Max Factor ~ Fantasy Fire

Hello!

This is the fab UK polish people have been going crazy over!  Superdrug were doing a "2 for £5.99" sale on Max Factor polishes so I snapped up this and one called Dazzling Blue.  Here are 4 coats of Fantasy Fire (pre-nail breakage!):

Yes, it is stunning.  The amazing blue shimmer didn't show at first in my badly-lit bedroom, but when I got some natural light it came alive.  I also tried less coats but with a black base, and you still get the amazing effect, but it has a more ethereal look on its own which I prefer!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

No... no... oh nooooooooooo...

I broke a nail :"-(

Yep, here is a photo of the lovely Fantasy Fire by Max Factor with my heartbreakingly fractured middle fingernail.

*sob sob sob*

I have really strong nails, but with the length I grow them one does inevitably break at some point.  So, like with past accidents, I chopped my nails down to baby-length and prepared to rock some short manis while they grow back.  The post-disaster polish I chose was OPI's So Many Clowns..., a milky soft soothing sheer.

You'll see a couple of long-nail posts from me in the next couple of days using photos I had lined up, including more Fantasy Fire pics!  But for now I shall stare forlornly at my nails and re-learn how to use my smartphone ;-)

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Tea and Macarons!

Hello, this is another experimental mani done while I'm poorly in bed *sniffle*

For this one I whipped out my French tip guide stickers and used them to paint two of my favourite treats: good old British tea and French macarons! So, here we have a steaming hot cuppa and yummy macarons in raspberry, pistachio and strawberry flavours...

Om nom nom!

I am actually quite proud of this one, as my nail art attempts tend to go disastrously. One thing I would change next time though is to have a base colour ~ my nail tips do not look nice, ew!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Ladybird Nails!

*sniffle sniffle*

Lisa of Happy Nails is officially poorly :-(  Since I've been lying gloomily in bed all day I fancied doing a cute, fun mani.  I painted my nails till opaque with a nice soft crème from my Color Club French manicure set, then broke out my nail art stencils (another find from Nail Delights) and painted on a few cheerful lil' ladybirds!  I topped the mani off with I Juggle... Men by OPI, which is an extremely subtle blue-purple glitter shimmer.

Sniffly hugs,

Lisa xx

White Dried Flowers on Romantic Blue ^_^

Hello!

Here is a mani using a nail art item that I love: dried flower sprays.  You can find them in lots of online nail art supply stores ~ I got mine for £1.75 per pack at Nail Delights ~ and they are so, so lovely to use!!

I took a couple of the sprays and snipped off the teeny flowers, then placed them carefully over 3 coats of OPI's I Vant to be A-Lone Star.  I tamed any loose stalks and petals with a few prods of an orange stick, then sealed with top coat ^_^

Hugs,

Lisa xx

OPI ~ I Vant to be A-Lone Star

Hello!

Another cut-price OPI buy here!  Like Play the Peonies, I chose this because I thought it would make a great base for some of my nail art supplies.

When it arrived, this polish wasn't what I expected ~ I had glanced at some swatches online but missed the pearlescent shimmer and the grey-ish tint to the blue.  Nonetheless, I love it for what it is and it actually seems like the blue 'partner' to Play the Peonies, which makes me smile!

I am accepting that, when it comes to light base colours and sheers, where streakiness and overall finish really make a difference, the higher brands usually do a better job.  Not that I'll give up my bargain hunting, but well done OPI!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Romantic Water Decal Mani

Hello!

As promised yesterday, I have used OPI's Play the Peonies as a base for some lovely rose water decals!

I realised today that I haven't bigged up Nail Delights in a while ~ they're a UK-based online store that sells nail art supplies, and they're where I got today's rose decals.  Personal recommendation*: they're cheap, they have lots of beautiful stuff and they ship really quickly.  All my water decals, nail foils and dried flowers are from them and I have some of their nail art stickers and stencils too ^_^

*It is, I promise!  I'm not affliliated with the site, I'm just a very happy customer ^_^

Anyway, here is the mani!  Since my nails are super-long at the moment I chose 3 larger decals and placed them on my favourite accent nails.

So so happyyyyyyy.  Please forgive the little chips from where I got impatient while my polish was still drying!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

OPI ~ Play the Peonies

Hello!

Play the Peonies is one of the cut-price OPIs I ordered last week.  I already had the mini, but felt I never got the best finish due to the fiddly mini brush.

I would describe this polish as solid, blushing with a pearlescent shimmer.  The reason I bought the full-size is because I think it will make a LOVELY base for water decals and dried flowers.  In fact, check the blog tomorrow for a water decal attempt!

Here are 3 coats of Play the Peonies.  They're flash photos but are very accurate to the polish I'm seeing on my nails ^_^ 

This darling will be used for many romantic manis to come!!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Accessorize ~ Emerald City

Hello!

This mani coincides wonderfully with this week's Purple Crumpet Fairy Challenge: a glitterbomb!

I bought Emerald City 3D glitter for £4 at Accessorize while I was nervously waiting for my interpreting exam (which went... stumblingly :-( ).  It's a jolly, juicy, minty-emeraldy green consisting of fine micro-glitter sprinkled with larger pieces.

For my mani, I painted one coat of a similar base colour (Sally Hansen's Lagoon) then 2 coats of Emerald City.  It could have done with a third for an extra-rich sparkle, but as it is it still looks complete.  Over that I painted two coats of top coat to smooth it out :-)

And with flash...

:-D I love it!!!

As with my other Accessorize 3D glitters - Magic and Dream - the polish seems a little thick and clumpy, especially after the first use, but nothing that spoilt the end result.  It really is a fabulous, sumptuous polish!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Epic Haul!

So on Monday, to chase away the fear of the dental hospital, I bought 2 big nail polish sets from TK Maxx. Today, to chase away the fear of my interpreting exam, I bought 2 Max Factor polishes and an Accessorize 3D glitter. Then, when I got home, I found my Lena White package of cut-price OPIs waiting for me.

I feel SO SO SO bad. But SO SO SO good at the same time.

At the back ~ Nail polish set by Spring Water Spa (?) ~ Probably not a wise buy, but hey, £4.99.

Below that ~ All About French set by Color Club
Far left ~ Play the Peonies by OPI
2nd left ~ I Lily Love You by OPI
3rd left ~ I Vant to be A-Lone Star by OPI 

4th left ~ Fantasy Fire by Max Factor ~ Saw this talked about in UK Polish Paupers and needed it!
5th left ~ Dazzling Blue by Max Factor ~ It was 2 for £5.99 ^_^ 

6th left ~ Emerald City by Accessorize ~ Wearing it now, full post to come, but it's beautiful!
Far right ~ Femme de Cirque minis by OPI

Hugs,

Lisa xx

A Little Diary & French Manicure Attempt

Hello!

This has been, and will continue to be, an extremely stressful week.  Over the weekend I broke a tooth, one of the back ones, and had to force myself to go to the dental clinic.  I am phobic of dentists!  The student who treated me seemed really enthusiastic about putting patients at ease and in control, but he had not yet met me!!!  Poor guy.  The experience was horrible, and I have to go get more done on Friday, but right now I'm in the frame of mind where I just want to get it all over with.

Also, tomorrow I have an interpreting exam at uni.  I've been ill through stress all Semester so the outlook is bleak.  As for the illness, feeling like I'm allergic to a hard day's work doesn't make me like myself very much.  Nail polish keeps me distracted and happy though :-)

Enough of the ranting!!  While I waited for my dentist appointment on Monday, I was naughty and bought some polish to distract myself.  I'd heard talk of TK Maxx selling Color Club sets (I'd never seen the brand before) so went there; I came out with a colourful polish set by some unknown brand (Spring Water Spa or something?) and Color Club's All About French set!  They did also have the Bohemian set, but the colours were too dark for me.  A French manicure set is probably boring for a lot of people, but I've been really into my sheer shades recently.  Here is my attempt at a French manicure, with blue rose water decals:

As far as my attempts go, I'm really quite happy with this one!  The white is still very 'stark' for me, and I wonder if I'm missing a trick to soften it.  But overall, smiles :-)

Hugs,

Lisa

Pastel Skittles!

Just a cute little mani, all topped with a subtle glitter top coat from Andrea Fulerton ^_^

Pink ~ Sweet Kisses by 17

Yellow ~ Spring Blossom by Ulta3
Green ~ Green from Claire's pastel nail polish mini set
Blue ~ Sheer Blue by W7
Purple ~ Woo Me by 17

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Sally Hansen ~ Hidden Treasure

Hello!

Hidden Treasure was a Christmas present, given to me by my parents but chosen by myself.  I found it for £1.99 on a market stall (I call them market stalls, really they're "barrows" run by the same people in my two local shopping centres).  I'm really not up on polish gossip - I knew that Hidden Treasure was popular, but was shocked when I went on eBay and saw people selling bottles for £20 :-O

My dad said I should have snapped up any more they had on the barrow and made a killing selling them online, but I am a complete softy and can't bring myself to sell people stuff like that!  Hopefully they went to nice owners!

Here is Hidden Treasure over 17's Midnight Sapphire:

Flaky hugs,

Lisa xx

NOTD: Matte Meep

You know when you polish and repolish your nails so much over a day or two, trying out different combinations, you end up just wanting to whack a single colour on your nails and be done with it?  Well here it is, lol.

I chose the meepity-meepalicious Meep-Meep-Meep and added a matte top coat.  I've tried this before and it's a lovely velvet look, so I'm happy enough for the moment!

Meep meep,

Lisa xx

Dried Flower French

^_^

This is just a little mani idea I had last night.  I painted a pale pink base of Sweet Kisses by 17, added a French tip using Foxglove by No7 then added a dried flower on each nail!

Flowery hugs,

Lisa xx

Boots No7 ~ Foxglove

... and an I Lily Love You top coat ^_^

I think I've gotten nearly all the No7 colours I like now, off the back of their "£5 off" vouchers.  My latest choice is Foxglove, a bright, colourful purple.  Here are 3 coats:

The polish is a bit thin and I had to add a 4th coat to my middle finger as I had a sheer patch.  Despite that, it was a joy to apply and I love the colour.

Also... I have been a bad girl, and have ordered some cut-price OPI polishes from http://www.lenawhite.co.uk (thanks to Maria from UK Polish Paupers for linking me!).  Normally OPI are way out of my price range, so I couldn't resist getting some £5 polishes!  Amongst my choices I ordered a full-size bottle of I Lily Love You... I already have the mini and it is such an amazing, pretty, unique glitter.  To celebrate, here is ILLY from my mini-bottle over Foxglove:

I wish my camera captured ILLY better, but you can see how cool the glitter is I hope ^_^

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Rimmel ~ Colourlicious

Here is the oddly-named polish with the orange cap ^_^

Although I like for my nails to stand out, I do love delicate, feminine polish shades.  I was very happy to find this very pale pink/lilac tinged polish.  Here are 4 coats:

Despite the amount of coats it needed for opacity, I love this polish!  So delicate and pretty.  It makes me feel all romantic and in love!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Maybelline Express Finish ~ Fiery

Hello!

As I've said before, reds don't tend to be my 'thing'... but I was browsing my market stall and this jumped out at me!  Here are 3 coats, with top coat for extra shine:

It's so cheery!

It has a jelly look to it; the finished mani isn't completely opaque but it looks nice like that.  It's not quite as sparkly as it looks in the bottle, but it is still very cheerful!  Not quite my style, but a pretty polish nonetheless.

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Bourjois So Laque! ~ Noir de Chine

Hello!

This is the £1.99 black I found on a market stall as part of my budget post-student-loan haul.  Because I can't spend too much, it's sometimes hard to find really good, solid 'base' colours... it might save me money in the long run to stop trying cheap brands and just buy Illamasqua's amazing black or something, but I absolutely cannot bring myself to pay £13.50 for a nail polish!!!

Here are two coats of Noir de Chine:

Right, straight away this is my favourite black ever.  Rich, glossy and opaque in two coats, it looks amazing!  I am one happy bunny.

And here it is smothered with Barry M's Pink Iridescent glitter:

^_^

I adore my Rose Lounge polish by Bourjois' So Laque! as well, so if I see any more polishes from the range on my market stall I will most definitely give them a try.

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Mini Bargain Haul ^_^

AKA, LisLis-got-her-student-loan-which-took-her-out-of-her-overdraft-for-5-beautiful-hours-before-stuff-had-to-be-paid-off-but-still-wanted-to-treat-herself.

On the left, Noir de Chine by Bourjois - £1.99 - I already have black polish but am always on the lookout for a better one!  I am so jealous of the perfect blacks by expensive or American brands, and am on the hunt for a bargain basement find that does the job.

Next, Colourlicious by Rimmel - £1.99 - I don't get the ill-suited name and off-putting orange cap, but I love delicate feminine colours so was happy to find this!

Next, Fiery by Maybelline - £1.99 - Normally I avoid reds as they're not really my style, but this one looked cheery, fruity and glittery so I snapped it up :-)

And on the right, Violetta by No7 - £2 - Yes, the Boots vouchers are back!!!  £5 off No7 products when you spend £5 instore, which means you can get a polish for £2.  I already have two more vouchers stashed in my purse lol.  My first purchase is a backup of Violetta, a polish which I adore and use a lot.

I will be showing them off in the days to come!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Purple Crumpet Fairy Challenge ~ Jewellery!

Hello!

This week's PCF Challenge is to do a mani inspired by your favourite piece of jewellery.  It's supposed to be for Friday, but I got inspired early (also there are one or two other pieces of jewellery I want to try and portray in mani form before the day!).

I have to say, first of all, that my absolute favourite item of jewellery is my engagement ring.  But it's so so precious and meaningful to me, I knew I couldn't do it justice with plastic rhinestones and my woeful polishing skills.

Apart from the engagement ring I am really lazy about wearing jewellery - but I have some fab stuff I found on Etsy and received for Christmas last year.  Today's mani is inspired by a cup of tea necklace I have - honestly!  It's a little white china cup and saucer with flower print, filled with tea, hung on a gold chain.  Here we go!

^_^

I ended up with a mani that I actually want to wear out of the house!  With my lack of skill I knew that, if I attempted to nail-art the lemon slice, it would look awful - especially compared to my lovely rose water decals - so I kept it simple.  What do you think?  I can't wait to see the other fairies' manis!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Striking French

Hellooo,

For this mani I painted my nails glossy black (17's Night Shade) then freehanded on some slanted, zaggy tips using my new fave polish, Barry M's Blue Glitter!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

LisLis Attempts Nail Art

Well, I was inspired by Tartofraises' beautiful manicure and very much wanted to try it out myself - but I knew it wouldn't turn out so well!!

Studying Tartofraises' pics, I painted a sheer pink base with a deep purple French tip (OPI's Ink).  I then drew on some swirls with a white nail art pen and added a lilac gem to each nail.

It looked decent from a distance but messy up close!  I'm really glad I tried it though.

Hugs,

Lisa xx