Summer Nail Picks by Kirsty from KIMAMELY BEAUTY | GUEST POST

Forward: 

Hello! Today we have a guest post from the lovely Kirstie from KimamelyBeauty.com and we're talking all things Summer nails! She has picked out very pretty colours, and I'm sure you'll love hearing all about it! Love, Puja x

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Spring 2015 Nail Picks | BEAUTY

Hello!

"the colours I picked haven't 'gone-all-out', but there's a nice range that I think truly represents me"

It feels like forever since we've bought out the pastels, and now the time has come. The first day of Spring has sprung (ha!) so you can feel free to whip out those shades you put away about 6 months ago. Having said that, it is totally fine to wear whatever shade you want to in the autumn and winter - so if you were rocking pastels in the mist of November, GO YOU! :)

"the grey may still dominate"

Although it's Spring, the weather hasn't been wanting to change too much in London. Well, it did for about 3 days, and then went back to grey clouds. Maybe it's the weather that doesn't let the little nail-colour freak inside of me not want to pick out all the pastel shades, or maybe I'm just saving them for the summer. Either way, the colours I picked haven't 'gone-all-out', but there's a nice range that I think truly represents me.

From Left to Right:
Barry M Watermelon
Barry M Kiwi
Barry M Limited Edition 030
Barry M Cappuccino 
Barry M Aqua Glitter
Ciaté Pocket Money

"choosing the colours that make you feel comfortable"

As you can tell, there's a lot of Barry M going on here! With great formulas, an ever-growing shade range and their incredible price - where can one go wrong?

In the end, it's all about choosing the colours that make you feel comfortable. To me, these are the ones. I'll leave them lined up on the shelf near my nail polish box, so I can just pick and go! Having still being obsessed with grey's, I have a feeling it may be the most used this season, but I shall keep you updated!

"It feels like forever since we've bought out the pastels, and now the time has come."

As most of the colours on the runways for SS15 were bare/nude nails, it'd be wrong not to include Ciaté Pocket Money. Nonetheless, the grey may still dominate for me. It's not ALL about the trends now, is it?! :D

Tell me, what shade do you think will be on your nails a lot this Spring? 

CHANEL Fall 2014 Nail Collection

Hello!

"hello to darker, deeper and neutral shades"

I feel like a broken record when I say this but autumn is literally around the corner now, meaning bye-bye to neon, pastel and bright nails and hello to darker, deeper and neutral shades. 

"Saying bye-bye to neon shades won't be that bad"

Chanel released their new Fall 2014 collection with these three shades, two of which are lighter neutrals and one a navy blue. The neutrals are great additions to any collection as they could easily pass off as summer shades, yet this range has been said to be streaky. They say you'll need a good 3 coats to get a solid good colour on your nails.

Saying bye-bye to neon shades won't be that bad, as the deeper, darker and neutral shades are more my cup of tea! Which do you prefer: neons or darker shades? 

*Images from Chanel.com

Manicure Monday: Mint Sparkles

Hello!

"you've basically seen everything before - yet this time, it's completely different."

If you were ANYWHERE in the last few weeks, you would have read this. If you read that, you would recognise something on here today. You may recognise another something if you saw this post and hence meaning you've basically seen everything before - yet this time, it's completely different.

"can we agree that the overall finish is pretty?"

Well, after all that, can we agree that the overall finish is pretty? At first, the mint shade, called Kiwi, was thought to be uber lovely by itself as a perfect summer shade but when choosing a colour to go with my outfit I wore to a wedding last week (can you tell with the henna tattoo?!?!), this one was a perfect match and to make it more wedding-y, I added some sparkle! 

Overall, that's my mani Monday - what's yours? 

Nude at the Beach - ft. Ciate | Mani Monday

Hello!

Incase you didn't read the last two words of the title, it is a manicure monday - and just FYI I wasn't nude at the beach! :)

"The accent nail is a little added bonus bling"

I know this combination may not be your cup of tea, I was originally going for an orange and blue, but found I don't own the right orange so the next best was the nude - and I love it.

"I now can say it's my favourite nude"

Having owned the Ciate polish for a while now, I had only worn it once - this being the second time and I now can say it's my favourite nude. The accent nail is a little added bonus bling, creating correlations to the seaside - hence the idea of 'Nude at the Beach'!

"the next best was the nude - and I love it"

The perfect summer mani IMO, and I must say, the packing for Ciate is so gorgeous!

Have you tried Ciate, if so what's your favourite shade? 

Manicure Monday: Pastels are Back - Ice Cream Purple

Hello!

What is THE biggest trend for Summer pretty much every year?

Yep it's Pastels. That means there are pastel bags, pastel clothes and.... inevitably pastel nails! 

Pastels are said to make one look tanner and more summer ready! The most popular pastels would probably be the pastel pinks and whites - you know what I mean if you read this post. 

I was going for a pastel pink but opted for a pastel PURPLE this time round and I love it! It's slightly different yet also in the same pastel family.

This particular shade is Barry M Nail Paint in Ice Cream Purple - I've always loved Barry M for their quality and for this shade I needed 2 coats for an opaque finish.

What's on your favourite Pastel shade?

Mani Inspiration: Summer Edition

Hello! 

As I have nothing special on my nails yet, it was time for some nail inspiration - Summer Edition, of course! ;)

Knowing from the last Manicure Monday on BBXO, you'd realise I love Coral. Oh, and I love Gold. So, you guessed it: I love this mani! It is so girly yet summer-y and.. perfect! The accent nail was totally a thing a while a go but I feel it's still trendy enough to pull off without looking 'so last year'! 

Who said Navy is for the Winter? Well it is, but it's also for the summer! Working the Navy with the White makes it appropriate for this season. The all-different nails add dimension to the nails and they look pretty together.

Representing Pastels - there's no better colour group than Pastels for this season - show off your tan and make you feel like the Sun is officially here to stay!

Image Source: 1 // 2 // 3 // 4

Lilac is also a lovely colour that is undermentioned. It rarely is a huge topic of interest yet would work wonderfully as a mani.

What's your favourite Mani for Summer? 

Manicure Monday: Goddess - Rimmel by Kate Moss

Hello!

The sun is peaking out from behind the clouds (about time, it IS June) in the UK and quite possibly where you are too! That means the darker shades are to be put away and lighter, brighter shades bought out for the season. Being a fan of Nudes and Taupes, this was a lovely colour I was dying to try since receiving it with the Rimmel by Kate Mascara - see post here.

It's a lovely shade, less coral than I would have adored but a lovely shade, anyway. It is basically a complete white with a tiny bit of orangey/pink added to it - know what I mean?

In terms of applying it, the brush is SUPER wide but short, so you cover a large amount of nail at a time - making it really quick to do your polish! 

See the Shimmer?

You can just about see it, but the shade has a slight pearly shimmer (see picture above) which you cannot spot when on your nails. In fact, the colour looks more matte on the nails. 

Have you tried the Rimmel by Kate Moss line yet?

Manicure Monday - the Brightest of Purples

Hello!

Happy Monday! I hope you're well and enjoying the Spring Weather (or Winter weather, depending where you are in the World)!
Considering that it is Spring in London, I wanted to pick a colour that would suit the season and my preferences! I love deeper colours and this one really was exactly what I wanted!

This Barry M shade caught my eye, and it turned out beautiful! 

I did put on quite a few coats as I like the colour to be opaque, yet one/two coats would have easily been enough!

I love the shade range that Barry M have, a lot of which I have acquired in my collection!
I love that the shade is perfect for this season and suits my preferences!

What's your favourite nail polish brand? 

Mani Monday: Denim Blue

Hello!

After about 2 months, yes you read that right - 2 MONTHS, of having bare nails, I thought it was about time to paint them again. I had gotten used to seeing them bare, but couldn't bare it any longer! (see what I did there?! haha)

Being it Spring time, it's usually the time to whip out the denim. This, as well as the blue trend I mentioned in the last nail post, it was nice to take advantage.

I went with a blue from FCUK, and didn't realise how much I love nail polish!

What shade are you currently wearing, or are you bare like I was?!

Mani Monday: April Picks

Hello!

Being it the 1st of April tomorrow, OMG I just clicked it's April Fools Day *gasp*, I thought it would be fun to see what nails colours stand out for the month of April!





This is the month where it can either rain or the time or be super duper sunny in London, and let's be honest here, the weather does affect the colour of nail polish you're wearing - it's not just me, right?!

Cobalt Blue

I thought this colour would be gorgeous for the season, the picture doesn't do it justice, but Essie Mesmerize, is a bright blue - yet not a pastel blue that's more for the July months, if you see what I mean! I think this would be the colour I paint my nails this week! 

Duo-Tone

Barry M has launch a new collection! It has aquarium inspired shades and has a few two-tone polishes which are to die for - so why not give the duo-tone trend a go for April? 

Nude

I'm always up for nude, and this polish from the Brazil Collection is no different!

Confetti/Sparkle (matte)

The Confetti trend came out a while ago, yet it's very much like sparkle polish - and a girl can never get enough of it! I haven't worn sparkle in a while, so might pick that out for April!

I hope you enjoyed reading this - what is your go-to April shade?  

1 // 2 // 3 // 4

New OPI Brazil Collection - SS14

Hello! 

The sun is finally peaking out from behind the clouds now meaning it's a good time to talk about Brazil. Well, OPI's new Brazil SS14 Collection, that is! 

I am a huge fan of OPI for many a reasons, one being the very creative names on probably every nail colour they have and the second being how on point they are with the trends of the season. Now, don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean I buy every new OPI Nail Polish released, in fact most of my polish are not OPI, yet I do find myself painting my nails in similar shades to their recent collections!

So, these are the colours for Spring Summer 2014:

The Brazil Collection consists of mostly creme finishes with both neutrals and brights. I have seen the bright yellow colour in many SS14 collections, so that will be a bit hit this season.

Out of this collection my favourites would be 'I Såo Paulo Over There' and 'Toucan Do It If You Try' - see what I mean by the names?! I love taupes and coral, so these shades are 'right up my alley'.

What do you think of the collection and your favourite shades?

Polish Images Source

Manicure Monday - Matte GunMetal

Hello! 

I love the look of freshly painted nails - it's a nice aspect to change as it is easy to do so and can make a difference! I swear I pick the colours of the polish depending on my mood!

Being a fan of the Matte Nail Polish trend, I again picked up the matte topcoat to paint my nails! I used Barry M 'Dusky Mauve'. I am in love with this polish. It is a Grey with Purple Shimmer.

Adding the Rimmel Matte Top Coat meant that the polish lost it's purple shimmer and is left with a gunmetal-y grey colour.

I've got to say I really like the way the matte topcoat turned out on this polish. It completely changed the look of it can I can't stop touching my nails. Others have mentioned how good it looks and feels (… yes people actually felt my nails!)...

Using the Matte Topcoat in the LAST Mani Monday was not as effective as it turned out this time. I am really pleased with it. Unfortunately last time my nails chipped quickly - having not enough experience with the Matte Topcoat, I'm not sure if it was that or another reason why the polish chipped so quickly, I'll keep you updated!

Are you in for the Matte Nails trend?

Manicure Monday - OPI dupe Edition

Hello!

If you read this blog last week then you would have seen the post of OPI's new collection: Raw Granite. I did mention that you can dupe the shades with a bit of tweaking of the polishes you have and guess what I did? Yep, I tried it! So, obviously, you had to know, right?! haha!

Well, the colour I tried to dupe was Lapis. This is one of the new polishes out from that collection. Actually, my friend had the polish on and when I asked her she said it was from OPI's new collection - so obviously I screamed and started jumping up and down because I had posted the blog post about it the day before I saw her wearing it… anyway, so it encouraged me even more to try to dupe it!

As you know from previous Mani Mondays, I love Barry M - their quality is amazing and the price is perfect! Using a sparkle top coat - with a very light hand - achieved the diamond sparkle look that the OPI polishes have, and finally using the Rimmel Matte Top Coat made the finish matte, the same finish as the OPI polish!

Shades:
Blue = Barry M, Christmas Blue
Glitter = Barry M, Yellow Topaz
Matte Finish = Rimmel, Pro Matte Finish


I think it turned out okay!
What do you think, what's your manicure for this week? Oh, and if you would like to see a review of the Matte Top Coat, let me know!

New OPI Collection: Raw Granite

Hello!

Happy Monday!  For the last week or so (feels like forever) I've left my nails bare - so, it's definitely time to give them a fresh coat! I was looking for some new nail colours that are out right now to give me inspiration on what colour to paint my nails next and came across this beautiful collection by OPI: Raw Granite.

You may have heard of Granite being used as one of the more expensive counter tops for your kitchen, yet heard of OPI's new collection: Raw Granite?
Well, the shades are worth looking into and reading about!

via OPI

These all have a Matte Textured finish and have Diamond Dust in them too - doesn't that sound lovely!
These polishes can either go edgy with a matte look or you can go elegant by applying a top coat and letting the diamond dust do its magic!

via source

"Lapis" and "Pewter" are the late comers in terms of this collection and have recently been released. The gorgeous gunmetal and navy shades are perfect for Winter 2014 and have already been a big hit.

I love the way these look and if you have a similar colour at home, but not in a matte finish, do what I did in my other Mani Monday post and apply a matte top coat - trust me, it does wanders and makes the polish you're wearing look a different colour! I will try it and let you know how it looks!

Oh, and before I leave you with a question of the day, let's just admire the beauty of the packing that OPI have come up with!

What do you think of Diamond Dust in nail polish? Over the top or pretty cool?