Nails of the Week - Polished London Nail Enamel in Milky Mocha

Oh My God! It has literally been forever since I have done a Nails of the Week post. It's not that I haven't been wearing nail polish but I'm usually so busy with work, the kids and house stuff that I have just been completely forgetting to take photos of my nails once I've applied any polish. Then, when I do finally remember there is always a chip or two already so I miss my opportunity.

But not this time!

Today I am showing you a polish that I have worn a few times lately because there is just something about the milk chocolate shade that I quite like.

It is a shade by Polished London and is called Milky Mocha.

I quite like this brand of nail polish and I own quite a few of them now. They are nice and affordable and can last 3-4 days on me with no chips which is always a nice bonus.

This polish applies smoothly without any bubbles and dries nice and quickly too. It has a great shine as well which I like because it saves a time poor person like me from having to bother with applying a top coat.

What nail polish have you been favouring lately?

Have a lovely weekend!

Michelle xx

February 2014 Empties

Yes, yes, I know it's almost halfway through March now but I've seriously not had five minutes to myself lately to do this post any earlier. I know I decided a little while ago not to do empties posts anymore but I guess I kind of missed them.

Anyway, here is what I used up in February:

1) Polished London Dry Shampoo Bonny Blonde - I really didn't like this dry shampoo at all and don't really have much nice to say about it unfortunately. I wasn't a fan of the smell and it seemed to make my hair feel greasier when it was sprayed in rather than cleaner. Definitely not a product I will be buying again but unfortunately I have another one to use up because I went and bought two of them at Priceline for some reason last time I was there!

2) Flower by Kenzo Eau De Parfum - This is one of my most favourite perfumes and I am really sorry to see this go. Somehow it got knocked over on my vanity and ended up leaking out without me realising so no more perfume is left now. On the bright side my wooden vanity has absorbed all the leak and now smells really pretty every time I walk past!

3) Puretopia Pure Nutrition Essential Facial Serum - I loved this serum and really noticed a difference in my skin when using it. It felt softer, less irritated and always seemed a bit brighter. I always planned on doing a proper review but just never got around to it. It has a roller ball head that is supposed to help massage the serum into your skin but truthfully I never bothered using that and preferred to just smooth it on with my fingers.  This is definitely something I would buy again.

4) Puretopia Pert & Plump Lip Cream - This cream is supposed to plump up your lips and smooth over fine lines but I really didn't notice much of a difference in my lips after using it. I have a lot of fine lines around my lip area and unfortunately I didn't see any difference in them at all. I don't think I would bother buying this again.

5) Ultraceuticals CC Cream - This was a sample I was sent in the Medium shade which is just way too dark for my skin. I used it a couple of times when I knew I was going to be home all day but have decided to throw it out without finishing it. I feel too much like an extra on Jersey Shores when wearing it. The cream itself still felt really nice and gave good coverage so I might try and buy the light shade one day to see if that is any better.

6) Nivea Visage Cleansing Wipes - I just love all Nivea products and the smell of these wipes always takes me back to when I was little and my mum used the classic face cream at night and I could always smell it on her. Such a great scent that I hope they never change. These are a product that i buy quite often.

So that's it for this month. I've been trying to use up some more full size products lately so am not having so many empties to deal with at the moment.

I hope everyone has a lovely week!

Michellexx

Nails of the Week - Polished London Nail Enamel in 'Fushcia'

In the last GlossyBox I received a bottle of Polished London's nail enamel in the colour Fushcia. I had never tried this brand of polish before but had heard a lot of good things about it so was excited to try it myself.

The below photos don't really do this colour justice. It's a deep red wine/grape colour. For some reason the colour just won't come up as deep in the photos as it appears in real life and funnily enough the photos I took using my flash are a much closer representation of this shade than the photos without flash (even though it was the middle of the day when I took these, go figure?)

The one thing I noticed about this polish is that is seemed to be a bit watery to apply and I needed three coats to get good coverage. It also seems to take a very long time to dry between coats so I think I may have rushed the third coat a little which meant it bubbled quite a bit unfortunately (you can just see some of the bubbles in the above photos).

I'm not sure if these problems happen with all the polishes in this range, maybe I was just having a bad day.

Has anyone else used a Polished London nail enamel before? If so, what's your favourite shade?

February GlossyBox - Special Valentine's Day theme

My February GlossyBox came while we were also away and I had to go to the post office today and pick it up. I was hoping with all fingers crossed that this box would impress me as they made so much hype over the February box and how it was going to be a special Valentine's Day themed box, but, I'm sorry to say that it just didn't deliver in my opinion.

Here is what was in the February box:

1) Bobbi Brown Lash Glamour Extreme Lengthening Mascara in Black (3ml sample size, RRP $48.00 for 6ml) - This mascara apparently helps make your lashes ultra long and separated. I have about a thousand mascaras now so will be waiting a while to try this one as I don't want to have another one open at the same time that will potentially dry out.

2) Jane Iredale Tantasia Self Tanner (5ml sample, RRP $54.00 for 124ml) - This tan sample is teeny! I don't know what on earth I can use it on as I don't think it will even cover one of my shins let alone both legs or arms. Maybe I'll work up the courage to try it on my face one day although I despise seeing women who have a very noticeable orange face from being fake tanned. Seriously, can anyone get a decent application of fake tanner with a sample this small??

3) Proactiv Deep Cleansing Wash (60ml, RRP $39.95 for 475ml) - This is to clear up skin when it's acting up or for a deep cleanse. Works to penetrate pores and get rid of breakouts. I just can't use anything from Proactiv as it makes my skin go all red and super sensitive and quite painful. I tried their three step system a few years ago and was in agony after a couple of weeks. I might see if my husband wants to use this as a body cleanser for when he gets small breakouts on his back as I am just way too scared to put this anywhere near my skin.

4) Star and Rose Floral Wonderland Emergency Nail Files (12 x small files, no RRP) - These are cute and I will be throwing them in my handbag. That's pretty much all I can say about them I guess.

5) Polished London Nail Enamel in Fushcia (Full size 10ml, RRP $7.99) - This is probably my favourite product out of the box this month and the only one I will get any real use out of in the short term. It's a pretty dark pinky purple and this polish claims to dry fast and last a long time. I haven't personally tried Polished London polishes before but I've heard good things about them so can't wait to try this one out.

There were also some Love Hearts lollies, an offer to get $20 off the Proactiv system, an offer to get $15 off an Active Skin order over $75 and a complimentary makeup application at your nearest Bobbi Brown Studio. None of these I will use.

Overall, the Valentine's Day theme was a bit lost on me. Ok, it was a neon pink box but I can't see how a Proactiv cleanser and some nail files are Valentine's Day related. I was really hoping for maybe a pretty makeup product (maybe some lipstick/gloss or blush/eyeshadow) that you could wear out for Valentine's Day but no such thing.

As of today I have unsubscribed to GlossyBox and am thinking of possible trying Beauty Basket or I Love This Box next instead. I have just been disappointed pretty much every month with GlossyBox as they talk themselves up so much throughout the month but just never seem to deliver at the end. The only think that was good this month was that the box came nice and early for once rather than at the end of the month.

What does everyone think? Am I being too harsh? Does anyone else really love their GlossyBox for reasons that may be lost on me?