No drama, just good stuff....Models Own Mystic Mauve

I spend too much time lusting after collections that are either too expensive or simply unavailable that I forget we have a great brand of our own here in the UK. I refer to Models Own.

Their foil polishes are simply magnificent and, thinking back, I have never had a bad Models Own. So there. Sorry, Models Own. I will try to appreciate you better.

Mystic Mauve. 2 coats. Foil. Would look better on younger (unridged) nails but I have what I have.
(That was easy...)

My left hand now sports short nails but I'm letting the nails on my right grow. They look OK.
Jenni

In the nude....

Models Own Nayla Nude to be precise

 

I saw this on a blog somewhere/somewhen and really craved it. Got it in a 3-pastel set from asos. £12. Good value.

• 2/3 coats. I wasn't being very careful. It's not a brilliant formula but it's OK. A bit gloopy.
• It reminds me of MAC Brown Bag. Can anyone comment authoritatively on that? I've always hankered after that but I'm kinda anti-MAC without knowing exactly why...
• I like it a lot. Whilst sometimes not liking it. Which is good. One likes to be entertained.
• Will go down as one of my beloved fuglies with Misa Hot Couture and so forth.
• Finally - who has this natural skin-tone? Nude? In which country? Or indeed on which planet? Maybe I don't know enough people...

Jenni

What would a perfect world be like?

Models Own Utopia

Because, without looking it up, that's what I suppose Utopia to be. Perfect world.
I have wanted this polish longtime.

• It is pastel and it is a bit streaky. 3 coats for sure. You have to get a lot of polish on the brush. Easy it's not. Not by any stretch.
• But the colour is unusual. I have over 1000 polishes now and it's unique in my stash.
• Luckily I lemmed it and I love it.
• Is it pink, lavender, lilac? Don't know.
• The photo makes my hands look lobster but that's not the case irl.

You know any dupes for this?

Jenni

Models Own Lili's Pink

Yuk. This colour is just awful on me. 2 coats. I'm the problem. Not the polish. I wore it 'as is' last night and all the women of my age were wearing plain pink nail polish. I felt so old. I'm not doing that again. So I tried to funk it up. Don't know which was worse. The original or the 'improvements'. Gloom. Gloom.

Just see where a hole punch and some sticky labels gets ya...

Upcoming will be some 2True polishes, Nubar Wildlife, Benefit Dr Feelgood and a trio of Models Own.

Your most shocking mani?

Jenni

Models Own Green Flash

One of a bunch of foils I got. Some kind of sale price.

The teensiest weensiest bit brush-strokey. Hence the addition of CG Fairy Dust on nails 2, 3 and 4. Also you do have to load the brush a bit to avoid bald spots and dragging. Quite a nice colour and can easily be tarted up with (for example) Party Hearty.

In some lights it seems to suit me and in others it gives me lobster-claws. Overall I intend it to be a stayer as I don't fancy scrubbing it off any time soon.

Oo, I am expecting a haul. A secret haul! A brand I haven't had before. I am foolishly excited by this.

The clue is: 'Stage direction - someone can be heard at the door....'

Possibly too cryptic or indeed entirely incomprehensible.
Jenni

Models Own Champagne

Feeling in a 'gold' mood. Ironic as Champagne isn't exactly gold.

The ring nail has a layer of CND something for which I paid relatively dearly as I had no CND and wanted to rectify the omission.  It's quite nice under artificial light at night. That's as gushing as I'm going to get about it. The Models Own is a very good foil. 2 coats. Make sure you load the brush though or it's Streak City.

Tomorrow something positively ugly. Today is good. There is no bad. Unless tomorrow's effort can combine bad AND ugly. And it just may.

Awaiting 2 hauls. A BB Couture since I can never refuse a BB offer. 5 for the price of 3 to UK customers. And more Models Own. Bought a cracking (well, they look it in the photos) pair of boots on ebay.

Got to do some serious Christmas shopping in the next 2 days. Cash for the kids. They're always skint. Goodies for the OH. Fair Trade jewellery for colleagues. Warm trousers for my little grandson.

What kind of Christmas shopper/giver are you?
A smug did it in February really really cheaply
B lavish - flashy, expensive, ostentatious
C anxious - they will love this brooch, won't they - maybe they won't - but what do YOU think? - this one or maybe the other one? - oh, I'm not sure now
D make personalised crafty gifts from recycled ribbon and tin cans
E hey, that's what Christmas Eve is for - present-buying - chillax
F as E only with panic and hysteria

Jenni

Rimmel Sky High + Models Own Slate Green

Seems to me I either always wear these shades or pinks!

I love these though. I did go through a spell of detesting cremes but the Boots ridge filler has improved my relationship therewith.

Got these because there's a stack of reductions on asos. The Rimmel was £2 and I do like the 60 seconds brush while the MO was £3. They have a clutch of Ciate reduced and some Illamasqua. In short, I got 5 polishes for about £13. The manner of their packaging left much to desired and it is a minor miracle that they arrived unscathed. Don't recall having had that problem with asos before. The dread inspired by the clinking of bottles as one carries the parcel to the kitchen. Ta DA da da da da da da ta DA da da............
In this case the shark left me unmolested (you do know that was the "Jaws" theme, yes?) and I lived to paint my nails.

Rimmel - 2 coats
MO - a frustrating 3 to 4 before full un-streakiness was achieved

Must show you the Ciate on the RH tomorrow. If I had a mortar and pestle (and indeed there ought to be such implements lurking somewhere close to hand) and some red glitter I could grind the glitter to fine particles, add them to the Ciate polish and voila! I'd have Paradoxal. Honestly.

Which colours (if any) do you find yourself subconsciously gravitating towards?

Jenni

Six assorted eyeliners + nails + the history bit

Eyeliner

From l to r (1st 3)

An ancient Guerlain - it still works and I'm not chucking it as it's Guerlain - anyway just look at the swatch!
UD - Metalhead (pretty sparkle but no inherent colour to speak of)
UD - Honey (but it's gold)

UD - Ecstasy

Dr Hauschka - black (see how fine a line this brush creates!)

Eyeko Magic with Models Own Aquavit Ripened Raisin - the magic (if such it be) lies in the use of this to pick up pigment from cake eyeshadow and thus be an eyeliner for all seasons BUT does it work? And why does an eyeshadow need such a ludicrously long name? Cheesh.

TBH I don't really know because I don't actually use any of these products. I bought them and tried them but my eyes are increasingly resistant to embellishment and adornment and therefore rebel by producing tears so these items are largely redundant. Boo hiss. I only bought the Eyeko a couple of weeks ago knowing full well that it would prove of no use to me due to allergies but nonetheless I proceeded. I sometimes have no more sense than next door's cat. And that is pretty stupid as it tends to lie prone before the wheels of moving vehicles!

Rainbow Pink with Canmake glitter topping (polishes still courtesy of Green Fairy/Polished Serenity)



The history bit - about eyeliner of course!! An item (plus explanation) from the British Museum.

"Perhaps from Thebes, Egypt
18th dynasty, about 1500-1440 BC.

Kohl pot, with texts

The owner of this object, Ahmose of Peniati, served as overseer of works to many of the kings of the early Eighteenth Dynasty, from Amenhotep I to Thutmose III. This pot for kohl, a black cosmetic for the eyes, is likely to have come from his tomb. The pot is divided into five compartments, four of which have associated texts on the outside. One says 'fine eye paint for every day', while the other three refer to the beginning and the end of each of the three main Egyptian seasons of four months each. This suggests that different forms of the cosmetic might have been used at different times of the year. A small protrusion on the top formed a swivel for the lid, which has not survived, while on the outside is a knob for tying it shut. Between two of the tubes is a metal loop which would have held the applicator stick."

So it was not just packaged but labelled and they had seasonal collections!!! And don't forget the applicator stick!!

A hot and bothered

Jennifer

Models Own Blue Moon + Dusty Mauve

Ingredients
See above
Boots expert  nail ridge filler
Misa Breakneck
Use of Mac iPhoto to edit major imperfections

Method
1 Apply ridge filler
2 Apply 1st coat of polish
3 Apply 2nd coat
4 Apply further coat (if necessary according to taste)
5 Wait 5 minutes before applying topcoat
6 Evaluate

Evaluation
Very pretty. Moon is a blue foil. Not unique but easy to apply and a typical foil
Mauve -  on the nail a soft grey but in the bottle more complex (see below)

Extension activity (sorry, I've lapsed into teacher-ese)
Very pretty but I messed up with a coupla dents'n'dings so the ol' Fairy Dust had to come to the rescue.

Voila. My most-used and rapidly thickening polish.
I am far too tight to buy a bottle of Seche Restore and I know not to thin it  (attempt to anyway) with remover so have you any budget tips for me, please?

Or I shall be very sad.......
I don't want my Fairy Dust to die! Help my Fairy Dust to live, I beg you!

Tatty bye
Jenni

Models Own haul - gang of 5

Less than 48 hours
Free P&P
You'd better hope Eng-er-land beat Germany on Sunday if you want 20% off a little bundle of beauties under the Models Own "Surely that sorry bunch'll never win anything so we can offer loads of discounts to punters safe in the knowledge that we won't have to make good on our promise" WE SUPPORT ENGLAND campaign.

Cr@ppy pic of:
Dusty Mauve
Nude Beige
Pink Lady
Champagne
Blue Moon

These look way better IRL.
I'm going to pick 2 now to do a mani with but won't post until tomorrow.
Short of time today, I fear.

KarenD of Frazzle and Aniploish (http://thekarend.blogspot.com/) me with one of these - for which I thank her.

I have to nominate 5 others and I'm going to devote some time to that before launching in. I also have to write about 5 other things but more of that anon.


OK, I can't leave you without a pic so for a LAUGH (a LAUGH) I am posting my beyond-feeble isn't-this-the-lamest-nailart-ever photo of my cherry blossom effort from February (?).

Actually that blue looks OK but the alleged flower (!) is beyond words cruddy.
Just shows I have more confidence now. I had about 2 followers when I did this and didn't dare expose it to public view but ........well, it's in the public domain. Oh, and the cuticles and.......

Bet Karen wouldn't have tagged me if she'd seen THAT!

Vow to self - must do better.

Onwards and upwards
Jenni-fur

MODELS OWN - 25% discount!!! Free P&P

Remember the deal? England wins a match and for 24 hours you get the discount...

I just ordered 5 for £12.79 including P&P.

Plus they seem to have some new colours. Now these may have been around a while but they are new to me and may just be new to you.

Go now. Go.

Code is

COMEONENGLAND

Jen

Never say I'm not good to you....