shadows; it packs the colour uniformly and it's easy to clean.

I've been loving these brushes since day 1 - they are really soft and excellent performers so far.
I clearly need one in each colour - particularly, I want to try the Rose Angled, Magenta Sculpt and Turquoise Eyebuki.

In UK, you can pick them up from www.cutecosmetics.co.uk and nevecosmetics.it

Review / Laura Mercier Eye & Cheek Palette

Another palette review today: Laura Mercier Eye & Cheek Palette from the Lingerie Collection, Spring 2012

It was love at first sight but then I refrained from buying it straight away and went sold out; it took me months and months to find one but I'm so pleased to have it because this palette is a beauty!

The packaging is not the most attractive (like many Laura Mercier items, I find) but it's very sleek and sturdy, making it perfect for travelling.

This perfectly formed set contains 6 eyeshadows and 2 blushes and it also has a huge mirror which is pretty handy, indeed.

Most of the shades are neutrals with a couple of purples, which suits me just fine as purple is my favourite eyeshadow colour. :)

They are all very smooth, the quality is consistent and  I haven't had any trouble working with any of them.

My favourites are Tawny Apricot - a pretty dusty rose - and African Violet, a gorgeous purple and gold duochrome; Black Plum is also a shade I've been enjoying using, a matte black/purple.

Actually only these last 2 shades are existing single LM colours, all the others are new for this palette.

Both blushes are also new: Rose Desire - blue toned pink, nearly matte and extremely pigmented - and Fresh Peach - a sheer peachy coral with shimmer.

What can I say... I love LM eyeshadows in general and this palette doesn't disappoint - Glad it's part of my collection!

***
On another note... Congratulations to my giveaway winner: Terri @ Hello Terri Lowe
Prize is on the way... Enjoy!!! :)

Boots 3for2 Offers

Boots is again running a 3for2 offer on make up so I picked up few items.

They have been quite cunning this time: you can't mix and match between brands (and not all make up brands are included) so you need to buy 3 items for each brand...

Rimmel Scandaleyes Eye Shadow Stick in 003 Bad Girl Bronze - I've been really eager to try this formulation but there's not much choice, colour-wise. I picked up the brown shade which is the one I will probably use the most. It's actually very pretty with gold and red shimmer; it can also be sheered out and blended a lot and used as a base or as a total look for lazy days.

Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Kohl Kajal in 014 Bright Blue - a blue eye pencil - too retro, possibly? Well, I literally woke up one morning wanting a blue eyeliner (no kidding here - I'm pathological, I know)... so I bought it. Let's see how I will make it work!

Rimmel I Love Lasting Finish Nail Polish in 700 Block Your Green - isn't emerald the colour of the season? AND missing from my collection... couldn't live with that! This is the perfect shade of green, a forest green and exactly what I wanted. Always happy with Rimmel polishes, they last very well on me and can't complaint about the price either.

 

L'Oreal Rouge Caresse Lipstick in 301 Dating Coral, 101 Tempting Lilac, 303 Coral & Floral - another insane craving I gave into. My sister introduced me to those last october - of course, I heard about them before but I was never too interested until I tested them. I have to say I like them better than the Revlon ColourBurst Lip Butters... A LOT better! The formulation - they are so smooth and soft and moisturising and also the shades are really pretty. The packaging I like both of them.
The 303 shade actually has a mother of pearl heart making it extremely shimmery but I like it. I saw 4 shades in store - not sure if they are new, personally I had never seen them before.

l-r: dating coral, tempting lilac, coral & floral

Have you tried any of these?
Xxx