Nubar top coat 2010

I have a bit of a weekness for sparkly, glittery nail polishes and since I have let my nails grow to say I indulged in new polishes is a bit of an understatement.


I first heard about the brand Nubar via youtube nail tutorials and was on a mission to buy some bottles. I managed to track down the Nubar 2010 limited edition top coat on Amazon (for around about £8) and I love the stuff!

So pretty! It is a clear base packed with flecks of glitter, in normal light the the glittery bits just look clear with a hint of colour, but when the right lights catches it is just a rainbow of glittery goodness.


This top coat is great for layering and I discovered about 3 or 4 layers looks amazing, it just creates the most amazing effect. You can just use it on its own, but I think it looks best over the top of another colour. I set about trying different combinations to see how it would look.

3 coats on top of China Glaze Flying Dragon

3 coats on top of Collection 2000 Hot Looks in number 23 Show Off

 

Two coats on top of Barry M 47 Black

Two coats on top of Star Gazer in Neon Pink (number 104)

I love this top coat! I love how it can totally transform any nail polish, in different lighting it just looks incredible. I prefer it over a darker polish, I don't like it as much over the pink neon, I don't think it shows off its sparkles as much. Have you come across Nubar before?

Trial and error

I love my Konad nail art products, but I have only ever stamped with one colour. I saw a great video on youtube by 'sayanythingbr00ke' and thought I would give it a go.

This is a great idea to use several colours on any of the the full nail stamps of Konad.

Here I painted my nails with 2 coats of Snow White by Models Own and waited till my nails were totally dry. 


Then I selected the zebra print from Konad plate M57 and applied 2 colours going in a diagonal direction across the design like so.....

Then scrape in the same direction I applied the nail polish (if you don't the colours will mix and you will certainly end up with a yucky mess!)


I used a blue and red polish for the fingers, then blue, red and green for my thumbs.

Since my nails aren't that long, I stuck with two colours for my fingers, three for my thumbs, but I guess you can use more colours if you are blessed with long talons, just do thinner strips across the plate to fit more colours on. Since the base coat is just white, you can really experiment with different colours to stamp with. I finished off with a top coat of China Glaze non chip top coat. I always apply a top coat over Konad, since the design is such a thin layer of polish it wouldn't last at all without a top coat, it would just peel off.


This is what I used - 
Models Own white nail polish in Snow White
Konad Plate M57
To stamp with I used Konad Special Polish in red and blue, then China glaze in Turned up Turquoise
China Glaze non chip top coat


I love the effect this design has given and will be trying a darker base with some gold and silver paint. Hope you like.

Frontcover to go eye shadow book

Around about October/November time the shelves at Boots are stocked with gift sets and special edition make up and bath sets. With eye catching bright packaging and glitter products galore so many of us are happy to part with our cash to get our hands on some of these products.


After Christmas though comes the sales and often prices are slashed by half (who doesn't love a bargain? I treated my bad self and stocked up!) But then in a final push we can sometimes find goodies at 75% off. This is where my mum bought me a surprise.


Frontcover to go eyeshadow palette were being sold in Boots at 75% off the original price (I later found out was £35). So mum grabbed two, one for her and one for lucky me. 

I was thrilled when I opened it up to discover a whole range of gorgeous colours, 20 to be exact. From lush greens and shimmering silvers and golds to sultry midnight blues and deep plums. I was a little bit excited to crack this bad boy open and see what I had to work with. 

I have taken a swatch from each shade, going across from left to right, so here we go....

Tarn Green, Bright Aqua, Azimuth, Moondust, See The Stars

Silver Dollar, Powder Puff, Frosted Almond, Pale Gold and Copper Coin

From the pressed selection of the eyeshadows - Plovers Egg and Nine Moon (creates a dark green)  Bayou and Midnight (creates a wonderful blue) Peaches N Cream and Holly berry (creamy peachy pink) Limeade and Choc Ice (brownish green) and lastly Magic Banana and Goose Down (a light yellow with a creamy tone)

Finally we have some lovely shimmery shadows with a hint of glitter
Twinkling Grape, Black Spark, Twinkling Gold, then we have Citonella Crush and Ginger Spice.


Wow, what a list and all in one book, I already love the green and blue toned shadows.
Now I know that Frontcover brought out similar eyeshadow books before but lots of people have commented how they hated how bulky the book was and how it was not portable at all. So with this in mind this particular book (as suggest in its name 'Frontcover to go') you can take your favorite 4 colours with you to pop into your bag.

You also get a compact where you can pop out 4 shadows from the main book with a mini info booklet to keep so you know which colours you have taken with you for reference. Also a handy mirror and a mini double ended artificial bristled brush, good for touch ups on the go, a night out, or weekend away. You also get a 'shadow line liquid' which you can mix with any of these shadows to create an eye liner.


Overall I love this book, good range of colours and love the fact that you can create your own compact of colours to take out and about. Going to have a bit of an experiment later and see what looks I can come up with. x

'Relax and go with a smile'

For Christmas my mum bought me some gift vouchers for the Oak Room, a local hair and beauty salon near home. I already knew what kind of treatment I wanted, something relaxing and soothing. With such a long list of massages to choose from I was spoilt for choice, from a Swedish massage and Indian head massage to reiki, hot rocks and reflexology. 


In the end I opted for the aromatherapy full body massage. The price for an hour is £30 but for an extra £5 you can have an hour and a half and also get a facial and scalp massage, so I went for the hour and half.

I have had many massages in the past, but my last one put me off. See I used to do a lot of gymnastics in my teens and now I suffer with an achy lower back. I went to a chiropractor who told me from being so flexible from the gym the ligaments inbetween each vertebrae had stretched and they only thing I could do would be exercises to strengthen the core muscles.


Anyways I had a deep massage at another salon a while ago and it hurt so much and an hour later I was covered in bruises. I couldn't lie on my back to sleep that night. Surely she wasn't meant to break the skin to make it bruise like that?! Needless to say, I have not had another massage at that place since.


This morning I met Clare my masseuse at the Oak Room, she led me to the treatment room which had such a relaxing atmosphere, with crisp white linin blinds, dim lighting and a warm glow coming from the fire. She asked the usual health questions and left me to undress and get under the towels on the (heated) massage table whilst she went to mix the oils.


The massage was definitely the best I have ever had, she applied just enough pressure to feel soothing but to make me think ouch. She massaged each leg, and foot, then worked her way up to my back, shoulders and neck. I felt a few knots which she soon got rid off. I then turned over whilst she held the towel to protect my modesty! She then massaged the front of my legs and then arms. The facial was lovely and the oils felt silky, not greasy, my skins feels so soft now which I love.


Afterwards Clare got me some water and allowed me as much time as I needed to sit up and get dressed. (I sometimes found from other salons if there was a client after me I felt as though I was being rushed to leave) This was this morning and I still feel relaxed, think I will be having a nap this afternoon as I can't be bothered to do anything else!
All in all a wonderful experience and I really want to go back soon to try some more treatments. Have you ever had a massage? What did you think? worth the money? x

Thanks mum for my vouchers :-)

Furry four legged friends

I am definitely a cat lover. 

I begged my parents to let me have a kitten when I was little, they finally gave in after much persuasion and  a little black and white fur ball was brought into our home. I called him soggy (proper name Tom kitten)


He lived to the grand old age of 16 when, he had to be put to sleep. The most horrible decision I have ever had to make, but the vet said it would be kinder as he was so so ill. My whole family was distraught  and it took a long time to grieve. My dear old friend now has a final resting place underneath a nice tree at my parents house.


A while later we got a new kitten, who I named Archie. He is a Maine coon cross and he is not even 6 months old yet. Look how ma-hu-sive he is! Tiny kitten to hefer in no time at all!

 Little kitten.....

massive cat not even 6 months old!!

Archie lives with my parents (I live about ten mins away from them with my fiance) and I swear he gets bigger every time I see him. Pets can bring such joy into our lives and become part of the family. Do you have any pets? 

Nail the habit

I first discovered Konad on blogs and watching nail tutorials, since I hadn't seen anything quite like it in order to create quirky nail art designs, I decided to place an order on Amazon. To begin with I ordered the stamper and scrapper (the short stamper) image plate M57 and a mini special polish in a lovely bright blue.

I fell in love with amazing designs and experimented with a whole host of base coat colours. Then I went on holiday to Florida last summer. In the factory outlets they would have ladies selling Konad in carts. It was so much cheaper over there, so I took full advantaged and stocked up!

I got a kit where i could choose what plates I got and what three special varnishes. I opted for M35, M63 and M65. I chose black, white and red for the special polishes. the kit also included a tall stamper and another scraper. (Am kicking myself for not buying more to be honest!)

Anyways, looking at other people's blogs I know that Konad is not new news and for many the novelty may have worn off. There is a reason why I am still so fond of these kits. 

Up until about three years ago I was a nail biter. I admit it. I had horrible nails, actually wait, I had NO nails. Then I saw a picture of a group of my friends and I toasting and I saw my short stubby nails and was disgusted. It was seeing that picture that made me realize what a horrible habit it is. It was down to willpower that I stopped. I also liked having cute painted nails (something I could only dream about before)

I am constantly expanding my collection of polishes and testing out new designs. 

Here I chose a neon yellow base and stamped with konad black special polish and selected a design from image plate M63.