Review | Barry M Speedy Quick Dry Nail Paints

Barry M has been one of my favourite nail polish brands since my early teens, so when I saw their new Speedy Quick Dry collection in Boots last week I couldn't wait to give them a try.

The collection is made up of the prettiest, delicate pastel colours, and I had a hard time narrowing down which ones to road test first. The polishes were on 3 for 2 in Boots, so of course I just had to buy three. 

I chose a cheerful flamingo pink called 'In A Heart Beat.'

A fresh Spring green called 'Pole Position.'

And a fashionable blue, somewhere between duck egg and mint, called 'Road Rage.'

Three very pretty shades that were made for the perfect Spring manicure!

I wasted no time in trying them out, and used them all in one manicure later that same day. I have to say, I was impressed with how well they handled. The polishes all have wide flat brushes which make applying each coat super easy; the width helps to cover a lot of nail in one swipe, so it takes no time at all to apply each coat.  

I needed 3-4 coats to achieve an opaque finish, and it took less than a minute for each coat to dry! Both hands were done and bone dry within fifteen minutes. I don't know about you, but I hate waiting an age for my nails to set, so this Speedy Quick Dry formula is a God send! 

They're the perfect polishes for anybody who has limited time to get ready, and for people who have a difficult time sitting still long enough for their nails to dry. I've lost count how many times I've smudged my nails because I've not left enough time for them to dry properly, but I haven't had that problem with these three polishes. I'm sold. They even stayed in place for three days without chipping!

My only real issue was that 'Road Rage', the duck egg blue, went on a little bumpy unless the brush was drowned in polish. The brush kept sticking against the nail, instead of gliding over it, which I think was down to the quality of the brush and not the formula.  With a little patience, I worked around it by flooding the brush, but it took a little longer to brush off the excess polish to get an even finish.

Aside from that little issue, I really love these nail polishes. They're easily some of the loveliest pastel polishes I've ever worn. I still can't decide which is my favourite; it changes from minute to minute. I'm leaning towards the pink right now, but in five minutes I'll say green or blue. All three shades are fresh, bright, and cheerful- and you just can't go wrong with pastel polishes like these for Spring.

The Speedy Quick Dry polishes are very affordable at £3.99 each, and should be available in all good pharmacies / drug stores like Boots and Superdrug. 

Have you tried their Speedy Quick Dry nail paints yet?

PS. Apologies for the state of my nails in these photos. I know it's pretty much the worst looking manicure ever. I have really shaky hands these days (from the pain and painkillers), so I currently have the artistic ability of a three year old! I don't have the patience to try again, but I decided just to blog these photos anyway, as I wanted to share these polishes with you.

Easter 2015

I hope you're all having a great Easter. How was your weekend?

I've had a lovely, quiet Easter at home with my family. We've never really made a big deal out of Easter; not like we do with Christmas, anyway, so my weekend has mostly involved exchanging (and scoffing!) Easter eggs, sitting down for a turkey roast with the family, and watching a few Easter-themed films. I've tried to get in to the spirit a little more this year, though, and I've enjoyed myself. Would you like to see what I got up to?

Earlier in the week, I put a box of Easter chocolate together for my best friend and her son. I had to wrap it all up in pastel tissue paper, and the cutest Easter ribbons.

I had to buy these egg-shaped honeycomb decorations from Sainsburys last week. I hung some up downstairs and the rest in my bedroom, and they look so pretty and cheerful. I don't know what it is about honeycomb decorations, but I love 'em.

On Saturday afternoon, I actually managed to spend some time in the kitchen. I used to bake a lot, but these days I can barely manage to stay upright long enough to make toast. Okay, I only made super quick and easy, no bake goodies, and struggled like hell, but it was fun. I made two dozen cornflake cakes / bird nests, which were delicious, and quickly vanished over the weekend. So simple to make, but yet so good!

I also made a Nutella hazelnut cheesecake, which is another no-bake recipe, and pretty easy to make. The end result was a bit ugly and uneven, but it was absolutely delicious. 

I just had to share a photo of the dessert my sister made, and brought round for dinner yesterday. Doesn't it look amazing? I couldn't have any as I'm lactose in tolerant, but I think she said it's a lemon and peach mousse cake from a Hairy Bikers recipe.

If you're wondering about the Christmas mats... we ended up using them because my Mum couldn't find her other, non-festive ones! It was hilarious. I think I need to buy her some new ones. It shows just how often we all eat round the table together; two or three times a year, if we're lucky. 

I gave Easter eggs to my parents, sisters, and brother-in-law, but I couldn't resist giving them all a carton of Reese's Pieces eggs during dinner as an extra treat, too. I love Reece's Pieces, but this is the first time I've found American Easter goodies over here. I may have gotten a bit excited when I found them in Tescos a couple of weeks ago! I don't get out much...

My Easter loot. I'm looking forward to trying the Reece's Pieces eggs.

I challenged myself to watch this stack of DVDs, but I didn't get as far as the Chocolate Factory films. I have to watch Steel Magnolias every Easter without fail. I've been watching it every Easter since I was little, not just because it's one of my favourite films, but because it's insanely Easter-y. If you've never seen it, you really must!

I finished my Easter cross stitch over a month ago, but never managed to get it framed in time. I've pinned it up on my notice board instead, just for the weekend.

I gave myself a mint and lilac manicure. I thought it was about time I retired the dark Winter polishes for another year.

I wore this outfit yesterday, but didn't have the strength to pose for proper photos. I'm sorry they're so bad and grainy; I had to brighten them a lot as the daylight was so dark. I'll definitely snap photos of it outside this Spring; I loved wearing it, and will again. I'm wearing a red gingham Audrey dress from Lindy Bop, old mint green cardigan from New Look, old mint green bunny ears bag from ASOS, and a new tulip brooch from Cath Kidston.

No Easter bunnies were harmed in the making of this bag.

What did you get up to this Easter?

My First Mac Nail Polish

A couple of weeks ago, I treated myself to my very first Mac nail polish.

I don't often spend more than £3 or £4 on a nail polish, but when I spotted this polish on sale at The Cosmetics Company Store outlet shop at Bicester Village, I couldn't resist.

Yes, I'm wearing Care Bear pyjamas!

I was drawn to the unusual colours of this nail polish from ten feet away and went in for a closer look. The polish is called Formidable and turned out to be a very dark purple with a sapphire blue shimmer. To me it looked like petrol, and reminded me of Models Own Beetle polishes. 

It was on sale for £7.75 down from the RRP of £11, and as the price wasn't too outrageous, I had to take it home with me. But was it worth the splurge?

And the answer is... no, it wasn't! Let me tell you why...

I didn't waste any time in painting my nails with my new polish, using it later that same day.

The long brush was easy to handle and the polish painted on smoothly. Each coat dried within a minute, which I was very impressed with. I applied three coats to each nail, and waited until my manicure was bone dry before I let my hands come in to contact with anything. All seemed great... and I thought I was on to a winner, but within a couple of hours, several nails had already chipped! My hands had barely come in to contact with anything, certainly nothing that should've left my nails looking like an eroding week-old manicure. It's not something I would expect from an £11 nail polish; for that price I would expect something a little more hard-wearing than the budget drug store brands. 

As for the colour, it's a little darker than it appears in the bottle, and it's a little bit different to anything I've tried before. The purple is so dark that I often think it looks more like a chocolate brown (which I kinda like), and the pale blue shimmer is pretty but subtle. It's a very unusual colour combination, but it's not the worst shade of polish I've ever worn.

Here are a couple of shots of me wearing it:

Untouched photo. (Above).

Photo which has had basic auto adjustments. The colours are accurate. (Above).

So, sadly, I wasn't impressed with my first Mac nail polish. It started out well, but ended in disaster. I am surprised that a nail polish which would usually retail for £11 chipped so quickly. I've used £1 drug store polishes which have been far superior, and I think I'll be sticking with my old faithful budget brands from now on. 

I am left wondering why Mac is so popular, because I've not been impressed with their powder eyeshadows, either. Sorry, Mac, I'm not sure that we're ever going to get along. It's not me, it's you.

What are your thoughts on Mac?

Nails | You're a Canary, I'm a Gold Mine

The lyrics are: # You're a canary, I'm a coal mine... # but I couldn't resist using it for the title. I made the connection (to what I'm about to show you) and got the song stuck in my head.

Today I've got a quick manicure post to share with you. I can't even remember the last time I did a NOTD post, and I used to do them all the time; I don't know what happened there. I'm hoping to get back in to the swing of regular nail polish posts this year, and today I'm going to start with a new favourite of mine.

Over the festive season, I picked up a couple of Barry M glitter polishes to add some sparkle to December, and over the last month or so, I've become addicted to this one in particular: Barry M's Gold Mine Glitter. I love this polish so much I've used it at least a dozen times already, and will soon be needing a new bottle. 

I was expecting Gold Mine Glitter to be a clear top coat with black and gold glitter mixed in to the polish, but I was pleasantly surprised to learn it was a black polish that contains flecks of gold glitter. I would have loved it either way, but I think this glitter looks stunning on it's own without layering it over something else.

My photos really don't do this polish justice, but out of fifty shots these were the best I got. The manicure proved to be extremely difficult to capture in the Winter daylight. Just trust me on this one; it's beautiful. Far more beautiful than these photos suggest. It looks like gold dazzling in a jet black mine.

The polish becomes opaque in two to three coats, dries within a few minutes, and the result is the most grown-up and elegant glitter manicure I've ever seen. I don't know about you, but I think some glitter polishes seem better suited to kids and teenagers, and have me questioning whether I should still be applying glitter to my nails at twenty-eight. Not this one. It looks so glamourous and edgy at the same time, and doesn't leave me feeling like a five year old playing dress up. It's a polish I imagine Cinna would have accessorised Katniss' Mockingjay outfit with. 

I've found I get minimal chipping to my index finger nails after two or three days, and the rest remain unchipped for up to a week! It's a fantastic polish for just £2.99, and it's already made it's way in to my top five favourites. You should be able to find Gold Mine Glitter in Boots and Superdrug in store and online, and on Barry M's own website. I've also seen Barry M polishes available in River Island, ASOS, and Amazon. 

It's my perfect cure for the January blues!

Flowers, Freckles, and Fantasy Fire

It feels like it's been months since I last posted some photos up on the blog. Months. Decades, even. It's probably only been a couple of weeks at most in reality, but I suppose in the blogging world a fortnight without selfies, OOTD shots, and snap by snap chronicles of every meal eaten is practically a century. Maybe two.

The short winter days make taking photos in actual daylight tricky for me, as I don't sleep well due to the pain I'm in, and am pretty much nocturnal these days because of that. I haven't actually seen an awful lot of daylight since the clocks changed. Half an hour, here and there. I may be a vampire. I've been trying to normalise my sleeping pattern for the last two years, but it's still being as stubborn as I am! Damn you, pain!

I've barely been out of the pyjamas in the last few weeks, either, because I've been struggling with the pain and feeling like crap, but I'm hoping to get back in to the swing of things soon. I've got a few ideas up my sleeves for pre-Christmas posts, I just need to find my motivation and lose the writer's block to get cracking on them.

For today, though, I thought I'd share a manicure and a few shots from the garden I took back in October...

I've had these photos saved in my folders for weeks now, unsure of what to do with them. I didn't know whether to share or store them.

The nail polish I'm wearing is a Maxfactor Max Effect Mini Nail Polish in Fantasy Fire. It's one of my favourite polishes in my collection, even though it takes four coats for decent coverage and costs £3.99 for a mini bottle. I've gone through a few bottles in the past year, and I allow it as a little treat since you only get about four or five wears out of the bottle. (It's just so pretty!) Although, a coat of it also looks great over other polishes like lilac and red, which is a way of making it go further.

This gorgeous iridescent polish in a mixture of deep purple, violet, blue, red, green, and gold, and it looks pretty in all lights and all seasons. I love wearing it.

Some photos I took in the garden back in October.

It looks prettier next to the purple flowers. Don't ask me what they are. I haven't a clue.

So, I am sorry for the lack of decent posts and the tumble weeds rolling across Polka Spots and Freckle Dots these past few weeks, but I'm sure normal service will resume soon. I hope you don't mind my dull posts for the time being!

Oh, and I'm slowly giving the blog the face lift it desperately needs, so apologies for the appearance while I work on it!

Red Velvet and Reindeer

I've been going really stir crazy over the last couple of weeks. I've learnt to deal with being house bound and stuck in bed most of the time, and I accept it- but every now and then I get really frustrated with being cooped up, and would give anything to get out of the house. Anything to be out in the fresh air, just doing normal every day things... things that I used to take for granted. The ~cabin fever~ usually passes after a day or three, but I still miss living my life outside the confines of these four walls. I miss having the freedom to live a normal life; to go wherever and do whatever I want to do; to make plans or act on impulse, and just be me, I guess... but, c'est la vie. One day it will end.

My sister gave me a temporary break from captivity at the end of the week by taking me to Sainsburys for groceries. (Ooh, aah!) Yes, I live such an exciting existance! I did come home with a new jumper, though, so it wasn't all bad. I wore it out in to the garden the next day to get some fresh air, and test out my new boots on the patio.

It may only be mid-October, but yes, I'm wearing a reindeer jumper! I regret nothing. 

I saw the jumper in Sainsburys and I couldn't leave without it. (Mostly because my sister wouldn't have allowed me to). I don't know what it is, but I love fairisle patterns, especially on knitwear. My Mum used to dress me in the things when I was little, and then I spent the next decade or so avoiding them like the plague... it's funny how tastes change, and styles come back in to fashion again. Fairisle prints and Christmas jumpers are everywhere again. Bill Cosby would be proud! 

The jumper is so thickly knitted, and so cosy. It'll be perfect when Winter sets in. It was really chilly (and raining) when I took these photos, but I felt lovely and warm wearing it. The background is cream, and the pattern is in red and navy, with a burgundy reindeer. It was only £20, which is a pretty good price for a lovely, good quality sweater.

I had an urge to try it with my black velvet sparkly skater skirt that I bought from New Look last Winter, and opaque tights, and I really like how all these pieces look together. I'm not hugely comfortable in jeans, but I think the jumper looks cute over a skirt. I think I'll be trying to recreate looks like this through Autumn and Winter.

I was also wearing my new studded ankle boots from Simply Be that I treated myself to a month or so ago. This was the first time I'd worn them out of the house, and although I was a little underwhelmed when I first got them, I'm now loving them more and more each time I look at them. Looking at these photos, I think they look quite nice on. The colour is lovely, and they fit so well. They're wide-fitting boots (I got the EEE as I've got really wide feet), and I don't think I've ever had a pair of boots that fit so well. They're so comfortable, and there's even width to spare! I must get the other colours!

Who says a girl can't sparkle on a dreary drizzly Friday in October??

Close ups of the pattern, and my messy red hair.

The boots are a rich burgundy, and they are studded on the outer sides. Sorry about the crap photos. The zip feature makes it super easy to get them on and off. Always a bonus with wide feet!

I wore my anchor ASOS ring.

And I wore an old Evans ring on my other hand, which is missing a couple of gems and looks unsightly, but I still love it. 

I went for a burgundy nail polish (Barry M's 'Raspberry'), and added a red and black glitter polish to the tops of the nails (Barry M's 'Ruby Glitter'.

Outfit Details

Jumper-TU at Sainsburys // Skirt-New Look Inspire- Tights-Evans // Boots-Simply Be // 

Anchor Ring-ASOS // Black Gem Ring-Evans // Nail Polishes-Barry M

Well, I don't know about you, but I think I've found myself a casual Christmas outfit!