Review: Models Own Part 2

Hey guys!

I'm back with part two of the Models Own Review today. Clearly when I said in Part 1 that the other half was coming next wk I forgot a week was 7 days. Today I've got the last two I purchased back in September along with the last one which was gifted to me by my sister.

Sound Factory

This colour was the last one  my sister got me a while back. It was released as part of the Disco Pants Collection. It's a blue polish with blue flecks throughout...describing the shade of blue was a bit hard for some reason. The formula on this was a bit thin. I used two coats but my VNL was still visible so I'd suggest three for full coverage or maybe a thicker second coat. This shade is really pretty however it does stain badly so double up on base coat  and maybe use a white base or be prepared to buff for your life after you take it off. I wore this polish over three weeks ago and I'm still waiting for the staining to grow out.

PS. I haven't tried it but using a white base should reduce the number of coats needed and give a more even finish.

Lilac Icing

Lilac Icing is a gorgeous colour. It was released as part of the Icing Collection which featured a range of five pastel colours. This colour isn't a true lilac as you'll hopefully be able to see from the pictures, it's got a bit too much pink to be a lilac in my opinion but pretty nonetheless.

The formula on this was a bit thick so it was a one coater for me. I've got a slight fear that in a year or so I may need to pull out the thinners for this one or it'll be tricky to work with. The pigmentation is also amazing. Since I got it I've worn it a couple times and it makes for a great toe colour particularly for spring or summer if you live in a country where seasons change...in Bim it's just always hot. It's actually on my toes right now.

This is one that I would definitely recommend you get if you're looking for something from the brand or in the colour range.

Northern Lights

This colour lives up to it's name perfectly.It's a pale pink microglitter with holographic microglitter littered throughout. For some reason it had a tendency to give off an almost champagne coloured effect on the nail and in certain lights. The holo glitter in this polish though is it!!!! I don't think there's another scattered holo amongst the babies with this crazy a holo effect.

I wore this as a full mani for old years but that was a crazy wkend and no nail pics were taken. If I do it again sometime I'll update this post but as you can imagine getting this polish off was a pain. Peel-off base coat I see you!

The glitters sit in a clear base so more than one coat will be needed. I'd say three if you're painting but I painted one coat and sponged the second and that covered the empty space really well. Any visible nail could'nt be seen cuz this polish was busy blinding me. The consistency was really good for a glitter, not goopy or anything.

That's it for the Models Own until I break my no-buy and I've been doing pretty good so far, not due at all to my own self control but the fact that car insurance and road tax about to be due.

I hope you enjoyed the last two posts.

Until next time...

Review: Models Own Part 1

 Hi Guys!!

This post has also been sitting in draft for a while waiting patiently for me to complete it and to  make matters worst I lost all the pictures I initially took. *womp womp*.

Continuing on with the reviews today I've got the Models Own review for you. This post is a bit lengthy so I think I'll split it in two. Models Own is an English brand of nail polish with a huge range of colours and finishes so definitely worth your time to check out.

They're seven polishes I'm going to be reviewing in total and four of these polishes were gifted to me by my sister last year but I never got around to reviewing them.

Chrome Rose

Chrome Rose was one of 10 colours released as part of the Colour Chrome Collection last year. The collection featured chrome/liquid metal finishes. Models Own just released 5 new polishes in the line. Chrome Rose is the rose gold of the collection and while not on my wishlist by name I picked it up cuz I've been on the hunt for a nice rose gold polish.

So like I said it's a rose gold polish with a serious liquid metal effect. The formula was good and so was the pigmentation. Let me tell you though, this polish needs some work. I needed to give it a good shake before I applied it. I think because of the molten metal effect, whatever pigment they used just settles to the bottom. So heed that "Shake Well" label on the bottle. Application also took some work, it's brush-strokey as hell but again that's because of the finish so be sure to paint as straight as possible. I also realised there was some dragging as I did my first coat and ended up with a few patches of naked nail. My suggestion would be to apply this with as light a hand as possible and make sure your first coat is dry before applying the second. I used two coats in my swatches below. Another thing is, unless you've got perfectly smooth nails or you buff your nails smooth, you will without a doubt need a ridge filling base coat because this polish shows up every indentation in your nail.

Honestly, I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about this, initially it looked too copper and rusty almost but then it kind of grew on me and I ended up wearing it for a few days.

Blue Chrome

This is a nice icy blue, almost looks like a slightly blue tinged silver in some lighting to my eye. The formula on this was quite similar to that of Chrome Rose.  Same good shaking required, same drying time between coats etc if you've got or tried a great rose gold polish let me know in the comments below.

Red Lustre

This is a classic blue toned red...you know that traditional ole faithful polish colour you pull out for a timeless look. This polish is one from the HyperGel line which boasts a gel like finish with no UV/LED light. The polish applied smoothly and evenly. I used two coats to be "politically correct" but could have gotten away with one. This polish also dried to an extremely glossy finish with no top coat. The line does carry it's own top coat which I didn't pick up because I personally didn't think it was necessary for me. I top coated with my ole faithful HK Girl.

Brunette Red

This is also from the HyperGel line and is a pretty burgundy colour. This formula is just as amazing as that of Red Lustre so I don't think there's much more to type. Also worth mentioning is that the drying time on this polish is AMAZINGGGGG! If you're looking for a quick drying one coater polish then these would be ideal.

Part two of the review comes next week and its got my favourite Models Own polishes so hopefully this one didn't bore you to death and I'll see you then.
Until next time...

Review: Glam Polish

Hiya and Happy New Year to one and all!

I've been MIA again these last few months but now I'm back to continue with the reviews. Hopefully I can be a little more consistent this year. (P.S. That's not a resolution or anything.)

Once again though I will continue to try to purchase more indie brands and support the smaller companies this year. That being said I've got a gift card for Mozaic (the OPI store here in Barbados) that I fully intend to take advantage of. OPI Purple Palazzo Pants I see youuuuu!

Anywhosie, guess who got two more Glam Polish babies on her trip to England last year. Told ya Unforgettable Dream was the first but wouldn't be the last! Weeks before I left for England I was scouring the European stockists sites for polishes I wanted. Only two of the ones I got were on my wish list but they're both gorgeous.

So I got me Charmed and Are You Sea-rious? which was a relatively new release at the time and my fave of the two. I purchased these from Rainbow Connection, an English stockist for indie polishes.

So let's talk about them.

Charmed

Charmed was released early in 2015 as part of the Cast A Spell Part 3: The White Witch Collection. It's a rosy mauve with varying sizes of holographic glitter and legit comes alive in sunlight. Seriously, this has joined my Cheer Me Up Collection, those polishes that keep you happy when work's not so great, the ones that break your concentration when you're driving or keep you entertained when you're stuck in traffic. Y'all know what I mean!

So this gorgeousness in a bottle applied pretty easily for me given all the glittery goodness inside. I used two coats because it didn't cover completely in one. The pigmentation was superb and the formula wasn't bad either. Make sure to give it a good shake so the glitters are evenly distributed. Because they're so many glitters in there you're gonna need a top coat to smooth it all out, otherwise it'll dry with a textured finish.

Are You Sea-rious?

Are You Sea-rious? was released as part of the Under The Sea Collection. When this baby hit Instagram I took a screenshot of every one I saw. Lemme tell you, I haven't wanted a polish this bad in long. This baby is everything I love. It's that perfect blue green that reminds you of the beach. It's got what looks like tiny turquoise glitters mixed in with the holo glitter. This thing comes alive on your nail. No lie, it made me think Accra beach, a Cuz Cutter and a coconut snocone with milk. Another one added to the Cheer Me Up Collection.

Ok so to the nitty gritty. Are You Sea-rious? is a gorgeous blue-green, aquamarine colour filled with holographic glitter and tiny turquoise glitter. The formula is amazing, goes on perfectly. This can be a one-coater if you do a heavy coat.

My only problem with these are the brushes, I'm not a fan of Glam Polish brushes but that's a small issue given the quality of what's in the bottle.

Because these polishes are so packed with glitter, make sure to give them a good shake just to get all the good stuff well mixed before you put it on your nails. Like I said earlier you may also need a coat or two of top coat to smooth it all out because the glitter makes them dry a bit textured.
FYI These polishes are all hand mixed in batches so the formulas may vary by batch. That being said they are amazing and worth every penny.

Glam Polish can be purchased directly from their site or from any of their stockists.

I hope you liked them and if you do decide to get them that they make you as happy as me.

Until next time...

Shop The Stash: LA Girl Sparkle Ruby

Hi Hi!

I've been digging through the babies again this week and rediscovering stuff I bought forever ago and loved.

Soo this week I found my LA Girl Sparkle Ruby. This was one of the scattered holos LA Girl released a few years back. This is actually the only collection I own in its entirety and coincidentally these polishes are some of my faves. Although the holo effect isn't that strong the polishes are gorgeous.

Lucinda over at Moden Makeup has also been shopping her stash and rediscovered an oldie but goodie Color Club Snakeskin.

Have you found any oldies but goodies in your stash recently?

Until next time...

Review: Essence The Gel Nail Polish

Hi Hi!! Hope everybody's good.

I'm now the proud owner of 3 new Essence polishes.

Now these weren't on my wish list per se but I've wanted to try the brand for a while. They're all from the Gel line but one's a matte line and I'm going to review them for you today.

I picked these polishes up on a visit to Wilkos. The three I got were Serendipity, Miss Captain and I *heart* my blue jeans.

The Gel polishes are part of a three step system that provides a gel like finish without the UV/LED light. I only picked up the colours as Wilkos had neither the base nor top coat but if I ever come across them I'm definitely picking them up. This brand is currently not available in Barbados.

Serendipity

Serendipity is a lavender greyish colour. The pigmentation and formula on this polish is amazing, smooth like butta as I like to say. It's definitely got the feel of a gel polish. What I would say as someone who likes products to last is the polish seems as thought it may thicken over time and require some thinners. Other than that no complaints.

In the pics below I used two coats but this polish could be a one coater if you're careful. The brush is also amazing in my opinion. It's got those brushes I like, similar to the brushes from the Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure line. It lets you get that nice perfect line close to the cuticle.

Serendipity

Serendipity

Miss  Captain

Miss Captain is one of those hard to describe colours. By my eye it's a cross between a dusty teal and a slate grey. Might be a bit hard to visualize but the pics below are pretty true to colour. The formula was just like that of Serendipity, creamy perfection. This could also have been a one coater but I used two again. This colour is unique to my collection but I'm not really a fan of it.

Miss Captain

 I *heart* My Blue Jeans

I *heart* my blue jeans (no idea how to get a heart here) is also from the gel line but it's a Matt (Essence's spelling not mine). It's a beautiful navy blue polish, perfect fall colour if you live somewhere where the seasons change. The formula and brush on this one were like the two. This one surprisingly is also unique to my collection. I intended to top coat it but the matte had me good. Drying time was ok, my two coats took about 30 minutes to dry completely.

Roundup

Overall I'm impressed especially for the price point. The formula and pigmentation was great. The brush was amazing in my books, and I say in my books because most people don't seem to be fans of this type of brush, particularly people with small fingers. Drying time on Serendipity and Miss Captain was good; when I say drying time I mean dry to touch because I go over with my topcoat before everything is completely dry. I can't speak to longevity as I change my polish every two days but from all reviews they last. These are my first three Essence polishes but they definitely won't be my last.

Until next time...

Haulin' - Another Year, Lots of New Babies

Hiii

I recently got back from visiting the queen, officially it was called vacation but I returned more exhausted than I left. This is why I didn't fnish the September Nail Challenge I started. The rush to get things together at home and at work before travelling took some time and energy. And I know it's not necessary to have things in order but for me it is. 

Anywhosie, as I was gallivanting through London I made sure to pick up some new babies. I got 16 in a total, a resounding 10 down from last year's haul if I remember correctly. Let's hear it for self control and a diminished wallet- YAYYYY!!!

So I'm here to share the new babies with you and I'll do a review on each in separate posts.I tried to group brands together so this post wouldn't be too picture heavy.

As I said over the next few weeks I'll have separate posts on each.

Until next time...

Shop The Stash!!

Hi Guys,

How's everything? I'm back from vacation and trying to get back into the swing of things.

A few weeks ago I was feeling overwhelmed and stressed out and I don't know about you but when I'm feeling that way, I need one of two things: a snocone or new polish. So I left work in search of one or the other to cheer me up but my snocone man was MIA and I couldn't find any polishes that jumped out at me. This gave me the idea for a new blog series: Shop The Stash!!

Basically this is a challenge to myself to keep out the people's stores and make use of what I've got. It's by no means a no-buy 'cuz we all know how those go. What I noticed is that I've got a few un-trieds and several polishes that have only been once or twice so I'm putting them to work.

To start off the series I pulled out a baby that hasn't been used in a while: OPI Dutch Ya Just Love OPI and did a simple mani. I added some gold studs to make it blingy and top coated with Old Faithful. For the newbies that's my Glisten and Glow HK Girl.

Do you guys have any untried or once-used babies lying around? Feel free to join me and shop your stashes too. Let me know in the comments. 

Until next time...