NAIL ACCESSORIES // Gold Holo Tropical Nail Stickers Review

 
I've been wanting to try these for ages but I kept putting off buying them...even though they're only 99p on eBay and at the end of March I finally decided to buy them. I bought them in both silver and gold and they're stickers instead of water decals (i'm useless with them). They arrived a week ago and it took me a while to figure out a simple yet effective look with them as they colour is quite brash.

As these are stickers I thought they would be easier to use than water decals but they are deceptively hard to pick up and I ruined the edges slightly trying to pry them off the backing paper. You can also see the clear outline of the sticker on the nail and a top coat doesn't help.

I was eager to buy these mainly for the holo effect but once they arrived I realised that only certain patches of the stickers have the holo effect and you can clearly see in places where the holo cuts off.

I'm at a bit of a loss at what to do with them now. I think the silver may look better as the colour isn't as brassy. I think these either have to be a white or super dark background for them to work as it's kind of hard to see any detail on a nude base. When I look down at my hands it just looks like I've applied some gold foil as the light reflections from the clear part of the sticker ruin the effect.

I know I can't really complain because it cost £2 in total but I'd definitely stick to stamping for the moment.

Spell on You // MoYou London Halloween Plate 01

My very first Halloween look...finally! I've been wanting to recreate the sleeve of the new MoYou London Halloween plates since I got it earlier this month because it's just so freaking adorable. As of writing this though, they only have 2 plates left from the collection (including this one) and I'm annoyed I didn't buy them earlier as one of them was proper gothic-y with super detailed designs and I loved it but I didn't grab it in time. MoYou also no longer re-stock plates so they really pressure you to buy it straight away. I'm happy with this plate though and I picked up a really cute tarot plate from Maniology so it's not too bad.

This plate though could seriously work all year round with its collection of stars, moons and crystals. It's super versatile and also includes a snake, moon phases and mushrooms. I'm surprised this one hasn't sold out as well as I think this and 05 were the best ones (and the only ones I wanted). I'm thinking what I should do next though as I bought so many Halloween plates from Born Pretty and Nicole Diary at the beginning of September but they've only just arrived now...thank god my peel off base coat only lasts around 6 hours because I'm gonna have to be doing 2 looks a day at this rate.

Polishes/Tools Used:-

- Essence Shine last & Go // Black is Black (...black)
- MoYou London // First Kiss (pastel pink), Orchid Chic (purple), Surf's Up (blue), Turquoise Mint (mint)

- Born Pretty // #2 (silver)
- Barry M // Matte Top Coat
- MoYou London Plate // Halloween 01

MoYou London 

Halloween Collection (£6.99 each)

Codie Meet Suki // Silver Geometric Illusions

So you may recognise this from my Mani & Lola November box post. Now that I have a nail sub box I'm going to try and do at least 5 looks each month using the polishes and hopefully that will stop me from buying anymore until I finish my degree (I've already ignored myself as you'll see on Sunday's haul post...).

This look came about after I stamped Heart of Chrome onto my Codie swatch stick just to see how well the Artistic polish stamped; as you can see it stamps really well. This is my new silver stamping polish, mainly because it doesn't leave glitter or shimmery bits all over your hands when cleaning up (unlike my born pretty one).

I got this plate in an eBay auction where I won 6 MoYou plates for £7. They were ones that normally I wouldn't of bought because the designs didn't interest me so I was surprised at just how much I enjoyed this mani. I even did it on my other hand a couple of days later using a new brown shade and an amazing Orly orange shimmer. I would've taken photos but it was my other hand and everything just looks terrible on that hand.

Polishes/Tools Used:
- Zoya // Codie (dark cool brown with green undertones)

- Artistic // Heart of Chrome (silver chrome effect)
- Revlon // ColorStay Diamond Top Coat
- MoYou London // Suki Plate 16

Mani & Lola November 2018 // Nail Subscription Box

I can't believe it's my second month of Mani & Lola already! This months got a little moodier with some beautiful nude cremes as well as teasing the upcoming party season with another amazing glitter shade from Cuccio. This months selection contains all full sizes again along with a luxury treatment for your nails. For £22.95 a month, let's see what we got this month:

OPI Infinite Shine // Berlin There Done That (15ml full size - £9.95)

Described as a "light mauve/concrete grey" this shade is perfect no matter what the weather is outside. I can't get enough of shades like this however I'm not a big fan of the Infinite Shine formula. I've tried a few from the Peru collection and they just looked dull and flat. However, this shade is inside the OPI advent calendar this year in the normal formula so I'll compare the two formulas later on next month.

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Cuccio // Chakra (13ml full size - £4.95)

Oh my lord. My heart skipped a beat when I saw this because it's stunning. I'm not a big fan of bright red polishes but I'll buy these glittery masterpieces any day. Just like the last Cuccio polish, this one is highly pigmented and with each layer the shimmer and glitter seems to gain more depth. It's perfect for Christmas and any time you need a royal/regal mani. I also love the bottle design from this company and I'm eyeing up an 8 piece set from Nail Polish Direct as the shades are just everything.

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Orly Breathable Treatment + Color // Feeling Free (18ml full size- £10.95)

Another Orly polish in the Breathable range which is said to contain argan oil, vitamins B5 and C. Orly says not to use a base coat with this range but I can't not use a base coat. I love the large bottles from Orly but the bright Violet shade kind of feels a little out of place. I feel it should've been darker or shimmery. Either way I don't have this kind of purple shade so it's a welcome addition to my collection.

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Artistic Colour Revolution // Heart of Chrome (15ml full size - £8.95)

I first saw this and was like ".....ok...". However, I then discovered just how insanely thick and pigmented this shade is and have discovered the perfect silver stamping polish. Most stamping polishes come in tiny sizes but this thing is huge. I'm shocked by just how well this polish performs. I don't think I'd wear it on it's own but definitely in designs. I loved the combo below so much I even went ahead and made it my mani that day. 

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Zoya // Codie (15ml full size - £9.95)

This glossy dark shade is supposed to be a rich chocolate brown but to me it just looks almost black and in some lights; murky green/brown. That said I still really like the shade. This is my second Zoya polish (received the first in last months box) and I'm loving the super thin brush that comes with them as it's so much easier to paint the sides. I'll be using this shade from now on though when I want a dark base that isn't pitch black as this was so much easier to clean up than standard black polishes. 

And here's a shot of the first mani using this months shades:

Such a great combo. I'm thinking of doing something with Berlin There Done That and Codie next with some more Heart of Chrome stamped on top. 

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Spongellé // Mani Pedi Treatment Set - Flower Market (Full size - £13.95)

Now this is what I signed up for with this box. As well as trying out new polishes I wanted to receive new and interesting treatments for your hands and nails and this fits the bill and more. Housed in an adorable little magnetic pouch (which I'm going to have to use for something else because it's so cute) are two exfoliating sponges. The green one works best for your feet and the white one with your hands. They both have a buffer side and are good for 7 uses each. I think this is a fantastic idea and I'm saving them for a day when I know I can spend a good couple of hours on my hands as right now I have deadlines everywhere...it's not fun.

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Price of Box - £22.95

Number of Items - 6 

Estimated Worth - £58.70

And that's everything! I'd say the only 'dud' for me this month was the Orly polish but that's only because I would've preferred a different shade that fit the others a little better; the formula is fantastic though. All in all, this was another fantastic box and two months in it's already introduced me to Cuccio; the brand that is fast becoming my favourite nail brand.

If you love subscription boxes and nail products; this is the box for you.

EDIT:

Looks I've done using this months shades:
- Codie Meet Suki

- Dark Wonder (Look Fantastic November 2018)

- Scarves & Library Vibes