RECENT WARDROBE ADDITIONS

First thing first, sorry for the lack of posts, I have been swamped with coursework and revision and so needed to prioritise. But, I have picked up a few fashion items recently and thought they would be worth a share considering I have been preferring fashion over beauty recently *gasps*

In Topshop (quite a fair while back) I found this slightly cropped blue checked light slouchy top. It was £10 in the sale I believe, and I have got so much wear out of it that I probably would have paid full price. Another sale item was this monochrome jersey gingham pencil midi skirt from New Look which I paid a mere £3 for. This is from the teen/kids section but it fits me so all is good.

Also from New Look came the chunky 'cleated sole' sandals that have featured in almost all of my outfit posts recently. They were £24.99 which isn't bad for this type of shoe, and the price is justified with how versatile they are anyways. As well as the shoes, I finally got my mitts on some 'Mom Shorts' after seeing Megan style them so well, and these cost me £19.99
In H&M I came across this light boxy mint green polka dot shirt for only £12.99 and practically threw it onto the till. I know they did have a pastel pink gingham version so I may have to go back and get myself that one too. Also from H&M came the necklace and the neon yellow 'aviator' style sunglasses, each totalling £1-£2 in the clearance.

More recently I went to London and had a spare half an hour nearby Westfield and so I had a quick look in Forever 21, and came out with 3 accessories items. I got another pair of sunglasses, these are all over black with two gold details and are fairly oversized. These were only £4.90 and I am hoping the sun arrives soon so I can wear them. I also got this star necklace for £2 and the pack of earrings for £2.50 - Forever 21 accessories are so affordable.

A bit of a rambly one today, but expect to be seeing a bit more of that in the upcoming week or two as I am going to do some major shopping with friends at the weekend, not that I need anything else...

THE MINT GREEN LOVE

I think the first time I ever fell in love with a nail polish was when GOSH Miss Minty* dropped through my letter box back in the days when I had my nail blog. I wore it almost every time I painted my nails, and due to that I needed a replacement as this one was getting a little gloopy.

The one I love the most, and is a new love is the Barry M Gelly Hi Shine in Sugar Apple, one from their latest pastel collection for Spring. It's the perfect mint, not too blue, not too green, and the glossy finish wins it for me. Definitely one to add to your shopping list.

One which I forgot about until having a hunt through my (overflowing) nail polish drawer was the Rimmel Salon Pro Lycra in Peppermint. This one is a little darker than the rest, but nothing to stop it fitting in the mint category. Also, the brush on this one is great, just a swipe over each nail is all you need, and only a couple of coats.

Last but not least is Ciaté Pepperminty, which is slightly more green than the rest, but nothing dramatic. I quite like the finish of this one too, as it doesn't seem to chip. My one peeve with this one is that it's pretty sheer and you have to build up the coats to get that perfect mint colour.

I think it is very 'blogger' of me to do a post entirely dedicated to mint green paints, and perhaps this has made me realise that I don't really need any more...

THE SPRING POLISH PICKS

As Autumn and Winter leave us, and as Spring looks as if it is just around the corner, I have been ditching the vampy plums and reaching for the dainty pastels when it comes to polishes. There are definitely a few more types of colours I am looking to purchase, like pastel blues and pinks that are almost off whites - the L'Oreal new releases look promising. But, for now I have been enjoying using my current lineup.

An old favourite is the Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine in Greenberry. If it was possible to have a pastel mint green, with a hint of neon about it, this would be it. The formula scores full marks from me too - glossy and opaque. Stunning.
Who can resist a bubblegum pink? I certainly can't and Ciaté Candyfloss is the one I am loving. There's something about this milky pink that stands out among the rest of my collection of polishes that makes me want to paint it on my nails every day.
Another offering from Ciaté is Chinchilla, a powdery pale blue which looks really nice on my skin tone. The formula of this one isn't quite as good as my other Ciaté polishes, but I still love it nonetheless.

One that I never stop banging on about is the Revlon Colourstay in Provence, a dusty, slightly grey pale lilac, which I slap on my nails if I can't decide what to wear - it's basically my go-to.
I don't really like how oranges look on my nails, but GOSH Peachy* is slightly more pastel and muted, so I feel like it is one of the only oranges I enjoy wearing. I'm not sure if this is still available anywhere, but if it is, I recommend picking it up.
Finally, what would this post be without a true mint. This is the Rimmel Salon Pro polish is Peppermint, and it is the perfect blue-mint which has a great thick formula and I seriously don't understand why I haven't purchased more from the line because they really to rule.

So, that's what my pointers have been loving, but leave your suggestions of what to get for when Spring hits hard so I have my fair share of pastel lacquers...

P.S - This is my 200th post! *applause*

New 2True Pastel and Glitter Nail Polish

Hi guys!

So as shown in my recent haul, I picked up some 2True nail polishes after seeing them on Etc Llymlrs, and I also said that when my nails wheels arrived, I would do a post/review. 

I have one of the new pastel shades to show you and one of the new glitter shades, and if I can, I will certainly be getting more! I had my eye on a really pretty pastel coral colour, which was amazing. 

Shade 4 of the Glitteratti Polish is really pretty. It is a combination of small round glitter, and medium hex glitter in a cobalt blue colour, and a purple-pink colour all in a clear base. You get a good amount of glitter in each brush load, but sometimes you can get lots of one colour, so you may need to fish out pieces from the other colour, but its not that bad. This is also a very smooth once dry for a chunky glitter polish like this one.

Shade 16 is the pastel purple. Supposedly a Models Own Utopia dupe, this is the polish I had my eye on. I love an affordable dupe. It is a very pale pastel purple, more grey toned than pink, creme polish. It is really pretty, and I will be wearing this lots in the summer. It would also look great with a tan. 

In these swatches, I used 2 coats of Shade 16 shown on the left, and 1 thick coat of shade 4. As you can see, you do get a generous amount of glitter in one thick coat, but it still dries quite quickly, unlike some glitter polishes, where even if you apply a very thin coat they will feel tacky for what seems like hours. 

Overall, these are great nail polishes, and for £1.99 a pop or 3 for £5, with an amazing new range of pastels and glitters, along with their core collection of brights and staple colours, you should definitely go and check them out yourself. 

Do you own any 2True or bargain drugstore products, let me know in the comments? I love a good quality bargain. 

Thanks for reading,

Lauren x 

P.S Don't forget that I am now selling advertising space on my blog for very low prices. Have a look at my Sponsor and Advertisers page for more info. 

Also, don't forget to follow. I am 1 away from my GFC target of 80 before it goes away on 1st July, and also I am 4 away from my Bloglovin' target of 50. 

Spring NOTD | Pastel with Stripes

Hi everyone!

So, if you live in the UK, you may know that the weather is getting a little better now *touch wood*, so I was in the spring spirit the other day, when I painted my nails like this. It is really simple to do, and I only needed a few products; it literally took no time.

All I used was; Barry M Topcoat/Basecoat/Nail Hardener, Revlon Cloud (Which I am almost ran out off, because 6 months ago, I had an obsession with watermarbling, and it took about 7 tries for each nail. Note to self; dont use your favourite nail polish!), and A Rio Nail Art White Striper Polish.

The finished product

I am really pleased with how this turned out in the end, and I will be painting my nails like this a lot more with other pastel colours throughout spring. If you would like to see more posts and possibly picture tutorials on my blog, let me know in the comments!

What is your favourite nail art/colour trend for the moment? I would really like to know!

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Bye! Lauren x

Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine in Greenberry | Swatches and Review

Hi everyone! So as you should know already, these Barry M Gelly polishes have been raved about a lot recently, and I couldn't help it but buy one! So far, I only own Greenberry, but I certainly have my eye on a few more! This is like a mint/pastel green, but bright, and almost neon. It just makes me feel so summery when I have it on my nails!

Greenberry £3.99

 Woah, so this picture makes this polish look horrible and streaky. I can promise you now that's not the case, these are some of the most flawlessly applying polishes I have tried. Also, I apologize for the blurry picture,I don't have any more swatches! :( 

This is one of the colours that just makes me think 'OK England, we have had enough snow now, so please just let it be summer already?'. But I would wear this little guy on my nails in winter because I love it so much! It makes me feel so peppy and happy wearing this - I never knew nail polishes could be so uplifting!

Have you tried any of the polishes in this line? I really recommend them to you! 

Thanks for reading, don't forget to follow on GFC and Bloglovin' and twitter; www.twitter.com/thebeaubow

Bye! Lauren x