Heather Manicure

Hello!

First of all, bad Lisa news - I've not been well and it might be related to my liver and gallstones. I'm seeing my doctor today and hopefully will remain in one piece until my gallbladder operation next week!

On the bright side, I painted a new manicure yesterday and it's inspired by my mam. Hi mam!

I started off with one coat of Heather from Barry M's Silk Effect range, enough to give the colour but still stay a little sheer. Over this I stamped on Heather-esque flowers from Cheeky's Home Sweet Home plate using Models Own's Pukka Purple. I took a small nail art brush and added a little green onto the leaves then finished with top coat.

Hopefully I'll be back soon with a new manicure and to let you know that I'm still alive!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Pearl Rose Manicure

Hello!

Today I wanted to try a white-on-white manicure, as I've been seeing a lot of similar delicate manis online and they're beautiful!

For my base white I used the frosted Pearl by Barry M, from their Silk range of polishes. I only applied one coat to keep it a little sheer. I then stamped on roses from MoYou Mother Nature plate 05. Here it is:

Gosh, my cuticles need a bit of care don't they!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Oriental Floral Manicure

This post contains products which were sent to me for review :-)

Hello!

Today I'm reviewing this nail stamping plate from Born Pretty Store. It has a central full-nail tree design and 12 other floral and written designs.

I used yesterday's green and white Spring gradient as a base manicure for the nail art, then did my stamping in Konad black. I used a different design on each nail to show you as much of the plate as possible! Here it is on both hands:

http://www.bornprettystore.com/nail-stamp-template-pretty-flower-arabesque-tree-pattern-p-12178.html

I especially love the full tree pattern and oriental writing (I don't know what language it is, I'm so sorry, but it is beautiful!). Some of the designs did stamp better than others - as you can see there are gaps in some of the flowers.

For 10% off Born Pretty Store orders you can use my coupon code CMBQ10

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Spring Gradient

Hello!

Today's manicure is a nice fresh Spring gradient! We had some heavy rain last night but, on the whole, the weather here in England seems to be blossoming nicely ^_^

This manicure uses two Models Own polishes, White Light and Apple Pie. I started with two coats of White Light and, once that was dry, I just dampened a washing-up sponge and used it to sponge on Apple Pie. Top coat helped to blend in the colours and smooth out the gradient.

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Lacy Floral Manicure

This post contains products which were sent to me for review :-)

Hello!

Today I have some very pretty water decals from Born Pretty Store to show you. They're a selection of white lace designs with lovely ivory flowers as accents.

The thing I'm happiest about with these decals is that they're completely opaque even though they're a white design, which means I could try them over a dark grey (Enigmatic by MeMeMe) for more of a chic look. The application was simple: I put the decals in water for 30-50 seconds then positioned them as I liked on my nails before pressing them down and applying top coat. Here they are!

http://www.bornprettystore.com/1sheet-graceful-white-lacy-floral-patterned-nail-water-decals-transfers-sticker-y092y104-p-12688.html

Water decals are one of my favourite kinds of nail art and I love these ones! The flowers especially are so dainty. As always you can get 10% off Born Pretty Store orders with my coupon code, CMBQ10

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Seventeen Juicy Neons Nail Effects ~ Pink

Hello!

Today I'm showing you another polish from Seventeen by Boots' new Nail Effects ranges (see Gold from the Crushed Foils here). This one's the pink member of the Juicy Neons range; I also spotted yellow, orange, purple and teal and they all have a shimmering iridescence to them in addition to that neon colour.

Pink Juicy Neon is a sheer polish; a few of the big brands seem to have released very sheer colours for this Summer so I imagine that this range is following in their steps, only with the iridescent twist. I applied two coats as suggesed on the bottle and this is the effect:

You can see that my nail tips aren't looking great at the moment so this probably isn't the best time for me to try out a sheer! That said, the colour plus the blue-tinted iridescence is really quite lovely.

I'd quite like to experiment with this polish a bit more, building up more coats or trying it over other polishes. I did do a quick try of it over white and also to colour in a stamped butterfly and here is the result:

So my first try of Juicy Neons: beautiful colour, but be warned that it is sheer!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Flower & Perfume Manicure

This post contains products which were sent to me for review :-)

Hello!

Today's manicure is a review of a stamping plate sent to me by Born Pretty Store, which features a set of five complementary floral patterns and a chic perfume bottle!

The QA75 plate caught my eye because I love the idea of having a varied but matching pattern across my nails, and this one is really very pretty. The design is a suitable size for all nails I'd say - they're excellent large images but with plenty of intricate detail. I chose a different image for each nail and stamped them in black over a pale lavender base.

For my ring finger I stamped the perfume bottle and used a nail art technique that everyone's been talking about in my favourite stamping group, which is called "leadlighting". Basically you paint a sheer jelly polish over your stamping and it gives the design colour without affecting the black outline! Here is my mani:

And you can get the stamping plate here (for $1.99!):

http://www.bornprettystore.com/nail-stamp-template-fantastic-flower-pattern-qa75-p-12026.html

There are tiny gaps in the flower heads when stamped but other than that I'm in love with this look - it feels very French and chic!

You can get 10% off any Born Pretty order with my coupon code CMBQ10.

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Seventeen Crushed Foils Nail Effects ~ Gold

Hello!

A few days ago on Facebook I noticed that Seventeen had launched some new nail effects polishes, so I decided to get down to Boots and buy a few to try out! They're on 3 for 2 at the moment so I bought one polish from each new collection: Juicy Neons, Crushed Foils and Off The Wall Metals.

When I picked up the Crushed Foil polish in Gold I had no idea how it would look on the nail. It looks a bit strange in the bottle - gold shard glitter pieces in a milky polish - but once I started applying it, it started to make sense! I'll let the photo do the talking to start with. Here are two coats of Crushed Foil over black:

It's an ultra-cool rock polish!

So the milky base is a clear-drying matte which gives your mani a really cool edge (it does lighten your base colour a little). The shards of glitter go on great and are just the right amount. This mani brought me back to when I was a goth in my late teens, a very happy time ^_^

I reckon it would be helpful if Seventeen had photos showing how these Crushed Foils look on your nails, because they are a bit confusing in the bottle! I was happy to buy one and test it out but could easily have passed them by.

I'll be back soon with the other two polishes I bought from the Juicy Neon and Off The Wall Metal ranges.

Hugs,

Lisa xx

My Easter Manicure

Hello and Happy Easter!

I'll be honest - I really do not celebrate Easter. But the fact that the skies are becoming sunnier and the weather warmer is very cheering, and people seem to be having a lot of fun today judging from my Facebook feed! I did have a little idea for an Easter/Spring themed mani, and here it is :-)

The nail polish I chose is Meadow, from Barry M's Silk Effects collection. It's a gorgeous polish and just perfect for Spring. I made it ever more seasonal with yellow chick feather water decals from Born Pretty Store then finished with top coat. These decals didn't apply too well for some reason, hence the one torn feather!

...and here is a picture of Meadow that I took a while ago, showing it on its own without top coat:

It's such a pretty polish!

I hope you and yours are having a nice day today, whether it's Easter in your household or not ^_^

Hugs,

Lisa xx

April Showers Manicure

Hello!

I painted this manicure a little while ago when it was raining miserable April showers. I wanted a mani to reflect the weather but not something that was going to depress me! So I went for a cascade glitter gradient.

The base colour is Models Own's Blueberry Muffin. I was lazy with the gradient so, rather than sponging, I painted and dabbed the glitter on until I got the effect I wanted. The glitter is Nails Inc's Royal Arcade nail jewellery with a dab of Barry M's Rose Quartz for an extra little pink sparkle. Add top coat and here it is:

Fortunately the weather seems to be improving and we've had some really quite sunny days in the North East of England! I hope things are lovely wherever you are as well.

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Boots Seventeen ~ Charm Bracelet

Hello!

Charm Bracelet by Seventeen at Boots was another of my naughty purchases that I really shouldn't have made! That said, it was part of the current 3 for 2 offer, costing £3.99 on its own. It's part of their textured range and it is a shimmering metallic delight. Here are 2 coats:

(please excuse the little dint on my middle fingernail!)

The name "Charm Bracelet" completely suits this polish because, as I applied it, it really was like an old charm bracelet had jangled onto my nails! It has a lovely vintage hue and there are flecks of gold in there which make it really special. Well done Seventeen!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Feathered Grunge Manicure!

Hello!

On Tuesday I showed you Grunge by Filthy Gorgeous, and after I photographed it on its own I decided to top it with some purple feather water decals from Born Pretty Store. They have a lovely gold glittered stem; I applied some feathers whole and cut a couple in half.

Here it is!

Sadly I looked in both Newcastle Poundland shops for more Filthy Gorgeous polishes and I only found one solitary bottle, a brown colour that I didn't much like. Hopefully the Gateshead store might have some left!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Filthy Gorgeous ~ Grunge

Hello!

Here is another polish that I really shouldn't have bought but saw it in Poundland and couldn't resist. This one was particularly irresistable as Filthy Gorgeous nail polishes retail for £9 in department stores!

Grunge is a mauve-y neutral creme, a very pleasant colour. The formula was lovely and I needed 2 coats for opacity. Here it is:

If you see Filthy Gorgeous polishes in Poundland I recommend you snap them up - what a bargain!!!

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Boots Seventeen ~ In The Surf

Hello!

Today's polish is a really cool glitter purchase from Seventeen at Boots, called In The Surf. It's part of their Colour Clash Nail Effects range and is sporting a "Just in!" sticker, so it may be new for Spring/Summer 2014. I paid £3.99 for it but Boots have a 3 for 2 offer on right now so I took advantage of that!

In The Surf is a glitter mix comprising various sizes of white, bright blue and lime green glitters with larger "accent" glitters of orange and pink. It's a top coat glitter and one coat is enough for a great manicure, although I used two just to get the fullest effect. I did have to fish around a bit for the orange and pink glitters, but overall application was lovely.

Here it is over Barry M's Huckleberry, a light pastel blue, with top coat:

How perfect for Summer?! It makes me think of sand in shallow water, it's very beachy. I love Seventeen because they come out with great polishes on the cheap, and I think they've made a winner this time ~ what do you think?

Hugs,

Lisa xx

Vera Valenti Mirror Effect ~ Blue

Hello!

In the past week I've spotted some real bargains while I've been out and about, and so my next few blog posts will be along the theme of "Things Lisa Should Not Have Bought But Couldn't Resist". This first post shows a TK Maxx find!

I shop at the TK Maxx on Northumberland Street in Newcastle. This past week I've seen a decent lot of nail stuff, including the Vera Valenti set I have to show you today. The set costs £2.99 and is presented in a box of two polishes: a colourful one-coat creme and a mirror effect chrome. I saw purple, blue and green sets, and I settled for the blue.

The mirror effect polish is really quite lovely! It's not exactly reflective like the name or box would imply, but it's a shining blue chrome that applies extremely smoothly and looks gorgeous. The one-coat blue is a bright cheering-up colour, but I did need two coats. Both polishes have good formulas and wide brushes, which I personally love. Here are both polishes with the mirror effect stamped on the middle finger:

And here's what to look out for in store:

So the polishes aren't exactly as advertised but they are still very good indeed, especially the mirror effect polish. At £2.99 for the set it is an utter bargain. Has anyone else spotted these?

Hugs,

Lisa xx