Nails - Minty Greens

L-R
Turquoise Gloss, Greenberry, Mint Candy Apple, Pool Party, Blossom Dandy

I know the seasons are changing and we are moving into Autumn but I still love minty greens, especially for on my toes - it's nice to have a pop of colour hidden away under socks. I've probably done a post similar to this before but I've had a few new additions over the last few months so I thought I would do an update.

Whenever I'm looking for a polish that will last I always reach for the Models Own Hypergel in Turquoise Gloss as I know it will still look good after a few days. Turquoise Gloss is definitely a very blue toned minty green but it looks really nice against my skin tone. For high shine I like to reach for Barry M Gelly in Greenberry which is more on the green end of the scale of minty-ness, a lovely fresh colour. 

For a pale green I tend to reach for Essie Mint Candy Apple, it's a cult favourite amoung bloggers but it isn't my favourite. it's a nice polish with a good finish but not one that I would rave about. Moving down to the most green toned end of the scale I've got a Topshop polish in Pool Party which is a really bright turquoisey/green - I love this for really sunny days although the finish isn't as long lasting as some of the other polishes.  

Finally we have my favourite of all the these - Essie Blossom Dandy. I picked this up when I thought I had lost my Mint Candy Apple and needed a replacement but couldn't find MCA in Boots or Superdrug. Blossom Dandy is the warmer cousin of  MCA. It is so much easier to wear then MCA, plus I could wear it all the time! 

Just a few of my favourites at the moment - I think it might be time for me to put these away and dig out my autumnal shades but for now I'm loving minty greens - what greens are you still loving? xx

NOTD - Essie Suite Retreat

Essie Suite Retreat - Boots £7.99

After my wander around and sub-concious shop in Boots last week I found myself standing infront of the Essie stand where they had their Spring Resort 2015 collection. I didn't realise but they bring out a pre-main collection or resort collection made up of 4 colours and this season there are two bold colours and two nudes. I picked up three of the 4 and the first one I have to show you today is Suite Retreat.

Described as 'Blissed our Blue Orchid' Suite Retreat is a beautiful muted blue toned purple, perfect for the transition from winter to spring. Application was smooth and even, two coats and it has a lovely cream finish with no streaking or dragging, this is down to the brush Essie give us, which is wide. Suite Retreat dried really quickly, two coats were touch dry in 10mins, smudge dry in 20mins, perfect for those of us with busy lives.

I love this colour, its the most bold in the collection and one that I will probably wear the most over the coming weeks, its work and weekend appropriate.

What do you think of Suite Retreat? 

Sarah xx

NOTD - Essie Winter Collection 2014 Mini Set

I've not painted my nails in ages, more out of laziness than anything else, but it’s time to sort this out and whack on some nail colour.

I picked up the Essie Winter Collection 2014 Mini Set in Boots just after Christmas because I wanted to try some of the colours without committing to the full size versions. The three colours in the mini set are Jump in my Jumpsuit; Tuck in my Tux and Jiggle Hi, Jiggle Lo. There are 3 other colours in the full collection but they are 3 similar pink shades that don't interest me.

Jump in my Jumpsuit is a raspberry red, its showing up bluer toned here but it really is a darker raspberry. One coat and this was fully opaque which is great and it leaves a lovely crème finish. Tuck in my Tux is a soft pinky/white colour that would look great under sparkles or other colours. This needed 3 layers to be nearly opaque but you can still see the nail line underneath - maybe worth using as a white for an at home French manicure. Jiggle Hi, Jiggle Lo is a foil finish gold/silver blend which is a nice transition from the full glitter of Christmas to something more winter appropriate. This needed 2 coats as it was flawless, the only mistake I made with it was thanks to Ted knocking me but it’s quick and easy to apply.

All three dry really quickly and are stroke free. I can see myself wearing Jump in my Jumpsuit most, especially on my toes, maybe with Jiggle Hi, Jiggle Lo as a take on the classic French. You can pick the set up in Boots for £12.99 which is perfect as you get a little of the more interesting shades of the collection.

What do you think of the Essie Winter 2014 collection? 

Sarah Xx

NOTD - Essie Summer Collection Gift Set

Essie Summer 2014 Collection

At last, after weeks of not painting my nails I finally have colour on them - all thanks to the wonderful Essie! I was in Boots picking up bits needed for school and spotted the new collection, lets just say it was love at first sight.

For Summer 2014, Essie brings us a collection of strong colours and fantastic formulas. I picked up the gift set so I've only got 3 of the 6 colours but these are three of the best.

The gift set contains:

roarrrrange - hello, tiger. your fashion instinct is anything but basic in this unstoppable bold orange. meow! - This couldn't be a better description for this shade. Roarrrrange is a deep orange, spot on tiger colour. 

ruffles & feathers - extravagant. effusive. euphoric. have some serious fun in this powerful peacock teal. - A much stronger teal then expected, more of a green then a teal blue but still lovely.

haute in the heat - turn up the chic in this unforgettable hot raspberry. burn, baby, burn - I don't normally do raspberry colours but this is more of a deeper red/pink then a true raspberry.

I used two coats, however the formula of these is good enough that you would only need one. The wide brush covers the nail in a couple of sweeps making application quick and easy.

Overall, this will be a collection to grab this summer -- I think it will be hard for anyone else to beat the colours of this collection. You can pick these up in Boots or Superdrug. 

What do you think of the colours? xx

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strong. intense. polished. inspired by women with instinctive style, these six irresistible shades amplify summer’s sultry mood with bright, sexy color. consolidate your power with gorgeous colors perfect for a cosmopolitan safari or a walk on the wild side. this varied palette gives women a bevy of fashionable options that go perfectly with an unstoppable attitude.

NOTD - Essie Luxedo

Here we are, first nail polish post of the year. I'm aiming to have Monday's post to be a nail polish of some variety, I like the routine, plus it means I can keep something regular going.

Starting off this year, I've got the gorges Luxedo from Essie. I have a lot of love for Essie, however in my head their still more of a higher end brand due to their price, but I think they are well worth the £7.99 price tag, plus it doesn't hurt to pick up a couple when their on offer in Boots or Superdrug.

Luxedo was part of Essie's Winter 2012 collection, so I was surprised to see it in Boots just before Xmas, it's currently out of stock on their website, so I don't know if that means it won't be here for long but I would recommend you pick it up!

A blackened plum colour, Luxedo is a gorgeous colour for winter. On my nails it can look blackmail in some lights it's plum and others a very dark chocolates brown - a really bad description but it is gorgeous. It's really glossy in two coats, plus it lasts really well on the nail, no chipping for over a week!

As it's the diffusion line, the brush is awesome, I find it covers my nails with one stroke, plus leaves a streak free finish.

As a lover of dark polish, this will be on my nails for a while, if not my fingers then my toes!

What do you think? A good colour for this weather or are you starting to crave lighter colours?

 Xx

NOTD - Essie Chinchilly

  

 What is going on with the weather at the moment, one minute I'm rocking dark colours and then I want lighter colours. So this week I've switched it up with an old favourite!

Essie Chinchilly is a very cool toned grey, perfectly matched to the fur of a chinchilla. Its a very easy to wear shade, perfectly shade appropriate.

This is from the main line that's available in Boots so the formula is really good, as well as the brush covering the nail really easily - I need this as I seem to be rushing all my nails at the moment.

Chinchilly lasted about 4 days before tip wear showed up which I'm really pleased with. 

Overall a great little polish, one you should rush out and get!

What do you think? What colours are you rocking at the moment? xx

Top 5 Summer Nail Polish Colours

We all know I'm a polish addict, but there are always some colours that I reach for more in the summer then at any other time of the year, Neon pink just doesn't look the same in December! So I've rifled through my collection and picked my top 5 colours for the summer as well as some of the polishes in those colours! 

Green - 

I love greens and mints in the summer, very fresh and bright withouth being too over the top. My go to colours are Topshop's Pool Party and Barry M's Greenberry.

Coral -

Coral colours live on my toes in the summer, theres just something about coral toes and sandals. I think Essie make some of the best corals, Cute as a Button is great, whilst this No7 polish is cute, but I'm naughty as its a Limited Edition!

Blue -

Blue colours are on the border with green, but a good blue is nice and light for summer - especially if the sky is the same. Models Own make fantastic blues in a wide range of shades. Beths Blue in a perfect sky blue whilst Baleric Cool is the perfect sea blue/green.

Neon -

Oh Neon, you do scare me some what - I have to wait until I'm tanned as Neons look awful against my pale skin. Again, my go to for Neons are Models Own, is there anything they can't do! I picked out Bubblegum, the exceptionally bright pink and Beach Party, a gorgeous neon orange. I love these on my nails, even together with orange base & pink dots.

Dark -

Sometimes I start to crave darker colours on my nails. There is something about dark nails against tanned skin, I do love it, especially on shorter nails. I dug through my stash and there was only one choice for brand of dark colours and its OPI. The two colours that I've been loving is OPI Pepe's Purple Passion and Lincoln Park After Dark. I love both of these, a dark vampy purple looks great on toes and tips! 

So there are my top 5 colours for summer, what colours do you reach for in the summer? xx

NOTD - Essie Mint Candy Apple

My god its hot at the moment - I'm struggling to write posts as all I want to do is be outside enjoying the sun!

Anywhoo - I delved into my collection and realised that I had not ever used this polish, even though I've had it in the collection for over a year.

Mint Candy Apple was the first Essie polish that I lusted after - I blame Elle and Blair for this! I never bought it due to the price, however when the diffusion line came out I made it mine.

Mint Candy Apple is a very white toned green/blue - its a very fresh & bright colour that pops on the nails.

Of all the Essie's I've tried, this one has an awful formula. It took 2 coats to be opaque which isn't the problem, its the fact that a day later there was far too much tip wear for not doing anything. 

I've repainted this a couple of times and each time it still does not last more than two days before looking tired. For £7.99 I would have expected much better than this - I don't know if its the diffusion lines formula but oh well - it lasts well on my toes!

What do you think? Have you tried Mint Candy Apple? xx

NOTD - Essie Summer Collection 2013

Oh Essie, another season and another collection that became a must!

I picked these up last time I was at home - I had seen some posts about and fell in love. The summer collection has a holiday theme,with colours that scream 'Bring me Sunshine!'

The mini collection consists of 3 of the 5 colours, a perfect mix.
Full Steam Ahead is the lilac purple. It has a faint shimmer to it which is noticeable in the sun. Its quite grey with only one coat, but a second coat beefs it up to the gorgeous purpleness.

Sunday Funday is a very orange toned coral. It's really bright and sun, perfect for fingers and toes. I know that Anna frome Vivianna loves this colour and I can see why.

Finally there's Naughty Nautical. A dark, pool green, this is my favourite of the three. This looks exactly as it does in the bottle which is great and one that I will reach for a lot over summer.

You can pick these three up for £12.99 from Boots, and their currently on buy 1 get a 2nd half price! I love this set, perfect to try and the mini bottles are cute!

What do you think? Which one is your favourite? xx

NOTD - Essie Nothing Else Metals

Essie is fast becoming one of the top nail polish brands of the moment, thanks to the diffusion line that launched in Boots and Superdrug this summer.

Essie recently launched their summer collection, a range of metallics, in some awesome colours, and when I saw them, I knew that no other polish would matter (sorry!)

Nothing Else Metals is a pinky toned lilac, swirled with silver which is really pale. It is truly metallic on the nail, however is quite difficult to achieve a smooth finish, even with a decent base you can still see some dragging, but that really is only on close inspections. The wear on these was ok, no chips until day three but tip wear appeared sooner, but that's what tends to happen with metallics.

I love a good metallic and this is one I will return to again. I'd like to try this with a dark purple half moon for a vampy winter take, but I'm not sure how I would do this yet - let me know it this is something you would want to see?

Boots - £7.99

Have you tried any of the metallics?

NOTD - Essie Turquoise & Caicos

Afternoon lovelies, hope your well and this week is isn't treating you too bad, I'm on the count down to summer holidays, they can't come quick enough now, especially after today! 


 Unless you've been living under a rock for the past month then you will know that Essie have released a diffusion line of their main collection with a selection of their most popular colours with a new brush and at a new price. 


I'm ashamed to admit that I have never bought an Essie polish until now because I didn't want to pay the full price, I'm the same with OPI and get them from a supplier on EBay. 


So I went in search of the Essie stand in town a couple of weeks ago, and I found them in Superdrug. Our Superdrug has recently had a mega refit, getting lots of brands that I've missed out on, and they have a really big Essie stand. Obviously I had to take advantage of the 3 for 2 they had on, but choosing was the hardest! 


One colour I knew I wanted was Turquoise and Caicos, a polish I have seen countless times on Blair Fowler in the videos, so I had to pick it up! 

Turquoise and Caicos is named after the colour of the sea around the Turks & Caico islands that are part of a group of islands near the Bahamas. 


The colour is a real blue/green mix that is very fresh. As part of their diffusion line, Essie have given the new bottles a new, wider brush with a rounded tip. The brush is great for doing the whole nail in one or two strokes. I really liked the brush, its wider and stiffer then the OPI brush, but I really like it. 

The formulae was opaque in two coats, leaving a really deep colour that lasted well with a base of OPI's Nail Envy. 


I am really impressed with this polish from Essie, I hope that the other colours live up to this, and I am in love with this polish - summer loving all the way!

So what do you think, a colour that you want or have in your collection? What other colours do you have from Essie? Xx

A whole lot of hauling - Boots & Superdrug

Evening lovelies, hope your enjoying your weekend.


I've got a mammoth haul to show you as I earnt some over time and it would have been a crime not to spend it! Problem is its quite big and so I've split it up into smaller posts so that it's not too picture heavy.


First up are my recent acquisitions from Boots and Superdrug. I popped into Boots on Thursday after work and today as I was on the hunt for the Soap & Glory Sit Tight XS Intense as I love the original and wanted to try it out, but I couldn't resist some other bits.

 I picked up a real mix of items, some that I needed and others that I didn't but oh well.

 In Boots, the Models Own stand called to me, and they were running a buy two products and get a nail art pen. I couldn't resist choosing two of the Head Kandi polishes. I picked Headonist and Beach Party to go with the Baleric Cool I picked up a couple of weeks ago, these are really bright colours that will be great for the summer! 


I also wandered into Superdrug and did a little dance of joy when I saw that they had a new Essie stand. I picked up Cute as a Button, Turquoise & Caicos and . I haven't tried any of the Essies yet, but I've heard great things so can't wait! 

In Boots I also picked up some essentials and other bits. I bought the new Soap & Glory Intense XS as I swear by the original Sit Tight so I can't wait to see what happens. 


I picked up some more Simple face was, as well as some Nivea Toner and as its 3 for 2 I picked up the hand gel for in my handbag. I needed the eyelashes for a night out soon and love the way they Kimberly lashes look.


And finally I spent some of my Boots points on Benefits new Sun Beam, I've seen some pictures of the launch so can't wait to use this as I love the Highbeam and Moonbeam products so can't wait to try this out!


So there's part one of the haul, I can't wait to show you the rest, as well as getting some reviews of the products written up.


What have you been hauling this weekend? xx