Sew Psyched

I had originally intended on posting my current favourites today, but when I realised I had a nail post ready to go that matched St Patricks Day I decided it must be fate, and reshuffled the schedule. I love murky colours at the moment and this is certainly one of those! There must be something about this khaki green from essie that grabs peoples attention because the compliments came flying when I wore this - even my lady at the nail salon exclaimed that it was a really nice colour!

 

Sew Psyched is described as a "cashmere-soft sage pewter" on the essie website and while I can totally see the sage and cashmere aspect of it, the pewter from the silver microglitter that shines through in the bottle doesn't particularly translate on the nail and it comes off as a nice crème shade instead (which I prefer, so yay for that) I see this as a neutral with a bit of interest, and was so impressed with it that as I was perusing a display of discounted essie polishes I picked it up to look at without realise I already had it on and owned it! A sign of love for sure, wouldn't you agree?

I bought my bottle of Sew Psyched from The Reject Shop and it was from the fall 2010 collection.
Are you a fan of murky colours like this?
What is your current nail obsession?
-Emma

Confetti Manicure with I Scream Nails

I couldn't pass up the chance for a free nail art manicure with I Scream Nails, so when I saw that my local Westfield had a beauty event on to celebrate Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival I jumped online to secure one of the coveted 15 minute appointments. The area was really well presented and was fitted with copper and Acapulco style chairs, as well as a desk space where I entered a VAMFF competition and received a free copy of Elle magazine (with a free hand cream from L'Occitane, very nice!)

I Scream Nails had 4 designs on a card to choose from when you sat down and I didn't hesitate to choose the confetti style nail art, with the gorgeous Blue Heaven nail polish as my main colour. My manicurist was the lovely Zinta who was happy to have a chat and talk about nails with me, something I miss out on when I usually get my nails done at Westfield.

  

 

 

 

 

Overall the experience was lots of fun and I am enjoying the compliments on my cute nail art since the appointment - all of the polishes used (except the top coat) was from the I Scream Nails brand and they seem to be of a really great quality as well as being in super cute ice cream cone form. I'm planning on trying out this nail art idea at home with some other colours since I own some dotting tools, and will report back on how I go recreating it!

 

What do you think of this confetti nail art?
-Emma x

5 Valentine's Polish Ideas to Romance You

Valentine's Day - the day of heart-eye emoji's, big rose bouquets on Instagram and schmoozy romance all around! I can't say I hate the day but it never quite stacks up with the images in my head/online so I've taken the liberty of organising my own date this year! I've booked a Thai restaurant for dinner and have hinted hard at the sweet mugs Coles supermarkets have out so Mister knows what I'd like most, but I plan on picking myself up something nice just in case ;) Now we all know I love a good theme, so I decided to pick through my nail polish drawers and came up with 5 different 'romantic' polish ideas to share with you.

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Sinful Colors 'Rose Dust' is a pretty shimmery lilac pink shade that was much nicer on my pale skin that I had anticipated. It was super fast to apply and had a nice sheen to it that I appreciated, this would make a great quick and affordable choice if you wanted to try a shimmery polish that wasn't streaky or tricky to apply.

Sally Hansen Miracle Gel 240 'Get It Bright'* is a classic bright medium pink on my skin tone, and I just love it! I didn't use the matching Miracle Gel top coat as it was all about swatching the colour, but my nails get along really well with Sally Hansen polishes in general and Mumma Bovary is a sucker for the Miracle Gel range. I'd say that this shade is the happiest out of my picks today, just looking at it makes me smile.

Rimmel Super Gel 042 'Rock N Roll'* is one I just had to include, a classic dark red crème that is also part of a two-step gel process, but again I only used the shade alone for swatch purposes. Without trying to sound like a broken record I also get along really well with the Rimmel polish line (I am loving the Rita Ora collection right now, so cute!) so this actually tempts me to wear red polish out, which is something I never usually have the courage to do!  

Ulta3 Nail Colour 'Pinot' is something a bit different and I thought the deep wine shade and pretty shimmer said 'romance' (picture me saying that like Sebastian from The Little Mermaid, oui? Got it? Brilliant, ha!) I needed a few coats of this to bring the bottle colour to life but I can see Mumma Bovary's more olive skin tone rocking this colour, so I might just pass this bottle on for her to enjoy...

essie 'Ladylike'* & essie Luxeffects 'A Cut Above' is my favourite combination for Valentine's Day, and is the polish I'm currently wearing - Mister Bovary commented on how nice my nails looked which is a rare occurrence indeed, so I know I've picked a winner! The soft mauve nude (first seen here) is a serious favourite of mine and has brought the compliments rolling in. I jazzed it up with essie's A Cut Above, a rose gold pink glitter topper that I've wanted for ages and only just picked up from the pharmacy when I went in for painkillers for my broken toe - and yes, it worked at perking up my bad mood that day!  

Do you have any romantic plans for Sunday? Even if you're flying solo I hope you plan on treating yourself to a yummy dinner and a relaxing weekend!
-Emma

*Product provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Russian Navy - The Classic OPI Blue I Was Yet to Try

For someone who has a shedload of nail polish, I have to admit that I haven't tried as many of the 'classic' popular shades that most lacquer aficionados so often rave about. For my latest manicure I pulled out the bottle of Russian Navy* that OPI sent me many moons ago but that I was yet to try, because despite it technically being summer here in Australia, the cold winds and rain call for a deep and mysterious colour.

 

Russian Navy is a deep blue that's filled with blue and red shimmers, the latter causing the polish to appear quite purple in the bottle in my opinion. On the nail the fine shimmer seems much less pronounced and dare I say more demure? I wasn't sure if I was keen on the colour but the compliments rolled in and the fact that a dark shade like this is flattering and not harsh on my very pale hands is no mean feat, so I will give Russian Navy props for that.

 

 

 

I'm still on the fence about this colour, but I think the fact that I've not worn a dark shade like this in quite some time has played into my opinion of it and I definitely appreciate how beautiful this appears when the coloured shimmers flash, particularly in low light. After having a look at other reviews of Russian Navy (The Daily Varnish, All Lacquered Up) I learnt that it came out with the Russian collection back in 2007, but was made permanent by OPI so is still widely available today. The more shimmery OPI Ink is still in my mind as a colour to try and this comparison post has kind of cemented my wish to try it on one day - what can I say, I love a fair whack of shimmer in my polishes!

 Are you a fan of dark and mysterious shades like this?
What classic polish shade do you swear by?
-Emma

*Product provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

 

An Easy Festive Forest Green Manicure

Around this time of year, one of my favourite things to see is a cheerful festive manicure! Even my sister-in-law is rocking this amazing red glittery snowflake adorned polish that is making me smile every time I see her! When I went to get my nails done after we returned from overseas I spotted the most beautiful green on my manicurist and that is how I ended up with my first festive mani for the season. Green polishes are most certainly my kryptonite at the moment with more than a few coming home with me from the US, and so this seemed a natural choice for a Christmas green!

 

The polish was a brand called Morgan Taylor which I’d not heard of before, but when we went to paint my acrylics we realised another lady in the salon was getting her nails done with the very same shade! I love knowing that 3 women in the one room had the same beautifully festive nails so I was happy to wait to use the shade, which is adorably named Later Alligator…as if I didn’t already love it enough! I topped my ring fingers with two light coats of Sinful Colours Call You Later which I had just purchased on clearance from Target and I like the way the names fit well together and that the gold and green shimmers bring a bit of pizazz to the forest green crème shade.

I’m currently considering my next festive manicure to take me through Christmas day and I’m not sure if I want to go down the red route or not…would another green mani be crazy?! How much glitter is too much?!

-Emma

Pastel Skittle Manicure

Pastel nails are an all year round kind of trend, but come March and April they just remind me of Easter! Pretty delicate pastels and chocolate eggs, Easter for me is all about spending time with family eating good food and making good memories. This year my family are celebrating on Saturday, with an egg hunt for the kids (am totally joining in!) and a big feast with all of our loved ones. With work and my post grad studies I’ve been up to my eyeballs with stress, so I’m looking forward to seeing all of the kids before I head back to work on Easter Sunday.

I am a big fan of skittle manicures, I like getting to enjoy a few colours at a time and think that looks like this are quite fun! I am hoping to use some of these for full manicures soon as well, make sure you follow me on Instagram (@emmabovary) as I post most of my nail looks on there.

Colours Used:

Australis Sweet Pea

Face of Australis Lemon Sorbet

OPI Pink-ing of You                  

Kit Cosmetics Pinata Purple*

Face of Australia Minty Mojito

How often do you indulge in a skittle mani? What are your plans for this Easter long weekend?

 

*Provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Mumma Bovary's Camo Mani

It seems like each time I return home from work or a blog event Mumma Bovary has up and changed her nail colour again! For someone who isn’t into her nails, she sure plays with them a lot (she also says that about Facebook but always knows who is doing what on there!) I recently posted a picture on Instagram (username is @emmabovary) of Mum’s glitter polish haul, and the Savvy Ginger Ale was the first bottle to get a whirl as a manicure rather than a hasty swatch. Mum used essence 65 Camouflage (a shade she nicked from my stash) underneath the sheer glitter, and I am in love with the effect! 

 

I love the way the subtle glitters adds a feminine touch to an otherwise quite masculine colour, and makes it also appear as though it has an interesting texture. I’m very glad I’ve gotten Mumma Bovary hooked on glitter, as it means I will have plenty of shades to snaffle during mani time with her!

 

Does your Mum wear glitter polish? What do you think of adding feminine touches to camo style shades like this one?

Rose Gold Obsession

Though many fashion experts stand by the ‘skin tone’ rule when it comes to gold or silver colour choices, I throw caution to the wind and wear it all! Though it may sound strange, I don’t mind if a piece of clothing, nail colour or shadow doesn’t suit me, as long as it makes me feel pretty and happy. Rose gold definitely fits that bill, and these recent additions can attest to my love for the middle of the road shade.

mani is just Australis' Rose Tattoo in this image 

I see rose gold as a more modern and chic metal when compared to silver (or white gold) and the traditional yellow gold. Working in the retail jewellery sector, I often advise people on what styles look good and what suits them. I always say, go with your gut, and customers are always content with a new piece of jewellery if it makes them feel the warm and fuzzies. This rose gold phone case from Portmans gives me the warm and fuzzies, no doubt!

 

 

I didn’t hesitate to buy the new Australis nail polish in Rose Tattoo when I saw it land in my local Priceline (side note: check out the new polish range, they are all ace!) This glittery Rose Gold topcoat from Portmans was stashed inside my stocking on Christmas morning, and the two were totally made for one another. I love the way the rose gold glitter flakes sit atop the metallic rose gold, and next time I am going to try it out the glitter with a nude underneath to let it really stand out. I have worn the Australis shade by itself as a mani, and absolutely loved it.

 

What metal tones do you gravitate towards? I’d love to know who wears what!

*I purchased the Australis shade myself, and as stated the Portman’s polish was a gift.

gelati manicure

Xristos Anesti for those who have just celebrated Orthodox Easter! I had a great day with Chris' family eating delicious Greek food and relaxing in the sunshine all day long. An afternoon nap reinvigorated me and I ended up hopping on the treadmil(4 kms, go team!) and then painted my nails. An Easter themed manicure seemed to be the best thing to do, but to be honest I was thinking of beautiful gelati and pastel coloured tones in general when I was doing this.

Scrambling through my polish collection, I couldn't decide between my favourite pastel shades, so I chose to use them all!

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Australis' Sweet Pea was a natural choice, it's a mint sort of shade with more green tones than other mints I own. It's quite a bit darker and greener in person than this photo suggests, so be sure to have a look at it in Priceline. Such a beauty!

This is my favourite from the bunch I used, ever since seeing Allison (Amarixe on YouTube) rave about pastel yellow polishes in this video, I haven't been able to get it out of my head. This Face of Australia Luxe polish in Lemon Sorbet is quite opaque for a yellow polish, and I really like it.

OPI Pink-Ing Of You is a sweet pale pink shade that looks great as an overall mani, but worked so well with this combination. 3 coats is best for this polish, but they dry quickly so it's not bother.

Pinata Purple* came from the Kit Cosmetics Viva La Colour collection a while back, but I'm sure I've seen similar colours in the permanent Kit line. This is the least pastel of the bunch, but I think it adds a nice splash of brights to the look while still blending into it. I need to get my hands on a pretty lilac polish, does anyone have recommendations or reviews? Please comment or link me below!

Another beauty from the Face of Australia Luxe line, Minty Mojito is  a beautiful opaque mint shade that is to die for. I have a few mint polishes, but this one does hold a special place in my heart and I enjoy the formula as well.

I topped each nail off with Kit Cosmetics Base/Top Coat*, which I also used underneath each shade. A nice amount of shine, I am in the middle of trialling this so will let you know how chip-free my mani stays!

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My very favourite of the bunch! I can't get over how lovely Face of Australia polishes are, especially considering that they cost less than a fiver! Lemon Sorbet is one of my FOA favourites.

What do you think of my pastel gelati manicure?

How did you spend your Easter, whichever weekend it was?

Which shade do you think is a standout here?

Items marked * were provided for consideration for review, which in no way affects my choosing them for this mani, or my opinion of them. Honesty, always.