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Posts tagged Quick Dry
NOTD: George Quick Dry in Boom
6
3 years
by Naomi in Nails
Whilst getting something for dinner from Asda yesterday, I stopped by the cosmetics stands for a quick browse, and was pleased to find that the George nail varnishes were on offer for £1 each, down from £1.75. I can never resist a nail varnish bargain, so having read many positive reviews about the range I decided to pick up a shade to see whether they live up to the hype. The colour I settled for is called ‘Boom’, a brilliant blue with a glossy creme finish.
I’m happy to announce that George’s varnish completely lives up to the rave reviews. The brush is narrow, but it’s fairly long and the decently-sized lid makes it easy to control the application. The varnish applies smoothly, and gives amazing coverage even in one coat, but as always I applied two coats for a flawless finish. As you’d expect of a quick dry varnish, it dries incredibly quickly, and a day later it is still free of any smudges, dents, chips or scratches. It looks like it’s going to last a lot longer, too!
Here’s how it looks on the nails…
‘Boom’ is a gorgeous, bold shade that really catches the eye. The pigmentation of the varnish is incredible, and the colour has a real depth to it. I’ve always liked blues, but seem to be lacking in blue varnishes, so this is a great addition to my collection.
For such a budget range the quality of George’s quick dry nail varnish is very high, and if you’re a fan of nail products I recommend you try them if you can, especially as they’re currently only £1. I’ll definitely be going back to Asda to buy more! I spotted a lovely pink shade that I’ll be picking up next time.
Have you ever tried any varnishes from this range? What do you think of them?
Naomi x
NOTD: Models Own Green Tea
16
4 years
by Naomi in Nails
As promised yesterday in my Models Own Haul post, here is a review of one of the nail varnishes that I bought in the Models Own online sale – Green Tea. I don’t usually like to photograph products indoors or with flash, as the flash usually alters the colour, but strangely enough the only way I could get an accurate representation of the Green Tea shade was with the flash on. For some reason it just wouldn’t photograph well outdoors!
My collection of Models Own varnishes is slowly getting bigger and bigger, and with good reason. As I’ve said before, their varnish formula is fantastic, and Green Tea is no exception. The consistency is just thick enough for it to apply smoothly with no gloopy or runny mess, and the brush is long with a substantial handle which makes application effortlessly easy.
What impressed me the most about this varnish was how quickly it dried. The first coat I applied was quite a thin one, and it was dry to the touch in less than 30 seconds – I genuinely couldn’t believe my eyes! The second coat, which was thicker, took slightly longer to dry, but within a couple of minutes my nails were completely dry. I can only put this down to it being a matte varnish as they do tend to dry quicker in my experience, so you have to work quickly with it to stop it going patchy. It only takes two coats for fully opaque coverage though.
Green Tea is a very bold, earthy green and I have a really big soft spot for this colour, mainly because it reminds me of the poster paints I used to paint with as a child. It has a fun, childlike air to it which makes me happy whenever I look at it, yet at the same time I think it looks quite classy as it lacks the yellow undertone that some green varnishes have, so it isn’t overly bright.
As I mentioned earlier, the varnish has a matte finish which looks fab, but it also looks great with a shiny top coat over the top. The above photograph was taken after a couple of days of wear, without a top coat, and as you can see there is only a little bit of wear to the tips of my nails. In fact, it wasn’t until day 4 or 5 that it started to chip properly and that’s when I took it off, so it has fantastic lasting power, even without a top coat!
Green Tea is definitely one of my favourite varnishes from my recent haul. It only cost £2.50 in the sale which is incredible value for money, but even at £5.00 full-price it is still worth it. Models Own nail varnishes are available online, or in most Boots stores.
What do you think of this shade?
Naomi x
Avon Liquid Freeze Quick Dry Nail Spray
8
4 years
by Naomi in Nails
I’m sure you’ll all agree that the most annoying part of painting your nails is waiting for them to dry. Sometimes I get so bored I adopt a “that’ll do” attitude whilst they’re still tacky and give up waiting, which usually results in smudged and marked nails! But that has all changed now that I have discovered one little product that makes a big, big difference… Avon’s Liquid Freeze Quick Dry Nail Spray.
Despite having been an Avon Representative for almost two years, I only recently tried this spray and I’m so glad that I did – I just wish I had bought it sooner! The Liquid Freeze Spray comes in a 50ml bottle and retails for £6.00. For the price I was expecting a bigger bottle, but you really don’t need to use much each time you paint your nails so it should last for ages.
The product applies with a simple pump spray so it’s very easy to use, and application is simple. After painting your nails you just hold the bottle about 20-30cm away from your nails and press the pump down to apply one spray per hand. Any closer and it won’t cover each nail, and any more sprays is just a waste and will make your hands rather wet!
Before using the spray for the first time it’s a good idea to get the pump working by pressing it a few times. I made the mistake of spraying it straight onto my nails the first time I used it and the spray came out as a stream, which made a big wet mess of my nails. Luckily, after that initial spray the pump is fine.
The spray leaves a fine wet mist over your nails (and also your fingers but that’s unavoidable). At first I didn’t think it was going to work, but sure enough it did! After about a minute, and much to my surprise, my nails were completely dry to the touch – this spray really is a little miracle worker! However, it doesn’t dry on your skin so it needs to be washed or wiped off your hands once your nails are dry.
I find the Liquid Freeze is most useful for nail art. I usually find nail art very time-consuming, what with all the drying time, but this cuts it down massively. I used the spray today whilst doing some nail art which had five or six layers in some parts, a few rather thick, and I was able to paint each layer within a couple of minutes of each other. Usually I have to wait almost half an hour between layers!
There’s one thing I don’t like about the spray though… its smell. For some reason I was expecting it to have a fruity scent, so I was slightly disappointed when I was met with a strong smell of chemicals, almost like hairspray. Thankfully, the smell fades fairly quickly so it isn’t a big problem, you just have to put up with it for a bit.
Avon’s Liquid Freeze Quick Dry Spray is a definite must-have for all impatient nail painters, and an essential for anyone who does a lot of nail art! I, for one, will never be without it now. If you want to try some for yourself, it can be found on Page 186 of the current Avon brochure and costs £6.00. There’s also a special offer running alongside it, so you can get Avon’s Gold Strength nail strengthener for only 99p if you order any Nail Experts product.
Naomi x
NOTD: NYC In a Minute in ‘High Line Green’
5
5 years
by Naomi in Nails
When I was doing my Olympic Nail Art earlier this week I realised that I didn’t have many green nail varnishes, and the ones I did have were all shimmery or multi-tonal. I decided I needed to rectify this, so when I was in town the next day I picked up this creme green colour from Superdrug for £1.79. This ‘In a Minute Quick Dry Nail Polish’ comes from the NYC (New York Color) range, and is shade ‘298 – High Line Green’
Considering its small price tag, this varnish has a really nice brush. The lid is a good size and easy to grip which makes application a lot easier, and the brush spreads quite wide so you can cover your nail in only a few strokes. The formula is great too… Not too thick and not too thin, it gives opaque coverage in one coat, but I applied a second for good measure. As you would expect from the name, this nail varnish is quick dry, and does in fact dry ‘In a Minute’, but it takes a good 15-20 minutes or so to set properly. All good so far, but I do have my reservations about this product… As you can see below, coverage isn’t exactly smooth. It left bubbles on some of my nails and lots of little imperfections, which is slightly disappointing, but it could have been due to the base coat I was using. I’ll have to give it another try and get back to you!
Having said that, I love the colour of this nail varnish. It is very highly pigmented, quite impressively so for a budget brand actually. The green is very bright and vibrant and I’ve had several compliments whilst wearing it. I think it looks very much like a dupe of Illamasqua’s ‘Smash’ as well, so if you like ‘Smash’ but want to save £11.71, I’d go for this shade!
Overall, this is great quality for £1.79. Okay, there are bubbles, but until I try this over a different base coat I won’t blame the varnish for that one. The colour is stunning and the formula is excellent. Time to buy some more NYC colours I think!
Naomi x
