NOTD: OPI Metallic 4 Life

Another quick post tonight girls!

I'm trying to get my number up for April as i have totally FAILED blogwise this month. This is the lowest amount of posts per month i have had since i started my blog a YEAR ago! So i decided to snap a few piccies of my goffik, metallic Nicki Minaj mani yesterday as it just looked so sparkly and enticing haha.

I first posted about the OPI Nicki Minaj nail polish collection back in February. At the time i only posted about two of the shades out of the 4 i have so i thought it was about time to show the others some love. You can check out 'Fly' and 'Did it on em' HERE but today is the turn of 'Metallic 4 Life'...

I've kind of saved this polish and not wanted to waste it as it is possibly my favourite out of the collection. However, the other day i just REALLY fancied it and decided to give it it's first solo outing. Up to now i've only used it as an accent nail. 

One coat of this polish will do NOTHING for you. It's silver glitter contained in a greyish black jelly-type polish. Used on top of another colour it may be quite effective but one coat of this alone is VERY lacklustre. HOWEVER, once you add a second (or even a third) coat it really does start to look FABULOUS!! 

Over the weekend i received some beautiful pieces of handmade jewellery from Rhi of othersideofcool.com and all the skulls and crosses made me feel VERY rock chick so i just went for it! More to come on the jewellery later in the week. 

This polish hasn't disappointed me and i will definitely be coveting it and keeping it for special occasions. I may even attempt to get my hands on the full size because i will be very sad when it is gone. You don't get that much in a mini size. 

That leaves the only shade out of the collection that is unblogged to be Pink Friday... I guess i didn't rush to blog about it because i knew that it was the shade that would get the most attention elsewhere and i wanted to be different haha. As soon as we actually get some decent Spring/Summer weather i may indeed get my girly pink head on again and break it out. 

Do you love glitter?? Are you a metal freak when it comes to your nails?? What are your favourite OPI shades??

MAC Viva Glam Nicki Minaj

Afternoon gorgeous readers!!

This is 2 for 2 on the pink MAC lippy posts for me. I had wondered if i should keep this post for another day and do something different but, of course, i'm just TOO excited about it and it's far too special not to be shouted about straight away. There was no way i was going to put it in the 'blog later' drawer and not play with it! So here's what's got me all excited.....

MAC Viva Glam Nicki!!

I got a lovely surprise email last Wednesday from MAC inviting me to order their new Viva Glam Nicki Minaj collaboration lipstick BEFORE the official UK release. Well, of course i whipped out the Mastercard straight away and off i went.... Being skint wasn't going to stop me!! Bit naughty of me really after my 2 Shop MAC purchases but this lippy really shouted out at me. 

(Photo taken from MAC)

This new Viva Glam release is with both Nicki Minaj AND Ricky Martin, who has put his name to the new MAC lip conditioner. As you're probably aware, every penny of the sales of these products goes directly to the MAC Aids Foundation to help men, women and children all over the world who are fighting HIV and Aids, so in my opinion it's money well spent. A donation to charity with a MAJOR bonus. See and hear what Nicki and Ricky think of the project on the MAC Cosmetics YouTube Channel 

But what do I think about it?!?! 

This lipstick jumped out at me straight away the first time i saw it. The main reason being that it is a YELLOW based shade of bright pink. Most of the bright pink lipsticks i own (MAC included) have been blue-based and, as a warmer toned lady, sometimes i think blue pinks wash me out a little (with the exception of MAC Naughty Sautee which i ADORE - See previous post) so a yellowy pink was just a MUST for my collection. 

Viva Glam Nicki is a Satin finish which, in all honesty, is probably my LEAST favourite of the MAC finishes as i find it dry on my lips (i might add that it is not as drying as other formulas from other brands, but for MAC i find this the most drying of all the formulas). Having said that it has decent longevity, so i guess it's swings and roundabouts....

The colour really is gorgeous. A few people said they weren't wowed by the photos and swatches of this lipstick but i personally think it's VERY different to a lot of pink shades out there. Most of the pinks i've seen described as WARM have been peachy pink shades, which i also love, but this is definitely a pure, yellow-toned pink. I guess it could be put in the pepto-bismol category along with Naughty Saute, but this doesn't wash me out at all and is such a pretty shade! I'm so glad i have it!

So there you have it!! 

I'm unsure of the official launch date for this but i think i can safely say it will be in March. It will be available in MAC Stores and Concessions and at maccosmetics.co.uk for a whole YEAR after its release so there's plenty of time to get your hands on it! 

Did you manage to bag one already?? What do you think of the Viva Glam/MAC Aids Fund projects?? Or do you just ADORE pink lippy like i do??

Nicki Minaj for OPI Mini Collection: My thoughts...

Good evening beauty seekers!!

Tonight's slice of blog tart is dedicated to nail polish!! And not just ANY nail polish, but the Nicki Minaj collaboration with OPI!! I was lucky enough to stumble across these for a VERY good price in a discount beauty shop that i know in Chesterfield. (If you're local, it's called Dolled Up and is just up from the Vicar Lane area of town.) They were selling the full sized polishes as well but i love the mini collections as it gives you more variety for, more or less, the same price. I also own the Pirates of the Caribbean collection which i have blogged about in the past.

So here they are (L-R)

Did it on 'Em

A not too 'in ya face' acid yellow/green

 Fly

A deep blue/green shade, like a cross between a turquoise and a teal. 

 Pink Friday

Nicki's signature shade. A perfect medium pink (although not as unique as it would like to be)

 Metallic 4 Life

Silver glitter contained in a black jelly-like polish.

I have played around with all of these polishes over the last week or so and can honestly say that there isn't  a shade i dislike. They're all very wearable colours and don't feel (to me) to be season specific which i like. I'm one of those who doesn't like to wear corals, oranges or pastels in winter time as i associate colours like that with spring/summer. Similarly, i dislike wearing dark or brown shades in the summertime as i feel they belong with the colder weather. There are polishes from the collection which are NOT included in the mini set so i can only review the ones that i have.

Formula-wise, these are exactly what you would expect from OPI. A couple of coats does the trick and the are fairly long wearing with the right topcoat. As usual my only grumble with OPI mini polishes is that the brush is TINY and you have to take great care to make sure you don't get a 'streaky' finish. 

Usually with a collection like this i would put up a NOTD for each shade as and when i wore them, but for this one i'm making an exception as i have used the first two shades TOGETHER.

Here is the result.....

BRIGHT Leopard Nails!!

As a rule, i don't have a steady enough hand for nail art, BUT as this is a Nicki Minaj collaboration i kind of felt inspired to do something a bit funky. So i glued on some falsies and had a play with the polishes when i got home this afternoon. (I am aware you can still see the tips but 3 coats of any polish to me is a major pain in the backside - On normal nails i doubt it would be an issue).

Here's what i did...

Dead Easy!!

1) Apply 2 coats of 'Fly' to the nails and allow to dry completely (i didn't use a base cos they were false nails but you might want to on natural nails)

2) Using the brush it comes with (OPI mini brushes may be tiresome but they're PERFECT for this) dab little dots of 'Did it on Em' randomly on each nail. No prizes for uniformity here.... Allow to dry.

3) Using any random liquid eyeliner (i used UD 24/7, partly cos its waterproof and partly because it was the nearest) draw little semi circles around your dots. I also added little black flecks here and there to add to the effect.

4) Allow to dry and seal the whole lot with a good layer of topcoat (any will do).

And the end result is pretty damn FUNKY!! 

So i suppose thats the first two out of the way already!! Pink Friday and Metallic 4 Life (i always want to call it METALLICA 4 Life for some reason.... must be the heavy metaller in me) will get their own NOTD posts in due course.

Do you own this collection?? Which shades are your favourite??