My Winter Polish Picks

Do you sense a theme? I'm completely obsessed with what I've been calling the winter "neutrals" - I'm talking those browns, washed out metallics, greys and the pinky-purpley neutrals that are super pretty (especially when topped off with a sparkly topcoat). They're definitely not nude nail shades but they're all those sorts of shades that work with with any outfit and party makeup look. I am really not one of those girls who'll change her polish just to suit her lipstick, I'm all about the easy-to-wear, goes-with-anything shades that I can rock all week long. I've shared my top five picks (pictured left to right):

Seventeen's Glitter Polish in Gold*

OPI's Nail Lacquer in San-Tan Tonio*

Nails Inc Kate Spade Nail Polish in Uptown Glamour

Barry M Gelly Hi Shine Polish in Almond

Barry M Nail Paint in Rose Quartz Glitter

What nail polishes are you loving at the moment?

Deborah Lippmann Polish in 'Flowers in Her Hair'

It might still be a bit of grey and gloomy outside but spring has officially sprung on my nails! I was very kindly sent one of the Deborah Lippmann polishes from their spring collection called 'Flowers in Her Hair'* and it has sent me into a pastel reverie. It's a very light green shade with just a touch of blue to it and it has a gorgeous glossy finish. I had to layer it up (my swatches show three layers) but I think to achieve the best finish four might have been best. However, the polish dries quickly and I had no problems with streaking or smudging. When it's time for sandal weather here in the UK I'm going to be lacquering up with this over and over again. For me, 'Flowers in Her Hair' is just the perfect spring shade and you can find it on LookFantastic for £16* with free world-wide delivery.

If you're looking to make a transition into spring shades I'd highly recommend Deborah Lippmann's nail polishes, they're wonderful quality and the bottles look really adorable and dinky among any polish collection. There are other gorgeous colours too - another one which has caught my eye is 'Build Me Up Buttercup', a gorgeous milky, pastel yellow which you can find here.

What spring polishes are on your radar?

NOTD: Barry M. Textured Nail Paint in Atlantic Road

(left: two layers  right: one layer)

I picked this nail polish up last Friday and was really excited by the idea of a 'textured' finish. I didn't really know what to expect, I'd seen swatches of Nail Inc.'s 'Concrete' effect polishes and I think the Barry M finish is very, very similar. The finish is matte and it feels a bit like sand has been mixed in with the polish. I went through a little bit of a love-hate relationship with this at first but I've decided (mainly due to how well it's worn) that I really do like this textured effect. I applied this on Friday and I didn't see a single chip for four days. FOUR DAYS. On my nails this is good, and for a nail polish that costs £3.99 this is absolutely stand-out value. It's also worth noting that even after the initial chip (which I think was probably my fault) I only really saw reasonable tip wear, not much further chipping. The colour is also really gorgeous, very delicate and girly but doesn't wash me out. I'm really impressed and once I've had a chance to wear and review the two Gelly polishes I've picked up I'll definitely be going back to pick another one of these polishes up. They're great if you know you've got a busy week ahead and they're a lovely alternative to glossy nails. 

You can find Barry M.'s Textured Nail Polishes for £3.99 in Superdrug or Boots stores or online here.

Have you tried any of Barry M.'s new nail polishes?

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NOTD: Nails Inc 'Shoreditch'

This month I've doing a No-Foundation Challenge and the result has been that the make up I am wearing has been a lot brighter than normal (trying to compensate I suppose!) This nail polish from Nails Inc is an absolutely gorgeous pink shade, it's called 'Shoreditch' which is described on the Nails Inc website as a classic hot pink.

Applying it is really easy as the brush is quite thin so it lets you precisely apply the polish. Initially it is quite sheer but it layers up really well and is mainly opaque after 2 layers and completely opaque after 3. On the nail you could probably get away with 2 layers but 3 definitely looks better. The finish is really quite shiny too which I liked, the swatches below don't have any top-coat on them so you can see what I mean.

The formula of Nails Inc polishes always seems to be lovely and this one is no exception. The colour is gorgeous and I think it is something I will be wearing through Spring into Summer so to me that justifies the  £11 price tag! 

What shade of nail polish have you been loving this month?

Angelica

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BAD APPLE COSMETICS: Nail Polish in shades 001Q (Russet) and 001R

Last weekend I attended the BloggersXmas Event (which I really do need to do a post on!) and while I was there I had the pleasure of being introduced to Bad Apple Cosmetics and their range of amazing nail polishes and nail wraps. I was also lucky enough to take away two of their nail polishes from the event in two amazing shades, neither of which I own anything similar to so I was very excited to try them out.

Nail Polish in 001Q* (left), Nail Polish in 001R* (right)

These nail polishes layer up gorgeously and although they take three layers to really look their best but they dry really quickly so there is no gloopiness or smudging and painting your nails won't take ages. I personally love the formula of these polishes as they're really easy to apply and the finished effect is really high quality with the colour catching the light beautifully. The grey shade (001R) is closer to a colour I might normally go for but the final pigmentation of it when it is layered up is a lot more attractive than any of the other grey nail polishes I own. I can see this shade in particular being a staple of mine- also in daylight it transforms into a lovely deep purple so its really lovely and versatile. As for the green-er shade (001Q) although this isn't something that I would normally pick up I really adore how it looks on the nail. It is a lovely take on a shade that I'd normally find a little daunting to wear. It is very multi-tonal in daylight and looks a lot more bottle green in the evening. 

All in all I would highly recommend these nail polishes for their quality and ease of application- I'm incredibly keen to try some of their more conventional shades (their bright reds and pinks look gorgeous)! The brand itself is really cool  and new and I love their logo which you can see on the bottle. These polishes retail for £9.95* and are available on the Bad Apple Cosmetics website  but at the moment there is currently 30% of nail polishes so you can nab yourself a bottle for just £6.95 which I think is incredibly good value for such a lovely nail polish.

Have you tried any of Bad Apple's nail polishes or nail wraps? 

Angelica

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NOTD: Model's Own 'Red n Black' and 'Thunder & Lightning'

I picked these two nail varnishes up ages ago during the Model's Own 50% off sale (how time flies!) and hadn't really gotten around to wearing them yet due to an excessive splurge on Essie polishes. However, over the last couple of weeks I've really been loving the two of these together so I thought I'd just quickly show you how they look.

So I've been wearing two layers of 'Red n Black' with one layer of 'Thunder & Lightening' over the top. 'Thunder & Lightening' is one of my favourite nail polishes at the moment as it really catches the light beautifully, but you definitely need to layer it over a polish as it is quite a sheer grey tone. It looks better over darker polishes (I've tried it over white and pastel pink and it didn't look great) and I love how it looks over 'Red n Black' although I will probably update this when I layer it over a grey/metallic to show you if it looks even better like that.

Anyway, the middle nail is how I've been wearing my nails lately- dark purple-y/black with a slight glitter. The photos doesn't really show how gorgeously the glitter catches the light but I would definitely recommend 'Thunder & Lightening'! It also looks equally nice over a navy blue (I tried it with the navy Nails Inc polish that was a magazine freebie last month). Both polishes (as with all the Model's Own polishes that I have tired) applied really easily and evenly and dried quite quickly, a lot quicker than the Barry M polish I just bought which has been driving me insane by drying so slowly! 

How have you been doing your nails lately? 

Angelica

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