October Favourites

Evenin'

I gave my nails a break and kept on my blue mani for an extra day, so today I have my October favourites for you. I didn't buy an awful lot this month, due to being penniless! So there are just a few bits that I've picked up or rediscovered that I'm loving.

Polish first, of course!

2true Fast Dry Colour Quick Shade 10, 17 Magnetised Green, China Glaze Ruby Pumps, Accessorize Baby Blue

My favourite mani this month (although I didn't like the formula of the base colour)

17 Fast Dry Fury, Stamped with 2True Fast Dry Colour Quick Shade 8, Maybelline Orange Couture and  BM04. Full post here.

Brunette eyebrow pencil by Vital Radiance, Beauty UK Pearl Eyeliner in Eclipse, Garnier BB Cream in Light, Rose and Co Apothecary Rose Petal Salve

I always used to use a matte eyeshadow to fill my eyebrows when I needed it - which wasn't very often - but I saw this eyebrow pencil in Poundland and thought I'd try it. Now I know what a difference it can make to "do" your eyebrows. It makes my whole face look more defined and really frames my eyes.I don't do it everyday, but when I'm doing my "full face" or a strong eye it completes the look.

I now have 5 of Beauty UK's pearl eyeliners and can't recommend them enough. I got Eclipse as an "extra" from a blog sale and love it. It's a very dark slate grey and is great for lining a smokey eye.

I wasn't sure about buying a BB cream from Garnier - at £9.99 it's a lot more than I'd usually pay for foundation or tinted moisturiser, so I sent off for a sample to try it. The first time I used it I used way too much and ended up super shiny and felt like my make-up was sliding around my face all day. The next time I made sure I used it over primer and didn't use as much and it was much better. Somewhere in between a foundation and tinted moisturiser is perfect coverage for me as I have good skin and barely ever get spots, but have a few uneven patches of colouration and freckles. I'm still not sure if I would buy this for a tenner, but it's on offer in Tesco at the moment for £8, or I might try 17's one for £5.99 next time I'm in Boots.

I got the Rose and Co Apothecary Rose Petal Salve in my October Boudoir Prive box and it is fast replacing my Lemony Flutter as my favourite cuticle treatment. It doesn't have the grainy texture of lemony flutter and turns into more of an oil on the skin. I even use this on my lips (I do this with Lemony Flutter too). I wasn't sure if the scent would put me off but it just reminds me of Turkish Delight. I'm not a great fan of Turkish Delight, but it's bearable! And makes my lips feel great. I want to try their Cherry Salve too, but I will wait until I've finished this one and the Lemony Flutter (which I feel is never gonna happen since it's HUGE!)

L'Occitiane Shea Hand Cream Hibiscus Flower, Original Shea, Desert Rose, Kleenex Facial Cleansing Wipes

Last month in Marie Claire they were giving away a L'Occitiane Shea Hand Cream in four different "flavours" (am I the only one who calls scents and varieties of beauty products "flavours"? You wouldn't eat it...). I picked up the original shea butter first, and when I used it almost all up within 2 weeks I picked up two more! Yes, I bought 3 copies of the same magazine...and still haven't read it! I can honestly say that it's the best hand cream I've ever used and my hands and nails have felt so much better, especially now the weather is getting cold - which is tough on my hands. If I don't get a huge bucket of this stuff under the Chrimbo tree I will be buying one in the new year!

I am a facial wipe fan, and these ones from Kleenex are really good. Apparently Kleenex as a company started as a way for women to remove make-up, so their new range is going back to their roots. These wipes are soft and quilted, so they're strong and don't make my skin feel dry and I don't feel like I have to scrub at my eyes to get my mascara off!

So, there are my faves of the month. I am on a self imposed spending ban so Novembers favourites will be things I'm rediscovering and digging out from the stash! The spending ban wont be too hard I think, there are only 2 polishes that I think I want (Barry M's Croc Effect crackle and the green/gold one from the Models Own Beetlejuice collection) but I can hold off on those since I don't have a place for them in my 31 day challenge! And then December will be all about Christmas, so maybe my faves for that month will come from Mr Claus!

What have you been loving this month? I tell you I'm not loving this cold weather! Am avoiding putting the heating on for as long as possible...it's chilly in here I tell you!

Hx

PS This post meant to go up last night, but it seems I neglected to hit "publish". Ooopsie! The 31 day challenge will resume this evening!

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31 Day Challenge day 5 - blue, I think...

Teal. Is it blue or is it green? I can't decide, but I chose some teal-blues for today's manicure, even though Mr NN said it was green I like it so I'm sticking with blue!

I've been enjoying wearing plain colours the last few days but fancied a change so glittered it up a bit. I used 2 coats of Rimmel 60 Seconds Sky High to all but my ring finger and thumb, then topped it with 2 coats of Kleancolor Chunky Holo Teal. For the accent nails I used 3 coats of Wet n Wild Fast Dry Teal of Fortune and topped it all with my beloved Seche. I got the Kleancolor and WnW from an awesome swap with Jasmine at Colour Coated :) Thank you Jasmine! I am going to use another of the polishes she sent for the next days challenge ;)

I'm not taking this off today - it hasn't chipped and I want to give my nails a break from the acetone - they're in okish condition right now but I can see some peeling starting. Also we're going to a fireworks display tomorrow and I think this is appropriate! I bought a new base coat today - Sally Hansen Nail Quench as I think it's lack of moisture more than anything that's causing my peels. Trying to moisturise as often as I can and I think it's helping too.

So anyway, since I'm not doing day 6 yet I'm going to try and get an October faves post up tomorrow :)

So, what do you think, is it green or is it blue?

Hx

PS Be safe if you're heading to fireworks over the weekend!

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31 Day Challenge day 4 - green!

Onto day 4, and it's green nails. I have a few greens in my untrieds and I went for Suzi Takes the Wheel from O.P.I's 2011 fall collection. According to Scrangie it's "a very, very grey light green" and I think it's super pretty. It's warm, which suits me, and has satisfied my craving for Essie Da Bush. This is two coats plus Seche, although it was super shiny on it's own, and there is a little bald patch on my left index finger so I should have done 3 coats. Shhh, I wont tell if you don't....

Do you like it? I am really growing to love murkey shades like this. Give me a dusty purple or a muddy red over a neon anyday :)

I've not got a nail wheel of greens today, I probably only have around 8-10 greens, but I quickly compared Suzi Takes the Wheel to two other similar colours in my collection, Models Own Grace Green and MUA Shade 23. Definitely not dupes, but I also definitely don't need all three!

Off to do my blue nails for tomorrow - it's a sparkly one!

Hx

P.S I won an awesome giveaway, I'm so happy! If you don't follow Spellbinding Nails go and check her out, she's a sweetheart!

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Crackle isn't over just yet...

Bored of crackle? Barry M have released a new "Croc Effect" crackle. You apply it over slightly tacky nail polish rather than completely dry, and it takes about 3 minutes for the effect to appear.

It looks quite good, I wont be rushing out for it, but if I happen to see it in the shops I'm sure it might fall into my basket ;)

Have a peek at the video, see what you think:

http://www.barrym.com/make-up-tutorials/video-tutorial.asp?vid=113

Is crackle over for you or will you give this a try?

My 31 day challenge post will be up this evening!

Hx

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31 Day Challenge day 3 - the dreaded yellow!

I very rarely wear yellow nail polish, and that is for a good reason. It just doesn't suit me. I have done a couple of manicures using yellow as mu base and both time I have been "meh" over them. This is no exception. The yellow I chose is Miss Sporty Taxi, which is a sunny yellow with fine golden shimmer. It's ok, I guess, but there is no other way to describe it other then "meh". I can't stop looking at my nails though, but that's just because I'm trying to decide if I like it or not... Pics show 2 coats, no topcoat.

Are you getting anything other than meh? I left it without topcoat because I was going to add something to jazz it up this morning, but even though it was 2 hours after I painted my nails that I went to bed last night I woke up to sheet marks and bubbling. Not a good look. So it will be coming off tonight and I will replace it with tomorrow's colour - green.

Here are my yellow polishes swatched on a nail wheel - all three of them :D

Rimmel I <3 Lasting Finish Fruities Lemon Drop, Barry M Yellow, Miss Sporty Clubbing Colours Taxi

I think that with my 3 yellows I cover the yellow spectrum quite adequately!

Have you had trouble with yellow?

Hx

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31 day challenge day 2 - orange!

Day 2 on the 31 day challenge is orange nails. I didn't know what to do so I recreated a mani that I did before but didn't get to post about before it chipped beyond repair. I used 2 coats of Collection 2000 281 - one of their old polishes that sometimes comes up in a set on ebay. I got this in a set of three but it was this one I wanted as all my oranges were cremes and this is a shimmer. It's opaque in 2 coats - which is surprising because it looks sheer, but the brush I got is jacked up! I mean, seriously beyond repair screwed! Surprisingly thoough, it didn't give me any application issues! The wide splay of the bristles meant I could cover my nails in one stroke and the only issue I had was with getting the brush back in the bottle without splaying the bristles further. I then sponged Nubar 2010 on the tips for to make it prettyful.

Jacked up brush is jacked up.

I also swatched the rest of my orange/peach/coral polishes onto a nailwheel (don't worry I wont do this with every challenge!) Some of them look pinker than they are in person, but trust me they are orange!

1. Maybelline Forever Stong Orange Couture, 2. Sinful Colors Hazard, 3. Rimmel I <3 Lasting Fix Fruities Apricot Punch

4. Natural Collection Antique Coral, 5. Nails Inc for Instyle Candy Orange, 6. Nails Inc Atomic 

Sorry this one's blurry my camera freaked out. 7. Nails Inc Copacabana, 8. Collection 2000 Hot Looks Fruit Salad, 9. Collection 2000 281

10. Collection 2000 279 (3), 11. COllection 2000 59 (3), 12. Barry M Peach Melba (3)

No dupes I'm happy to report, and the ones that are close have different finishes - creme, shimmer etc. I don't think I need any more orange polish though, especially as I don't wear it very often. The first one I got was the first Maybelline on the wheel and it is my least favourite. The second to last Collection 2000 could have possibly gone on my pink wheel, but as it's peachy pink I'll let it slide. It is very sheer though, best for layering or grannies...

What do you think of orange nails?

Hx

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Let the 31 day challenge begin!

I'm sure you have seen this 31 day nail challeneg floating around the blogosphere recently. I've seen lots of people taking part and it seems like fun so like a good sheep I'm joining in! Jumping firmly on the bandwagon, here I go!

Day 1 is red nails. I have a magnetic polish from FashionistA to show you. FashionistA launched their Magnetism polish range with the girl group The Saturdays and the range includes silver, blue, purple, green and red. Each polish is named after one of The Saturdays (I have no idea which is whose, to be honest I couldn't care less, it's the polish I want!) but since I already have blue, silver, purple and green from 17 and Nails Inc I only went for the red, All Fired Up Red, which apparently is Rochelle's colour (I'll take the press releases word for it...). I didn't go for any of the other colours since all the magnetic polishes from the three brands I have are exactly the same in bottle, brush and formula - so I can only assume they are the same. In any case, the colours are similar enough that you don't need more than one of them (although the mind boggles at the price difference. I'm looking at you, Nails Inc.) FashionistA's Magnetism retails for £6 at Superdrug, making it the middle ground since you buy the magnet separately for £3. I didn't buy a magnet since it's the same design as the 17 and Nails Inc ones I have. BUT the fact that you buy the magnet separately gives me hope that more patterns will be available soon... Anyway, onto the polish!

This is 1 coat of All Fired Up Red with a coat of Seche (which didn't play nice and has shrunk it a little...). As with most metallic polish the finish is a little muted, so if you want shine you'll need topcoat.

Pretty, no? It's a pink/purple toned red, perfect for autumn and winter. I love it and when it comes off my fingers tonight it will be going on my toes instead :)

I thought this would be a good opportunity to show you the red polishes in my collection on a nail wheel, since red and purple drew for first place in the poll I put up a few weeks ago. Here they all are, barring China Glaze Ruby Pumps (swatched on my glitter wheel), W7 Earthquake Red (swatched with my crackles) and FashinistA All Fired Up Red (swatched with my magnetics). All 2 coats unless stated in brackets.

1. Leighton Denny Viva la Diva, 2. Barry M Bright Red, 3. 17 Fast Finish Knockout Red

4. Miss Sporty 150, 5. MUA Shade 6, 6. MeMeMe Pin Up (3)

7. 17 Fast Finish Ruby Dazzle, 8. 17 Lasting Fix Chateau, 9. Natural Collection Raspberry

10. Collection 2000 ?, 11. Barbara Daly Envy (3), 12. Models Own Garnet

13. 2True Fast Dry Colour Quick Shade 8, 14. Nails Inc Tate, 15. Nails Inc Victoria (3)

16. Essie Wicked, 17. Bourghesse Sanguino,18. 2True Crystal Shade 2

A few dupe-y ones there but nothing identical. I'm a wee bit peeved that 15, 16 and 17 are so close though. I know I definitely don't need all three...

Anything there you'd like to see a full swatch or mani? I think red will feature highly in my Christmasy nails!

So, that's the first day of the challenge done! I've added a tab at the top so you can check out the rest of the challenges, or even join in yourself. Let me know if you do!

Hx

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