Chanel Garconne Le Vernis Nail Polish Review & Swatch

I have a very short post for you all today, but one that I have been looking forward to sharing with you since I posted my little review of Chanel Organdi. My manicure of the week in Garonne is one of the latest additions to the Chanel nail polish line, and is a lovely colour and unlike any other in my collection.

Garconne is a grey colour with warm undertones.  The coverage is lovely and rich and applies very easily and gives a lovely smooth streak free coverage.

To achieve this particular finish I applied two coats of the Garconne nail polish and a top coat of Out The Door Fast Drying Top Coat.

You can purchase the Chanel Le Vernis nail colour for £18.00 from Chanel counters nationwide.

Talk to you all soon x

 

Chanel Organdi Le Vernis Longwear Nail Colour Review & Swatch

I have fallen head over heels in love with my latest Chanel nail polish.  Organdi belongs to the Longwear nail colour range that promise to deliver a longer lasting colour.  I was instantly drawn to this colour as it is simplicity at its best yet delightfully different and pretty.  A beautiful cashmere dusky pink with a subtle brown undertone. The colour is shimmer free and makes my nails look so clean and elegant.  Some nude colours can be relatively hard to pull off, but this shade would suit a range of skin tones.

I applied two coats of Organdi and used the Chanel Le Gel Longwear top coat to achieve a glossy finish, and a review of the top coat will follow shortly once I have tested the longevity of the product.

You can purchase this nail colour from Chanel counters nationwide priced at £18.00.

Organdi is officially my new favourite nail colour. This colour is going to take some beating –   I absolutely love it!

Talk to you all soon x

 

My Manicure Of The Week | Ciaté London Olivia Palermo Hutch Nail Colour

Just a short blog post for today. On Sunday I shared with you all the Ciaté London Olivia Palermo Fashion Edit collection and promised to share with you all a look at the full manicure as and when I used the different polishes.  I decided I would choose a red for this week which is a change from my usual trusted nudes. I won’t go into too much detail,  as you can read my earlier blog post here.

To achieve this look I applied a base coat to protect my nails.  This is really  important especially when using a darker colour.  I then applied two coats of Hutch and topped it off with a top coat. Olivia created this as her go-to red.  I think it may become mine too!

I am quite enjoying flaunting my red nails this week.  Its nice to have a change, and we all  know a change is as good as a rest!

Do let me know your thoughts on this colour.  I would love to hear from you!

Talk to you all soon x

Ciaté London Olivia Palermo The Fashion Edit Collection | Review and Swatches

Sunday evening is upon us again. For me anyway, the most depressing night of the week. For that reason I am going to share with you all a post I have been looking forward to doing for some time. The Ciaté London Olivia Palermo Fashion Edit collection includes four miniature nail polishes created in collaboration with the beautiful Olivia. They have been inspired by the runway from the London, Milan, New York and Paris fashion weeks. This collection really does offer a colour for everyone and is the perfect way to try a new shade without splashing out on the full size.

The packaging is really pretty and has been taking pride of place on my dressing table since Christmas! The lid lifts off to reveal the four polishes, and was a real pleasure to photograph. They are however so pretty that this gives me the problem of deciding which colour to choose! Decisions decisions!

New York – Hutch – A vivid bold red

Milan – Sunday’s – A lovely powdery pink and is, surprise surprise, my favourite!    

Paris – Napa Valley – A rich bordeaux red

London – Brooklyn – A deep purple

The Nail Polishes are very pigmented and the darker polishes looked good with just one coat.  The bottle design made application a breeze and I particularly appreciated the larger brush that Ciaté are known for that make application a dream. I found the formula of the nail colours to be particularly good.  The polishes contain an exclusive and advanced dual polymer mesh lock technology that ensures a durable and long lasting shine. Volcanic glass is also added to the polish to create a plumped up gel like appearance.

Left to Right: Brooklyn,Hutch,Sunday’s and Napa Valley.

I will share with you the full manicure as and when I choose to wear the colours, but at least you can see swatches of them if you are thinking of purchasing. You can buy the full sizes for £17.00. This collection of miniatures (each 5ml) is priced at £25.00 so it is an affordable way of trying out a variety of shades.

I love how the nail colours are so rich and the packaging divinely pretty. A box ticker in every way.

I hope you found this post useful, and I would love to hear if you have tried these colours out. Ciaté London have collaborated with Olivia Palermo to create a makeup collection and the colours look equally as amazing. Lovely earthy browns and muted nudes are the colour palette in making everyday lipsticks and eyeshadows. Have you tried any of these products? I would love to hear how you have found them and if they are as impressive as the pigmentation of these nail colours.  I can say however, that if they make me look like Olivia Palermo then put my name down for one of everything!

I will see you all tomorrow for Lipstick Monday.

Talk to you all soon x

Pretty Honest Beauty Blog January Product Of The Month | Margaret Dabbs Crystal Nail File | Review

I am a little behind with awarding the January Pretty Honest Beauty Blog Product Of The Month, but there is no mistaking who wins! My product of the month is the Margaret Dabbs Crystal Nail File. I have not looked back since using the foot file from her range and still, all these months later, love it and derive all the benefits as much as I did from initial use.

After much research I discovered Margaret Dabbs also have an exciting collection of products for the hands. I thought I would try out the crystal nail file, and I am absolutely delighted I did!

The file is slim, relatively lightweight and very effective. I use this file on both my hands and feet ensuring I only file in one direction.  I find that this file gives a smoother and finer finish to my nails and makes shaping them incredibly easy. I have filed my way through many nail files in my time and this one is by far the best. I do not feel this file puts any pressure on my nails when filing them, as minimal pressure is required in order for this to work.

You can purchase the Margaret Dabbs Crystal Nail File for £12.00.  This file will last for some time and for an item that gives such salon quality results is an absolute bargain!

You can purchase the Margaret Dabbs Crystal Nail File from various outlets including Feelunique.com and Margaret Dabbs online.

Margaret Dabbs is fast becoming one of my most trusted brands, and I can’t wait to try out more from her range.

Have you tried the Margaret Dabbs Crystal Nail File? Do you have a favourite product from her range that you can recommend? I would love to hear from you!

Talk to you all soon x

Smith & Cult Pillow Pie Nail Polish | Review

For todays post I wanted to share with you all another Smith & Cult nail polish.  Pillow Pie is a lovely powdery pink that looks simply gorgeous on the nails.  Finding that perfect opaque soft pink is actually quite hard.  All too often the colour I am expecting from the bottle is not what translates to my nails and the pink is much more sheer than what I really want.

As you know from my previous review of Doe My Dear , the nail polishes are 5-free meaning they are free from nasties that are quite often found in nail polishes.  The bottles are absolutely drop dead gorgeous with each lid being unique in shape. They look stunning on my dressing table.

I used two coats of Pillow Pie and one Above It All top coat.  The colour did not drag and went on streak free. The nail polish is very highly pigmented and glossy. The top coat really plumped the colour up and added exceptional shine.

You can purchase Smith & Cult Pillow Pie from Space NK and Selfridges for £19.00. I would recommend this colour if you are after a shade that makes your hands look clean and tidy and one that matches any outfit!

Have you tried any of the Smith & Cult nail polishes? Do you like this particular colour? I would love to hear from you!

Talk to you all soon x

Tom Ford Toasted Sugar 02 Nail Polish Review …. And Must See Dupe!

Nothing screams luxury quite like Tom Ford.  Not only is he the king of lipstick but in my eyes he can wear the crown for nail polish too!  Nude colours have long been my ‘thing’ and when I saw the shade Toasted Sugar last year my heart quite literally skipped a beat.  The perfect natural canvas shade with just the right amount of colour to prevent it being unflattering.

Before I go into more detail about the formula, I must touch upon how beautiful the packaging is.  Well, it is Tom Ford, we would expect nothing less would we?! The bottle is square with gold detailing and the shape of the bottle makes the polish easy to hold when applying the colour to the nail.

The brush applicator is nice and long, and the brush itself is long and thin.  The polish is a nice consistency and glides onto the nails effortlessly.

The manicure pictured above is achieved using two coats of Tom Ford Toasted Sugar finished with a top coat.

I really can’t fault this nail polish, however it is rather pricey at £27.00.  The good news is that I have found a colour that is an excellent dupe and priced at only £4.99. Tanya Burr Peaches & Cream is perfect for those who love this particular shade!

I have reviewed the Tanya Burr Peaches & Cream polish in more detail here.  But as you can see, the colours are very similar.  Obviously there is no doubt that the Tom Ford colour is much better quality and lasts over a week without chipping.  This for me, is priceless and makes the price tag worth paying. However as you can see, if it is the colour you are after then perhaps the Tanya Burr polish may be worth looking out for!

I really hope you find this useful! Do you agree with me that this polish is a good dupe? I would love to hear from you!

Talk to you all soon x

Smith & Cult Doe My Dear Nail Polish | Review and Swatch

Hello readers! Today I wanted to share with you my manicure of choice for the week.  Chanel Frenzy has long been my all time favourite grey / beige / lilac shade so when I saw this offering from cult brand Smith & Cult in my local Space NK branch, I could not help but add it to my ‘wish-list!’

Smith & Cult was designed by the founder of 90’s brand Hard Candy.  I spent many a day as a teen swooning over Hard Candy nail polishes with the little plastic ring in a similar hue attached to the bottle.  The price has gone up a little since the Hard Candy days, but when a company get the formula and colour spot on like Smith & Cult seem to have done, that £19 seems money well spent.

Imagine my excitement when my lovely Mum bought me two colours and a top coat for Christmas.  Today’s post is dedicated to ‘Doe My Dear’ described as an opaque dove grey.

The nail colour applied very smoothly and was easy to get a tidy neat finish. This particular manicure was two coats of the polish.

I have finished the manicure with the Smith & Cult top coat named ‘Above It All’.  First impression was, whilst lovely, was perhaps an unnecessary purchase from the collection- but I stand corrected! This top coat gives an extremely glossy ‘plumped up’ look with extreme clarity and shine.

I can’t wait to try my other shade and report back to you all.  I am really excited about this brand and can’t wait to explore more of the collection in the coming months.

Smith & Cult are 5 free (formulated without nasties), offer a lovely range of colours and have graced the pages of Vogue.  What more could a beauty addict want!

Talk to you all soon x

 

How I apply sheer nail colour | A Pretty Honest Beauty Tip!

Sheer nail polish can be quite disappointing when it applies so sheer you lose the colour it is meant to be.  I wanted to share with you all a little tip of how I apply my sheer colours to really make them pop. And the good news is, you only need one product to achieve this; a matte top coat.

Recently I bought OPI’s Bubble Bath after thinking how pretty the nude nail colour was.  However, when I applied it I was disappointed to find it looked like I had only applied a top coat, no matter how many coats I applied. You will be able to see this finish in the picture below.

One way I have found that really makes a big difference is applying a matte top coat.  This of course means that I am then able to paint another layer of nail colour over the top.

The image above shows how the top coat looks when applied over the sheer nail colour.  You will see how it almost neutralises any pink tones of my nails that show through the sheer polish.  I then paint another coat of my sheer nail colour, in this case OPI Bubble Bath over the top.

And this is the finished look.  So, just to recap this is one coat of OPI Bubble Bath, followed by a coat of Barry M Matte top coat, then another application of OPI Bubble Bath and finally my regular glossy Sally Hansen top coat.

I think this enhances the colour of the nail polish while not losing the pretty delicate sheerness of it.  It allows the colour to shine through without being influenced by my natural nail tones.

I hope you find this little tip useful. It has given a whole new lease of life to my sheer polish collection!

Talk to you all soon x

Margaret Dabbs Professional Foot File and Discovery Kit – Review

Summer holidays are just around the corner and we all know what that means….the need to make our feet pretty!  Margaret Dabbs is a leading foot expert who has groomed the feet of the rich and famous in her Spas in London and Dubai.  I was first introduced to the wonders of this collection watching QVC.  Margaret Dabbs demonstrated her foot file on a model showing how hard skin can be turned to powder in seconds!  This product looked just too good to be true!  I have always liked to look after my feet but with flip flop weather getting increasingly closer I decided to buy the foot file and discovery kit from FeelUnique.com.  I am so impressed with it and couldn’t wait to share it with you all!

These luxurious foot care products have been expertly formulated to give healthy looking feet. Using organic emu oil for its anti-ageing, moisturising and healing properties, and scented lemon myrtle, these products will give you amazing long lasting results and beautiful feet.

The Margaret Dabbs Professional Foot File is priced at £24.  It is designed using compressed crystal technology. It is absolutely wonderful at removing hard skin from the feet effectively but safely. The foot file is made from stainless steel and very easy to use.  It comes with some replacement foot pads however you can also buy a pack of 10 replacement pads priced at £10.  It is important to use this file on dry skin.  I am fairly heavy handed with the foot file paying particular attention to any areas of hardened skin.   It really does turn troublesome areas into powder.  It is important not to immerse the foot file in water as it will damage the effectiveness of the crystal technology.

The Margaret Dabbs Discovery Kit is perfect for trying a wide range of products.  This kit is priced at £39.00 and includes the hydrating foot soak, exfoliating foot mousse, intensive hydrating foot lotion and the intensive treatment foot oil.

I like to pour a small amount of the foot soak into a bowl of warm water and soak my feet for about 10 minutes.  I rub some of the exfoliating foot mousse into my feet paying particular attention to my heels.  A little really does go a long way.  It is a very gritty product that leaves my skin glowing.  After rinsing any residue away with warm water, I then apply some of the lotion all over my feet and finish with the foot oil.

Finally, as a little extra I added the Margaret Dabbs Nail and Cuticle Serum priced at £12.00 to my nails.   This product is handbag sized and perfect for building up the strength of my nails.

These products are widely available through outlets such as Feel Unique.com, QVC, Space NK or direct from Margaret Dabbs website.  If you are interested in buying these products and live outside the UK you can purchase from Net-a-Porter who will ship internationally.

I can honestly say the Margaret Dabbs collection are the best pedicure products I have ever bought and are worth every penny.  Maybe one day I might get to visit her Spa in London?! One thing is for sure, I cannot wait to buy more products from the collection!

Thank you Margaret Dabbs for making such fabulous products that give me the ‘Spa Treatment’ at home!

Talk to you all soon x