Christmas Party Nails // Nude & Gold Glitter/Foil Nail Design

I have so many designs that I just never got round to posting. Here's some nails I did for works Christmas party last year!

I'm all about super quick and easy designs right now. This one should take less then 10 minutes!

I did 2 layers of Revel, then once it was dry, dabbed on some gold foil eyeshadow, then topped that with Bijoux. I just did light brush strokes, starting from the tip to give it that ombre look.

Polishes/Tools Used:

- Manna Kadar // Revel (nude creme)

- H&M // Bijoux (gold glitter)

- Primark P.S Beauty // Gold Foil Eyeshadow 

Tools // Primark False Nail Set Review

I've had these false nails from Primark for a good few months now and I've never used them. Since I've been using false nails though to try out designs first; I've been going through them like water so I turned to these to prevent my more expensive tips from running out.

They cost £2.50 for 100 in various sizes...you would think that means 10 of each size but no:

I had an abundance of size 7, but none in size 6 and only a few size 1. The case also opens backwards; the front sign is actually the back and you should turn it over to open it otherwise you will end up with nails everywhere and you'll have to sort them out again.

They're a really weird shape as well, I personally would not cut my nails like this but I just chop off the weird claw-like section with clippers and file it smooth. The shape overall is quite odd; or maybe I just have weird shaped nails, none of the sizes particularly fit my nails well. If you have much smaller hands I feel like these would work well for you.

Another quality issue though is with how flimsy they are. I thought they were going to snap when peeling them off my nail display stands (and I only stick them on with blu tac). They slightly change shape as well when you apply the polish.

Overall, great for prototyping designs but I wouldn't rely on these for tasks more demanding than drinking coffee.

Icecream for Days // Pastel Icecream Nail Art on False Nails

It's official; I think I'm becoming a addicted to painting false nails. Buying a pack off 500 off eBay was the best thing I ever did. I only need four of the nine sizes so I use the others to practice a design first. I hate having long nails but I love the extra space. Being able to pop these on and off whenever I want is an amazing feeling!

Also, it's warm. Super warm. The coast is usually a good 5 degrees colder than the rest of the country but we've been having a glorious 20 degrees for the past few days and I've eaten my body weight in icecream; cue these nails.

I started off with two coats of Cashew, then stamped on the square pattern with Mushroom. I used some acrylic paints (just red, blue, yellow and white mixed until I liked the colour) to add the extra detail to the waffle bits. Using a dotting tool, I placed down the ends of the drips first using White Heat then connected them to each other. I then just painted the rest of the nail tip white (this took two coats). I used a small paint brush to add the sprinkles and then topped it all off with a glossy top coat.

Polishes/Tools used:-
- Primark Ps Color Care // Mushroom (brown), Cashew (cream)
- Ciaté // White Heat (white)
- Primark Ps Gel Effect // Candy (pink)
- Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine // Berry Sorbet (blue)
- Winsor & Newton Designers Gouache // White, Primary Blue, Primary Red, Primary Yellow
- MoYou London Stamping Plate // Mix & Match 13

SWATCHES: Primark Ps // Mushroom, Cashew, Baby & Candy

Apart from some chrome polishes I bought a while ago I haven't really dived into Primark polishes which is weird because they're mainly £2 or less. I told myself I didn't need any more polish but I saw all these pretty pink/nude shades and I couldn't resist.

Mushroom // Nude Mauve/Brown Creme

Collection: Colour Care

Coats: 2

I'm starting off with the deepest shade. I don't normally go for brown shades but there is something about this shade that I really like. I think it would be perfect as the detail on ice cream cone designs. The formula though is actual witchcraft. It's sheer and runny yet applies with no streaks and you could wear 1 coat by itself. It's also incredibly shiny. I think the slight mauve/cool undertone sets this brown apart from others. It's the first one I've tried that truly suits my skintone. Off to a good start.

Cashew // Nude Cream Creme

Collection: Colour Care

Coats: 2

This one is defintely streaky if applied lightly. You can almost get away with 1 thick coat but I'd do 2 just to ensure full coverage and a smooth mani. This is a fantastic cream colour that isn't too yellow. It honestly looks just like cashews; they clearly chose the name wisely. 

Baby // Soft Pastel Pink Creme

Collection: Colour Care

Coats: 2

I'm not a big fan of the name but I am a big fan of the shade. This has a slightly thicker formula but it makes it easier to apply. The shade itself is not an "in your face" pink; it's subtle and more powdery.

Candy// Soft Pastel Pink Creme

Collection: Gel Effect

Coats: 2

This was definitely the easiest to apply. I liked how the shade looked with 1 coat, but it went a bit too bubblegum with 2. It's still a nice pretty pink colour; it reminds me of Ciaté Tutu. It's still a little streaky with 2 coats and could possibly do with 3 but it's not noticeable unless you're about 10cm away from your nails.

// Verdict

Unfortunately my local Primark is severely understocked in their nail polish range. The stand was almost empty save for these shades. The stand with the false nails was full though. I'll keep my eye out though as I've been convinced. For the price these polishes are excellent quality as well as being cruelty free and at least 3-Free.

Botanical Foils // Flowers with Primark gold foil and green watercolour design

This turned out so much better than how I saw it in my head. I think it's because for the first time I actually practiced the design first on some swatch sticks and ironed out the kinks. I need to do that more often instead of just ploughing on ahead.

When Primark recently re-opened I went in and spent a lot more than I should've but I just couldn't help myself. They also had a shiny load of new makeup that obviously I had to buy. Especially these cute jars of foil flakes. I think they're supposed to be used as eyeshadows and on your face but I immediately knew that these pressed flakes would be perfect for nail art looks.

They have them in bronze and gold and they're so much easier to use than foil sheets and £3. These pots are gonna last me years. I used an eyeshadow applicator to pick some up and then dabbed it on my nail. If you apply it on top of a dried glossy top coat it sticks but it also moves so you can re-position it how you like then seal it in with another layer of top coat.

For this look I also mixed some of Hope with acetone to create the watercolour effect. I did trial some of the blooming polishes I have from Nicole Diary but I didn't have a green so had to mix blue and yellow and it just looked muddy.

Polishes/Tools used:-
- Ciaté // White Heat
- Kure Bazaar // Hope
- Twinkled T // Vibin'
- Primark PS // Golden Foil Flakes
- MoYou London Stamping Plates // Botanical 07
- Revlon Colorstay Gel Envy // Diamond Top Coat

Peach Quartz // Quartz Inspired Nail Design

A quick one today. This look came about the other night as I sat experimenting whilst building my nail polish storage app (I can't wait to finish it...I need it so badly). I wanted to do a valentines look however, I hate valentines and all the happy people; they need to be more miserable like the rest of us. So instead I attempted this quartz look.

It's not awful but it's not great either due to being a bit too heavy handed on the second layer of white veins. I started off with 1 layer of Peach & Quiet and then used a dotting tool to create the first layer of veins with Ice Cold Milk. I added another layer of Peach & Quiet followed by some more veins, this time using a stronger white (Born Perfect). I then topped it off with another layer of the peach, followed by a quick dry top coat. Those layers took a long time to dry though. I do like using a weak white though between layers, it really helps give that quartz feel; I really need to practice more though.

I also don't like how my horribly stained yellow nails are peeking through at the tips...I need to start wearing base coats when I do my looks as my peel off base coat gives no protection.

Polishes/Tools Used:
- H&M // Peach & Quiet (sheer peach), Ice Cold Milk (sheer white)
- Nicole Diary // Born Perfect (white)
- Primark // Fast Dry Top Coat

Match That Mani // Primark Gold & Pink Pineapple Flip Flops

Summer is almost here!....technically. December 21st was officially the shortest day and from now on the nights start getting lighter. Which means it's totally acceptable to start doing summer nails again. especially seeing as how the swimwear and shorts have returned to Primark. I found these flip flops and loved the print.

And this is my recreation in nail form:

Thanks to the cooler tone of the gold, I think this could pass for a fresh wintery look. This was my first time using the shade Liquid Gold from Twinkled T and it's my new favourite gold stamping polish. It picks up beautifully every time and cleans up easily with little glitter left behind.

It's also been a hot minute since I did an ombre, I want to do so many ombre looks but I'm too lazy to do all the clean up.

Polishes/Tools used:

- Essence Shine Last & Go // Wild White Ways (white)

- Essence Shine Last & Go // On Air! (gold glitter)

- H&M // Chalky Pink (dusty pink)

- Twinkled T // Liquid Gold (gold stamping polish)

- Revlon Colorstay Gel Envy // Diamond Top Coat

- Maniology Plate // M051 Stamping Plate

SWATCHES: Primark Cosmic Chrome & Liquid Metal // Luna & Penny

I've been avoiding Primark polishes because a) they're all below £2 and b) it will do serious damage to my bank account. They have some beautiful shades but I know I'll just go insane and buy the entire shelf. Today is a good though because I managed to restrain myself and only buy these two new shades. But after seeing how these have performed I may just have to let my wallet take a hit because 

Luna // Rose Gold Glitter/Foil

Holy hell. This...THIS is the formula I want the H&M glitter/foil polishes to be. This is how you do a glitter foil. I am wearing just 1 coat! This stuff is insane! Plus it stamps, what even is this stuff and how is it only £1.50? They have this in gold, silver, blue and green but I'm a rose gold ho so this is my favourite. My only gripe is that it takes a while to dry and is hard to clean up but it's worth it. 

Penny // Orange Metallic/Foil

I have a couple of shades similar to this one in Artistic Revolution's "You're not glistening to me" and Orly "Valley of Fire". However, this one is set in a raspberry base and has a slight gold shift. In the bottle in kind of looks like it's on fire when the light hits it. If you got some fire vinyls, this would be perfect thanks to the gold shift. It doesn't stamp as well as Luna and also dries with some brush strokes if applied haphazardly but for the price I can't complain much.

// Verdict

Very impressed. And all Primark items are now cruelty free as well. I'm not wearing any top coat in these photos either; they're incredibly glossy and put some expensive brands to shame. Couldn't recommend them more.