Oh Christmas, oh Christmas tree.....

Let me start by saying that this manicure is in no way an original idea; it is my version of an amazing design I saw on The Crumpet and loved.

So, now that's off my chest, here is my take on Christmas trees:0

I'm dotty about Christmas trees (groan, Dad joke alert!!) partly because I still don't have one! HTB (husband to be) and I can't think of anywhere that we could put one that won't end up with it becoming a play thing for the cats. Sad face:(

These are the polishes that made this manicure possible; from top, clockwise; Models Own Green Tea, Models Own Utopia, Barry M Watermelon, Barry M Emerald Green, Barry M Silver Foil Effects, Gold Giles Green, Bourjois It's Raining Stars.

Hope you're all getting excited about the big day; I've finally wrapped all my pressies so I'm feeling pretty dam Christmassy:)

Bourjois It's Raining Stars and Models Own Utopia

I loved Bourjois It's Raining Stars so much I had to use it again, this time as an accent nail with Models Own Utopia. I combined some silver studs to bring it all together. Cute:)

Happiness is a sparkly accent nail:)

     

Bourjois It's Raining Stars and Bleu Fabuleux swatch

Bah - Tuesday! 

Anyhoo, I've been keeping on eye on Bourjois for a while now as they've been trying  to keep up with some of the most recent nail trends. They've nailed some lovely colours and even tried bar glitter, but the polishes that have really stolen my heart are It's Raining Stars, a silver glitter polish, and Bleu Fabuleux, an amazing royal blue.

Sooooooo pretty. The blue applies like a dream, although the drying time isn't the quickest. This is three thin coats, and it lasted for days with no chipping:) 

The silver...............drool. This is three coats as well, perfectly opaque, dries quickly.....bliss. It's teeny pieces of glitter mixed in with some larger pieces which gives it a bit more depth. 

Ah Bourjois, you are spoiling us.

Bourjois Amande Defile Swatch

You know sometimes you see something that gives you that lovely feeling of nostalgia, that almost takes you back to a different time in your life? Well, while walking past the Bourjois stand this weekend, I had that feeling whilst staring at this polish; Amande Defile, a pistachio green polish.

When I was about 11, I was given 3 polishes from Boots; a gorgeous lilac, a pale blue and a pistachio green. The green was my favourite, and I wore it whatever chance I had. So this polish is a blast from the past.

Frustratingly, and very oddly, my camera would not capture this colour correctly......except for the lid! The lid is the EXACT colour, but the bottle and polish would not come out correctly. Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Also frustrating was the application of this polish - like trying to apply milk! I'm going to leave the lid off for a minute or two next time I use this, hope it thickens it up a bit. I had to apply 4 coats it was so thin! But I still love this colour, I can see it being used with some of my lovely glitters:)

Pastel chevrons

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, what an awesome morning. A lazy get up, Marmite on toast and coffee in the garden, kitty cuddles, happiness:)

I not sure about you guys, but I have a definite summer/winter mindset when it comes to nail polish; I want bright, bright, bright or summery pastels in the sunshine, and darker, deeper polish in winter. This mani is a definite summer baby - glossy, lovely pastels:) Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

This isn't an original idea, but I can't remember where I saw it - doh! Anyhoo, this is my take on it, using my trusty Barry M pastels (Strawberry Ice Cream, Berry Ice Cream, Mint Green and Peach Melba) plus my favourite pastel ever, Adora-Bleu by Bourjois:) 

I used striping tape for the mani which resulted in a teeny mishap; the tape was blue and left a small stain on the lilac nail-grrrrrr! But I do love this; it's summer, but with an edge!

Nail Pop Dazzle with Adora-bleu bow

Bonjour peeps:)

Hope you are all well? I've had a bit of time in the sunshine today so I'm feeling a bit happier after a looooooooooong week.....oh crap, not even a full week, a mere three day lol!

Anyhoo, I've been struggling a bit for inspiration recently, and on Sunday this reached a crisis point; nothing, I repeat NOTHING, I could think of worked, I must have tried 6 different manicures. So, I gave up and Googled 'nail art' - and found some great ideas, including this one at One Nail To Rule Them All - which I decided to recreate:)

Now, I'm being 100% honest here, this is  a direct copy. Although I've used different polishes, I've pretty much used the same colour scheme. I simply could not think of anything better, Alice at One Nail To Rule Them All is a total genius and trying to better her was not going to be possible!

Please excuse the lobster hands - the purple is a tough colour to get right! I used Accessorize Electric Purple as a base and then layered Nail Pop Dazzle over it, a great clear polish filled with pale blue and lilac glitter. I used Bourjois Adora-Bleu (still a flipping amazing name!) to draw the bow and then added white dots, and outlined using my new Barry M Black Nail Pen:)

Love this manicure - bravo to Alice at One Nail to Rule Them All! 

Gold glitter and blue tape mani

I have no idea how else to describe this other than 'gold glitter and blue tape mani' lol. This was inspired heavily by Whitney at Dressedupnails, as she often layers opaque polishes over glitters. I've been wanting to have a go for a while, so here's my first attempt.

I painted a few layers of Models Own Disco Mix (a fine gold glitter speckled with blue-green glitter) and then palced striping tape over the top when it had dried thoroughly. Then I painted a thick layer of Adora-bleu by Bourjois over the top. A slick of topcoat and it was ready:) On my ring finger, I painted a couple of coats of Barry M Yellow Topaz Glitter over the Ibiza Mix; I have to say I'd underrated Yellow Topaz Glitter, but it's stunning; large and small gold and holographic glitter, wow!

I'm chuffed with this, and have been experimenting.....more soon:) 

Loreal Confetti over Bourjois Adora-Bleu

Hey hey! I hope you've had a great day and that it's sunny where you are. It's been stunning here, just hot enough to shrug off my cardigan and lie in the sun, but not so hot that all I wanted to do was cat nap lol:)

My pictures today feature a polish that I search high and low for; London, Edinburgh, Birmingham....nothing! Then, on a quick trip home to Weston-super-Mare to see my parents, I found it! I was so excited, I almost bought 2 bottles, but managed to check myself:) So may I present Loreal Confetti!

I got so many compliments about this manicure; on a shopping trip into Brum, 3 shop assistants grabbed my hand and squealed! (not at the same time obvs, that would have been creepy rather than flattering!). It certainly it a gorgeous combo, it made me think of a speckled duck egg:)

The Confetti is lush; small and large black and white matt hex glitter, with a small amount of shimmery glitter, so tiny as to just give a subtle shimmer. Stunning. I have almost all of my polishes lined up to be worn under this polish:) 

Enjoy the rest of your bank holiday weekend peeps, I'm off to the cinema with my lovely bf to watch Iron Man - geetktastic:)

Bourjois Adora-bleu with little fluffy cloud nail art:)

Have I got a cutie for you today! This little beaut is by Bourjois. Odd thing; I rarely see Bourjois polishes reviewed online in the nail community. I wonder why, given this little number:)

This is two coats of Adora-Bleu (I didn't get this to begin with - face palm - but once I did it made me smile) and it goes on like butter. Smooth, good long brush, quick drying, perfect coverage in two coats. Happiness is perfectly applied polish.

This colour is perfect for Spring (which, whisper it, don't scare it away, might be approaching the UK!)

I added the clouds with my new Models Own Nail Art pen - a good purchase, nice, easy application, good coverage. 

Silver glitter with pastel leopard spots

Evening peeps, hope you've had a good Monday?

I've been looking through my polish today for those polishes that I think I've somehow overlooked. You know the ones; you needed it sooooooo bad, dreamt about it, finally got, and then....you swatched it quickly and filed it away. Sad face.

So, I now have several polishes lined up to be reused/re-imagined. One of these is Silver Multi Glitter by the ever brilliant Barry M. I've had this for months and I did do a quick swatch but it just didn't really 'get me' once it was on my nails. 

However a quick bit of leopard printing.....

Ta dah!

I love the fact that it's silver but shot through with very fine red glitter, giving it a really 3D look. I really like how the contrast between the shimmery silver glitter makes the leopard prints look like they're floating above it somehow. In short, I know love this polish:)

The spots are Barry M Strawberry Ice Cream, Barry M Berry Ice Cream and Bourjois Adora-bleu - more on this polish later..........