The Perfect Nude Nail

When I realised I didn't own the perfect nude nail colour, I went on a hunt. Luckily, my favourite nail range, the Barry M quick dry, had a couple of nude selections  and it was 3 for 2 soo...

This is the first one I tried out of the three I bought yesterday and I feel like it can't get better than this, this is the perfect nudey- beigey- pink colour, and because it's my favourite quick-dry formula I love it even more. The shade name is Winning Streak - all of the quick dry range have racing- related names which is pretty cool. I use two coats to make sure it's super opaque, over the Iron-Mani base coat, also from Barry M, and under the Seche Vite top coat, which is life.

Basically this is a staple, nude polish for a bargain at £3? £4? Less if you're me and you never just get one. Love it, over and out.

Thanks for reading!

Lou x

Cheap, Quick & Easy Festive Nails

If, like me, you don't have the time - or lets be honest, the budget- to get your nails done properly, here's an easy, painless way to get festive nails quickly.
If you've been to my blog before, you'll know I am a huge HUGE Barry M nail paint fan, especially these new Quick Dry ones. There's a load of different colours to choose from, and you could  do this look with any of them. I chose this deep purple because it's my faavey colour, it's called Slip Stream, and like all the colours, you only need one coat for an opaque colour.
As well as a lovely, rich colour like this, adding a coat of glitter onto one nail adds a festive twist which doesn't require the same level of effort when it comes to removal as ten glittery nails.
In the picture, I've actually used a silver glitter from the brand 17, but Barry M do loads of lovely ones, like this shimmer called Duchess.
Definitely use a quick drying, thick topcoat like Seche Vite, to make sure your festive nails last as long as possible :)

Thanks for reading!
Lou

2 Budget Gloss options

I am having a real lip gloss moment at the moment, which is inconvenient, because most of the world seems obsessed with the matte-est of matte lips. 

I just find gloss really easy to wack on and trust that it won't crack or crumble off in a really really unattractive way, which is my main fear with anything matte.

I also don't really have it in me to buy a high-end lipgloss (except the Clarins Lip Perfecters which are the bomb.com), so I set about finding a couple of bargain-ous highstreet options. These are the two I have been using over the last few weeks, both with a ridiculous price tag, so I thought Id share them with you.

First of all, this is the XXL nude (??) Lipgloss from Essence in the shade Soft Almond. This was something amazing like £1.90 from Wilko's, and I really like the formula, which is more wet gel rather than sticky? If ya know what I mean. Lovely stuff. Lasting power isn't great, but its lipgloss, what do you expect? It's not pigmented either, just adding a gloss of nude to the lips, really easy for every day. I personally think this a great find, and such a bargain. I do remember looking at the other colours and seeing a lot of glitter, so I'm not sure if I'll be going back for seconds, but it depends on the shades.

Lip Boss from Barry M. First of all, I think I love the name? I started off thinking it was a bit stupid, but I think I've warmed to the idea. I also think the packaging is really quite nice, its pretty solid and hefty. The colour looks neon- bright in the tube but it really isn't all that bad.

As you can see here, its more a wash of warm peach. Pretty inoffensive and pretty, probably more suited for summer but oh well. I remember this being £3.50, which is a pretty good deal. The downside to this product is the smell- which is something like really cheap oranges. I really hate it.

Between the two, I would say the Essence one is my favourite, colour and formula wise, and for the price you really cant complain.

Thanks for reading!

Lou x

Nineties Nails

Oh hey! I am back. I have been away moving house, not having wi-fi, and generally doing adult things. BUT. I have returned, and I'm hoping to really crack out some posts over the next few weeks - I have a lot of stuff I want to review.

But first of all, here's a lovely well-lit shot of some really neat nails.
Okay, okay, my camera was running out of battery and I'm a horrible nail- painter but I just wanted to show you this beautiful Barry M Gelly Shine Polish in Coconut. Isn't it creamy deliciousness?
This will definitely look amazing on darker skin tones, and probably is a bit more summer than autumn, but hey, I'm rolling with it.

Anyway, I look forward to cramming some content on here, so look out for it, and I'll speak to you soon!

Thanks for reading,
Lou xo

Barry M Quick Dry ~ Pit Stop

Barry M is my go- to nail varnish brand, and I rarely venture beyond their collection to look for a new colour. The Quick Dry range is just fabulous- I've had Lap of Honour for a while now, and it's become my favourite nail varnish because of the colour and the formula, which is extremely quick drying (duh) and long wearing. I had to get another colour from the range, and I love a really pale grey nail so I purchased Pit Stop. Amazing. Feast your eyes. It's opaque in one coat, but I did two to prolong the wear time.

Thanks for reading!
Lou x

5 Summer Essentials

I've been planning for my holiday for months now, and one of the most exciting things about going on holiday- for me, because I'm sad- is packing my make-up and beauty supplies. Very sad.
Here are five things which have been on my list since the very beginning, and will eventually come away with me.

1. Fairly crappy sunglasses. I would -obviously- rather spend money on skincare and make- up, and of course, on the holiday itself. So, I am not inclined to spend money on my sunglasses, the main reason being because I can break anything practically just by looking at it, meaning that pricey sunglasses just aren't a practical idea for me. Secondly, I'd rather have a selection of choices than just one pair. Primark is the place to be for sunglasses, This pair of classic sunglasses were a single pound, and they also come in black. Amazing. I have a couple more pairs which also cost between one or two pounds, but these are definitely my most- worn. Bargain!

2. Something cheeky. (D'ya see what I did there?) Summer is definitely the time for intense highlight, sparkle, shimmer, and peachy shades. All of those things come together in this Make Up Revolution Baked Highlighter in Peachy Pink Kisses. Obviously, this is dupe for the Too Faced blushes, but I have to say the quality of this is absolutely top notch.

It is intensely high-shine, so definitely not one for those who don't like a healthy helping of shimmer. However, the glitter is very fine , so you won't end up with chunks all over your face, which is always good. I use this as a blusher, with the peachier side, or as an intense highlight, OR both, with a tan and some bronzer. Loverly. These are £5 each.

3. Something Easy on the Eyes. (I am so full of puns today its insane. Punsational.)
Intense blending and layering of eyeshadow is something I don't have time for on holiday, and I tend to lean towards more cream- formulated eyeshadow. These two shadow sticks are fabulously long-wearing and pigmented. they can be worn allover the lid, as a smudged- out eyeliner, or even together to create a burnt-peach smokey eye.
The top shade is from Bourjois and its one of their Colourband  2-in-1 Pencil and Liner in the shade Rose Fauviste which is a kind of peach/gold colour. It's an amazing formula which sets pretty much as it hits your eyelids, so you have minimal blending time, but it sticks to your lids all day. The brown shade is from Collection and its their Eyeshadow Pencil in Hot Chocolate. Same idea as the other one, great staying power and handy application, and the colour is a beautiful bronzey- brown, perfect for an easy- smokey summer eye.

3. SPF for your face. Very very important for holidays. I like to use this Kiehl's Ultra Facial Moisturise with SPF 30 to keep my skin safe and well- moisturised. Nothing much to say about this one apart from that its my perfect summer moisturiser- nourishing but not too heavy.

5. Finally, a mini- selection of bright nail varnishes is an essential for any holiday. I love a mint green in the summer ,especially if I look a little bit tanned. Lilac is my favourite nail colour for all- year round, so this Barry M Paint in Blueberry Icecream is a must- have. A red nail will never get old, but for the Summer, a more orangey- red looks great with tanned skin. If you already have darker skin, bright polish will already look fabulous on you all year round -lucky!

Thank you so much for reading!

Follow the blog on bloglovin' to keep up-to-date

Lou x

The Best Nail Varnish Ever.

As a huge fan of Barry M (they dominate my nail varnish collection),  I was intrigued to try these Quick Dry versions. 

First of all, the selection of colours was amazing, I had so much trouble choosing just two! I couldn't wait to get them on my nails, and I was immediately so impressed when I did.

The brush is a little thicker than the normal formula, which made it quicker to apply, and the formula was opaque in one coat. Amazing.

But what makes this formula so great is the quick- dry aspect. It works. It dries. Quickly.

The colour on my nails is this one- 'Lap of Honour', which is really similar to my all-time favourite varnish, also from Barry M, called Berry Icecream. 

I also got this beautiful summery- peach called 'In a Heart Beat' which I am super excited to wear in the Summer.

If you're looking for some new nail colours, have a look at the quick- dry selection, they have lots of beautiful pastels and some brights too!

Thanks for reading!

Lou x

Top 5 Spring Nail Picks

Spring has definitely sprung here in the UK, so I've had a rummage through my nail varnish collection and picked my favourite spring shades :)

As you can see, they're all pretty light colours, because I think summer is about really bold but fresh, light shades. Summer is for bright oranges, corals, and neons to compliment your tan, and I've definitely worn out my autumn and winter dark reds and purples... so it's definitely time to change up and go for a fresher look. From top to bottom-

Barry M Nail Paint in Bright Pink (£2.99)

So this is just a classic bright, baby pink. So girly, so fresh and... yeah, spring-y. Looks really nice with all skin tones, but would definitely look amazing on darker skin tones. 

Maybelline Superstay 7 Days Gel Nail Colour in 130 Rose Poudre (£4.99)

This is the newest one to me out of this collection. I tend to stick to Barry M Nail polishes (can you tell?) because I know they're great and have an amazing selection of colours. I think I heard about this formula on youtube and so I had a look in Boots and picked up 2 colours. (The other colour is a dusty blue and is more winter-y.) This one is my new go-to nude shade. It looks quite browny in the swatch but its just a really basic pinky/brown nude, it almost blends in with my skin. The colour is amazing, and the brush on this polish is SO good. Really fat and flat, which makes applying so easy. However, I'm not sure YET if this lives up to the hype. The first time I wore it, it didn't stay chip-free for very long at ALL. (To be fair, none of my nail polishes seem to be staying on at the moment so I'm pretty sure it's a top coat/base coat issue...)

Barry M Nail Paint in Berry Icecream (£2.99)

I think this is my favourite nail polish of all time. It's stays so well, and is such a beautiful colour. It's a really light lilac, which is opaque but really subtle and pretty, especially for spring. If I had to recommend any of these, it would be this one. I get compliments all the time when I wear this, it's just a really nice shade which is just a little bit different.

17 Lasting Fix Nail Polish in Heartbeat

I actually got this in a sale in Boots for a pound, so I am not sure if it's available any more. It's an average formula but it's the colour that's amazing. Look for a really nice iced- light blue shade if you like the look of this one.  This shade looks so pretty, and an easier way to wear a bright white nail polish. Also looks amazing in the summer with a tan, or if you are lucky enough to have skin darker than paper.

Barry M Gelly High Shine Nail Paint in Blueberry (£3.99)

The gel formula from Barry M is really really nice, I would recommend checking it out if you haven't already. It's a bit thicker than the normal formula, so it takes longer to dry, but it leaves a really shiny thick colour on your nails. This colour is so lovely, it's a kind of bright powder-blue (?), bright but not too in-your-face. I think this is great for Spring or Summer, it looks so fresh, and is an easier way to wear a blue nail polish.

Thanks for reading!

Lou x