Monday Mani | 'Obsidian' by Models Own

Hi guys!

So, first things first, I'M BACK TO STUBS /wipes tear while violin plays in the background/ but honestly like it was time to start over, I'd gotten a bit bored n I actually always restart growing my nails in time for the new year. Cutting my nails to stubs really signifies something new to me. It makes me feel really fresh n cleansed, like beginning a new chapter. I don't know, it sounds dumb but it's true. 

I decided to do something special this week because it's the new year so I went with 'Obsidian' by Models Own from their Goth collection. 

Honestly, prior to using this polish, I had no idea this brand was vegan but hey it is! This shade is a gorgeous grey colour with specks of different sized silver glitter. 

I was a bit wary at first cos I didn't know if the formula would be thick enough for me to get away without a base colour but after two layers I'm happy to report that it dries completely opaque. I would say it's a matte shimmer finish which I was okay with but as much as I love matte nails on other people, I don't think they suit me much so I put a topcoat on them n I love the result! 

I got this shade in my monthly Birchbox but it retails for £5, which I think is a pretty fair price. 

All in all, it's a gorgeous, unique colour but I'm definitely not looking forward to the removal part...

I hope you guys enjoyed this review! 

x o x o

N

Friday First Impressions | B. Cosmetics Lip/Cheek Colour in 'Goji'

You know when you walk into a shop, knowing that you need to grab something essential n leave...but then you end up not finding what you need n leaving the shop with something you don't need...that's me. Every time.

This time I happened to be browsing B.'s range cos I've been contemplating buying a BB cream or tinted moisturiser or something just to even out my skin a bit, but something that isn't as heavy as foundation (suggestions anyone?) Anyway, their range is half price at the moment so I picked up this gem. I don't like any of their lipsticks cos they're far too shimmery for me so I had a look at the lip colours n this one caught my eye. It's in the shade 'Goji' n it's such a beautiful brown-toned red. It's like a lip crayon which is perfect for me because I prefer to just use a lip liner to colour my lips as opposed to lipstick.

Usually it's retail price is £7.99 (too expensive for high street makeup in my opinion) but with the offer I got it for half price at £3.99 (acceptable). 

Now, it is a shimmer (boo) but it's nothing some translucent powder can't sort out. I wouldn't say the colour is anything special. I was kinda expecting it to be more of a mauve/brown toned shade but it's literally just an ordinary pink-toned red. I put this on my cheeks too n honestly, it isn't that amazing. I wouldn't have bought it without the offer and in hindsight, I don't think I should have bought it at all. Oh well, I'm sure I'll use it at some point. 

Have a lovely weekend guys, happy holidays!

x o x o

N

Monday Mani | 'Teal' x 'Aqua Glitter' by Barry M

IT'S CHRIIIIIISTMAS

(I wanna sing the Slade song but I won't)

This combo screams 'christmas tree' at me n tbh christmas is the only time I use 'Aqua Glitter'. It's layered on top of 'Teal' n it's the prettiest!!!!! 

One thing I love about Barry M glitters is the size of the particles, plus many of the glitters match the ordinary shades so you're able to match your glitter to your base! They're super super sparkley n they're so easy to layer up. 

This is two coats of each polish, and both dry super quick. It's actually so weird how some colours from the same brand take way longer to dry but idk! 

As far as I'm aware they both retail at £2.99 each n in my opinion they're absolutely worth the money, cos who wouldn't want christmas/mermaid nails?

I hope you guys found this review helpful AND MERRY CHRISTMAS! (Yes I will be sending seasons greetings every time you guys read a post of mine)

x o x o 

N

Monday Mani | 'Peach Melba' x 'Crystal Glaze' by Barry M

So I was really itching to show you guys another one of my Zoya polishes but then I thought 'NO!' Seeing as I have so many Barry Ms, I'll end up only swatching them cos I'll have run out of other brands to review. 

Christmas is right round the corner n idk I felt wayyyy more Christmassy a month ago than now...idk I think I just got excited too early n now it's wearing off! But I am keeping up with festivities (listening to pop songs n pigging out in front of the tv...right..?) so to carry on with that I decided to add some sparkle for this mani.

 This is 'Crystal Glaze' under 'Peach Melba', both by Barry M. I've only ever worn 'Crystal Glaze' with this polish, never on it's own or with a different colour just cos I feel like it really accentuates this colour like they match so well! It adds a nice sparkle n turns 'Peach Melba' from a summer polish to a Christmas one! 

PM is part of the basic collection n retails at £2.99 while CG is at £3.99

Personally for me the consistency is a bit gooey - though this polish is about 2.5 yrs old which may account for the formula - it's a really great colour that goes well with most skin tones, though personally I'm only ever really drawn towards it when I'm tanned. 

Also, the CG is pretty unreliable, you can't always get enough speckles on your brush n you end up applying unnecessary layers!

I hope you guys found this helpful! 

x o x o

N

Review | E.L.F. Lipsticks

L-R Classy, Flirtatious, Gypsy, Posh n Seductive

So E.L.F is probably one of my favourite companies - cheap (who cares if you don't like the product, barely anything on the site costs more than a tenner) n vegan (yay for protecting bunnies n avoiding icky ingredients)

These are the plain (I call them plain cos the packaging isn't very attractive) lipsticks that are on the site for £1.95 - though for that price you can't really critique packaging.

I've got 5 colours here - 'Classy', 'Flirtatious', 'Gypsy' (rethink this name pls E.L.F), 'Posh' n 'Seductive':

'Gypsy' n 'Posh' are probably my favourite as I think they go the most with my skin tone. 'Classy' is a very 'dusty rose' colour but I have worn it far more than 'Flirtatious' n 'Seductive' (I even bought a new one when my old snapped - which is rare for me. Once a product dies, it's destiny for me to try something new)

I wouldn't say these last very long on your lips - eat something or take a sip from a takeaway cup n it's printed on the food/lid. BUT at the end of the day they are only £2 n for people like me, who use lipstick rarely n only for a few hours, these are great to have handy. You can even buy more than one as they're so cheap n keep one for emergencies in your bag, one at home etc. 

As you can see, none of them are matte so when I do want a matte finish I just pat some translucent powder on top!

Personally I prefer their studio crayons cos I love lip liner so it saves time hunting for a one to match.

P.S. Word of warning - the colours shown online look only vaguely like the shade in real life - shop carefully!

Hope you enjoyed this review!

x o x o

N

My Go-To Look

So this is basically my every day, nothing special look with an addition of eyeshadow (which I use not very often) but when I do use it, these are the colours I mix.

I haven't worn foundation about 2 yrs so the only face products I use are bronzer n blusher (not even concealer - I know, SHOCKER!)

Usually I start of with eyebrows, I use Sleek's Brow Kit in Dark n a small studio smudge brush by E.L.F. Cosmetics n start filling in my brows about a quarter way in, pressing the brush quite firmly in n filling in any sparse areas, as my eyebrow hairs are thick individually but there aren't many of them. I go back to the beginning of my brow n try gradient in the rest by applying the paint very softly n building it up to my liking, blending as I go along. 

Then I move onto eyeshadow n eyeliner. The only palette I own is E.L.F.'s 'Bright' palette, and even then, it's only two colours in it that I ever go to. I use E.L.F.'s eyeshadow primer to prep my lids (it's actually amazing, my eyeshadow goes creaseless for 6-8 hours) then I place the lightest brown shade in the middle of the first row all over my eyelid n a little into my crease then I go back in using the plum/aubergine shade at the end of the third row and intensify it a little by placing it in the outer corner of my eye. I take the same colour n run it underneath my lower lashes. Moving on to liquid eyeliner, I draw a fairly small (by my standards) wing using Sleek's Dip-It Eyeliner. Then I curl my lashes for about 10 seconds each, pressing down with the clamps (...?) every other second. I apply two coats of E.L.F's Defining Mascara to the tops n bottoms n that's the eyes done!

Moving on to bronzer n blush, this compact duo is definitely my favourite - it's Milani's Sunset Duo in 'Sunset Beach'. I apply the bronzer with So Eco's blush brush to the hollows of my cheekbones, my temples and my jawline/under my chin. Lastly I swipe some blusher on and blend with E.L.F.'s studio stipple brush n voila!

I usually add a lip balm before leaving the house n that's it!

Mid-Week Mani | 'Bite Me' by Wet n Wild Review

Hey guys, I'm back with another swatch (because I may or may not have slept on my Zoya nails n got duvet prints on them...)

This is 'Bite Me' by Wet n Wild from the Spoiled collection. I got mine from a stall in Portobello Market for a quid each (I bought three) but they are available online on Ebay just for an extra quid with free UK postage.

I'm really a huge fan of dark colours, especially in the winter when I'm a pale potato. 'Bite Me' is a lovely brown-toned deep red with tiny glittery red specks in it. It's very vampy but the hints of red make it a great Christmas season colour too.

The application is really easy, the formula isn't gooey but not too thin either so it dries relatively quickly and two coats is more than enough. I didn't apply a base or topcoat here because the shimmer of the polish means it covers nail ridges really well n has a really glossy finish.

In terms of the quality when considering the price - 10 out of 10. For such a bargain it's definitely a purchase I don't regret n I'll absolutely be purchasing more from the collection.

Dupe for: Midnight in Moscow + Black Cherry Chutney by OPI, though I'd say it's more closer to the first as Black Cherry Chutney has more purple-y undertones.

Hope you guys found this review helpful!

x o x o

N

Monday Mani | Bianca by Zoya Review

This is 'Bianca' by Zoya and while I can't find it on the official Zoya website (discontinued, perhaps?), it is available to buy online on Amazon as well as Ebay. 

Personally I bought mine when I was abroad in Russia this summer and let me tell you, it is SO much cheaper there (for reasons unknown to me) - it cost me 250 rubles which is roughly £3...THREE QUID!!! I'd bought another colour but stupid me got overexcited and dropped the bottle, smashing it all over the kitchen floor =__=

It's a gorgeous wine/mauve colour perfect for all seasons apart from winter IMO (though personally I wear any colour at any time of the year)

It slides on really well - this is only one layer as I had a Wet n Wild colour underneath that I changed my mind about last minute. I think this is my second (?) time applying it n I'm pretty sure two layers was all it took last time, secured with a topcoat (just like this time)

Price-wise I'd say its too expensive - I'm known for waiting until the last minute to buy something at the best possible price. All the Zoya colours I own I've either bought abroad or bought secondhand from an app called Depop (which can be really cool and you're able to snap up amazing bargains). Although its a great colour I wouldn't spend more than £6-£7 on it


Dupe for: 'April' by Chanel

Thanks for reading and I hope this review was helpful!

x o x o

N