Better late than never...

It has been ages since I have posted anything on this blog as I have been busy with Christmas and working!

So just a short post to start of the new year, I am postings a photo of this eye make up I wore on new years eve! The products I used were;

* Inglot rainbow shadow 129
* Illamasqua black shadow from neutral palette
* collection 2000 silver glitter liner
* Stargazer silver glitter
* Pixie pen liner In black
* Illamasqua lashes
Hope you all had a lovely Christmas and new years!

Xxx

November Nails - Never too old for a pamper

For today's November Nails I have decided to give my own nails a rest and go and give someone  a bit of a pamper. I had been meaning to go and do my Nanny's nails for a while so yesterday I went down and give her a bit of a pamper by giving her a manicure.

My nanny is a lady in her 80's who has always taken pride in her appearance and still loves getting her hair done and always has kept her nails neat and tidy and why wouldn't she, I sure hope I'm like that at her age. So to start here manicure I gave her nails a file and then applied Skin Truth Cuticle Remover on to her cuticle to soften them and remove any unnecessary skin around that area. Before applying the nail polish I wiped over the nails with nail polish remover just to remove any excess product.

 

Then I applied two coats of Barry M's nail paint in the colour  342 Nude . This is a great natural colour that just gives a healthy colour and shine to the nail. I then applied a coat of Sally Hansen Diamond Shine top coat which made the nails even more glossy looking and added the perfect finishing touch to the nails!

** I will be doin a seperate review on this litlle beauty cus I just love it hat much :) **

Once the nails had dried , I done a mini hand and arm massage with my favourite hand cream, Patisserie De Bin Sugared Violet Hand Cream. I adore this, one of my favourite sweets are Parma Violets and this smells like them. It leave the hands feeling so soft and look glowing. It is a gorgeous hand cream!

** The finished result! My Nanny showing off her nails **

My Nanny loved the end result and spent the day showing her nails off! I enjoyed being able to give her a pamper as it give people such a nice pick me up from the rest of the day! With Christmas coming up, this is a great idea if you want to give some one a special present! Why not treat your loved ones to a pamper?

xxx

November Nails - Christmas Nail Art with Illamasqua

I decided last night that I was definitely starting to feel Christmasy, so I thought why not do my nails with Christmas style nail art ?

I picked Illamasqua's Nail polish in 'Scarab', it is a deep rich brown toned red, as the base colour. I applied 2 coats to get a strong opaque colour.

 

 

 

Then to add a bit of a festive touch to the nails, I used Illamasqua's Precision ink in the colour Alchemy. The applicator made it really easy to apply the product precisely to the nail and the intense gold colour is gorgeous!!!

I then applied Sally Hansen's High shine top coat on top to seal the nail polish and the Precision ink.  I think this is a great way to use the Pecision ink as a multi-purpose product!

I am really pleased with the finished look and will definitely be trying out more looks using my Precision inks!!


xxx

November Nails - Nail art wheel

Today's post for November nails is a recent purchase!! I was in having a look at the make up section in Topshop and on there accessories stand they had various different brush sets and eyelashes, I then spied this little gem! This is a nail art wheel like I have never seen before!! Most of the ones that I have seen have always just been rhinestones or little bows and hearts!

 

 

I love the fact that this one is so on trend with the studs and colours in it! I think it is really funky and was good value at £3.50 as you will get a lot of use out of it! I will definitely be uploading some post with photo's of nail looks that I created with these :)

 

 

xxx

One for the Boys - Nivea for Men Skincare

A while ago it was my other half's birthday, and as one of his pressies, I got him the Nivea for men mini selection tub. This little tub contained ;

* Nivea Energy Shower Gel
* Silver Protect Antiperspirant
* Sensitive Face Wash
*Sensitive Post Shave Balm

I got this from the Christmas gift selection from Superdrug, i think it cost between £4-5.99 ( sorry I cant remember the exact price and its no longer on there website!) I thought this was a good sample selection for hi to try out the products and see if he liked them.

Then more recently he was saying how his skin had gotten really dry and I asked him had he been trying out the skincare... being a typical male he hadn't and it was still sitting int he tub! So I said to him I would get him a moisturiser as the kit didn't contain on and suggested he  tried the products as they would make a difference.

I decided to stick to the Nivea range and got him the Nivea for men sensitive moisturiser. For £6.99 for there full size moisturiser that is 75ml, I thought this was good value as it is alcohol and fragrance free as well as containing pure chamomile which is great for men's skin to sooth irritation from shaving.

The other day I noticed how good his skin was looking and told him how good it looked, and he responded by saying how he had been using the wash, post shave balm and moisturiser! It really did make a difference and made his skin look really fresh, bright and smooth. He only uses it when he shaves and every other day or so to moisturise but you can definitely see how beneficial it is.

I think this Nivea for men range is really good for men who don't use any form of skin care and just want something basic, uncomplicated and that works! I also think these mini sample tubs are an excellent way to try out a few products before trying out the full size product, plus there great for travel :)

xx

November Nails - Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Paint

For today's November nails I have chosen Barry M's Gelly Hi-Shine polish! I have been eyeing up these little beauties for a while , but was unsure whether it was more of a gimmick! Well I can happily tell you that a gimmick it is not. I am now in love with the formulation of the polish. It really is thick like a gel would be but is so easy to apply.

I used 2 coats of this polish to get an opaque look. I adore how smooth the texture is and how glossy it looks and feels. It is very similar to having gel on the nails but without the risk of damaging the nail! It feels very secure on the nail if that makes sense, like it feels like it isn't going to chip or peel easily.

The range of Gelly Hi Shine Nail Paint comes in a range of 9 shades. Mine is the colour Blackberry, although in the photographs it may look slightly navy, it is a dark purple. I will definitely be investing in more of these long lasting durable polishes! Who wouldn't want a gel like polish with out the hassle of the UV lamps and having to go to a salon. Also there is the major discount in price as these fab polishes are only £3.99...How amazing is that!!!

So, if your are looking for a durable nail polish that's gel like, great value and has an extremely high shine finish then Barry M Gelly High Shine Nail paint is for you :)


xxx

Wild About Beauty at House of Fraser

I had heard that House of Fraser were having a launch night for the new make up line Wild About Beauty, Now I don't need to be told twice if there is a make up event... I'm there!!  I was really looking forward to going and seeing this new beauty range and finding a bit more about the products.

It is a core collection made up with beauty products that is paraben free, easy to use make up essentials. The products are very wearable shades that are meant to help enhance women's natural beauty. The make up line is co-founded by Make up Artist Kim Jacob and Louise Redknapp. They have known each other for over 7 years and together have created 'Wild about Beauty'. After having children Louise developed skin pigmentation and Kim's style of make up help Louise regain confidence of a natural look with out it being heavy or complicated make up.

** Sorry about the quality & lighting of photos!! **

The colour range is more on the natural side but still provides you with some colour like a gorgeous purple shade (Heather) and a dark green black (Jody) to give you that darker smokey evening look. The creme eyeshadow's stood out as a favourite for me as the colours are gorgeous and would make a lovely base or all over lid colour for everyday. I got a creme shadow in the colour Edna, it is a stunning shimmery golden brown. I think this will become my everyday go too shadow!!

** The Creme shadow in Edna**

Another piece of the collection that stood out were their Eyeshadow Pencil Duo and the Lip pencil Duo. I think these are great for your make up and handbags! Definitely a must have for anyone who love combination products and like to have things easy to use on the go.

Another thing that I really love about this new make up range is the packaging! For me it is a definite winner as anyone who knows me, knows how much I adore anything purple! And to top it of the extremely pretty detail of the dragon fly and bug that that are embossed onto the products.

** Some products are missing from the display as they were using them on customers! **

I think the price range isn't overly expensive to other high end brands and I would happily pay the price for such good quality products. I will definitely be trying more products from this range as I really liked the look of the skincare, in particular the Botanical skin prep. I love the fact that there products are paraben free as well as them using nourishing and beneficial ingredients in there products.

I think this brand will appeal to everyone as it is more natural products but without being boring! They have the colours as well as the naturals that you would want, and as they say on their website they've made it so it isn't over complicated!

I would definitely recommend going down and having a look at this range. It is available at the House of Fraser in Belfast. You can find your nearest stock list here.

It was really nice getting the opportunity to meet Louise Redknapp. She was really lovely and took the time to get photographs with the people that turned up to see the make up line.

Check out there website Here!!

You can also find the House of Fraser link to there page for Wild About Beauty Here!
xxx