Lilac and white 'criss-cross' nail art

A very quick one on another Konad.
I used Models Own 'Lilac Dream' for the base coat (2 coats), and then Konad's white special polish for the pattern. I found this one very easy to do and it didn't take long at all, and its just a simple but eyecatching style! My only mistake was on my thumbnails as they are a bit wider than other nails and I didn't stamp close enough, but that will come with practice :) I also found this design made my nails appear longer at a glance which is always a bonus.

Here they are:

My next Konad will be a red and white design (maybe sparkly!) - to go with my christmas dressing up outfit :)

OPI Designer Series 'Extravagance'

Well as you can see from my wishlist, I am after a holographic nail polish - they look amazing! After hunting for the China Glaze collection and having no luck, I purchased the OPI Designer Series polish in Extravagance, which was reviewed to be holographic.

Close up of glitter

Unfortunately, this polish isn't as I had expected, as although there are millions of glitter particles, they dont give the holographic effect that I wanted. The bottle looks beautifully sparkly, but when applied on the nails this sparkle seems to go and I just got a speckled effect on my nails. However, this is a really nice colour and does look pretty. This is my first OPI nail polish, and I was impressed with the formula and the way it went on my nails, and also its staying power! So I'll definitely be buying more, I guess the search will go on for a holographic polish! Any suggestions please comment :)

Avon makeup haul..

Hey there :) 

The other day I recieved an email from Avon including all their recent christmas offers, and one thing that company is good at is using their offers to draw me in! So I went onto their website and ended up adding £30 worth of makeup to my basket, but for that price I got so much!..

Glazewear Lipgloss Gift Set (3 lipglosses) £5

Nailwear Pro Nail Enamel in Peppermint Leaf and Decadence £3 each

Calming Effects Illuminating Foundation £6

SuperMagnify Mascara £4

'Secret Fantasy' Eau de Toilette £6

Nail Experts Cuticle Balm £3

And for buying these I qualified for these offers..

FREE ColorTrend Kajalstick in black with your order

FREE Shimmering Gift Set when you spend £12.50 on selected Fragrance & Makeup (I qualified for two of these!) Which included:

Luxe Lace SuperSHOCK Mascara

Nailwear Pro Nail Enamel in Wicked

Spotlight Moisturising Shimmer Gel 200ml

So overall I think I got a bargain! Go over to Avon now as they have many similar offers on all the time.

I may do some reviews on these products in the future if I find anything particularly good/bad about them, but this was mainly to introduce one of many amazing Avon offers!

Your advice?

Right, I'm having some trouble with my nails at the moment so I wondered if nay of you had any tips? I have just removed my acrylics and they are disgusting, as in white and red patches, weak and brittle, just plain ugly! Do any of you have any remedies of how you look after your nails? Mine are really weak all the time whether acrylics have been on or not, so I would appreciate some help on how to get them stronger and longer :)

Also, do any of you do your own gel nails? I have attempted my own acrylics but most came off within the first week so I have been looking into doing my own gels, any good/bad experiences?

Thanks for reading

Xxx

KILLING TIME WITH A BIT OF NAIL ART..

Well I am waiting until midnight so I can try and purchase my Mac Pink Friday Lipstick - sad I know, but I figured as it was the last sale day they may sell out pretty quickly! So I decided to waste the time with some nail art.

I recently bought my very first Konad set which I have been eyeing up for ages and finally purchased one, so I attempted the leopard print pattern. I have figured the process takes a bit of practice, hence why I couldn't possibly show you the full hand as two nails went a bit wrong.

I used Models Own 'Snow White' as the base (3 coats), and then used Konads red special polish for the print. I then decided to jazz it up a bit by adding little sparkly dots using Models Own 'Juicy Jules'. I am no where near professional at this, but I will be practising over the next few months :) Hope you like them.

Models Own Reviews

Nail Polishes

From left to right: Juicy Jules, Lilac Dream, Golden Peach, Snow White

Keep reading to see swatches.

Juicy Jules: I was really excited to try this one as I had seen it over my friends pink polish and loved it. The formula is packed with different coloured glitter which means extra sparkly nails and perfect for Christmas! I did three coats and most of my nail was full of glitter, however without a colour underneath I don't think the glitter shows up that well. I then tried it with my New York Colour 'Times Square' polish and it looked fab and showed up really well.(This is just 2 coats, 3rd coat adds a lot more glitter).

Tip: If you wipe the brush before applying you get a little sprinkling of glitter, and if you load the brush up you will get alot more glitter and it still won't go clumpy, so you can achieve different looks with this - an absolute must have!

Lilac Dream: This is such a beautiful pastel colour! You get great coverage just after 1 coat, so that is all I really needed. 

Golden Peach: This is a peachy colour with a gold shimmer - so gorgeous! I used 3 coats for this one as it was slightly thinner, but it is really pretty. 

Snow White: This is a white colour with a slight shimmer which is really nice, white is not many common for nails so this may not appeal to you, I just decided I would try something different. I used 3 coats and it came up really nice but I think you could get away with just 2.

Lilac Dream, Snow White, Golden Peach, Juicy Jules

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Please excuse the state of my nails and skin, I have just gone through the gruelling process of removing acrylic tips! Better swatches will be provided of future polishes when they are back to normal condition.

Eyeshadow

After my amazement at the nail polishes, I was slightly disappointed when I got to the powder eyeshadow. When I took the lid off it looked absolutely gorgeous, black powder with purple sparkles, but when I applied it to my eyes it came out as a dark grey colour and the purple sparkles were not visible :( however I've read a lot of reviews about how pigmented their eyeshadows are supposed to be so maybe I just chose the wrong one, I will definitely be trying out more! (SWATCH COMING SOON)

Eyeliner

I personally found the eyeliner really good, and best of all it was free! - yes, at the moment you get a free kohl eyeliner with your order on the website, so get yourself over there quick! Aswell as the eyeliner being good, it also comes with a smudger on the other end and a sharpener on the lid so it's basically 3 in 1! (SWATCH COMING SOON)

Lipsticks

Now I read a few bad reviews about the models own lipstick in 'baby pink', but I loved the colour and decided I needed to try it. I have to agree with the rest, it isn't the most moisturising lipstick and didn't seem to blend in with my lips very well, as you may be able to tell on the picture on the right, but I think it may act as a nice base under another colour. It is very pigmented but looks a bit chalky, but I found if I rubbed it into my lips a bit it toned down slightly, and would probably look better with a bit if lipgloss over the top!

The 'hot pink' lipstick has a different formula as it is really moisturising but still holds it's colour on your lips, I really love this one! It won't be everyones cup of tea as it is quite bright, but I'm a real fan of pink lips so if any of you have any suggestions please comment :)

Is this post too long?

As you know I have only just started the whole blogging thing, so if you have any suggestions about my posts please let me know. It may be that you would find it easier to read in a different layout. Do you like quite a lot in one post or would you prefer if I did a post per product type? Remember I'm here to help you, so send me a message if there's anything you'd like me to change.

Models Own Virgin

Well yes, until the other day I was a Models Own virgin!! A friend's nail varnish caught my eye, so I asked what it was and she began to tell me about the brand 'Models Own'. As soon as I got home I was straight on their website and was amazed at their range of cosmetics and accessories! They have some beautiful and unique colours of nail polish (around 100!) and also over 60 powder eyeshadows. And this is not all; lipsticks, false eyelashes, eyeliner and lots more. Check them out here.

After spending hours browsing this is what I decided to buy:

Nail polishes: Juicy Jules, Snow White, Lilac Dream, Golden Peach

Lipsticks: Baby Pink, Hot Pink

Black Kohl Eyeliner

Powder Eyeshadow in Black and Purple Sparkle

I shall review these as soon as possible :)

Welcome

Hi :) As you can see I'm new to all this beauty blogging, but it is something I've been wanting to do for a while so I hope it becomes successful!

If you have any hints or tips then please contact me and let me know, also if you have any particular products (cosmetics) that you would like me to try and review, just contact me and I'll see what I can do!

My first review will be on some Models Own products, so watch this space! Please remember that all reviews are my own personal opinion.
Thanks guys,

Lauren x