Skinfood - Good Afternoon Apple Cinnamon Tea BB Cream

This is my fourth post on this particular Skin Food collection of BB Creams.  I've already purchased and blogged about 3 of the Good Afternoon collection, if you click their names you can see the posts on them here; Lemon Rose Tea, Peach Green Tea and Honey Black Tea. 

 

Originally I went looking on eBay for another tube of the Lemon Rose because I absolutely love it but it seems to be very hard to find, I'm guessing the stock has run out as this isn't a new collection.

 

While I was looking I decided that since I really liked the three I have already so much I should try out the others in the range, Apple Cinnamon is the first of them.

 

 

Apple and Cinnamon is the 'whitening' BB cream in the range which sounds a bit worrying, but on further investigation it's described like this:

 

A brightening BB Cream that re-illuminates skin with apple extract and detoxifies impurities with cinnamon, promoting a more even and brighter skin tone. With SPF 36.

 

Which sounds a lot less Michael Jackson skin whitening disaster and more bright, glowing skin which is really the effect I'd rather have. ;)

 

 

 The cream has a lovely smooth and very creamy texture, it applies evenly to the skin without any effort at all.  I chose Shade 1 in this BB cream as it's the one I wear most of the time, Shade 2 does me on holiday when I have a tan but that's rare!  Shade 1 is light but suits my skin well, if you have more olive or darker skin then I would definitely say to try the darker Shade 2, although 1 is idea for me I am quite pale generally so it won't suit everyone.

   The smell of the product is OK, it's vaguely medicinal - I think anyway, you may disagree - and not particularly apple and cinnamon scented as you might expect from the name.  It's not unpleasant but I wouldn't rave about it and it's not as nice or strong as some of the others in the range.

 

 On the skin this feels a little different to the other BB creams from the collection, it was a touch more oily feeling when I applied it to my face, certainly more so than the Peach Green Tea version which is the one I have been wearing most recently.  Despite that it doesn't look too different on my face than the others, it's a light to medium coverage so defintiely not great for trying to cover problem skin but good for a little boost if you dpn't want or like the look of full coverage foundation.  It blends well and leaves my skin looking brighter and more even in tone.

I bought this product from f2plus1 on eBay and I have to say I am super impressed. It arrived in a week (7 days - ordered on day 1, received on day 7) and came well packaged.  All of the BB creams are priced at around £5 and many sellers offer free P&P which makes it a bit of a bargain.  Obviously there are a lot of dodgy sellers on eBay and you do have to be careful but I have no qualms in recommending f2plus1 if you are after this product as I thought their service was great.

Overall a very pleasing purchase, I really like the Good Afternoon range and Apple Cinnamon is no exception, if you're in the market for a new BB cream then definitely check them out.

Berry Berry Tea is the final of the 5 BB Creams in this range, I've also ordered it so look out for a post on it very soon.

 

 

Gymnastics World Cup 2013

I posted about my Gymnastics World Cup Nails last year after I went to watch in 2012 and this year, back at the start of December, I went back with the same friend to show our support again.  The design I used was similar but not quite the same, patriotic nails seemed the way to go.

 

 

The red and blue nails are both from the Kiko Sugar Mat Gift Set I got at the start of December, the gold is a No7 glitter called Sun Rays which there isn't very much about online although you can buy it on the Boots website, it gorgeous so grab a bottle if you see it.  The two white nails are Barry M polish and then water decals which I got ages ago from eBay

 

Here they are with the gymnasts in the background, and if you squint you can make out Beth Tweedle on the right hand side wearing her smart dress and Ugg boots while presenting for TV.

 

 

Merry Christmas!

First, an admission, these probably won't be my actual Christmas nails.  I'm hoping to have time to change them once more on Christmas Eve but with time so short at this time of year I decided to cheat and schedule this post in advance (writing it on Christmas Eve morning), so these are actually the nails I have on pre-Christmas.

 

They are quite fitting for Christmas nails though, what says Christmas more than Rudolph, Santa and a penguin dancing around a Christmas tree?

 

 

The base is Kiko 442 Techno Black, a gorgeous black base filled full of tiny holographic glitter particles, it's hard to capture the sparkle in photos but in real life they are super sparkly.

 

Then over the top a selection of smiley Christmas figure stickers to add an extra festive touch, I can't help but sing Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree when I look at these, those guys are definitely at a party having a good old dance to themselves.

 

All that's left to say is MERRY CHRISTMAS!  I hope you're all having a good one, I'll be back to update about my Christmas haul and nails over the festive season, as well as a few non-Christmas related posts which I've schedule to appear while I'm off having fun.

 

Christmas Nail Fail

On two counts, firstly I obviously didn't manage to post every second day since saying I would and secondly now that I am posting it's to show you some rather poor stamping, double Christmas Nail Fail, oh dear.  In my defence I have been SO busy organising for the big day.

 

I decided I wanted plain white nails with a little shimmer so I used Barry M white and then a top coat of Kiko 205 from their French Manicure range which is a milky sheer polish with very fine gold glitter through it, ideal for a sparkly shimmery base.

 

On top of that I decided to stamp some holly, which is where things started to go wrong...

 

 

I used Barry M Watermelon and Blood Orange for the stamping, I filled the outline in with a nail art brush.  My first annoyance is the placement of the holly, it just didn't look right.  The second annoyance is the smeared colour, caused by me stamping once then trying to wipe it off so I could have another go - not my finest moment.

 

I like the idea of these nails but in reality they just didn't turn out how I had hoped, if I hadn't been so busy I would have tried again but time is short at the moment so I left them and now I'm showing them to you lot, rather than skip another blog post!

 

More Snowflakes

First of all, apologies for the lack of posts recently.  I have been doing daily posts for over a year now but I'm struggling to keep up with that at the moment and trying to is rather sucking the joy out of the whole experience. 

 

I don't make any profit from blogging and I'm not one of those bloggers lucky enough to be sent loads of goodies to compensate for the hours it takes to post daily, so for the foreseeable future I am going to be dropping down to posting every second day that way I should easily be able to keep on top of the posts and still enjoy doing it rather than it seeming like a chore.

 

Anyway, on to the nails!

 

 

I used a base of Kiko, a light blue shade I can't currently remember the number of, and then over the top I added a holographic glitter top coat and a layer of Nubar Polka Dots in white to give a sparkly snow sort effect to the base.

 

Then I added snowflake stamps using a variety of stamping plates and Barry M Silver Foil nail polish, some of them single snowflakes and others a full nail design to give a bit of variety.

 

Here's a quick picture of the plates:

 

 

Christmas Puddings!

 

Another Christmas themed manicure this week, this time some Christmas pudding nails.  I've seen loads of these online so I really wanted to have a go myself.

 

I used Kiko 374, a deep sparkly brown, as the base and then my usual stamping white, a nail art pen, and Bundle Monster plate BM-301 to create the icing portion of the pudding.  I think the stamp is supposed to be a sort of sponged gradient effect but I think it works rather well as icing sugar.

 

I added the finishing touch of some holly with China Glaze Running in Circles for the leaves and Kiko 238 for the berries.  They're not quite as neat as I'd like but I think the overall effect is not too bad, especially from a bit further away which is how you tend to see them in real life.

Candy Canes - Take 2!

I did Candy Cane nails last year and was pretty pleased with how they turned out so I decided to try again this year, I used a slightly different stamp for the stripes and a different base red colour and I think they turned out even better than last year's.  Which is why I have had them on for three days!

 

 

I used Bundles Monster plate BM-423 which is part of the Create Your Own collection for the stripes and then HD10 for the candy cane stamp, the base is Kiko 238.  As usual I used a nail art pen for the white stamping polish as it's a bit thicker than regular polish and I like the effect it gives.

 

 

I really like the stripes, I think they look more candy cane than last years larger solid stripes, they also give a great effect in real life, loads of people have commented on them and asked if they were nail wraps.

 

Last year I had a sparkly glitter base colour but I actually think this manicure works better with just a flat cream under the white as it gives better contrast.

 

I really loved these nails, so much so I didn't want to take them off so they survived a whole weekend and I still have them on today!

 

Santa's Abdomen

After I painted this design on my nails I asked my partner what he thought they were - I do this quite often to see if things look like they are meant to and also to hear his often amusing guesses - his answer this time was 'Santa's Abdomen', which is technically true but a little literal, I was aiming more for Santa's Jackets. :)

 

 

You may remember I did these nails last year too, this year's attempt is slightly more refined but still not perfect enough for me to be happy with them, I really am rubbish at freehand nail art which is a constant source of irritation to me.

 

Saying that, I don't think they look too bad and I've had quite a few positive comments on them which is always nice.  This time around I used the same base of Scarlet Sparkle but I used a fine brush and the polish from some nail art pens to do the fur trim and belt which made it slightly neater but not much, again the buckle was Barry M Gold Foil.



Models Own - Scarlet Sparkle

I posted the other day about my Top 10 Festive Nail Essentials and mentioned this polish, it really is one of my favourite reds for Christmas time so I figured it was about time it made it's debut for this year's festive manicure season.

 

 

It really is the perfect Christmas red, although that doesn't mean you shouldn't wear it all year round, the base is a red gelly packed full of red glitter particles.  It's super shiny and the tinted gelly base means you don't have any issues with your nail showing through under the glitter.

 

You can get away without a base colour but I quite like to do a red base first and then a couple of coats of the gorgeous red glitter over the top, I used Kiko 238 under this manicure and then added two coats of Models Own over the top. 

 

The pictures really don't so this polish justice, in real life it really glows and sparkles, a bit like Dorothy's Ruby Red Slippers might.

 

Christmas Bunting!

You might remember several months ago I ordered some cotton to make bunting with, then I posted an update about how I was getting along, today I have the big reveal post!  It's done, well, almost done, I have a couple of triangles still to do so I can make a second string but I am waiting on some lovely people sending me a little more cotton as I ran out at the last minute.

Once the triangles are all crocheted up they need to be blocked so they hold their shape, and look more like actual triangles than the curved edge triangles they are when you crochet them.  I blocked mine by securing them onto an old bath mat with some little pins. 

 I held an iron just above them and blasted them with steam and then left them to dry off and cool down so that they would hold their shape.

Then it's just a case of taking them off and laying them out ready to be strung together, as you can see I am two triangles short of two sets of 7 triangle bunting.  You can also see that some of my triangles are a bit smaller than other, next time I think I should measure as I pin them because some got more stretched out than others.

The final stage before hanging is to attach all the triangles together, I did this by creating a chain to start and then slip stitching into each of the triangles right along the top edge, then some more chain stitches in between and at the other end so I had something to use to hang it up.

I'm quite pleased with how it's turned out, it definitely does look like bunting which is a big bonus, unfortunately by the time I was done the light had gone so the pictures are a little dull looking, it's more festive in natural light, I promise.

I found this a relatively simple project to do and it's made me want to buy more cotton in other colours and make a large set of bunting, maybe for my little niece's bedroom, that's a project - and purchase - that can wait until the new year though!

Christmas Tree Stamps

I decided to stamp over yesterday's glitter nails and chose a little Christmas tree design (unfortunately I can't currently remember the plate number, I think it's Cheeky, so I'll need to come back and update that later when I've looked at it again).

 

 

I used a white over the green and black over the gold, both nail art pens which stamped really nicely.  I have to say though I don't think the stamping really adds to the glittery polish, if anything the glitter and stamp seem to sort of detract from each other so neither is showcased particularly well.

 

A good example of how more isn't always more, I think I preferred this manicure when it was just plain, in your face, Christmas glitter.

Green & Gold Glitter

 

Today's festive finger colours come from Kiko, 441 Illusion Green from the Digital Emotion Collection, and No7, Sun Rays.  Sun Rays is a limited edition polish, I think, it's sold on the Boots website, HERE.  If you see it in store grab it, it's a goody!  Totally opaque golden glitter in just two coats!

 

 

Illusion Green is a perfect Christmas green; bright and sparkly the base is a gelly type texture (meaning you really do need three coats unless you're using a base colour) jam packed full of tiny circle and strand holographic glitter.  It's SO sparkly in real life the pictures just don't do it justice.

 

Both polishes applied well and feel relatively smooth with a quick coat of top coat.  I love the combination of green and gold, it's sort of reminds me of a decorated Christmas tree, especially since it's so sparkly.

 

I think these lovely glitters could be just the thing to add a few stickers too, or maybe some stamping?  Stand by tomorrow to see what I decide to go with!

My Top Ten Festive Nail Essentials

1. I think it's important to mention that winter can be tough on your hands and nails so my first few items are nail care rather than nail decoration products.  My very first, and favourite, essential for winter is Lush Lemon Flutter, I use it every night after I paint my nails, rubbing it into the cuticles to keep them soft and moisturised.

 

 

 

2. I also love Superdrug's Cuticle Oil Pen, there's a post HERE about it in more detail, which is so handy to keep at my desk or in my bag for a little moisture top up.

 

 

 

3. Finally, I like to use Lotil cream & cotton gloves on my hands overnight for a super moisturise and dry skin buster, Lotil seems to work wonders on all sorts of hand issues so I like to apply it thickly a few times a week and then cover with gloves to give my hands a nice intensive treatment.

 

 

 

4. Now on to the decorating of your nicely cared for nails!  As you can probably tell if you read my blog last year, I love using stamps to create Christmas themed looks.  I use a whole variety, my newest set being Bundle Monster Holiday Plates post about that set HERE, Bunny Nails also do some cute plates posts on those HERE and HERE.  Pretty much all the sets of stamping plates I have bought have odd images which are good for Christmas so it's worth having a look about before ordering the first you see.

 

 

 

5. Holiday themed stickers are another of my favourite ways to decorate festive nails, you can see posts on where I get mine HERE, HERE and HERE.  They are such a simple way to jazz up a manicure and the effects can be quite impressive.

 

 

 

Now, on to my favourite festive polishes of this year.

 

6. First up a bit of a cheat, rather than using one place in the top ten for each of these I am joining them all together under the heading Kiko's Christmas releases, you can see my haul HERE.   I've already posted about two of the Sugar Mats and tomorrow's post is about the first of the Digital Emotion holographic glitters, I am really loving these polishes so far and will no doubt feature very prominently in my Christmas manicures this year.

 

 

 

7.  Models Own Scarlet Sparkle, the perfect Christmas red.  Bright red gelly polish crammed full of sparkly red glitter, I love this polish!

 

 

 

8.  Boots No7 nail polish in Sun Rays, on the website HERE, keep an eye out for a post tomorrow which will show you just how gorgeous this opaque, super sparkly gold glitter is. ;)

 

9.  Kiko Starry Indigo, a perfect cool Christmas blue jam packed full of glitter, this one works especially well under stamping.

 

 

 

10.  Revlon Emerald City, a gorgeous dark green which dries matte but looks extra gorgeous when it's top coated, prefect on it's own or ideal for a bit of festive nail art.

 

 

So, those are my festive picks for this year, what else would you add?   

Snowflakes

Nothing says winter themed manicure like some snowflakes, last year I did two snowflake manicures this one, which was OK, and this one on Christmas day, which I absolutely loved.

I was hoping to sort of recreate the one I loved but I could not for the life of me find which plate I used (I've since worked it out and added a note to the blog post from last year) so I ended up using a combination of two other plates, BM-H02 from their recent holiday collection and HB23 a Bunny Nails Plate which you can see HERE.

I don't mind how it's turned out, I love the colours but would prefer different snowflake positioning, I'd say it's better than my initial attempt but not as good as last year's Christmas day version which I loved.  Still quite pretty though.

I used a white nail art pen to stamp the snowflakes, here's a quick shot of the plates: