Polishes -Barry M - Barry M. 
clairyfairy 3/22/2011 6:44:00 PM
Barry M has a great range of bright fun colours, certainly the best range available at the price however I'm used to OPI polishes so the quality of Barry M just isn't there for me. I find them a bit too gloopy and not opaque enough. With a bit of effort and a decent top coat you can get a reasonable application but even then they never seem to last as long. They also make good dupes of the fashionable colours of the season so if you want to get the paradoxical colour without the price tag it's perfect. There are great for fancy dress or nail art that you're not bothered about the durability of, I use them for water marbling a fair bit, but for everyday nail polish I stick to OPI.
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Eye Shadow -MAC - Claire de Lune
clairyfairy 3/22/2011 11:36:00 AM
This is an okay shadow, not MAC's best offering by far. It's a neutral pale beige with a pink duotone. I really don't like the duotone it just seems to make my eye makeup look really uneven. It works okay as a highlighter, but there are better highlighters out there. It might work better on someone with a different skin tone. Wouldn't buy it again.
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Concealers -BeneFit Cosmetics - You're Bluffing [DISCONTINUED]
clairyfairy 3/21/2011 10:13:00 PM
I have really red cheeks which I used to just cover up with vast amounts of foundation which gave a very heavy make up effect. With you're bluffing I can put a few swipes on my cheeks blend a bit with my fingers and the red in my cheeks is totally toned down. I don't really feel that I need foundation with this. A great product basically but I only gave four lippies because it sometimes moves about a bit on me.
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Mascara -The Body Shop - Big and Curvy Mascara
clairyfairy 3/21/2011 10:04:00 PM
This is the best mascara I have tried so far. I have naturally long curly lashes and don't really mind if my mascara isn't the blackest black so the only thing I look for in a mascara is lack of smudging. Most mascaras smudge onto the area just under the outside corners of my eyes throughout the day leaving me with darker and darker panda eyes as the day goes on. This one seems to smudge (slightly- only a true make up obsessive would notice) once, I can wipe the smudge off and then carry on with no major make up rehaul needed. It does go clumpy and nasty after a few months but I chuck my mascaras regularly enough for this not to bother me. The mascara wand is really good and allows you to get mascara right down to the root of the lash and also do your lower lashes. I'm still looking for a better mascara but this will do for me for the moment. And I have already repurchased.
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Polishes -OPI - Dulce de Leche
clairyfairy 3/21/2011 9:50:00 PM
This is my absolute favorite nail colour by OPI, it's my go to colour for pretty much any situation. It's a beautiful but subtle neutral with just a hint of pink. I find a lot of other nudes too yellow for my skin but this one works really well for me. Quality is standard OPI opaque in 2-3 coats, not streaky and lasts at least 5 days with my current combo of natural nails as a base coat and inm Out the door as a top coat.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Polishes -OPI - Jade is the New Black
clairyfairy 3/21/2011 9:39:00 PM
I'm not usually into green polishes but I do really like jade is the new black. It manages to avoid being vampy or garish and doesn't making my hands look dead- I've not found another green polish that does that. It applies really nicely, opaque in two coats. However this didn't wear particularly well on me so it loses one lippy. OPI polishes usually last at least 5 days with my current combo of OPI natural nails and inm out the door but I started wanting to redo my nails after 3 days because of the tip wear and chips.
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Polishes -OPI - Miami Beet
clairyfairy 3/21/2011 9:26:00 PM
It's a deep rasberry colour but seems to look quite red and a bit vampy in some lights. It definitely lives up to the quality I expect of OPI, opaque and streak free after 2 coats. It seems to last particularly long, for an extra 2 days longer than OPI polishes usually last on me. After 7 days it only had tip wear and a few minor chips and that's with major abuse (I was wearing OPI natural nails as a base coat and out the door which I prefer to SV).
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Nails -Unlisted Brand - Konad
clairyfairy 8/9/2010 4:17:00 AM
I love Konad!! it's so easy to use and so much fun. It's a totally unique product, there is no other way to get such complex designs easily at home. However you don't need all of the stuff that Konad tell you to get. All you really need is the stamper, the image plates and possibly Konad special polishes in black and white, (I would recommend getting double ending stamper just because using red and pink designs on the single stamper is really difficult, you can't see where your design went). I use the Konad special polishes in black and white, but as long as you don't mind the colours being a bit paler then you'll be fine to use normal polish for the colours. I did have difficulty stamping paler colours on top of darker colours but it's not a massive problem. Some nail polish brands work better than others. I don't use the Konad scraper, instead I use an old itunes plastic card. I find a plastic card easier to use and it doesn't scratch the plate I like using the Konad top coat when I am doing full plate images, but if I'm just adding a flower to a manicure I tend to finish the manicure without the Konad, using Seche Vite as my top coat and then just stamp the Konad on top. as long as the image is not near my tip then I have no problems with the Konad chipping, the rest of my manicure will chip first even with SV.
4 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -Maybelline - Great Lash Mascara
clairyfairy 8/6/2010 5:39:00 PM
I really don't like this mascara, it really doesn't work at all for me. It looks fine for the first few minutes but within an hour most of it manages to find it's way onto the skin below my eyes leaving me with massive black smudgy circles, even if I'm just wondering around the house not doing anything that should test my makeup. I chucked this product after about a week. It gets 2 lippies because it really is the blackest black.
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Top/Base Coats -Seche Vite - Dry Fast Top Coat
clairyfairy 8/4/2010 9:32:00 AM
I love this product. I cannot do a manicure without it. It dries fast preventing smudges and is super super shiny, giving my nails a professional look even with really cheap nail polish. It also makes my nail polish last way longer, without it they usually chip within a day with my manicure lasts 3-4 days. It is a bit pricy but it is so worth it. ***Edit: Still a great top coat but it always gives a really thick coat which I don't really like so I have swapped to inm Out the Door which does take a bit (a few minutes) longer to dry but is thinner and my manicures seem to last an extra day or so with out the door.
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