Slime Noir // Black And Green Dripping Halloween Nail Art Design

Time for another spooky look! Like I said, I'm obsessed with Zoya Pixie Dust and dripping designs so that's where this came from. Also, no stamping! I'm trying my best to use different techniques and I simply blobbed on the green polish using the brush and then drew on the cobwebs with a fine brush and some acrylic gouache. 

I'm also in love with the black. It's a one coat wonder and dries pretty quick as well. My local TK Maxx just got this massive shipment of L'Oreal Colour Riche Nail Polish and I pretty much bought them all as they are super pigmented. I use them as stamping polishes that's how good they are. 

I did however spill a brown one all over my grey carpet when I was swatching them...I've tried everything. YouTube has failed me. Oh well, I'm going to say it's a style statement.

 

Polishes/Tools Used:

- L'Oreal Colour Riche // 674 Noir Noir (black)

- Zoya PixieDust // Cece (green)

- Holbein Acrylic Gouache // D925 Titanium White

- Windsor & Newton Cotman Brush //  0000 Round

Dangerous Tiles // Crimson & Gold Nail Art

A quick look that came about the other day when I was swatching my most recent Ciaté purchases. I just love the combination of dark red and gold and knew that these two would go perfectly together. Tell me this doesn't look like an amazing design for christmas parties. I might do my nails like this christmas eve.

Twinkled T polishes just make stamping so easy. I really hope they have another 30% off sale for Black Friday this year as I've been saving so I can purchase some more polishes from them. Shipping is $17 so I've been waiting for a year! I might pick up another black as I'm running low.

I also forgot to use some liquid latex when doing this and ended up with gold sparkles all round my nails which is annoying for photos but it had washed off completely by the end of the following day. This look took about 10 minutes though so it's super quick and easy. Below is a photo in some harsher lighting; it really helps to bring out the crimson in the polish, otherwise it almost looks black.

Polishes/Tools used:

- Ciaté Gelology // Dangerous Affair (red)

- Twinkled T // Liquid Gold

- MoYou London Stamping Plates // Tuttu Frutti 06

Sparkleccino // Birthday Coffee Nails

I originally did this look on a false nail first and loved it so much I decided to make it my birthday look this year! I'm now 29 and slightly freaking out that I'm almost 30 and still struggling to adult. I'll just buy some more nail polish, that will fix all my problems.

Expect a lot of drip nail looks this month...I'm becoming ever so slightly obsessed with the dripping look. It just works so well for adding detail but not too much detail. I also love using the pixie dust polishes thanks to their unique matte texture. In the words of Elle Woods "it just adds a little something extra don't ya think?"

I wanted the ombre to look like when you've just poured foaming milk into an espresso and you get that beautiful moment where the two start to mix. Oh man, this is really making me want a caramel macchiato. All the ombre shades have coffee names as well; it just turned out perfectly.

Polishes/Tools used:

- Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine // Iced Latte (cream)

- Kure Bazaar // Cappuccino (coffee)

- Nails Inc Caffeine Hit // Espresso Martini (dark brown)

- Avon Mark. // Gel Shine Top Coat

- Zoya Pixiedust // Tomoko (champagne)

Pastel Moon Phases // 'Halloween' Look 1

Yes, this is a halloween look. I used a plate called "Halloween 1" therefore it is clearly a spooky mani. Also, I refuse to stop using pink and peach just because it's winter now. I suggest we make a new holiday called "Pastelween"...that sounds really stupid. I need to stop buying cheap alcohol from home bargains and drinking it whilst writing these blog posts.

Not only is this look super cute, but it's super easy. It took me about 15 minutes (drying time not included because the Barry M matte top coat is not the fastest). 

I might do some scary looks this year...maybe. I have also been  extremely good though and not bought any stamping plates since August! I have so many plates that I haven't used yet; if I can't come up with some Halloween looks with them then I have failed lol.

Polishes/Tools used:

- OPI Infinite Shine // Rice Rice Baby (lilac), Malibu Pier Pressure (hot pink), Excuse Me, Big Sur! (pink), Barking up the Wrong Sequoia (peach), No Tan Lines (orange)

- Twinkled T // Glow Up (white)

- MoYou London Stamping Plates // Halloween 01

- Barry M // Matte Top Coat

ROUND UP // All The Nail Polish Calendars for 2020

I can't believe it's that time again already. Last year I did a post detailing every nail polish advent calendar I could find (on offer for the UK) and I thought I'd do it again to see if anyone has upped their game.

Ciate Mini Mani Month 2020

RRP £59 - 24 Items

£9 more expensive than the past few years, the Ciaté Mini Mani Month is looking really good...I might even forgive the price increase. This one I will definitely be getting as they're using a new "plant" formula and the shade list is promising; I see very few repeats! Asos has a full list of the polishes included if you want spoilers! One thing I'm not happy about though is the inclusion of a lip product..If I wanted skincare and makeup in my advent calendar then I would buy a beauty one; I want nail products.

OPI Shine Bright Collection

RRP £65.90 - 25 Items

This years calendar is in collaboration with Swaravski and as such there's a lot of silver, gold and jewel tones. Even though there only seems to be about 4 repeats I'll be passing as there is only 1 creme in the 25 piece set. I'm not a big fan of OPI's shimmers, especially when they're the normal formula. You can pick this up from NailPolishDirect for £49.95 if you're interested.

Essie Nail Polish Christmas 2020

RRP £99 - 24 Items

I thought the price tag on Look Fantastic was an error when I saw it but no, Amazon is also selling it at £97.99......what!?! Sure it looks cute and contains 9 full sizes but last years calender was £46. Ciaté shades are more expensive (and my better quality imo) and have never charged this much. A review on Amazon also states that all the shades are either red, white or pink with 1 blue. I love pink but I would like to see a nice range in a calendar. I think it's safe to say I'll be avoiding this one.

Bluesky Gel Nail Polish Advent Calendar

RRP £51.99

This one is super interesting as I've been trying to increase my Gel collection (for friends who want gel nails) and this contains everything you need to get started; even a lamp! I already have 3 lamps but the more the merrier. I'm extremely tempted by this one as there's a nice range of shades and a full top and base for gel! Gel top coats are so expensive!

And that's it for this year :( It seems Nail Polish Advent Calendars are rapidly disappearing which is a real shame, I don't know why brands aren't jumping on the bandwagon. Once again there is nothing from Barry M, Orly, Nails Inc, W7 or even Technic. Oh well, my bank account will happy.

SWATCHES: Ciaté // Palm Springs, New England Fall, Dangerous Affair & Reign Supreme

So I was gonna make this big spiel about how long it's been since my last post but it was like 3 weeks ago 😂 So I guess not that long. It just feels like a long time because I've barely been painting my nails thanks to programming day and night. I'm just obsessed with trying to get better at my job right now and I've been burning the midnight oil and all my hobbies have fallen to the side.

Since logging back on though, one thing that is super annoying is the new Blogger interface......thanks, I hate it! They literally haven't changed it since 1999 but now they go and utterly ruin it. If I didn't detest Wordpress with a passion I'd totally swap.

But anyway, I saw these bottles in my local TK Maxx and holy hell, I almost started dancing in the store. I love it when they have Ciaté because they always sell them for £1.99 and the Gelology formula is one of my favourites.

Palm Springs // Deep Royal Blue Shimmer

Collection: Gelology

Coats: 2

This shade was the reason I purchased the 2019 Mini Mani Month and in a cruel twist of fate the calendars we're all marketed/printed incorrectly and they actually contained Pool Party. I mean it's still a nice shade but this is now my favourite blue. It's hard to imagine this looking terrible on anyone. With two coats, my nails looks like shimmering sapphires. The shade is so deep and rich; I can't stop staring at my hand. I honestly feel like I've stolen it by paying £1.99.

New England Fall // Deep Navy Crelly

Collection: Ciaté x Olivia Palermo

Coats: 2

This bottle is fancy as heck. It weighs more than the gelology bottles and it just feels more expensive but it isn't because it had leaked inside the lid. AFter opening it and cleaning it up, I then struggled again to get the top off. It seems to have dried inside the lid which is annoying. I'll have to find some cotton buds to clean it out. Anyway, the shade is amazing. I'd say it's more of a jelly creme than a true creme as it has that glass-like shine. It shines slightly purple in certain lighting and will make any outfit look 5 times classier.

Dangerous Affair // Oxblood Jelly

Collection: Gelology

Coats: 2

I swatched the Paint Pot version in Ciaté's 2018 advent calendar (over here). I love the shade but it's  a nightmare to apply; it stains the skin so easily. So, I eagerly picked up the Gelology version in the hopes that it was a more pleasant experience. Oh my word, was this a dream to apply. In my opinion, this is the perfect red shade. It's elegant, classy and will suit any skin tone. It's also a true Jelly with no streaks in sight so you can go for a more translucent look or layer it up for a glass shine.

Reign Supreme // Deep Aubergine Jelly

Collection: Gelology

Coats: 2

Another beautiful shade; Ciaté do jellies so well. This is very similar to Dangerous Affair but under bright light you can see the purple hue. This is a perfect winter shade. I have a velvet pant set in this colour and I'll just have to wear it round the house to a virtual christmas party this year.