21st May, 2013
Today an amazing package arrived containing lots and lots of nail art foils! After trying nail foils some time ago I was completely in love and decided to get some more. These 27 nail art foils are available at Born Pretty Store!
As you can see there’s tons of different designs and colours available. Gradients, solid colours, holographic designs, multicolor designs and even a leopard print. There’s also smaller and larger jars. I noticed the smaller jars with “shorter” sized nail foils were easier to manage and use. If you’re new to nail foils I recommend these!
It was almost impossible to decide which one I was going to use until I remembered a manicure I saw some time ago, by one of my favourite bloggers, The Sneakerette! (make sure to check out her blog, she’s awesome!)
When I first saw her manicure I was in love and knew I had to recreate it some day. I decided to use a different base colour, the one I used is one of the gorgeous BK Hello Kitty polishes in shade #26. I used a gold coloured foil in shade #8 which is the sixth jar from the top left in the picture above. For the black lines I used my favourite It’s So Easy nail art striper.
I really love how this manicure turned out! If you want to find out how to apply nail art foils make sure to check out my post that features a picture tutorial. Hope you like it! Let me know in the comments what you think. 
19th May, 2013
As promised, today I’m back with part 2 (of 4) of the BK Hello Kitty swatches. Again, I’m also hosting a giveaway to win 3 shades of your choice from this post. I noticed with the previous giveaway that not everyone completed the three mandatory options (FB like, e-mail and 3 colours). Make sure to double check if you have, because if not all 3 mandatory options are completed you won’t be entered!
From left to right: #33, #35, #32, #29, #28, #30, #31, #26, #27, #41.
Anyway let’s take a look at the shades! These are the blues, minty greens and purples. Aren’t they stunning? 
These are without a doubt my favourite set of colours. It just so happens that these are also the most opaque shades. I don’t think I could love these more if I tried!
BK Hello Kitty #33 - First up is this stunning minty green shade. It’s no secret that mint green is my absolute favourite colour. This one is so perfect! Just the right amount of blues and greens mixed together. This was two coats.
BK Hello Kitty #35 - Another lovely minty green. This one leans more towards green but it still has a slight hint of blue. I guess this is closer to the famous Chanel Jade as mint greens go. This was also two coats.
BK Hello Kitty #32 - This is a lovely pale baby blue shade. This is a jelly finish but it was still nice and opaque in three coats. Very squishy! Though you will need a top coat, as with all other shades, for the ultra shiny finish. They all have a subtle gritty finish because of the glow in the dark pigments, but don’t worry as it completely evens out once you add top coat.
BK Hello Kitty #29 - Here’s a lovely turquoise blue. It’s bright and gorgeous! I think you can never go wrong with shades like this. They’re perfect for summer too! Isn’t this the perfect tropical beach shade?! This was two coats.
BK Hello Kitty #28 – This blue is slightly more muted compared to the previous and less green. I noticed a tiny bit of VNL when I was processing the pictures but it wasn’t as visible in person. I used two thin coats but in hindsight I could have added a third.
BK Hello Kitty #30 - This is an awesome bright blue. It’s slightly darker in person than in my pictures though it obviously depends on lighting. This was also two coats.
BK Hello Kitty #31 - Now this blue is a little harder to describe. Peacock teal blue? It’s definitely unique that’s for sure. It’s such an interesting shade. I really love this one! It had a jelly finish but I found the coverage pretty decent after two thicker or three thin coats.
BK Hello Kitty #26 - This is a lovely pale purple that slightly leans towards blue. Isn’t this gorgeous? It’s similar to American Apparel L’Esprit which I featured in a nail art not too long ago. I’m not a huge fan of purple but I can never resist to shades like this! I used two coats.
BK Hello Kitty #27 - A slightly different pale purple as it’s a lot warmer. Equally stunning though! This was also two coats.
BK Hello Kitty #41 - And finally this “odd one out” in the post, a shimmery gold. It’s a little sheer so it might work better for gradients or layering on top of other shades. It’s super pretty though! I used three coats but there’s still some VNL.
From left to right: #33, #35, #32, #29, #28, #30, #31, #26, #27, #41.
And finally how the shades look when they glow in the dark. Shades #32 and #41 seem to have a slightly brighter glow than the others. As with the pink shades, these BK Hello Kitty polishes have an amazing formula. They glide on like buttah, they’re opaque, they smell really nice and the bottles are adorable. What more could you ask for?
Below you can enter my giveaway to win three polishes of your choice from this post! Make sure to complete all 3 mandatory entries to be entered, after which you can unlock more chances of winning. Also, my giveaway for the pink shades is still open if you’d like to enter that too. 
If you want to get your hands on these polishes anyway, head over to the Born Pretty Store website where you can purchase these for $4.99 a piece (grab them while you can!).
P.s. It’s so hard to pick just three but I’d go for #33, #31 and #26.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
18th May, 2013
Today I’m back with another awesome set by The New Black. As you know by now, they have great nail art kits and ombre kits, but they also have duos! These polishes are from the Subculture line where you can find really nice 2-piece sets. The one I was able to get my hands on is called Electric Daisy and features an orange and purple shade.
This is my swatch of the orange shade from The New Black Electric Daisy set. Sadly the shades don’t have names. It’s a lovely warm coral orange with subtle shimmer. You can’t really see the shimmer on my nails but if you look closely at the bottle you can see some hidden shimmer. On the nails I found the shimmer pretty hard to notice though sadly, but the colour is gorgeous! This was two coats.
And this is the amazing deep purple shimmer. Isn’t this colour stunning? I could stare at this swatch forever! It’s a little warmer and less blueish in person. It also covered very well in just two coats and application was a dream.
Here’s a nail art manicure I created using the two The New Black polishes! I went for a negative space manicure which is one of my new favourite looks. It’s a little tricky to do but if you don’t use a base coat you can easily sharpen up your lines with a brush. I hope you like it!
Make sure to check out the other duo sets by The New Black on their website. You can find the Electric Daisy 2-piece for €13.95 at The New Black’s website. The quality of the nail lacquers is absolutely amazing! They’re a dream to apply and I’ve found them to be incredibly long lasting so I can truly recommend them. Have you tried The New Black yet?
14th May, 2013
Today I have a review on two lovely products from Bobbi Brown. This was my first experience with the brand! I’ve heard so much about Bobbi Brown so I was really excited to try out some of their products. I got the chance to try the Bobbi Brown Brighten and Correct Eye Duo, available in a set at QVC. Let’s take a look at the items that come in the set!
Left is the Bobbi Brown Mini Hydrating Eyecream, you get 3ml in this jar which is a nice amount. Right is the Bobbi Brown Tinted Eye Brightener which holds 6ml.
The Bobbi Brown Hydrating Eye Cream serves as a base for concealers and hydrates your eyes. You apply it underneath your eyes and around the eye area by gently patting it across your skin. I have to say it feels absolutely wonderful on my eyes! It absorbs really easily into the skin, and your eyes and skin feel really smooth after applying it. I noticed a big difference in my concealer application after using this eye cream, it makes your application much smoother and even. Love this!
The Bobbi Brown Tinted Eye Brightener comes in a tube with wand applicator. The shade I received is Light Bisque which was a good match to my skintone. This Tinted Eye Brightener does what it says on the packaging. It’s basically like a tinted moisturizer for the eyes, so you can expect a light coverage and an overall brightened effect. I have to say this is an amazing product if you have dry skin like me. It doesn’t highlight dry patches or accentuates fine lines at all. A problem which I almost always encounter with regular concealer products.
Here’s a little demo of the Bobbi Brown products. On the left I’ve applied the Eye Cream and Tinted Eye Brightener and on the right I’ve applied no products. On the bottom picture I’ve blended out the Bobbi Brown Tinted Eye Brightener. As you can see the effect is subtle but it definitely makes your eyes look a little more awake! You can also layer it up over your usual concealer if you need more coverage. I’d personally want a little more coverage but this product definitely does what it promises. I am not a huge fan of the scent but that’s about the only downside I could think of.
I have to say I was really pleasantly surprised by these Bobbi Brown products. I’m definitely keen to try more of their products. You can find this Bobbi Brown set at QVC for £19.50, which is an amazing deal! Make sure to check out the other beauty products at QVC. What are your thoughts on these products? Are you a fan of Bobbi Brown? Any products you’d recommend me? Let me know in the comments!
12th May, 2013
A few days ago I shared a picture on Facebook of the BK Hello Kitty nail polishes that are available at Born Pretty Store. I also hinted that I might be holding a giveaway for these polishes! At the bottom of this post you’ll find a Rafflecopter widget where you can pick three shades of your choice and get a chance to win them! First let’s take a look at the colours.
From left to right: #01, #02, #03, #04, #39, #16, #17, #18, #19, #21
There are 41 shades of the BK Hello Kitty Nail polishes in total, first up are these 10 colours. As you can see they are the pink shades! Since it’s Hello Kitty after all I decided to post these up first. Over the next few weekends I’ll post up the other shades along with more giveaways.
BK Hello Kitty #01 - As you can see this is a lovely white nail polish. It’s great to use underneath sheer colours or neons, or for french manicures or nail art. It covered extremely well in only two coats. It’s my new favourite white polish! There’s something so pristine and lovely about solid white nails I think.
BK Hello Kitty #02 – This shade is a very sheer pink. You can use it for french manicures as I did above (I used #01 for the free edge) or simply use it for layering over other polishes. As it’s the brightest glowing nail polish this works great as a simple glow in the dark top coat as it’s pretty sheer and doesn’t give too much colour. Pictured above is three coats.
BK Hello Kitty #03 – This is a super cute pale pink. I really love this! It reminds me of OPI Soft Shades collections. I think it looks really beautiful and dreamy. It’s a little sheer but it wasn’t streaky and it applied very nicely. This was three coats.
BK Hello Kitty #04 – Another lovely cute pale pink. This is slightly darker than the previous one but application was very similar. These really glide on like butter! This was three coats.
BK Hello Kitty #39 – This is a slightly different one as it has really beautiful shimmer. You could use this as a top coat to add some shimmer to your manicure. Isn’t it pretty?! On its own it’s a little sheer as I used four thin coats.
BK Hello Kitty #16 – This is a stunning hot neon pink! It’s funny because I didn’t expect it to be so bright as it looks much darker in the bottle. I used only two coats and that gave me completely opaque coverage. Love this one! It’s awesome.
BK Hello Kitty #17 – This is a pretty blueish pink jelly. This shade is great if you have a reddish undertone in your skin. I used three coats but there’s still some VNL as it’s a jelly.
BK Hello Kitty #18 – This is another awesome neon pink. Quite similar to shade #16 but this one is slightly darker. It also needed an extra coat for complete coverage, 3 coats.
BK Hello Kitty #19 – This is another bright neon pink with jelly finish. It’s more of a true neon so the sheer finish is normal. I’d personally layer this over #01 for extra brightness! I used three coats.
BK Hello Kitty #21 – Finally this lovely dark red with blue shimmer. The shimmer is absolutely stunning! It’s a really gorgeous shade and application was a dream. I used two coats. Sadly this doesn’t glow as strongly as the others (as you can see in the picture below) but maybe that’s because I didn’t shake up my bottle properly. It’s still a gorgeous polish regardless!
I have to say these BK Hello Kitty polishes are my absolute favourite nail polishes from Born Pretty Store! They glide on like butter, they cover nicely, they don’t have a strong smell (in fact they smell surprisingly good!) and they are glow in the dark! What more could you want? The cute bottles are just a bonus!
These are all shades on swatchicles, the image below is what they look like glowing in the dark! From left to right: #01, #02, #03, #04, #39, #16, #17, #18, #19, #21
As promised I have a giveaway for you! You can win three BK Hello Kitty nail polishes from this post. Feel free to enter if you have daughters, sisters or cousins you want to gift these to, or if you just want to keep them for yourself. To enter simply like my Facebook page, leave your e-mail address so I can contact you and pick your three favourite shades from this post. Make sure to do all three mandatory options to unlock more chances of winning.
My top picks? I’d go for #01, #16 and #03 or #21.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
10th May, 2013
Today I’m back with another one of the signature ombre sets by The New Black. This time one of their Advanced Ombre sets, last time I featured one of the Original Ombre set in the shade waves. The Advanced Ombre sets are a little different and less obvious gradients. They are still gorgeous nonetheless! Let’s take a look.
This is the Cloudy Ballet Advanced Ombre set by The New Black. It comes with five shades that go from light to dark and features different finishes. You’ll find a creme, shimmers, pearls and even a glitter! The other set that is part of the Advanced Ombre range features greyish blue shades and is called Stormy Vapor.
These are the five shades that come in the Cloudy Ballet set. As always they hold 4ml and are 3-free and cruelty free. I say this again and again, but I do wish they held more product. The main reason being that the formula is so amazing! The New Black promises longwearing and chip-resistant polishes and it’s no lie. I’ve personally had some of the best experiences with the formula. Chip-free nails for over 5 days. That is pretty damn amazing, right?!
Here are all five shades on the nails. As you can see, not an obvious ombre but it’s still a gorgeous effect. I especially love the glitter shade in the middle. Here’s my thoughts on each shade:
- Thumb: This is the darkest shade from the set. It’s a lovely pearly mauve/burgundy with silver shimmer. It’s hard to describe. It’s not a shade I would typically wear but it looks really lovely on the nails! I used two coats.
- Index: This shade is a soft coral toned pink with silver specks and shimmer. I used three coats.
- Middle: As you can see this is an awesome pink glitter! It’s absolutely wonderful! I love this glitter. You can use it for gradients, layering, or on its own. I used three coats to get an opaque coverage.
- Ring: This is a stunning nude creme. I am a sucker for cremes so this is without a doubt my favourite shade from the set. It’s the perfect pale coral-y nude. This had flawless coverage, I could have gotten away with one coat but I used two. Just in case.
- Pink: This is a pale pink with pearly finish. I won’t lie, “pink with pearl finish” makes me not even want to look, but this shade is really well done. It has soft brush strokes but isn’t streaky at all, and I actually think it looks kind of cute. Or am I just losing it? This was three coats.
That concludes my review on another lovely set by The New Black. You can find the Cloudy Ballet Advanced Ombre set for €29.95 online at the-new-black.com. The price may be a little steep for some but you are getting a very high-quality formula and multiple shades, so I think they are definitely worth it! Make sure to check out the site because they have some absolutely awesome sets.
8th May, 2013
Today I bring you a review on a set of wonderful make-up brushes by a new and emerging UK brand called Nanshy. Nanshy make-up brushes are currently only available online at beautystore4u.co.uk. An awesome site that offers free UK delivery (and very cheap international delivery!) and stocks brands such as Real Techniques, Coastal Scents, Sigma, BH cosmetics and more.
Great make-up brushes are always a good investment. If you treat them with care they will last you a lifetime! They can also make a huge difference to your make-up application. This set of Nanshy brushes features five high quality, synthetic (cruelty free!) brushes that will guarantee a flawless application!
The first thing that I noticed about these brushes is that they are soft. So incredibly soft! Seriously! They’re the type you just want to keep stroking your face with because they feel so wonderful. They are also really dense. The Nanshy face brushes are a nice length and weight too. They feel nice in your hands and I really love the white wooden handles. They just look gorgeous!
I was also lucky enough to try out the Nanshy StandUp Brush Holder. It’s a durable black case with plastic buckles on the side. I’ll be honest and admit that I wasn’t completely sold on this case. It’s a little bulky and I didn’t find it very practical. I couldn’t find a way to secure it at the highest length (pictured left) so it might get squished down (pictured right) in your bags while traveling. It does hold a lot of brushes so it might be more useful for storage rather than on-the-move. But let’s be honest, it’s not the most elegant storage solution.
Now on to the brushes! Pictured from left to right you’ll find the following brushes in this set:
- Nanshy Round Buffer Brush: This is a lovely buffer brush. I absolutely loved using this to buff in my foundation and create a nice blended finish.
- Nanshy Flat Top Buffer Brush: This brush is great for applying liquid foundation. It’s super dense and it will make sure your make-up goes on flawlessly. It works with liquid, cream or even powders. Flat top buffer brushes are honestly a staple in your kit!
- Nanshy Pointed Brush: This is probably my favourite brush from the set! It’s a pointed foundation brush but it works amazingly for applying concealer. The pointed tip really manages to reach all the creases and corners of your face. I love this one!
- Nanshy Flat Angled Buffer Brush: This one is quite similar to the flat top buffer brush, only angled.
- Nanshy Angled Buffer Brush: This one is perfect for blush application or bronzer.
I have to say I really loved these brushes! They are soft, dense and everything you want from face brushes. The only negative I can think of is that you may not need all five of these as they are a little similar. But you’re getting a great deal by saving money and getting the set rather than the individual brushes.
You can find this set of Nanshy face brushes at Beautystore4u.co.uk for £34.95 and the Nanshy StandUp Brush Roll for £14.95. Not the cheapest set around but the brushes are awesome quality. I highly recommend them, they are definitely worth checking out. I’m also very excited to see Nanshy release some eye brushes. Definitely a brand I’m going to keep an eye on from now on! Have you heard about Nanshy before? Let me know in the comments!
5th May, 2013
Today I’m back with another awesome The New Black set. This time one of their duos of the Super Swagger line. The Super Swagger duos are two polishes, one has a matte finish, and the other has a shiny finish. This obviously leans itself towards awesome nail art!
The New Black Super Swagger set I got is the red set called Claret Cream Shine. The other two sets are a black set called Ink Cream Shine and a blue set called Indigo Cream Shine. All three sets feature a lighter colour and a darker colour. The Claret Cream Shine set features a brilliant bright red (shiny) and a stunning deep burgundy red (matte).
It took me a while before I knew what type of nail art I wanted to create with this set. In the end I settled for a chevron manicure using nail art brushes. I sadly didn’t use tape so my lines aren’t perfect. I’m much too impatient for tape manis and I find cutting stationary tape such a hassle.
I still really enjoyed how this manicure turned out! The two shades work beautifully together and create a nice contrast in both colour and finish. The matte nail polish is absolutely flawless. Make sure to check out the bonus swatch of the matte shade after the jump!
You can find the Super Swagger Claret Cream Shine set for €13.95 on The New Blacks website. Once again I can’t praise the formula of The New Black enough! The polishes glide on like butter and have flawless coverage. It’s such a shame they’re only 4ml a bottle. The New Black currently only sells nail art sets (which are awesome!) but I personally would be very excited if they brought out a range of full-size polishes. What do you think? Let me know in the comments!
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3rd May, 2013
Today I have a review on a make-up palette by one of my all time favourite brands, Sleek MakeUP. It’s an affordable UK drugstore brand that is all about amazing pigmentation and intense colour. They are hands down the best make-up brand I’ve tried when it comes to eyeshadow pigmentation. Nothing beats them, especially for the price!
This is one of their limited edition i-Divine eyeshadow palettes, the Sleek MakeUP Sparkle 2 palette. It was launched for Christmas 2012 but you can still grab it at the awesome online cosmetics store, Licila.si. Make sure to check out their site as they have many other Sleek palettes and Sleek MakeUP products available! (I am totally eyeing up the pout paints and the new Showstoppers palette! )
These are the 12 shades that come in the Sleek MakeUP Sparkle 2 palette. From left to right: Chocolate Penny, Blue Spruce, Mulled Wine, Truffle, Mistletoe, Illusion, Festive, Gold Ribbon, Glitz & Glamour, Tinsel, Twinkle and Starry Night. All shades contain a lovely fine shimmer. It’s definitely a very festive palette!
These are all twelve shades up close. As you can see it’s a nice mix of shades. They’re all quite vampy shades, perfect for sultry smokey eye looks. Though you can definitely create a wearable everyday make-up look with it as well using the browns and grays. I love that there’s a very broad mix of shades but they still work really well together.
These are the swatches which I’ve made on my arm over an eyeshadow base. How crazy pigmented are these? I was honestly blown away. I think out of all my Sleek MakeUP palettes this is by far the most pigmented palette I own! Especially the top left shade, Chocolate Penny, is so intensely pigmented I was honestly gasping out of amazement.
Finally here’s the eyeshadow look I created using the Sleek MakeUP Sparkle 2 palette. I used Chocolate Penny across the inner half of the lid and blended Mulled Wine and Starry Night in the crease. I think this came out as a fairly wearable look but it’s still intense and smokey.
You can find this awesome Sleek MakeUP palette at Licila.si, as well as many other great Sleek Palettes. They’re €11.95 a piece which is a great price for 12 high-quality intense pigmented eyeshadows. If you’re not from Slovenia you can easily navigate the Licila.si site using Google Translate. Are you a fan of Sleek MakeUP like me? Which of their palettes (or other products) do you own? Any recommendations? Let me know in the comments!
1st May, 2013
Nail foils is something I’ve been dying to try for probably months, probably even over a year! I never got around to it because I couldn’t find it locally or shipping was too expensive. Recently KKCenterHK added some beautiful foils to their range so I finally got around to trying them. Yay!
This is the nail foil I picked out. A beautiful gradient foil that goes from green to blue to pink, and it also has a subtle geometric reflective design to it. It comes in a handy jar, and the foil is 150cm in length (59 inches) so you’re getting a lot! You can either choose to purchase the foil alone or you can purchase it with a bottle of foil glue. The foil glue comes in a fairly large bottle and as you only need a tiny amount, it should last you a pretty long time.
Here’s how the application process works:
- Add a base colour to your nails, I used China Glaze First Mate.
- Cover your entire nail (or the area you want to cover) with a very thin layer of foil glue. Wait for it to fully dry and become clear. I am not sure what type of glue the foil adhesive is, as it doesn’t act like Elmer’s glue (but it does look like it!). In any case it’s a super tacky glue!
- Carefully place a piece of foil you’ve cut out on your nail. You can use tweezers for this, make sure to handle the foil with care as it’s very delicate.
- Take a cotton round and rub across your entire nail to make sure the foil adheres properly to the nail. You’ll notice it will start to peel away by itself once the foil has transferred.
- Carefully add a slow drying top coat or a water-based top coat to minimize crackling. Quick drying top coat completely ruins the design and makes it wrinkle up like a crackle polish.
And this is the finished result! I wish it looked even a little close to how it looks in person but it doesn’t come anywhere near. I’ve never had this much trouble trying to accurately capture a manicure! The foils are so bright and reflective. You honestly have to see it on your nails to appreciate the full effect! It’s simply mesmerizing! I’m also in love with this gradient.
I do have to say, application can be a little tricky. It’s hard to cover your entire nail without leaving some bald spots. Top coat also tends to make the foils crackle which is a little frustrating so make sure to use a slow drying top coat. I used a water-based top coat and that worked reasonably well. I did notice the foils are very prone to wear. Maybe it’s the glue? I couldn’t get my manicure to last one day without tip wear which was a little disappointing. The nail foils give an absolutely unique and wonderful effect but it has its downsides.
You can find this stunning nail foil (and many other designs and shades!) at KKCenterHK for $7.69 (not including glue). So what are your thoughts on nail foils? Have you tried them? What was your experience? Let me know in the comments!
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