How delicate is this mani? I got inspired by some of the new candles from Primark and with acrylic paints making it so much easier to get that watercolour look I decided to give it a go. I always tend to practice the look on my thumb first as I can hide that for photos but I couldn't replicate the look on my other fingers. I went in way to heavy with the paint instead of watering it down and it created this tie-dye space effect instead which is still cute.
I clearly still need a lot of practice as acrylic paints just don't mix the same way on nails as they do on paper but I've found that working on top of a matte base helps immensely. I really want to be the best at marble nails though so I need to keep practicing.
How I did it:-
Start off with a white base coat then add a matte top coat. Then mix your chosen colours together on a silicone mat (it helps with cleaning as you can just peel off the dried acrylic paint) with a little water and blend the paints together. It's tempting to just keep adding water and blending but everything will become a muddy mess. You really need to let the paint dry and sometimes even paint with an almost dry brush as the nails don't absorb any water. Once the desired look has been achieved just top it off with some top coat.
I ended up adding this geometric print on top but I think it ruined it as the there just isn't enough of the white background showing for it to blend in properly; the lines are a little too clean.
Polishes/Tools Used:-
- Essie // Blanc (white)
- Crafts 4 All Acrylic Paint // 105 Titanium White, 276 Orange, 831 Florescent Peach Red
- Avon Mark. // Gel Shine Top Coat
- Born Pretty // #4 (white)
Time for a cute mani! I love this look so much. It's directly inspired by this post I saw on pinterest and I managed to track the author down to @mkmk1209 on instragram. She is an amazing nail artist so please check out her work. Here's the original:
I am no where near this level of artistry yet but I'm trying!
I would wear this everyday throughout summer. I just love that mustard yellow colour but boy does it stain your nails. Once it came off it looks like I have a 90-a-day smoking habit. Oh well, I guess that just means I have to paint my nails more often to cover it up...
How I did it:
I did two layers of Cantaloupe and one layer of White Heat. Then I mixed some of the green and white acrylic paint together to add detail and used a little black at the end to darken the edges. I then just topped everything off with a glossy topcoat. I also have a video this time! Please be aware though that this one was filmed after these photos were taken and in the video I decided to place the leaf at the top of the nail.
Man, it's so weird to be doing an unboxings again, it's been almost a year. Anyway, I did a video if you prefer to watch those instead or keep on scrolling for the text version!
I will update this post later on in the month as well, detailing how I got on with the products. So make sure to check the 'Recently Updated' tab at the top of the page.
Anyway, I think my attitude towards boxes have definitely changed since I was last blogging them as I'm no longer mad at Look Fantastic. They used to inflate their box prices and always include the same type of products but all this year I've been super happy with every box. June's is no exception. I know some may be angry at the tiny samples, however when you have 6 box subscriptions, I'm quite grateful for the samples because I get through them quicker, I get to try more items faster and it's fun. Plus this months box has a pretty decent value for only £13 with most products being on the more expensive side as well.
Described as an eye cream for those with sensitive itchy eyes, I'm looking forward to using this now the hayfever season is well underway. Right now I can't live without my Piriton and my eyes are always the most affected so this was actually a really good inclusion for this month considering so many of us suffer from hayfever. It also gives 24 hour hydration and eases redness and discomfort; just what the doctor ordered.
Peeling Mask // Ecooking
15ml Sample - RRP £11.10 (0.74 per ml based on 50ml for £37)
Oh man I love this brand. I've tried so many other sample products from them before and I've loved every one. The packaging is also really cute and I love the glass jars; I'll probably recycle them into glitter/rhinestone jars. Anyway, this mask actually has a really low pH value of 3.5 (so it's super acidic), therefore your face will probably feel like it's burning and go red but they say this is supposed to happen so it's all good. I would recommend a patch test though if your skin is sensitive. Ecooking say to use this for only 4-6 minutes at first and then gradually increase it up to 10 as you use it more. It smells a little like PVA glue but I can't wait to give it a try.
EGF Serum // Bioeffect
3ml Sample - RRP £25 (8.30 per ml based on 15ml for £125...)
Such a tiny sample, however, at £125 for 15ml I'm not really mad because that's a great sample size for the price of the product. Bioeffect also only recommend using 2-4 drops so this will last quite a while. They have some bold claims about what this can do for anti-ageing properties so I'll be keeping an eye on my skin over the month.
Surf Spray // Bumble & Bumble
15ml Sample - RRP £2.40 (0.16 per ml based on 125ml for £20)
You could've received a volumising spray instead but I'm glad I got this one as my hair doesn't need anymore volume. I'm worried about how much this may dry my hair out however it feels soft and isn't too sticky. They only problem is that it isn't very inclusive as B&B state its for those with straight/wavy fine/medium hair and I have thick, course semi-afro hair. I'll give it a try though.
Soap has come a long way since ye olden days and I'm looking forward to giving this one a go. It has a light, pleasant and calming scent and feels very waxy. Korres says it's glycerin based so it should be ultra moisturising. It can be used for both face and the body so we'll see how it goes.
And then last but not least is a tiny sample from Filorga. I'd say this is my least favourite item in the box mainly because I'm not a fan of Filorga. Look Fantastic love including them in the box but they just don't do anything, to me they're just overpriced creams. Filorga say this can either be a day or night cream and has anti-ageing properties to tone and firm but most products from them all look the same and are pretty vague about what they do. This will be used in a few days though so I'll report back soon.
// Box Value // 6 Items // 2 Full Size // 4 Samples // £68.10 Estimated Worth
Overall, not a bad box, the serum is heavily appreciated, it's not everyday you get to try skincare that costs over £100 and the Ecooking mask and eye creams will be used immediatly. I think Look Fantastic should reduce their box size though to maybe that of the Birchbox size, it seems they're going more down the sample route and whereas that doesn't bother me (it is only £13 a month after all) the size of the box and all the waste packaging does bother me. Anyway, I'm looking forward to next months as I love Elemis! The sneak peak for July is their hydro-balance day cream.
Another plate review! I wasn't going to buy this because I have to move soon and deposits...and IKEA trips but the tropical series from MoYou London is my favourite plate series and I'm slowly collecting all 37 (I have 15 of them so far). Also the elephant design on this one is so cute but I've noticed that their new plate price has gone up a £1. Combined with their ridiculous £3.99 shipping, 1 plate is now £11. That's insane. So I've started looking around for cheaper sources and I think I may start buying them from Hypnotic Polish from now on because their shipping is cheaper.
This plate though is a nice mix of tropical/tribal style art and I love the flamingo and pineapple strips.
I've not done much with it yet but I have had some difficulty getting clean lines. I don't think this is down to the plate but my polishes. I didn't want to use a black polish, but the only off-black stamping I have is Night Sail by MYL and it's garbage. It couldn't pick up any of the detail in the plate. I resorted to using my born pretty black shade and it struggles with the summer text; I did that about 10 times and it's still patchy.
I like the direction they're going in with this series though and I hope they do more overprint designs or cut-outs. I'd especially like some reverse palm leaves so I could do a cool gradient and then stamp on a block colour with the leaves cut out. I think there are some uberchic plates that do that but they're £12 each...which is close to these now and they're much bigger as well. When I change jobs perhaps I should just get the uberchic ones.
I sorely need to practice stamping lines though because mine are so wonky, I noticed that the rectangular stamper picks them up with more of a curve compared to the large round ones. So there's a nail hack lol.
If you're looking for something similar but a lot cheaper; the new Nicole Diary plates are looking suspiciously similar to the tropical series. Considering MYL import all their designs from China I wouldn't be surprised if the Born Pretty factory makes everything for them.
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.
