My Nail Polish Collection

Whilst I've been updating my beauty storage (comment if you'd like to hear more about that?) I've been doing a lot of decluttering and I figured since I had all my nail polishes out, I might as well do a post giving you a round up of what I have.

So Firstly, Blues. I love the colour of Tanya Burr Cosmetics Nail Polish in the shade "Duvet Day" but it's just a nightmare to apply. For me it's thick but somehow still quite sheer and I haven't managed to apply this and make it look nice on the nails.

The next three are all shades that I mainly wear on my toes, KIKO Nail Lacquer "336", Misa Nail Lacquer "On The Edge" and Inglot Nail Enamel "942" are all lovely mid-tone bright blues and I love a bright blue on the toes, however I rarely wear any of these on the fingers.

Tanya Burr Cosmetics Nail Polish "New York Night" is a nice vampy purple that I'll be cracking out now that autumn is on it's way, her darker shades seem to be a much nicer texture than the lighter shades and this one looks almost black on the nails. I also think that No7's Speed Dry Nail Colour "Violetta 44" would be a nice autumn nail pick, it's slightly lighter and brighter than "New York Night", but it's still quite autumnal.

I like Topshop Nails in "Parma Violet" and this pink O.P.I Nail Lacquer which unfortunately doesn't have a shade name and was limited edition for spring. They're both nice pastels and while they take a bit of work to apply, you can get a nice finish from both.

My Favourite nail polish of all time for my fingers is the Maxfactor Nailfinity in "Disco Pink", I've very nearly finished this bottle and I'm currently on the hunt for a new bottle as it's just an amazing bright shade for summer that I just love. KIKO Nil Lacquer in "361" is also  nice bright pink but for me it doesn't compare to the Maxfactor, I think it would work for a beach-y holiday worn on both fingers and toes but so far it's not been a shade I've reached for a whole lot.

I come back to the Essie Nail Lacquer in "Bahama Mama" every year once it starts cooling down. It's a great burgundy and just can probably get away with just one coat if you were in a rush, I'd always go for two just to make sure though. A very similar shade is No7's Speed Dry Nail Colour in the shade "Queenie 60". It's that same tone of burgundy as "Bahama Mama", but instead of a creamy gloss finish, the No7 has a hint of golden shimmer running through it which gives it a more metallic finish on the nails.

I don't wear an awful lot of red on my nails (so naturally I have 3). I bought Tanya Burr Cosmetics Nail Polish in "Riding Hood" online and was expecting it be a bit darker than it actually turned out to be, It's actually quite similar to the Procco Nail Apparel in "7294 V.I.P Creme" which is my go to polish if I'm doing red. I also have a mini O.P.I Nail Lacquer which again was from a limited collection but it's not my favourite anyway.

I have three orangey/coral shades and I don't like any of them. Ted Baker Orange, LOLA Barcelona Nail Polish in "Rambla" and Wah London Nails in "384" are all amazing colour but I'm starting to think there's just something about orange-y shades that makes them horrible to apply. I'm holding onto them incase I discover a way to make them work because the colours are really something.

I love warm grey nil polish for autumn/winter and I have two. Maxfactor Nailfinity in "Boji" which was a limited edition one that I wear every now and again but my favourite is Essie Nail Lacquer in "Chinchilly". I think Essie polishes are generally a nice formula and "Chinchilly" is a great goes-with-everything shade.

I've already mentioned Butter London's 3 Free Nail Lacquer in "Knackered" on here and it's really something. It takes about 3/4 coats to get it to a nice opacity but it's worth the little bit of effort. It's a really unique colour, a green/pink dual chrome colour that give's that almost oil slick finish to the nails and it looks great with an all black outfit and my Whistles Small Clutch in "Oil Slick".

I'm a sucker for a good glitter topcoat and I have three. The NYC Long Wearing Nail Enamel in "105 Starry Silver Glitter" was the first one I picked up and it's like a slightly multi-coloured version of Topshop Nails in "Ice Crush" which is my favourite glitter top coat. I also have the O.P.I Nail Lacquer in "Silver Shatter" which is one of those crackle-finish nail polishes but this is a metallic shimmery silver one.

A couple of metallic nail polishes that I like are the No7 Stay Perfect Nail Colour in "Night Silver 92" and Topshop Nails "Crystal Clouds" and I like both of these year long. The No7 is a little bit more autumn/winter but I love it and the Topshop is a polish I'd happily wear year round.

And finally, a topcoat and a nail care product. I rarely use a topcoat but when I do I use the O.P.I Rapidry Top Coat, it's nice and shiny and helps your polish last longer. Normally I just go in with the Orly Colour Care Nail Strong which is a shiny clear nail polish that can be used alone or under/over other polishes and helps strengthen your nails. I have problems with flaking on my nails and I find that this helps a lot.

Spring and Summer Style Staples

I've recently been having one of those rare-but-real moments in life where I'm pretty set on the beauty front and was stuggling to come up with new ideas for beauty-blog posts. After sitting there for a good few days, racking my brain over what I could write about in a week's worth of posts I decided that enough was enough. I began the blog for fun and had to just go with what I fancied or it would lose it's joy factor.

With that in mind I thought I'd indulge myself today on a topic I'm constantly falling in and out of love with: Fashion. and I figured if I was going to bring a fashion element into the blog, then where better to start than with my seasonal must-haves? So here we go, Jodie May Fashion: Part 1.

Topshop Leigh Jeans are the foundation for a casual spring outfit for me. I hate trying on jeans and so Topshop's denim section is a blissful shopping experience, I can just buy the size I always get and I know they'll just fit. No changing room dramas necessary. I have them in the basic denim blue and a distressed black and I'm currently looking into picking up a pair of printed or white ones to amp up my spring/summer wardrobe.

The next style category that I feel I pretty much live in for work or play is what I call the Not-So-Basic Tee. They're a slight twist on a classic t-shirt, maybe a shoulder detail or an interesting hem-line or surprise in the back, just something with a bit of interest to it. My favourite one at the moment is a basic oversized black t-shirt with lace shoulder inserts that I picked up from H&M a while back.

The Comfortable All-Occasions Dress is my I-would-be-wearing-sweat-pants-but-I-have-to-leave-the-house-today clothing must have. I have a few of these dresses in my wardrobe at the moment and they're what I reach for most of the time for work because they're just easy. Dress, jacket, shoes, handbag, tights if it's cold and your done. The definitely save the 15-minutes of deciding on an outfit in the morning.

As a working girl who needs everything and the kitchen sink with her on the daily, Big Handbags are a must for me. I'm that girl that's off to the gym on the way home from work or who's off to a weekend trip straight from work on Friday's. Im never without an umbrella, my make-up bag and a near endless supply of snacks, you get the picture. I recently picked up a lovely pink one in the Accessorise sale and I'm obsessed with it.

Statement Jewellery is a nice way to either change-up a look with a mix of basics OR can be a nice way to pull accessories together. I recently picked up the gold chain in the picture (again) from Accessorise and when I wear the chain with coloured accessories (I.E a pop of colour in the handbag or the shoe maybe) I feel like it just pulls the outfit together that little bit more.

The Spring Tag

I wasn't actually tagged to do this, but it looked cool so I thought why the hell not. Enjoy :)

1 . What three colours remind you of Spring?

Blue, Pink and White. Reminds me of clear skies and lovely flowers.

2. What is the first thing you add to your Spring wardrobe?

Light tshirts, and as of this year, white jeans.

3. What is the first item that you ditch from your wardrobe to make it more Spring-like?

Jumpers. I’ve become very much a jeans-and-jumper girl this winter, I can’t wait for it to be jeans-and-tshirt weather again.

4. What are your ultimate nude and bright lipsticks?

Nudes: Nars Satin Lip Pencil in “Descanso” and Revlon Lip Butter in "Peach Parfait"

Brights: Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in “Hot Pepper” and Estée Lauder Color Envy Lipstick in "Tumultuous Pink"

5. What is your signature Spring fragrance?

My general go-to perfume is “Nina” by Nina Ricci, but lately I’ve been loving Diptique’s “Do Son”.

6. What do you add or drop from your skin care routine?

I add in more deep cleansing or exfoliating masks as I tend to spend more time out doors and it can make my skin feel a bit dirty. My favourites are Origins Clear Improvements Active Charcoal Mask or if you fancy a real treat, the Omorovicza Deep Cleansing Mask.

7. Do you change your hair up in Spring?

Not particularly, although I’ve recently been embracing the bun, it’s such a convenient but put-together hair cheat.

8. Are there any exciting beauty releases that you can’t wait for?

Charlotte Tilbury’s Norman Parkinson collection looks lovely *sigh* must be patient.

9. What are your three favourite nail colours for Spring?

I’m not really a nails girl, but Inglots Nail Enamel in “942” is an amazing blue that’s always on my toes. For spring I like lights and brights so I find myself reaching for Topshop Nails in “Crystal Clouds” a lot, a light, sparkle-y gold. And then for a bright I love MaxFactor’s “Disco Pink” (finally been able to find another bottle after maybe 4 years of searching!) it’s the perfect spring/summer pink.

10. Who do I tag?

Anyone who wants a go :)