Essie Fiji

 

 

Hi everyone!

 

First of all I would like to apologise for the lack of posts recently! I have now finished my studies so can devote much more time and attention to my blog again!

 

Essie Fiji

 

Today I applied one of my favourite nail polishes, Essie Fiji which is a gorgeous strawberry milkshake colour. It's fairly easy to apply but is quite thick and can be a little patchy. The polish is fully opaque after two coats which is great. I love this kind of pinky-white colour as it is a great 'go-to' polish and perfect for spring/ summer. It is fairly similar to OPI Mod About You and Butter London Teddy Girl, both of which I own, in my opinion Fiji is the best of the three due to opacity and durability on the nail!

 

Zoya Trixie & OPI Disco Ball Sparkle

 

I also used two coats of Zoya Trixie with OPI Disco Ball Sparkle to create a sparkly, silver accent nail, and finished off with a layer of my favourite top coat, Seche Vite!

 

Maz x

Zoya Neeka Nail Polish - Review & Swatches

Hi Everyone!

This week my nail polish of choice was Neeka by Zoya from the Mirrors collection which is described as a "dusted grape purple with flecks of golden shimmer and sparkle". I love Zoya polishes as they have such great staying power and a pretty unique selection of colours and finishes.

I began by applying 2 coats of OPI Matte Nail Envy as my base followed by 2 coats of Zoya Neeka. This polish applies like a dream and was fully opaque after the first coat. It's also fast drying which is great. I finished off with a layer of Seche Vite Top Coat.

This polish is gorgeous and I haven't seen anything else quite like it. The dusty eggplant colour is gorgeous and the small golden flecks give the polish an extra dimension of colour.

You can purchase this nail polish from eBay for £10.55

Maz x

Zoya Kimber Nail Polish - Review & Swatches

Hi Everyone!

Today I applied one of the new nail polishes from Zoya's Surf collection for Spring/ Summer 2012. Kimber is described as a 'Coral - red with a warm orange - gold shimmer' with a metallic finish.

I began by applying 2 coats of OPI Matte Nail Envy as my base followed by 2 coats of Kimber. The polish is almost opaque after the first coat and fully opaque after the second. It applies smoothly and evenly and dries quickly. I finished off with a coat of Seche Vite top coat.

 

This polish is gorgeous and a love the fiery hot coral - red shade and golden shimmer for summer! The polish is also pretty long wearing too and stayed on my nails for quite a few days without chipping.

Have you tried any of the polishes from the Surf collection? If so, let me know your recommendations/ opinions in the comments section below.

You can purchase Zoya Kimber from Beauty Chamber for £9.75

Maz x

Top Spring/ Summer Nail Polishes

Hi Everyone!

I thought that it would be fun to write a post about my pick of nail polishes for this Spring and Summer, as I did last year (click here to read that post). I went with brights and pastels, so let's get started!

(In no particular order)

1. Essie Van D'Go: This is the perfect peachy shade and was in my pick of polishes for last year. Click here to read my full review

2. Essie She's Picture Perfect: Beautiful lilac shade with an iridescent sheen.

3. Essie Borrowed and Blue: Pale, pastel blue. Click here to read my review.

4. Essie Mint Candy Apple: Gorgeous pastel mint shade.

5. OPI Do You Lilac It? This polish also featured in last year's pick of Spring and Summer nail polishes. It is a perfect lilac shade and is one of my all time favourites from OPI.

6. Nails Inc Portobello: This is a bright, neon orange shade. Click here to read my full review.

7. China Glaze Wicked Style: Bright, watermelon pink shade from the Electropop collection for 2012.

8. Nails Inc Baker Street: This is a bright blue shade that became a bestseller for  Nails Inc after it was seen on Beyonce. Click here to read my review.

9. Zoya Kimber: This is a coral-red shade with a golden shimmer and is from the 2012 Surf collection.

10. Essie Pansy: This is one of my all time favourite polishes and was featured on last year's list. It is a hot pink shade. Click here to read my full review of this polish.

11. OPI Flashbulb Fuchsia: This is a really sophisticated pink shade. Click here to read my full review.

12. Orly Passion Fruit: This is a bright, almost neon matte pink shade.

SWATCHES:

(L to R) Van D'Go, She's Picture Perfect, Borrowed and Blue, Mint Candy Apple, Do You Lilac It?

(L to R) Portobello, Wicked Style, Baker Street, Kimber, Pansy, Flashbulb Fuchsia, Passion Fruit

I hope that you enjoyed reading this post! Please feel free to share your favourite nail polishes for Spring and Summer with me in the comments section below!

Maz x

Top 10 Autumn/ Fall & Winter Nail Polishes

Hi Everyone!

I thought that it would be fun to compile a list of my top 10 nail polishes for Autumn/ Fall and winter. I put a similar list together for Spring and Summer (click to read it) earlier on in the year too. So let's get started with the pictures and swatches!

(L to R) Essie Cocktail Bling, China Glaze Below Deck, Essie Mink Muffs, OPI Black Cherry Chutney, OPI Lincoln Park After Dark

(L to R) China Glaze Ruby Pumps, OPI Diva of Geneva, Zoya Rea, Essie Sexy Divide, Orly Fowl Play

10. Essie Mink Muffs

Just making my top 10 list is Mink Muffs by Essie! It is described as 'smokey plush taupe'. I am not a big fan of this type of colour of polish but I do like this one and it makes a change from the normal colours that I wear!

9. China Glaze Below Deck

China Glaze's Below Deck is a fairly recent addition to my nail polish collection and I really like it. Click here to read my review about this polish.

8. China Glaze Ruby Pumps

As you can see, Ruby Pumps is a red glitter colour and is one of China Glaze's most famous and best selling shades. I think that it is gorgeous and the perfect festive colour for Christmas day!

7. Zoya Rea

Rea is a beautiful, metallic colour that Zoya describe as 'a silvery taupe-kissed, mauve-purple. I think that this polish is my top pick for a new years eve party!

6. Orly Fowl Play

Fowl Play is another fairly recent addition to my collection and it is a stunning and quite unusual polish. Please click here to read my full review.

5. OPI Black Cherry Chutney

Black Cherry Chutney is a classic, deep wine shade that is ideal for this time of year. I recently reviewed this polish so click here to read my blog post.

4. Essie Cocktail Bling

I really love Cocktail Bling as it is a beautiful, icy winter colour that would look great paired up with a glitter top coat for even more bling! Please click here to read my full review of the polish.

3. OPI Diva of Geneva

Diva of Geneva is a rosy, shimmery magenta colour that reminds me of gem stones! It is one of my favourite polishes overall to wear any time of the year and great for a festive party.

2. Essie Sexy Divide

If, like me, your favourite colour is purple then you will absolutely love Sexy Divide from Essie. It is a dark purple but manages to stay a true purple colour without crossing over into the black category!

1. OPI Lincoln Park After Dark

OK so this one may be a little predictable! Lincoln Park After Dark is a very dark purple colour and is one of OPI's best selling shades. This has been my number 1 polish for many years now and I have repurchased it several times.

I hope that you have enjoyed reading about my top 10 Autumn/ Winter nail polishes. Please feel free to share your top polishes with me in the comments section below!

Maz x

Zoya Trixie - Review & Swatch

Hi Everyone!

Today I applied Zoya's Trixie Nail Polish to my nails which is one of their best selling polishes. This polish is truly amazing, it is a metallic silver with a foil finish. It looks amazing on both your finger and toe nails as it really stands out. The foil-like finish gives you the effect of nail wraps but without the tricky application!

First I applied 2 coats of OPI Matte Nail Envy as my base followed by 2 coats of Trixie. The polish applies really nicely and evenly and dries quickly to a solid, streak free finish. It was opaque after 1 coat but I always like to apply 2. I then finished off by applying Seche Vite Fast Drying Top Coat.

I just had to include 3 pictures of this polish because I think that it is truly beautiful! I would definitely recommend this polish if you love that metallic look, it would also look amazing for New Year's Eve too!
I purchased my polish from Tiffany Nail Supply for £9.44.

Maz x

Top 10 Spring & Summer Nail Polishes

Hi Everyone!

I have put a list together for you of my top 10 summer nail polishes! These are the fun, bright colours that I love to wear during the summer when the weather is warm and sunny! However, as I live in the UK the weather can be pretty rubbish even in the middle of summer so these polishes really cheer me up!

10. Zoya Jo: This is the only blue on my list so you know that it must be pretty special! It is a lovely cornflower blue shade with shimmer.

9. Essie Van D'Go: This is a lovely pastel peach shade with a hint of pink.

8. OPI Purple With a Purpose: This is  beautiful amethyst colour that is perfect for any time of the year and is great if you want to wear a darker shade but still want to be summery!

7. Zoya Sweet: This is a pink bubblegum colour with a cream finish.

6. Zoya Happi: Happi is a unique peachy-pink with a hint of gold shimmer.

 5. OPI Do You Lilac It? This is a gorgeous pastel lilac colour.

4. Orly Fancy Fuchsia: This is a really eye-catching hot pink colour that always gets a lot of attention!

3. Butter London Teddy Girl: This is an opaque milky- pink shade.

2. OPI La-Pazitively Hot: As the names suggests this is a hot pink colour and is one of OPI's best selling shades.

1. Essie Pansy: Pansy is one of my favourite nails polishes and definitely my favourite summer polish. It is a gorgeous tropical hot pink shade.

Please share your favourite summer polishes below.

Enjoy the warm weather!

Maz x

Zoya Sweet Nail Polish Review & Swatch

Hi Everyone!

It is my friend's birthday night out tonight so I have changed my nail polish again! I am wearing a purple dress with pink flowers on it tonight so I went for this pretty pink nail polish from Zoya to compliment it. This is such a girly colour that Zoya describes as 'A super-sweet pale shade of bubblegum pink creme'. It has a cream finish and is opaque after 2 coats and applies really well, it also seemed to dry pretty quick too! Here is the swatch. I applied Seche Base followed by 2 coats of Zoya Sweet.

I then added 1 coat of of Leighton Denny's Angel Dust which is a clear top coat containing a gorgeous, subtle sparkle/ shimmer that really brightens up a plain polish!

I purchased my Zoya polish from Tiffany Nail Supply for £9.44 You can also buy it from Amazon here: Zoya Nail Polish .5 oz. Sweet #404 (Cream)
I purchased my Leighton Denny polish from Look Fantastic  for £11.

Maz x

Nail Polish Haul

Hi Everyone!
I thought it would be fun to share my recent nail polish haul with you so let's get started!

Nubar Nail Art Pen in Black: This is a pretty standard black nail art pen and as I want to try my hand at nail art soon I thought that this would be a good place to start!

Nubar Striper Pen in Hologram: I purchased this to use when trying out some nail art designs too but also to use to brighten up French manicure tips. It is a gorgeous silver glitter.

Zoya Nail Polish in Dannii: This is my second bottle of Zoya polish and I loved my other polish (Happi) so much that I decided to purchase I second! Dannii is from the Intimate collection for Spring 2011. This colour is described as a 'Pinked violet with red undertones and gold and ruby shimmer and sparkle'. The reviews of this are amazing and it looks gorgeous! I can't wait to try it ASAP!

Nubar Nail Polish in Violet Sparkle: I saw this polish when I was ordering the 2 nail art pens and loved the look of the colour, it's purple and sparkly as the name suggests! I have never tried any of Nubar's nail polishes before so I am excited to try this!

China Glaze Nail Polish in Below Deck: This polish is from the Spring 2011 Anchor's Away Collection and is a purple-grey shade. I bought this polish as it is supposed to be similar to Sephora by OPI Metro Chic which is a colour that I have always wanted to try but have been unable to as it is not sold in the UK! I have high hopes for this shade! 

OPI Nail Polish in Houston We Have a Purple: This polish looks right up my street! It is from the Spring/ Summer 2011 Texas Collection and I loved how it looked on the nail is a recent QVC OPI program! It is a pinked toned violet.

OPI Nail Polish in You Don't Know Jacques: I have been thinking of getting this colour for ages! I have heard so many good things about it and I have also heard that it has taken the top spot from my beloved Lincoln Park After Dark as OPI's No 1 bestseller! You Don't Know Jacques is from the Couture Couleur La Collection De France and is described as a brown/grey mix and looks super sophisticated! This isn't the type of colour that I'd usually go for but I'm hoping I'll love it as a change from the norm!

Maz x

Zoya Happi - Review & Swatch

Hi Guys!

This week's nails of the week are Happi by Zoya. This polish is from the 2010 Reverie collection. Zoya's official description for this polish is 'Pink metallic duochrome. A frost hint of gold creates a unique peachy-pink.' I definitely agree that this varnish is unique but, to me, it is more more coral and orange with flashes of gold with a hint of pink. It has a stunning metallic finish and is truely beautiful when the light catches it's golden shimmer. This is my first Zoya polish and I was really impressed with it's ease of application. I applied a coat of Seche Base followed by 2 coats of Happi and 1 coat of Seche Vite Top Coat. The polish was more-or-less opaque after these 2 coats but the nail line is still slightly visible. The brush is an ideal length and isn't as wide as the OPI brushes which is better for me as I have quite small, narrow nails.

Overall 3 and a half stars out of 5 from me!

You can purchase this polish here ZOYA Nail Polish .5 oz. Happi #610
Maz x

Nail polish suggestions needed!!!

Hi everyone!

As I have mentioned several times on my blog, I love nail polish and mainly stick to OPI, Essie and Nails Inc with a few Leighton Denny thrown in here and there! I have, however, read on other blogs and magazines and seen on YouTube that Zoya, Illemasqua and Orly also produce great polishes and I would love to try them to see what they are like! I have looked all three brands up online and simply do not know where to start! I would be so grateful if any of you could comment below with some suggestions of great 'must have' polishes from any of these brands so I can give them a go!

Maz x