Manicure Monday: Colourful Gradient Nails

Colourful Gradient

I haven't had much time to play around with my own nails recently,so for today's post here are the nails I did on my friend.

The photo doesn't really show the manicure off, it looks much nicer in person.

As always I started off with a base coat on all nails.

On the pointer and pinky fingers I painted the whole nail with a pale blue then sponged a layer of purple over two thirds of the nail concentrating the colour intensity at the free edge of the nail. Once this was dry I sponged a purply pink colour onto the tip of the nail.

On the middle finger I painted the entire nail a bright pink colour then sponged an orange onto two thirds of the nail, again focusing the intensity of colour on the free edge of the nail. I then sponged a yellow polish onto the tip. This gradient was the least obvious and great for a more subtle look.

On the ring finger I painted the entire nail yellow then sponged a fluorescent green nail polish over two thirds of the nail focusing the intensity of colour on the free edge of the nail. I then sponged the same blue I had used for the base colour of the pointer and pinky fingers on the very tip of the ring finger nail, because of the green underneath it gives it a minty green look.

I then painted all the nails with a clear glittery polish and a top coat to seal it all in.

New schedule

For the past little while I have been posting everyday, but I found this a little hard time wise and also idea wise so I have decided on a new schedule.

Schedule.

Monday will be the obvious Manicure Monday which will be posts about manicures, maybe nail polish reviews. Basically all things nail related.

Wednesday will be mainly reviews and anything that I think doesn't fit in with Monday or Friday's themes.

Friday will now be Face of the Day, which will be all about makeup. There may be mini reviews on the makeup I have used in a look or just tutorials.

Hopefully I can keep up with this schedule.

What have I done?

Fringe

Yesterday I was browsing Pinterest and came across a pin about cutting your own fringe. This inspired me and I decided I wanted my fringe back, if you look here you can see I have had a fringe before. My fringe had grown out to just longer than my mouth.

Cutting my fringe meant I cut off most of the highlights in my fringe but I'm okay with the colour of it.

I've never really been sure if I like myself with a fringe, so why did I do it again? Why not? I usually have my hair in a ponytail pinned out of the way anyway. Its nice to have a fringe for something a little different.

I probably shouldn't have done it myself because it's not exactly straight, but I don't think that it's obvious.

I've never really been overly attached to my hair, probably because my hair grows quite fast. Hair grows back so nothing is ever permanent, so why not experiment. That't my philosophy anyway and why I ended up with pink and blue hair last year.

Mr. Men Manicure

Naked Nails and Orly White Out

I was wearing my Mr. Happy T-shirt the other day and I thought it would make a great, easy manicure. Turns out it is a great idea but not so easy.

I started with a base coat and then painted all my nails white using Orly's White Out.

Mr. Men Manicure

This is where the hard part started. I painted all of the characters using acrylic paint. It was very difficult to mix the exact colours and the colour is definitely off on Mr. Skinny on my pinky finger.

I painted on each characters shape and then outlined in black and added eyes mouth and hands.

The hands where very difficult to do and they didn't turn out how I had hoped.

Because the design was a lot harder than I thought, I decided to cheat on my right hand and just right Mr. Men which is still quite hard to do with your left hand.



Overall I am happy with how they ended up. Close up there are obviously mistakes, but I think you can still tell what I was aiming for and practice makes perfect.

 

Mr. Men Manicure

Mini Skincare Haul and First Impressions

I bought two new skin care items yesterday and I thought I would haul them and let you know what my first impressions are. There will most likely be full reviews in a month or so.

I bought Skinfood New Zealand Cleans all which is a cream cleanser that removes makeup and is safe on the eyes. It is a natural based product with aloe and manuka honey. I love manuka honey on my skin and this is what drew me to it.

It has a essential oil smell to it but it is not a strong smell as though it is just the smell of the ingredients not an added fragrance.

I have used this to remove my makeup and it did a good job although it did struggle a bit with removing my waterproof mascara.

It is a cream product and left my skin feeling clean but not stripped dry.

You can rinse it off your face with water or wipe it off with a cotton pad.

So far I am liking this product.

I also bought Nivea Visage Shine Control Mattifying Gel Cream. This is a moisturiser. I bought this because I have never seen a gel cream before and have never tried a shine control moisturiser.

This has quite a strong smell, which puts me off a little bit because fragrances sometimes break me out, but I'm giving it a go.

It says on the packaging that it has UVA filters but there is no specific SPF on the product. This doesn't bother me much because my makeup that I wear on top generally has an SPF in it.

I have only used this once but it felt very moisturising on my skin and my skin was left feeling soft after the product was absorbed. I wouldn't say it made my face completely matte but it was definately less shiny than when I use my Neutrogena Oil Free Moisturiser.

Skinfood New Zealand Cleans All and Nivea Visage Shine Control Mattifying Gel Cream

So far I am happy with both products and I will update in a month or so how they went for me.

Rimmel Glam'Eyes Mono Eyeshadow in Dusk Review

Today I am reviewing the Rimmel London Glam'eyes Mono Eyeshadow in the colour 033 Dusk. I use this mainly as a brow powder.
You get 2.4 grams of product in this eyeshadow and it also comes with a sponge applicator which is actually not that bad. It has a thin end and a fat end, if I am in a rush I occasionally use the thin end to fill in my brows.

Before and After Natural Brow

In the top photo, the left brow has been filled in and the right has not. I think it gives quite a natural not over drawn look. Most of the time I set my brows with the LA Colors Clear Mascara and my eyebrows last all day. Even when I use the eyeshadow alone I have no issues with my brows disappearing through out the day.

In the second photo is my Rimmel Eyeshadow in Dusk and the angled brush I use to fill in my brows. I have been using this powder almost every day for at least a year, if not longer, and as you can see, I have barely made a dent in it.

033 Dusk Swatch

On the right is a swatch of the eyeshadow on my hand.

It is quite pigmented.

Dusk on the lids

On the left is the eyeshadow on my eyes. I have applied the  shadow on my lid then blended it into the crease in a winged shape. I have also applied a little under the eye, then liner, mascara and inner corner highlight.

This is an easy way to do a daytime smokey eye. It adds definition to your eyes without making it look like you tried too hard.

This is a great versatile eyeshadow. It can be used all over the lid, just around the lash line or in the crease and best of all because it is matte it can be used as a brow powder. I find it good as a brow powder because I can build up the colour, keeping them more natural for the day time or darkening my brows for a more dramatic eye look.

Tag: Would You Rather Beauty Edition

I've seen this tag floating around the internet, so I thought I would give it a go.

If you haven't done it yet give it a try.

1. Would you rather lose all of your mascaras, eyeliners, lipsticks, and lipglosses or lose all of your palettes and eyeshadows?
Most definitely palettes and eyeshadows. There is nothing wrong with a basic eye and bright lip. And you can always use liners as cream shadows.
2. Would you rather chop off all your hair or never be able to cut it again?
This is an easy one for me, I only cut my hair once every 6 to 12 months so I am no stranger to dry, split ends. I would never cut my hair again.
3. Would you rather have a coral cheek or a pink cheek?
I think Coral because it goes with more things but I wear both.
4. If you had $1000 to spend, would you rather buy clothes or makeup?
If I had $1000 I would spend it on a mixture of both among other things, but choosing just one it would be makeup. Even though I don't need another $1000 worth of makeup and I really could do with new clothes.
5. Would you rather apply lipstick as eyeliner, or eyeliner as lipstick?
Eyeliner as lipstick because there is no way lipstick would stay on my eye and eyeliners come in so many colours i'm sure i'd be able to find one that would suit as a lipstick.
6. Would you rather only shop at MAC or Sephora?
I have never shopped at either and have never owned any MAC products. I'm not exactly sure what Sephora is but I think they sell more brands, so I'm choosing Sephora so I have more options.
7. Would you rather only use one eyeshadow color or one lip color for the rest of your life?
One lip colour. A pinky, nude lip goes with everything.
8. Would you rather wear winter clothes in summer or summer clothes in winter?
I'm going with summer clothes in winter, because I live in New Zealand, specifically Hamilton where it never snows, so I'm not going to get hypothermia in my shorts and t shirt. But I would overheat wearing jeans and a jumper in the summer. Plus I can always layer my summer clothes if it gets really cold.
9. Would you rather have dark nails or bright nails all year round?
Always going to be bright.
10. Would you rather give up your favorite lip product or your favorite eye product?
Lip product. I quite like my lips so I wouldn't mine just putting on a balm but I feel my eyes need more products to make them pop.
11. Would you rather only be able to wear your hair in a ponytail or a messy bun?
Now this depends, if doing a messy bun is second nature to me then I would choose the bun because I think it looks more done but purely because I suck at hair, I have to choose a ponytail because it's what I do most days and its easy.
12. Would your rather never be able to paint your nails again or never use lipgloss?
If you know me then you know that I love nail polish. Between my nails and lipgloss its obviously nails. 
13. Would you rather shave your eyebrows and have none at all or sharpie them in everyday?
I have to say sharpie them in. Although a black sharpie would look stupid with my pale skin and light hair, perhaps I could dye my hair dark or find a lighter sharpie? Also using the sharpie everyday you would pick up tricks to make them look more natural. Maybe if you have a really fine sharpie, you could draw them inn hair by hair.
14. Would you rather live without makeup or nail polish?
This is the hardest one for me because I loooooove nail polish. If I'm allowed to tint my brows and lashes, I could give up the make up. I would have to give up the makeup because I cannot give up nail polish although it would suck for special occasions.

Revlon ColorStay Before and After

I just wanted to update with a before and after photo  for the Revlon ColorStay foundation.

In the first photo I am wearing nothing but moisturiser.
In the second photo I am wearing Revlon ColorStay foundation in 150 Buff applied with a Real Techniques buffing Brush. You can see it has covered all the redness in my skin.
The third photo is my Revlon ColorStay and Buffing Brush.
The final photo is my completed makeup. I have not used any concealer only contour, blush. highlight and my Maybelline Dream Matte Powder.

Before and After

Check out my full review here.

Inexpensive, Easy, Silver Eye

I wanted to have a play with makeup today but I already had my basic day makeup on. Just face makeup, mascara and eyebrows. So I thought I thought I would have a play with eyes.

I wanted to give silver makeup a go because I have never really worn a silver eye before. Looking through my collection I noticed my only silver makeup was from quite inexpensive brands, so I decided I would try to make an inexpensive eye look.

What I did
I started with my Jordana Quickliner in 05 Silver Lining and put this all over my lid and under eye blending out the edges with a cotton bud.
I then applied LA Colors Shimmering Loose Eyeshadow in SE11 Snow White everywhere I had applied the silver liner and blending the remaining product on my brush up to my eyebrow as a highlight. This worked well because it is a sheer white shimmery shadow that looks silver over the liner and just acts as a highlight over bare skin.
Next I lined my tightline and waterline with LA Colors Eyeliner Pencil in P602 Brown-Black, then also lined my upper and lower lash line before smudging the liner into a winged shape with a cotton bud.
I then applied more of the Snow White shadow over the liner to blend it all together.
I then reapplied my current mascara, Revlon Growluscious.

The Cost
Jordana Quickliner in 05 Silver Lining - around $2. I bought mine from a $2 shop but you could replace this with any silver liner.
LA Colors Shimmering Loose Eyeshadow in SE11 Snow White - $5 from The Warehouse
LA Colors Eyeliner Pencil in P602 Brown-Black - $5 from The Warehouse
Total Cost Only $12!!!

Silver Eyes

I thought this eye look would be good to keep in mind for times when you are caught with out your full makeup collection. Perhaps you are staying with someone and have only brought face makeup and mascara. This is really quick and easy and looks great with just lip gloss or a glossy lip balm.

Rimmel BB Cream Review

I have been on the look out for a cheaper, everyday alternative to my Revlon Colourstay Foundation for quite awhile and when Rimmel released its BB Cream here in New Zealand I new I had to give it a try. I have always been impressed with all the Rimmel products I have tried and the price is great.

I bought mine from The Warehouse for around $18 in a buy one get one half price sale, I also picked up the Hide the Blemish concealer for half price.

I believe there are 2 colours, light and medim. I chose light and the colour is maybe half a shade too dark but this works well for me because my chest is darker than my face and neck, so I just make sure to blend the BB Cream down my neck. If you are any lighter than me you will probably find this too dark.
It claims to be a 9 in 1 product. Primes, moisturises, minimises pores, conceals, covers, smoothes, mattifies, brightens and helps protect. I shall address each claim.

Primes - For me there are two types of primers, those that moisturise the skin making sure your makeup does not cling to dry patches and those that mattify the skin making your make up last longer and minimising pores. The product does not cling to dry patches but I wouldn't consider this a long lasting foundation.

Moisturises - This is definitely a moisturising product. I have used it with no moisturiser underneath and my skin still felt moisturised.

Minimises Pores - I'm not sure if it minimises pores but it does not exaggerate them. My pores look smaller with this BB Cream than they do when I use my Revlon Colourstay with no primer.

Conceals - As you can see from the pictures, this BB Cream conceals my more minor blemishes wonderfully. It does struggle a bit with my gigantic blemishes which even my full coverage concealers struggle to cover up. I would definitely wear this without concealer on a daily basis.

Covers- To me, concealing and covering are the same thing.

Smoothes - This BB Cream smoothes over any dry patches without clinging to them and also helps to moisturise them.

Mattifies - I did not find the BB Cream mattified my face at all. Perhaps this is because I have oily skin or on't leave it long enough to set. But I would never wear this without setting it with a powder, although this is personal preference as I never wear any liquid with out a powder.

Brightens - I would not have described this BB Cream as brightening but I don't really have any areas that I want to brighten. It did leave a dewy glow on my skin.

Protects - The BB Cream has an SPF of 25, which I think is pretty good for daily wear.

So, although it claims to be 9 in 1 I feel it's more like 6 in 1. For me the priming it does is the same as moisturising, concealing and covering are also the same thing. I don't find it mattifies or brightens my skin.

This BB Cream doesn't have a claim on how long it lasts on the skin,but on my combination oily skin I have to blot or powder every couple of hours and this will vary depending on your skin type and shine preference.

Lets get on to the photos. I'll start off by saying front on photos do not flatter my face at all but I wanted to show the product in the nest way possible. The first photo is my naked moisturised face, you can see I have a few large red spots on my chin and quite a few smaller red spots all over my face as well as freckles.

Photo 2 is after applying only the BB Cream using my Real Techniques Buffing Brush. The BB Cream has covered my less obvious spots and has significantly reduced the redness in my giant spots. It still lets my natural skin and freckles show through which I like.

In the third photo I have filled in my eyebrows, added mascara, under eye highlighter, powdered my face, a little bit of blush and applied lip gloss to show you the finished product.

Rimmel BB Cream Before and After

The BB Creams i have tried in the past have been more like tinted moisturisers that give little to no coverage. This BB Cream is more like a foundation that has the benefits of moisturiser. This has become my daily face makeup although I do still use my Revlon Colourstay when I need my makeup to last with out touch ups. I am really pleased with this BB Cream and would definitely repurchase.

Things I have done recently.

Here are a few photos of makeup and nails I have been doing recently.