I love my Love ring! #

I don't believe I've shown you my first Love ring, but I picked up another one the other day so what better time to show you?

(NB: This post might be written like a short story :P)

I got the smaller one first, which I might have bought in Topshop (I had a quick Google and can't seem to find it anywhere!). I really enjoyed wearing this ring and I just thought it went with every outfit so I was wearing it all the time! Eventually, I was left with discolouration around the band which is to be expected so I began to just keep it for occasions.

I was always on the look out for another one to quickly snap up so I could wear one all the time and have another for back up purposes. But alas, it was sold out everywhere I looked.

I had given up hope of finding even a similar ring and had resorted to just having a browse every time I did enter a shop that might sell one...

And whilst I was out last Sunday spending some time with my ex-housemate, I stumbled across a larger version in Accessorize! Hurrah, I thought! But then my heart sank as I emptied the ring rail and put back each and everyone one because they were all Ms or Ls. Boo... but a shop assistant was nearby so I asked her if they might have one lurking in their stock room. "No, I just replenished the ring stock unfortunately." My hopes were dashed...

But then she said a few words that brightened me back up: "Do you want me to check if they have one at [other store location]?"

"Yes, please!" I exclaimed and she was on the phone within the minute. To my astonishment, they had one and she asked them to keep it behind the till for me. Ex-housemate and I ran (almost) across to the other store and got that ring!!

A few days after I got home, I decided to cover the ring in clear nail polish (17 Double Gloss Topcoat, to be exact) so it would be protected from discolouration. So far so good!

I am loving my Love rings! What about you??

Love love and loveringlove!!

Toffee xXxXx

Blue Moon Cherries NOTD

Not a big fan of cherries myself, but this nail design is too cute to resist!

And once in a blue moon, I will adorn the super easy to create and adorable cherries :)

So here's how you can create this design too!

Step 1: Paint the nails with a base colour.

Choose a light colour so the cherries really pop off the nail. I used Blue Moon 317 by Barry M. I actually had to use three coats to achieve this opacity.

Step 2: Dot on the red.

Using a dotting tool (or substitute e.g. hair grip) place two red dots relatively close together, they can touch on the nail. Pink works really well too, if you find yourself absent of a red polish. I used China Glaze China Rouge 77011. For the thumb, I did two pairs of dots as there is a larger surface area to cover.

Step 3: Add the green stalks.

Using a thin dotting tool (you can use a cocktail stick or toothpick) draw green lines to make the cherry stalks. I used MEMEME Metallic Ultra Gloss Nail Polish in 1 Emerald.

Step 4: Make those cherries shine!

To make the cherries look shiny and 3D, add a little glisten line of white polish in the top left of each cherry using a fine nail art brush or cocktail stick. I used Inglot Nail Art Enamel in 29.

(This step can be skipped if you like!)

Step 5: Apply a top coat :)

To seal the design and to prevent premature chipping cover the nail with a clear top coat when dry. I use 17 Double Gloss Top Coat.

And done!!

Do let me know if you try it and post a picture on my Facebook page - I would love to see them!

Love love and cherrylove!!

Toffee xXxXx

My Very Own Glossy Box!

Glossy Box - how much do you know?

Glossy Box is a great UK service where 5 products are sent to your door for a small fee of £10, every month. (Much like the USA's Birch Box) This means you can try products in your own home, in your own time without the pressure of sales associates. You also don't have to commit to buying a full-sized high-end product without testing it out first.

The wonderful Glossy Box team hosted an event on Thursday evening and I got to create my very own Glossy Box, containing products I wanted!

Choosing five products from their shelves, we got to wrap up the cute little pink box to take home. So here are the items I picked:

1. Deborah Lippmann Nail Polish in Prelude To A Kiss

This shade will most likely become a staple in my collection. The baby nude pink is perfect for delicately polished nails and I can't wait to try the quality!

2. Neal Wolf Silk

This I picked up from first glance. I saw that it was a balm for blow-drying and I thought that it would be perfect for me! I have actually tried this once already and I love the scent :)

3. Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser

Whilst at the event, I heard some raves about this brand and product so I thought I better give it go since my skin has had some weird break outs recently. It also seems to be a hit with those who don't suffer from acne, so good all round!

4. Korres Lip Butter in Wild Rose

I have always wanted to try Korres products but I just never got around to getting any so I grabbed my chance and nabbed this lip butter!

5. StriVectin Tightening and Sculpting Face & Neck Cream

I picked this up because I'd heard a few good reviews on how amazing this was and wanted to try it out for myself :)

What makes the product choices even better is that behind these products are people who are good and honest and trying to open up the market to their ideas. I love that I've never tried any of these brands before because it gives me something new to get excited about!

As always, I will be reviewing the products I love, either on here or by video on my YouTube account, so do follow/subscribe if you want to!

If you would like to find out more about Glossy Box and the service they offer, visit the Glossy Box website here!

Love love and glossyboxlove!!

Toffee xXxXx

Diagonal Gradient NOTD

I've actually written a similar tutorial for gradient nails so I'm going to skip a few steps. You can find my original post here.

Step 1: Choose your colours!

I picked Barry M's 294 Cyan Blue and a Nails Inc polish I got from InStyle magazine called Electric Teal.

Step 2: Paint the base coat onto your nails.

I've used two coats to get the colour completely opaque. I'm also wearing a base coat underneath to prevent staining and to prime the nails.

Step 3: Paint the sponge.

Because I knew I wanted to do a diagonal gradient, I painted the sponge vertically instead of horizontally. Paint the base colour onto the sponge and the colour you want to fade it into directly underneath.

Step 4: Sponge the nails.

Gently press the sponge onto the nail in a diagonal and lift it back off. Quickly build up to desired colour and repeat on all nails. Repaint the sponge when necessary.

Step 5: Apply a single layer of top coat.

This will even out the polish giving it a cleaner gradient look.

Step 6: Clean up the mess.

Taking some nail polish remover and a cotton bud or cotton pad, wipe away the excess polish around your nails from the sponge.

Et voila!

Let me know if you try it and what you think in the comments below :)

Love love and diagonallove!!

Toffee xXxXx

Naughty & Nameless

Welcome to the latest Illamasqua collection: Theatre of the Nameless.

I'm sure you've seen many a swatch from other bloggers, so I've chosen a few key products which I think are the must-haves this season.

(Really, I just forgot to bring my camera to the event... oops!)

I love love love these new nail varnishes! They're so different with their innovative "rubber-look" finish. I have just done a lovely NOTD post with Faux Pas and Kink. Check it out here :)

This lipstick matches the Faux Pas nail varnish. Of course it would! I adore the way Illamasqua always choose colours that resonate throughout the collection in different products. This is Kontrol and it is beautiful!

These two shimmer blushers are gorgeous. You have the pinkier shade (Morale) for the girlier girl, and the nuder colour (Ambition) for those who aren't so daring.

I was lucky enough to receive Morale shimmer blush, Kink nail varnish and Beguile pure pigment!

Thinking of picking any of these products up?

Love love and namelesslove!!

Toffee xXxXx

(P.S. Sorry for some bad quality pictures... I used my iPhone 2G camera as I forgot to bring my digital!)

Updated Nail Diary!!

Hey there, bloggerinas!

Whilst I haven't been blogging, I have been playing around with my nails like always. So, I thought I'd give you a picture update on my nails and what I've done with them :)

So since the Blue Ombre nails, I added Barry M's crackle nail effects polish to just jazz up the ombre and change it into a new manicure!

I was getting quite into the gradient effect polish and so I played around with a diagonal blend between a deep green and a sky blue. I took pictures for this so I shall write the tutorial soon.

I did a funky design for my birthday using colours that I really liked - lilac and baby blue!

(Boo at the smudges and chips)

This was in China. They did this with UV gel polish and the sakura flowers were done with a powder substance.

These were also done in China but a different salon. Again, with UV gel polish, they used clear with loose glitter to get the effect.

Sorry this one isn't so clear... It's actually a white rose patten with silver glitter. This is done in normal polish with the white roses hand drawn with a brush and acrylic paint. I got this done in a cute salon in Malaysia.

Right, so I got back and my nails were breaking crazy from being brittle after being softened from the UV gel polish remover. So I filed my nails down and wanted to brighten them up with yellow and gold! I can make a tutorial for this if you want me to :) Just leave me a comment below!

Polkadots are sooooo cute! And the best thing is that white works on any colour!

So, which is your favourite??

Love love and naillove!!

Toffee xXxXx

(P.S. Sorry for the bad quality pics... been using my iPhone 2G a lot)

Kinky Faux Pas NOTD

As a little introduction to the new Theatre of the Nameless Illamasqua collection, I've brought you two of their new nail varnishes.

Now these aren't just new colours, these are new textures too!

Forget the matte craze, we now have the waxy 'rubber-look' phase: a mix between matte and shine.

The packaging of the bottles still resemble the classic Illamasqua quirky square box but with a rubber-y feel lid to match the finish of the polishes.

There are four new colours in this fantastic finish:

Taint - stone brown

Kink - bottle green

Vice - deep cerise

Faux Pas - blue violet

Larissa (Ranking De Cosmeticos) is modelling Kink, and Fei (Peonies And Lilies) is modelling Vice!

So, what do you think? Will you be picking up any of the new "rubber-look" shades?

Love love and kinkylove!!

Toffee xXxXx

# Toffee's Top Lippie Loves! #

Well how about those lippies?

These are my faves from my collection :) The ones I keep in my bag and always pick out!

1. MAC Lipstick in Sweetie (Lustre)

2. Topshop Lipstick in Desert

3. The Body Shop Colourglide Lip Colour in 62 Velvet Wine

4. MAC Lipstick in Creme Cup (Cremesheen)

5. Barry M Lipstick in 147

6. MAC Viva Glam Lipstick in Cyndi (Lustre)

7. Sleek True Colour Lipstick in Barely There (Sheen)

8. GOSH Velvet Touch Lipstick in 66 Bourgogne

I made a video too!

Let me know what your favourite lippies are in the comments ;)

Music by my good friend Tom R

To listen to the full track, click here!

Love love and lippielove!!

Toffee xXxXx