NOTD: Isadora "Hot Chocolate"

I am not sure when this polish came out but I remember seeing a swatch some years ago online, and I wanted it. This is in the old-style Isadora bottle so it must be a few years old at least? However, I managed to score this in the bargain bin at Xmas in Sweden :) Gotta love bargain bins! Again I ask myself why Isadora doesn't launch in UK?.. I have so much makeup from this brand and generally the products are top notch. I am currently road testing a new foundation from there, I will share in due course...


This is streaky but that cool brown shimmer just does it for me! This is 3 coats and a slick of MegaShine. I just love it :) I am starting to be tickled by the pastel spring colours now, but for some reason I needed to wear brown today!

Today's bonus photo is not of my new tarantula baby (in case some of you don't like spiders!) but my cat Elvis doing his 'cat-yoga' :P


If you DO like tarantulas you can see my little spider baby and other invertebrate pets on my other blog!

NOTD: Isadora "Beetle Green"

This is another one of my xmas present polishes. This is 2 coats with MegaShine top coat. I wasn't sure if I would like this, as it looked great in the bottle but  once on your nails, in low light it looks like one of those annoying 'nearly black' polishes. But once in the light it gives off this gorgeous teal glow! And the formula is super smooth and opaque, so I think it's 3 stars :) But as it looks so dull in low light, it's only 3.

Lina-Elvira loves it this much:

♥ ♥ ♥ 

NOTD: Color Club "Holiday Splendor" layering

So I am back to work tomorrow after an obscenely long holiday, so I needed something sparkly to cheer me up :) I've been rather inactive lately, I've not worn polish since Wednesday last week. Please excuse the lobster hands in this photo, my hands are so dry and raw from the cold weather in Sweden. They are slowly coming around from using gallons of Burt's Bees Hand Salve. I love this hand salve; it's really rich and almost oily, but works itself into your skin fairly quickly, and it smells lovely too :) I wish I'd brought it on holiday with me but I was sure my Mum would have a good hand cream. She didn't...

This is 2 coats of Bourjois "Bleu Model" which I got for Xmas and then I did a strip of Color Club "Holiday Splendor".  I slapped on a lot of MegaShine top coat to level out the coarser glitter polish. Me likey! :)

Lina-Elvira loves it this much:

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Morrgan the Fat Cat fishes for his next dinner...

"Yum yum...."

Morrgan is the largest of my Mum's (all very large) British Shorthair cats. He is the only one who takes an interest in the goldfish, the others prefer to stick to very expensive cat food... :)

Birthday NOTD: China Glaze "Purple Panic"

This is another polish my brother bought for me for my Xmas! I wouldn't say I classify this as purple?... Mine look more cool-toned neon pink with an intense glow. I am still away so struggling with the lighting of my photos.

This is 2 coats, the first photo is without top coat to show how nice and satin-y it dries naturally and the second photo is with Depend Quick and Shine top coat. I am not sure if I prefer the satin finish maybe? Reminds me a bit of my old favourite matte - OPI "La Paz-itively Hot Matte".

This was ok to apply but as with all neon and matte polishes, you have to be careful and fairly quick to apply the polish.

Lina-Elvira loves it this much:

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

NOTD: Essie "Lovie Dovie"

My brother bought me this polish and several other lovely presents for my Xmas :) its a lovely bright pink creme -  this is 2 coats with the Depend top coat.

NOTD: Maybelline "Green Miracle"

"Dear ACETONE, I am breaking up with you - we both know this affair will only lead to heartbreak and peeling nails... I love you, but.. It has to end.
                            Yours forever, Lina-Elvira"

Although I'm glad my Mum had some acetone today, as "Black Galaxy" was hell to remove!! :O Even with the awesome power of acetone, I guess 5 layers of base/polish/top coat is hard to dissolve...

To today's nails; I've wanted this polish for a while but I've never seen it in the UK? I am sure Maybelline/L'Oreal/various other 'worldwide' brands market different stuff in different countries. I mean, hello, the UK didn't get to share the love of L'Oreal's awesome magnetic polishes in 2008??

Anyway. Today however I scored in the Åhlens shop in Bollnäs :) I also scored another couple polishes but plenty of time to show them later! This is 3 coats of "Green Miracle" and then a coat of Depend Quick & Shine top coat. Its not as quick as you may wish for but it'll do. I wasn't impressed with the formula and brush, it's stringy and messy to apply. Supposedly '100% precision' - don't make me laugh, Maybelline... But the colour is very cool so I still like it :) It reminds me of an all-time fave - China Glaze "Gussied-up Green" (which I appear never to have shown as a mani???).

The backdrop is the new magazine for beauty in Sweden called 'Visage', it's really good :) Only beauty stuff and treatments, no fashion which of late I find kind of tedious to be honest. I miss mags like this in the UK - I used to love Marie Claire Health & Beauty!

Lina-Elvira loves it this much:

♥ ♥ ♥