We have lift-off

So the Telecom men have been. They promise me they have fixed the problem, but just in case it happens again they've very conveniently blamed it on damp under the house. Because then it's not Telecom's fault, obviously.

Anyhoo, to stop myself from going completely bonkers I have painted my nails. A lot. So I have lots of swatches for you. And also a dog. Just because.

First up, Color Club Rev'd Up:



I'm impressed with the Color Club polishes - good application and super-fast drying time. I think this was three coats, I can't remember (there's been so many polishes people, so very many). It's a nice colour, it doesn't blow me away probably because there's a lot of sparkly purply/pinks out there similar, but it's pretty.

Speaking of pretty, look at the paw!



Next, Max Factor Nailfinity Golden Peach:



Quite sheer, could have gone for four coats with this, but three was ok. Good application but like a few metallics I've used it reacted with Seche Vite top coat (just on one nail) and went gluggy. A very pretty muted gold colour but I'm not sure it suits my skin colour, and it's a little 'safe' for my liking.

13 Year Old Daughter asked for white nails with black polka dots, so I got to try out my new dotting tool.



That's Color Club Paris White with dots in China Glaze Urban Attitude. Yet another fabulous Color Club polish, Paris White applied really well which I didn't expect after past experience with whites. It's a really lovely pure white that reminds me of house paint (in a good way). Three coats because there was a little bit of streaking but again dried super fast.

This was my first time using the dotting tool, and I'm quite pleased with the result. Best tip, which I read on a blog whose name I have now forgotten, make a little dish out of tinfoil and pour just a small amount of polish into it (I actually dropped it off the brush rather than pouring), then dip your dotting tool into that. Also, don't load the dotting tool with too much nail polish (that one comes from my own experience!).

Then I decided to do a little nail art on myself, so I broke out the painter's tape.



The polishes were Color Club Paris White, China Glaze Nail Art Ink and Pinnacle Quicksilver.



I started with a base of Pinnacle Quicksilver - nice application, a lot of brushstrokes though but a very nice bluish-silver. Then I taped off a diagonal across my tips and used Color Club Paris White, and finished with the China Glaze Ink. I'm quite pleased with the result given it's the first time I've attempted anything with a nail art brush. Another tip, from another blog I can't remember the name of: when painting a straight line with a nail art brush place the brush on the nail and then move the nail under the brush rather than the brush over the nail. I had a few thin lines and a few thick lines but that's just practice.

And finally, I've saved the best for last. O.P.I. Suzi Says Da!:




Brown polish can be hit or miss, it's so often either too 'old lady' or just plain unattractive. But this one. OH. MY. GOD! Seriously, while I was applying it I had to stop myself from sticking out my tongue and licking it. Two words: Melted. Chocolate. I cannot stop staring at my nails, this colour is so very beautiful, and what a gorgeous smooth shiny finish. This was three coats, and looking at the pictures it could have been four because I can see some semi-bald patches near my cuticles but that's no biggie when the colour is this beautiful. This one goes in my favourites list, I love it!