NOTD: Papaya

2 coats of Barry M Gelly Nail Paint in 'Papaya'

Papaya is a perfect muted creamsicle orange for summer. I've been wearing it lots recently on my fingers and toes over the past few weeks. The formula is easy to use, each coat dried quickly and this was fully opaque in two coats. I'm always impressed at how well these Barry M Gelly polishes last on my nails and this one didn't disappoint, as my nails remained chip free and shiny for a few days. These polishes are a bargain at only £3.99. I also have Greenberry and Prickly Pear, but I am definitely going to have to take a peek at some of the other colours in the range.

What do you think of the Barry M Gellys?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

Sinful Colors Nail Polishes (Easy Going and 24/7)

Sinful Colors was released in the UK a while ago and I hadn't heard much about the brand before, but was intrigued as they only cost £1.99 and the stand in my local Boots had so many pretty colours on it. I bought 'Easy Going' a while back, as it is supposedly a dupe of Essie 'Fiji' and then I recently bought '24/7' as the bright highlighter pink colour drew me in!

Easy Going

2 coats of Sinful Colors Nail Polish in 'Easy Going'

Easy Going is a milky, peachy pink colour. I read somewhere that it is a dupe of Essie Fiji. I don't own Essie Fiji, however from comparing swatches online, Easy Going looks peachier than Fiji, which has more pink. The formula is quite runny and thick and I found the formula a little difficult to work with, as when you apply too little to the brush, it looks streaky and if you apply too much, it didn't dry fully.   I've used this polish a few times and I've found that the number of coats required can vary between 1-3, depending on how much you have on the brush. I didn't apply a top coat and I found that the colour dulls a little after a few days. I tried a matte topcoat over the top to compare the dullness to a matte effect and found the dullness doesn't quite go as far as matte, but it definitely loses its glossiness. With a matte top coat, the colour is very reminiscent of calamine lotion! I found this lasted really well on my nails with minimal chipping.

24/7

2 coats of Sinful Colors Nail Polish in '24/7'

24/7 is an amazing bright highlighter pink shade. I couldn't stop staring at my nails when I was wearing it! I think this colour is perfect for summer, as it would look amazing with a tan. I found the formula of this to be quite thick and runny as well and on the first coat, the colour was rather streaky. This took two coats to become fully opaque and the polish dried quickly to a matte finish. Even though applying a white polish under neon shades makes the colours pop more, I didn't apply a white polish underneath and have still found the colour to be super bright and neon. I was disappointed as this had chipped quite heavily after two days (N.B. I didn't apply top coat, so that may be a factor in how long the nail polish lasted), but that won't stop me from wearing this colour as I love it.

I would definitely recommend checking out the Sinful Colors nail polishes if your local Boots has a stand. I don't think every Boots does though.

Have any of you tried Sinful Colors before? What other shades would you recommend?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Pop Fiction

The Miss Sporty stands in Boots aren't usually ones that I linger by, but I was intrigued by this bright cobalt blue shade, which looks quite similar to Nails Inc's Baker Street. The polish was really easy to apply. The formula wasn't too thin or too thick and I found the colour was generally opaque with one coat. I did two anyway, partially out of habit and to make sure all the colour was even. The nail polish is part of Miss Sporty's quickdry range and I found that it dried fairly quickly, which is great as I hate hanging around for nail polish to dry! I loved the brush of this! It's quite reminiscent of the new Essie diffusion line brush or the Rimmel 60 Seconds range brush and I really like that it's wide and flat, making painting the nails quicker and easier. The polish lasted well on my nails. I removed it after a few days for work, but I did not experience any chipping during those few days.

I have been seriously impressed by Miss Sporty Pop Fiction, especially as it only costs a measly £1.99 for 7ml. I recently popped into Boots in my lunch break and picked up a pretty yellow one, which I think will be lovely for summer. I'm sure you'll see it pop up in a NOTD soon!

Has anyone else used any nail polishes by Miss Sporty before?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Pistachio Ice Cream

3 coats of Makeup Academy Nail Polish in 'Pistachio Ice Cream'

Hello everyone, how are you all? It's been a while!

I picked up this Makeup Academy nail polish from Superdrug for the bargain price of £1. I was drawn in by the new packaging, which has a similar resemblance to Essie packaging and I loved the look of the pretty minty green colour, which is one of my favourite colours to wear on my nails during the Spring and Summer.

The colour looks slightly more green in the bottle, but the nail polish is a really pretty pastel mint. The colour is very similar to American Apparel's Office, which is one of my favourite mint nail polishes. The formula of this nail polish was quite thin and runny. It applied very streakily on the first coat and became generally opaque with a few sparse patches on the second coat. I found applying three coats gave perfect opacity. The brush is very small and thin, which is not my favourite type of brush as I prefer the wider brushes which are easier to use. I found that each coat dried quickly and the polish has lasted well on my nails (even without a top coat). I've had it on for 3 days now and I only have a little tipwear.

Have you tried any nail polishes by Makeup Academy?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Prickly Pear, Florals and Polka Dots

'Another NOTD already?!' I know my last post was also a NOTD, but I change my nail polish fairly frequently and I am so in love with this colour and my little attempt at nail art, that I had to share it with you.

3 coats of Barry M Gelly Nail Paint in 'Prickly Pear'

Left: Berry Ice Cream, Right: Prickly Pear

I resisted buying Prickly Pear for as long as I could. When it was released, I knew it was one of those colours that I would love. It is a pretty light purple, which I would say is slightly darker than your typical pastel lilac. The colour is similar to Barry M 'Berry Ice Cream', which is another of my favourites, but comparing them side by side, you can see the difference in colour tone. The formula was easy to work with and needed 3 coats to become fully opaque. The colour is super glossy, even without a top coat. It has lasted well on my nails so far and there are no chips yet.

Nail art and I are not best friends. However I was inspired by Milly's pastel floral nails in her recent post, so I decided to give it a whirl. The technique she linked to was a tutorial by Corrie and it really was as simple as pi. I think the whole nail art process took less than 5 minutes. I didn't trust myself to decorate all my nails, but I threw in a little polka dot design and really like how it turned out. I didn't use any fancy dotting tools or stamps - I just did a few circular blobs of Essie 'Off The Shoulder' using the brush and then swirled in Sinful Colors 'Easy Going' with a cocktail stick, before dotting mini leaves and polka dots using the same cocktail stick and Barry M 'Greenberry' and finishing off with a top coat. Simples.

Have you tried any Barry M Gelly nail polishes? Do you like nail art?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Greenberry

3 coats of Barry M Gelly Nail Paint in 'Greenberry'

I picked up a few Barry M Gelly nail polishes from Superdrug after initially trying to resist buying them. They were on 3 for 2, so I couldn't really pass them up, could I?! I chose Greenberry as I don't have any other colours like this. The colour is a gorgeous, vibrant Tiffany blue kind of colour with a tinge of green. I am currently wearing this on my fingers, but I think this would also look great on the toes with a pair of sandals or paired with a gold accent nail. The polish applied extremely streaky for the first coat, but became opaque on applying the second coat. I decided to do three coats for optimum opacity. The formula is really easy to use. It applies nicely and dries fairly quickly. The colour is really lovely and glossy, which I love. It has lasted fairly well on my nails. I hada few chips on the tips after a few days, but nothing too major.

Have you used the Barry M Gellys before? I also picked up Prickly Pear and Papaya, which I'm excited to try!

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Off The Shoulder

2 coats of Essie Off The Shoulder and 1 coat of L'Oreal Confettis Nail Polish

This is a lovely bright mid-tone pink, which I am loving. I think this will be a firm favourite this Spring/Summer. The formula was fairly opaque and you could get away with just one coat, as there is minimal streakiness. However I did two coats out of habit and to even out any thinner areas. The brush of the new Essie nail polishes is so easy to work with, especially if you're in a rush. I definitely need to invest in a topcoat, as I never use it and managed to chip my nails a few hours after painting my nails. I hate when that happens! So I decided to put a layer of L'Oreal Confettis on top to hide the chips. Do any of you have any recommendations of good topcoats? I'm thinking of perhaps buying Seche Vite?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Bikini So Teeny

2 coats of Essie Bikini So Teeny

I'm late to this bikini party, as this was last year's much raved about nail polish. However, when I saw it for £1.99 on Fragrance Direct, I rapidly snapped it up and painted my nails with it as soon as it arrived. I was really impressed with the formula, as it only needed 2 coats to become fully opaque and dried quickly. The colour is a gorgeous cornflower blue with subtle silver glitters in, which I think I will get a lot of wear out of once Spring finally gets here. The new Essie brushes are also a dream to work with, as they're wide and flat. I experienced a little tip wear after a few days, but nothing too obvious and would probably have been prevented if I'd used a topcoat.

I may be late to the party, but I'm glad I finally got there!

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Confettis

I bought Confettis after seeing lots of people swatch this and thought it was so pretty. It kind of reminds me of salt and pepper, as it's a clear base with black and white hexagonal and circular shapes. I paired it with Models Own 'Utopia', which is one of my go-to polishes, however this topcoat would go with pretty much every colour (except black and white). I've seen it used with all sorts of colours on other blogs and it looks lovely. I find it works best when dabbed onto the nail and it's also great if you've chipped or made a dent in your nail polish, as you can just dab it over the top (as I did on my second finger below). I found this a bit of a pain to remove, as it's essentially like a glitter nail polish. However I really love this topcoat and will definitely be using it a lot in the coming months.

Have you picked this nail polish up?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Rose Bowl

2 coats of American Apparel Nail Lacquer in 'Rose Bowl'

This shade may not be the most Wintery shade, but after almost a month of dark reds and blues, I fancied a change. Rose Bowl is a pretty pink creme nail polish, with no shimmers or glitters. I thought the colour would be similar to Rimmel 'Rose Libertine', however Rose Libertine is brighter and Rose Bowl is a little more muted. American Apparel nail lacquers never disappoint. The formula is a little runnier than other brands, but the colour is opaque in one coat. (I always do two for good measure). I find that American Apparel nail lacquers don't last too well on my nails, as I usually experience chipping after a few days.

xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Tour de Finance

Essie Tour de Finance is a typical Barbie pink. It's a hot pink with a light shimmer to it, although it dries to a non-glossy, almost matte colour. It has the new wide brush, which is perfect and one of my favourite types of brushes now. The formula was a dream to work with, as with all the Essie polishes I have tried. It was opaque in one coat. I probably could have done with two, but I couldn't be bothered (oops). It has lasted well on my nails and remained chip-free for the few days before I changed the colour.

1 coat of Essie nail polish in Tour de Finance

I definitely want to invest in more Essie polishes. Do any of you have any colour recommendations?

xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Frozen Yoghurt

3 coats of MUA nail varnish in 'Frozn Yoghurt' and 1 coat of Models Own 'Disco Mix' on the ring finger

I picked up this nail polish from MUA for a mere £1! It's a pretty midtone purple, with a kind of cornflower blue-esque quality. I found that it was mostly opaque after 2 coats, but had a few streaks. So I did 3 coats in total to even it out and I was left with this beaut. The brush is super thin and I found the short length and wide lid a little difficult and annoying to manage. I decided to put Models Own 'Disco Mix' onto my ring finger as I thought it would jazz it up a little and I think the colours of the glitters are very Autumnal. I have a small dent in the polish on that nail, as I touched it by accident before it had fully dried. Grr. I was impressed with the longevity of the nail polish, as after 4 days there were still no chips. I'm seriously impressed, especially since this cost me a measly £1!

Have you ever used any MUA nail polishes before?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

Top 5 Autumn Nail Polishes

Nails Inc London, Essie Midnight Cami, LA Colors Tropical Storm, Chanel Lotus Rouge, NYC Purple Pizzazz

Clockwise from thumb: Nails Inc London, Essie Midnight Cami, LA Colors Tropical Storm, Chanel Lotus Rouge, NYC Purple Pizzazz

Now that Autumn is firmly upon us and I've dug out my winter coat, scarf and gloves, I thought I'd share the nail polishes that I think I will be reaching for the most over the Autumn and Winter months.

Having a nude polish that suits pale skintones is ideal for an everyday, understated nail look. I love the purple-brown tones of Nails Inc London as I feel they flatter my skintone and don't wash me out. Unfortunately, London was limited edition, so if anyone knows of any dupes, please let me know!

Rich, warm tones are perfect for Autumn and Winter. Even though I don't tend to wear green nail polish, I am lusting after an emerald green nail polish at the moment. Navy is one of my favourite colours to wear on my nails. Essie Midnight Cami is a lovely opaque navy in 1 coat, but generally needs 2 to make it completely even. NYC Purple Pizzazz is a lovely, rich Cadbury purple with a slight duochrome, shimmery finish. I always associate red shades with the wintery months and I can forsee that I will be using the raspberry red hues of Chanel Lotus Rouge a lot in these coming months.

The gunmetal silvery LA Colors Tropical Storm polish is a nice twist on a simple grey, as it is a little more interesting than a grey creme while still remaining neutral.

I have linked to the NOTD posts to some of the polishes, as it gives an idea of what the polish looks like on all the nails and the posts generally have a bit more information on the formula and wear of the polishes, in case you're interested.

What nail polish colours will you be reaching for this Autumn/Winter?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: A Crewed Interest

Last week, I came across an amazing bargain in the beauty section of my local TK Maxx. I picked up 4 Essie nail polishes from the 'Navigate Her' collection for a bargainous £7.99 - The usual price of just 1!

I knew I wanted to use them straight away, so I opted for 'A Crewed Interest', which is a gorgeous peachy apricot. It kind of reminds me of Barry M's Peach Melba, which I don't own but have had on my 'to buy' list for ages. This colour is a perfect summer pastel and I think it would be perfect with a tan! It had the new wide brush, which was super easy to use and only needed 1 stroke on most nails. This polish was rather streaky to begin with and needed 3 coats to become opaque, but it could have probably done with another.

3 coats of Essie 'A Crewed Interest'

What are your favourite Essie shades?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Lotus Rouge

1 coat of Chanel nail colour in 'Lotus Rouge'

I found this Chanel nail polish at a boot sale for a bank breaking 50pence! It didn't come with the square cap, but I didn't mind as it was only 50pence. You can't really buy much nowadays for 50pence.

The colour is a lovely deep raspberry red, which kind of reminds me of mix of Nails Inc Victoria and Nails Inc Piccadily Circus. This will be perfect for the upcoming Autumn and Winter months. The polish was really nice and easy to apply. It has a very opaque formula and only required 1 coat. The brush was flat and easy to use and control. I experienced a little tip wear on the nails after 1 day and eventually it started chipping after a few days.

xoxo, Joy

Cling Film Manicure

Leanne posted a picture and tutorial of the saran wrap manicure (aka cling film manicure in the UK) and it seemed fairly simple, so I thought I'd give it a go.

The base colour is Models Own 'Utopia' and the top colour is H&M 'Blue My Mind'. I really love how it looks and I like how each nail looks different! I think it's great as a top coat if your current nail colour is looking a little worse for wear or if you don't have time to change your nail colour. I will definitely be doing this again as it was so simple to do and only took about 5 minutes!

What do you think? Will you be trying the cling film/saran wrap manicure?

xoxo, Joy

Review: Nail Rock Nail Wraps

Before I go into the review, I just wanted to say how amazing was the Olympics opening ceremony last night? I loved it and was buzzing after watching it! Danny Boyle did an amazing job. Right now, I'm feeling proud to not only be British but also a Londoner and I'm loving watching all the sporting events now. I'm not the sportiest person and am not an avid sports watcher the majority of the time, but I love following the sports during the Olympics. What are your favourite Olympics events? Mine are the gymnastics, diving and swimming. Although I've been watching the rowing today and have been enjoying that too!

Images from Google/Editted by me

Moving on today's review... I won these Nail Rock nail wraps in Leanne's giveaway and thought I'd give them a go for a 21st birthday party that I'm going to tonight.

What you get in the pack: A nail preparation wipe, 16 nail wraps, a nail buffer and a cuticle stick

The design looked lovely. I love the bright gold and the cute heart design. I think these are great if you like nail art, but aren't very good at it. The instructions were clear and the procedure of putting the nail wraps on was pretty simple. I only put these on today, so I can't comment on how well they last, however they claim to last up to 10 days.


I wouldn't say I have particularly small hands, but I found it difficult to match the nail wraps to my nail size. They were all too big. The instructions did say to trim them to the appropriate cuticle size, however it got really fiddly and I wasn't very good at trimming them accurately, so it started looking quite messy. I had quite a few creases in them, but after a few attempts at getting rid of the creases, my patience began to wane and I just gave up. The instructions say to fold the edges under the nails, however I keep my nails short and didn't have any room to fold the nail wrap under, so I just had to trim them to the length of my nail and used some clear nail varnish to seal the edges.

Nail wraps are a great way of having a cute design on your nails. I'm not sure if I would use them again as it took a lot longer for me to do than just painting my nails and they didn't look particularly neat. However if you have bundles of patience, then I would definitely recommend giving these a go.

Have you ever tried nail wraps?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Metallic Miami

3 coats of Mavala nail polish in 'Miami' and 2 coats of OPI nail lacquer in 'Metallic 4 Life'

Miami is a pretty mid-tone pink. In the bottle, there is a lovely blue pearlescent shimmer running through it, but on the nails it translates by making the pink look less like a pastel cream and more of a glowy pearlescent pink. I have had this shade for ages, but have never used it because I didn't think it would suit my skin tone. I'm still a little unsure at the moment. The formula of Mavala nail polishes are dreamy to work with and dry quickly. This one took 3 coats for Miami to become opaque on most nails, however on my thumbs, I think another coat would have beneficial. I've only had this nail combination on for 1 day, however if Samoa is anything to go by, I'm sure it will last well on the nails.

I really like the glitter accent nail trend. I usually opt for glitterizing my ring finger, but this time I opted for my middle finger. I won Metallic 4 Life in Leanne's giveaway and I love it! It has hexagonal and circular silver glitters in a black polish. The first coat was pretty sheer, but with the second coat, it was opaque and loaded with glitter.

Do you like to have glitter accent nails?

xoxo, Joy

French Manicure with a Minty Twist

I was talking to one of my friends recently about how much we love French manicures. I think they are the perfect nail look if you're stuck for what colour to paint your nails and are really classic.

I really fancied doing a French manicure today, but didn't have any of those little half moon stickers, so I did them free hand. I am usually awful at doing the tips neatly, but this time I don't think it went too bad. I think the key to neat tips is to not have too much polish on the brush, as I usually put far too much on and make a mess.

I fancied something a bit different to the typical white tips and vaguely remembered Zoey Deschanel tweeting a picture of a French manicure with mint tips, so I used 'Office' by American Apparel which is one of my favourite nail polishes of the moment. Then I used 2 coats of 'Rose Lounge' by Bourjois over the top. I really like how it turned out. I think it's a nice summery twist to a classic nail design.

Do you like French manicures?

xoxo, Joy

NOTD: Blooboo

2 coats of Models Own Nail Polish in 'Blooboo'

This is a lovely, bright pastel blue polish, which is perfect for Spring/Summer. After a few days, I did notice that the colour dulls a little and isn't as bright. In the bottle, there is a pearlescent blue shimmer running through it, however that does not translate onto the nails.

It takes 2 thick coats (or 3 thinner coats) to become fully opaque, as the first coat is extremely sheer. The formula of Models Own nail polishes is always great to use and the wear is also fantastic. I've had this on my nails for a few days now and there are no chips in sight.

What are your favourite Models Own nail polishes?

xoxo, Joy