NOTD: Expect the Unexpected

Hi Everyone,

It feels weird being back on Truly Polished, recently I've pretty much forgotten that I even have a blog! I've decided there will be no more reasons behind me not blogging, either I do it or I don't do it... At this point I'm just counting getting dressed in the mornings as a win! I'm 24 weeks pregnant today and getting round two of horrendous tiredness, plus my son is ill today so I've had the worst sleep, he came into bed with me at 4am and was so boiling hot hanging around my neck for cuddles that I didn't sleep well at all!

I was surprised, then, that when I woke up, I was itching to some nail art... When we got up this morning, my son was desperate to go to preschool, and seeing as his temperature didn't feel too high then and he seemed happy, I took him in and came home brimming with ideas!

A few weeks ago we found out we are expecting another boy, so I knew I wanted to incorporate blue into the theme, and I knew I didn't have the energy for anything but striping tape, so I set about raiding my stash and here's how it turned out...

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The polishes I used were:

Sally Hansen - Lavender Cloud, a very pale off-white purple

Models Own - Blueberry Muffin, a pale blue creme

Models Own - Champagne, a champagne gold foil

Models Own - Southern Lights, a blue toned holographic full coverage glitter in a slightly tinted purple base.

I used striping tape for all of the sections, and finished it with a coat of HK Girl top coat.

I'm really pleased with how this came out, it was very simple to do and was a great first foray back into nail art. The only thing I'd add would be a blue triangle on my middle finger nail just to balance the colours a bit better, I love he subtle difference between the blue and off-white so I'd have like to see more of that.

What do you guys think?

NOTD: Abstract Neons feat. Models Own

Hi Guys,

Before I start, I have something to say... How great is Celebrity Big Brother this year???? I haven't watched the normal one in a few years and just caught the odd episode of the celebrity version, but this year they've stepped it up a notch and I actually knew who most of them were! Only Ron and Danielle I hadn't heard of, so I'm really enjoying it!

Anyway...

Tonight I have a NOTD look for you. I wore this up until yesterday and loved every minute of it! I swatched my KIKO haul and ended up with a bit of blue staining around my cuticles so I wanted to wear something nude. I chose My Vampire is Buff, and after a day I felt like I needed to jazz it up, and this happened! 

I used Models Own Bubblegum, Pink Punch and Pukka Purple. Originally I had only used the pink and the coral, but I decided it needed a bit of something extra so I added the purple and I liked it a lot more this way. I got a lot of compliments on this manicure when I was wearing it, and it was very easy to do, which is a bonus!

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The first shot!

This manicure was very popular on Instagram, as well as Models Own sharing it via Twitter and Facebook and a few people have asked me for a tutorial. I am aiming to have one done by the end of the week BUT I cut off the corner of my index finger nail on Saturday while chopping onions, so if I can figure out a way for that not to show, the tutorial is a go, otherwise it might have to be next week! Models Own said they thought this would look great in a monochrome colour scheme and I agree, so I'm armed with greys!

I'm hoping to get back into regular posting now, I have a huge list of things I want/need to post, so I need to get on with it... My problems are: a) I don't like iPhoto and yet my camera won't mount normally so I have to import them and faff about, so it's a bit annoying to have that to look forward to! and b) I'm addicted to TV... When my boyfriend is away and my son is in bed I just don't move from the sofa... I've been watching Twisted, which I love, and I've started watching The Vineyard which I don't really like, but I can't help myself with reality TV!

So bear with me and I'll be back soon with more!

Models Own Ice Neons: Luis Lemon

Hi Guys,

I can't believe how late it is. I've been so busy today! I went into town to print off some photos and came back with a load of Sinful Colors polishes. I'll be doing a haul post next week on those, I got some nice ones! I also sorted out all of the photos I needed for my son's record book and the little photo album we bought for him at Disneyland. I don't know what it is, but I feel so accomplished when I've organised photos! 

Anyway, tonight I have the last Models Own Ice Neon post of the series. I saved the best until last! To me, this is the showstopper of the collection, I just wish I could have captured it better in the photos!

Luis Lemon is a shockingly bright yellow. Literally the colour of a yellow highlighter. This is the polish that sold me the collection to be honest, when I think neons I think of yellow highlighters, they were my favourites at school, and so I couldn't wait to get this! This is a re-release, and one I wanted in the sale but it was sold out. I wanted all three neons that were re-released in the Ice Neon collection, so I'm so glad I have them. I know a lot of people were annoyed that the colours weren't new, but I was so pleased! 

I used one coat of Luis Lemon over a white base.

This was the brightest of the collection, the most neon, and I think that made it harder to capture on camera. In the pictures it looks like a classic lemon yellow, it was a lot brighter.

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This polish dries to a satin matte finish as you can see in the flash picture. It's so pretty and makes my hands look so tanned! I can't wait to wear it again when I actually have a tan!

So that's it, all my swatches of the Ice Neon collection. I must say this was not a disappointment. I love neons, my boyfriend isn't keen on them, but they're really summery so who cares! 

You can pick this up at selected Boots stores and online, as well as the Models Own website for £5.

Which one is your favourite?

Models Own Ice Neons: Pink Punch and Toxic Apple

Hi Everyone,

So... The last week I have mostly been cleaning the carpets and doing lots of washing... My son got better on Monday and so after that I had to do a LOT of catching up with the hoovering and other cleaning, as well as washing my own clothes, Caleb had dibs on the washing machine until recently. Also, because I can't let myself have an easy life, I started a diet on Tuesday for 13 days. It isn't that fun, I'm eating half decent meals, but as the queen of carbs, I'm struggling! Yesterday it was really hot and I really wanted a nice cold Coke after I got back from playgroup, but until next Sunday, I'm sticking to water!

Enough of the update and onto what we're all here for...! This is the second out of three posts on the new Models Own neons. I love this collection so much, I'm just waiting for more sun, I have an AMAZING nail art planned if we get a nice day. I've been waiting to do it since I got these and I've been growing my nails longer in anticipation.

Before the swatches I'll just say these two polishes have the ideal formula. I used a white base underneath both of them, with two coats of the neon. The formula was slightly thin and watery, but it worked perfectly with the white base to get the maximum brightness.

Pink Punch 

This is a super bright coral. Personally I think Pink Punch is misleading because this isn't pink at all compared to Bubblegum!

This was so hard to photograph! I had to use my phone for all of the Ice Neons, because my camera freaked out. I have a kind of outtakes post planned of my terrible camera photos of these, they are horrendous! One day I'll master taking photos of neons! 

Toxic Apple

I love Toxic Apple. I wanted the normal version of this in the 50% off sale but it was out of stock, so I was so excited when it was re-released in this collection. I had a bit of drama with this actually, because my first bottle smashed! I managed to save most of it and put it into a clear Models Own bottle, phew! But I tweeted them a picture and they sent me one out straight away. It arrived the day after! I really can't fault Models Own's customer service, they're great! And now I have a full collection of frosted glass bottles, as a collector that is the most important thing!

Here's a bonus picture of Toxic Apple looking extra bright in the sun... You can see the matte effect in this picture too.

Both polishes retail at the Models Own site and selected Boots stores for £5.

What do you guys think of these neons? Are you not a fan, or have they grown on you? Or was it love at first sight?! 

Have a great weekend!

Models Own Ice Neons: Bubblegum and Pukka Purple

Hey Guys,

So guess what? My son is sick again. The last two days I have been cleaning up vomit non stop, BUT he's been so clingy so I've had lot of cuddles. I left my Mum's on Wednesday morning so I'm back at my house at last. I even braved a new playgroup yesterday, everyone was so nice, even when Caleb was sick. It has been downhill from there... I have a banging headache, but tonight I had my dinner cooked for me though, my boyfriend's parents had me round for dinner so I had a lovely meal courtesy of them. Just what I needed after the last couple of days!

Anyway, enough about me! I have two of the Models Own Ice Neons to show you. This is the collection I have been most excited about this year. I got these about a month ago but I was too busy to swatch them until just before I got sick last time!

I'm going to stagger these posts. Rather than doing one polish per post, or the whole collection in one, I'll be doing two, then two, then one... I think it's better like that. 

So tonight I have Bubblegum, a bright neon pink, and Pukka Purple, a more muted neon purple.

Both of these polishes are different to the other three in the collection in that they can be worn without a white base. However, I did use a white base under Bubblegum.

So onto the swatches! I'll call this post Mum's Choice because my Mum loves these two polishes! She wore the pink one before I even started swatching!

Bubblegum...

Bubble gum is a bright pink, exactly what you see when you picture a pink neon. This is one of the re-releases but made slightly brighter. I wanted Bubblegum back when Models Own had their 50% off sale, as well as Luis Lemon and Toxic Apple but they were all sold out by the time I got around to ordering my 21 bottles of polish! 

This is even brighter in real life, but don't even get me started on how hard it is to capture a neon polish. These photos were all taken on my phone for that reason... The formula was bearable on this, a little on the thick side. I used two coats over white for the photo, I find that white really makes the neon pop so it's worth the extra couple coats.

My Mum couldn't wait to get this on her nails, she wore it and loved it! As did all the other ladies in the office she said. The wear time was brilliant, she doesn't take care of her manicures because she has too much to do like working, feeding the dogs, and she got well over a week with one coat of topcoat!

Pukka Purple...

Pukka Purple is a toned down neon. It is so gorgeous! The formula was really thick on this one. I think with this and Bubblegum, they are thick so they can be worn alone. I used two coats of this on its own, although it was totally opaque in one coat. 

My Mum has this on at the moment. She couldn't decide whether she wanted Toxic Apple to match Jessie J's nails on The Voice, or this, and this swatch swayed her!

You can buy these two polishes from the Models Own site for £5, but I got them for slightly less because I ordered the box set.

Have you picked up any neons yet?

NOTD Models Own Aciied and Jack Frost

Hi guys,

I had planned on posting this last night, but my boyfriend and I went to help his auntie and uncle set up their new laptop, and then they took us out for dinner to say thanks. By the time we got back it was late and we had to get our son into bed. Then we decided to paint the walls by the staircase and the landing ceiling... That lasted until half past one in the morning. Safe to say I wasn't going to be writing a post then!

Anyway, I'm feeling a bit more laid back today, the sun is out, I bought some more fish for the tank, we organised the fitting of the carpet to go up the stairs, so we need to do the second coat of paint before then, but all in all, I'm doing well! 

So this afternoon I have one of my favourite NOTDs to show you. I've worn this quite a few times, the combo makes me feel happy! At first I wanted something crazy and so I threw these two polishes together and I think it really works! If I was going to make a nail polish myself I'd love to recreate this combination in one bottle! 

The layering combo I'm talking about is Models Own Aciiied and Jack Frost. One is a bright chartreuse creme and one is a delicate iridescent purple/blue duochrome glitter with a turquoise flash. It shouldn't work, but it does somehow...

The photos below show two coats of Aciiied with one thin coat of Jack Frost. Ages ago I was preparing swatches of the Wonderland collection but stupidly I still haven't finished. Jack Frost could be in my Top 5 Models Own polishes of all time!

I took these photos in my lightbox, so some of the glossiness has been taken away, these are not matte polishes.

Beautiful!

Love the blue against the chartreuse!

Both polishes retail for £5 here, however I bought Aciiied as part of the 50% off sale a while ago. I got Jack Frost in a set when I bought the whole collection so I saved a bit of money there too.

So... What's the verdict? What do you think of this combination of colours? Pretty, ugly, or ugly-pretty?

Models Own Ice Neon Collection

Hi Everyone!

I know, two posts in as many days! I'm getting the hang of this! 

I hope you all had a great Valentine's Day. My boyfriend and I decided to try one of those M&S meals and it was AMAZING! I'd never had one before, but I'll definitely get one again. We had roast chicken with stuffing and bacon, and a side of potato gratin. And then to top it off we had a chocolate cake for dessert. I still feel guilty for eating nearly 1000 calories of cake, but I'm sure I'll forget eventually! We also watched Silver Linings Playbook and I loved it! Boyfriend did too, so it was a hit!

Anyway, I got a really cool email today from one of my favourite brands: Models Own! Just when I thought it was safe to put myself on a no-buy...

Let me introduce you to their latest collection... THE ICE NEON COLLECTION!

Here's what Models Own have to say about these beauties:

"The only way to keep fluoro really bright is to KEEP IT COLD! We've packed this collection in specially-designed frosted bottles that you should keep refrigerated to protect the intense fluoro colour from fading. These on-trend neons bring summer alive with fluoro flavour, bold and bright."

These polishes will be available to pre-order on the 1st of March for guaranteed delivery on the 20th. If you live near Westfield in London, not the Stratford one, the other one, then you can get them on the 9th of March, lucky you! 

They will also be in Boots stores across the country from the 22nd of March.

I wish I lived nearer to London... Unfortunately it's a couple of hours away, so I'll be pre-ordering them. I'm especially in love with the pink! I soooo wish I could get my hands on these before the 20th of March, I've decided they're going to be my Mothers' Day present to myself!

What do you guys think of the colours? Will you be pre-ordering?

Models Own Aciiied

Hi Everyone,

I can't believe how busy I've been this week. Staying with my Mum here has been really nice. I've been going to playgroup and meeting up with my friends, which has been fun! The only not-so-fun thing about today has been that it started snowing. I always say that you know you've grown up when you look out of the window and think "oh no." I hate snow and I haven't stepped outside my Mum's house all day...

Tonight I have a bright non-wintery polish to show you. This is Aciiied by Models Own and I bought it as part of the half price sale that they had a while ago. It's a bright greeny-yellow. Kind of a shade of chartreuse, which I used to hate, but now it's one of my favourite colours! I used this as part of a tape mani a while ago. You can see that here.

The formila of this was a little thick but fairly easy to work with. The photos below show two coats with no topcoat.

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Sunlight

I love this polish, it's the ultimate ugly-pretty shade! I did a layering combo that I thought was amazing, so I'm hoping to recreate that to show you all.

You can buy this polish at the Models Own website, as well as the other usual stockists. It retails for £5 but as I mentioned earlier, I got this for £2.50!

Have a great weekend and see you in a few days! 

Models Own Cement Mixer

Hi Guys,

This post comes from a very tired place. I actually fell asleep on the sofa for half an hour earlier, that's how tired I am! I've been staying up too late and then because the room my son and I sleep in at my Mum's gets so light, he's been waking up a lot earlier than usual. Normally he sleeps until 9.45 or 1o but this morning at 8.25am I was awoken by "MAMA MAMA MAMA MAMA MAMA!" I just love sharing a room with Caleb! I was up until about 2am, so I didn't get much sleep... Oh well, tomorrow is another day!

In other news, I got a new phone at last! I imported a Motorola Droid 3 from America last year and it was terrible. Slow, bad camera, froze all the time, kept closing applications, the list goes on. Anyway, I had the idea of getting a Samsung Galaxy S3 but when my Mum got one, I realised it was HUGE, so I got the iPhone 5 instead. I'm really pleased with it, the camera is good, and it makes calls when I want it to, in other words, it's a big step forward!

Tonight I have a Models Own polish to show you. This is a kind of khaki colour called Cement Mixer. I'm slightly upset that this pulls so green on me, story of my life, but I'm pleased with how it looks anyway. It's something I've been wanting for a while.

The formula of this polish was brilliant, as I've come to expect from Models Own, and the photos below show two coats with no topcoat. 

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Sunlight

I've been searching for a colour like this for ages. I think it's the closest I'm going to get to a creamy green without being too green. It might be similar to OPI Stranger Tides, which I do have but funnily enough (considering I wanted it for ages) haven't ever worn. I'll have to do a comparison post in the future. I think it's right at the bottom of my stash box, so once I organise my Helmer I'm sure it'll turn up!

As always, you can buy this polish at the usual stockists and on the Models Own website where it retails for £5, but I bought it during the sale for £2.50!

My Christmas and New Year in Pictures!

Hi Guys,

Happy New Year! I can't believe this is 2013! We all survived the end of the world and we've made it this far! This is the year I will be turning 23, my son will turn two, and my boyfriend will be hitting the big 3-0! 

I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas and that you're all feeling positive for the year ahead!

As far as New Years Resolutions go, I haven't gone mental... I would like to start making more movements towards my own polish line, and I also want to get fitter. I used to go to the gym but I didn't have a driving licence so getting there was a nightmare. Now I have a car, I don't have a babysitter! We got a treadmill for the house so I can start running, I would like to lose that last bit of baby weight, that's all! I don't like to make proper resolutions because I can never keep them, but I think mine are realistic! 

I thought that as I have been away for so long relaxing with my family, I should share some of my Instagram photos with you all. I have misplaced my camera wire, so can't charge my camera or take my photos off right now (typical) so Instagram photos are a good option! I have a horrible feeling my boyfriend has taken my cable with him offshore... I'll have to buy new one because he's gone for a month at least!

Onto the photos... Please ignore the horrendous carpet and curtains. We've only lived here a couple of weeks and the focus has been on hosting Christmas, unpacking as many boxes as humanly possible and building furniture! We want to lay down solid wood flooring and we're trying to sort out getting our one pair of huge, beautiful damask curtains turned into three pairs of smaller curtains...

Don't forget, you can follow me on Instagram, my username is @truly_polished

Click "Read More" to see the rest of this post, it's extremely long!

Models Own Utopia

Hi Guys,

Tonight's post will be pretty short and sweet because I'm so exhausted! I've been stressed out for ages now about this move and we finally moved everything this weekend. We drove up to the house on Sunday (230 miles) and unpacked it all that day. I say we unpacked it, I was shut in a room with my son while my boyfriend, Mum and brother unpacked it! We haven't sorted out any Internet yet, it's going to be activated a week tomorrow, so I couldn't post yesterday, but I'm down at my Mum's now until the weekend so I'm connected again!

I'm happy to say the house is as beautiful as I remembered it to be, and I can't wait to get on and decorate it to make it perfect. All in good time, with Christmas around the corner, now is not the time!

Anyway, I have another Models Own polish to show you tonight. I know it seems like all I ever post about is Models Own, but since I bought 20 shades in their last sale, I have a lot to try out and show you!

I used this polish in a previous post where I layered a gold flakie over the top of it. You can see that post here. It is called Utopia, and it's not the kind of colour I would usually buy, but I love it so much now that I have it. It is one of the iconic Models Own shades.

Utopia is a very pale pink creme and it is perfectly opaque in two coats as shown in the photos below. I haven't used any top coat.

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I've worn this so much already, and I find that as the weather is getting colder, I want a cold, pale colour and this is perfect. I think it will see me through to the spring too when I'll be wanting pastels, it is so versatile. 

This retails at all the usual Models Own stockists and on the Models Own site for £5, but I bought this in the half price sale so I got it for £2.50. If you see this and don't know whether or not it will be right for you, then just go ahead and buy it, you won't regret it! I definitely don't!

NOTD: Winter is Coming!

Hi Everyone, 

First of all, Happy Thanksgiving to all of my American readers. I had a turkey and stuffing burger for dinner to celebrate!

Sorry this post is going to be short, I'm so tired, I've been out all day and it's 11:30 now, I'm ready to collapse! I went to an indoor play centre with one of the other mums from playgroup (and the kids obviously) and while I was there I got a text saying my son's shoes had arrived, so I had to go and get those. Rush hour traffic was horrendous on the way back so I really need to sleep. but I wanted to show you guys my nails!

For this NOTD I wanted something really wintery, and white with glitter really signifies this for me. The base colour is MUA All Nude (so they've finally started naming their shades I guess?) and in the bottle it looks off white/pale nude but on the nail it looks white to me. I picked this up in Superdrug last week, it's one of their new shades. The glitter is from the Models Own Wonderland Collection and it's called Blizzard. I'm working on swatches of this collection but as I mentioned the other day, the weather is terrible!

Photos below show three coats of All Nude, followed by one thick coat of Blizzard. I topped it off with two coats of NYC Get Up To Speed Turbo Dry Top Coat. This top coat is amazing, think I'll be reviewing it soon. 

Flash

Macro - the reflection of my camera is making the glitter looks black

The reason I don't have a natural light or sunlight photo is because there is no sun right now and the natural light was throwing off the white base. 

I think this combination is so pretty, and I love Blizzard over white! I love the blend of metallic, holographic and iridescent glitter, but I won't say too much about it because it will be part of my review on the Wonderland Collection!

MUA All Nude retails at Superdrug for £1, and Blizzard is available at all the usual stockists for Models Own where it sells for £5.

See you tomorrow!

Models Own In The Navy

Hi Everyone,

I hope you had a great weekend. My son started walking on Sunday so it was an eventful one for me! I took him to Clarks yesterday and ordered his first pair of shoes, it's so exciting!

In other news, I've been converted and I'm now a Twilight fan! I had never had any interest in the books or films since the Saga came out. But the trailer for the latest film convinced me to watch the series and I love it. This is why I didn't post yesterday as planned! I've been watching a film every night and I'm watching Breaking Dawn part one tonight!

Tonight's polish is something dark to go perfectly with this new love! In the Navy is a very dark navy, so dark it looks black most of the time. This was quite hard to photograph but I tried my best. The formula was brilliant, nearly opaque in one coat, I used two for the photos below. My favourite thing about this polish is the glossiness, I haven't used topcoat in the photos and it's so shiny that you can see me in it!

Sunlight

Natural light

Look how glossy this is!!!

Isn't this pretty? I used it as a base for one of the Wonderland glitters which you'll see soon. I'm working on my swatches so I can post the whole collection at once, but I still have a couple of colours to do. We've had terrible weather and that means my pictures won't show the polishes at their best. I can't wait to move and hopefully have enough space for a lightbox!

In the Navy is available at all retailers that stock Models Own. It sells for £5, but I bought it as part of the half price sale for £2.50.