NOTD - Guardian Angel over Milan

It's very well documented on this blog that I'm not a fan of pink based looks but this combination of colours is the definite exception to the rule.

For this I grabbed two of my untrieds - No. 7 'Milan' which I got through the NPAA christmas secret santa and Glitzology 'Guardian Angel'. Whilst it's not a complicated look, it definitely has the wow factor and would be great to brighten up an office!

Even though Milan has a silver based sparkle and Guardian Angel is gold based, they compliment each other really well. One that I'll definitely be wearing again!

Blog Sale part 2!

Ok guys, some more polishes for sale.

With accordance with the new crack down by Royal Mail on sending polishes through the post, please be aware that if you buy more than four polishes the load will have to be split across two packages so there are only four bottles in each package. Postage costs remain the same - £2.20 for second class, £2.80 for first class. I'm afraid I will only send to the UK now.

All polishes are new/used once or twice unless otherwise stated. The Soap and Glory products are full sized, brand new and have not been opened. Please note that the postage for the Soap and Glory products may be higher than £2.80 due to their weight - I will give you a quote for postage of them depending on what other items are purchased.

Prices are negotiable - so don't be afraid to give me an offer!

Either comment on this blog post or send me an email at nataliejpluck@hotmail.co.uk - thanks!

Accessorize 'Romance' £2.50, Accessorize 'Wyoming' £2.50, Models Own 'Ibiza Mix' £3.50, Nails Inc 'Milan'  £1.50

Left to right: Sally Hansen 'Fairy Teal', Sally Hansen 'Without a Stitch' £1.50 each, Barry M 'Blueberry Icecream', Barry M Pink Glitter £2.50 each.

Sally Hansen 'Teeny Greeny Bikini', Sinful Colours 'Show Me The Way', NYC  'Lights Camera Glitter' £1.50 each

Clean on Me, Smoothie Star Body Milk, Peaches and Clean Cleansing Milk and Hand Food. £5 each.

Models Own 'Emerald City'

Swoon... I am in LOVE with this nail varnish. Move over boyfriend, my heart belongs to Models Own now! I picked up both the Models Own mini sets (Beetlejuice and Glitters) the other week when they were on sale on ASOS.co.uk - £10 for both!

I have to say though, it's not the easiest polish ever to work with! I layered one hand over a dark green (which peeled off almost immediately - in future I'll just do it straight onto my clear base coat) and one on it's own. The colour difference in the end was minimal but the layered hand took one coat less polish so if you're trying to cut down on the amount of Emerald City you use then this may be a solution. I suspect as well that a base colour that wasn't bought for £1 would work better too... 

However as you can see the glitter effect is totally worth it, and this polish is better than I ever hoped it would be. Admittedly, I'd prefer it a tiny bit more if it was a more grass green but the sparkles win me over totally!

Mm, lovely. Can't wait to try out Scarlett Sparkle and Bluebell!

Nail of the Week - Glitter gradient

I love this look, it's so simple and easy that anyone can do it. All you need is your nail varnishes! I used a base coat/top coat from Barry M, No. 17 Fast Finish in 'Moonstruck' and Models Own Glitter in 'Juicy Jules' (now possible one of my favourite nail varnishes out of my collection!). 'Moonstruck' is a lovely chrome silver and 'Juicy Jules' is a small glittery holochromatic white/iridescent polish.

The inspiration for this look came from various places; I've seen it done a lot recently on blogs and since my first attempt many months ago was so terrible I wanted to see if I could do it better. Secondly, I was in town today looking specifically for a silver chrome nail varnish and when I saw the new Models Own stand in my local Boots had buy one get one half price on nail varnishes, I couldn't resist 'Juicy Jules' to go with it. For my second nail varnish I picked up one that's been on my lust list since I found out about it and I can't wait to play with it - Yep, the Models Own Hed Kandi 'Ibiza Mix'. Eee! I'll do a post with that soon, trust me!

Anyway, on with the pictures. I'm afraid they really don't do the finished nails any justice, I was hoping for sun so I could get some sparkly pictures but alas it's been rainy and overcast all day. If it's nicer tomorrow I'll take some better pictures and update this post. Better pictures at the bottom which actually show you the glittery gradient!

It's so easy to do. All I did was a base coat in 'Moonstruck', then I painted a (thick with polish) line across the top of my nail in 'Juicy Jules' and wipe the excess polish off onto the inside of the bottle. Then I dragged the line down a bit so that it faded out and there was more polish at the top than the bottom. Wait for it to dry and whack a top coat on to smooth it out and voila! Beautiful, shimmery nails.

'Juicy Jules' would look fantastic over pretty much any colour, and I can't wait til Christmas turns up so I can layer it over icy blues and reds and greens! I think 'Moonstruck' would work really well for water marbling, which is something else I plan to try. What do you think?

Updated pictures:

These photos show rather better the act of gradienting the glitter and how it's done. They also show the massive amount of tip wear and chipping on my thumb and index finger - I'm fairly disappointed with that but it's so easy to fix that if I can be bothered I can restore my nails in no time!