Primark PS Polishes - swatches and review

Hello everyone! I ventured out shopping recently and popped into Primark. We don't have one near us and despite the fact that I rarely find anything I would actually want to wear in there, I had a fair bit of success with both PJs and nail polish. I'm guessing you're not that fussed about the PJs (although I am pleased to report that the "soft feel" is indeed very soft!), but I bought three colours that will remain nameless thanks to uninformative labelling (polish, not PJs) and have them swatched to show you today :)

The first is a lavender creme. It has a lot of blue grey tones and I was pleasantly surprised by the formula - no streaking and two coats for an opaque finish (topped with Seche Vite for the pics). But the smell  - ouch! There is something about cheap polish (apart from LA Colors - yes I'm singing their praises again!) that has my little ol' hypochondriac self worrying about chemical poisoning. Luckily we're coming into spring, so I could have all doors and windows open :)

The next up is a real blue's blue. Its a solid blue creme. Bright but mid, again opaque in two coats (and again smelt horrible). It had quite a dull finish almost like a neon, which it isn't, but it soon got all shiny after a coat of Seche Vite.

Finally we have the deep purple. This is a gorgeous rich purple, unadulterated with shimmers, glitters or anything like that and is a very "Cadbury" purple. Minor issue in that when I opened the sealed bottle that there was no brush and the bottle was half empty, but in the grand scheme of things I have spare brushes and the bottle was also half full (!), so I swatched away! It shows a little more blue in the photos than it looks on real life, but this is two coats with a coat of Seche Vite on top.

If I set aside the issue with the smell and the missing brush, this really did not feel like a budget polish (I should also add here that after emailing Primark they are sending me a gift card to make up for the missing brush, so all's well that ends well :D) . For £1 a bottle the formula is impressively easy to work with and the colours are gorgeous! I would be happy to wear them on their own and they will work really well for nail art too. I was really expecting to be disappointed (which is why I only bought three!), but am definitely planning a return trip for more polishes, PJs and a cut price floral (faux Kath Kidston) print gas mask ;)

Sam xx

L-A Glitter Nails - New Glitter Mixes! (swatches and review)

Hello everyone! Today I have some swatches of new glitter mixes available from the ever awesome L-A Glitter Nails. I already have pretty much the full collection of fine glitters and am now starting to work my way through this new collection! Named after Fleetwood Mac songs, they were always going to be a hit with me, and I picked three to start my new obsession!

First up is Gypsy (shown here over Barry M Gelly Sugar Apple), which has turquoise blue, spring green and yellow matte shapes. Its got a real mermaid-y feel to it and went on smoothly and easily. It was also easy to get plenty of glitter on the brush at each pass (sooooo important with glitter!). The first two photos show one coat, the second two show two coats :)

Next up is Sara and it is shown here over white. The base has a pink tinge which I like as its made the white look like candy floss and is full of bright pink and black matte shapes. Coverage was good and the formula was again easy to work with. Again, the first two photos are one coat, and the second two show two coats.

Finally, we have Little Lies (shown here over OPI My Vampire Is Buff). The base is clear and it has orange, yellow, white and black matte shapes sprinkled through it. The formula was great, but I did have to do a little fishing about in the bottle to get as much glitter with this one. Once it was on though, its super cute. Perfect candy corn colours if you're thinking ahead to Halloween already (No? Just me then...) Same rule applies - first two pics are one coat, second two show two coats :)

Overall I'm really impressed with these mixes! The colour combos are great and they were really easy to work with (I have Gypsy over Barry M Gelly Prickly Pear on my toenails for the weekend!) and they are an absolute steal at £1 each or a set of three for £2.50 in Lyka-Ann's Etsy shop. You can also keep up to date with her new projects and collections on Facebook. I'm off to order some more... :)

Sam xx

Moyra in the UK! Swatches and review (and a whole lot of pictures!)

Hello everyone! Today I have some swatches of a brand that is in the process of launching in the UK. Moyra have been around in Europe for some time now but they're now available right here! I was lucky enough to be sent three bottles for review.

I'll start with my favourite, that has the uninspiring title No. 95. It looked beautiful in the bottle and was opaque in two coats. The shift within the purple and the metallic effect is simply stunning - I can see myself wearing this one a lot! 

I don't really have a bad word about this colour or the formula - its, purple, metallic and really easy to work with :)

Next up is Vivid Sands Shocking Pink. Yay for a textured neon! I was hoping to get one of these in my review package and I was not disappointed. Two coats and it was done. Very easy to work with and it dried super quickly! And man, is it bright (with a little added silver sparkle)!!!

Again, I can't really find anything bad to say about this one. I'm totally over texture polishes after Texture week with The Digit-al Dozen, but this is one that I will definitely be coming back to. I will  definitely be looking at more of the neon colours in the Vivid Sands collection so that I can put them together in some nail art.

Last (and a little bit least), we have Glamour Shade No. 801. The colour is gorgeous, a shimmery yellow green with glass flecks and full of sparkle, but it is so sheer. I got to four coats before I could call it anywhere near opaque and that is just a little bit too much work for me with a single polish (especially as I always put nail art over the top). Having said that, I have a few ideas for some nail art using this colour and there will be another post featuring designs with these polishes to follow, so stay tuned!

Overall I was really impressed with these polishes. My issues with the green were mostly down to personal preference and practicality, but its a review and I'm giving my honest opinion :) I definitely plan to buy more of these - the range of colours and finishes on offer from Moyra UK is phenomenal and both the Vivid Sands and the metallic purple certainly felt like far more expensive polishes than the packaging (I'm not a big fan of the bottles!) and price range would have you believe!

These polishes are currently available from the Moyra UK Facebook page (and a website is on the way). Prices start at the bargain price of £3 per bottle so head over and check them out!

Sam xx