Polished up.

Not working for another week has given me the chance to polish something other than cutlery.. Instead of doing a load of homework and feeling virtuous, yet bare-fingered, I opted to do a little bit of work, then indulge myself. It's all about balance. And of course, in the week coming up to Christmas (6 more sleeps, guys!) there was no other colour combination that would have made me so happy...

I love having painted nails, since it is the little details that can really set off a look. The colours and patterns can also reflect your mood, and are a chance to work a micro-trend like a new season hue without breaking the bank on a new dress. Of course, if I changed my polish to match my mood I would be constantly repainting my nails! Which I wouldn't necessarily mind - doing my nails is one of my favourite ways to snatch some me-time. It is just so relaxing, and since you need a little bit of concentration to keep it neat you can't sit there over thinking anything else, which is perfect since I have the fatal flaw of thinking too much. With all this practice, you would probably expect me to be better at it though...

Anyway, today I opted for Santa's-hat-red, alternated with glittering gold for a rather seasonal finish to my little fingers. It was a pretty simple one to complete, and didn't take too long either, but the finished product will give an extra oomph to any outfits I am wearing this week. Also, I will be feeling Christmassy pretty much every time I look at my nails! 

To do a nail look like this, you probably don't need any tips or ideas, but here is my preferred kit and how I did this polish anyway..

First up is Collection 2000 2 in 1 basecoat which I use every time I do my nails. It is an old faithful base coat and works pretty well, making my nails smoother and at least limiting any staining from the coloured polish on top.

Next we have Nails Inc Nail Polish in Victoria & Albert which is the perfect classic pillar-box red. Really good quality since it only needs one coat to look effortlessly glam, and it glides on pretty smoothly too.

For the alternating colour I used No7 Stay Perfect Nail Colour in I'm Exquisite which is a gorgeous gold infused with tiny glitter particles for a very festive, shiny look. This one did take two coats, but that is because it is such a light shade.

Next up came two items working together, Tesco Nail Polish Remover and Superdrug Cotton Wool Buds. I see no reason to spend ridiculous amounts on expensive nail polish removers, when the Tesco one works so well - you don't need much to remove your polish. I used it today by dipping the cotton buds in and then using them to correct the major errors and clean up the messy edges of my nails.

Finally I sealed in the colours with Rimmel London Speed Dry Topcoat which is another old favourite, mainly because it gives the colours an extra shine, and, as promised, dries incredibly fast.

This manicure and blogging session was the limit of my productivity today, and I am really enjoying the freedom that time off gives me - after my hectic college schedule it is amazing to have the chance to breathe. Love and kisses, Tara xox