Blingy Leather Nails

Who can resist sparkle this time of year?  Nails, make up, a dress... it never feels quite right without a bit of glitter or sequins, anything otherwise is positively bland and dare I say it a little scrooge-esque. 

Or is that just me? 

Probably. 

Anyway, with this spangly obsession in mind, I present to you this weeks nails.  I like deep, dark, intense colours in the winter so black ticks all those boxes.  I used China Glaze Liquid Leather.  They didn't scream 'FESTIVE' enough for me so I decided to add a bit of bling on the tips the simplest way I knew how, with a glitter polish.  I used a Kiko sparkly polish - unsure of the name I'm afraid but dabbing it on helped the chunkier glitter particles stick to the nail tip better offering up a dazzling set of digits. 

Speaking of Kiko, I am so pleased to hear it has hit the UK, in Westfield to be exact.  Still a bit too far for me but hopefully it means it will start to spread through the country and up to Scottish lands before long!  It's such a reasonably priced cosmetic brand with some fabulous blushers on offer among other things. 

Hope you are all in full festive party swing by now!! 

Enjoy Enjoy Enjoy! 

x

A Sparkling NOTD from KIKO

I made a few make up purchases on my recent weekend trip to Barcelona, none of which are very exciting at all. However, last time I was there I discovered Kiko which is an Italian make up brand.

Kiko is a very reasonably priced brand and although the quality of all their products is not up to par, you do find the odd gem. Almost a bit like Barry M but their packaging and branding looks more expensive and product range is much more vast, even catering to mens skincare (which my husband loves!).

Anyway, without further ado, I picked up this sparkly nailpolish for a couple of Euros. I had previously been let down by a clear glitter polish by China Glaze so was hoping this one, although a heck of a lot cheaper would return in a better quality and bling finish. And it did.

I believe the colour is shade 217 which is a silver sparkle. I was surprised at how much glitter payoff you get with this product and it's easy to layer on or as I did ... dab extra bits of sparkle on. I was also pleasantly surprised by the quick drying time. By far the quickest drying glitter polish I have used.

The finish of it is lovely, it almost looks like a sprinkling of diamantes on your nails and dries glossy ... well, as glossy as a glitter polish can be. I applied this on Saturday and today there is still very little chipping or lift off.

In the photos it's worn over the top of Nails Inc Beauchamp Place but think this will look lovely over blues and even black for a winter sparkle effect. The photos really don't do the dazzle much justice as it was much blingier in real life and received many compliments.

These polishes are so reasonably priced and despite the low cost the quality is really very good.

Anyone else tried Kiko polishes? What do you think of the quality?

x

Cheek of the week - Kiko Cosmetics

I was in Barcelona in December and came across a brand called Kiko. It had it's own stand alone store with a fantastic variety of both cosmetics and skincare at very affordable prices.

I bought quite a few products on my visit, some with varying levels of quality. As a brand it is probably comparable price wise to the likes of Barry M and Sleek but with regards to quality of packaging, there is a Nars-esque feel to it with the rubberised black compact ... which we all know gets filthy after a few uses. My favourite and by far the best product is this lovely powder blush in shade 105 - Dark Coral. I would have described this as more of a dusky pink so was surprised to see online it was actually coral. It is highly pigmented and extremely longwearing lasting the full day without touch up. It gives a lovely healthy flush to the cheeks.

Kiko prides itself in its Italian roots and is so far available online only to Italian customers but they do have stores in Italy, Germany and Spain. I am hoping one day they will arrive on UK shores as it is so affordable. From memory the blush was around 5 euros. The store itself reminded me of Mac, although the MUA's on the floor were a lot more attentive and helpful. Nothing was too much bother and they happily allow you to swatch the products to your hearts content without too much pestering for a sale.

Kiko not only had a good selection of cosmetics but the skincare line for both men and women is great, my husband loves one of their moisturisers and is hoping he can find a store on his travels to stock up!

So, that was my cheek of the week ... I will also share my other Kiko products that I rate in the future.

Anyone else tried Kiko, what are your thoughts?

x