NOTD: Old & New

I was browsing through my nail varnish collection the other day to find the palest shade I owned, as I wanted to check how my pale skin looked with very light polishes before investing in some very pale pastels I've had my eye on recently.

I came across a polish I had no idea I owned, no recollection of buying, no idea when I would have bought it, or why. The polish in question is '17 Lasting Fix in Melted Mallow', a pearlised white. The colour seems very bridal to me, & whilst not the kind of colour I'd usually go for, I've become a little taken by it.

The formulation isn't that brilliant, I have 2 coats on, but I feel 3 or 4 are needed to truly reach its potential. It also goes on a little streaky (although, like I said, I have no idea how old this polish is, so it could just be that it's getting on a bit).

As you may notice from the photo, this is not the current 17 Lasting Fix Varnish packaging, & I've had a check on the boots website & they don't actually do this shade any more. They have a shade that looks similar called 'mini skirt' but I'm not quite sure if it's pearlised. I'm going to do a little more investigating & see where I can find a similar shade.

Like I said, I find the look quite bridal, so I mixed it up a little with a slick of Topshop Nails in 'Moonshine' on the nail of my ring finger. I find Topshop nail varnishes a pleasure to work with, the formulations are good, the brush is great & the colour range is fantastic. Moonshine is metallic with a colour I'd describe as 'if Rose Gold was Silver'. I've actually found I only need one coat of this for full colour. Due to the metallic nature I do find that Moonshine is slightly more prone to streaking than most of the Topshop Range though.

They're finished with a top coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Anti-Chip Top Coat, which I cannot rave about enough at the moment. Without a doubt the best top coat I've ever used. The only thing I've found that seems to prevent the 'smudging' I usually experience in the 15-60minutes after doing my nails.

 Miss Sarah x

Secret weapon to tackle telephone interviews

First off...interviews scare the hell out of me. I prep, plan & PANIC like crazy for as much time as I have available. I find phone interviews particularly scary as I can't gauge the interviewer's body language!  


I found out a couple of days ago that I had a very important (SCARY) phone call to make to a contact of a contact that I HAD to impress. I, of course, did all the preparation I possibly could, but was still left trembling at the thought of making the call this morning.


 So how did I combat the paralysing fear & manage to pick up the phone and dial the number?

LIPSTICK!!

Bright, Pink, Fuchsia Lipstick to be exact.

Explanation
So the 3 keys for a phone interview, I feel, are:
*Preparation 
       Goes without saying.
       I'd spent 2 days planning, so that's a tick
*Comfort 
       The last thing you want to be thinking about is how your thong is digging in.
       I was wearing my my comfiest jogging bottoms & cosiest slippers, another tick.
*Confidence
        You can tell from someone's voice over the phone if they're bricking it & it puts people     off.
        Cue a slick of my YSL Rouge Pur Couture in Fuchsia Innocent (27)


I recently purchased this super bright lipstick to wear on a really glamorous night out, & always figured it would remain as a special occasions night out lippy. 
But in the 9 days I've owned this lipstick I've found myself reaching for it at every given opportunity. It instils a confidence in me I've never experienced from a single beauty product before. When I'm wearing this lipstick I feel I can achieve anything! (Even if no one can see me!)

It's not just the colour of this lipstick that makes me feel amazing, the texture is to die for! It feels so creamy & nourishing without that slippery feeling you often find with creamy lipsticks. My lips feel like they're wrapped  in silk.

There's also a subtle scent, that's hard to place, somewhere between floral & fruity, which gives that extra feeling of luxury.


The YSL Rouge Pur Couture lipstick is pricey (it retails around the £23.50 mark), but you can't put a price on such killer confidence!!

Miss Sarah x

Bourjois Paris Effect Smoky Pencil

Eye liners don't usually excite me, I mean I'd never dream of leaving the house without applying liner, but they're not the kind of product I spend hours on make up stands swatching to find the perfect colour/formula. Bourjois Effect Smoky Pencils are different though, they're a liner to definitely get excited about!!

I was actually browsing Boots for a coral lipstick when I discovered these beauties (What can I say... I'm easily distracted when it comes to make up!!), I swatched one on the back of my hand & couldn't believe the intensity of the colour, I had to have one!

These double tipped liners consist of a super pigmented pencil on one end and a soft, pointed brush on the other. The brush is intended for blending out the pencil to achieve a smoky look.

The pencil itself gives a very sharp colour, much more akin to that of a liquid liner, which can be smudged to create a softer look. The colour is also very easily blended out into the crease or onto the lid, meaning you can completely transform a nude base with a single product.

The brush has natural bristles & is similar to a lip brush, perhaps a little softer (I've actually been using one of mine as a lip brush & it's fantastic!!).

The Effect Smoky Pencil costs £5.49 (which I think is pretty reasonable, even good value considering the usage potential) & is available in 8 matt shades (a Brown, a Purple, a Green, a Grey, a Blue, a lilac & 2 Blacks) & 3 sparkle shades (Granite, Mocha & Navy).

I currently own the 'Ultra Black' & 'Smoked Brown' shades & can't wait to get my hands on the 'Sand Rose' (I almost got this taupe/lilac when I got the black & brown but thought I should probably road test them first).

Miss Sarah x