Mani Monday - Essie Tart Deco

Yep, another Essie polish, this time in the shade Tart Deco. I've been wearing this one constantly since I got it a couple of months ago, both on my fingers and toes. It's just the perfect summery shade that manages to cheer me up a bit when I look down at my nails. As always with Essie, both the formula and brush are on point. Long lasting, shiny and easy to apply. 

What have you been wearing on your nails recently?

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#ManiMonday

When the Essie stand beckoned me the other day, I decided to go for a nudey pink shade that I could wear anytime, with anything, without really thinking about it. I spent a few minutes holding the shades against my hand to see which best suited my skintone and decided to go for this one, called Not Just A Pretty Face. 

It's such a lovely, barely there shade that somehow just looks incredibly polished and chic. I know I'll be reaching for it over other polishes constantly so if you don't see another #ManiMonday post for a while, you know why! 

I find that Essie polishes are the best in terms of formula and ease of application. I'm definitely glad I added to my collection with this one!

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Another Little Haul

Another haul, I know, shoot me. It's been barely a week since my last one and here we are again. I really wanted the Nars Digital World Lip Pencil Coffret when it came out and as usual I dilly-dallied and they quickly sold out. Story of my life. Luckily they came back into stock and I quickly snapped one up. (As I write this they're still in stock online). I'm so glad I got it as I just love all of the shades, there isn't a single dud. 

When I'm in Boots, the Essie stand always manages to draw me in, their polishes are so pretty and I'm a sucker for anything arranged in colour order. I decided to go for a barely there pinky nude called Not Just A Pretty Face, which made it onto my nails in record time. I'm already certain this is going to become a long term favourite.

The last thing I got was the Nars Multiple in South Beach which is just a ridiculously beautiful colour. It looks really orange in the bullet but doesn't transfer that way, it applies as a sheer coraly-bronze that does wonders to warm up dull skin. I've been using it as a blusher/highlighter hybrid and I love it. 

Have you bought any new makeup recently?

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Autumn Wishlist

Aromatherapy Associates Essential Bath & Shower Oil

Champaneys Distant Shores Fragranced Candle

Mango Faux Leather Applique Parka

Asos - Wool Mix Open Weave Scarf

Melvita Rose Hip Oil

Mango Two-Pocket Blouse

Asos Long Tube Necklace

Essie Bordeaux

Jurlique Essence of Rose Roll on Fragrance

Korres Wild Rose Lip Butter

Canon EOS M Compact System Camera

Essie Manicure at Privet Beauty

I recently went to an event hosted at Privet, a beauty salon in Notting Hill. Quite possibly the loveliest decorated salon I've ever been to! The salon has lots of different treatment rooms, each with a different theme as well as a hidden away area for manicures called the 'secret garden'. It's such a lovely change from the usual generically decorated salons and nail bars.

They use Essie polishes for their manicures which I was really pleased to hear as it's my favourite nail brand. I went for the shade Watermelon with Naughty Nautical as an accent nail, I was having a bit of a difficult time choosing but I think the shades look great together! As I write this I'm on day 3 and still no chips! I may have to invest in the Essie top and base coat!

The lady who did my manicure was lovely and chatty, something which makes a big difference to me. It felt more like a friend was doing my nails!

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December Favourites

As most of my beauty goodies are still packed away in boxes, I ended up keeping things pretty simple in december. 

The rainy, windy weather has really been playing havoc on my hair and Kerastase Nutritive Oleo-Relax Slim is about the only thing that's been able to keep it in check. A pea sized amount worked into lengths and ends smoothes out frizz and tames excess volume.

Seeing as I ran out of my usual eyebrow pencil and broke my spoolie in quick succession, I decided to pick up this Rimmel Eyebrow Pencil in Dark Brown as it has a convenient little brush on the lid. I love a good multifunctional product! 

I know I said I've been keeping things pretty low key lately but what would Christmas and New Year's Eve have been without a little glitter? My weapon of choice was Essie Beyond Cosy, a super sparkly silver and gold glitter hybrid that just screams Christmas. Not sure I'll be able to wait till next december to wear this again!

My skin always takes a turn for the worse during the winter months, especially around my eyes, where skin starts to feel sore and parched. The Botanics 100% Organic Facial Oil has been doing wonders to keep it at bay, and it boasts some pretty impressive ingredients, enough to rival some of it's much more expensive alternatives. Expect a rave coming soon!

I've been using the La Roche-Posay Effaclar Astringent Lotion Micro-Exfoliant twice a day for a good few weeks now and so far I'm pretty pleased with the results. It's a toner containing chemical exfoliants which you simple swipe on with a cotton pad. Much gentler on the skin than scrubbing away at the skin with a harsh grainy product but delivers the same smooth results.

The Fragrance I've been wearing pretty much exclusively throughout december is Avon Far Away Exotic, it's a warm but fruity fragrance that's very easy to wear. I can definitely see it becoming a long term favourite that I'll be reaching for all year.

What products have you enjoyed using in December?

Autumn Nail Edit

It's no secret that I'm quite into nails so I thought I'd put together an edit of my favourite autumn nail shades. Here's what made the cut!

Avon Nailwear Pro in Perfectly Flesh

This nude shade works really well with my skintone, it looks good all year round really but it's a particularly nice option in the autumn for when you don't wan't something dark.

YSL La Laque No 37 (discontinued)

This dark inky blue looks stunning on short nails, it's black in some light but has just a hint of navy. It's been filling the Essie After School Boy Blazer sized hole in my collection nicely. 

Chanel Le Vernis 509 Paradoxal

A two toned grey and purple that somehow has a neutral quality about it and seems to go with everything. The formula isn't great, as with all Chanel varnishes, but the colour is spot on.

Essie Aperitif 

Quite possibly my favourite polish of all time, this is another one that works well all seasons, but particularly autumn and winter. An ever so slightly darker take on a classic red that you just can't go wrong with.

Nails Inc Ledbury Road 

A concrete grey with a subtle metallic finish that I can't help but love in spite of generally being someone who sticks to cream finishes. It only needs one coat, and is super glossy making it a great last minute nail option that adds a little somethin' somethin' to an otherwise boring outfit. 

Sephora Colour Hit Nail Lacquer in Will you Jump?

An amazingly rich royal blue which is bang on trend that I just can't seem to stop staring at when it's on my nails. I love these polishes, the brush is great, the formula is great and there's a huge variety of shades. 

What have you been wearing on your nails this autumn?

My Top 10 Under £10

A lot of Beauty Bloggers have recently be revealing their top 10 under £10 ($15), so I thought, why not jump on the bandwagon? When I first decided to do it I thought I'd really struggle to come up with 10, but when I started jotting things down I realised it was going to be quite the opposite! It's been pretty tough trying to narrow it down from my original 20+ products, but here's what made the cut!

Coconut oil, standard, if I had a penny for every time I went on about this stuff! It's a brilliant hair treatment, moisturiser, makeup remover and cleanser, plus it's cheap as chips! (find out all the ways to use it here)

Caudalie Gentle Cleansing Milk is a recent discovery but a definite favourite. The 100ml size is under a tenner and they also do a 200ml and 400ml size. It's super gentle, removes every last scrap of makeup and grime and leaves skin feeling really clean and baby soft. I'd recomend this to anyone but especially those with sensitive skins, (full review here).

Schwartzkopf Got2be Oil-licious Argan Oil Styling Oil is a pretty strong contender against it's much more expensive alternatives. A rich oily serum which glides into the hair easily leaving it soft and shiny while giving it a boost of moisture. Just don't forget a little goes a long way! (full review here)

When it came to compiling this list, the Sleek Face Contour Kit  in light was the first product that came to mind. A bronzer/contour, a highlighter and a peachy pink blusher all housed in a single slim no frills compact with a full size mirror. The shades are flattering on everyone and it's brilliant for travelling, everyone I know who's tried this loves it. (full review here)

Soap & Glory's Flake Away body scrub is not only my favourite body scrub under a tenner, but my favourite hands down. Its packed full of different sized particles which leave your skin feeling super smooth, the butters and oils leave it feeling really soft and for an added bonus it smells like Miss Dior! 

Like pretty much everyone with a beauty blog these days, I love the Revlon ColourBurst Lip Butters, they are most definitely worth the hype! Soft, creamy formulas, buildable colour and an amazing shade range, there's at least one for everyone. Did I mention they're currently on buy one get one half price at Boots? 

Essie are by far the best nail varnish brand in my opinion, their formulas are really long lasting, the brushes are wide and flat making application fool proof and they have every colour you could ever want.   

Real Techniques do an amazing range of brushes, you might as well just forget about more expensive makeup brushes because these do everything you need. Most of then are under 10.00 and some come in sets that are brilliant value. My favourites are the Buffing Brush and Pointed Foundation Brush, both from the core collection kit.  


I have an extensive collection of Avon SuperShock Gel Eyeliners (review here), they're a brilliant budget buy. The gel formula means they'll never drag on your eyelids, they just glide along smoothly and once they set they just don't budge. 


Lastly it's the Rimmel Scandaleyes Mascara, another recent discovery, this completely blew my previous favourite Dior Diorshow Blackout out of the water. The wide, closely packed bristle brush gives volume, separation and length in a few quick sweeps, saving time and money. 


I hope you liked my picks, what are your favourites under a tenner?

September Favourites

Essie Aperitif

Essie is by far my favourite nail varnish brand and this month I've been loving the shade Aperitif, it's the perfect red that just works all year round and the formula lasts a lot longer on me than other polishes before chipping. I've reapplied this one over and over this month!

MUA Undressed Palette

On a day to day basis eyeshadows always tend to be the forgotten step in my makeup routine, but since I did my Autumn Makeup Bag post I've been making an attempt to experiment a bit more. I've been turning to my bargain MUA Palette in Undressed almost everyday!  Particularly the darker matte brown (top row 5th from left) and the shimmery bronze (bottom row 1st from left).

Caudalie Gentle Cleansing Milk

I got this in the FeelUnique sale at the end of august and loved it immediately! I did a full review of it which you can see here, it's a great cream cleanser which is super gentle on skin, smells lovely and removes every last scrap of makeup. I've been massaging it on and flanneling it off.

Coconut oil

There are a huge amount of ways in which you can use Coconut Oil which I spoke about here, but this month I've been using it as a hair treatment a lot. It's really moisturising, I just run the bottle under a hot tap, work it through my hair, leave it for half an hour then wash it out. It's been helping to get my dry and damaged hair back to a good condition!

Project Art by Nest Pineapple Mango Candle

I love burning candles on cosy autumn evenings and this month I've been loving this one, it's so warm and fruity smelling and it fills the entire room with fragrance really quickly. Unfortunately this candle was limited edition and it's really difficult to get hold of so I'm trying (and failing) not to burn it too much.

Rimmel Scandaleyes Mascara

Step aside Diorshow Blackout, there's a new favourite in town! This is everything I could ever want in a mascara, it adds length, volume and pigment all in a few quick swipes. I'll definitely be buying this again and again.

What products have you been loving through September?

NOTD #7

If ever I had to pick 1 nail varnish brand, and I could only ever buy from said brand for the rest of my life, (I'm not sure why this scenario would occur)it would definitely be Essie. Long lasting streak free formulas? Check. Perfect opacity in one coat? Check.  Wide easy to control brushes? Check. Incredible colour range? Check, check.  

Saying that Essie nail varnishes are relatively new to me so my collection is still quite limited. My favourite colour by a long way is this one, Aperitif, its a perfect Pillarbox Red that seems to work what ever time of year it is and with whatever I'm wearing.  If I can't decide which to wear, this is the one I usually go for!

Have you ever tried Essie nail varnishes? What are your favourite colours?