Review | Nails Inc "Chelsea Physic Gardens"

Hi all! I hope you're enjoying the beginning to your Easter weekend. I have finally finished school for Easter Holidays (I always thought the American's way of calling this holiday "Spring Break" sounds cooler, nonetheless it's still weeks off school) and I couldn't have asked for the holidays to come at a better time.

Today I shall be reviewing the Nails Inc. - Chelsea Physics Gardens, which I bought here. I mentioned this nails varnish in a previous haul as I bought this off ASOS with the Nars Orgasm blush (review here) and seeing as it is the holidays, I spent a good hour and a half last night sorting out my nails, filing, pushing cuticles back etc. and eventually applying this nail polish in a calm state of mind, instead of the usual rush on a school night.

This is the first nails varnish from Nails Inc. which I have bought for myself, I own four Nails Inc. nail polishes now: two were a gift and one came with a bottle of coke from Boots and now, of course, this one! I have never been that pleased with Nails Inc. polishes, purely because of the fact that their brushes are thin and I am one that prefers the flat, wider surface area nail polish brushes, however, I have liked the formula of their nail polishes, it's just the application that is always a bit of a pain!

My cousin and my aunty indulge themselves in Nails Inc. polishes, I think that most of my cousin's nail varnishes are by Nails Inc. and when I was having my daily browse at the ASOS beauty items, I came across this beautiful baby blue shade and could not pass it up, even though it costs £11 and I have never been that won over by Nails Inc.

Actual Review

Let me start off by informing y'all of the beautiful colour that is this nail polish. I could only describe this as the perfect baby blue, it is not a pastel blue nor a neon blue, but somewhere in between, I think it's the colour that people would instantly relate to the "something blue" in weddings. This colour is perfect for Spring and Summer and I think would look even better against tan skin tones - though I highly doubt that I'll be tanning in English weather! Although I do no think that this colour will go with "any outfit", it is definitely one that will draw others attention to your nails, which is what we want when we paint our nails, right?

Like I mentioned earlier, I have never been that impressed with how Nails Inc. polishes apply, mainly due to the shape of the brush - and well this time it was no different. As you may be able to tell from the photos above, towards my cuticles, the edge is a bit wobbly and wonky and this is mainly due to the fact that the applicator is quite thin and doesn't fan out as much as we would like it to and therefore each stroke starts at a different point, creating a relatively untidy edge. We are not all professional artists and being so I spent around 30-40 minutes painting my nails last night, I can't see how I can improve on the application if the applicator were to stay that way. 

Onto the actual application of the polish itself. I would not recommend applying the nail polish in a rush, as it ends up quite thick and gloopy on the nails and probably will have a tendency to smudge. I quickly tried applying this on my friend at lunch yesterday, with the added pressure of doing it quickly so the fumes from the varnish will not diffuse around the canteen and hiding the fact that I was applying varnish at school, I had to rush this process. The results, well I was not entirely happy with it even though my friend politely said "it's better than I can ever do", which I highly doubt that the case. However, if you spend a good hour or so doing your nails, I must say that the results is quite impressive and the varnish applies relatively evenly - not the best, but quite good - and each thin coat dries quite quickly. I ended up applying a base coat, two thin coats of this polish and a top coat and the results looks pretty good. Now I don't know if it is the top coat that I use or the varnish itself, but usually after sleeping overnight, the varnish is smudged and dented but luckily it hasn't done that, so I am quite impressed! 

Verdict

Overall, I am impressed with this nail varnish and I think that my liking for the colour overrode the fact that I dislike the applicator. I must say that Nails Inc. varnishes isn't at the top of my repurchase list, but I guess I like the range of colours it has and that is definitely a factor that this brand has won me over by. My favourite nail varnish brand is still OPI and I do not think that this nail varnish and changed that even though I can see myself wearing this colour a lot over the course of the Spring and Summer time.

Love, Nicole

ps. either later today or tomorrow i shall be posting a nail care and application of nail varnish tips and ideas post so look out for that!

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Tag | 50 Facts About Me

Ahh! For once this year I am not procrastinating as there is simply no essential homework for me today, besides bits of revision, but I can do that in the holidays! So this weekend was pretty chill and I was desperate to put up a blog post after being lazy in bed all day, so I decided to do a simple tag where I give you 50 facts about me.

I also felt that a photo of me seemed appropriate in this post...

1. I am full Chinese, born in Hong Kong but moved to the UK when I was 6 and raised in some cities of England.
2. I am currently in year 11, so my last year of GCSEs.
3. Besides all the compulsory subjects, I took Business Studies, Drama, Chinese, German, French and Food Technology for GCSE.
4. For A Level, I will be doing Maths, Further Maths, Economics and Geography.
5. I began watching YouTube videos when I was in year 8 and have been obsessed with beauty items ever since.
6. Although I love make up, I wear very little on a day-to-day basis.
7. My first kiss was on a bus - classy, I know. However, it was such an awkward first kiss, I don't want to even count it.
8. I used to hate the girl that I am now best friends with, haha! Funny how things work out!
9. My first proper holiday was to Paris.
10. Chloé is my favourite perfume (I don't know if I added that accent correctly, I could've just created a new brand)
11. Ted Baker is my absolutely favourite designer store.
12. I hate spoilt people who do not know the value of money.
13. The Sims is the best computer game ever.
14. I work at a tuition centre called Kumon, which helps people with English and Maths.
15. My fingers are quite long in comparison to the size of my body.
16. Words which don't sound like how they look really annoy me.
17. "Implicature" is one of the most annoying words in the English Language.
18. I am 5ft4.
19. Zoella is my favourite beauty guru off the blogasphere and YouTube, although technically she doesn't do tutorials, I don't care.
20. I have done so many sports in my life time: ballet, netball, football, badminton, hockey, rounders, athletics, swimming, basketball and cricket, however asthma has limited on the sports that I can do.
21. My immune system is about as strong as a twig.
22. Popcorn is seriously the most disgusting thing in the world, even the smell makes me gag. This is mainly because I used to love them till I was like 4, after eating loads at the cinema (watching Lilo and Stitch) and I fell asleep, I woke up with an extremely sore throat and the taste in my mouth and have never touched it since.
23. I am literally the worst singer you will ever meet, but I will still sing.
24. If and when you first meet me, I am such an awkward person, but if you know me, I am the weirdest person ever.
25. Maths is like the best thing in the world as it gives definite answers.
26. I once hesitated at the question "What are some of your hobbies?" in an interview.
27. I was in £600 debt to my mom and brother when I was 14, as they bought me my phone and my laptop, but I eventually paid it all off.
28. I don't eat breakfast.
29. Summer is at the top of my wish list.
30. I always overdress for occasions but I completely love it.
31. I love it when I know the truth but the other person carry on lying.
32. On the subject of lying, I am brilliant at spotting when people are lying.
33. I have an obsession with painting my nails, the only time I will not paint my nails is if they look disgusting and I need to give them a break.
34. Tea and coffee in one is the nicest thing.
35. Reading is completely underrated. Why would anyone choose film over book?!
36. Starbucks has the best cold drinks but Costa has the best hot drinks.
37. I order a grande vanilla latte at Starbucks.
38. Sheldon Cooper would be my best friend if he was real.
39. I wanted three kids: one girl and two boys. I have however picked out 2 names for each gender. Hayden and Xavyera for a girl; Nathaniel and Hudson for boys.
40. My favourite make up brand has got to be MAC.
41. I simply do not understand why people wear foundation when they have flawless skin.
42. For a relatively clever person, I don't understand a lot of things; for example, why is a honey dipper shaped like that?
43. I am a boss at putting together Ikea furniture, I've built everything from Ikea in my house.
44. I wish I was Kendall Jenner.
45. The only bone I have broken (well fractured) is my pinky, as my brother slammed my laptop screen on it during an argument.
46. Nando's is the best place ever; I order a medium quarter chicken with mash potato.
47. I absolutely despise smokers, not necessarily the person but just the part of their brain that think smoking is okay.
48. My doctor has informed me that I have extremely tiny blood vessels and therefore I am always cold.
49. My best friend and I once saw Layton Williams - the one who plays the gay guy off Bad Education - in Topshop in Westfield, strangely enough, my friend saw him the day before at Thorpe Park and I told her to go say hi, but she didn't want to, so we stood there awkwardly whispering and looking at him. He then smiled at us and we smiled back.
50. I am such a perfectionist yet such a good procrastinator; the two do not go well, trust me.

That's it then! There's 50 facts about me, I hope that you've learned a little more about me and I would love it if you followed me on Bloglovin or through Google.

Love, Nicole

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Review | Real Techniques Brushes

I recently bought the Real Techniques Core Collection (£20.99) and the Real Techniques Stippling Brush (£10.99). I have never been that interested at make up brushes due to the fact that I am rather blessed and have quite naturally blemish-free skin, I never had the need to invest in a brush to give me full coverage for my skin and from the Naked Palettes, I had the eye make up brushes which I needed. I guess I still don't know why I bought the set of brushes, perhaps it's to get ready for my dinner and dance coming up in July and I do want a HD flawless skin for photos as a memorabilia, but anyhow, I bought it and here is my review.

As I am quite busy with homework and various bits and bobs, I now never have the time to browse round town looking at new collections or buying make up pieces, the recent make up items I have bought were either during my February half term or online, and that is exactly what I did for this lot of brushes. I first looked at the Boots website, but the brush that I really wanted - the stippling brush - was out of stock, being my impatient self, I looked around elsewhere to find another website that offered it for the same price. I think I then looked at Superdrug and they either didn't sell it or it was more expensive, and that is when I resorted to Amazon.

I managed to get the two off Amazon for £31.98. I can't say that I really know if that is a good price for brushes, but it seems fairly reasonable and in comparison to some brushes that I have seen on sale on ASOS and BeautyBay, these don't seem bad at all!

Actual Review

Stippling Brush

I was most excited to try out the stippling brush as after watching multiple videos on YouTube, the best foundation application seems to be done by a stippling brush. My first impression of the brush is that it is so super soft and I could just sit somewhere stroking it all day...creepy, I know. Anyways, moving onto the actual application with the brush, I love the handle of the brush, I don't know why but it's a good shape and not too big or too small to hold and provides me with sufficient grip to apply foundation, BB creams, tinted moisturiser etc. efficiently. What I do is put the foundation on the back of my hand and dab the brush into it and buff it into my face, I am not sure if this is the proper way of doing it or there is an actual way to get a flawless finish, but so far, I love it! It gives me such a natural yet flawless coverage and generally, I have noticed that my skin tone has evened out. During the application, the brush remains soft against the face and it doesn't feel like you have some harsh bristles ruining your skin at all. I absolutely love this brush and would definitely recommend it!

Buffer Brush

I haven't tried this brush out as thoroughly as few of the others but it is also so SO UBER incredibly soft! I have only used it to apply a tiny bit of bronzer to warm up my skin tone but being a person who normally do not wear any skin make up, it is quite uncomfortable for me to try out all the brushes in one go, but perhaps I will update this post when I have tried it although I do no intend on wearing a bunch of powder on my face. After taking a detour round the topic, I think that this brush generally gives a natural finish and blends away any harsh lines left by the powder. I do think that this brush was primarily designed to buff in a mineralise foundation or something of the sort, but for bronzer, it is really good. However, I think that the ratio of the size of the brush in comparison to my face and the amount of area that suits bronzing, I have to be extra careful on how much product I pick up on my brush, otherwise I will look uber tangoed. 

Detailer Brush

This is a brush that I have began to use everyday to apply my liquid concealer as it is a nice alternative to using fingers. I think that this generally gives a more even coverage, although not necessarily stronger coverage as I think a lot of the concealer remains in the brush in comparison to my fingers, it means that I need to use an extra bit of concealer. Although this gives quite an even application, towards the edge of the concealed area, I did need to use my fingers to blend around the edges to avoid product keep being added to an untouched area of skin. However, this is increased the speed of which I apply my concealer as I blends it in really quickly but it just perhaps isn't the best at blending out of the brushes I bought in the set.

Contour Brush

Another brush that I have absolutely LOVED! I have never been one that liked how my blush looked on my as it always applies too vibrantly and never suit my skin tone. However, using this brush to apply my blush (under the direction of Tanya Burr) it gives such a natural finish as it applies just the right amount of product onto my cheeks to give off a radiant glow without it looking too overpowering, as I like my eyes or lips to be the main focal point of most of my make up looks. I think that this brush will be great to apply any sort of highlighter and its pointed and dense brush gives a vibrant yet blended, natural application.

Pointed Foundation Brush

Although I would love to give a full review of the set, I simply cannot as this is the only brush I have not tried on the set. Due to the fact that I know this type of brush gives a fuller coverage which I just do not need, I will probably be using this brush when applying other people's make up, if they feel they need fuller coverage. The brush itself is very sturdy and I can see it giving the skin an excellent amount of coverage as the bristles tend not to fan out when pressure is applied and therefore more product will apply on a particular area of the face. If and when I use this brush, I will be sure to add the review beneath this section informing you what I think of it.

Verdict

That's it! Overall, I absolutely love these brushes and I am so glad I invested in this as my first proper set of starting out brushes. I will be trying out more of these and perhaps start collecting make up brushes too, which is perhaps a bad thing...I would definitely recommend these and I rate them 4/5!

Love, Nicole

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Tag | How much is my face?

So the concept of this tag is pretty simple, I shall be totalling up all the make up products I have used on my face today and see what it adds up to...I think that this is going to hurt my bank account...

Yves Rocher Light and Luminous Foundation - £10 (£20 if not purchased on the Internet)

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer - £5

Revlon Photoready Concealer - £7.99

Sleek Highlight and Contour Kit - £6.49

Nars Orgasm Blush - £21.50

Benefit Brow Zings Brow Shaping Kit - £22.50

MAC Smolder eyeliner - £14

L'Oreal Telescopic Mascara - £10.99

Lancome Hypnose Star Mascara - £22

MAC Creme Colour Base in Pearl - £14.50

MAC Lovelorn Lipstick - £14

Totalling up to a whopping £148.97! That is slightly embarrassing and I actually can't believe I would spend that much on make up - everyday make up alone! It's annoying that my eyebrows cost the most, but then again, they are the most important part of your everyday make up in my opinion.

Love, Nicole

ps. this is what is on my face today but for example, i do not wear foundation everyday, but because i recently bought the real techniques stippling brush, i wanted to try it out and therefore i put foundation on. and obviously my lipstick colour varies everyday, but like i said, this is what i am wearing today.

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Review | Nars Orgasm Blush

As I mentioned in my last post, I may have accidentally purchased the Nars Orgasm Blush from www.asos.com. After using it for two days now, I honestly do not regret a thing! Despite its hefty price tag, ripping a good £21.50 out of my bank account, this is honestly the nicest blush I have ever used. Usually they are either too dark or awkward against my olivey-yellow skin tone. 

Let me begin by describing this product briefly. Nars Orgasm blush is a natural pink colour which is virtually the colour you get if you were to pinch your cheeks lightly, which therefore means that this will enhance your natural rosiness, instead of artificially plastering on some obscure shade. It is a natural pink with some tiny gold shimmers running through it, which adds a natural highlight to your cheeks when applied. 

The photo above is not only a very posey picture of myself, but it also shows me wearing the blush and being a person with naturally chubby cheeks, this actually made me look like I have cheekbones - obviously factoring in a DSLR camera taking this photo and minor touch-ups to the lighting. I think that this blush would suit pretty much all skin tones and add a very natural glow and radiate your skin.

Moving onto a few dislikes about the product, I am not entirely sure if it was the brush I was using to apply this product, but the product began bunching up in the palette, which would mean that over time I would be losing out on a lot of product! Now that I have bought some new brushes (from Real Techniques to be precise), I am hoping that this is reduce this problem and make my blush last longer - at least till the Summer!

Now going off the actual blush, one thing I love about this Nars product is the quality of the packaging. As well as buying this blush, I had been debating on choosing between the Benefit Hoola bronzer and the Nars Laguna bronzer and I guess the main thing that is making me unsure is the fact that the Benefit packaging is nowhere near as good as the Nars packaging. This is sturdy and I think it will take a lot of bashing to harm the blush and the palette. I love the sleek design on the palette and this packaging itself has definitely persuaded me to buy more Nars products!

£21.50 for a blush does seem rather ridiculous and perhaps I shall update this post when I finish my blush and see how long it will last me...I am planning it to wear it a few times a week as I don't really like to stick to the same make up items EVERYday. For the time being, however, I would say that this was definitely worth my hard earned money and was a great Nars product to begin with.

I would love to compare this blush to another blush that I own, but I do not think that it will be a fair comparison as this is the only powder blush I have actually liked and therefore it would not be accurate if I compared it to a product I knew I hated.

Thanks for reading this post and be sure to leave a comment of your favourite blush!

Love, Nicole

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Haul | Nars and Nails Inc.

NARS blush in "Orgasm" - £21.50

Nails Inc. nail varnish in "Chelsea Physic Gardens" - £11

I may have accidentally browsed around on the ASOS website and these items accidentally slipped into my basket, and technical errors made me buy these items without consulting me...well that was a lie, my big splurge of the month and I do not regret a thing. I ordered these two items off www.asos.com as I am a premier member, which means I get free next day delivery. I have heard so many people use the "Orgasm" blush and I finally gave in and bought it - hehe. And I was having a daily browse at nail polishes and I was instantly drawn to this colour from the nails inc. trend shades collection, from looking at the bottle, I LOVE IT! Review for both items coming shortly!

Love, Nicole

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Nails | Mini Essie Collection

Nail varnishes. What more can I say - one of my favourite beauty items, I have a little more than the recommended amount, but my collection is ever growing. Today, I would like you enlighten you all on my Essie varnishes experience and why I have so very few but I love them ever so much.

The first ever Essie nail varnish I bought was the classic "Turquoise & Caicos", being so I purchased it around Summer time, the beauty community was going head over heels for mint and coral nail varnishes. Being a proud owner of China Glaze's "For Audrey" and watching the fluid in the bottle quickly decreasing, I decided it was time for a new mint nail varnish, which is why I bought "Turquoise & Caicos", as recommended by people like HauteBrilliance and Meganheartsmakeup.

When the nail varnish arrived on a Saturday morning, I quickly opened it hoping that I would be able to have lovely minty nails for work. I was instantly drawn to the lovely mint colour and immediately tried it on. However, I was thoroughly disappointed by the application of the nail varnish due to the thin brush which makes the application looks streaky and unpleasant. The formula of the nail varnish was also quite thin, meaning I needed around 3 coats to begin to get an opaque colour. Overall, I was not impressed.

Around the time when Essie was launched in UK's Boots, many YouTubers began to rave about the amazing Essie brushes and the overall formula of their nail varnish. To myself I thought "I don't like Essie varnishes, why is there such a craze for them?!", and put off going to Boots and buying the newly launched Essie products.

Recently, I found out that a girl who I go to school with also indulge in YouTube beauty videos and watch various people who I watch too - the lovely Emma off bellemmabeauty.blogspot.com. She was very much for the Essie trend too and after a few weeks (or months) or talking about various beauty items and she recommended different Essie varnishes to me, like Fiji and Mint Candy Apple, I decided to give them another shot. I did not want to order off the Internet this time round though just to make sure that I do like the consistency of the nail varnish and the brush.

During a trip to Westfields in London, I took advantage of the amazing Boots there with so many more cosmetic counters than my local Boots and there I picked up a Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser (which I'm in the midst of testing out before I write a full review on them) and 2 Essie nail varnishes.

This is an almost indigo colour, but swayed more towards the blue, it is such a lovely Spring colour, especially for UK weather, where Spring is basically a little bit warmer than winter weather, but still quite grey and gloomy. As this is the darker shade of blue, it matches with that but also adds a pop of colour to any outfit. I think that it complements my skin tone really well and the finish of the polish is amazing and rather shiny even without a top coat.

A favourite amongst many beauty bloggers and YouTubers and recently included in Macbarbie07's favourites video. I must agree, that this is a classic mint colour which is a bit light than my beloved "For Audrey" and the earlier mentioned "Turquoise & Caicos". I love the newly improved brushes for both "Mint Candy Apple" and "Lapiz of Luxury" and it has definitely made me like Essie polishes more than I did before. I love this colour as it is just so summery but not as vibrant as corals and reds, for those outfits where I want the outfit to be the main focal point. 

After a love hate relationship with Essie polishes, I have concluded that I shall be trying more out and I would love to branch away from the blue shades - it was a complete accident that I picked up two blue shades!

Love, Nicole

ps. due to the fact that my nails aren't in the best stages of its life and calling for a nourishment session, i did not want to harm your eyes with horrible cuticles and unfiled nails. next time i post something relating to nails, i will be posting pictures of them on!

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Review | Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette

I had bought the Urban Decay Naked Palette near the time it was launched, due to the fact that many beauty gurus on YouTube were saying amazing things about it, I thought I would give it a shot. It was the first time I had bought a make up item with a slightly ridiculous price tag, but there's a first for everything right, so I went for it. I searched all over the Internet for it (as Urban Decay was not yet available at my Debenhams) and was over the moon when I found one for a discounted price at www.beautybay.com - do check it out as they sell some amazing beauty products. I managed to purchase it at £32 which is £4 off its usual price. If you would like me to do a review on the Original Naked Palette, leave a comment below and I'd be more than happy to.

Recently, I had been contemplating whether or not I should buy the Naked Basics palette which consists of 6 matte shades and costs £20. Unfortunately, it had been out of stock in Debenhams for a long time and being my impatient self, I looked for alternatives. With a little persuasion from the lovely lady at the Urban Decay counter and my little calculating brain, I thought that it would be worth it to buy the Naked 2 palette which combined with my Naked palette, I would basically be able to make up the Naked Basics. That's a lot of "naked-ness" in one paragraph!

Actual Review

The palette consists of 12 neutral eyeshadow colours: 3 matte colours (foxy, tease and blackout) and 9 shimmery colours (half baked, snakebite, suspect, pistol, verve, YDK and busted). There is only one colour that is also available in the Naked palette, which is "half baked", but I really love this bronze-y, shimmery colour, so I didn't really mind.

I guess I didn't expect anything less to come of this palette, the colours are very pigmented and when paired with the matching Urban Decay primer potion, the colours stay vibrant for the whole day and I have not experience any creasing - though my eyelids are not particularly oily, so I do not want to completely rule out the possibility for creasing. My current favourite combination is foxy all over the lid, ("buck" from Naked palette in my crease) & a teeny-weeny bit of blackout towards the outer corner. The matte colours makes it such a wearable everyday look and it is flattering on virtually everyone.

The Naked 2 Palette also comes with a double-ended eyeshadow brush with a flat shader brush on one end and a crease brush on the other. I do not own a whole lot of make up brushes, so I just went with what the lady at the counter told me and that due to its artificial bristles, it lasts for such a long time and it is really good quality. Now, I somewhat agree with this but not entirely - I feel that for a brush that comes with a make up product, it is a lot better than other ones that have come with my make up purchases, however, perhaps my expectations were quite high when I first used it, I do not feel that it is as fluffy as some other make up brushes I have felt in stores, for example MAC brushes. Having said that, for a brush that comes with a make up palette, I cannot really complain. The palette also comes with a lip gloss which is a deep pink colour (unfortunately, you begin to lose tiny tester-sized make up products when you switch bags every now and then, but when I do find it, I shall add a picture to this post), it has a really creamy consistency and adds a lovely shine to the lips, whilst still keeping it natural.

In comparison to the original Naked Palette, the thing I love the most about the Naked 2 is the fact that it has tin packaging, being so this is my go to palette when I stay round people's houses or when I travel, having tin packaging with a good clasp prevents the eyeshadows from smashing or the whole thing falling apart - you got to love that right?! It also contains more matte eyeshadows I believe in comparison, which makes the palette more everyday friendly as I am not one to go out everyday with a bunch of glitter on my eyelids, plus I like to differ my going out looks to my everyday casual looks.

Now on to the big one - the price. I feel that this is a topic that a lot of people will be debating about when deciding whether or not to purchase this, so let me weigh out the pros and cons. It is obvious that at £36, this is a high-end product and unless you know that you will use it, you probably shouldn't buy it as it's pointless virtually keeping £36 at the back of your make up drawer. Strangely, I feel that this is a great make up palette for someone who is looking for a collection of eyeshadows, whether or not they are looking for a high end brand or a high street brand. From the selection of colours in the palette, I think that this is a great start-out palette for everyone as all the colours are very compatible with each other and can create amazing looks. 

Let's compare!

• Stila in the Moment Eye Shadow Palette 14g - £25
  10 eyeshadows, mostly neutral with a few pops of colours thrown in 
• Too Face Naked Eye Palette - £26
  9 neutral eyeshadows, with cards which helps you to create looks
• MAC Pro Palette x 4 - around £39
  your choice of mac eyeshadow colours in a eyeshadow quad packaging, refillable

*prices from www.beautybay.com*

So that's it! That's my review on the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette, I hope it was informative and perhaps helped you make a decision on whether or not to buy it! Overall, I would give it a 4.5/5.

Thank you for reading this post, if you enjoyed it please follow my blog (you can find the button on the sidebar on the right hand side) and do leave a comment of your blog as I love finding new blogs to read.

Love, Nicole

ps. although it seems like it in this post, i am not sponsored by beautybay.com, but I just happen to find their website easiest to use and i bought the Naked palette off their website so i do know that it is trustworthy.

Tag | About Me

My camera battery is still charging, so here's another blog post with some little facts about me.

I tag:

Anyone and everyone! 

Vital Statistics:

Me: Nicole

Nicknames: none at all, my name is so difficult to make nicknames out of

Birthday: 26th October

Place of Birth: Hong Kong

Zodiac Sign: Scorpio

Male or Female: Female

Occupation: Student and a sort of tutor

Residence: England

Screen Name: Nicole Li

Appearance:

Hair Colour: Dark brown with some light brown bits from dying

Hair Length: lying awkwardly on my boobs

Eye colour: Brown

Best Feature: skin...hahaha

Height: 5"4

Braces?: nope, I want them though

Glasses?: yes, for those awkward long distances

Piercing: just ears

Tattoos: Nope

Righty or Lefty: Right

Your 'Firsts':

First best friend: a girl that I met in year2, but we kind of lost touch when I moved schools

First Award: being top of the class in Chinese in school haa

First Sport You Joined: ballet - IT IS A SPORT

First Real Vacation: Paris

First Concert: T4 Stars of 2011

First Love: none lols

Favourites:

Movie: this is hard but probably mean girls, it never gets old

TV Show: Gossip Girl and Young Apprentice

Colours: red, orange and baby blue

Song: currently, thousand years part 2

Candy: another hard one...haribos

Restaurant: Nandos!

Store: ASOS

School: my primary school

Book: A Twist of Fate - Joanna Rees

Magazine: ummm probably Look

Shoes: Timberlands or my moccasins

Currently:

Feeling: happy

Single or Taken: single

Eating: nothing

Typing: this

Online: Sure am

Listening To: My laptop whirling

Thinking About: my German homework and when my camera will be done charging

Wanting: a bath

Watching: The laptop screen

Wearing: Pyjamas

Future:

Want Children?: Yes, one day

Want to be Married: yes

Careers in Mind: something like an actuary, but would love a career in beauty and fashion

Where do you want to live?: Hong Kong or London

Have you ever:

Kissed a Stranger: yes...sort of?

Had Alcohol: I have

Smoked: nope

Ran Away From Home: yes hahaha

Broken a bone: fractured my pinky

Got an X-ray: yes

Broken Someone's Heart: most likely no

Broke Up With Someone: yes

Cried When Someone Died: yes

Cried At School: yes

Do You Believe In:

God: No

Miracles: depends of the possibilities of the situation

Love At First sight: nah, you would be really shallow if it was

Ghosts: yes

Aliens: yes but maybe they're not green

Soul Mates: yes

Heaven: no

Hell: no

Kissing on The First Date: depends on how the date went

Yourself: yes

Favourite | Top 3 YouTubers

Currently, I am waiting for my camera's battery to charge so I can post the new blog post that I had in mind, but as I was desperate to put off German and English homework, I have decided to do this little blog post, sharing my top 3 favourite YouTubers. Although I have chosen quite popular YouTubers already, I hope that you all share my love for these people or I have helped you discover someone new to watch on YouTube.

zoella280390

I love Zoe's videos as they are so informative and even though she is quite YouTube famous, she is still very genuine unlike many other well-known YouTubers. I also love her style and feel like I have to purchase every single product she recommends - both good and bad, right? I love her collabs with other YouTubers like Alfie, Marcus and Louise and her videos are basically amazing - they are also very well put together and editted. 

Jacksgap

 I know that originally it was Jack who created the channel, but I love that now Finn is also involved and well, they're both really gorgeous so it's like double the attractiveness...MWAHAHA. One thing I hate though is that their videos are only about 5 minutes long?! WHY NO LONGER. They probably have on of the best video editting skills I have seen on YouTube and their personalities always show through in their videos. I could spend hours watching their videos and not get bored. I think it's also really awesome how their channel was created as they wanted to share their gap year experiences and I would love to do something like that as well.

Bubzbeauty

Bubz was one of the first people I watched on YouTube and I quickly subscribed due to her bubbly personality and her entertaining videos. She has many other channels where she vlogs and creates little comedy sketches, which I find HILARIOUS. Although she is so YouTube famous - with over 2,000,000 subscribers, she is still very genuine on screen and I like how she hasn't rose to the fame. She has dramatically helped the beauty side of what I do, being the person who introduced me to the world or oatmeal and green tea and what amazing scrubs they can make (my skin feels so smooth since I used oatmeal as a scrub)! I am currently waiting for her to launch her new set of brushes as I think they will be the first set of make-up brushes I am going to buy, so hurry up! I can't wait to see her wedding snaps from later this year because she is going to make such a gorgeous bride.

And that's it! They're my 3(4) favourite YouTubers summed up in one blog post! I hope you have enjoyed reading this and do leave a "cheeky" little comment below about anything!

Love, Nicole

Make Up | Top 5 Lipsticks

MAC Lustre - Lady Bug (£14):

It is true that every girl needs a red lipstick and this happens to be my current favourite! I absolutely love MAC lipsticks and I think that it is the best beauty item they sell, for sure. Being so it is a lustre, the colour is layering friendly, so it can range from a mild red tint to an intense colour. The application is also very creamy and smooth and lasts for such a long time. I usually wear this with a matching MAC lip liner to ensure it doesn't bleed on the lips and the colour lasts longer too - but this wasn't a big problem anyway as it is a lustre and not as something as intense as an amplified. I would also recommend wearing a lip liner when wearing red lipstick as to achieve a vibrant classic red, it is best to have the defined cupid's bow.

Topshop - Infrared (£8):

I bought this lipstick as Zoella (off YouTube) constantly raves about it and I believe it is one of her favourite lipsticks - and well, I don't blame her! This was my first Topshop lipstick and make-up item and I am thoroughly impress, shall definitely try out my Topshop cosmetics! This lipstick is ever so creamy and the application is so so smooth. I love the vibrant orange colour and the only thing I had that was comparable is MAC's Frost - Costa Chic, but as the name suggests it is sway towards the coral shades rather than a vibrant orange, so this is something different but very wearable. I would recommend to exfoliate your lips well before wearing this though, as the lipstick picks up on any harsh lines on your lips, but the colour you eventually get is definitely worth it. I can't wait to wear this more frequently into the Spring/Summer (if we ever get one)!

MAC - Impassioned (£14):

This was something completely outside of my comfort zone, but I absolutely love it! I discovered it last summer-ish time, when Macbarbie07 used it in a Cher Lloyd look and I fell in love with the colour. I usually would never go for such a vibrant pink as it doesn't usually suit my skin tone, but this colour is amazing. Being so it is an amplified, the colour is so pigmented and vibrant, even with just one coat and it lasts for such a long time, only disadvantage with this is that it transfers everywhere, so eating and drinking leaves lip stains everywhere. I am so glad that I tried something different and branched out of my normal deep pinks and reds as this is such a pretty colour for Spring and Summer and basically screams fun! Plus the fact that all MAC lipsticks smell delicious and I just want to eat it, well that is definitely a bonus!

Revlon Lip Butter - Peach Parfait (£7.99):

This is the second Revlon lip butter I purchased after falling in love with "Strawberry Shortcake", I didn't like that colour as much as this one, but I loved the creaminess and easy application. This is my go to lipstick when I'm in a rush as it adds a tint of colour with such an easy application. Although it is not one of the most pigmented lipsticks I have shown in this blog post, it adds such a nice gloss and tint of colour I had to include it. And well, no one likes extremely pigmented lips EVERYday and I think that this is what these lip butters were designed for. There are so many in the collection but I went for a colour that would just accentuate and enhance my natural lip colour. I would definitely recommend these and they are always on some sort of offer or discount at Superdrug and Boots, so I would definitely go try them out.

MAC - Hot Tahiti (£14):

This was my go-to lipstick during the winter time; it is a glaze, so it is also very buildable. I absolutely love this colour and it complements my skin tone quite well. I would say that it is a deep red, berry colour and it was such a lovely winter time colour. The first coat is very sheer and I tend to wear more coats to get a more vibrant and deep red. I also wear this lipstick with a lip liner as like I said, it is a red colour and it looks best when your lips are defined. Being so it is a glaze, I think that that is what makes the application so smooth and the colour just glides on. In comparison to Mac's "Lady Bug" (shown above), this is a deep red and whereas that is a more classic red, this has a slight twist on the classic red lip colour and it looks so good when your make-up is fairly simple as it pulls an entire look together.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my favourite lipsticks and perhaps this has given you ideas on what to get if you were looking to buy a lipstick similar to the ones I have mentioned. Be sure to follow and my social links are down the sidebar.

Love, Nicole