strange love: mac candy yum yum

hihi.
it's been awhile since i last posted but hey im here now (*^_^*)

i think it was last week...
i casually walked into the mac store at raffles city n got into a makeup cardiac arrest.

i was looking at the new archie collection when my eyes locked in and zoomed into something proverbial.

something that is nothing short of a mac legend.

my eyes fixed onto that neon pink lipstick bullet like a hawk and immediately many thought bubbles appeared above my head with silent gasps in between:-
'is this...?'
'could this be...?'
'it couldn't be, it shouldn't be here'
'but it is! ack ack! it's candy yum yum!!!'
'but why issit here???'
'but who cares?! it's candy yum yum!!!'

all that drama in a one man show in the mac store.
all just for that elusive wonder that is candy yum yum.

but somehow that day i didn't walk out the store with her.
i talked it through like an adult.
do i need another neon pink lipstick??

i kept thinking about her though, day after night and i decided finally when my mom went to tangs i wrote down what i wanted on a post-it.
and....
she's all mine.

introducing candy yum yum aa2


hand swatch


im not shy when it comes to makeup love...

on the lips


with no lip balm and applied liberally cos it's no holds barred, baby.

candy yum yum is a matte bright pink neon with blue undertones.

overall thoughts
yours truly would like to thank the 77 517 people/ votes that brought this baby back to the permanent line in the mac by request programme.

and if you are thinking should you or should you not get it, lemme tell you:
just get it cos you won't regret it.
if it's the one pink lipstick you wanna invest... take a leap and go for bold and vivacious candy yum yum.

candy yum yum is a matte but it doesn't feel as dry as ruby woo, the other matte mac lipstick i own.

it doesn't sink into the lines of my lips unlike a certain barry m disappointment, it doesn't hydrate my lips but doesn't feel heavy too.
real nice.

and the best part is it lasts and lasts and lasts.

yesterday i wore candy yum yum out for dinner and it withstood:
2 dinners (yes 2, why not)
2 drinks
and after all the feasting and drinking i still had a good amount of candy yum yum on my lips.
no budging no fuss and muss.

ive been collecting neon pink lipsticks (and other stuff) since this year and candy yum yum is an important addition.

now that it's permanent i need not worry about discontinuation and other limited edition problems.

till the next neon pink wonder,
xoxo
nais.

candy yum yum is out at the mac stores, sg$29

notd: etude house ppp 503 celeb girl

hello (^O^)／

im back with another notd within 2 days!

guess now that im unable to wear makeup on my face due to an allergy, i found an alternative respite in painting my nails.
you can't stop nais from being vain! lol

today's polish is etude house's ppp 503 celeb girl (what a name) from the dear my party polish series.


9ml bottle


bottle shot

ppp 503 celeb girl is a grey-ish blue jelly creme that leans a little periwinkle with gold, sky blue and medium blue fine and hex glitters.

since the weather was bright and sunny i decided to self indulge and take more nail swatches:-








some awkward hand posing
^_^;

i painted my nails with base coat, 3 coats of celeb girl and 1 coat of seche vite top coat.

overall thoughts
told u im on a glitter, speckled nail roll...

if there's a cookie monster, shouldn't there be a glitter monster??? heh.

ppp 503 celeb girl applied smooth and nice.
you can apply thin coats to build up the effect you like becos this polish is not gloppy and thick at all. no chipping.

ever since i got this polish on, ive been wearing blue jeans to match it. and the thing is im not a jeans girl but it just goes so well together!

im happy with the formula of the polish and the unique-ness of this blue gold glitter combi and the best part is this is from etude house and not an indie.
good! mainstream brands should produce more such adventurous and different polishes than ur usual nudes etc

this baby costs sg$6.90 but i got it 20% off. woohoo.

i hope to collect the others (with glitter shards, flakies) in this dear my party series becos i feel etude house has scored a winner with this collection.

before i sign off, i would like to share that i still find it funny and weird for me to be posing and taking pictures for this blog.
i used to find it amusing to see people take many pics of themselves and objects and even getting people to take photos of them. i used to think that such behaviour is a little self indulgent (since im camera shy) but now that i got this blog i have to get used to such actions.

i guess i will see this as documentation.
i will feel more at ease this way heh heh

ok goodbye!

xoxo,
nais.

notd: smitten polish 'confection'

hihi.

in this post im gonna review an indie nail polish called 'confection' by smitten polish.

i bought this polish for 2main reasons:-
1) i like the speckled egg like effect (easter is coming! this would be perfect for an easter mani) and
2) this polish reminds me of a cardigan i had when i was a child.

my fave well worn cardigan was in soft white with mini triangles, circles and rectangles in pastel brights. it's probably in the fashion cemetery now but i can have this polish to remind me of it (^-^)

on to the pictures! &more words thereafter!


a 15ml bottle


these nail swatches were taken on the third day upon application and so far no chipping :D

oh yes, this is 3 coats of confection and a thick coat of seche vite.


bottle shot.
confection is a translucent milky white polish with bright blue, yellow, green and pink hex and purple square glitters.

overall thoughts
i thought only linear holo polishes can only make me stop and stare at my nails throughout the day but confection made me do double takes too.

im glad i chose not to paint a coat of opaque white polish before applying confection and even at 3 layers, confection still comes across as a soft white.
the white base would be a little jarring if i painted an opaque white undercoat first.

i just love to see the glitters sandwiched in between the layers
it's just very soothing to see the white and pastels together.
nothing fierce about it but totally attractive.

formula for confection is ok although it is a little gloppy so it's best to shake the bottle well to mix the glitters and polish for better application.

the tricky bit is painting the glitters on evenly so they are well distributed on the nail with no obvious bald patches.
if u look closer at my nail swatches there are some bald patches but i guess this polish is forgiving; it looks good just by looking not so put together if u get what i mean.

just ensure the glitters are evenly and nicely placed that's all.
no need to be precise.

and yes! pls wait 2mins or so in between applying each coat so you won't have huge wet blobs of polish on your nails.
application would also be and look smooth.

i find top coat to be necessary as it evens everything out.

so all in all, im very happy with my first smitten nail polish and erm, intending to get more for more speckled nail goodness.

one more for the road...

so lovely.
even i become sweet looking at them nails *snort snort*

i bought confection at sg$14.50 from shoppe eclecticco which is based in singapore.

it's my first purchase from them but im a happy camper with the purchase and service.

shoppe eclecticco carries many cool indie polishes.
check them out while i check on my wallet.

xoxo,
nais.

some thoughts.

hey heyy

ive got something to announce; nothing big though...
just to say that my face broke out in rashes due to a food allergy so i won't be able to play &test out makeup for a while cos i can't wear any for the time being.

bummers.

although i grew up knowing and learning how to put on makeup i wasn't one of those girls who wore makeup to school until i reached tertiary level.

so i had the freedom of being able to grow up trying to be comfortable in my own skin.
the key word is 'trying'.
even now im still trying to accept myself for who i think im becoming...

then when i reached tertiary level i wore makeup to school and everywhere and kinda felt less confident without it. i had lost that freedom of expressing myself without makeup.

don't get me wrong, i lovvee makeup and am always on the learning curve.

but as i grow older, i would like to be able to bare erm, a bare face free of makeup once in a while when im outside...

to be less affected by how people would think or see me without makeup.

now that i have at least a week to do that and that im into my 2nd day sans makeup i feel like im fifteen again heh...

being seen with my imperfections not covered, im feeling really blithe
(^_^)v

to add: i have been using qv gentle bath wash (my regular shower wash) as facial wash... a tip i read online. and i must say i am totally sold on this idea.

the qv bath wash is gentle and doesn't irritate my skin.
I may continue to use it as facial wash even when ive recovered.


before i say buhbye, let me just say i bought my first few products from inglot and im not able to play with them! (sad face)

oh well.
it's better to have good skin first and foremost.

xoxo,
nais.

d.i.y.: easy gel nail polish removal

hihi.
today im gonna share this simple method of removing gel nail polish.
after 19days my nails looked like this and i couldn't stand it any longer


about 2mm or more of nail growth and i got bored of the colour so i decided to remove it.

and becos i couldn't bear to part with sg$20-25 for soak off removal at the salon so i decided to do it at home myself
(read: c h e a p o. hahaha)

the main thing you need to get is special nail polish remover for gelish nails or pure acetone.
i got a bottle of harmony gelish artificial nail remover.


a 120ml bottle that can last for 4 to 5 removals.

note that this gelish artificial nail remover does contain some acetone still, just that it has other ingredients that make it not as drying as pure acetone.
but pure acetone works well too.

all in all, you will need:-


10 aluminum foil squares
10 cotton wool squares
cuticle pusher
gelish artificial nail remover or acetone

note: cut the aluminum foil generously according to your finger size.
lint free cotton wool squares are recommended but i didn't have any so i used the ones tapered at the sides.

#1 soaking of cotton wool


saturate a cotton wool square with the nail polish remover

#2 wrap nail with soaked cotton wool square


place the soaked part of the cotton wool square on your nail and wrap the remaining around your finger

#3 wrap finger with aluminum foil square


to generate heat to ease removal of the polish, wrap your finger with the aluminum foil square

place your cotton wool covered finger on the dull side of the foil facing up, fold into half as shown in the picture above and secure your finger tightly by pressing the foil around your finger


after folding in half, fold the sides inwards around your finger and seal the sides tightly till you get something like the picture above

#4 do the same for the remaining fingers


till your hand looks so glam like this *snigger*

#5 wait for 15-20mins
chillax during this time.
at this step i would indulge in my korean drama. make sure you don't tilt your fingers up so that the liquid from the wool would not seep out

#6 gently remove the foil and cotton squares


looks disgusting but this picture shows you that the gel nail polish comes out in hardened pieces/flakes

#7 remove remaining polish on nails


your nails would still have some remnant polish bits, use the cuticle pusher to gently scrape them off

note: just scrape the remnant polish off, be careful not to be over zealous and scrape your nails too hard

#8 final cleanup
you can use a buffing block to gently buff your nails now

what i did was to wash my nails thoroughly with soap to remove any remaining acetone, dry them and apply cuticle oil.

i recommend opi's avoplex cuticle oil.

the end result should be...


an edited picture with photoshopped glitters...
errr no. i mean you should have clean nails free of gel polish!

repeat the steps for the other hand.
so there you go.

it is not that hard to do but if you still find it a hassle, go to a salon and have the manicurist do it for you.

just don't scrape the gel polish off without soaking!
don't ruin your nails!

xoxo,
nais.

strange love: revlon colorburst lip butters

hi loves.
today im giving you my long overdue, stale, rancid review of revlon's colorburst lip butters.

why stale? why rancid?
well becos everyone and their mother has probably heard of or owned one or more of these lip butters.
and considering i got my first lip butter early last year... but then again i had no blog then... so.

and need i mention the many well written and detailed reviews and swatches of these babies.
i think ive read one review with swatches of the entire colour range!

but since this is my blog, i can do what i want and that includes adding to the beauty blogosphere one more review of these revlon colorburst lip butters.

and i hope you&your mother will like this review. my 2cents ^ - ^

i have three lip butters for you





out of the tube


left to right:-
#050 berry smoothie
#085 sugar plum
#096 macaroon
i will review them in this order too

#050 berry smoothie


swatched on my lips


note that all lip swatches are done without lip balm and taken indoors.

i have done a lipsoftheday entry with berry smoothie already, it's here.
here's the swatch taken outdoors


well i can safely say berry smoothie is my favourite.
berry smoothie is supposed to be erm, a berry colour but on my violet tinged lips, it appears more of a light pink mauve with pink shimmers. you can see the shimmers in the indoors pic.
berry smoothie goes on sheer but look at that shine!

i used to think sugar plum was my mlbb shade but now i give that honour to berry smoothie.

berry smoothie is a very complimentary colour that i believe can adapt to different natural lip colours to enhance them. it is a colour i reach out often for because it is just very low maintenance and easy to wear.

def repurchase worthy.

#085 sugar plum


swatched on my lips


sugar plum was my second lip butter purchased at bangkok airport duty free for around sg$9 or under... at that time sugar plum wasn't available in sg yet so you could imagine my delight.
im kicking myself for not getting other colours like red velvet there urgh! too distracted by the nars counter behind!

sugar plum is more berry and pigmented in colour than berry smoothie and is a plum shade with red undertones.
it is also a mlbb shade as many have reviewed online to be their mlbb shade.

another lovely everyday colour!

#096 macaroon


swatched on my lips


my first lip butter, macaroon is a uk exclusive.
on me, macaroon appears a browned terracotta red with shimmer. the lip swatch above is slightly muted in colour than in real life.
macaroon is also the most pigmented of the three i have.

it is a wearable red for people who are getting to wear red lipsticks for the first time.
i like it lots but not as much ever since i got berry smoothie... heh

all swatched on my hand


top to bottom:-
berry smoothie/ sugar plum/ macaroon

as you can see, berry smoothie is the sheerest and with macaroon being the most pigmented and creamy.

overall thoughts
lemme set this straight.

if you are looking for lots of hydration for your lips, this ain't it.

if you are looking for full on, long staying colour, this ain't it.

revlon colorburst lip butter is not a full fledged lip balm or lipstick.
it is a mutant.
a lip balm/ lip gloss/ lip stick hybrid.

it does all three functions but not to the maximum.

revlon colorburst lip butter applies and glides on like a lip balm. hydration is ok, it does plump up my lips a bit and i discovered that this lip butter is quite forgiving.
i can apply it even when my lips are a little dry n chapped.

the amazing thing is the mirror shine the lip butters give.
i did not apply any gloss to my lips in those swatches above!
love...

but the best thing is how comfortable the lip butters feel on my lips. i don't feel like im wearing any lip product and they glide on smoothly and creamy to buildable colour.

wear time for me is around 2hr plus. which is ok imo.

im hoping to collect the other shades like pink truffle.

till then i confess im in love with a multi tasking mutant. help!

xoxo,
nais.

(revlon colorburst lip butters cost sg$15.90 here)

amp up the vamp!: barry m black cherry

hi.
im nais but im such a bad blog mommy.
prettynais my blog baby turned 1month old a few days ago and i forgot all about it (｡-_-｡)

i was busy looking, buying and playing with makeup that i forgot.
i'll get a cupcake later and stuff my face with it to celebrate.

never too late to celebrate
never too late for a cupcake.

can't believe it has been a month this baby has been up and running.
from being clueless, uncertain and a little fearful of what 2013 will bring to me now writing my 13th post on prettynais.

things are gaining speed and a little more clarity but seriously im just happy to blog about the seemingly frivolous (but beautiful) things i like.

to you who have been reading this nondescript blog, thank you and please continue to check in here and then.
if u like, we can be friends too
the world can do with more friends than ___________
(fill in your own blank)

so please do leave your comments and your love *\(^o^)/*

okk! back to the beauty!

today's baby is a vamp
barry m moisturising lip paint in black cherry





i just love how sexxxy these deep dark vamp lipstick bullets look.
totally seductive.

swatched on my hand


barry m black cherry is a dark berry shade with red under tones.

i wore black cherry three ways.

on its own


here i applied black cherry heavily straight from the tube with no lip balm underneath or lip liner.

you can def see the red in black cherry here.
just wearing black cherry with eyes lined to wing tips makes me look made up already without much effort.

but if you want to look more vamp and brooding, then by all means, do the full works with heavily made eyes, pale powdered face and contoured cheeks.

as a lip stain


this look is simply achieved by blotting my lips with tissue.

as a lip stain, black cherry is easier to maintain.
eat& drink all you want without worrying if your lip colour is feathering, smudging or fading.

worn with neutral made up eyes and dewy skin, black cherry as a lip stain can make you look understatedly chic.

i like how black cherry looks as a lip stain. very pretty...

with some shine


all i did here is to dab some lip balm on the middle of my lips (after blotting them).

for more juicy lips, you can opt for lip gloss instead
(or mac clear lip glass)

sadly black cherry looks less dramatic and vamp now but if you are afraid of dark dramatic lips, lightening the said colour by blotting and adding shine helps to make the shade more wearable.

i would wear this lip look with matte skin to draw focus to my lips.

overall thoughts
i would say barry m black cherry is an entry level vamp.
wished it was slightly more blackened.

although this is barry m's moisturising version of her lip paints, it does not feel that slippery. when i apply black cherry on my lips, i feel some grip (hope you get what i mean).

it is just considered more moisturising than the original lip paints.

as always with such vamp and dark shades, it is best to exfoliate your lips first.

black cherry is still a good addition to my vamp makeup collection.
it helps that the lipstick casing is pink. pink!

now on to the next lipstick on my wish list!
barry m lip paint in shocking pink!

yeah it's either very dark or very bright with me.
winter or summer.

if barry m is a steal (about sg$10), my next vamp lipstick review is a splurge.

till then loves!
xoxo,
nais.