Katy Perry Dark Horse Inspired Nails

Today I saw the new video for Katy Perry's new single 'Dark Horse'. I was instantly drawn too the different variations of nail art she is wearing throughout the video, and the Egyptian feel throughout the video inspired me to do some nail art of my own!

The video starts off with Katy Perry showcasing this blue nail varnish with black outlining. The blue I have used is darker, and I have done this black outline technique before. I wanted to encorporate this into my design.

I also wanted to encorporate some snakes into my nail art. I saw some done on an Instagram account  I follow 'bellesbellamy' who is a Wah Girl so hers are much better. My snakes are too fat!

I also wanted to do the famous Egyptian eye which I think is my favourite nail! 

images from MTV.com

I also had to incorporate the Egyptian cat and Katy Perry's favourite animals! I hope you like them, sorry this post is a bit of a rush! I'm tired and need to be up early! That said, is there any other nail art you have seen on a celebrity that you have wanted to try? Let me know, I would love to hear from you!

Watch the Katy Perry 'Dark Horse' video here

Frozen Nails

Hello there again! Today I am posting to tell you I will be taking a break from blogging for a week as I am off on a skiing holiday today! I am posting this from the airport in France of my phone so apologies if the post looks weird. I am very excited!! I have not just posted to tell you this, I have (of course) done some snow flake fingertips for you to feast your eyes on. I feel very much like Elsa from the animated film 'Frozen' with these nails, so as you can imagine I will be singing 'Let It Go' whilst throwing snow in the air with my snowflake nails at any given oppertunity!

I started to add some glitter on this hand but felt it covered up the design to much so let them be free!

I will be back on the blog as soon as I return. Until then, enjoy this fantastic song, if you haven't seen 'Frozen' already then this is the song that has taken iTunes by storm! See you soon 

Xxx

'Let It Go' from 'Frozen'

Jessica Spring Collection 2014 'Coral Symphony'

Once again I have a lovely new Spring collection to show you! These collections all come out at once so your getting two in a row!

The collection I am looking at today is the Jessica Spring 2014 Coral Symphony. This is SUCH a pretty collection and I love how all the colours look together. They shouldn't go together with clashing colours such as pink and reds, but for some reason they just, go.

Ocean Bloom

'Ocean Bloom' is a purple-y pink colour. I absolutely love this colour and would go as far to say it is my favourite in the collection. It's a really dreamy purple, and would look amazing against any skin tone. The name and colour suggest the colour of the sea when the sun is just rising and the pink/ purple tones hit the water.

Conch Shell

'Conch Shell' is another great colour. It is more bubblegum pink than a dreamier pink. I think there are quite a lot of pink colours like this out there, but I do like this one, as its very bright and bold.

Monsoon Melon

This is such a cool shade of peach/ light orange. Another one of my favourites in the collection. I think the name is spot on, as it looks like a juicy Melon shade.

Sharktooth

'Sharktooth' is a bright white that really stands out in the collection and makes it pop. Plain white nails are a fashion that is coming back, and this polish is a flawless sharp colour, just like a shark tooth.

Starfish Glow

The name says it all really. This coral colour is a deep pink mixed with orange. It's a really pretty colour and not only looks like a starfish colour, but also to me, like a lovely cocktail.

Tropical Sunset

Finally, to finish the collection like you would a summer's day, 'Tropical Sunset'. This deep red/ orange colour is really bright, and again, reminds me of a lovely cocktail!

I can't tell you how depressing it was writing this, drifting off into a paradise island, with a cocktail in hand to then look out of my bedroom window and see the pouring rain!! Oh well, not long now!

Unfortunately I do not have any swatches of these beautiful colours but I found a blog called Fierce Makeup and Nails which has some good ones on :)

Let me know what you think of the collection.

Leighton Denny Spring Collection 2014

The Summer is finally on it's way! The new Spring collections are coming out in the nail world and it makes me very excited about the summer! Leighton Denny's newest collection is quite bold and bright for the usually nude and pink tones he goes for.

Mirage Or Not

'Mirage Or Not' is the usual nudey tone that you see from Leighton Denny. This one is a warm beige colour and probably the 'safest' in the collection. I think it is a really beautiful nude!

The finish is quite matte unlike the rest of the collection which I like about it.

Bon Voyage!

This coral colour will be seen a lot in Spring 2014. You can't go wrong with a bright pink/ orange in the summer and this is bold and bright. One of my favourites from the collection.

Again, the finish on this colour is matte and cool.

Glamazone

I absoluetly love a green nail paint. It is quite a brave colour to wear on your nails but I think this bluey toned green is so pretty, and I love the name, 'Glamazone'

The finish on this polish is more glittery with gold shimmer running through it. I am not usually a fan of shimmery finishes but I think the gold tone adds to the name 'Glamazone'

Passport To Shine

'Passport to Shine' is such a bright yellow colour which is also another hard one to wear. I find yellow really hard to pull off on my skin tone, but I really wish I could as this colour is so cool! This colour would look good on olive or black skin, as it would really pop.

The finish on this is shimmery again, with silver running through the polish.

Pure Paradise

'Pure Paradise' is a silver shimmery colour that looks as if it would have a textured finish. This would look cool on toes with a nice pair of sandals!

The finish on this polish is glittery and shimmery. 

Reach For The Sky

'Reach For The Sky' is another one of my favourite colours from the collection. I love a blue on a manicure and think this one is a really good shade of sky blue.

The silver shimmer running through it gives the effect of clouds.

My overall impression of the collection is that it is bold, bright and beautiful. I personally would have preferred the whole collection to be matte, but the slight shimmer is what Leighton Denny polishes are known for! What do you think of it?

Caudalie Cleansers

This time last year I only just started using a cleanser as I was completely clueless about the skincare world. Today, I will be telling you how I now use two cleansers in my daily skincare routine. As many of you may know, I love Caudalie and have down lots of posts about their products. Most recently I have been using their cleansers morning and night. Double cleansing is really important, especially at the end of the day after wearing makeup. After initially removing makeup, you would be surprised at how much dirt is still there on your face. Even after removing your makeup, you need to actually cleanse the skin after it has had a layer of makeup taken off if you see what I mean?

The cleansing milk pictured on the left is now in newer packaging similar to the green bottle on the right. The cleansing milk is great at removing makeup, and has a a sweet, light scent to it. It's very gentle on the skin and eyes and feels very moisturising too, like it has a slight oil feel to it. 

The foaming cleanser I was dubious about to start, as I have often found foam quite astringent. This cleanser is not drying at all, and is actually quite moisturising. Most foaming cleansers have a foaming agent in them which is what makes them so drying. With this cleanser, the actual pump is what makes it foam, so the liquid in the bottle is not actually a foam at all. This makes my face feel really really clean, and I often use it with my Konjac Sponge which give it a perfect exfoliation effect. They're a match made in heaven. 

Both cleansers together mean my makeup is removed and my skin is gently cleansed as well. I have had these cleansers for a while and they work really well for my skin. Even when my skin became slightly more oily, the cleansers in unison balanced my skin where it was dryer and also where it was more oily. At this point it is also worth mentioning the moisturising toner. I have a similar view on toners as that of the astringent foam. This toner however also changed my mind, as the name says, it is actually very moisturising.

In the summer when my skin is not as dry, I will use this toner after cleansing just as my night cream. It is a very 'juicy' toner and perfectly damps the skin before moisturising, allowing your moisturiser to go further and helping it soak into the skin. Again, this toner is perfect at balancing the skins natural oil levels and it is very comfortable to wear.

Both Cleansers and the toner are £15.00 which I think is good value for natural products. I think they work well individually but work as a power team altogether.

My First Birchbox Review - January

This year I decided to kick start the new year by treating myself to not only a Glossy Box subscription, but join the Birchbox craze too. As my Glossy Box reviews are usually months late it got me thinking, that maybe the reason for the lateness is that I don't really like the products in Glossy Boxes. I will probably keep both subscriptions for a while then decide to drop one. The first Birchbox for January certainly made a good impression. I think Birchbox deals with more high end products, whereas Glossy Box showcases more up and coming brands. So lets get started and look at each product individually.

Laura Mercier Body Cream

Laura Mercier was one of the products I knew Birchbox, did so when I opened it and saw one was in there I was very pleased. Laura Mercier is a luxurious counter I have admired from afar at work. Their makeup is really good quality and their body creams smell so delicious and can be smelt across the whole shop. My sister got the creme brulee scent for Christmas and I received the Vanilla scent. I think I prefer the creme brulee but this is still delectable. The cream is highly nourishing and dries quickly so you can get dressed again. The smell is really nice and lasts for ages on the skin, like a perfume. This little sample size will last for ages as well as I've hardly dented it!

Philip Kingsley Elasticizer

I have used Elasticizer and reviewed it before here. This pre shampoo treatment is to be left on for 10 - 20 mins to make hair feel revived and less frazzled. It's great for heat damaged or bleached hair.

Del A Rom Face Mask

I had never heard of french brand 'Del a Rom' until now. Having a 10 minute face mask tied in really well with the Elasticizer product meaning you could have a good pamper session! This hydrating mask is a cream consistency, and at first I thought I may have mistaken it for a moisturiser. As the instructions where in French I had to find the product online to realise that it is actually a thick mask, with pomegranate extract which smelt amazing. After 10 minutes, the mask was completely absorbed in the driest areas of my face, and my skin felt so smooth and healthy afterwards. I really liked this product.

Anatomy Nutrients

Having the Laura Mercier cream and this body oil was quite nice as some people prefer different textures. I personally prefer an oil on my legs, and to have a cream in the upper part of my body. I find oil absorbs better into my legs, and allows you to put even jeans on shortly after, and makes your legs feel amazing after shaving. This oil was quite thick but still easily absorbed. I applied this in the morning and my legs were still highly moisturised by the end of the day. This oil had quite an earthy smell to it which I liked. The yummy Laura Mercier smell would be wasted on my legs as I can't smell that far down!

Birchbox Eye Mask

This little Birchbox own product is a cooling eye mask. It's great for cooling eyes and reducing puffiness due to tiredness. This is even better once it has been left in the fridge, for a cool cucumber effect, but without the mess.

Benefit Pore-fessional

The Benefit Pore-fessional is THE product of this box. Birchbox release a spoiler into what the hero product of the box is going to be, and this was the one they were shouting about. Pore-fessional is a pore minimizing primer and can also be used on top of makeup to keep it in place. My past experience of primers has always been a clear gel liquid, but the Pore-fessional had a tan colour to it, meaning it covered up blemishes as well as pores. I don't have too bigger pores but liked the texture of the product on my face. I also used it on top of my makeup and found my makeup stayed put all day quite flawlessly. As large pores aren't my main skin concern I probably wouldn't buy the product, but I very much enjoyed my sample of it.