For the love of... dots! #4 - Taras Talons

Good morning all!

Another dot filled mani today, this time from the lovely Tara from Tara's Talons. This is called Princess of Darkness. I can't remember how or when I came to get this polish as I have quite a Tara collection now, but I am sure it didn't take much thinking to press the confirm button on my order when I saw the circles in this.

I have this swatched over two polishes. I actually didn't realise until I took photos, but I sleep painted my base colour and I have an OPI shade on my pinky, and Sally Hansen - Dorien Grey on my other nails. I love the mix in here of different shapes. Pink (especially neon) and black is just an unreal combo, never gets old. The silver circles just complement that really nicely.

You can find Tara here:

The Tara Emporium

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

What do you think?

Rachael xxx

For the love of... dots! #3 - Nail Lacquer UK

Hey again!

Another dot filled post for you this morning - today is a share of my very first circle glitter polish, which I got from Nail Lacquer UK.

Unfortunately she is not selling anymore, so I am coveting my polishes from AJ as I love them all! This is my absolute favourite, but I will have some more to share with you in the future.

Here is Heart or Love over black.

What do you think? 

Rachael xxx

For the love of... dots! #2 - Chubby Owl Polish

Good morning!

I am back again with another dot installment - this time from the lovely Chubby Owl Polish.

This is my first polish from Jemma - and definitely not my last! I picked this up from her sale and my goodness it is just beautiful.

I wasn't sure about the star element - I am pinickity about shapes. I have decided I like diamonds, squares and circles. Hearts are acceptable in the right polish. This is the first polish where I have okayed stars. They just work wonderfully with the colours in the mix. Metallic pink dots, royal blue small glitters and small silver stars. Such a simple combination but they just look beautiful on my nails. I can't stop looking at them!

You can find Jemma and Chubby Owl Polish at the following places:

Big Cartel Store

Facebook

Instagram

What do you think? Do you have any favourite CO polishes? 

Rachael xxx

For the love of... dots! #1 - Indy's Indies

Hey all!

I have been fairly quiet so far this year - its busy busy as always and blogging has had to take a backseat sort of, to all the new things cropping up!

I do love blogging however, and I want to stay in love with it - hence I will be keeping up my posting of between 1 and 3 posts a week, depending on how busy I get. It's nice to know that even a few people read my blog or check out my pictures - I'm not bothered about having loads of followers etc, I am happy with what I have - so if you're reading this, thank you!

Anyway, I thought I would share my latest loves with you - dots. Dots and indies. So I have a series of posts for you over the next week or so to showcase some of my absolute favourite indie dots from the very talented UK indie scene. 

So here are the first two - I grouped these together because they are from the same brand - Indy's Indies. You can find II at the following places:

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Etsy Store

The first I have for you is Balloon House, inspired by the film UP! I love the film, and I love the polish - it is jam packed with a rainbow of small matte dots all in one size, in a clear base. It is unique in my collection and was actually an impulse buy - when I was waiting for it to arrive I was almost regretting buying it, but now I have it I am just totally in love with it. The smaller circles are fairly easy to get out of the bottle with them being small aswell which is great.

The second I have for you is Baubles. This was a Xmas polish, but Danielle made me one up on request (how lovely is she?!) again, this is a rainbow of colours but in a variety of sizes and all metallic. I wore this just for an afternoon out shopping in Durham and I got so many compliments, and I also spent a fair amount of time wiggling my nails about and staring at them shining in the light. Gorgeous! 

Indy's Indies may be shutting down for awhile, so if you want anything - make sure you get in there quick! 

What do you think of these two polishes? Do you have a favourite? Are there any other II polishes that you love?

Rachael xxx

Whats on my nails? #3

Hey all,

Got some more R&R Lacquers to be sharing with you today.

Being as excitable as a puppy and as patient as.. something really not patient, I have been dying to share these, but as Becca is much more sensible, she has made me wait until they have completed their sit test.

So here are 3 more prototypes. The first will be releasing with our first collection, and the other two will be released as part of an Avengers inspired collection a little bit later.

Again, no names - naming things is so hard!

Avengers inspired - 

#1

#2

There are more of the Avengers collection to come - watch out this week for the rest, the last of the first collection and also some sneak peeks of our spring collection!

Rachael xxx

What's on my nails? #2

Hey all!

Well Xmas is over for another year, but I'm still enjoying the sparkly nails. I have another two prototypes to show you from R&R Lacquers.

#3 - this is what I am currently sporting. It's a lovely understated glittery-ness. One coat over black.

#4 - a bit more rainbow and sparkly! Again, one coat over black.

Go give the brand some love:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

They'll be launching properly sometime in January - keep an eye out as I have some more swatches etc to come! I will be swatching these over other colours as well.

What do you think? 

And if you haven't seen - check out the other two I have swatched here

Rachael xxx

What's on my nails?

Just a quick post today - to show you whats been on my nails recently. Two unnamed prototypes for R&R Lacquers, a new UK indie brand opening in 2014!

#1

#2

What do you think?

Rachael xxx

Swatched: Taras Talons - The Best Things in Life are Polishes!

Hey all! Got another one of my TT beauties today to share - nabbed this awhile back as I love circle glitters, and I am pleasantly surprised which how much I love this!

The Best Things in Life are Polishes (TBTINAP) is a very pale mint-leaning off white crelly with a fine sprinkling of small gold circle glitters and large blue/teal holo circles. I impulse bought this for the circles, without thinking about whether the colour would suit me, but as it isnt stark white, I really like how it looks.

It is very thin in consistency, and this was 4 coats to build full opacity. Because of the small amount of glitters in the polish, I think it would be best as a topper to make sure every mani gets a fair share of glitters. I did have to fish for the circles but it wasnt a massive effort, I just wanted big circle glitters on every nail (have to be even!).

This had a beautifully soft look to it - I had loads of compliments while I wore it for work.

What do you think? Is it something you would consider buying? Are you a lover or a non lover of circle glitters and/or crelly polishes? 

Rachael xxx

Taras Talons - All Work and No Polish! Swatch

Hey all!

Another Taras Talons polish here - got a few more in my untried pile, but I'll break them up so I don't spoil you all at once haha!

This is a single mini (5ml) that caught my eye a few weeks back. I'm normally a bar glitter hater but its very sparse in this polish so I thought I'd give it a try. All work and no polish is a sheer grey base with a mix of black, white and pink glitters in a variety of hexes and bar glitters in black and white only. It can be built into an opaque look on its own, but I decided to layer it over Sally Hansen - Ion for quickness. 

I decided to wear it as an accent as you know how much I like non-matchy nails. So I went for 2 coats of Sally Hansen - Ion on my pinky and pointer, 2 coats of Catrice - Raspberry Fields Forever on my middle finger and 1 coat of AWANP over 2 coats of Ion on my ring finger and thumb (not shown).

I really like how it looks, I love glitters, and these matte glitters are great for an every day look. I love the variety of colours and glitters in this and surprisingly like the addition of the bars. It was a beautiful formula and had a nice variety of glitters that went easily onto the nail. I did fish for the bars though as they are quite sparse, but thats how I want the polish anyway so its not an issue!

Small thank you to Becca from KPC too as these are all her polishes (bar All Work and No Polish) as I was having a polish afternoon at her house! It was her birthday last week, so I took over her presents and we had a swatch fest! Happy birthday Becca, love ya lots! 

Anyway, back to the polish - what do you think?

Rachael xxx

Taras Talons - Polish Club September

Good morning all!

Today I have my very first indie subscription to show you!

Taras Talons recently set up polish club - the first UK indie subscription box. For a small price of £10 a month, you will receive 2 unique polishes, 1 full size (10ml) and 1 mini (5ml). These are like all Taras polishes and will be one offs.

The two I received I was uber pleased with. Theres a story behind one of them, which I'll fill you in on. The mini I received is called Forget Me Not. As soon as I saw this I loved it. More so for the name. September is my 'big Gran's birthday month. She passed away when I was in school - I was about 14/15, so over 10 years ago now. I've always wanted to get a tattoo to remember her by, and as I'm a big scaredy cat, and also because I want something tasteful and small, I decided that when I'm brave enough, I'll get a small forget-me-not in her memory. So of course when this polish arrived I did get a bit of a lump in my throat, but I do only have wonderful memories of my big Gran and wearing this on my nails will only make me think of her and how much I love her more.

Forget Me Not is a beautiful mulberry colour. Its unlike anything I own already and isn't something I would instinctively choose, but it was a lovely colour on my nails. It does look slightly more brown in the photos, but when it hits the light you can see the red tones and the lovely shimmer.

My second polish, the 10ml was a glitter polish. I won't lie, I did initially feel a bit disappointed at a gold glitter. But once I applied it I realised how lovely it was - its not a two dimensional flat gold glitter, but a mix of gold and gold holo hexes and multiple sizes of glitter, so its so sparkly! It transformed Forget Me Not from a classic work-appropriate mani to a beautiful sophisticated special night out mani. The polish is glitter packed, so rather than a full nail, I decided to lightly sponge it on as a glitter gradient. I had no problems with application, the formula was great and no problems getting glitter out. Lovely! Only problem was the dying light, so although you can see tiny flecks of holo, I didnt manage to capture just how sparkly it really was!

I am so happy with this subscription and can't wait for next month. I really think for £10, its a good price for something hand made and unique. 

If you fancy trying Polish Club, you can sign up for it at Taras Talons via Paypal.

What do you think? Did you sign up for polish club? What colours did you get / would you like to see? 

Rachael xxx

Dragonglass Nails - UK Indie Review and Swatches

Good morning!

Today I have for you a new UK indie brand - Dragonglass Nails by Georgia.

I stumbled across them originally on Instagram and then after stalking them for a while, finally parted with my cash in exchange for two polishes - Good Witch and Bad Witch.

I tried Good Witch first. Both polishes are described as being textured, but I found the two to be very different. Here's how Georgia describes it:

Good Witch is a pink iridescent shimmery polish. It is sheer and best used over another colour (both pictures show it over a pale nude colour, but it can be put over any colour) and layered to be more pink and glittery. It can be made opaque in 4-5 coats and gives a "jelly" appearance, but it has to be left to dry in between or it will go squidgy. Give it a coat of clear or matte top coat, and it's good to go! 

I found Good Witch to be incredibly thick, it definitely needed a drop of thinner. I dabbed it onto my nail for even coverage, over 2 coats of We're in it Together by Essie (a bright baby pink). I think it looks quite pretty, but for me I definitely need to tone down the undies as they really werent the best choice for me! Good Witch was very textured, so I decided to leave it that way - it was already very sparkly so didn't need a topcoat.

I did then see that Georgia recommends wearing it over nude. So i tested one finger with Ciate Cookies and Cream as a base. I also topcoated and you can immediately see the difference. It has a much softer, delicate look and is incredibly even more sparkly. This was 1 coat over 2 thin coats of Cookies and Cream.

And here is Bad Witch.

Bad Witch is a black polish with green sparkles that glitter in the light. It is opaque in one coat and dries to a leather-like finish, which can then be made smooth and sparkly with one coat of your favourite top coat.

 

This was pigmented enough to wear alone - I wore two coats over a base of OPI Nail Envy and with 2 coats of Seche Vite. It DRANK the first coat, so definitely needed the second to smooth everything out. This was nowhere near as textured as Good Witch. Infact, I would say it was more like regular indie polish - just in need of a good topcoat. I really liked this otherwise though - a great choice for Halloween which is scarily not that far away. Also, a great evening choice for green lovers (like myself). It was so sparkly in person, I really did struggle to capture how glittery it was on the nail. Unlike Good Witch, I could apply this like regular polish with no need for any dabbing.

What do you think? Have you tried any Dragonglass Nails polish before? 

Rachael xxx

UK Indie Treats - Taras Talons Part 2!

Hi all!

Today I have another bottle of my Tara's Talons to show you! :) Don't forget - check out her shop and use my 20% off code - RACHO20 (go on, treat yourself!)

As a reminder, here are her details:

Etsy

Blog

Website

Facebook

Twitter

This one is Bubble Bath - I knew I'd be doing myself a disservice if I didn't buy at least one blue or green, so this is what I chose :)

Bubble Bath is a gorgeous frosted blue, creme like polish with tiny blue glitters and what looks like opalescent white hexagon glitters (on closer inspection, theyre silver, but they look opalescent white on the nail).

The first coat applies quite sheer and patchy, but evens out nicely on the second coat. The formula is average - not too runny, not too thick, and there is a nice amount of glitter in there. The only downside I see to this polish is that the silver glitters dont stand out too much - the pigmentation of the polish hides them and they are only noticeable on close inspection. However, on the other hand this does give the polish a softer appearance - it reminds me of winter snow actually, and so I think it depends on what you're looking for out of this polish.

This is definitely a winter polish for me - it's the frosted element and the silver / white glitters that make it. I have already visualised many many different designs - snowflakes, snow men.. etc :) so watch out for me whipping this beauty out from November onwards! 

I decided after wearing it for awhile to jazz it up a little - so here it is with some Born Pretty Store accessories! 

 What do you think of this one? Is it a colour that you'd wear? Are you bothered about 'seasonal colours' or do you just wear what you want, when you want? Yay or nay to the accessories?

Rachael xxx

UK Indie Treats - Tara's Talons!

I have something extra special to share with you today (and some more days in the future!) Swatches and review of some indie polishes by Tara from Tara's Talons :)

I spoke to Tara the other day after seeing some gorgeous swatches of her polishes over at Special Girl Nails (go check em out!). She was so nice, she even HAND DELIVERED my polishes so I could get them faster - how lovely is that? <3 She also offered me a discount code to share with all my readers - no end date! Read on for that, plus some gorgeous polish porn!

Little bit about Tara's Talons first - Tarastalons is a UK based indie nail polish and nail art creator shipping worldwide! All nails are hand designed and all polish is handmade and limited edition, with a maximum of ten polishes of each shade being made and more often only one of each polish being made! Tara also create custom polishes and nail art! Check her out using the various links below!

Etsy

Blog

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Back to the polish - I was a bit greedy (or buy happy!) and picked up 6 colours. The first I have to show you is "Don't talk, just polish". 

I was intrigued by this, as it looks slightly textured in the photos Tara has of it. But what sold it for me is the beautiful Coral-Orange shade. You all know how much I heart orange! Such a beautiful summer colour - don't you think?

When it arrived, checking out the bottle it looks like it is filled with little glass flecks, the size of grains of sugar.

On the nail is beautiful - can you believe it - this is ONE coat of polish. When I opened the bottle, it looked very grainy and I worried about application but it was surprisingly smooth and very easy to work with. Formula is just the right thickness and perfectly pigmented for full coverage in one stroke. It dries to a glossy finish and does have a textured feel. It is my first textured experience, and I am unsure how I feel on it. I am sat debating it now, while stroking my nails! It is not rough in any way, it is not something that would catch or click on your clothes.. so I think maybe in time I will love the feel. However, for now I will add a coat or two of Seche Vite and admire the beautiful glass like flecks and the beautiful colour :)

These both have 2 coats of SV to even it out. Top coat hungry! You can see in the bottle how the little glass flecks look :)

So why are you not over at her Etsy shop yet? Code for all you lovely readers is RACHO20 to take 20% off your order :) keep reading over the coming days for my other colours.. they'd come faster but I can't take this off just yet! 

What do you think? Do you own any indies / UK indies? Do you like textured polishes? 

Rachael xxx