Showing posts with label avon. Show all posts

The Wizard of Oz

I have another TV/Cinema inspired design today! I'm addicted now! I have even more planned, so I hope you like them.

For this design, I was inspired by the classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. I actually never liked the movie when I was a kid, and hated when my mother would try to get me to watch it. But now that I'm older, wiser, and not a bratty teen, I truly love this movie. I've watched it quite a few times, and still have not tired of it. My favorite character would have to be the cowardly lion, the costume is just too cute. And yes, being the nerd that I am, I also own the book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum.
I think another reason why I love The Wizard of Oz now is the Syfy miniseries Tin Man with Zooey Dechanel - I think that's how you spell her name. -. I LOVED that series, and currently own it on DVD. Obviously, since it is based on the classic movie, it inspired me to watch the original again.
And, side note, can I just say, the clothes the evil sister wears in Tin Man were Amazing! I wanted to be an evil queen just to wear them! Just, you know, minus being possessed by an ugly, creepy, witch... Spoilers!


I decided to do a Skittle manicure, - A different design on each nail.- so I could showcase different memorable parts from the movie.
I picked the places and characters that really resonated with me, and what I pictured instantly when I thought of The Wizard of Oz.


For my thumb, I used two coats of Sinful Colors Out of This World over a base coat of white polish to represent Tin Man. 
To represent the iconic ruby slippers, I painted a coat of Milani Rapid Cherry as my base, then two coats of Milani Red sparkle.
For my favorite character, The Cowardly Lion, I used a base coat of Sally Hansen Lightening, then four coats of Sally Hansen Fuzzy Coat Peach Fuzz to get the full furry effect. Like the Lion's fluffy mane.
Of course, when I think of The Wizard of Oz, I think of the yellow brick road. So I applied three coats of Sally Hansen Lightening for full opacity, than I used a fine detail nail art brush and painted on a brick pattern using NYC Black Lace Creme. 
And finally, to represent the beautiful Emerald City, I applied a coat of Avon Sea Breeze as my base, then four coats of Wet n Wild Emerald the Crown Jewel for a bold, glittery look.
I finished the whole manicure with a coat of Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat.




In Sunlight.
This design was super fun to do. I am really starting to like skittle manicures! Especially inspired ones, so don't be surprised if I get stuck on them for a bit... Like in the next few weeks...
I wish I applied a base coat of white underneath all the polishes to make them more vibrant, and to also save me from all the countless coats I had to apply. But I was being lazy, and it backfired.

Thanks for reading! To check out all my past designs click here.
- Brittany

Do you love The Wizard of Oz? Who is your favorite character? Am I the only one who loved the series Tin Man? Let me know in the comments!

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Which is best? Comparing Hand Creams

Hey everyone! Today I'm back with part 2 of my new 'which is best?' series. Thank you all for the amazing response to last week's post, I didn't expect it to be quite so successful! I hope you will be equally as happy with this weeks comparison of hand creams. I will be comparing Crabtree and Evelyn Jojoba Oil Moisturising Hand and Cuticle Cream*, Avon Care Glycerine Hand and Nail Rich Moisture Hand Cream, Neutrogena Unscented Concentrated Hand Cream, Clinique Deep Comfort Hand and Nail Cream*, Bliss High Intensity Hand Cream*

Many of you may be wondering why I chose to do a hand cream comparison post, but it must be remembered that hand and nail care are at least 50% of having a good blog, and hand creams are a must

Before I start I just wanted to announce that the giveaway winner Brady was chosen and was contacted, I didn't announce it publicly because I didn't feel the need to but I've had quite a few emails asking me about it, so there you go! Please dont feel disheartened as I'm sure that there are plenty more giveaways to come, and I hope you will all continue to enjoy my blog


Comparison No. 1: Drying/Absorbing Time (After 5 minutes)
  1. Avon (9/10) - takes just a few minutes, if that, to absorb into your skin, and doesn't leave a greasy residue
  2. Crabtree and Evelyn 9/10 - dries quickly, pretty much the same as the Avon one does
  3. Neutrogena 8/10 - pretty quick at drying
  4. Bliss 6/10 - takes quite a bit of time to dry (although not too long) but once it does it feels great
  5. Clinque 4/10 - struggles to dry, which is really annoying because I tend to want to get on with something after using hand cream, like a lecture or doing my nails, and with this it's difficult
Comparison No. 2: Greasiness (After 5 minutes)
  1. Avon 9/10 - nothing there except what can be expected
  2. Crabtree and Evelyn 9/10 - not greasy after 5 minutes
  3. Neutrogena 8/10 - still a bit of a residue after the same amount of time but not too greasy 
  4. Bliss 6/10 - relatively greasy after 5 minutes
  5. Clinique 4/10 - still really greasy after 5 minutes
Comparison No. 3: Smell
  1. Neutrogena 10/10 no smell at all, just as it claims on the bottle
  2. Avon 9/10 has a pretty neutral smell, like very very weak nappies 
  3. Clinique 8/10 - very faint citrusy smell
  4. Bliss - 7/10 - stronger smell but still not too bad
  5. Crabtree and Evelyn - 2/10 Absolutely stinks, if I was to describe it I would describe it as 'granny-like', it's very perfumed and flowery, and as I tend to do quite a lot after using handcream, I prefer a more neutral smell (like the others)
Comparison No. 4: Does it do what it says?/Overall Feeling
  • Bliss ("High Intensity hand cream") - Yes, this leaves my hands feeling the best out of all the hand creams once it dries. Avon was by far my favourite hand cream before I tried this but I think this has definitely overtaken, my hands just feel so much better after
  • Avon ("Rich Moisture Hand Cream") - Yep, I use this as my go-to hand cream in my uni bag when my hands are feeling dry. It's absorbant and non-greasy and doesn't really leave a smell
  • Crabtree and Evelyn ("Moisturising hand and nail cream")- Yep, this really is a brilliant product, it's just the smell that is off-putting, but if that doesn't bother you then I'd definitely recommend it.
  • Neutrogena ("Instant relief of dry, chapped hands, just a dab needed") - Yep, or so I've found it to. But my mum used it before me and found it to be quite drying, so I guess it depends on your skin type. I also found that I needed more than just a 'dab'
  • Clinique ("Deep Comfort Hand and Cuticle cream") - Yes and no, once it's dry my hands feel comforted, but whilst it's drying I feel pretty uncomfortable, but it is brilliant for my cuticles
What do you think? Do you own/want any of these products? Let me know in the comments! 
Alice

*some of the products in this post were provided to me for review, and some were bought with my own money, but all opinions are entirely my own