Sweet & Simple Nail Art for Valentine's Day

Valentine’s Day isn’t the biggest deal in the Bovary household (in fact, I think we are less romantic on that day than any other!) but it’s a nice excuse to share a good meal and there is definitely no harm in that! We’re heading down to the beach house tonight with Charlie in tow, to chill out and hopefully head to a restaurant for dinner tomorrow night. I’m not one for elaborate nail art most of the time as my skills are lacking, but cute simple nail art is hard to beat and I painted my nails with the first design that popped into my head when I thought about love and how simple it should be!

I started with two coats of FABY Valentina’s Day* before using my el cheapo eBay dotting tools to turn three dots of FABY Innocent Fantasy* into a cute love heart on my ring finger! My nails have all broken right down after having acrylics for the wedding, so please forgive the state of them. Valentina’s Day flooded some of my cuticles but I really think that was because I didn’t give myself a manicure before throwing on the colour, the formula was pretty decent and I like that it’s more a strawberry red shade than a straight up harsh fire engine sort of rouge. Innocent Fantasy seemed to be more pigmented than the similar shades I have from essie so that’s always a positive – I haven’t painted my whole nail with it though so I’ll reserve judgement. FABY has only just launched in Australia and I’m happy to have another 5 free brand around!

Mister Bovary was actually really impressed with how quick and cute the nail look ended up being, and I think next time I might try it with a metallic blue shade and some silver or white polish to change it up a bit. I adore my dotting tools, they are so easy to use and being so affordable means I was able to pick my mother in law up a set as well – she goes through stages with polish and has a pretty enviable OPI stash I must say!

Are you a Valentine’s Day lover or hater? It’s my first one as a wife! I have my fingers crossed that cupid hits Mister and he nabs me a sweet mug for my morning coffee…otherwise I might pick myself up a new one in Rosebud!

-Emma

*Provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Soft & Dreamy Makeup Look with Baby Pink Lips

In an effort to switch up my makeup look earlier in the week I rustled through my beauty storage to pull out some unloved products. I wanted to create a creamy and dreamy sort of makeup look with pale pink shades being the focus of the look.

I've been using the Rimmel BB Cream Matte in Light* for quite a while now and really appreciate how pretty the packaging is. I wouldn't say this gives a totally matte finish as it appears more satin on my skin, but it lasts a full day on my face and is akin to a light foundation when it you really think about it. I always set my liquid face products with a powder and rather than my MAC or essence compacts I used my unloved Guerlain Meteorites which I've owned for yonks but hardly ever use. The smell is pretty darn strong I must say, but the finish on the skin is quite light and pretty but not impressive enough to make me want to purchase another pot of this stuff in all honesty.

Nothing exciting on the eyes for this look, as I wanted to the focus to stay on the pink products I selected - I even left out mascara to see how it would affect the look! For the cheeks I chose the 3 Concept Eyes (3CE) Powdery Lip + Cheek in #Neon Full which I applied with my Real Techniques Stippling Brush. I've only used this twice and can't decide how I feel about it - I tend to have this problem quite often when it comes to crème products for my cheeks, I inherently prefer powder and it always plays on my mind. #beautybloggerproblems

Now I feel as though I must mention the perils of pale pink lipstick to you - for an uber pale lady like myself, it certainly ain't the easiest shade to wear, least of all in a matte formula from the beautiful and affordable brand Shanghai Suzy. This particular shade is Miss Amy Baby Pink*, and I'm not entirely sold on it being the colour for me. I received two other bright shades from the lipstick line but thought it important to try something different for once (how many bright pink makeup looks can I share with you before you slap me?) The only other times I really go for a pale pink look on the lips is when I use my Nars lipgloss in Turkish Delight, but that is quite sheer and much easier to wear than a full on pale pink like Miss Amy. I really don't like how you can see my natural lip on the inner rim, and try as I might this is the best I could get this to look on me (though the lipstick itself was quite a nice formula!)

 

What are your thoughts on this hard-to-pull-off shade?

Do you think this makeup look would have worked better if I had've worn a beloved bright pink instead?

 

Emma x

 

*Provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Ballerina Backstage by essence

This months essence collection focuses on a ballet vibe, with cute shade names and pops of pale pink colour. I picked up a few key items including the 3 lipglosses and the bronze eye souffle, but somehow managed to miss the gorgeous cheek souffle that is also on offer. Fear not, I managed to nab it once I realised my mistake, and will pop it on the blog soon.

The essence eye souffle in pas des copper is a stunner, no doubt about it. I didn't have high hopes and to be honest bought this for the hell of it, but once I swatched it my expectations grew.

The jar feels nice and sturdy, and I love the font they've chosen to adore the lids of this collection.

A golden shimmery deep brown shade that is far too pretty.

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Cute shade names!

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Wear Your Litle Tutu is a pale pink that makes my lips look icy. It has silver shimmer running throughout, and is pretty sticky on but less so than a MAC Dazzleglass.

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On Your Gracile Tiptoe is the coral orange offering from the Ballerina Backstage collection, and also contains shimmer and is quite a sticky formulation.

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Do A Floating Pirouette is such a pretty purple toned raspberry shade, and is of the same formulation as the other glosses.

I adore the little touches that essence has put into this collection, the lace detail and shoe images on the tubing is a really sweet idea. I personally don't mind having sticky glosses in my collection (I adore Dazzleglasses, though Chris doesn't) so I quite like these. The icy effect of Wear Your Little Tutu is something that surprised me but I am happy to have this in my collection, but I think the real must have from the collection is the pas des copper eye souffle, just an amazing texture and wearable shade.

The prices in this collection sit around the $3-6AUD mark, and are available in Australia from Target stores.

Have you picked up anything from this collection?

What do you think of Essence?

Flamingo & Party Parrot - Iris Apfel for MAC

MAC seem to be pumping out the collections lately, but this is one I had my eye on from the start. My favourite YouTube ladies Allison (Amarixe) and Ingrid (MissGlamorazzi) had managed to snaffle some gorgeous pieces from the Iris Apfel collection, and I knew what I wanted before the prodz hit Australia.

Party Parrot (bright red-pink) seemed like it would be an excellent bright to add to my collection, while Flamingo (light milky bright coral) would make a lovely pink to swoon over.

Matte formula, my first from MAC.

(Party Parrot)

(Party Parrot)

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(Flamingo)

(Flamingo)

Flamingo and Party Parrot

Flamingo in top and Party Parrot below, I really like the matte effect of Party Parrot though I was a little worried when I ordered it. I've tried it on and don't find it to be drying, but haven't had a proper go at it so expect a FOTD soon.

I compared the two next to MAC's Ever Hip to compare, you'll see that Ever Hip (last swatch) is much peachier than Flamingo which I'm really happy about. Have been obsessed with pink lips lately, Flamingo is a winner.

Did you pick up anything from the Iris Apfel collection?
What are your favourite MAC shades? I have a voucher to spend and unsure what to choose!

Pretty in Pink // My top 5 pink polishes

I thought that this would be appropriate seeing as Valentine's day is all about the pinks and the reds!  I don't have the biggest polish collection, but I still have plenty of choice when I give myself a mani at home.

I was happy to see that when I rounded these up there was quite a variety in terms of shade, even though the majority are a cream formula.

Maybelline Mini Colorama in #5 Cotton Candy $5.95 AUD

I find that these mini Maybelline formula's last better than most other brands on me, and I love this shimmery pink that really does look the colour of cotton candy, or fairy floss as we call it here in Australia.

Ulta3 Bo Peep $2.50AUD approx.

Bo Peep is a bright fuschia colour that I adore! I find that even though I'm pale, I look alright in these bright colours. They also make me smile when I look at them, so it's win-win!

OPI Pink-ing of You $19.95 AUD

Apart from this having a gorgeous name, it was a bargain that I picked up from duty free last time I went overseas. It's a nice pale pink that I find quite plain, so I like to jazz it up with a glitter over the top!

Kit Cosmetics Chiquita Pink $15.95 AUD here

This came out with the Viva La Colour collection, which was one of the most exciting collections I've seen in a long time. It's a plummy, wintery sort of pink that makes me want to wrap myself in a big oatmeal knit and read a book.

The Face Shop PK110 $3.00 AUD

This not-so-cutely named shade is my Barbie polish- pale pink, creamy, simple, stunning. I love the bottle shape, and the affordable price tag. This is darker than OPI Pink-ing of You and I like that.

As in order above: PK110, Chiquita Pink, Pink-ing Of You, Bo Peep, Cotton Candy

Cotton Candy and Bo Peep

Bo Peep and Pink-ing Of You

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What are some of your favourite pink polishes?

I'd love to get some recommendations on what I should buy next!

A Perfect Pink Duo

Forever on the search for a perfect pink lip option, I recently stumbled upon a combination that is a match made in heaven. My Essence affair continues with their Stay With Me lipgloss in 'Me & My Icecream', which I'm loving layered over L'oreal Colour Riche Serum lipstick in Freshly Candy (these products were also featured here, in my July Favourites)



Essence 'Me and My Icecream'



Swatch on hand

The shade does remind me of strawberry ice cream, and though I don't think this is crazily long lasting, it is decent and lasts the same length of time as my other glosses. On it's own it's slighly milky and looks very sweet, it's something you can put on without a mirror so it's great to stash in your handbag for touch ups. The colour isn't opaque, so I find this to be a great layering gloss for popping on top of a lot of my pink lip shades.



Sturdy packaging, note a sticker on lid



The applicator for this gloss is a bit strange, it has two round sections with a dip in the middle. It applies a good amount of product on your lips when you apply using the dipped section, which looks like this:



Gloss being applied

The reason I point this out is that it's close to being too far into your mouth, almost as if you are eating the product. If you tilt it, it's not really a bother though. I tend to use the end of the applicator more often than not, and it's a lot more comfortable than I thought the round tip against the lip would be. Something I dislike about it? That the shade name is only mentioned on the sticker on the gloss lid. I like my makeup to look as best as it possibly can, but I can't take the stickers off for fear of forgetting the shade names!



Freshly Candy swatch, Essence swatch, then them both layered

I adore L'Oreal's Colour Riche Serum formulation, but sometimes feel that they are just a little too creamy for everyday. I love the way 'Me & My Icecream' tones down the lipstick formulation, and makes it much more wearable. The duo still looks nice and creamy, though, which is nice. Sadly, I'm a silly beauty blogger and neglected to take a snap of myself wearing Freshly Candy on it's own, so will post this sometime soon for you. This is what the two pink products create together:



The finished look!

This look is great to pair with smoky eyes, but I've also worn it on lazy days with nothing but a sweep of taupe shadow on my lids. I'm really enjoying the Essence glosses, so much so that I've been picking a new shade up each week! They retail for $3.95, so it's really hard to resist! The L'Oreal lippies are $26.95 and are available where you usually buy your L'Oreal.

Have you tried something similar to this combo that I could try?

Have you tried either of this pink prodz?

emmabovary xx