NOTD - Anna Sui Inspired Florals!

Hello there lovely readers!

Another day another floral look! I think its obvious florals are LIFE for me when it comes to nail art, ooooh they just make me swoon with happiness & this particular nail art design is no exception, I think this may be my most favorite floral look for a while!

NOTD - Anna Sui New York Fashion Week Inspired Nails

Hello there lovely readers!

I have a bit of a backlog at the moment of nail art that I want to share on this here blog, as I've mentioned before I've been partaking in a few nail art challenges on Instagram of late which are not only fun but have been really good for me to get creative & challenge myself when it comes to my nail art which as you know I love!

You can have a peek at my Instagram of course (@aysh_xox) where I've been regularly posting my designs but seeing as I have this space on the interwebs too, I wanted to share them on here as well.

I LOVE finding inspiration for nail art in EVERYTHING. However one of my favourite places to seek inspo is in the world of fashion. There really is so much room to have fun & explore. One of the first challenges I took part in, I was overjoyed upon hearing Fashion was the theme. 

I went to browsing online for a piece to inspire me & I was immediately caught by this beautiful Anna Sui dress that Gigi walked on the runway during New York Fashion Week & I simply had to recreate it on my nails.

Introducing Linziclip - The Innovative New Claw Clip!

Hello there lovely readers!

Now, when it comes to my hair I have two styles...down & straight...or pulled back in a pony or clip. I know...exciting huh? If I'm feeling particularly adventurous then I'll dig out the curling wand/crimper/waver to add a bit of OOMPH as it were, however I have tasked myself with the job of watching as many YouTube hair tutorials in the hope of advancing my hair skills.

In the mean time, butterfly claw clips are my go to accessory for when I want my long hair out of the way. However as much as I love them, these can also be a tad troublesome....bulky sized making leaning back an uncomfortable task, insecure/loose grip, poking into the scalp painfully etc. But I'm happy to share with you beauties a nifty little invention that was recently brought to my attention & has made all aforementioned problems a thing of the past...

Let me introduce you to the *Linziclip, a new & innovative claw clip accessory that has been manufactured in an entirely new concept that is not only easy to use, but grips the hair securely & is supremely comfortable to wear thanks to its nifty design.

What makes Linziclip so special I hear you ask? Thanks to the clever designing of a flat back, the teeth & springs of the clip are nicely hidden & best of all you are able to lean back in comfort without having the claws digging into your scalp as is the case with the majority of butterfly claw clips & is a major nuisance I'm sure you'll agree!

The Linziclip is available in not just one but three different sizes...

A large maxi claw for when you wish to loop up & secure your entire length of hair up.

A midi claw which is more suited for medium to thicker hair & is perfect for putting back part of the hair for a half up half down look.

And finally you can also get these adorable itty bitty mini clips which are suitable for all hair types & great for securing sections of hair from the sides.

Here I've used the midi clip, which comes in a variety of different designs & colours, this one has an adorable daisy print. I find the midi Linziclip to be perfect for securing back the top & side sections, leaving the back length loose in a casual style.

The grip of the Lenziclips is fantastic, once in place it does not shift, no stray hairs slip from the teeth & the best thing of all is that you can lean back in your seat in comfort, whilst driving, heck even lie down & you won't have it digging into your scalp.

I am utterly digging these Linziclips & have happily locked away all my old butterfly clips to a thing of the past. I've also noticed a few mysteriously going walkies after 'lending' to the bestie & mother ship...*eyebrow raise* tis a good thing I love them ;)

The Linziclips range in price from £3.50 to £8.00 depending on design & size which is a bargain & you can find them on Amazon & Ebay. Thanks for reading!

Lotsa love to ya!

Disclaimer - * products featured were sent to me for my consideration. I am not affiliated with the brand nor paid for this post, this review has been as always my 100% honest opinion! :)

What I Wore...Pirating

Hey there lovely readers!

Mixing things up a tad in between all the nail art action with a little "What I Wore" post for you today lovelies!

As you might know already if you follow me on social media (@Aysh_tmb) one of my current obsessions is the shopping app DEPOP, I'm forever going on about it & its become my go to place to browse first. I've found some amazing clothes/shoes purchases on there, all for bargainous prices, including a brand new Pyon Lolita coat for £40 & most recently a new pair of LE Irregular Choice loafers for a tenner! So yup, I am a hardcore Depop-er, send help ;)

Today's outfit includes another recent Depop purchase...some sleek new booties. I was after a pair of knee highs as my current ones were getting a bit worse for wear & came across this lovely pair from Next that seemed to fit the bill nicely.

They are made from sturdy leather which is great for battling the elements, lets face it in England thats a necessity as you never know when the heavens will open most unpredictably! A bit of a heel twas also a requirement for the height challenged individual that is yours truly & the length hitting to just below the knee is perfect.

The outfit itself consists of a vintage blouse with a bit of old age sleeve action going on that was picked up donkeys ago from a charity shop yet still remains one of my favs, I heart bell sleeves muchly, instantly transforming what would be an ordinary piece into something more feminine. It was a tad chilly (Spring where are you?!) so I threw on a trusty black t shirt underneath.

On top of that I threw on my Topshop velvet black playsuit, another fav, I always get lovely comments on this whenever I wear it, not only is it pretty, soft & BLACK (the goth girl is content) but its so darn cosy too! Except maybe when one needs to use the washroom & forgets until the last minute that you're wearing a one piece...*cue speedy panicked unzipping* O_o

Leggings were required to finish the outfit. All together the ensemble kinda bought pirate vibes to mind, but I managed to hold myself back from adding an eye patch to complete the look. Perhaps next time. Thanks as always for stopping by beauts!

Lotsa love to ya!

NOTD - Louboutin Inspired Gradient Nails

Hello there my lovely readers!

Aaaah Louboutins...a name I'm sure many are familiar with & whose iconic shoes are present on most gals wish lists! I'm still yet to be fortunate enough to call a pair my own but one day...it will be. The same goes for the beautiful Louboutin nail polish with its stunning bottle, I confess its mostly for the bottle that I want it...one day you WILL be mine!

In the mean time I guess I can still get my wee fix by using the infamous red & black colours to inspire my nail art which is what I've done today with these Louboutin inspired gradient nails...

I wasn't entirely happy with how these came out if I'm honest, I'm still practicing doing gradients with darker colours which I'm finding a tad more tricky so do forgive me! This was one of those manis that looked much better at distance haha! But practice makes perfect so I'll persevere for sure :)

For my Louboutin nails I of course required a nice red & black polish, here I've used W7 Black & Bad Apple Red Delicious.

To start first apply a coat of red polish as your base to do your gradient on top of, then wait for it to completely dry.

Then grab a piece of makeup sponge, I guess you can use any old sponge but I like using these. I pick up a bag from good old Poundworld.

The gradient will go from red to black so apply a stripe of each shade side by side onto your sponge, then dab onto the nail with up/down, side to side motions to create your faded gradient look.

Do this a few times, adding more polish to your sponge, to get a nice opaque finish or until your happy with the effect. To finish I also dabbed a bit of Ulta3 Outasight which is a black glitter, onto the tips for an added touch.

Go over with a nice thick coat of topcoat & you're done! Now gradients can be messy, I used ZAP!, a liquid latex nail art skin protector to help with the clean up part of this manicure,which I'll be reviewing in full for you in my next post so do keep posted for that!

FYI the ring bling is Hugo Sophia :) Thanks for reading lovelies!

Lotsa love to ya!

What I Wore...Glitter Goth

Hello there lovely readers!

Blimey January is a toughie eh? That struggle of re-joining the gym which is still pending action & you wonder if it EVER will...the excruciatingly slow wait for the next pay day to come round *gazes far in to the abyss*... I'd gotten so used to 3 or 4 day weeks in the last month of December that getting back into the swing of a five day working week is proving a hard task! A holiday is required methinks to counter all this stress, but good news is that New York episode 2 is officially booked & confirmed for June this year & I cannot WAIT! *cue happy dance* After falling head over heels with the city last year I knew I'd be returning for sure & to do so in the summer months where hopefully the weather will be good is the cherry on top. 

Anyhoos trooping onwards for now with a wee outfit post for you today beauts, just to mix it up a tad.

Those who know me well know that bargain hunting is a task I take seriously & not without a touch of pride! Snapping up a good deal is most satisfying, Depop is my addiction, having discovered some ace finds, most recently a Vintage Star Wars skirt featured HERE as well as a new Lolita coat which I nabbed for only £40! As they retail for up to £200 I think that definitely qualifies as a bargain buy. When it comes to shopping in stores I tend to be more weary, I don't do well in crowds & often the sale racks look like a bomb site that breaks me out in a sweat to even contemplate facing! However there is the rare occasion where I manage to discover a treasure hidden away, one such find was this piece of glitter goodness in H&M no less.

GLITTAAH! Oh yus the inner pixie was definitely happy with this sparkly number as well as satisfying my dark soul ;) I do have a soft spot for H&M as they occasionally roll out stellar items like this divine long tee with skeleton rib-cage detail along the front & sleeves covered in beautiful turquoise glitter, its glinting was what caused me to pause whilst strolling by.

The shirt is made up from a thin black see through cotton, very comfy but some underlining twas required, wouldn't want to flash any dodgy parts haha! This was rectified with the simple addition of a long sleeve black t shirt which in this current freezing climate we are experiencing was necessary too! Layers for the win.

I am a lover & loyal wearer of dresses, nothing makes me feel happier than donning a swirling skirt & I'd say 80% of my wardrobe is entirely made up of swishy numbers of some sort, so this is quite different for me. However I adore channeling the gothic vibes on occasion also so this satisfies that perfectly.

Here I've teamed it with some velvet baroque leggings from Zara & my Biker Boots which were a Debenhams purchase many moons ago, finishing the look with a bit of waist cinching courtesy of a gothic leather belt.

So yup definitely happy with this addition to my wardrobe! Thanks as always for reading beauties! Next time your passing by H&M do have a browsy through their sales section, you never what treasures you might find ;)

Lotsa love to ya

Star Wars Storm Trooper Nails & What I Wore....

Hello there lovely readers!

Still very much on the Star Wars high here dolls. I thought I'd share with you the nails & outfit I wore to watch the film with my gang of fellow sci fi fans last week. Don't worry I didn't go as an ewok or jawa or any of the other wonderful suggestions my work colleagues kindly recommended to someone of my height... O_o Though there were a few Jedi's Knights strolling about!

I did however manage to nab this beaut one off piece vintage skirt from Depop, my favourite shopping app, I am seriously addicted to it! You can find such great bargains, I recently picked up a stunning brand new Lolita coat for a fraction of the retail price & this was another one of my finds. Do excuse the quick mirror selfie snaps! But...at least I can show you my snazzy new phone cover... ;) Also a Depop purchase!

The skirt is originally from brand MyTribe & made from the most superb vintage Return of The Jedi print material, with an elasticated waist, no belt is required so I can eat to my hearts content whilst wearing it which is most important. I paired it with a simple black lace top & knee high boots. It may be my new favourite piece & will definitely get a lot of loving! 

Moving on to the nails, if you caught my LAST POST you'll know that I recently recreated some R2D2 nails! As much as I loved these, the design was a bit palpitation inducing with its detail so for this occasion I decided to simplify it a tad with some black & white storm trooper nails!

For these you need just a white & black polish or nail art pen which I'm sure every gal has in her arsenal :)

For my white base I used two coats of Models Own White Out Hypergel, I absolutely love this range of polishes from Models Own, the white especially is guaranteed a glossy smooth opaque finish & they are also great for gradients!

I decided to use black polish with a fine brush instead of a nail art pen but use whatever you fell most confident with! Dipping your brush into you polish, start with two triangular shapes side by side for the storm troopers eyes.

Then draw a slightly upwards curved horizontal line above the eyes for the top of the helmet. Next draw another curved line, this one curving downwards below the eyes for the mouth.

Finish with three small vertical lines on the tips of the nails below the mouth to complete the ventilator of the mask.

Topcoat & that's it! I would've like to have added more detail but these were done in a rush as is obvious from a few of the lines looking more like grimaces haha! Storm troopers with gas alas.

Thanks as always for reading & may the force be with you always my lovelies!

Lotsa love to ya!

What I Wore - Seventies Suede & Scallop Edges ft Luxemme

Hey there lovely readers,

Happy Sunday! Are you having a good weekend? Currently recuperating from a recently returned break to the lovely city of Edinburgh. I've always wanted to visit & it definitely met expectations & then some! At just under an hours plane ride away its guaranteed to be a place I see myself returning to again! :)

Thought I'd mix things up a tad with something a bit different on the blogaroony today, I was delighted to be contacted by new fashion brand Luxemme recently for the opportunity to do a wee collaboration with them, after swooning completely over the range online I couldn't say no!

Luxemme is a new luxury fashion brand whose range of pieces embodies sophisticated Parisian chic with cool clean cut Manchester street style. After having a browse at some of the gorgeous pieces on offer I decided to opt for the Charisse Suede Crop Scallop Two Piece Co-ord & style it in a way ideal for the now much colder months with the help of some Parisian vibed black layering action....

I confess, going for a co-ord was WAY out of my comfort zone, for ages I've been drooling over the trend of two piece outfits consisting of crop tops, paired with either shorts or midi skirts. However I've always been self conscious about baring my midriff as, to be quite blunt & TMI here, I suffer from bloatedness & will never possess a washboard stomach! No joke but by the end of the day I often have the appearance of one who is expecting a wee bundle of joy! Even when it comes to swimsuits I always go for one pieces instead of bikinis O_O However one of the reasons why I love Autumn...LAYERS! Thus I decided to style my suede two piece with a polo neck, leggings, some knee high booties & voila, a two piece co-ord outfit styled in a way I can wear, hurrah!

It was with much eagerness in which I opened up the package containing my first two piece, the combination of camel suede & scalloped edges had me excited with its interesting mix of seventies retro & safari like vibes!

I'm not going to lie to you, I may have spent a short time simply rubbing that smooth suede against the cheek, I couldn't help myself. I can confirm it IS very soft...*tumbleweed* AHEM! Moving on I decided to keep with the seventies vibe & dug out my favourite Clarks suede knee high boots & a black polo neck with leggings to complete the look.

The outfit was so comfortable to wear & I am utterly in love with this two piece. I hope you liked the Autumn/Winter friendly styling of the co-ord lovelies! I'm already eyeing up more of their delightful range, especially the playsuits! The Luxemme range can be found online & you can even get 10% off your order using my code trulymadlybeauty :)

Thanks for reading!

Lotsa love to ya!