Barry M - Countess

After yesterday's textured disappointment I decided to try another textured polish from a different brand, this time Barry M's Countess, a dark burgundy polish from the recent Royal themed collection.

 

 

This polish is much more like the Kiko Sugar Mat Collection which I love.  It applies nice and evenly and it totally opaque in two relatively thin coats.

 

Countess is a gorgeous dark purple wine colour shot through with gold and red glitter which give it a gorgeous shimmer, particularly in bright artificial lights.

 

Countess reminds me a lot of Kiko 645 from the Sugar Mat range although it's a slightly darker more purple black leaning shade than the Kiko.

Yes Love Lilac Speckled

Another polish from my holiday haul today, this time one of the Yes Love speckled polishes which to me look very like Illamasqua's I'mPerfect collection nail polishes. 
 

I've been lusting after the Illamasqua versions for a while now but I could never quite justify the £14.50 price tag, so imagine my delight when I found something very similar for just 80cents each in the China Bazaar in Spain.

First off I decided to try out the lovely lilac shade on the left in the photo above.

These pictures are 3 coats, 2 would suffice to get the polish opaque but I put the 3rd on so that I could get the exact spread of glitter I wanted. 

For a cheap nail varnish it applied pretty well, a decent amount of glitter came out on each dip and it spread around the nail with relative ease.

Drying time was fairly quick and wear time was excellent, I ended up having this polish on for a good few days and it lasted really well.

Overall I am really pleased I picked these up, they're the prefect cure to my Illamasqua lusting on a much smaller budget.  I'm just annoyed I couldn't find anymore to bring back and spread the love.

Homemade Nail Polish Remover

I've been reading up quite a bit on nail polish removers recently and while browsing online I've seen mention of a homemade version of Zoya's Remove + which is a very highly rated, and expensive, nail polish remover from Zoya. 

 

 

My search led me to loodie loodie loodie's blog and her recipe to make a copy of the top rated remover.  There are various posts online on the subject and they all seemed to come to the same conclusion; it's easy to do, not too expensive and works as well as the store bought product.  Obviously I had to give it a go.

 

So I stopped off at Sally's for some Acetone and Boots for the Glycerin required.

 

 

The Acetone was £3.49 and the Glycerin was £1.29.  £4.78 in total which will make one large bottle of remover with a good amount of Glycerin left over.  Zoya is $10 for just over 200ml (8oz) so it's quite a saving.

 

As well as the Glycerin and Acetone you add a little water into the mix to help everything emulsify nicely.  I wasn't exact with my quantities but I would say I used roughly 160ml of acetone, 3 teaspoons of glycerin and probably 4 or 5 teaspoons of water altogether.  I mixed them up in a smaller acetone bottle I had bought previously, making sure that there wasn't any glycerin rolling about at the bottom of the bottle (if there is, just add a touch more water and mix again until they all blend together nicely as one clear layer).

 

First impressions are good, the remover took my polish off super fast as you'd expect from something which is almost pure acetone but unlike using pure acetone it didn't leave my nails looking too dry, or feeling like they'd been stripped of all moisture as is often the case when I just use acetone.

 

I'll report back after I've been using it for a bit longer, and tried it on some tougher polish - like glitters - but so far it seems like a super efficient remover for very little money.

 

Have you tired Zoya Remove+, or made your own version before?

 

Easy Nails - Fast & Fruity Nail Polish Remover

I posted about a year ago about these remover pots after only trying them out a few times and mentioned that I couldn't get my hands on them easily as we didn't have many Home Bargains store, and certainly none I could get to. 

 

Since then I have used the ones I had loads and been keen to track more down before my supply ran out.  Luckily I've also acquired the use of a car in that time meaning that Home Bargains is now within reach, so a few days ago I headed over to see if they still stocked the little pots of wonder...

 

 

They do!  So I cleared them out of their current stock meaning I shouldn't have to make the journey back in again for quite a while.

 

I'm not sure what they put in this little pot because for an acetone free remover it really does the job well!  Not only do they remove regular nail varnish super fast I also find them great for glitter polishes, which are notoriously hard to remove. 

 

I'm not sure whether it's the solution in the pot, the sponge or the combination of both but they work incredibly well, as well as being really handy to transport if you're going away somewhere or want to keep a remover in your handbag or desk drawer (no, just me who does that?).

 

Another benefit is that they smell pretty good too, there's no horrendously strong chemically smell just a sort of synthetic fruit fragrance which I find quite pleasant and they seem to be kind to my nails too, they never look dry or flaky after using this remover despite how quickly it removes my polish.

 

So, all in, for only 85p each, I LOVE these little pots of wonder, if you're in the market for a new remover or want something to rival the hideously expensive Bourjois version of a remover pot then look no further, Home Bargains might have a store near you!

Maybelline Polka Dots

More and more gorgeous indie alike polishes are sneaking their way onto the high street and the Polka Dots collection from Maybelline are the latest.  Four polishes, three coloured and one clear base, packed full of large and small black and white glitter.

Park of the Color Show line the Polka Dots come in 4 shades Chalk Dust (black and white), Shooting Stars (blue), Rain Forest Canopy (emerald), and Speckled Pink (fuchsia).   They're £2.99 each but I was lucky enough to snag mine on a buy one get one half price deal making them under £10 for all 4!

I've used a base of Lychee (thumb) and Prickly Pear (pinkie) Gelly Hi Shine polishes to show off Chalk Dust as it's a clear base unlike the other three polishes.  It's also, in my eyes, the star of the collection. 

It's been touted as a dupe for L'Oreal's Confetti polish which has become increasingly hard to find of late and although it's very similar Maybelline have crammed in much more glitter which makes it a total winner in my eyes. 

Of the other three Speckled Pink shows off the glitter best, Rain Forest Canopy and Shooting Stars give a more subtle glitter effect.

My favourite nail from this manicure was my thumb, I just love how chalk dust looks over Lychee, like little eggs, I can't wait to try this one out over other colours, I'm thinking baby blue for starters.

Bankrupt by Barry M - NEW Gelly Hi-Shine, Confetti and Sequin Nail Effects.

Barry M have been busy recently announcing 3 new lines which are soon to be launched, meaning my bank account probably won't be too happy with me in the very near future.  Barry M are definitely one of the best high street polish producers and the three lots of new additions are testament to that.

 

First up, 5 more new Gelly Hi Shine colours, I love the existing shades so the news that there will soon be 5 more is very exciting, they look like good contenders for stamping too.

Key Lime, Mango, Blue Grape, Passion Fruit and Guava.

I love the picture of them altogether but the colours look even brighter and bolder in the individual shots, look at the bright royal blue, and the lime!

All 5 of these are going straight on my wish list.  They'll be in Superdrug on June the 5th and Boots on June 12th for £3.99 each.

Next up, the Sequin Nail Effects which I am also rather excited about.  There are three polishes in this collection; a black, a white and a pink.

The pink looks like a dupe of Deborah Lippmann Candy Shop which is a polish I have been lusting after for a while.

The black to me is the least interesting of the 3, I'll need to see it in person but in the bottle shots it's very similar to another Barry M polish which is currently out and doesn't look too exciting, I wish it had been a baby blue base shade instead.

Finally the white which looks like an excellent dupe for China Glaze It's a Trapeze.

I think I will probably be picking up 2 out of the 3 of these.  They're out a bit sooner, on May the 8th, in both Boots and Superdrug, again for £3.99 each.

Finally, the Confetti Nail Effects collection, these are the same idea as the Nails Inc Feather Effects and In Vogue Feather polishes, although Barry M does seem to have come up with a few different colour combinations.  There are 5 altogether.

 

Bubblegum, Sour Apple, Dolly Mixture, Marshmallow and Liquorice.

 

It's hard to tell from the bottle shots but Dolly Mixture looks like it could be a dupe of In Vogue Parakeet or Nails Inc Chester with it's blue, peach and yellow confetti.  Sour Apple looks like it could be very similar to Nails Inc Brighton and In Vogue On the Money, bright yellow and turquoise.  Finally Bubblegum, which is blue and white confetti, could be similar to Nails Inc Cornwall and In Vogue Jaye Bird but from the bottle shot looks like a lighter blur so it's one that will need to be checked out on person for a proper comparison.

 

The final two colours seem more unique, Marshmallow is pink and white confetti which seems similar to Nails Inc York or In Vogue Sunset but with baby pink instead of peach.  Liquorice is black and white confetti and unlike any of the Nails Inc or In Vogue polishes, it's the only one from this collection that I am fairly sure I'll want to buy when I see it in person.

These ones are also £3.99 each and again they're release on the 5th of June in Superdurg and the 12th in Boots.

 

SO, loads of new goodies from Barry M and at least 8 that I really think my stash is missing, looks like I should start saving now...  What will you be picking up when these hit the shelves?

 

In Vogue Feather Effect Polishes, Nails Inc Feather dupes?

Recently I have been toying with the idea of ordering some of the Nails Inc Feather Effect polishes, they're clear polishes laden with different shades of bar glitter and they look really pretty, however, I am not a huge fan of the quality of  Nails Inc polish and at £11 each they were quite a big expense.

 

While I was wondering if W7 might produce a similar line, as they did with the Sprinkles from last year, my attention was drawn to the new line of In Vogue polishes which are now in stock at Superdrug online.  This new budget brand has a whole range of different finishes and to my delight one of those finishes was Feather Effects!

 

 

The best news?  They're only £3.49 each, which means that all 4 of them cost under £14, not much more than one of the Nails Inc versions! 

 

Here are a few comparison shots of the In Vogue polishes alongside the Nails Inc.  First up Nails Inc York vs In Vogue Sunset, these two look like exact dupes to me; a clear base filled with peach and white bar glitter.

 

 

Next up Nails Inc Cornwall and In Vogue Jaye Bird, again an exact dupe as far as I can tell; a clear base with royal blue and white bar glitter.

 

Then we have Nails Inc Brighton and In Vogue On the money (these both remind me of the rather cult-ish indie polish Floam, which is good because I've fancied it for a while), again a very close match dupe wise; this polish is another clear base this time with pale yellow and turquoise bar glitter.

 

 

Finally we have Nails In Chester and In Vogue Parakeet, again these two polishes are a good match so I would call 4 for 4 dupes, which is pretty good going; the final polish is also a clear base this time with turquoise, yellow and peach bar glitter through it.

There is a fifth polish in the Nails Inc Feather collection, Edinburgh, and so far there is no sign of a dupe for it, you can see it below; it's a combination of peach and pale blur bar glitter in a clear base.

 

 

Of the 4 polishes that In Vogue have included in their collection all 4 look VERY close to the Nails Inc polishes, great news for anyone like me who wanted to try out the Feathers look but couldn't quite stretch their budget to buying a full set at Nails Inc prices.

 

In Vogue polishes are available online from Superdrug now and due to hit the stores in 'mid March', so hopefully soon.  Obviously I couldn't wait until they appeared in store so I have ordered all 4 and should have them within the next few days, expect swatches as soon as I get my grubby mits on them.

 

Have you tried any of the In Vogue polishes yet?  Are there others I should try from their collection, let me know in the comments.

 

EDIT: You can now see swatches of all the polishes in the Feather Effects range by clicking HERE.

Sally Hansen Nail Prism Mystery Polish

My reason for wearing this polish was that I'd seen swatches of Rimmel Metal Rush in Pearly Queen over on the lovely Claire's blog, nuthin but a nail thing, and really loved it.  In a vain attempt to stop me going right out and buying more polish I decided to hunt through my collection for something similar and this polish sprung to mind.

 

Unfortunately, the bottle isn't labelled so I have no idea what shade it is, I thought it might be Lavender Pearl but on further Googling it doesn't seem so.    It doesn't really matter anyway as this polish is probably not available to buy anymore, certainly not in the UK, and it's easily dupe-able should you wish to track down a similar colour.

 

In real life it's actually a lot more like Not Like the Movies from the Katy Perry collection by OPI than the Rimmel I was hoping to copy.

 

 

It's a sort of lavender green duochrome which changes shades depending on the light.

 

As you can see from certain angles the green really pops.

 

And with a flash you can see the slight shimmer in the polish too.

 

Here's a quick, rubbish, bottle shot on the off chance anyone can identify this mystery polish, it's pictures beside Barry M grey which is what I wore it over, on it's own it's very sheer.

 

Overall I am not blown away with this polish, it's a less exciting version of Not Like the Movies to me so I think in future I might stick with wearing that one to get this particular look and obviously I am now going to have to go to Boots and pick up that Rimmel polish that started this whole post off.

 

If you have any idea what this polish might be then please leave me a comment, I hate having an unidentified bottle in my collection!

W7 Candy Floss

I thought I would do a quick review of this product today as I absolutely love it and use it almost every day, it's such a firm favourite that I currently have a back up and another one on the way.

Candy Floss by W7 is touted online as a very reasonable dupe to Benefit's Dandelion, and I can't say that I disagree with that assessment.  It's has similar soft pink shimmer which makes your complexion look brighter on application and the similarities in the packaging and brush are hard to miss.

The major difference is definitely in the price, Dandelion sells for £22.50 whereas Candy Floss is available in a variety of places online for around £3, or even cheaper if you want to pay P&P on top, although they generally all work out at much the same price.

I love how this blush applies, it's soft and smooth to apply.  The brush is another nice surprise for such a budget cosmetic; it's super soft, feels nice on your face and doesn't shed hair everywhere, more than can be said for a lot of more expensive brushes!

Until recently I didn't wear blush at all except on very rare occasions but I've been trying to branch out a bit more and now use it most days.  Despite having quite a large selection to choose from I find it hard to go past Candy Floss when I'm doing my face in the morning. 

The colour you get from it is a soft, subtle pink - it's very hard to go overboard with this blush unless you are REALLY trowelling it on which is another selling point for me, too much blusher always makes me feel like a clown - it adds a gentle, natural flush to the cheeks along with a hint of shimmer. 

The shimmer is very subtle, more a soft glow than a full on disco ball.  It's perfect for chucking on to give yourself a naturally flushed glow without too much thought and the neutral pink shade goes with pretty much any make up look.

Candy Floss Swatch

Overall, I can't sing the praises of this product enough, it combines two of my favourite qualities; cheapness & effectiveness, so I find it hard not to love.

If your in the market for a versatile, good quality blush then I seriously suggest you check out this little beauty.

Nails Inc Sprinkles Dupes by W7 - Comparison & Review

There have been quite a few posts on beauty blogs recently about these W7 polishes as they are similar in finish to the new Nails Inc Sprinkles collection.

Although they do have a similar finish they don't copy the colourways of the Nails Inc collection exactly.  There are 3 W7 polishes Lava Flow, Mosaic & Salt n Pepper.

Lava Flow is a milky white polish with red and black glitter through it.  Mosaic is the only polish of the collection to exactly recreate a Nails Inc colour, it is a very good and much less expensive alternative to Pudding Lane. Finally there is Salt n Pepper which is similar to Sugar House Lane in that it is a neutral base with black glitter but not quite the same as the Nails Inc version is a more minky brown shade of polish and also includes silver glitter whereas W7's version is more of a straight black and white.

Mosaic on the nail:

I have been into Nails Inc and compared Mosaic with Pudding Lane and they are exactly the same colour wise, both the base shade and the glitter are exact dupes.  So much so that the sales assistant refused to believe it wasn't Pudding Lane I was wearing.

Here are the Nails Inc Collection (minus Pudding Lane which I don't own due to it being exactly the same as Mosaic). 

  

Sugar House Lane is a minky beige with black and white glitter, Sweets Way is a milky white with silver, pink and light blue glitter and Topping Lane is a bright pink with silver, pink and blue glitter.

Sweets Way on the nail:

Topping Lane on the nail:

Application wise there is not much it it between these two brands.  Both cover in 2 coats but look better, in my opinion, with a third for full coverage.  They both wear well and neither chipped in the time I had them on (although that was a maximum of 3 days as I was so keen to try them all out when they arrived).  Both feel slightly gritty when they are dry and definitely benefit from a couple of coats of top coat if you like a smooth feel to your nails.

I prefer the colours of the Nails Inc collection personally, with the exception of Mosaic, but for the price the W7 ones are excellent similar style glitter polishes and prove that there is no need to spend £11 on a bottle of polish to get this particular look.

I bought my W7 polishes at Nail Polish Direct who I wouldn't hesitate to recommend, they have free P&P which I LOVE in a website, great prices and my package arrived within a couple of days really well wrapped.  I'll definitely be using them again.

Here are nail claw swatches of all the Sprinkle style polishes I have:

One word of warning, removal of both brands is messy:

I was planning on posting this comparison review when I had swatched all of the colours from both collections but time has got away from me and I only have so many nails, so I've decided to post now and update as and when I have swatched and worn all the colours.