The Mani | Trialling White Nails

These seem to be EVERYWHERE at the moment. Honestly, I was holding off as it reminded me of when I used to put tippex on my nails at school. But you know, I thought I would give it a whirl! It wasn't something I was 100% confident doing it but you know, everyone else seemed to like it so why not!

I'm loving the Rimmel nail polishes at the moment so I picked up Rita Ora's White Hot Love. It only took two coats to this really opaque white colour. I was worried about how sheer white could be but this was so thick it really didn't need too many coats. For the first few hours I was quite conscious about them, but they definitely grew on me and I got so many compliments! Even from guys...

I was very surprised at how white and clean these stayed as well. For me white is usually dirty so quickly but these stayed white and in tact for a week which is very impressive. I'm still not 100% about white nails, but I'm glad I tried it and I would wear it again.

What nail trends should I try next?

The Mani | Topshop Speckle Nails

TOPSHOP WHITE SPECKLE NAILS IN DANCING IN THE DARK & EVERYBODY GET UP £6

The Topshop next to where I work is evil. They keep things on the till that tempt me - my poor poor bank account. These were one of those purchases, what could I do? I was buying a top with the EXACT same colours in it so - you know. Whoops. 

I don't have any speckle polishes so these were definitely a novelty and the colours are beautiful. Dancing in the Dark looks like a pale grey, but it definitely has some nude tones to it which makes it that tab different and versatile. Everybody Get Up is a summer pale lilac, not mu usual colour but very pretty. I find that the white speckles are really easy to apply - you do need a couple of coats to get a good amount of colour but it is still quite sheer. Longevity wise after five days I've seen no chipping (apart from where I had a bendy nail) so I'm thoroughly impressed. I do find the formula a little thin which is a downside, but I do love the colours and the difference in pattern.

Have you ever tried speckle nails?

The Mani | Rimmel Breakfast in Bed

RIMMEL 60 SECONDS RITA ORA NAIL POLISH IN BREAKFAST IN BED

Oh my, let's just all sigh at the prettiness of this shade. IT'S SO PRETTYYYYYYY. Moving on... I picked this up on a total whim in my local Sainsbury's where I was supposed to be buying food for our trip to the Forest of Dean... Whoops. It was something like £2 reduced so I couldn't not - it just called to me.

So, Rita Ora has done a little collection for Rimmel which includes nails and lip crayons - this is my first from either collection and I am super impressed by the range of colours. The names are incredibly sexual (Orgasm, Blindfold Me Blue, Lose Your Lingerie etc) so they don't really have anything to do with the colours. I did have a bit of a chat with the guy doing my tattoo about the name of this I must admit. Anywho... I was so impressed by the quality of this polish. I've not used any of their 60 second stuff before so I'm so mad at myself cause I've been missing out big time. It's a big thick brush and the solution is really nice and thick so you get amazing colour with just one coat. I applied a second literally just for continiuity sake, and just to make sure it was all even but to be honest you really don't need to.

Longevity wise this has lasted a good four days without chipping yet so I'm super impressed. For just under £4 usually this is a seriously good quality little polish and I will definitely be picking up some more shades from this range. 

Which colour would you pick from this range?

The Mani | Essie Truth or Flare

Let's face it, when a new Essie collection makes its way into my local Boots it's not long until I'm down there taking my pick. This year I only picked the one up as I was a little meh about the others - don't get me wrong they are beaut - but I thought they just reminded me a lot of other shades they have.

Truth or Flare called to me with its grey blue tones. I love Maximillian Strasse Her (which I believe is from a previous collection) and I think this is a slightly darker toned version. Even though its in their Spring collection I think it's such a versatile shade it can work all year around. It's not your typical spring shade (floral pigments) and I love that about it. For me it's a very sea colour. 

Formula-wise it's your usual Essie goodness or long lasting an chip resistant. No complaints here! This colour does need about three coats as its a touch sheer on first application but it's all good. It ends up as a beautiful blue.

What's your pick from the new Essie collection?

The Top 5 | Spring Nail Colours

I'm incredibly cliched when it comes to spring nail colours - give me pastles any day! I picked out my top five spring colours and as you can see... they are all lovely pastle light colours. Spring is all about pastles for me. Autumn and Winter my nails are usually donned with dark, moody tones - deep greens, navy blues (actually any blues) and blood reds. Spring hits and bam! Out come the pastle and floral tones. This is just a quick sneak peak into some of my favourite Spring colours - some obvious ones (you'll know what I mean) and some newbies...

L - R

Essie Mint Candy Apple: Models Own Banana Split: Barry M Peach Melba: Essie Bikini So Teeny: Essie Tart Deco

 

What are your Spring colours?

The Mani | ModelsOwn Scented Pastels

MODELS OWN SCENTED PASTELS COLLECTION, L-R APPLE PIE, BANANA SPLIT, BLUEBERRY MUFFIN, STRAWBERRY TART AND GRAPE JUICE. £5 EACH

Not only did I grab myself some of Models Own's new HyperGel collection (and currently coveting more) I also picked up a box set of their scented pastels collection. I love these colours and with Spring on it's way I thought I would prepare myself - cause you know, it's not like I have any pastels in my collection as it is (all lies!).

In terms of the scented part - there is a very subtle smell to each when applied, heavily masked by the usual nail paint smell. However, scratch the top of the lids and you get the full scent. To be honest, the scent isn't what I bought these for so I'm not too bothered about the scent not being more obvious. The consistency of these is the same usual quality of Models Own polishes. The colours are pale so you do need around three coats for an even, consistent colour. I cannot wait to wear Banana Split in the summer, I love yellow nails when it's sunny! Apple Pie is also a really good dupe for Essie's Mint Candy Apple. 

I love these colours, they just make me happy with their pretty pastel goodness - bring it on Spring, I am ready for you!

What spring shades are you looking forward to wearing?

The Mani | Models Own HyperGel

L - R: Cerise Shine, Cornflower Cream, Naked Glow, Coral Glaze, Turqoise Gloss. £5  each

These have been making the rounds lately. Models Own are a nail brand that everyone seems to rave about all the time. I've always been a bit underwhelmed to be honest. I love Utopia, but otherwise what I've got I've not been too in love with. However, I do love a good "gel nail" gimick so when they had their 50% off I had to snap some up. I also got the pastel collection but they are for another day...

So, the hyper gel collection is a bit like the Barry M Hi Shine Gel collection - you get the gellish affect without the UV light and all the hassle. Well, you know me, I'm lazy as so anything that takes hassle away is my baby!. In terms of colour choice I wasn't too blown away - I'd love to see some more pastels for summer and darker tones for autumn. The 5 I got were the best of what I would use. My favourite is definitely Cornflower Cream - you know me I love my blues. They only need a couple of coats, the colour is really vivid and they finish with a gorgeous smooth shine to them. They feel like gellish nails which is great.

Longevity is great also - I've had mine on for four days and no chipping - and I work with copiers so they are usually hacked to bits by now. I'm thoroughly impressed and will definitely want to pick some more of these up (if they bring out more colours). I would highly recommend!

What gel nails would you recommend?

The Mani | Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat

Not going to lie, todays post was originally meant to feature the Naked 3 Palette and some looks from it, however, my camera was annoying me and didn't take the kinds of pictures I wanted - so I had to make a quick substitute and settled on a Mani post. I picked this up at the weekend and had to post about it ASAP. This is bloody incredible. Excuse my French.

Now, I'm not really one for top coats as I think it just prolongs the entire process of nail painting - so I tend to avoid if I can. However, I've seen this EVERYWHERE on the blogosphere so when I spotted it in my local Boots it ended up in my basket. Funny how that happens eh?

I wanted to try it asap, so I popped on some new polish, then coated this on the top. Within a matter of seconds it was dry. Not even joking/exaggerating. I kept touching my nail like "what the.." It really did surprise/impress me. I don't know the science or anything behind it, all I know is this has changed the way I paint my nails forever. Couple of coats of polish, slick of Seche Vite and out the door I go! Absolute bloody miracle.

Okay, I am in major gush mode so I apologise. Either way I would highly recommend this to anyone who needs a top coat. At £9 it is a tad pricey for a top coat (I didn't look at the price when I bought it opps) but it does the job so I don't mind paying it. You can get it from Boots here or obviously in your local store.

Have you tried this little miracle product?

The Mani | Nails Inc Bling It On

As you can see I got a bit funky and fun with come glitter the other day. I got this set in my stocking for Christmas, it's a Nails Inc set called "Bling it On". It comes with Baker Street which is this absolutely GORGEOUS cobalt blue. You also get a little pot of glitter, brush and tray to use (not pictured).

So the idea is this - you pour your glitter into said tray, then paint one nail. Whilst wet roll your nail is said glitter until fully coated. Pat with your finger to ensure it stays on and let it dry. I decided to go for a more low key look and just do the feature nail like this. 

It was very messy - even with the tray, glitter was literally everywhere. For the hour afterwards everything I touched had at least one little spec left on it so it's worth remembering if you want to try this out. 

If you don't want to pay out for Nails Inc then I can see how easy this could be to do on a budget. Literally all you need is some glitter and a little tray to pop it in. Head down to your craft store and voila. It's such an easy nail art trend.

These are actually in the sale on Beauty Bay at the moment, reduced from £18 to £10.80, you can get my one here. I definitely want to get a couple more of these kits, especially the feather one here. 

I'd love to see if you give it a go with your own bits and pieces. Just pop it on my twitter for me!

Also - I need to say a HUGE happy birthday to my bestie Amber. She's as old as me today (mwaha) and I love her to pieces so I hope she has an amazing day. Happy Birthday Mambie!!

How would you wear your bling?