Hope you are all enjoying the nice weather that we've been having recently. I have been so busy with work recently that I am very late to getting this blog done for May's Nailbox goodies so let's just get into it.
This months theme was tutti frutti and the box contained three polishes and two nail items. The first item was a wavy nail file by stylfile that has a furry leopard print side and then the file on the other. Due to having square nails, this file isn't really of any use to me but I can see the benefit of this for someone who has rounded nails. I'm going to gift this to my mum so it gets used. The second nail item was an elegant Touch treatment, this time being a nail growth treatment. I'm making quite the collection of Elegant Touch goods thanks to Nailbox!
Let us move onto the polishes for May's box. First up is this vibrant deep pink by Essie and is called Haute In The Heat. This is a really pretty colour and I just adore the shape of the Essie brushes. They are rounded and allow for perfect application around the cuticle.
This was so pigmented it only took one coat to get the colour shown here. Pink is a close second to purple when it comes to my top choices of polish colour and this one is just amazing. Essie never fails to impress me.
Polish two is my first ever Orly polish and is called Orange Punch. An apt name for a vibrant, slightly neon-esque shade. This once again had so much pigment it only took one coat for full coverage!
This macro shot isn't a true representation of the colour but it does show you just how opaque it is with one coat. I didn't use any top coat either for these swatches as I like to let you see the true effect of the polish.
Polish three is a favourite of mine as it is a pastel shade. This is Mint condition by Cuccio and I love it. I'm starting to build up a little collection of Cuccio now (I actually just put an amazing glitter polish by them on my toes the other day!) and I'm always happy with the polishes they produce.
As is common with pastel shades, this one was streaky on the first coat but smoothed out perfectly on the second to give this finish you see here. Personally I have no issue with polishes that take two coats of colour as to me that is standard, I'm not so keen when a polish takes three. So there we have May's (late) Nailbox blog! I have also uploaded a couple of videos to my Youtube you can feel free to check out too. I have the unboxing video here:
and if you would like to watch me live swatching these three polishes then you can check that out here:
Thank you all for reading and see you in the next blog! Lyn
Hi hi! I feel like I've been neglecting this blog a bit recently but I've been busy with work and looking for a new home so I think I can be forgiven....right? To make it up to you today I have my thoughts and pictures to share with you on May's Meebox goodies.
This months box was jam packed with nail stuff! The box contained four polishes and two nail art items. Now it wouldn't be a Rihanna inspired box without some silver spikes and cuticle tattoos would it?! I've never tried cuticle tattoos before so I'm going to be using these in the future for taking my swatches. The little silver spikes have come from Sparkly Nails which sell lots of cool nail art goodies if you want to treat yourself. The mini OPI is a nail envy strengthening treatment; not something I need to use myself but still a nice addition to the box.
Now let's get onto the polish. My first ever Zoya, this is Leah and is from the Satin finish range. With the trends nowadays a nude is a must have for your collection and I was happy to receive this.
Just how pretty is this? It was almost a one coater and I think if you have smaller nails you could get away with one coat. I did two for complete opacity and didn't use any top coat. Not sure what kind of top coat you would use on this anyway as a glossy one would take away from the satin finish. I think it's one where you are not suppose to need a top coat but I have to always top coat as I just love that glossy finish so much!
This is two coats of polish and no top coat so that you can see the satin finish effect.
Polish two is a striking red. Just how good is this theme? It ticks all the boxes for things Rihanna would wear. Now I don't normally wear reds as I feel it doesn't suit me but this one was really nice. It seemed to be just the right shade to compliment my skintone.
Made by Wah London Nails this is called Love My Team. A first time for me trying out this brand and let me tell you I'm impressed. This is just one coat of colour and no top coat, perfect coverage. Looking forward to trying more of this brand in the future.
Sparkly holo goodness!! I am a sucker for a holo polish and what makes this one so much better is that it comes from a fellow indie polish maker called Hayley. I had my eye on this polish on her Etsy store and was close to buying it when it turned up in my Meebox. I love to see companies supporting the indie makers. It makes me love your box even more.
Higitis Figitis comes from Danglefoot Nail Polish and you can find Hayley's store on Etsy. This is just one coat too! I posted a live video of this polish in action on my Instagram so feel free to check it out.
There we go, May's Meebox which was Rihanna inspired. What do I think? Amazing. Each month I am continually impressed with the theme and content that the girls put into each of the boxes. Meebox costs £20 per month and has always contained items worth this price and more. I look forward to the end of the month knowing that my new box will be arriving!
You can check out my unboxing video here:
and my live swatches of these polishes will be up tomorrow (2/6/16).
I feel like I have been so busy lately and just not had time to write this blog that I wanted to do at least a week ago now. I'm always looking for new ways to work with my nail passion and share it with all my followers on social media. When I was sending out my sample polishes to be swatched, I sent some to Elaine who along with taking pictures also did live swatches. What is that you ask? Basically you record yourself painting your nails with the polish, showing how it applies and recording a voice over to chat about your opinions on it. Then of course you take lots of pretty pictures to add in too and share on other social media.
Why do this? I have been wanting to expand the content of my youtube for a while now and this is one way to do it. Currently I have my weekly Friday 10am nail art upload and my sporadic review videos that come in as and when I have products to review. I'd really like to be able to upload two videos a week. Now being honest, that won't be found with my live swatch series. These will only go up when I've purchased new polishes or have some new collections from my indie range to share. I'd really like to stop being lazy and do a gel or acrylic tutorial each week also, perhaps uploading those on a Tuesday.
Less talking about it and more doing it then! Well this also comes with more stress on my part in coming up with designs. There are some weeks I struggle to come up with a new nail art design and I get so frustrated with myself. I have mountains of nail art goodies and quite often my mind just goes blank staring at them. So that is a downside to adding a new weekly video to my schedule.
What about the upsides though? I think I would expand my viewer base on youtube and help grow my channel through broadening my content. Some people might not like doing designs in regular polish as a lot of people struggle with the durability of it (though I would say most of my designs can easily be replicated in gel). There are also some designs that can only really be done with gel or acrylic such as 3D work.
I've so far filmed and uploaded one live swatch video which was the polish that came in April's Nailbox and I am going to film a small OPI haul I bought recently today so that will be coming soon.
What are your thoughts on seeing gel/acrylic/live swatch vids? I'd love to know what you think or if you have a suggestion for something else I could do to share with you all I would love to hear it. If you made it this far through my wall-o-text thank you! Here is the link to my first Live Swatch video also so you can take a look at what I would like to do more often.
Hello readers, I'm really working through these blogs today! Next up is Meebox April edition. This months theme was hitched, so let's take a look at what we got.
First we have this set of three mini polishes that are a french manicure kit. You also get provided with the tip guides to have that perfect smile line. I haven't had the time to try this out yet to see how good the polishes are as I have never heard of this brand before.
Included this month was a stamper and scraper to go along with a stamping plate that I will talk about in a second. I was trying to find a brand for these but they only say clearjellystamper which turns out to be a website which you guessed it, sells stamping related goods! I had a quick look around there site and they have some nice looking image plates. I've not tried this out yet as I haven't had the time, but I'm going to record it and give you my impressions on how well it works.
Next up is the stamping plate that is made by Bundle Monster. This is one of the collaboration plates that were made with bloggers and youtubers (this one is ellandish). I'm excited to try this out as Bundle Monster is one of the more well known brands I'd say when it comes to image plates so I can't wait to try it out. As I said above I will be testing the stamper and scraper and will also try out this plate at the same time. It's got some really nice designs on it.
Here is yet another website I didn't know existed! Darn you Meebox for introducing me to even more places to spend my money! These cute stickers are by Miss Cat Nails and there are loads of nice things on the website. These products are even masterminded by two nail techs.
Last items contained in this month's box is a polish by Leighton Denny called Breakfast In Bed. This polish applied like a dream, Leighton certainly has his formula's right for his polish line. I applied two coats and no top coat.
This polish is a beautiful gold shimmery bronze. I will admit it doesn't sit that great on my pale skin tone but it is still a really nice shade. It had a nice natural finish to it but I would always recommend a top coat when wearing polish to give that lasting finish and high shine.
There we have it, April's Meebox content. I think my favourite thing is the stamping plate and I can't wait to try it out. Next month's theme has been released and it is based around Rihanna so I'm sure we can expect some very cool nail art items (maybe some spikes?!). Feel free to check out Meebox for yourself.
Hi everyone, its the start of a new month so that means I have received my subscription boxes and it's time to share the goodies with you all. The theme for Aprils Nailbox is Birthday as they turned one year old.
The box contained three polishes, nail stickers and a Nail Quencher. Both the treatment and stickers are from Elegant Touch who often appear in Nailbox. You will notice there is a number 5 on the box. Elegant Touch do a variety of treatments that can be combined with others to create a treatment plan catered to your nail needs. This particular one is made for dry and brittle nails.
First polish of the box comes from Ciate and is called London Baby. This appears to be a clear base filled with black and silver glitter. For the swatch I did three thin coats to build up the intensity. What I would recommend is to start with a black base then do a coat of this to get a quicker, fuller effect. I felt it was a little sheer and washed out without a black base underneath.
I think you can see better in the macro shot what I mean about it being a bit sheer. Lovely polish and good glitter coverage with the brush. I think this is actually my first ever Ciate polish. I personally would like it better with a black base underneath so I will do that next time I use it.
Moving on to something brighter we have another Invogue polish in the colour Sugar Daddy. This one is a vibrant deep pink shade. Shown here in direct light this is two coats of colour and no top coat.
Great natural shine to this polish. Coverage was actually really good in just one coat but I did a second just to smooth out any slight streakyness. Very nice shade.
Polish three is by Bourjois Paris and is called Bleu Asphalte. This shade is really unusual; it's a purple-black I would say. Definitely not one I have in my collection already.
This one had really good pigment in it and if you were really careful one coat would be enough. I did use two for my swatches and no top coat. I feel my pictures make this shade come across more in the black end of the spectrum but I assure you it is more purple based. Some polishes are just really hard to capture! I decided while swatching these polishes to take the chance and try out something new for my Youtube channel. I recorded me doing these swatches live and I will have it uploaded very soon. If you want to see any of my videos I am on Youtube as Nala Nails So there we have it, April's Nailbox items. If you are interested in checking Nailbox out for yourself there website can be found here. Thanks for reading, Lyn
Recently I received a nail art package from BornPrettyStore which was sent to me for review. Although I've received this for nothing I'm giving you my honest feedback on what I'm using. I don't want anybody spending hard earned cash on something I say is good when it isn't. Now that's out the way let's get into the goodies shall we?
Small gold bow decals
Striping brush
Nail stencils
Shell stickers
Water decals
Gel polish and magnet
Now I really do love the items I get from BPS and I also have bought quite a lot from there with my own money too. It's affordable but still great quality. The only downside is that orders can take a few weeks to arrive but personally this doesn't bother me. If I need something quickly I would look for a UK seller (and pay more money for the privilege too!)
I was really excited to try out this soak off gel polish that is in the Cats Eye series. Honestly this picture does not do the product justice. The effect was amazing and so hard to capture it on camera. This comes in 12 different colours and 2 different sizes. I filmed me using it on my Youtube Channel so feel free to see it in action and you can also hear my thoughts on the product. Love it.
Next item I tried out was the shell stickers. They were out of stock of my first choice of colour but this one is really pretty too. They come in different shapes and sizes and I choose to do a toe nail design to use them. I can't remember the last time I actually did an art video for my toes. I'm not going to lie, it's a lot of work reaching down there to do them haha. I liked my end result. I applied a black base, sponged red on the tips and then applied the stickers over the big toe. Simple and effective. There will be a tutorial on my channel coming very soon for this.
The last item that I reviewed (as of writing this blog) was the striping brush. I will link the video here so you can see all my thoughts on it. One thing I did notice was the picture on the website shows the brush as thinner than the one you get. A little annoying but it did still produce thin lines and was easy to work with. Have a look at the video:
If you would like to see the video showing all the items I received then you can find that right here:
Before I sign off on this blog for today, if you do want anything from the site you can use AIJW10 for 10% off. I don't earn anything from this, just sharing some discount with you all.
Today I want to share with you some goodies that I got from Rainbow Connection recently. I won an Instagram competition and got myself a voucher for this website to get some items (and I spend over my winnings, it's so hard to choose!!). Firstly let me tell you what RC is. It's a place that has loads of different indie brands in the one place for you to buy from. As most of you will know the UK is very restricted on the posting of nail polish so it can be a risk trying to order in polish from outside the country if customs find it. This website takes away all that risk for you as they have loads of brands from all over the world in the one place. You can also find stamping polishes and image plates and more. Seriously if you are a polish addict, you need this site in your life.
Let's get on to sharing some swatches shall we? Otherwise we might end up with a wall-o-text of me going on about how much I love this website. So I picked myself out 6 polishes and 1 stamping plate. I didn't take any pictures of the Pet'l Plate I choose but click here to have a look. Polish wise I wanted to pick different brands so that I could try different ones out. This will be a picture heavy post, but did you really expect any less? :)
Here is Cadillacquer Dreams And Dust. It's an unusual shade and that's why I picked it. It has that slate grey base and then appears to have micro flakies that are either green or blue (it's hard to tell) and a sprinkling of holographic pigment.
You can see the holo effect better in this direct light macro. I didn't use any top coat as I was only swatching but I would recommend it any time you're painting your nails anyway. Cadillacquer is made in Switzerland and my first impressions of it are great. (this is going to be a recurring theme in this blog today as I loved every polish) The formula was easy to work with and the polish is a really unique shade.
Colors By Llarowe Meet Me At The Rainbow Bridge. I felt lucky getting this one as it was the last available and not being stocked anymore by RC. Now If you don't know the poem about the rainbow bridge, you seriously need to stop reading a sec and go google it. Ok all back now? This is a stunning lilac holographic and I love it.
Look at the holo sheen on this one. You'll know if you've read a previous blog of mine about my quest for making perfect holographic shades and anything with a light base runs the risk of being overtaken with the greying effect holo pigment gives. This one though worked out perfectly.
Next up is Bear Pawlish (great name choice) in shade In Love With The Bad. Now I'm not one that normally goes for a red shade but this is such a deep tone I felt that I had to have it. You will notice the trend of holographic polishes coming up in this blog today. What can I say apart from I'm addicted to sparkles.
I will never get tired of how amazing holographic polishes look in direct light. Roll on summer so I can get the full benefit of these! This was really good coverage in just one coat. Once again I've no complaints about the polish what-so-ever. Bear Pawlish is an American brand and I look forward to buying some more in the future.
Lilypad Lacquer Stay Beautiful is packed with glitter. You can see red, green and blue all packed in this bottle with a pinky base and on the macro shot you can even see it has some holographic pigment in there too!
I don't often pick out full glitter polishes as you sometimes need to build them up to get the effect I'm looking for. This one was different though. I did two coats and felt that I had full coverage with lots of sparkle. The combination of glitters works great together and overall it is a really fantastic polish.
Another purple polish, I know I know. I just really like purple and I can assure you every purple I own is all different! Glam Polish Ka-boom! I feel like I'm repeating myself when I keep saying how amazing each polish is but it's true.
Very good formula to work with and you can even get away with just one coat. This is an Australian brand of polish and there range all looks amazing. It took me about 2 hours to pick out my final choices on what to get as there is just so many nice things and I want them all.
We are onto the last polish in this swatch overload post. Say hello to Cupcake Polish Coffin Break. It can look as if its a deep black but I'd best describe it as a warm black packed with holographic pigment. This picture might even have it leaning into a purple-black tone.
This one is just so pretty. It's also a good one coater polish and just stunning in the light. Cupcake Polish has loads of amazing looking glitter polishes that you just have to check out. In fact just check out all the brands I've mentioned here as they are all fantastic!
Phew. That's all the sharing I have for this post. I love all the polishes I picked and let me tell you it was hard to only buy this many. I wouldn't blame you if you thought this was actually a sponsored post but I can assure you it isn't. I went over my winnings and could easily have went crazy buying even more from RC. If you are in the UK and like supporting the indie community then I highly recommend you check out this site. You can even get postage from as little as £1!
This months theme was tutti frutti and the box contained three polishes and two nail items. The first item was a wavy nail file by stylfile that has a furry leopard print side and then the file on the other. Due to having square nails, this file isn't really of any use to me but I can see the benefit of this for someone who has rounded nails. I'm going to gift this to my mum so it gets used. The second nail item was an elegant Touch treatment, this time being a nail growth treatment. I'm making quite the collection of Elegant Touch goods thanks to Nailbox!
Let us move onto the polishes for May's box. First up is this vibrant deep pink by Essie and is called Haute In The Heat. This is a really pretty colour and I just adore the shape of the Essie brushes. They are rounded and allow for perfect application around the cuticle.
This was so pigmented it only took one coat to get the colour shown here. Pink is a close second to purple when it comes to my top choices of polish colour and this one is just amazing. Essie never fails to impress me.
Polish two is my first ever Orly polish and is called Orange Punch. An apt name for a vibrant, slightly neon-esque shade. This once again had so much pigment it only took one coat for full coverage! 
This macro shot isn't a true representation of the colour but it does show you just how opaque it is with one coat. I didn't use any top coat either for these swatches as I like to let you see the true effect of the polish.
Polish three is a favourite of mine as it is a pastel shade. This is Mint condition by Cuccio and I love it. I'm starting to build up a little collection of Cuccio now (I actually just put an amazing glitter polish by them on my toes the other day!) and I'm always happy with the polishes they produce.
As is common with pastel shades, this one was streaky on the first coat but smoothed out perfectly on the second to give this finish you see here. Personally I have no issue with polishes that take two coats of colour as to me that is standard, I'm not so keen when a polish takes three.
