Something for the weekend.

The uh-mazing weather of the last week seems to have done a runner just in time for the weekend - boo! - but I'm determined to keep a little summer at my fingertips. I'm really pleased with how this mani turned out and am especially in love with the ladybirds (inspired by Le Smurf's lovely comment yesterday.)

Now, I can't claim that I'm the first person ever to think of painting several ladybirds (or, indeed, outlined primroses) on a nail, but they're certainly not something I've come across before on my extensive travels around the Interwebs.

As it's difficult to come up with original ideas for nail art, I always appreciate your mentioning where your inspiration came from and a link back if you decide to try any similar designs as a result of my posts :)

I'll leave you with a close-up of the left hand - I'd love to know what you think!

Base colours used (from thumb to little finger):
Rimmel 60 Seconds Blue My Mind
Rimmel I Love Lasting Finish Fast & Fuchsia
Rimmel I Love Lasting Finish Hot Shot
Rimmel I Love Lasting Finish Hot & Spicy
Rimmel I Love Fruities Lasting Finish Lemon Drop

Talon-tastic Thursday: Pink 'n' black mix

Today for your viewing pleasure I thought I'd give you a goo at my sister's nails; I painted them for her when she visited us a couple of weeks ago. She's a committed fan of the French manicure so I was pretty surprised that she let me do this instead of her usual white tips (although I think my suggestion of including Hello Kitty on her painted digits probably sweetened the deal.)

Phrases like "my nails look so cool!" were being thrown around for several days afterwards.

I think she liked them.

In which Talon-tastic Thursday spots a disturbing trend.

The blogosphere has been abuzz with excitement this week about Nail Inc's line of Nail Jewellery polishes, a quartet of glittery affairs set to launch in April. I'm a bit nonplussed by them, to be honest. The secret to classy glitter (honestly, there is such a thing!) is to use it sparingly, possibly layered over a neutral or dark base colour, and that's exactly how Nails Inc are marketing these new additions. And yes, I know the glitter's multi-sized but I still don't feel these are sufficiently unique to warrant my hard earned.

I'll be having a rummage in my glitter drawer (mortifyingly, there is such a thing) and keeping my €16.50/£11 tucked firmly into my Hello Kitty wallet, thankyouvermuch.

Anyway, while other people have been delighting in Nails Inc not reinventing the wheel, I've been noticing something very worrying indeed. (You may need to sit down for this.)

Actual nail jewellery appears to be making a comeback. 

The examples above were spotted in Miss Selfridge (left, £6.50/€9) and Topshop (right, £6.50/no Euro price available.) Like the current fascination with neon and tribal, I'm blaming the '90s for the resurgence of these abominations. (I'll know the timewarp is complete when I start seeing - shudder - nail piercings In Real Life.) I get that they're supposed to be street and cool and maybe a bit ghetto fabulous, but while I'm usually a more is more kind of girl the nail ring/piercing is one accessory too far for me.

Now this, on the other hand - this is nail jewellery done right. This, I would totally wear.

What do you think of this whole nail jewellery business? Love it? Loathe it? Let me know in a comment!


{image source}

Skirtgate: A cry for help

A couple of weeks ago I bought this skirt in Oasis and I love it - pleated! Pastel! SO pretty! - but I suspect that I'm not really doing it justice when I wear it. Observe...

Yeah, I don't think Olivia Palermo is quaking in her Manolos with fear that I'm about to overtake her in the style stakes either. The worst thing is that I only really started to feel that this ensemble didn't hang well together when I went out.

That's right: I left the house and went out among other people looking like this today.

Donning my navy winter coat - beneath which a good 3" of skirt could be seen - surprisingly didn't improve things.

The skirt needs to be taken up so that it's not hitting me bang on the knee, where it makes me look (a) very strangely proportioned and (b) like my old Speech & Drama teacher. Other than that, I'm not sure what to wear with it. I thought the black tights and the trainers would be a bit cooler than ballet/dolly flats and keep it from looking too prissy, but actually they just made me look slightly bonkers - and not in a good way - or like I'd gotten lost on my way to work in an office where I keep a stash of proper shoes under my desk. And while I like the colour of the lemon top with the skirt, I feel that there's something a bit too cotton-y and basic about it.

I'm way out of my jeans-loving depth on this one. Even Polyvore-ing my little heart out and creating virtual styleboards to try and see what I might put with it's not really helping. 

This is as far as I've gotten, which is not very far at all since I dress from the feet up but you can sort of see the directions I'm thinking of taking. I'm not sure whether to toughen it up with black and studs and chunkiness or play up its girliness and team it with silver (or, er, use it as an excuse to get shoes with skulls on them.)

I'd love to hear any suggestions you might have to help me style my skirt!

London Treatment Review: SPA Pedicure at Nail Studio, Finchley Road

We've been in London for just over a year now, and in that time I've probably had more pedicures than I'd had in my life prior to the move. The weather is significantly drier and warmer than I'm used to which sounds lovely, but it meant that my toes, my Most Disliked Body Parts, were on display day in, day out all last summer.

Since you can't move in London without tripping over a nail bar and many operate on a walk-in basis, charging about £20 for a 45-minute feet treat, my coping mechanism was to stop in for a pedicure when my feet just got too fugly to bear.

It may only be March but temperatures here are seriously on the up - it hit 17°C in the city last week and is to get up to 16°C today - so on Thursday I took myself off to Nail Studio between Finchley Road tube station and the O2 Centre for my first pedicure of the season. 

I've passed the place several times and liked the look of it, and in contrast with two nearby nail bars it is always, always busy.

First impressions were good: five manicure zones, three proper pedicure chairs, two big flatscreen TVs and plenty of polish stations heaving with bottles of classic and new OPI shades (including a load of glitters which pleased me greatly but is actually something you don't see all that much in salons.)

After only a little bit of dithering, I opted for Siberian Nights, a deep blackberry-ish purple creme, with a topping of the glitter party that is Show It And Glow It.

My very nice therapist (not too chatty, either with me or the other staff - I frickin' hate having a treatment where I'm made to feel like I'm getting in the way of a good natter) filed my nails and sorted out my cuticles before treating my hooves to a little jacuzzi bath, exfoliation, and foot and lower leg massage before getting down to the business of painting the nails perfectly. So far, so bog standard, you might think, but my final pedicure of last year fell at the final hurdle when the therapist made a right hash of the painting end of things - getting it all over my sidewalls and cuticles, not capping the free edge with polish to prevent chipping, leaving uneven borders of bare nail at the side edges - so I appreciate it when someone really takes care to get it right.

Had I not been so busy watching music videos while she worked, I'd probably have asked my therapist to pay a bit more attention to the hard skin on my big toes, since I discovered when I got home that they weren't as silky smooth as I'd expect. That's my only gripe, and since I don't think there would have been any issue with my asking her to go at them again I would be happy to go back.

The SPA Pedicure at Nail Studio costs £23. See nailstudios.co.uk for salon info and full treatment/price list.

My Paddy's Day Nails (WARNING: nail art heavy!)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

For this year's paint job, I wanted to steer clear of the traditional and do something a little bit different, so I focused on aspects of Irishness that have a particular resonance for me (a brief guide to each nail is included for visitors to the site from outside the motherland.)

I started with a basic green Skittles/ombre manicure in forty five shades of green...

... and then got busy with some nail art pens.

You may already have seen my left hand doing the rounds on Twitter.

Thumb: A twist on the "I ❤ NY" slogan, using the pronunciation rather than the actual spelling of the Irish word tae (tea). I am very fond of a cupán tae.
Index:   I've always quite liked snakes, so thanks for nothing, St. Patrick. (Legend has it he drove them out of Ireland, probably in the back of a Hiace van.)
Middle:  Every time an American refers to the Irish patron saint as "Patty", a kitten, bunny rabbit, and puppy dog die. FACT. 
Ring:    I'm pretty sure there's a law against Irish-themed manicures that don't somehow feature Guinness.
Little:   BOSCO! Asexual puppet, blusher aficionado, and Irish kid's TV hero of the '80s. I still have a Bosco mug AND my very own actual Bosco puppet.

And now, without further ado, here's the right hand. BOOM.

Little:    Mr. Tayto, mascot/"man" behind the actual best Irish crisps ever.
Index:   Bass beer was popular in the '60s, '70s, and 80's. If someone tells you something is "Bass" (pronounced "baaas", rather than "base"), that's a good thing. (See also: deadly/savage.) Ah... that's Bass!
Middle:  The word "janey" is a regional colloquialism that can be deployed as an expression of surprise, annoyance, disgust, euphoria etc. Derivatives include "janey mack" and "janey mackers"; synonyms include "well holy God says Miley" and "jaypers".
Index:   One of the Jedwards. When the results of Beaut.ie's annual poll rating the best of Irish manhood were released this morning and Jedward took the honours, I had to redo this nail in tribute.
Little:   Love hurling. (The "O" is a sliotar, the white and black leather ball used in the game).

Hope you like them - have a great weekend!

Nailing it for St. Patrick's Day

I'll be showing you my Paddy's Day nails tomorrow - both hands! - but for anyone in need of some inspiration right now, here's a quick round-up of some of my favourite easy to DIY green manicures from around the web.

GREEN & GOLD...

EMERALD BLING...

AND ONE SPARKLE-FREE EXAMPLE...

For anyone itching to do some simple Paddy's Day nail art, why not break out the shamrocks? They're not that much more difficult than polka dots or hearts, really.

Just use a dotting tool, the nib of a ballpoint pen, hairclip or toothpick to dot on three leaves and a stem in the colour of your choice. 

{my Paddy's Day nails from last year} 

What will you be wearing for the day that's in it?

Oh, and for any American readers: yes, it is Paddy. No, not Patty. Ever. See here if you need convincing, and then please spread the word!


{Image sources: 1. The West Street Journal; 2. Elanor's Nails; 3. Like Mam Used To Bake via Instagram; 4. 365 Days Of Nail Art; 5. Nails by Catharina; 6. Flouncy Skirts; 7. Zooey Deschanel via Instagram}

Trend spot: Fitted floral skirts

Your woman above looks like she's in need of a trip to the loo or some ladypain killers STAT, but since the point of this post is actually her skirt rather than her debilitating cramps I'll get back on topic by telling you that it's from Penneys (Primark for UK readers) and costs €11.

Yes. ELEVEN QUID.

Bold and tropical floral prints are all over the shop at the moment but as it's unlikely they'll be around for more than a season, it makes sense to save rather than splurge on this particular trend. I've seen very similar pencil skirts in Zara for around the £30 mark and the example sported by the ever-stylish Emily below is a $325 Elizabeth & James number, so the Penneys/Primark option is definitely a good 'un if price is your primary consideration.

{image credit & source: Cupcakes & Cashmere}

I'm very tempted.

Talon-tastic Thursday: Vintage Bling

Obsessed, so I am, with the twinkly gorgeousness of Ciate Jewel. I flagged it as one to watch in a feature for Your Nails magazine which I filed at the start of January (*cough* months before Adele wore it *cough*) and I've since been wearing it alone, over contrasting and coordinating base colours, on all fingers, all toes, as an accent nail...

In the immortal lyrics of Depeche Mode, I just can't get enough.

Here I'm wearing two thin coats of Jewel over Ciate Sugar Plum, a spring-tacular lavender pastel that contains just the right amount of pigment to prevent it from looking insipid, with Models Own Grace Green and L.A. Colors Sassy Sparkle doing the honours on the ring finger.

It's a spring-y, bling-y look that has a palpable vintage vibe thanks to the not-too-saccharine-despite-the-name Sugar Plum and Grace Green's faintly dusty quality.

Do we like?

Stockist info 
Ciate polishes can be bought direct from the brand's Irish or UK sites; Models Own polishes are available in selected Boots stores and clothing retailers, including River Island and Urban Outfitters, and online from ASOS and their own website. I pick up L.A. Colors polishes in London at Beauty Bay in Westfield.

Vichy Normaderm Hydrating Care: It's Tri-Activ, Jim, but not as we know it

I'm a big fan of Vichy's excellent Normaderm range for keeping my sensitive, dehydrated, oily skin in check, so a new product release from the range is guaranteed to pique my interest. This time around, it's a moisturiser that's being added to the line-up: Normaderm Hydrating Care for imperfection prone skin. With the science of 4 patents behind it, Hydrating Care targets blemishes, clogged pores, oily skin, shine, imperfection marks, and uneven complexion problems while providing 24-hour hydration and a mattifying effect.

This do-it-all triple action is achieved by combining:

1. Dermatological peeling ingredients acting on different levels in the skin
in the form of LHA (on the surface) + salicylic acid (in the pores) + glycolic acid (deep down)

2. 5% hydrating ingredients that add and lock in moisture to thirsty skin
in the form of 7% glycerine + light and emollient oils

3. Mattifying ingredients
in the form of perlite + silica

While this all sounds wonderful for skin like mine that's oil rich but water poor, my first thought on seeing it was that Normaderm Hydrating Care looked and sounded pretty much identical to Normaderm Tri-Activ Anti-Imperfection Hydrating Care, which launched in September 2010.

So I got in touch with Vichy and asked them about it.

It turns out that the new Hydrating Care isn't a totally new product per se, but is actually a reformulated, rejigged version of Tri-Activ and will be replacing it on the shelves.

Efficacy has been improved, I'm told, and the 5% of hydrating ingredients are new, but the big difference is in the texture.

Vichy have removed the silicone, which some people found created a delightful balling or peeling off effect, and also the starch which gave the original formula a heavier texture; these have been replaced with perlite and silica as the mattifying agents. In their own words, it's all about improved sensoriality and, apparently, the new and improved Hydrating Care will have a much lighter feel and dry to a really nice finish.

I haven't trialled it yet, but if you found that the original Tri-Activ formula made a balls of your foundation or wasn't quite hydrating enough for your skin's needs then this would definitely be worth a punt - and it's a little bit cheaper, too, at €15.75.

Talon-tastic Thursday: SPLAT.

You could, of course, use any colour your little heart desires to create these splatter effect nails, but I opted for some so-hot-this-season pastels since it's still too cold to break them out of my wardrobe. The green and purple look quite like Dior's limited edition Waterlily and Forget-Me-Not polishes, I think, and the whole thing feels perfectly spring-y.

Pretty much all you need to DIY this manicure is three nail polishes, some straws, and a bit of puff (not the botanical variety), but you can always check out my blow-by-blow (pun entirely intended) tutorial over on Beaut.ie for a more detailed how to.

Colours used:
Rimmel I Love Fruities Lasting Finish Lemon Drop
Rimmel Lycra Pro Peppermint
L.A. Colors Fun In The Sun

Shameless plug: Closet clearout.

I'm on a one-woman decluttering mission at the moment, and my wardrobe hasn't escaped the spring cleaning tide. Since I'm feeling a bit stoney and have always quite liked the idea of having a shop, I've decided to put some of my stuff on fleaBay.

All garments are sizes 6-8 and I'll be combining postage for multiple purchases.

Oh, and most of the listings are ending today so best get your skates on if you fancy a virtual nose through my clothes!

And this is where I live.

It's ages since I've done any interiors/decorating posts, so I thought I'd ease back into them with a little kinda sorta tour of our own flah. I now understand why vignettes are so popular with online house tours: ok, so they cause scornful readers on Apartment Therapy to fill the comments box with vitriol, but damn are they easier than actually tidying the place up before photographing it! No accidental snaps of knickers drying on the radiators here!

(I hope.)

 

 

{sitting room feat. puppehs & kitchen}

{guest loo/National Geographic holding room}

 

{bedroom feat. a small bear & possible bringback Penneys wedges}

 

{camellias & snowdrops in the garden}