Beauty // Winter Nails.

When it comes to beauty I am for all intents and purpose a complete novice. Despite wearing make-up everyday I have somewhat of a "slap it on and hope for the best" attitude , in fact that's pretty much my motto. This of course results in me looking a complete mess 99.9% of the time. FACT. I therefore do not at all consider myself to be a "Beauty Blogger". In fact if I do decide to ever post about actual make-up in the future, take my advice and don't read it! I'm the last person you should listen too when it comes to make up! However despite all this there is one beauty product I feel confident enough to talk about with you all ... Nail Polish!

A few weeks ago I briefly mentioned that this winter I was obsessing over all things sugary and sweet on my nails (hello pastels!), and whilst I could of just posted about the "50 shades of pink" I seem to have acquired in my nail collection lately, I decided to share the other somewhat "neglected" colours that I'm loving this festive season; as even though I hate to admit it, not every one loves pink!

//The "Neutral Oh-So-Sophisticated" Nail //

Over the last few years as Its approached winter wearing neutral shades on my nails has become my default. Perhaps its because they simply go with every outfit, or perhaps its because it makes a refreshing change from the incredibly bright colours I wear throughout the summer (yeah I'm that girl!) ... whatever the reason all I know is that I'll definitely be wearing a "sophisticated" neutral nail again this winter (Apparently there is no sophistication in having bright blue nails ...) Above I've selected a few that I've been enjoying lately, and hopefully you might too...

Ciate "Pocket money" // This shade oozes understated elegance, and because of this I'm completely in love with it. Its a very girly colour (in subtle way though!) , and has a soft creamy fudge appearance to it which I think is perfect for Christmas.

Ciate "Cookies and Cream" // This is perhaps the most easiest colour to wear ever. FACT. Its a very light nude, that's almost bordering on being a pastel grey. Due to its versatility it can honestly be worn with anything. Seriously what more could you ask for!

Maybelline Colour show "Mauve Kiss"// I would consider this one of my all time "go-to" colours. If in doubt wham it on ... not literally though as that could be a disaster (Trust me, I've been there!) Its very similar to Barry M mushroom, but I would say slightly lighter. The colour itself is more of creamy beige with undertones of pale mauve ... honestly  I don't know what else to say, over than It's perfect!

Maybelline Colour Show "Winter Baby"// A white nail polish is an essential. Despite this however I've always shied away from wearing pure white personally, in fact I quote "white nails look ridiculously tacky" (me, 2009). Things have changed though, and this year I 've found myself being drawn it. Although it takes around 3 coats to perfect the smooth snowy finish, its definitely worth it for a cold winters day. Also with a name like "Winter Baby" it seemed almost rude not to include it!

//The "I'm a little bit obsessed with Gatsby" Nail //

In the past I've always had this hatred of sparkly nails, in fact I've always hated anything remotely sparkly (glitter, metallics, sequins, diamonds, ... and don't get me started on tinsel!). I'm not sure why this started,  it's just something I've always found aesthetically displeasing ... however things have changed (only slightly though!). This year I've weirdly started to embrace a more Gatsby-esque nail. OK, so as fickle as it may sound watching The Great Gatsby perhaps made me fall in love with the more shiny embellished things in life. So like before here are a few "sparkly" nail polishes that I've been wearing ...

Barry M Instant Nail Effects Foil "Gold"// Its gold. And I mean gold. To many that may seem perfectly normal, but to me its a colour that I never imagined wearing ... and I mean ever! Despite all that I'm completely in love with it. I adore the colour, the finish, and the way it catches the light. It has a luxurious foil like finish to it which I think looks sooo ridiculously festive ... now If only I was going to one of Gatsby's parties!

Barry M Glitter Nail Paint "Hologram Hexagons" // This is the first glittery nail polish I've owned since the 90's. FACT. As a child I remember owning these little kids glittery nails polishes, and I would only ever really wear them if I was going to a birthday party. (I'm pretty sure they were peel-able ... anyone else remember those?) Like I've already mentioned a million times, I'm not a massive fan of glitter so me purchasing this was somewhat peculiar. I'm not sure what initially attracted me to this, but seriously it looks really amazing worn as an accent nail. What I love about it is that its has really big hexagon pieces in it, rather than your typical glitter. Lately I've really been enjoying it over the top of pastel shades .. yep I'm addicted to pastels!

Ciate Caviar Manicure // The Caviar Manicure is ridiculously beautiful, and despite what you might think incredibly easy to apply. Instead of rambling on about it again, you can read my full post on this polish "here".

// The "One" //

In my opinion Christmas isn't complete until you find the perfect deep red nail polish (and lipstick to match too!). Each year I find myself searching for a new perfect shade! Of course I could just repurchase the same one I obsessed over the year before, but well there's no fun in that! However when you find the "one", you know instantly ... as cliché as it sounds it's almost definitely "love at first sight". And without further ado here's the "one" for me this year ...

Maybelline Colour show "Downtown Red"// The number of times I've already worn this is unimaginable (perhaps a slight exaggeration, but you get the idea!) I feel that my nails look at there best when I'm wearing this colour, which might seem a little strange, but I think its because I love the contrast between my incredibly pale white skin and the richness of this colour. (OK so that is strange.) This colour is the perfect cross between an intensely rich burgundy and a vivid ruby red, and for that reason alone I will be wearing this polish for a very long time. For me this is definitely the "one" this year! And in the words of "Buddy the Elf", "I'm in love, I'm in love, and I don't care who knows it!"

Phew! And finally we're done! This is by far the longest post I've ever wrote. Perhaps too long. If you've actually managed to read though all that with dying of complete boredom than I salute you! (Note to self: Write less.) 

Feel free to leave any nail polish recommendations of colours you've been loving lately ... as well lets face it I'm slightly obsessed! ... and perhaps slightly nosey curious!

Photos // Tea Stains, Tears, And Memories.

"If you love a flower, don't pick it up. Because if you pick it up it dies and ceases to be what you love. So if you love a flower, let it be. Love is not about possession. Love is about appreciation." 

I have a confession to make ... I like to press flowers. There we go, I've said it. To a lot of people it can seem incredibly naff and slightly granny-ish, which is in fact an understandable assumption to make as there is a lot of awful pressed flower art around, however I honestly don't care. I've always found the process itself to be a rather beautiful one and lately its something that I've been quite inspired by. As a child I remember my Grandma teaching me how to press flowers, and it was something that at the time I was amazed by. I would wander around her garden collecting suitable flowers, then we would carefully place them amongst the pages of one of her old "heavy" books, and as if by magic a month later they would be completely squished and feel like fine delicate paper. I think there's a beauty in the simplicity of it all, the idea of hiding a precious flower between the pages of a book, where it remains concealed within until all of its moisture is dried out. Its essence slowly being absorbed into the letters printed upon the pages, infusing itself amongst tea stains, tears, and more importantly memories. If your lucky you'll be like me and open a book a year later to surprisingly have a flower fall out at your feet. Its one of those simple but special life moments. Unexpected beauty.

That's what happened to me today. And it was lovely.

Illustration // Orla Kiely SS/14

Earlier today It suddenly hit me that I had completely forgotten to post the finished Orla Kiely Illustration I talked about the other week. If I'm being completely honest I'm not too happy with how it turned out (let's face it drawing will never be my artistic strong point!), but then again when am I ever? Despite this I did say that I wanted to share illustrations on here even if there not that great, simply because otherwise they just stay hidden away in one of my many sketchbooks ... or worse in the bin. Lets just say I'm trying to figure out my own illustrative style, and hopefully by sharing some of things I do on here I'll feel encouraged to improve ... Or not!

That's all really. This is perhaps the shortest post I've ever wrote on here, although most of you probably think that's better as far as I'm concerned, especially since I have a tendency to ramble on about absolutely nothing! I'm working on that I promise! 

Beauty // Let Them Eat Cake.

When you stumble upon a nail polish that's named after one of your favourite films, you will find it very hard to say no! You will feel an overwhelming need to make it yours. You will start to feel as though this nail polish will change your life,and that it simply isn't possible to live without it. In other words ... YOU WILL NOT LEAVE THE SHOP WITHOUT IT. And that my friends is exactly what happened to me last week.

If your familiar with the L'Oreal Color Riche Nails collection then I'm sure your all aware of how many amazing colours there are to choose from. If your as indecisive as I am however it can make things a little difficult, not that I'm complaining at all! Anyhow, I've been searching after the "perfect" pale pink for a while now, as I felt my nail collection was missing one and because I've been lusting over anything and everything pink all season(Pastels in winter right guys?)  ... OK OK so I already own a few pale pinks however they either apply awfully,or are just too sickly a shade for me to even contemplate wearing! However I think I finally might of found the the "perfect"one ...

I hate to admit that I'm one of those people who buys things purely because I like name, but sadly its true (please tell me I'm not the only one?!). However in this case I genuinely do love the colour so I guess that makes it OK right? (Yes I know I'm trying to justify it to myself!) The shade is "Marie Antoinette 202" and its the perfect pale candy pink, it almost reminds me of a Laduree macaron. Think Fleur de Cerisier. The polish itself has a gel based formula which makes it very long lasting and ultra glossy. It also apparently has  built- in top coat "LiquiGel Technology" (?) which again is probably why its incredibly glossy. I only needed two coats for this colour which is pretty much normal for any pastel shade, and the application itself was ridiculously easy. Perhaps this was due to the flat paddle precision brush or simply because the formula was sooooo smooth. Either way I'm in love with this polish and will definitely be wearing it a lot this winter ... and probably the other seasons too!

Out of curiosity will any of you be sporting pastel nails this winter or do you prefer the more darker shades?

Hope you all had a lovely weekend!

*Apologies for the awful photos, the lighting was awful and for some reason I seemed incapable of actually taking a photo in focus!