NOTD Butter London Teddy Girl & An Attempt At Some Nail Art

A quick post on one of the shades I mentioned in a recent pink polish post, Butter London's Teddy Girl. I've been really into pink nail colours lately and Teddy Girl, which is a milky, opaque pink has been one of my favourites. 

It's not the easiest of shades to apply and I find it takes three coats of colour to get an even finish. I think it's worth it though, as it's a pretty shade.  

I actually painted my nails with Teddy Girl on Saturday and came across a watercolour nail art post on Makeup Savvy on Sunday, which I decided to try. I'm normally quite rubbish at any sort of nail art, but the tutorial and instructions looked easy enough, so I got out a few more Butter London shades and gave it a go. 

The whole sandwich bag/smooshing process was easy enough, but the end result wasn't quite as pretty as results posted in the tutorial.....

I'm not really sure where I went wrong, but the effect doesn't look half as good the result in the tutorial (it does look a bit better from a distance). Maybe I need to use less polish next time, or practice my smooshing technique? Anyway, although my attempt didn't look quite pretty as I was hoping, I have to say, I'm quite liking the whole watercolour effect, and will definitely be giving it another go/practicing with some different colour combinations.

Also, I just wanted to say that the Clarins Lipstick giveaway is now closed. The winner will chosen using random.org tomorrow, and the original post will be updated with the winners name. Thanks to everyone who entered!

NOTD Ciate Sand Dune Paint Pot

I decided to give one of the shades I picked up with this month's issue of Marie Claire a go yesterday. Until quite recently, I completely bypassed nail colours with any sort of shimmer or glitter, but after adding a few sparkly colours to my collection, I have to say, I'm actually quite liking shimmery shades at the moment. 

Ciate Paint Pot: Sand Dune

Ciate Sand Dune

Sand Dune is described as a glistening gold on the Ciate site, which it most certainly is. It's a pretty, shiny pound coin kinda gold shot through with tiny shimmers. 

Ciate Sand Dune (3 Coats)

It took three coats of colour to get a completely opaque finish, but the formula is excellent and I had zero application issues. I've actually found this to be the case with all of the Ciate shades I've tried - they all seem to apply brilliantly and wear well, too. I added a coat of my regular topcoat over the shade (Seche), but the finish still felt really smooth and looked quite glossy without.

Overall, a nice shade and one I imagine will look pretty during the summer with a bit of a tan. 

Butter London Sweetie Shop Swatches: Cuppa, Jasper & Fruit Machine

Another post on some more of the shades I picked up recently from Butter London's Spring 2013 Sweetie Shop collection. I've already posted about some of the colours (Molly Coddled, Kerfuffle and Fiver) here, and managed to photograph the other three pretty pastels from the collection over the weekend.

Butter London: Cuppa, Jasper & Fruit Machine

In my last post, I mentioned that some of the colours from Butters Spring collection have been a bit difficult to apply and that I've had a few problems getting used to the stubbier and slightly wider than I'm used to brush. I did have a few problems with a couple of these shades too, but as I've already said, these are still some of the best pastels I've tried in terms of application and finish, and I'm really quite pleased with how well Butter's formula wears.

Butter London Cuppa

Cuppa - A clean, light beige nude creme. I found Cuppa the easiest to apply out of the six shades from the collection. I had some slight streaks going on with the first coat, but managed to get an even, streak finish with a second coat of colour.

Butter London Jasper

Jasper - A bright, buttercup yellow. Jasper is actually the first yellow polish I've tried. I've heard that yellows can be a bit difficult to apply evenly and I did have a few issues with this one. The first and second coats left me with some streaks, so I added a third coat of colour and topped it off with a coat of Seche to even everything out.

Butter London Fruit Machine

Fruit Machine - A bright and punchy baby pink creme. Like a few of the other shades from the collection, I found Fruit Machine to be on the thick side. I applied 2 coats of colour, but found I still had a few streaks, so added a third. 

Butter London Sweetie Shop Collection. Photo taken outdoors in shade

Overall, I really am pleased with all of the shades from the collection, despite the few application issues I've had with some of the colours. They're all very pretty, cheerful shades and I'd definitely recommend checking them out if pastels are your thing. I've been sporting Jasper and Cuppa on my nails over the past couple of weeks and I imagine I'll be reaching for the other chirpy colours a lot over the coming months.

Butter London Sweetie Shop Swatches: Molly Coddled, Kerfuffle & Fiver

I picked up the shades from Butter London's Spring 2013 Sweetie Shop collection a couple of weeks ago, but have been waiting to swatch them for a couple of different reasons. The first is that the weather's been cold, dreary and miserable lately and not very Spring-like, and the second is, I'm still getting to grips with Butter's formulation, which is slightly thicker than I'm used to.

Butter London Molly Coddled, Kerfuffle & Fiver

I've been favouring Leighton Denny nail colours lately, which are much thinner than the Butter shades I picked up and easier to work with. The Butter brush has also taken a bit of getting used to, as it's stubbier and slightly wider than the Leighton Denny brush, and I find it a little bit more difficult to control. Anyway, some swatches of three of the shades from the collection...

Butter London Molly Coddled

Molly Coddled - A creamy lavender. This is one of the shades from the collection that I found to be slightly thick. I got the best, most even application when I applied two, thin coats of coats of colour. 

Butter London Kerfuffle

Kerfuffle - A soft creamy peachy/pale coral. Again, I found the formula to be on the thick side and did find Kerfuffle slightly difficult to apply, but I did get an even, opaque finish with two coats of carefully applied colour. 

Butter London Fiver

Fiver -  An icy mint green. I managed to get an opaque coverage with two coats, but the finish wasn't as smooth as I'd have liked, so i added a third after taking the photo above. I do absolutely love the colour, though!

While I've had a few application issues with some of the shades, I'm still completely in love with all of the colours from the Sweetie Shop collection. I'd been lusting after a minty green polish for quite a while, so Fiver is definitely my favourite of the bunch. They're all very pretty, though. 

I think the formula/brush problems I've been having are maybe more down to me than the formulation, as I'm used to other brand's formulas that I find slightly easier to apply. Overall, I've not had any major problems with any of the shades, and I have to say, they're probably the best pastels I've tried in terms of application and finish. The shades I've done full manicures with seem to wear/last well too. I got a good 4 days of wear with Fiver and Cuppa with Orly's Bonder used as a base and Seche as a top coat, which isn't bad at all. 

I did attempt to swatch the other three shades at the same time (Cuppa, Jasper & Fruit machine) so I could put them all in the same post, but the sun decided to disappear half way through swatching, so I'll post some photos of those in the next couple of days.

NOTD: Chanel 539 June

I'm jumping on the 'looking forward to spring' bandwagon with Chanel's June. Much as I love dark, vampy, wintery nail colours, I've kind of had enough of wearing them now and am really looking forward to fishing some of the brighter colours out of the stash. I'm also really looking forward to warmer weather and some sunshine! I've seen a few blog posts on spring/summery shades over the past week, so I thought dig out June and brighten up my own nails.

Chanel Nail colour: June

The creamy, pastel apricot shade was released last year as part of Chanel's Spring collection. I thought it was limited edition, but after a little search around, it seems it's still available on quite a few sites. 

Chanel June. 3 coats (No top coat)

I personally find application to be a meh with June. The formula applies quite sheer, and even after three coats I didn't manage to get an opaque or completely even coverage (there were a few minor streaks). Still, it is a pretty shade!

Chanel June, Miami Peach & Cashmere

The only similar shades I have in my collection are Chanel's Miami Peach and Cashmere. Miami peach is more of a juicy guava shade with tiny flecks of gold glitter, and Cashmere is more of soft, golden peach.

NOTD Ciaté Jelly Bean

Jelly Bean was actually my nail colour of choice yesterday, too. I wanted something pink for Valentine's day and opted for the bright fuchsia, mainly because it's been sitting unused on my nail polish shelf since I picked it up last year. I've no idea why, because it's a really pretty shade!

Ciaté Paint Pot Jelly Bean

Jelly Bean is a bright fuchsia, shot through with blue shimmer, which is much more visible in the bottle than it is on nails.You can just about make out the tiny blue shimmers on the nail up close and in natural light, but they're very subtle. In bright sunlight and with flash, they become much more visible.

Ciate Jelly Bean (with flash)

Two coats applied in the picture above and photo taken with flash to show the fine blue glitter/shimmer.

Ciaté Jelly Bean

Ciaté Jelly Bean (2 coats)

As with other shades I've tried from the brand, Jelly Bean applies brilliantly. The wide, flat brush and long handle make application a pretty easy task, and the shade was opaque with two coats. I applied my regular top coat over the colour (Seche Vite), but the finish was still super glossy without.

Chanel Nail Colour: 18 Rouge Noir

Chanel Rouge Noir 18

Taking another break from summer brights today and decided to paint my nails in one of my favourite classic, vampy shades, Rouge Noir.

Chanel Rouge Noir

Rouge Noir is a gorgeous dark red/chocolate shade in the bottle. The colour you get on nails depends on how many coats are applied. The shade looks like a glossy burgundy with the first coat, but becomes more of a deep, blackened red with a second or third. I really do like how the shade looks with just the one coat, but rarely wear it without adding at least a second because I find the finish to be a bit uneven and sheer. A second coat evens out the colour nicely, and a third turns it into a completely opaque, almost black (depending on lighting) colour.

As with most other Chanel nail colours I've tried, Rouge Noir applies really well. The colour does initially apply slightly unevenly, but becomes smooth and opaque with a second coat. The finish is glossy and lasting power is average. The photo below shows how the shade looks with three, thin coats. I had planned to apply just the two, but messed up horribly and needed a third.

Chanel Rouge Noir (3 coats)

And a quick photo to show how the colour looks with two coats.

Rouge Noir (2 coats)

Are you a fan of dark, vampy shades? Do you have any favourites?

Chanel Nail Colour: 529 Graphite

Chanel Nail Colour: 529 Graphite

When I first saw pictures of Chanel's Fall nail colours, I almost immediately made up my mind that I didn't want any of them, because I'm not really a huge fan of shimmery/metallic polish. All the beautiful photos and swatches I've seen over the last few weeks managed to change my mind, though and I decided I needed at least one of the shades. I'd actually intended to pick up Peridot, but the sales assistant at the Chanel counter happened to be wearing Graphite and after seeing it, I couldn't resist.

Chanel Graphite

Graphite is a fairly dark grey shade infused with a lot of pretty silver and gold glitter. In certain light, the colour looks like a cool toned silver, and in other lighting the gold flecks of shimmer are more prominent and really warm the shade up.

Chanel Graphite 529

The first coat of Graphite applied quite sheer and a little bit uneven, but the colour smoothed out beautifully with a second coat and became almost opaque. I've only had the shade on since yesterday so I can't really comment on how it wears, I've not had any chips so far, though. The photo below was taken outside and it was a little bit chilly, so please excuse the pink/red hands.

Chanel Graphite: 2 coats

Chanel Graphite with flash

All in all, I'm happy with my purchase. Graphite is a pretty shade that I'll probably be reaching for quite a lot during during the cooler, autumn and winter months.

Graphite is available online and at Chanel counters now and costs £17.50 for a 13ml bottle

Have you picked up Graphite or either of the other two shades from the collection?

Ciate Nail Colour: Skinny Jeans 022

I actually received this in my July GlossyBox and stashed it away in my polish drawer because I'm not really a fan of blue nail colours. I am quite fond of mint, turquoise, aqua and even teal shades, but tend to shy away from deeper, darker blues.The colour seems to be a popular choice for nails this Fall with Dior and Chanel both releasing blues in their collections, so I decided to fish out the shade yesterday and give it a go.

Ciate Paint Pot Skinny Jeans 022

I'd describe Skinny Jeans as a really pigmented, cobalt or denim blue shade. It's the first polish I've tried from Ciate and I'm really impressed with the formula, which is fairly thick and applied beautifully. The elongated lid and short, fairly wide brush allowed for really precise application, and the quick drying, rich, non streaking colour made painting my nails an absolute pleasure.

Ciate Skinny Jeans with flash (2 coats)

The photos show two coats of colour without a top coat. Ciate describe their nail colours as being long lasting so I thought I'd test it without Seche Vite to see how long the colour lasts.

Skinny Jeans Direct Sunlight (2 coats)

 So has Skinny jeans changed my opinion of blue polish? No, I don't think so. The colour is lovely, but I'm just not ready to embrace smurf nails yet. Blues look lovely on others, but the colour just isn't for me. I'm glad I've given it a go because I've discovered a new brand of great polish, but I doubt I'll be reaching for the shade again anytime soon. 

Ciate nail colours are available here and cost £9.00 for a 13.5ml bottle 

Are you a fan of blue polish?

Do any of the blues from this years fall collections take your fancy?

Chanel Nail Colour: 489 Rose Insolent

Chanel 489 Rose Insolent

 I'm wearing another Chanel colour on my nails at the moment, and today's shade is another summery number. I'd describe Rose Insolent as a fairly bright, warm pink.

Chanel Rose Insolent

Like the other Chanel shades I've been wearing recently, Rose Insolent applied beautifully. 

The colour went on evenly with absolutely no streaking, dried fairly quickly and was completely opaque with two thin coats. The photo on the left is without flash and the one on the right is with.

I have used a coat of Orly Bonder underneath, but no top coat. I've mentioned before that my usual top coat (Seche Vite) doesn't seem to work well with my Chanel colours for some reason and I always seem to get a lot of shrinkage if I use them together. I find Chanel's colours have a lovely glossy finish even without a top coat and also seem to last/wear well too.

Chanel Rose Insolent, Miami Peach & Splendeur

And I just thought I'd include a couple of other fairly bright and summery shades I've been wearing over the past few weeks. I'm making the most of them at the moment before Summer disappears completely.

Chanel Rose Insolent, Miami Peach & Splendeur (photo taken in shade).

Hope everyone's had a lovely weekend!