Nails
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| Birchbox November 2017 |
In contrast to the somewhat un-exciting Birchbox offerings in the last few months, I was very impressed with this month's offering so much that I decided to write about it.
It came with the usual cardboard drawer box featuring this month's collaboration with Vogue. I think this was a good thing as the product samples provided were mostly from known brands.
Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat - Full Size RRP £9
I've been a loyal fan of Seche Vite Dry Fast top coat since I started blogging and have gone through at least 3 of these, that's impressive considering I have never finished a bottle of nail varnish! My latest bottle is on its last coats and I was happily surprised that a full sized version came with this box.
Clarins Hand and Nail Treatment Cream Sample Size - Standard Size is RRP £21
This box came with a handy travel sized version of Clarins Hand and Nail Treatment Cream. This cold winter season is the best time to receive this to keep your hands (feet, body, anywhere else!) soft and supple. I'm a strong advocate for moisturising to prevent premature ageing skin. My skin soaks this up without any greasy residue, and it smells of cherry blossoms too!
Benefit Hoola Bronzer Travel Size - Standard Size is £24.50
This is one of my favourite bronzers and the handy travel size is perfect for short trips.
Percy & Reed Volumising No Oil Oil Sample Size - Standard Size is £14
I admit, despite these years of beauty blogging, I am hopeless when it comes to fancy hair care. My hair routine is simple - grease-fighting shampoo for my oily scalp, air-drying my hair naturally and brushing down with a tangle-teaser. I'm not certain whether I would get much use of this one and I'll probably end up giving it away.
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| Birchbox Brush Cleaner on (Tiny) Size 6 Hands |
Birchbox Brush Cleaner £5
I currently use this larger grooved silicone oven glove from Amazon to wash my brushes with, but the Birchbox Brush Cleaner is a lot smaller and therefore perfect for travels to provide a deep-yet-gentle clean. I add a dollop of Dove Liquid Hand Wash with Shea Butter and Warm Vanilla to the mitt and swirl the brush on the brush cleaner until the bristles are clean and leave to air dry. Perfect.
As you can see, subscribing to this month's box is especially good value for money. If there's anything from this post you like, you can purchase a single box at £5 off using this link: Birchbox, no commitment necessary!
Livia | The Skin and Beauty Blog
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| Smith and Cult The Graduate Nail Polish Review Swatches |
The Graduate is my first foray into Smith and Cult products and these are my first impressions.
Smith and Cult The Graduate Nail Polish is a greige taupe in a creamy finish. It is a neutral ie. work-appropriate, formal events appropriate and graduation-perfect!
It comes in an awkwardly large artistic container. The top is artistically asymmetrical, massively round with a disproportionately tiny brush in the middle.
But that aside... the formula is lovely! It is opaque in two coats and auto-levels itself to provide an even coverage. Compared to my beloved Essie, the formula is much longer lasting and chip-resistant (It lasted a whole 7 days during my travels to Marrakech, camel-rides and all!). It is not so easily stained and does not change in colour as the days go by.
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| Smith and Cult The Graduate Nail Polish Review Swatches |
Livia | The Skin and Beauty Blog
*Press sample. All views are my own.
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| Nails Inc Seven Dials Review Swatches |
Yellow is definitely my new current colour obsession but gel effect by Nails Inc has definitely surpassed my expectations.
The shade, Seven Dials, was exactly what I was seeking and never fails to get a compliment. It has a richness to it that other companies cannot rival.
What I most love about this product is its longevity. It is rare to find a nail polish that remains chip free but I can safely say it still looks near fresh at the end of a very busy week.
Just two coats of this wonderful product is all you need for a salon quality manicure without any UV hassle (not to mention it's easy to remove). It's slightly pricier than some nail polishes (£15), but for the quality I think it's definitely worth it and cheaper than a salon manicure.
Nails Inc have transformed their product design which now include custom lids which make them a great gift idea.
Personally I cannot wait to try more shades.
Happy manicures everyone x
Shivanee | The Skin and Beauty Blog
*Press sample. All views are my own.
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| Essie Gel Couture Collection Couture Curator and Top Coat Review Swatches |
The Essie Couture Collection is here! I have stalked my local Boots shop once weekly for the last 4 weeks in anticipation of this collection, and I'm so excited its finally here. The collection is made up of 42 new shades (wow!) and the new formula with top coat is supposed to provide shiny nails a la gel nails in a bottle - no more UV. With the help of DH, I narrowed down my choice shade to one. Let's get to it.
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| Essie Gel Couture Collection Couture Curator (2 coats) and Top Coat Review Swatches |
Essie Couture Curator. This is a gorgeous light peachy pink with a creamy finish. It requires at least 2 to 3 coats to give a smooth opaque streak-free finish. It dries reasonably fast. I bet this shade flatters all skintones and makes a perfect girly summer shade.
Essie Top Coat. This top coat is meant to seal the deal and adds a little shine on to the nails. It's quite subtle, not as shiny as my favourite Seche Vite Top Coat.
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| Essie Gel Couture Collection Couture Curator and Top Coat Review Swatches |
The shape is quite odd, a little spiral shaped. The bottle is larger in size compared to the original Essie nail polishes, which makes storage a bit awkward, although both contain 13.5ml of product. I love the wide brush that comes with these products. It just makes application quick and easy.
Overall I enjoy the new collection and remain excited about all the new pretty colours. I've got my sights set on Essie Sew Me Nail Polish from the Essie Gel Couture Atelier Collection. One of these days it will join my nail varnish horde.
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| Essie Gel Couture Collection Couture Curator and Top Coat Review Swatches |
Each nail polish from the Essie Gel Couture Nail Summer 2016 Collection retails for £9.99. Boots currently have an amazing buy-one-get-one-half-price offer, make sure to take advantage of it!
Livia | The Skin and Beauty Blog
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| Essie Spring 2016 Nail Polishes - Lounge Lover and High Class Affair Review |
I have a soft spot for Essie nail polishes. It must be that adorable white cap or the square-ish easily organisable shape that lets you tuck them in an old shoebox in a pleasingly orderly fashion. What's better than normal Essie polishes are the Essie Spring Polishes, full of vibrance with an "its-almost-summer" vibe and a touch of girly pastels thrown in. I've picked up two from this collection - see below!
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| Essie Lounge Lover Nail Polish Review Swatches |
Essie Lounge Lover Nail Polish is a coral pink on the verge of neon. It reminds me of Model's Own Nail Polish in Shades, but a touch less neon. It's such a bright warm shade for the upcoming sunny season and it has been permanently residing on my toenails for the last few weeks. Two coats is perfect. I love it!
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| Essie High Class Affair Nail Polish Review Swatches |
Essie High Class Affair Nail Polish is a light peachy nude. The application isn't as easy as Lounge Lover. It requires a bit of patience and at least 3 coats to look good. Make sure to wait a bit in between swipes to make sure the layer beneath has dried enough. It stands out quite a bit with my skintone (NC25-30). This could be a perfect nude shade for paler pink-toned complexions.
Have you had a chance to look at the new Essie collection? I would suggest Lounge Lover to complement an evolving tan... *wink wink*
Livia | The Skin and Beauty Blog
I am slowly gaining insight into my developing love for Essie nail polishes.
Despite their inconsistent hit-and-miss formulas, there's something about those square bottles with the cute white tops that draws me in. They look so clean and tidy all lined up and the square shapes just looks great in storage.
Six more shades have found their way to my collection, mainly cream finishes with subdued hues as apart from reds, I don't usually wear brights.
Absolutely Shore is a pale greyish green in a cream finish. The formula firstly applies streaky but three coats make it look even.
Splash of Grenadine is a bright magenta with a cream finish although it looks more jelly and squishable than Absolutely Shore.
Borrowed & Blue is a pale cornflower blue with a cream finish. It's perfect to wear on gloomy rainy days.
Topless & Barefoot is a pale nude shade with a hint of rose. I was hoping to like this but feel it might be too pale for my skintone. Perhaps a more yellow-toned or a shade darker nude would suit me better. Any recommendations?
Eternal Optimist is an old rose with a cream finish. It applies a little gloopy. Try using thinner coats at a time to get this right.
Penny Talk is a lot less rose gold than I expected. Its a bronze metallic shade with a tiny smidge of pink. I fancy these on my twinkle toes.
The price difference of Essie polishes between the UK and the USA is quite surprisingly different (USA $8.00, UK £7.99) so I picked these up from an eBay seller in the USA, check out their store here. International shipping took about 1 week from payment which is actually pretty good.
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