Beauty, Bargains and Beyond

I love that Halloween now seems to be a big thing in the UK.  I remember going Trick or Treating when I was younger but there wasn't the big array of costumes that there are now. I was either a witch or a black cat and don't get me started on the fact that we didn't carve pumpkins we carved turnips!!!!! Anyway when I was browsing in Boots the other day I came across these fab nails that I just had to buy. They are all great designs and there are 4 options (I only bought 3 as there was a 3 for 2 offer on them).  The 3 I picked up have skull prints on them (these are mix and match nails).  There are the Gold Glitter Skull , the black, red and pink skull and the Skull Diva Stiletto Skull .  There is also Vampire Chic Stiletto nails which was the pack I didn't pick up.  Even though I wont be dressing up for Halloween I will have a chance to get in the spirit in a small way by putting on the nails.   They were originally £3.99 each but are now £1....

I love, love, love, Zoya nail polishes and have tons in my stash.  Love the colours, love the packaging, love everything about them.  Here are a few that I got recently.     l-r Trudith, Darby, Alice, Brandi, Mia, Pandora, Brighton & Lacey Trudith is a muted purple which I love.  It's great for everyday wear.  I love how easily these polishes go on with no streaks and this one could have got away with just one coat as its so opaque.  Darby is a blue grey colour with a brighter blue shimmer through it.  It would be great for a night out.   Alice is from the Pixie Dust range and is a bright purple with different colour sparkles in it.  It's great for when you want your nails to stand out and look a bit different. Brandi is a bright blush pink.  This is a great holiday colour it's so pretty. Mia is a lovely mauve pink colour that I will be wearing a lot of as it's a gorgeous colour that will go wit...

I have crap nails. There I've said it.  I read people blogs and watch You Tube and I heart other peoples nails as they have great nails and I do not and I'm jealous.  I have tried so many different products to try and solve this, but I end up with peeling nails and on the odd occasion when I have decent length nails they break at the lowest point on my nail so it peels off skin as well (just writing about that makes me cringe). When I was sent Renunail Nail Strengthener* to try out I was happy to give it a go, anything to try and get nicer nails.  It isn't a quick fix as it is a 28 day programme.  It's pretty straight forward to use and takes seconds each day, you just need to remember to use it each day.  Basically the process is to apply 2 coats of the polish on the first day and then 1 coat for the next 5 days before removing the polish.  Repeat the process another 3 times (each programme lasts 28 days).  You then need to let your nails rest f...

So I'll admit that  although I have a lot of make up, nail polish and beauty products, I am a pretty lazy person and the majority of the time I either don't wear make up or wear minimal makeup.  The choice between getting up earlier for work to apply make up or have extra time in bed is an easy one for me. Even painting my nails is a chore as I am not patient enough to wait for my nails to dry, so inevitably I always spoil at least one nail before I go out.  I don't have the best nails and I never have the time to get my nails done professionally.  When I have attempted to wear false nails in the past I have always  been worried about them popping off, which always seemed to happen to me.  Anyway the point of this post (I will get there eventually) is to say that I have found some nails that are not only easy and quick to put on, but they actually stay on as well.  Elegant Touch Express 3 minute Man...

I love metallic nails, so when I heard about Barry M Molten Metal Nail Paint I just knew I had to check them out.  After seeing swatches online I bought them all as they all looked so fantastic. I bought the Barry M Molten Metal Nail Paints from Superdrug as there was a 3 for 2 offer on and also a free tote bag when you purchased 3 products.  The nail polishes were £3.99 each. From L - R: Holographic Lights, Black Diamond, Blue Glacier, Pink Ice & Gold Rush I have never owned a holographic nail polish before so I bought 2 of the Holographic Lights as the colour is so amazing.  This is so pretty I can't even describe it.  It has such a shiny finish and loads of shimmery fine particles and the colour is like a faint oil slick.  I needed to apply 3 coats of this polish for full coverage, but it dried really fast. Black Diamond is metallic black with fine gold and silver shimmery particles.  I don't usually wear dark nail polish as...

I was recently sent the SensatioNail Gel Starter Kit * to try out.  I have already tried the SensatioNail Polish to Gel Transformer Kit and reviewed it here .  I really liked the Polish to Gel Kit as it worked so well, so I was looking forward to trying out the Gel Starter Kit to see if it was as good.  I received the Scarlet Red colour which is just right for the Christmas period.   Source Sparkle PR It's very easy to apply this Gel Polish and when you take into account how long it takes your nails to dry when applying standard nail polish, I do think this is quicker.  Initially, you prepare your nails by filing and buffing them, then wiping them over with a Gel Cleanser that comes with the kit.  You  then apply one layer of the Gel Primer and air dry your nails.  Once your nails are dry you apply a thin layer of the Gel Base and Top Coat which again comes with the kit.  Then cure...

I was recently sent the  SensatioNail Polish to Gel Transformer Starter Kit * to try out. I do love wearing nail polish, but as I have weak nails and do a lot of things that tend to make nail polish chip or break my nails I never get to wear it more than 2 or 3 days at a time before it is all chipped and looks a mess. I was really thrilled to get the chance to try  the SensatioNail Polish to Gel Transformer Starter Kit to see if it really worked.   It's fairly easy to use and doesn't take that much longer then applying your normal nail polish.  First f ile and lightly buff your nails and wipe them clean with the Gel Cleanser, then apply a layer of the Gel Primer to nails and air dry.   M ix equal parts of the Polish to Gel product from the kit and your chosen nail polish together in the dish provided.    Then apply a thin layer  of the mixture to your nails and cure them for 30 seconds using the LED lamp from the kit, then ap...

I have recently been trying out the Ever Glaze Extended Wear Nail Polish* from China Glaze and I have to say that I have been impressed with it so far.  I am currently wearing the neon pink Will You Be Mine (which is much brighter than the photo below shows) and aside from absolutely loving the colour which is perfect for summer,  I have been very happy with it in other ways.   First of all it only takes 2 coats for full coverage, with absolutely no streaks and it dries really quickly, which is really important to me as I often find that I can’t sit still long enough to let my nail polish dry properly and inevitably end up smearing at least 1 nail.  It also stays chip free for a good number of days.  The ends of my nails are quite weak and flake all the time, so I usually find most nail polishes chip quite badly even on the first day.  Aside from a few very minor chips, this polish has held up very well on my nails and any chips can be covered very ...

I am always looking to improve the condition of my nails as they are quite soft and flake all the time.  I would love to have long, strong nails, but it takes a lot of work to achieve that.  I love L’Occitane Shea Nail & Cuticle Nourishing Oil as it’s so easy to use and carry around.  I keep it in my work bag, so that I can apply it every day, no excuses. L’Occitane Shea Nail & Cuticle Nourishing Oil helps to soften cuticles and strengthen nails and contains 30% shea oil.   It comes in a small tube with a brush at the end.  Simply squeeze the tube gently to get some of the product onto the brush and then apply to the nails and massage into your nails and cuticles.  The brush application ensures that you can apply the correct amount of product onto the nail with no wastage.  The ingredients include Sweet Almond Oil,  Shea Butter, Grape Seed Oil and Castor Seed Oil and costs £12 for 7.5ml. Leighlee I bought this pr...

I can't say that I am a fan of the Kardashian/Jenner Reality TV Takeover, but I do love a good nail polish and when I walked past the Kylie Jenner Sinful Colors stand in Walgreens, the beautiful colours sure made me look twice.  For $2.99 each I could have easily bought the whole collection, but in the end I managed to whittle it down to 8 polishes.   I bought 5 Polishes from the Trend Matters Demi Matte collection: Karma - A light mauve with gold shimmer Kurtsey - pale lilac with gold shimmer Kommotion - a pretty purple/blue with gold shimmer Silhouette - lavender with gold shimmer King Size - Purple with gold shimmer Left to Right - Karma, Kurtsey, Kommotion, Silhouette & King Size So   far I have tried out Kommotion and King Size.  The polish is slightly thicker than I am used to, but it applies really well and you get full coverage in just 2 coats.  It dries really quickly as well and it didn't chip straight away like a lo...

I always like a good pound shop haul, so I thought I would do a post on my last one (done before the start of the no spend challenge, if you have read my challenge post here ). Here's what I bought from Poundland in Leeds city centre. I have bought quite a few false nails from pound shops and Primark and I prefer the adhesive tabs rather than glue as its not as messy and really easy to do. They cost a bit more in Boots where I normally get them from.  I bought the Nail Stamping kit on a whim as Ive never dabbled in nail art before so I'm gonna give it a try. As I said above I have bought loads of false nails lately and they have mostly been £1 which seems like such a bargain and I don't feel I have to keep them on for a long time to get my monies worth.  I just need to wear them on 1 occasion and can then take them off as I'm not great at doing things when I'm wearing longer nails. They are by Allura as are the products in the photo above.  I love the colo...