Dior Nail Art at Harrods

This has to be the ultimate combination of nail art and high end fashion..! If you're a fan of pretty, graphic, bold or patterened nails  - of if you're a fan of Dior - you'll definitely appreciate the the nail 'menu' at Harrods, inspired by Dior's Spring/Summer 2013 collection.

Gorgeous, right? But which one to choose...

The nail patterns are directly inspired by different outfits and patterns that walked down the Dior catwalk, so you're not only buying into a beautiful manicure, but a really on-fashion look without the usual Dior price tag.

The nail art has been created by Sophie Harris Greenslade,  AKA 'The Illustrated Nail'. Sophie is an amazing nail technician, if you haven't checked her out already make sure you do - @TheIllustratedNail 

You can book in to receive on of these very special manicures up to 14th April at Harrods in London. Sophie herself will be carrying out Dior manicures on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays if you fancy a session with the woman herself. 

This is only available for a short while and is bound to be very booked-up so if you're after one of these get your booking in pronto!

xo

Dior Nail Glow Polish Review

I posted about this new product from Dior last week and over the weekend I managed to try it out.

To  give this a proper test, I applied normal clear top coat to one nail, Dior Nail Glow Polish to another and left the rest bare so I could compare them.

I applied two coats of this polish, and at first I did think the nail I had applied it to looked slightly better than the rest. Because it has a very tiny touch of pink to it, it slightly changes the colour of the nail once applied. It's completely transparent and very shiny, and the light touch of colour just makes your nail look a little bit different - it's hard to describe unless you have seen it in person, but the overall effect is really quite minimal. 

The difference between the nail with this on, and the one with a normal top coat on, was barely noticeable.

This polish claims to whiten the tips of your nails too - I left it on for a couple of days but there was no difference to the whiteness of my nail compared with my other nails.

After just one day of wear this polish started to chip and peel all over the nail. Having read a few reviews of this online, it seems like a common problem. It wasn't just at the end of the nail either, it was peeling off in little bits all over the nail. Because the polish is transparent, it's hard to notice this but looking up close, at least half had chipped off in the course of 1-2 days.

When I first heard about this product, I was intrigued as it seemed to improve the natural appearance of your nails and claimed to give them a french manicure look. It sounded like something that would make your nails much easier to manage - just one coat of this and you're done! 

But in reality, it peeled off so quickly that you'd be constantly repainting it, and the difference between this and any old top coat was so minimal that I doubt anyone else would notice your nails looked any different.

I was disappointed with this - especially as I am a big fan of Dior products. I'll be ditching this and trying out their new colour collections instead!


Liz
xo

Dior Vernis Sparkling Shine

Fans of Dior polishes (or just polishes in general!) will love the newest offering from Dior - Vernis Sparkling Shine.

These have been released alongside the most recent Dior Addict Gloss and both are supposed to compliment each other when worn together.

These are so different to the Dior Cruise Collection polishes I blogged about recently but both collections are perfect for Summer. 

These are really gorgeous - you need to see them in person to appreciate how pretty they are. They're ultra shiny and have a really fine shimmer in them that reflects the light and really draws attention to your nails.

The colours themselves are quite bright and very pigmented - one coat gives enough colour, two just tops it off nicely.

My favourite of the above is Delice which is a coral colour - the shimmer just goes so well with this colour and it's a really warm, Summer shade.

These are available now for £18 each and I would highly recommend you take a look at them in store - once you've seen them in person you will want to purchase the whole collection!


Liz
xo

Dior Claridges 48 Palette

Continuing the unintentional Dior theme today...

Alongside the My Lady palette which I posted about earlier this week, Dior launched an eyeshadow and gloss palette inspired by Claridges in London. The hotel was the location for the launch of the very first Miss Dior fragrance back in 1948 – it couldn’t get more glamorous than one of the most famous hotels in the world pairing up with a worldwide fashion powerhouse.

If you’ve ever been to Claridges you’ll know that it has a real art deco theme to it – think checkered and printed floor tiles, timeless chic furnishings, chandeliers, marble and ornate banisters. This palette draws on those themes to create a houndstooth printed eyeshadow in pastel pink and grey – both really flattering colours with a hint of shimmer to brighten the eyes.

You can’t see it in this picture, but the gloss is a fresh, pink, subtle tone – also really wearable.
Inside the palette, there’s a mirror for on-the-go touch ups, as well as two applicators.

It’s an expensive item at £52 and is available now exclusively at Harrods.


Liz
xo

Dior Nail Glow Nail Polish

I'm really intrigued by this nail polish by Dior. The principle behind it is that it's meant to look like you might not be wearing nail polish but just naturally have shiny, healthy, glowing nails. 

Dior even go so far as to say it brightens the nail tips so it looks like a natural french polish. As someone who gets impatient with chipped nails and definitely has no patience to do a french manicure on myself - this sounds like a dream come true.

I haven't tried this yet but I'm tempted to pick it up soon - have any of you tried this?

Doing some research online, it looks like it gives your nails a transparent light pink glow which looks really pretty and gives your nails a naturally healthy look. 

I'm a huge fan of nail polish but sometimes a natural nail just says 'chic'. A natural nail with whiter tips and a glowy base? Even better!


This costs £18 and is available to buy now.


Liz
xo

Dior Vernis Cruise Polishes

Dior recently added a trio of polishes to the Vernis Cruise collection which all look perfect for Summer...

Dior Vernis Cruise Nail polishes in (from left) Pasteque, Lime and Mango

My personal favourite is the pink shade, which is called 'Pasteque' (French for 'watermelon'), which is a really high shine, vibrant shade. 

Lime and Mango are really bold colours too and will look amazing worn on the beach when Summer eventually arrives.

These aren't available in the UK yet and there doesn't seem to be a launch date, but when I hear of one I will post it here.


Liz
xo

Autumn/Winter 2013 Trends from the Catwalk: The Dark Lip

Fashion week is upon us and first on the schedule is New York which has been taking place over the last week.

Beauty at New York Fashion Week is typically very groomed, polished and immaculate. Beauty-wise it's a great place for fashion week to start because it always features the key trends.

One trend in particular that has popped up on various catwalks this week is the dark lip - namely at Vera Wang, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Derek Lam and Zac Posen. This is a beauty trend which comes round time and again but is a really beautiful autumn/winter look.

Vera Wang Autumn/Winter 2013

  

Derek Lam Autumn/Winter 2013

 The best thing about this look is how easy it is to achieve. A strong, dark lip looks best with pared-down make up on the rest of the face so you only need minimal make up elsewhere.

3.1 Phillip Lim Autumn/Winter 2013

To achieve this look start with a seamless, neutral base. Buff in any foundation until you have that 'no make-up' look. Apply concealer only where needed for added brightness, add one coat of mascara on the eyes and then move on to your lipstick.


There are a few different shades to try in this trend, depending on your skin tone and hair colour. Darker skins can carry off bright wines, plums and reds, whereas pale skins should stick to more muted tones of brown and pink. Olive or medium skin tones can pull off the dark lip easily - brownish reds, burgundies and aubergine colours are your best friend for this look!

If this trend scares you, try a gloss first to ease yourself into the trend.


A few recommendations...

MAC Lipstick in 'Cyber' - an intense, dark purple with a satin finish

MAC Lipstick in 'Dark Side' - a full-bodied dark grape shade

Nars Lipstick in 'Fast Ride' - a vibrant shade with a velvet finish

Dior Rouge Lipstick in 'Hypnotic' - a long-wearing, buildable burgundy shade


Let me know if you have any favourite dark lipsticks that I should try!


Liz
xo

Dior Skin Forever Foundation Review

This foundation is by no means a 'new' product but I wanted to feature a review as I have been using it for a while now and think it is a really great foundation.

The best thing is about this foundation is how diverse it is. It is a fluid foundation which is really light when you first apply it, but gives great coverage and is easy to build up for more coverage or a full-face base. With a foundation brush, it blends in seamlessly and doesn't 'sit' on the skin like a lot of foundations do.

It has pretty good staying power even without a primer but does work well with a primer if you are worried about it slipping during the day or have oily skin.

It is SPF 25 which means you don't need to worry about applying sunscreen when you are wearing this and Dior say it is 'bursting with made-to-measure perfecting skin care ingredients'. I'm not sure how they can call it 'made-to-measure' since every bottle is the same except for the shade, but I will say that it has never broken me out or had any negative effect on my skin.

It's quite pricey at £31 per bottle, but one bottle seems to last a really long time and I wear foundation every day. You only need a little bit for flawless coverage and the pump action bottle means you can just pump out as much or as little as you need straight onto your foundation brush.

This is probably my favourite foundation at the moment, and has been for a year or so now despite trialling loads of newer ones so I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a new holy grail base.

Liz
xo