Christmas Wrapping Paper Nails #2 // Mint Festive Design

This is mint version of a design I saw in Sainsbury's last year. I did a dark version of it here: https://ifndefnailsh.blogspot.com/2022/12/christmas-wrapping-nails-1-sainsburys.html

I think I prefer this one thanks to the over-stamping!

Method:

I started off with 2 layers of Neely. Then I applied Liquid Gold to Noel 07 and then stamped on top with Vibin using the same stamps but slightly offset. The Holly jolly text comes from Noel 12.

I then topped it off with some smudge proof top coat.

Polishes/Tools Used:

Base:

- Zoya // Neely (mint)

Stamping:

- Twinkled T // Liquid Gold (metallic gold), 'Vibin (black)

Plates:

- MoYou London // Noel 07, Noel 12

Top:

- MoYou London // Smudge Proof Top Coat

SWATCHES: OPI // Mexico City 2020 Mini Collection

OPI have released a new collection for spring 2020 full of bright pastel shades and I'm really late to the swatching party but I just wanted to paint my nails. I know bright and pastel don't really go together but the photos on OPI's website really do match that description:

I fell in love with the Coral-ing Your Spirit Animal shade because it's Peach...and I'm obsessed with Peach this year. NailPolishDirect had an offer on the mini set when I went to purchase it so I got that as well. When they arrived, I found that the shades are actually much darker than the photos and I'm a tad disappointed; especially with Mural Mural on the Wall. For example, on the bottle photo above Suzi's Slinging Mezcal looks like a shimmer pastel yellow; it's actually a dark gold metallic.

Let's get into some swatches. All are two coats with no top coat (unless states otherwise).

Coral-ing Your Spirit Animal // peach/coral creme

We'll start with my favourite shade. Even though it's darker than I was expecting, it's still a beautiful shade that is a cross between peach and coral. The first coat is very streaky and the second kind of does the trick if you don't look to closely but there are still brush strokes. I'd recommend three coats for it to be fully opaque. I wish more brands would do peaches in their spring collections.

Telenovela Me About It // rose pink shimmer jelly

When will OPI start putting names on their mini bottles?? It's so annoying. I have to keep everything in the boxes or create stickers. I almost thought this was a creme but then I saw the slight pink shimmer. What is it with OPI and putting pink shimmer in what could be just lovely creme polishes? I hated half the ones I got in their 2018 advent calendar because they all had this random bright pink shimmer in them. 

Formula-wise; it's not the greatest. Even though it's a sheer jelly it applies in a thick gloopy mess and it's quite difficult to get a nice even spread; you always end up disturbing other bits of the polish and leaving brush strokes. It is super shiny by itself but it's not my shade of pink; I prefer more muted ones. Two coats is still a bit streaky with this one.

Mural Mural On The Wall // coral jelly with gold flakies

I bought this mini set because I really wanted to see if this polish was worth buying full size and I'm disappointed to report that is it not worth buying. It's an interesting polish thanks to the flakes but it's just too dark for my liking and doesn't match my skin tone. It's a shame because you don't often see jelly flakies in mainstream polish brands.

This one is much easier to apply than the previous jelly and each coat is even with no brush strokes. There is also an even distribution of gold flakes which starts to look really nice when you build up the layers. It looks better in the sun so perhaps this is a polish to take on holiday with you....if we can ever go on holiday again...

Mexico City Move-Mint // pastel blue creme

Oh I do love me some pastel shades and this is no exception. This is very similar to Barry M's Berry Sorbet so there is your £3.99 dupe. The first coat is very streaky, the second coat kind of fixes it up, three is probably needed. The problem with this polish is that it dries very quickly and if your brush isn't loaded up it causes serious drag marks. Even though it's a nice polish it's deceptively tricky to apply. I'd say go for the Barry M one.

Suzi's Slinging Mezcal // gold foil

This one really surprised me (especially given how on the website it looks like a pastel yellow). I was unenthusiastic about it; I saw it and was like "not another gold shade" but then I put it on and I LOVE IT. Many have spoken about the brush strokes but if applied slowly and in thin layers they're not really that noticeable. I also love the formula; it applies like a dream. The shade itself is also on the cool side so it's not brassy. I normally hate gold polishes; I'm in shock.

// Verdict

There are 12 shades in the collection but I after swatching I don't feel the need to go out and buy them. I have a strange relationship with OPI as more often than not I really hate the formulas of their polishes. I heartily recommend Coral-ing Your Spirit Animal and maybe even Suzi's Slinging Mezcal now I've tried it but there are many similar shades from cheaper brands.

SWATCHES: Barry M Wildlife // Wild Mint, Rainforest Green & Tropical Pink

So many new collections; so little time. I think March may become a swatching month due to how many amazing polishes have been released lately. This wildlife collection contains 6 shades and was released in January with 20% of the net profits going to the David Shepard Wildlife Foundation. 

Wild Mint // Mint Creme

Holy hell, for a Gelly shade I am shocked at just how pigmented this is; it's practically a one coat wonder. That said, it isn't a shiny as a Gelly shade and performs more like a standard Nail Paint shade. That's not a bad thing but I prefer the Gelly shades to have more of a sheer formula that you need to build up for that super shiny, gel-look feel. It still a nice spring polish though and 2 coats dry quite quickly. I'd say it's extremely similar to Essie Mint Candy Apple if you're looking for a cheap dupe.

Rainforest Green // Lime Green Creme

I adore this shade, it's the one that caught my eye and made me check out the collection. I just have a thing for bright green shades (and weird olive/ugly green shades). This is a great spring green that isn't neon bright but still light enough to avoid being pastel. I wouldn't wear this on it's own as I feel it would stain the nails so badly. I only had it on for 20 minutes whilst swatching and the sides were ever so slightly stained. I'd prepare and use at least 3 base coats. This one isn't as pigmented as Wild Mint and needs a minimum of two coats.

Tropical Pink // Light Pink Creme

Oh my gosh...this turned out so much better than what I thought it was. From the bottle I was expecting a strong pink that maybe I wouldn't like that much, but it's actually a beautiful peach/pink and I'm obsessed with peach shades right now (I literally just bought 6 off NPD). It needs two coats to cover some streaks but it's so glossy and stunning; I can't stop staring at my hand. I actually can't believe this is only £3.99 and I just spent £9 on one OPI peach shade from their new collection.

// Verdict

There are three other shades in the collection but I already had enough purples and blues (you can never have enough pink though). I felt that to me, these were the most interesting shades. There is a bright orange as well but I already had too many similar oranges and I don't tend to wear them by themselves. I'd just use it in an ombre. If I had to recommend just one shade though it would be Tropical Pink; it's perfect.

Barry M Wildlife Collection

£3.99 each

Meebox // Donuts Edition

And it's finally time for the unboxing of my final Meebox that I bought in October when they were having a sale. I was super excited for this one due to the creamy pastel shades and indie brands. I'm loving the discovery of Deco Miami! Let's have a closer look at the products shall we?

Kure Bazaar // Cappucino
RRP £15

Collection: ??

Release Date: ??

This uses the same thin brush that old Essie shades used to have and I don't like it. It's just so hard to get a good swipe and prevent flooding. I am happy to have received this shade though as when I was researching the "Hope" shade I got in this years Sunday Times LIB box, this was the shade I wanted the most when I saw the shade range. The shade itself is a little darker than whats in the bottle and under bright light it goes even darker which is strange. But it is the perfect shade to create some donuts with. I'm wearing two coats in the swatch with no top coat.

Little Ondine // Ripple
RRP (no longer sold, was £11)

Collection: ??

Release Date: ??

My first time using this did not go well as I used it on top of my peel off base coat (as usual) and it started instantly cracking and splitting (see the second photo). After some research it turns out this brand uses a water-based, peel off formula made from resin and many other nail artist use them as a peel off basecoat. Little Ondine says all their polishes are odourless and surprisingly, there isn't really much of a scent. This one smells a little minty but I'm not sure if that's just my brain making it up because of the mint colour.

I'm actually really interested in this brand, however it doesn't seem to be available in the UK anymore and their twitter account stop posting a year ago. In the US though it still seems to be thriving which is a shame.

As for the polish, I don't think the formula holds up well over time. Normal polishes don't really go off, but the "peel off" part of this polish has caused it to become lumpy and dry with those PVA glue-like chunks. It's also streaky and needs several coats but the lumps never go away. It does peel really easily in the exact same way as my PVA-based peel off which just makes wonder if this is the exact same product but with colouring.

I'm wearing three coats with no top coat.

Deco Miami // Cake
RRP (not sold in the UK, $6 in US)

Collection: ??

Release Date: ??

I think this is my favourite polish in the box; it's just so cute! I love interesting and unique bottle designs and now I want more of them but they're kind of hard to get hold of in the UK. The shade itself is perfect though and makes me look beautifully tan. I almost can't believe how well it matches my skin tone. Instead of being a bright hot pink this is a neon peach/pink pastel that dries quite quickly to a satin finish. You do need at least three coats though as it is very streaky.

After perusing their website, they do ship to the UK, but shipping varies on the weight and then there's tax and import fees so it will end up being an expensive order. But they do have some seriously amazing shades.

NCLA // Sivan Ayla Donut Wraps
No longer sold (was £11.95)

After some research I discovered this was part of a range in a collab with someone called Sivan Ayla. I think she's a vlogger/lifestyle influencer but anyway it was released in 2017 and full of neutral skin tones and donuts. I feel these wraps look a little "kid-like" for such an elegant collection. I probably won't use them as me and wraps don't mix well.

Miss Cat Nails // Nail Art Pearls
No longer sold (was £1.99)

Another item that probably will never be used mainly because things stuck to my nails annoy me. They just catch on everything. Also, these are tiny and I don't have the patience to glue lots of little pink beads to my nails. Some other reviews said they got champagne coloured ones and I think I would've preferred them.

Art Club (by Color Club) // Nail Art Pen in White
RRP £4.99

I was really excited when I saw this (even if the metal tube bit scratched me when taking the lid off). Then I used it. If you're doing stripes and nothing else this is fantastic but I found it ridiculously hard to draw shapes with. The polish itself is lovely and opaque however I would use an actual brush to do more detailed looks with it. I found that huge blobs would run straight down the brush at random intervals and flood the nail. It's also hard to clean up and leaves white streaks on you skin making it look dry and flaky. When researching this product, this appears to be quite an old bottle as well and whereas nail polish doesn't really go off, this doesn't feel like proper nail polish and I think it may have gone off. Good idea, shame about the execution.

// Verdict

This was one of the boxes I wanted the most when I first discovered Meebox and I think if I had received it back in March 2018 I would be estactic however, I feel some of the products have lost their shine and the only one I'm really happy about is the Deco Miami polish; I have got to get me some more of those. For £15 though, I'm not going to flip any tables.

When Meebox stopped doing monthly boxes last December they said they were going to reduce their boxes to quarterly to give them more time to collaborate with indie brands. However, it's now December and the last box they released was the Atlantis edition back in March so I have a feeling that sadly, they may have stopped doing boxes. It's a shame because there really was no other sub like this one. 

Under The Basic Sea // Mint & Pink Mermaid Nails

I told you I couldn't resist putting a load of stamping designs on it! I tried to do some reverse stamping as well and ruined my pinkie and the middle finger *le sigh*. I just received one of the new Born Pretty Sea World plates that I ordered early last month and I had to do something with it. I think mermaid nails are some of my favourite designs to do but I may invest in one of the new MoYou London plates which have them coloured in already for you because clearly I need more practice.

How I did it:-

The ombre was done in this post, but basically it was a 1 layer Crush in Lake Como followed by 4 sponged layers of Crush & Lake. I then used the BP-109 plate for the scale pattern and coloured some scales in using Golden Hour and Stop, Shop & Roll. The other designs came from the Sea World S001 plate with the same two shades. When reverse stamping, you might need to apply a layer of top coat on your nail before you stamp as you could end up ruining it (like I did on the pinkie...urgh).

Polishes/Tools Used:-

- Cuccio Colour // Crush In Lake Como (sheer pink creme)

- Zoya // Lake (sheer mint creme)
- Ciaté Gelology // Golden Hour (metallic rose gold)
- Morgan Taylor // Shop, Stop & Roll (teal multi-shift shimmer)

- Revlon // Quick Dry Top Coat

- Barry M // Plumpy Top Coat
- Born Pretty Stamping Plate // BP-109
- Born Pretty Stamping Plate // Sea World S001

Lake Crush // Mint & Pink Ombre

Finally! It's so nice to be doing something other than swatching advent calendars...definitely only buying one this year...if that. This started out as just an ombre using some shades from the 'Namaste' Meebox edit (which will be up soon, I promise!) however, keep an eye out in the next few days as I couldn't resist getting the stamper out....Especially since the Born Pretty stuff I ordered a month ago arrived. My god man, their latest plates have just been amazing. I might do a post on them.

But, I managed to stop myself for a few minutes to snap some photos of this ombre before I ruined it. These two shades are just beautiful together; you may have seen them earlier in December for a Christmas look...

How I did it:-

So this one is pretty easy. I started out with one layer of Crush In Lake Como, applied a quick dry top coat and then sponged on 4 layers of them both. I'm glad I decided to do some kind of base coat because both these shades are extremely sheer and it would've taken me forever otherwise. 

Polishes/Tools Used:-

- Cuccio Colour // Crush In Lake Como (sheer pink creme)

- Zoya // Lake (sheer mint creme)

- Revlon // Quick Dry Top Coat

- Barry M // Plumpy Top Coat