THE HUNT FOR A PEEL-OFF BASE COAT

feat. Maybelline Color Show Latte - one of my fave "barely there" shades

Once you've experienced the convenience and satisfaction of peeling off your nail varnish you'll never want to go back to a bottle of remover and a pile of cotton wool. I have been using the nailgirls 3-in-1 Base/Top Coat for a good year and although it is not marketed as a peel-off base coat, it does exactly that. It dries down quickly, lasts for a good few days, and then simply peels off when you want to get rid. Although it wasn't without flaw - it can a little gloopy, it sometimes flakes rather than peels, and it probably isn't the best for weak nails, I was content. I first received a bottle in a beauty box, then I trolled ebay for a second but have now not been able to get my hands on another. So, the search for a replacement has begun...

After a few half-hearted attempts to look up potential peel-off base coats on google, I finally gave in and just decided to pick up something from my local drugstore to try. With no particular plan in mind for what I wanted to purchase, an offering from Maybelline caught my eye.

I thought that at £2.99, this was worth a try. I've tried it a couple of times now and first off, this stuff is thick. It also requires a bit of drying time. The first time I used it, I tried to go straight on with a coat of colour and it did not go well. The thick and quite gloopy formula mixed in with my first coat of colour and became a bit of a stringy mess. I would recommend wiping off about 90% of the product which comes out on the brush and attempt the thinnest layer you can on each nail and then stick on a bit of Netflix while you wait for it to dry.

If you manage a thin enough layer you can probably go in with your next coat after a couple of minutes. I have to say I'm a three coat kind of girl so I layer up my polish and then top it off, of course, with some Seche Vite.

The second time I tried this, things actually seemed to turn out pretty well on the surface. I was off to sleep (I always paint my nails before bed) and they still looked good in the morning. Unfortunately, halfway through my day I looked down at my nails and one was completely bare with no polish to be seen. It does what it says on the bottle - it peels off... a bit too easily. It peeled off when I wasn't even looking - hence the bare thumb nail in the picture above.

I think I'd suggest you give this one a miss. I might give it one more try but if my polish can't even last 24 hours then the peel off perk might not be worth it in this case!

Please leave any base coat recommendations in the comments... it looks like the search will continue.

STILA IN THE GARDEN

Okay. Right. Let's get serious. Who doesn't love a good eyeshadow palette?! I hauled this little beauty from TK Maxx here a while ago but it's taken me a bit of time to get around to finally putting it to the test. On the whole, I pretty much stick to my tried and tested neutrals but I thought this palette might stretch me slightly out of my comfort zone. I've never really dabbled in the world of green on my eyes and I thought it was about time.

These shadows are definitely of high quality - the pigmentation is there and the formula is buttery and lovely. I'm not sure exactly how I much I love the green on me, but this is a great fall palette and there's enough variety in there to create lots of different looks.



I do like how it looked, but I think next time I might add a touch more warmth into the look. You can see it in action in this video. I think I'll definitely be open to trying more shadows from Stila in the future and playing with this palette more and more this autumn.

Have you tried any Stila shadows? What did you think?

GRWM: TOO FACED BOUDOIR EYES

Remember when I used to blog? Yeah, me either really. But I want to come back...! I absolutely love watching tutorials and GRWMs on YouTube but I hardly ever film any of my own! So I thought I'd just film a little bit of myself getting ready... and this is what happened. This is one of my favourite kinds of looks to wear. A bit of soft glam. Love.

Tell me what you think! :)

MARCH FAVOURITES 2015

It's the end of the month, so time for my monthly favourites! I love keeping note of the products I've been loving throughout the month so I can share them with you every month. Hope you enjoy this one!

Tell me one of your March favourites in the comments! :)

xo

LOOKFANTASTIC BEAUTY BOX - MARCH 2015

I've been really loving my beauty boxes lately. I definitely let the promised higher value justify spending a little extra on beauty products. "It's alright if it's a bargain!" Today, I'm unboxing the latest edition of the Look Fantastic beauty box on my YouTube channel. It's a pretty great one, so take a look if you want to see what's inside!

You can even still get your own here: bit.ly/lookfan

Tina xxx

THE BALM BLUSHES

I'm not often blown away by a blush, but I have been really impressed from these two from The Balm as of late. The Balm is sort of that inbetween drugstore and high end brand in terms of price, as these blushes come in between £15.50 and £17.50.

Frat Boy is a gorgeous universal blush with both peach and pink tones running through. I've found it pairs well with almost any make-up look, so I reach for it often when I don't want to think too much. Down Boy is more of a mix of pink and purple. Both blushes are very pigmented, which I'm not always a fan of, but they blend so easily into the cheeks and take practically no time to add the perfect amount of colour to the apples of the cheeks. That makes them perfect for a busy lifestyle where quick and easy is so crucial.

I have to say the quality does match up to the slighter more expensive price in this case. I'm already looking into more blushes from The Balm, or maybe even a different product. Have you tried any? Will you be trying these?

Tina xx

(Happy to be back!)

GLOSSYBOX VS BIRCHBOX - JAN 2015

So, I've definitely been slacking a little (a lot) on blogging and youtubing but I'm back with one of my favourite videos to film. I compared my first subscription boxes of 2015, from Glossybox and Birchbox! Hope you enjoy it :) what did you get in your boxes this month?