Models Own Diamond Luxe

Models Own Diamond Luxe polishes in Carat Coral, Oval Plum and Princess Pink - £4.99 each*



Models Own has been one of my favourite nail polish brands for SUCH a long time. Years infact, so I was really excited when a press release for its new Diamond Luxe collection dropped through my virtual letterbox.

These are just in time for the festive season and the collection contains 10 opulent, luxurious nail polishes from pinks and reds to purples, green, blues and gold. All equally gorgeous.

I was very lucky to receive the pretty Princess Pink, the delicious Oval Plum and the very festive Carat Coral. The polishes themselves are really lovely colours and very thick to apply. I have to admit one was kind of on the gloopy side but the others glided on beautifully. They dry pretty quickly and I don't think I've been able to pick it up on camera, but they're super sparkly.

Each polish contains real Diamond Dust to deliver a multi-dimensional super-sparkly finish. They're definitely super-sparkly and multi-dimensional but I'm not sure if it really is diamond dust in there. They probably wouldn't be £4.99 each if it were. None the less they catch the light perfectly and make for a really luxurious and glamorous manicure. They would be perfect for nights out and as I mentioned earlier, for the festive season.

What do you think of Models Own's new Diamond Luxe collection?

Models Own Black Knight Glitter Eye Pencil

Models Own Black Knight Glitter Eye Pencil - £5




Oh well hello new favourite eye pencil. This actually came in the Models Own goody bag I bought at the Clothes Show Live back in December and it's not usually something I would have gone for. I'm usually one of those people that can't use pencils or liquid liner on my top lid but I found this pencil quite easy to work with. I normally find it difficult to drag the pencil across the skin and sometimes it can be a little painful and make the skin a bit sore so I had to blunt the pencil a little bit before use, but overall I really like it.

I'm still mastering the 'neatness' of it all and eventually I want to get the winged look down to a tee but until then I'm happy with what I have so far. I really like the fact that this pencil contains small specks of glitter, which do come out on application. The above finished look doesn't show too much glitter but I guess if you just go over the liner again and again you'll build up more glitter on the eye.

This pencil retails at £5, which is pretty reasonable, and I'm glad this is a product I truly discovered because I usually wouldn't have even picked it up. Before I was a bit wary of wearing black on my upper lid but I think this look isn't too dramatic and can always be turned into a smokey eye look so I'm really looking forward to try that out. I would definitely recommend picking this up and I'm so glad I inadvertently did.

Models Own Grape Juice and Pukka Purple

Models Own Ice Neon in Pukka Purple and Fruit Pastel in Grape Juice - £5

I've wanted to try the Ice Neon and Scented Models Own polishes for absolutely ages and on a shopping trip last week I decided to pick them up as it was buy one get on half price. I managed to use my Boots points to cover the cost so I practically got them for free!

I was quite intrigued about the Ice Neon polish and once I'd had a quick scratch and sniff of the lid of the Grape Juice polish I just had to pick it up. The lid included a little scratch and sniff tab and I particularly liked the scent as it reminded me of the scented gel pens I used to use at school. I had tons of the things and they smelt so good!

I love the shade of Grape Juice but unfortunately when it's on your nails the scent doesn't really stay around for long. You can get a faint whiff but I was hoping I'd be smelling grapes all day long. Unfortunately not.

I was a bit more impressed with the Ice Neon polish in Pukka Purple. The last thing you'd expect to see in a fridge is a nail polish, but apparently the Ice Neon polish can be kept cold in the fridge to improve it's neon-ness. I really love the colour and matt finish. I'd love to try some more shades from the range as they all look really bright and colourful. I kind of played it safe with the purple as I thought it'd look nice as an accent nail alongside Grape Juice.

They're both great novelty polishes, but unfortunately they couldn't withstand the washing up test and both chipped a little. I love both shades and I'd definitely recommend them! I'm really keen to try a couple more of the scented polishes, especially the apple one.

Models Own Hed Kandi Collection

Models Own Hed Kandi Collection in 'Bora Bora' and 'Sunset Chillout' - £5*

Models Own have recently expanded their popular Hed Kandi collection from last year with two new shades in 'Bora Bora' and 'Sunset Chillout'.

I haven't tried the Hed Kandi polishes before but these two are so, so pretty. Bora Bora is described as a fine golden textured polish, while Sunset Chillout is labelled as a majestic multifaceted glitter bomb. I absolutely love both of them and they look amazing together as you can see from the pics.

Bora Bora is lovely and sparkly and it dries in super quick time. Sunset Chillout is super colourful and I love the different shaped flecks, particularly the blue circles. It's a tad gloopy on application, but again it dries really fast and that's always my favourite thing about a polish.

I adore Models Own polishes, they're so long lasting and there's so much shades to choose from. They're extremely reasonable and I adore the different collections they've released lately.

Winter Wonderland with Models Own - Jack Frost

Models Own Jack Frost - £5

I found it pretty difficult to photograph the Models Own Jack Frost polish. It's so light and shimmery, not good for photograph taking!

I was also a bit disappointed with the polish in general. I applied a basecoat of Models Own Blooboo, which as you can tell from the image above, is a bit old and hasn't been used in a while, but I thought it would make a nice frosty-esque base. However, the Jack Frost polish was really gloopy and thick so is already chipping off after less than one day.

I'm also not a fan of the yellowish tinge it's given to the nails. I thought this lovely frosty polish would look great on the baby blue shade, but alas it does not work entirely.

When the polish catches the light it looks very pretty and festive but overall I'm not entirely impressed. It's a real shame because I really wanted to love this polish but I hate it when they're so gloopy they aren't really useable, and as you can see, it makes the polish horribly bumpy looking.

Models Own exclusive Clothes Show Live nail polish

Models Own exclusive Clothes Show Live nail polish - £5*

I was delighted to receive this little piece of sparkly goodness in the post recently. It's a new, limited edition nail polish from Models Own made exclusively for the Clothes Show Live, which takes place this weekend.

I've been to the Clothes Show before and really enjoyed it. The Models Own stand is always extremely popular and this polish is inspired by this year's host Daisy Lowe.

The exclusive polish is a gorgeous purple holographic glitter with hints of blue, silver and grey. It's a very fine polish so a few coats are needed to build up a really sparkly look and it looks great. I love the flecks on colour among the silver too.

I adore Models Own polishes and I think the £5 price tag is quite reasonable these days. It's fast drying and these glitter polishes are always quite hard wearing. I would certainly recommend and you will only be able to pick this polish up if you visit the Models Own stand at the Clothes Show Live this year!

This post contains PR samples

Beetlejuice.

Everyone wanted to get their hands on the new Models Own Beetlejuice collection and I was one of the people that kept checking their countdown to the release! Finally, it was time and I quickly ordered the Aqua Violet and Purple Blue shades, as those were the two that really stood out to me!

I did have a browse of ASOS.com as they were selling some of the polishes, but unfortunately not the two I wanted! There are five shades in total; Pinky Brown, Aqua Violet, Purple Blue, Golden Green and Emerald Black. As you probably already know, the polishes are pearlescent shades which mean they glimmer and shine in the light. The collection is inspired by the wings of a beetle (not by the movie as many might think) and I think Models Own have got it spot on with the shades and colourings.

When first applying the polishes I was surprised at how thin they were to begin with. I used three coats in total to get the final finish which I think is lovely. Aqua Violet is a gorgeous Purple/Blue blend with a hint of shimmer, while Purple Blue is a more glittering Fuschia and Indigo mix.

Both colours are totally gorgeous, and in the right light I can definitely see hints of purple, blue and even bits of green in the Aqua Violet. I'm also seeing pinks, reds and purple in the Purple Blue, which again, is lovely!

Aqua Violet with Purple Blue accent nail

Purple Blue with Aqua Violet accent nail

After seeing other blogs swatching all the shades, I've realised that I want them all! A box set of all five Beetlejuice polishes, plus a 3 in 1 base coat and a top coat is available on ModelsOwnIt.com for just £20. Anyone want to buy me it for Christmas?!

Cause you can't keep a secret if it never was a secret to start

Let's start off today's post with a little outfit photo, to show you the new top I purchased yesterday!

New Look Tee
Topshop Jeans
Matalan necklace

I'm not very imaginative when it comes to the bottom half of my outfit am I? It always seems to be jeans, jeans and more jeans. I would have worn my shorts but it just wasn't warm enough.

The top, which is from New Look, is really thin and requires a vest top underneath but I really love the pattern in it.

I know I shouldn't be spending money but some things are too lovely to resist. I also picked up a few Models Own products from Boots. I resisted getting the 2 for £8, making me spend £10 altogether instead of £13...

Both are very pretty and girly. I picked up the rather lovel Models Own Utopia polish, as well as one of the new Models Own Cream Eyeshadow in 'Pink Piper'. The eyeshadow is extremely soft and creamy and will make a great highlighter. I would even go as far to say I'd use this mixed with a bit of blusher as well.

I recently purchased two new rings. I think it's about time I stopped with the turquoise stone ones now as I have more than enough! They're so popular at the moment, as well as being extremely pretty.

As I mentioned above, I really need to stop spending money as I still don't have a job. There seems to be absolutely nothing in the area, which is really disheartening. I so want to start saving money towards a flat!

Tomorrow I'm off to the midnight viewing of Harry Potter (had to make an excuse to spend here!) and I CAN'T WAIT!!! I'm taking Vince along with me who I have converted to the world of Harry Potter. We're going up quite early to pick up our tickets and have some dinner before it starts. We're expecting there to be HUGE queues to ordering the tickets in advance will be a big help! The cinema is bound to be packed which means there will be a great atmosphere, I'm so excited! I'm sure I'll be blogging about it over the weekend!

I hope everyone who is going to see it, enjoys it! Eeeeh!

Smashing Model's Own Polishes

I think these are probably the last crackle nail polishes I will purchase. It seems that every brand of nail polish is releasing crackle polishes in a rainbow of different colours. We don't really need so many and I don't know why I have so many either! They were a novelty while it lasted and although they are still a nice effect on the nails, it will probably be a while until I use a crackle polish again.

Having said that, I want to write my last crackle polish review of Model's Own Smash Up polishes in Purple and Pink. I picked these up for £8 for the two which is a little bargain right there! The colours are very pretty, the Pink is very neon and almost exactly like the new Barry M Pink crackle but the Purple has a lovely shimmer to it that I really like.

I've been wearing the Purple Smash Up for the past week and it has lasted well. It was a little thin when I applied it, which was quite surprising, but I found that you can do more than one layer and it will still look OK. The neon Pink is a little hard to wear, as in I'm not sure what sort of base coat, other than very pale nudes, white or black, I could use underneath it.

Models Own are also selling an Orange Smash Up on ModelsOwnIt.com as well as the Black and Silver but I'd really love to see some different colours, maybe some greens or yellows in the collection, and that doesn't just go for Models Own but all polish brands. However, I think the future of crackle polishes might be in mixing different colours together and ending up with some sort of rainbow crackle. Have I got something there?

Models Own: Prussian Blue

I was recently sent Model's Own Prussian Blue to review for the blog, and since I decided on a navy and white striped top to wear, I thought the nail polish would match rather well and add to the nautical look I've currently got going on.

You won't find Prussian Blue under the usual 'Blue' catergory on the Model's Own site, instead you'll find it under the 'Creamy' section. This is because, unlike their other polishes, Model's Own have a select few polishes that are gorgeously thick and creamy, dry in an instant and leave you with a lovely matte finish. No need for a top coat here!

I pretty much watched the polish dry before my very eyes and was very pleased that it only needed one coat. I love the matte finish and I think a clear top coat would definitely ruin the effect.

'Stay on-trend right down to the tips of your toes. Creamy or pearly, glittery or neon, all our nail polishes glide on smoothly and are hardwearing and long lasting. Designed for fashion and fun!'

The site claims that the polish is hard wearing and long lasting. Usually when polishes say this, they don't late two minutes but so far it's lasted nearly 2 days which is usually the time I start getting bored of a colour and want to change it anyway! There are a few chips but barely noticable, I think it could go on for another day or so!

This polish is a definite hit for me and will be in my Model's Own polish collection for quite some time.

Review: Models Own Hi-Definer 2in1 Lengthen and Curl Mascara

First up, today is the first day of my Internship at Southampton Solent Uni! I'm a bit nervous but am working with staff I'm already familiar with so I'm sure I will be fine. I literally cannot wait until I get paid and have lots of lovely money to play with. I already have a list of things I need to pay and save up for!

In other news, I won £100 AGAIN from TheShoppingForecast.com for my March 2011 picks! I couldn't believe it when I got the email on Friday. I actually thought it was an April Fools joke! Did anyone play any pranks? I wanted to text my mum and tell her I was also pregnant like my sister but she probably would of had a break down and wouldn't have found it funny!

I hope everyone is entering my new giveaway to win a Matalan satchel! The satchel is really gorgeous and I really want one for myself, so whoever wins it is very lucky! Anyway, on with today's post!

I received the Models Own Hi-Definer 2in1 Lengthen and Curl Mascara as a freebie in my beauty bag from Red magazine and I was extremely happy! I'm a HUGE Models Own nail polish fan but have rarely gotten the chance to try out their make-up.

Models Own have recently released four new Mascaras into Boots stores around the country. You can pick up the 'Lashed-Up Volumiser,' 'Lengthen and Curl,' 'Grow-Fast' and the 'Ultra Waterproof' mascaras for between £4 and £6.

As I have such dodgy eyelashes, I was really pleased to be given the 'Lengthen and Curl' mascara. My previous mascara review was of the Collection 2000 'Big Fake' Mascara and I have been using it ever since. I fancied a little change so this couldn't have come at a better time and between you and me, I think we have a new favourite!

I've never tried one of these new fangled curved brushes before so I'm a bit behind with the kids, but it was so simple to use. The mascara felt so soft as I swept it through my eyelashes and after lots of layers, there were very minimal clumps! My eyelashes tend to grow straight out so this mascara was great for pulling and curling them upwards to open up my eyes.

The packaging is all very cute and simple and I'd definitely be interested in trying out the 3 other mascaras in the series!


Before

After

I would definitely recommend the Models Own Mascara. They are a strong contender in the current make-up stakes and rival some of the big, more expensive brands!