New Cherry Blossom Girl Polishes - Essence Autumn 2012

We all know I'm a big Essence fan when it comes to polish, that and a sucker for all things Cherry so I was thrilled to spy Essence's new polish offering for Autumn 2012 on stands this week. I've been so impressed with every one of these that I just had to share so that you can grab some, before the collection disappears, should they appeal to you too. 

My Little Kimono is a light taupe brown with a silver blue shimmer woven through. Beautiful in the sunlight and subtle enough for any occasion. It's a darker than the colour in the bottle once applied but still puts me in mind of Chanel Frenzy with one coat. In short, it’s a beaut.

It’s Peach Not Cherry is a creamy peach orange polish with a luxurious formulation that belies its €2.29 price tag. Again application is a cinch, barely two coats needed for smooth, opaque colour.

Fortune Cookie is a bright mustard, much like a the neon yellow of a Fortune Cookie (funnily enough). There’s a silver micro shimmer here too that translates to shine on the nail. Just Gorgeous.

Cherry Cherry Girl is a wowzer bright orange with red undertone, it reminds me a lot of a creamy Hedonist from Model’s Own in real life. It’s a shiny in yo’ face irreverent addition to the Autumn season and is currently on my tootsies. 

As with this entire range the polish itself applies with no issues whatsoever. Two thin coats = perfect nail colour. There's no top coat used in these pics either, look at that shine!

CherryBlossom Girl Polishes - €2.29 each or the lot for €9.16. Mad, Ted. 

If you haven’t tried Essence polishes before, I’d urge you to do so. Not only is the price ridiculously affordable but the colours are always on the cutting edge of trends and the formulation easily holds its own against (if not supersedes) some high end brands.  

You’ll pick up this entire collection for just under a tenner or just the one for less than the price of a coffee. Essence are available in all good pharmacies, larger Penney’s, Boots and Dunnes Stores.

We Like?

2 Simple Ways to a Gorgeous Glitter Gradient

As a confirmed magpie, I was delighted when I gave the glitter gradient manicure a shot and it actually worked out. We all know I'm all about the easy when it comes to nails so I've put together two simple pictorials so you too can bling up your nails, as is your want.

The first look uses the sponge method for gradient. This, of course, can be used for any kind of gradient, you don't necessarily have to have glitter. Usually it's done with contrasting colours but I figured the pastel and bling were contrast enough.

1. My colours of choice were Nails Inc's Park Lane, Essence's No More More Drama and Bourjois Glitter. You'll need a make up sponge too. 
2. Apply two coats of your base colour and allow to dry. (You can use a quick dry top coat if you're a little impatient (like Moi). 
3. After rolling your glitter bottle in your hands, apply a thin coat to the edge of the sponge. You're aiming for more glitter than polish. 
4. Sponge onto the nail bed in light, fast touches so as the gradient won't be too thickly applied. 
5. Top your glitter with a coat of holographic glitter to add an even more sparkly dimension. 
6. After a swish of high shine top coat, run to the nearest window and marvel at the sparkle!
   
   
   
   The second look uses traditional glitter as can be found in any craft or 2 Eurit shop. I got this one in Hickey's Home Focus for €2 (They've a gorgeous range of iridescent colours).

1. You'll need your base colour, glitter and a piece of folded paper. I chose the new Indian Ocean from the Model's Own Beetlejuice collection with a slick of Essence No More Drama underneath for my base. 
2. Apply a thin coat of each colour as your base so as not to make it too thick. (or two of your chosen polish)
3. Unlike the first pictorial, add your glitter, over the folded paper, while your base is still wet. Tap the glitter lightly around the tip of your nail. 
4. Shake off the excess onto the paper so that you're left with a thin coat. 
5. Cyphen the excess glitter back into your container for future use. (waste not, want not, yo)
6. Using a high shine top coat, first apply to the base colour then apply liberally to the glitter to reveal iridescent gradient gorgeousness! (I used Essence's Gel Look top coat as the glitter can transfer slightly to the brush and I wasn't risking spoiling the more expensive Seche Vite) 

And that's it, two easy ways to a glitter gradient, have you tried this look before? Are you as distracted by the shiny as I am?

PS please don't let glitter removal put you off, I've found Cutex to be miraculous x

Quick Dry Drops from Zoya and Essence

My grá for nail art runs deep - we know this . My grá for saving time and simplicity runs even deeper. That's why when Supernail Ireland sent me Hurry Up Drops with a recent Zoya package I was intrigued to try them out. 


Turns out they kick ass, one drop on each nail works in 60 seconds to dry them to a beautiful shine. Now, not Seche Vite high shine or Sally Hansen Insta Dry quickness but the dropper application means that you're guaranteed no drag on your nail art designs or decorations (crystals etc.)


For those of us that don't have the budget for Zoya (€17.20) just now though but want to try the concept, Essence have come to the rescue, yet again. Priced at €2.49 Nail Art Express Dry Drops do exactly what they say on the bottle and can be used for ordinary manis as well as nail art wonders. 

It has to be admitted that I do prefer the consistency of Zoya but both dry your nails in just over a minute and give exactly the same result shine wise. While I may never stop being a sucker for Seche Vite, these are a welcome addition to my nail stash and nail art arsenal. 

What think we? Have you tried these drops before?

Essence Alert! Foiling the Big Boys - Again!

You read that right, Essence have done it again. Foil look polishes are what all the best dressed talons are wearing this season & if you take my advice you'll hotfoot it to your local Essence supplier and pick these little beauties up.

We all know I have a bit of a polish piggery problem going on, so for comparison purposes I've pulled a couple of my favourite foils for you to peruse:

Essence Icy Princess €1.29, TopShop Starlight (Identical dupe) €7, Chanel Graphite €21

I've favourited this TopShop number for quite a while now, pishahing Barry M's Silver Foil in it's favour but Essence's Icy Princess is an astonishing dupe for 1 sixth of the price? No brainer!

Essence Shiny Goddess€1.29, Barry M 320 Foil, Sally Hansen Gilty Pleasure €8.29

I have a couple of gold offerings and I am partial to Sally Hansen's Complete Manicure awesomeness but Essence is actually the brightest, foiliest of the three. Barry M is listed as a foil but disappointingly matt on the nail.

 

If you like your foils you got to get 'em, you got gots to get 'em!

My Picks from Essence & Catrice

Following on from Karen's outstanding dupe find for Deborah Lippmann's Across the Universe over on Lovely Girlie Bits I had to hot foot it to Dunnes to check it out. Had to.

Both Essence and Catrice have some fab offerings on the stands right now for €2.69 and €1.29 respectively. Rude.Not. To.


Fancy a goo?




Blues Brother Vol. ll. A deep royal navy with bright blue shimmer.





Marylin & Me. A sumptuous red with bright micro red glitter. The perfect Crimbo season polish.

After Eight. An intense black, grey, teal metallic with more than a sniff of Chanel Black Pearl!

High Spirits is a light khaki with silverish sheen. Vay understated. 

Let's Get Lost. A bright, bright blue, really beautiful in real life. 

Just in Case is a bronzey, brown metallic. Can be built up for a deeper colour. 

Sure Azure is a pastel sky blue with a whitish/silver sheen. Will be featuring in upcoming NOTD, folks!

In Style is navy, teal metallic. Much like Catrice's After Eight but different enough to make me part with €1.29. It might be my favourite of the whole bunch.

Time for Romance is a raspberry pink semi tranluscent with hexagonal & micro pink glitters. Beautiful alone or over pinks e.g. Sally Hansen Raisin the Bar (above). 

Finally the polish that I came for. Blue Addicted is the Deborah Lippmann dupe. A transluscent blue with blue  & green hexagonal & micro glitters. Would be perfect for a Galaxy mani, non?

Anything tickle your fancy? 

That's a Lorra Lipgloss!

Changing over my bag on Sunday I pulled out a lipgloss, then another, then another.. repeat to fade..

I knew I had a difficulty with product piggery but how, in the name of God, did I end up with 9 lipglosses in one bag? Nine!

Realising that this was just the tip of my lipgloss iceberg I was tempted to count my entire collection then realising, in turn, that that may stop me buying any more I decided against. 

Lets have a looksie at the 'few' I've been carting around shall we? 

L-R:
L'Oréal 6hr Glamshine in Hold on Rose: This is a lot pinker than the swatch would have you believe. Non sticky & long lasting, nowhere near 6 hours long but long nonetheless. I happen to have 3, in this shade my love is so great for 'em. Great daytime colour. 

Essence XXXL Shine, would love to tell you the colour of this one but Essence aren't known for packaging that survives the belly of handbags. This blends to a lovely berry plum with a silver shimmer, bit sticky but great colour. 

Lancome Juicy Tube mini in Fraise, it's been a while since I've abandoned Juicy Tubes for their sticky ways and hair catching annoyance but this one is a lovely pick me up colour. 

Essence XXXL Shine in Big Night Out, this is a lovely nude pink, part of their new Nude range, funnily enough, that I happen to have several of. Their non sticky and taste like sweeties. Their longevity is not the best but, again, they taste like sweeties. 

Catrice Colour Show, a clear gloss with golden shimmer, lovely as an over gloss for lipstick and almost gone! (Must pick up another one)

Estée Lauder High Gloss in Berry, these are probably some of my fave glosses ever made. Great colour choice, not an ounce of stickiness and a biscuity sweet taste. This happens to be one of a pack of 6 minis. That's not mentioning the full size ones. 

Smashbox O Gloss Noir, this is a blackish gloss in the tube but changes colour according to your own lip colour. Turns out as a lovely berry colour on my kisser. Hugely expensive (€26) for what it is so while I'll never replace it, I loves it. 

Smashbox Limitless Lipstain & Colour Seal Balm in Berry. This stain is a felt tip one end and a corresponding  balm on t'other. I wanted to love this, I really did but with the dried up felt tip (after only 6 weeks) I just don't reach for this one. Hence the languishing at the end of my bag status. 

Essence XXXL Nude, another of the nude range. Sweeties. That is all. 

Having cleared out my bag & some of my conscience, I'm feeling a bit better. 

Any of these catch your fancy? Want to make me feel better & count your glosses and/or your own product obsesh? G'wan... 

Beauty Essential - Bargain Alert - Brighter Peepers!

Back in October Kirstie over on Beaut.ie informed us all of the awakening effects of peach eyeliner. A shade that's a lot more natural and a lot less harsh than white (white should only ever be used for photos, Kat Slater!) I have to admit I've been a fan ever since and have definitely noticed the difference.

My choice until now for peachy nudiness? The Skin Glow Pencil from Une in its lightest shade G01.

€9.79 from Boots, Liffey Valley

I've been pretty gick at sleeping lately, so much so that during a nightmare lastnight about being held captive I actually remember thinking 'Well, at least I won't have to get up for work' (See? Silver linings all the way with me).

I digress, looking more haggard than usual today and picking up another Essence Long Lasting Eye Pencil, what did I spot?

New (to me) and for the ridiculous price of €1.99, Wun Niney Nine, People! A supersoft and precise pinky/peach liner in my favourite format. Score.

The colour is ever so slightly shimmering so ideal for the waterline but also any other areas that need highlighting. Cupids Bow etc.

I love it as I've loved these pencils for yonks, they're long lasting, simple to use, smudgeable and with the twistable tips require no faffing about with pairing.

Hoooge range of colours. (Hoooger than this)

Buildable lines, peach is gorgeous. 

Just one word of warning though, eh? Use it sparingly....

Pic credit: DoobyBrain.com

Bargainous Beauty - Top 5 under €5!

Who loves a beauty essential for under a fiver? Well, me for one! Lower budget beauty brands such as Essence and Catrice have really been upping their game with collections and others are following suit.

I'm loving the following 5 essentials and, to be fair, the quality belies the skimpy price on each one. 

1. Essence All Eyes on Me Mascara in Deep Purple: €2.29

First up, Essence mascara in deep purple. Picked this up in Penney's on a whim and have worn it every other day since. I loved and lost a YSL Mascara Volume Effect mascara in plum earlier this year, which I bought for €32 but didn't have the heart to replace.

I cannot believe how alike in colour and texture this Essence number has turned out to be. Neither mascaras look purple on, just softer than black which can be very harsh. It shows up Blue/Green eyes beautifully. This is one that I'll be re-buying, no doubt. Available in Penney's, Dunnes and select chemists.

2. Scrubby Gloves: €1.50

Next, the Award Winning scrubby gloves. With Samantha herself, Kim Cattrall swearing by them to keep her skin glowing and youthful “I scrub my whole body, even my scalp. And it feels really good.” these €1.50 beauty wonders really do the trick.

Whether it be for removing the remnants of false tan, ex foliating pre tan or just scrubbing the bejebus of yourself pre moisturising, the scrubby lovelies can't be beaten. Available in Penney's for €1.50, Boots for €3.75 and Dunnes 2 pack for €2.79

3. Handy Wipes - €1.49

Okay, okay you might not reckon these are a beauty essential but come on, there's no point in spending time perfecting your make up á lá Kim Kardashian but wearing the blouse of Waynetta Slob aprés Starbucks spillage. 

Travel packs of wipes are ideal for handbags for whatever disaster might befall you. These particular Wet Ones are great if you have a spot of orange palm going on post tanning. One wipe and voilà, pale palms once more. They kill 99.9% of bacteria and are gentle enough for kiddiewinkles' faces. You can't go wrong. Available in Boots, supermarkets and select chemists.   

4. NYC Navy Polish: €1.29 (€1.29!!!!!)

NYC have introduced in a New York Color Minute, quick drying nail polish with minerals in 32 se-here-iously gorgeous shades. 

The wonderful Fiona from Coty was hugely generous in allowing me to try a few of these beauties out. I'm in love with West Village above. The control flow brush reminds me of China Glaze for application, one of my favourites. This colour in the bottle has a purple hue but on the nail is the deepest hue of any of this season's on trend navy polishes that I've gotten my mitts on so far. 

The pic above is two coats with no topcoat, look how shiny! For €1.29 I will be picking up a hella lot more of these. Available in Bradley's Pharmacy. 

5. Colgate MaxWhite One: €4.99

As the ad for this new toothpaste says 'Your smile is your best accessory' and they're right! There's nowt like white pearlys to make you feel good about yourself and get your smile noticed.

We're fans of whitening polishes in our house at the best of times but when I saw this new version promising 'One shade whiter in a week' I had to pick it up. My last sojourn into the world of gnasher whitening involved the ghastly Whizzer Whitening Strips, I would do a post only I can't source a PG picture of gagging!

We're on tube 3 of MaxWhite One now, nothing like telling teen boys that girls love white teeth to get 'em brushing. Our teeth are definitely whiter and the sensational mint with micro crystals is more refreshing than a lot of whitening counterparts. Will be buying this for the foreseeable. Available in supermarkets, Superdrug and selected chemists.


What bargainous beauty are you loving of late?