New Hair at BLEACH London

It was safe to say, once I'd dabbled with Fudge's Paintbox colours, I got the colour bug. In that post I spoke about how much I wanted hair like My Little Pony, and I'd toyed with the idea of bleaching my whole hair in order to get a whole head of pink.

I loved the pink hair so much that I decided I was going to go for the kill and do my whole head. I knew I needed to go somewhere amazing who knew what they were doing - BLEACH London were the first people I thought of. All the session stylists I work with rave about it, and it's well known that if you want a crazy colour in London, BLEACH is the place to go.

BLEACH has recently opened a concession in Topshop Oxford Circus, but I visited their original Dalston salon to get my pink-on. It's based in the heart of East London, slotting in nicely with the local vibe.

The salon is lined with glass bottles, once holding soft drinks, now where the magic dye is kept. The colourists mix up their own potions and tones at the back from the nameless containers. Very mysterious and so very cool.

I spoke to Sapphire, the manager, and also the lovely lady that would be doing my hair, about what I wanted.  I have so much hair, that is very thick, and I use straigheners almost every time I wash my hair - all these factors were working against me in my quest for a full head of pink locks. She advised me that my hair would snap off, and would be very coarse... it was all of a sudden sounding less appealing! I was disappointed that I couldn't have the hair I had envisioned, but at the same time I was grateful that Sapphire was professional enough to notice the warning signs to stop me from ending up with a rubbish head of hair!

She said she could take my blonde up a little further, giving me more area for the pink to work with - but when I thought about how that might look once I'd decided I had enough of the pink, I decided against it. Although now, I'm kind of wishing I did it!

In the end I went for, what they call, a 'Super Cool Colour', and boy, is it super cool! I had seen an image of a girl with pastel pink hair, with turquoise and purple running through the ends that I was using as hairspiration. I showed it to Sapphire who said that my hair probably wouldn't go those tones as it wasn't quite blonde enough, but she could make it quite strong, which would eventually fade down to a more pastel version of itself. I was sold. 

She took her time thoroughly coating all of my hair, and blending the purple and blue into the ends. It was a much better than what I'd managed when I did my own dye job a few weeks previously! It was left for 20 minutes before being rinsed and I actually said "wow" as I saw it being dried. I was in love.

The only problem is, now I really really want a whole head of it!

To find out more and to book an appointment, visit www.bleachlondon.co.uk

Katy Perry's Eylure Color Pop Lashes 'Ka-Boom!'

Katy Perry has had a line of false eyelashes with Eylure for a while now - I am yet to try any of her classic collection, but I have always been impressed with all the Eylure lashes I've tried. They're always a failsafe purchase!

The latest release from the Katy Perry / Eylure camp is the Color Pop Lashes - a range of lashes designed to give you a pop of colour with the volume and intensity of a false lash.

There are three colours in the range - Ka-Boom! (royal blue), Ka-Ching! (peacock green), Ka-Pow! (Purple), and also Ka-Zaaam! - a pack of individual lashes covering all of the colour options.

They look like a set of black false lashes, with another set of coloured lashes, with more sparse hairs, on top - this adds to the fullness of the lash, and means you get the colour coming through without it being too over the top.

Of course, anyone can wear any colour they like - but green and blue will bring out brown toned eyes, and blue and green will enhance blue toned eyes. Just to be a little different, I tried the blue - Ka-Boom!

The lashes themselves are, as always, great quality. They are rather long and fluttery, and according to Eylure, fit all eye shapes. The glue is included, and they are reusable.

As for the colour - is a subtle flash of colour - from a distance, no one would probably know the difference, and up close, it's rather pretty. FAR nicer than coloured lashes! I think they'd be fab for a night at a club or something similar, especially if you like to play up your eyes. They'd also be great with a full-on smokey eye. Sometimes black lashes can get lost against black shadow, so these are a great way to break it up.

Katy Perry's Color Pop Lashes are £6.45 per pack from Look Fantastic

Clinique Chubby Sticks for Eyes

When the nation went crazy for Clinique's Chubby Sticks for Lips, it seemed natural for them to extend the range. The Chubby Sticks are a perfect design for easy application on the go and next week, they are introducing 12 shades for the eyes to the Chubby Stick range.

I went down to the Clinique Head Office last week for their launch, which featured a cute little candy shop and teeny milkshakes from bottles... and got to play with all 12 shades of the new Chubby Sticks.

I was given 2 to take away with me - was complete luck of the drawer as to which 2 that would be - I ended up with Portly Plum and Big Blue.

The outer design is exactly the same as the Chubby Sticks for Lips - they are in a crayon shaped barrel and removing the silver lid reveals a crayon-like product, which you twist the base of to get more of the product out. The only noticeable difference is that Chubby Sticks for Eyes are rounded at the end for easy application to the eye lid, while the lip version is pointed to apply to the lips with ease.

Neither of these are shades I would have picked out - my initial reaction would be to go for the neutral and bronzey shades (Whopping Willow Fuller Fudge and Ample Amber in particular, I'm talking to you!) which, with about 5 different tones, are just gorgeous. However, I seem to be having a little affair with purples at the moment, so was pleased I got to try out Portly Plum. It is a dusky purple with a hint of pinky purpley iridescence. Big Blue reminds me of the colour of Cinderella's dress - it's a very pale blue with an almost frosty finish, with pale blue iridescence.

I applied the Portly Plum for the first time and noticed that once it's on the eyes it is much more sheer than when I had swatched it on my hand. One sweep left a sheer wash, which I patted in with my 4th finger to create a base. One more sweep left a much more opaque finish - it is definitely very buildable and I could have gone over it again and again to create a more dramatic look. I found the shape of the bullet easy to apply the product under my lower lash line too. I used a brush to blend out the edges of the shadow then added some eyeliner and mascara and this is how it looked. (I put a dab of the blue in the inner corners too just to see if it could be used for highlighting purposes... I think it looked ok!)

I found it to be a purpley brown on the eye which is right up my street, so will definitely wear it again! I'd also like to try it as a base to eyeshadows - I think this would look great with a black smokey eye over the top.

The full range of colours is Bountiful Beige, Lots O'Latte, Fuller Fudge, Ample Amber, Whopping Willow, Portly Plum, Pink & Plenty, Curvaceous Coal, Lavish Lilac, Big Blue, Mighty Moss and Massive Midnight. I swatched all of the 12 shades at the event....

There are some lovely ones there aren't there?!

They launch on 15th February at Clinique Counters nationwide, and www.clinique.co.uk priced at £16

Nails of the Day - Nails Inc Stonehenge - Concrete Polish

Stonehenge is the second of the Nails Inc Concrete polishes I've tried. I love the blueness of it; similar to that of Baker Street, a favourite Nails Inc polish of mine. Stonehenge is vibrant without being neon - a really eye-catching colour.

The Concrete formula gives a rough texture to the nails which means you have to leave them without a topcoat. You can of course wear a topcoat but you then lose the texture. It's a different kind of effect - leaving the nails almost bobbly and semi-matt, of which I think I like it in this shade the most.

The Concrete polish removes as easily as any other polish, however I found it chipped after one day of wear which would stop me from reaching for it as often as I would perhaps like to.

What do you think of the Concrete polishes? Will you be wearing them?

Nails of the Day - ncLA Mulholland Maneater

Mudholland Maneater is the first ncLA addition to my polish collection - a brand hailing from the USA which are toxin free and not tested on animals.

The polish comes in a stylish square bottle and has a wide, flat Dupont brush which resulted in a smooth application. I worry about putting on dark polishes as any mistakes are far more noticeable, but this went on like a dream.

It is a deep, indigo blue shade, which, from a distance, looks almost black. Up close, or in the light, you can see the gorgeous blue tones coming through.

One coat left my nails almost opaque - two was the perfect finish. It dried nice and quickly and left a gorgeous, glossy shine to my nails. I can't wait to expand my ncLA collection now!

ncLA polishes are available from CutE COsmetics for £12.50

Do you have any in your collection?

Nails of the Day - Barry M Gelly Nail Polish in Blueberry

Barry M's Gelly polishes are a fairly new addition to their range, promising an extra glossy finish. Boots was buy one get one half price last week, so this was a nice little cheapy to take advantage of that offer with, at only £3.99.

There are nine shades to the new range, I went for Blueberry which is a sky blue with a hint of lavender  Although I have lots of light blue nail polishes, I think, colourwise, this is slightly different to any others that I have.

In terms of whether there was an extra glossy finish... I cheated. I used my Seche Vite as normal and don't think they are any more glossy than any other nail polish. It did look rather shiny pre top coat, but I can't be dealing with that sitting round waiting for nails to dry rubbish! I gather the finish is meant to be that of a gel nail... I didn't get that effect (perhaps I needed another layer?) but still really like the polish and would definitely get more of the range. I have my eye on Grapefruit next.

It is a really nice formula, quite thick but easy to work with, and lasted a whole 3 days on me before the first chip appeared which is good going on my nails.

Have you tried any of their new polishes? What do you think?

PS. Sorry it's nail post after nail post, but I had my laser eye surgery on Friday, so spent the weekend mostly doing nothing.... and I can't wear eye make up for the next week so expect some lipstick and nail posts to fill this week!

Nails of the Day - Avon Arctic Waters

Today I have on one of the new polishes from Avon's Arctic Goddess Collection, Arctic Waters. In fact, I've been wearing it for the entire week!

I am a bit of a blue nail polish lover, and this one has slotted in nicely to the collection. In the bottle it looks to have a small amount of blue iridescence to it, but once it's on the nail it is hardly noticeable at all. It stops it from looking like a completely flat colour, without it looking like you've just got lost in a shimmer factory. I'm not a big fan of shimmery nails so this is just right for me.

It's a great aqua blue with really good staying power. I had a few days wear before any chipping which is a big achievement on my nails!

Do you like blue nail polish? What do you think of this?

Avon Arctic Goddess Collection

Last week I attended the launch of Avon's new range - the Arctic Goddess Collection. It was in the penthouse suite of the Mayfair hotel, with the most stunning views of London. Alesha Dixon, who is the brand ambassador for Avon, was there, and Pixiwoo, who I got to have a lovely chat with - it was a fab event.

The Arctic Goddess collection has focused on the icy blue and green tones it spotted on the A/W catwalks - there were lots of chilly inspired things there - like the ice sculpture housing the 3 new nail polishes!

I got to take home some pieces from the new collection - the Arctic Goddess Eyeshadow Quad, Pink Icicle Ultra Colour Rich Brilliance Lip gloss, and the three nail polishes - Chilling, Arctic Waters, and Green Goddess.

The eyeshadows feature two light, icy, shimmery tones, and two matte bold cool colours. The top left colour is a silvery lavender colour, the right is a silvery aqua. The bottom left is a turquoise which packs a lot of punch, and the right is a dark grey.

The shimmery colours need a couple of applications to give a strong colour, the matte shadows are extremely pigmented.

I would never, in a trillion years, think to wear blue eyeshadow. I normally steer clear of blues, for no reason other than the fact I've never been drawn to them - but after trying these ones to take photos for this blog post - my mind has definitely been opened!

In the photo above, I am also wearing the lipgloss, Pink Icicle.

It comes with a small lip brush applicator and is quite a thin formula - it feels quite slippery on the lips rather than sticky and doesn't have a flavour. It has lots of teeny pieces of glitter in it that look golden, silver, blue and pink, so it's quite shimmery and leaves the lips looking very glossy and full.

The three nail polishes from left to right, are Charming, Arctic Waters and Green Goddess. I have Shellac on at the moment, so can't show you what they look like on my nails - but expect nails of the day featuring these, shortly.

Charming and Green Goddess are very frosty looking in the bottle, and all three shades have some iridescence to them. I particularly love the look of Arctic Waters - it looks like the perfect turquoise with  a hint of pearl.  Green Goddess looks like it will be very multi-tonal, and similar to a certain Chanel colour.

This is the first time I have tried Avon make up, and have been very impressed!

The range launches in November, with prices starting from as litte as £6.

Nails of the Day - Nails Inc Baker Street

This is the nail varnish making waves across the press at the moment, as it's the very same nail polish that Beyonce Knowles wore on her first public appearance since having her daughter, baby Blue Ivy. I've spotted a few of the TOWIE girls wearing it too and I can see why. It's gorgeous!

Baker Street is one of the new shades from Nails Inc - an eye catching bright cobalt blue which I am in love with! I have a bit of a thing for blue nails and this has just zoomed to the top of my list!

The polish is really bold and bright from the first coat. It is a little streaky with just one, but with two coats it is lovely and opaque and glossy.

It reminds me a bit of the hard to find AWOL by Topshop but this is richer and deeper and somehow a bit yummier!

What do you think of blue nails? Do you like Baker Street!?

Nails of the Day - Nicki Minaj for OPI - Fly

As promised, here is the other polish from the Nicki Minaj for OPI collection.

Fly is a very vibrant turquoise colour - I wouldn't say it was 'bright' as I have blue's much brighter - but it does pack a big punch!

The brush seemed wider than normal OPI pro-wide brushes, as was the case with Pink Friday.  Because of this some of my nails were covered with just one swoop of the brush. It is a very opaque polish and not at all streaky.

I am a big lover of blue nail varnish - Fly is definitely on my 'like' list - but it has a lot of similarities to Ciaté Headliner which I already have in my collection.

What do you think?

Nails of the Day - OPI Light My Sapphire

This is one of the first OPI polishes I ever bought. I haven't worn it for years so I thought I'd dig it out and give it a little outing. Well, I don't know why I ever stopped wearing it, it's gorgeous!

It's an extremely dark blue polish that is very nearly black. In fact, in some lights it is black, but really it's blue (confused?!). There is the tiniest amount of shimmer in the polish that makes it almost metallic looking - it definitely doesn't look like a shimmery finish, but superbly glossy.

It is one of those OPI polishes that definitely needs a second coat - one layer is very patchy and sheer. I used two coats and a coating of Seche Vite and it has lasted for two days on me before getting a bit of wear to the tips of my nails.

What do you think? Do you like it?

Nails of the Day - Eek Nails

Before popping off on holiday I gave myself an 'eek' polish...

I've loved them ever since Sophy Robson did them all those months ago. I didn't have a white polish which is why I hadn't tried it sooner, but I picked up a cheapy Collection 2000 white for french manicures at the weekend, so there was no stopping me - this is my second set :)

They were very easy to do - just painted my nails as usual (this is Topshop AWOL), and added a layer of Seche Vite. Once that was dry I carefully dabbed on two dots of white near to my nail bed for the eyes, then using my black striper and dotter, dotted on a black pupil. I had to wait for a couple of minutes before adding another layer of Seche Vite - otherwise the black will run as I discovered with my Sunday 'eek's!

I think these are great fun, and my kids love them too! What do you think?

Please note - this is a scheduled post, I will reply to any comments when I'm back from holiday x

Nails of the Day - Topshop AWOL

I first saw this on Stina's Chic Beauty Blog and loved it, it was like no other blue I had seen before. When I saw her in the flesh wearing it, I loved it even more - it was so bright, powerful and glossy! Every time I went into a Topshop I'd have a look, hoping... but alas never finding. They do do another blue (Pie In The Sky I believe), but that is not to be mistaken for AWOL.

I finally found it in the Enfield branch and am so very pleased with my purchase. I'm loving the neon nail trend at the moment, and this is as neon as a royal blue can get!

It has chipped a little after one day but I have been doing lots of lifting, washing and diying so it's only to be expected. Highly recommend it!

Revlon Scents of Summer Nail Polishes

I heard about Revlon's scented nail polishes via Twitter and immediately decided I neeeeeeeeeeeeded the Bubblegum one - I love the smell of bubblegum, and I, personally, can't have enough pink polishes in my collection. I kept going to Boots in the hopes of finding it but all I kept seeing were the purple (Passion Fruit) and frosty green (Beach).  I was told to try in larger stores, which I was all set to do, until the lovely Revlon sent me a package with 5 of the 8 scented polishes in it.

I love the idea of scented polish - it's something I've never seen before and it leaves me wondering what will be next in the nail polish world. You would think that the fact the polishes are fragranced highly enough for you to smell them, they would be laden with chemicals which can't be any good to sniff. Revlon have actually been free of DBP, Toulene and Formaldehyde since 1992. Sniff away.

I have tested these out over the past couple of weeks and really enjoyed them. The scents are meant to be reminiscent of summer, and while they are summery smells, I can't help think that some of them have been named wrongly! Bubblegum smells of watermelon, Passion Fruit smells of raspberries, and Peach Smoothie of refreshers! Whatever their names, they are all yummy smells.

I noticed that Mad About Mango, and Ocean Breeze seemed to be the strongest smelling - I could smell them every time my hands went near my face - including while eating which was a little weird. Peach Smoothie's smell seemed to fade the fastest.

I used two coats of each polish, without a base coat. I was advised that the smell would be more present without it. The nail polish has lasted well, with tipwear after a couple of days but no major chips. I love the formula of Revlon polishes and Passion Fruit is a prime example of how a formula should be - it glides on so effortlessly which really helps to get that perfect manicured look.

I'm really pleased I got to try these out - thank you very much Revlon!

These polishes are limited edition, after August 2011 you won't find them on your shelves. They are priced at £6.49 but are on special offer of 2 for £8 at Boots at the moment. I highly recommend them!

Nails of the Day - China Glaze Sea Spray

Today I have painted my nails in Sea Spray by China Gaze, part of their Anchors Away collection. It is a muted turquoise, a bit like a dusty Tiffany blue. It's finish is highly glossy - so much so that it makes me think there are tiny specks of shimmer in it... although I've looked as closely as I can but can't see any! I'm not 100% sold on the shade yet, think it will look a lot better on tanned skin. What do you think?

Nails of the Day - OPI Ogre The Top Blue

This polish is from the Shrek Collection which OPI launched last year. It is a deep turquoise shade which never fails to get a mention. I've had it on for a few days now (fab staying power) and seriously so many people have commented on it saying how much they like it.... well apart from my Nan who asked if I'd got my fingers stuck in the door!

Nails of the Day - Frosty Nails

Brrrrrrr, it's freeeeezing so to fit with the weather I thought I'd experiment with my nail polishes to create a frosty look.

First I painted my nails with Ciate Refresher, which was very kindly sent to me by PowderRooms.com It is just like its name - a Refresher, a whitish pastel blue colour which is really pretty and I look forward to using in the summer. Then I painted the tips and dragged the brush down using Illamasqua Harsh polish which is a silver glitter. It's really pretty as the glitter particles are little dashes rather than specks. I think it makes a great effect although it's a bugger to get off!

Nails of the Day - Butter London Muggins

This is another polish sent from Powder Rooms and o.m.g. I love it! Its a flat colour but can be described as so many different colours - grey, heather, lilac, blue.... it looks different in different lights, but this will definitely be one I will wear again and again.

Nails of the Day - OPI Ski Teal We Drop

Ski Teal We Drop is one of the shades from the new OPI Autumn range - the Swiss Collection. I got this from an American seller on eBay (so much cheaper than buying OPI over here!) along with William Tell Me About OPI which I will swatch soon, it's too 'autumney' to wear at the moment. In fact, this is too really. It looks black in some lights, with a blue tinge. More like the bottle colour in sunlight, but it is a dark shade. Really gorgeous, but not right for the lovely weather we're having at the moment. It goes on very well, coating the nails with just one coat, but the photo is with two coats and Poshe topcoat.