models own ultra-waterproof mascara

 

 

of the five different models own mascaras, this is the second one i have tried. the first was the grow fast mascara which i reviewed here and love love LOVE. i have to say, unfortunately i don't love this mascara as much. personally, i like my lashes to look thick and very black. this waterproof mascara leaves a lot less impact and creates almost wispy lashes.

having said that, it is nice to have a mascara to hand that creates more of a lighter daytime look and i have also started using it over my grow fast mascara as a sort of waterproof top coat. sadly, my reason for doing this isn't because i'm repeatedly jumping in the sea somewhere in the mediterranean, but it does give a bit of extra staying power to the grow fast mascara - much needed in this endless rain the U.K is getting!

the mascara is as waterproof as i'd hope it to be, it can deal with a few splashes so should be fine to swim in but excessive eye rubbing is likely to result in an under eye shadow. i have found it as easy as a non-waterproof mascara to remove with make up remover though which makes life a lot easier.

i think i'd be unlikely to repurchase this mascara as i'm sure there are other options out there that are waterproof and provide the look that i like, but also because i'm such a massive fan of the models own grow fast mascara that i'd be inclined to go for that one instead!

chevron manicure

 

i fancied doing some nail art last week but have been really busy recently so wanted to try something that didn't involve fiddly tape and hours of drying time. cue the chevron manicure! i decided to make mine like a different take on a french manicure by just painting the tips which made it easy to do free hand so only took a few extra minutes once i had painted the base.

i used a white as the base which i like, especially with a tan. i then used my trusty model's own nail varnish in blueboo to paint the tips. i found it quite easy to do as all it is is two separate lines taken from a third of the way down the nail and then joined in the middle of the tip of the nail. i then finished with a top coat and a bit of nail dry spray and i was done!    

models own grow fast mascara - update!

  

before...

after...

 exactly two months ago i posted about models own grow fast mascara. although i said i liked the mascara, i wasn't really sure if the claims that it would 'strengthen and increase the length of my lashes' would be true. i even researched the ingredients and found out what procapil and panthenol are designed to do, yet still didn't believe that it would work.


oh how wrong i was. it took two compliments from different people and questions asking about whether i was using a new mascara or wearing false eyelashes to make me take a photo and actually compare my old lashes with my new lashes.

...and LOOK! yes they're different eyes but i can't imagine they would've been that different beforehand. i'm just so impressed with the massive difference in length and that's coming from a cynic. they're looking thicker without mascara aswell but unfortunately i don't have a before shot (because i didn't think it would work... silly me!) for £6 i think this mascara is really worth a shot. yes it took two months to notice the difference but considering i wasn't expecting anything at all it was definitely a nice surprise :)

french manicure with a twist

   

 

today i decided to do a summery manicure, just in case the beautiful weather here in the U.K decides to disappear any time soon... a likely story unfortunately!

i used models own - jade stone as a base which took two coats and is a nice summery mint green colour. i then thought i'd do a twist on the classic french manicure so painted on light blue tips with models own - blueboo (review here). it's quite a subtle colour combination (hence two of the same picture in a different light) but i like it because it's something different but not so bold that it isn't wearable. 

finally, i added a matte top coat just to soften the join as well as attempting to make the pastel colours a little more grown up! hope you like it :)

galaxy nails

another night in, another attempt at some nail art! this time i used my willing friend to try out some galaxy nails...

i didn't have any particular plan with colours, i just picked out the most shimmery i could find and hoped that they worked well together! firstly, i painted two coats of models own 'emerald black' from the beetlejuice collection as a base. then i used the corner of a clean washing up sponge and sponged on some 'golden green', also from the models own beetlejuice collection.

 

i then sponged on a layer of 'pinky brown' (models own beetlejuice again!) in a different area of the nail. i wasn't too worried about getting it on the surrounding skin or whereabouts i sponged it on as it's meant to have a lot of depth and doesn't require any clean lines.

 

finally, i sponged on a thin layer of NYC 'long time lavender' as another back drop to the stars. i then used a small nail dotting tool to paint a few white stars on each nail with e.l.f cosmetics 'white'. you could do this with a kirby grip or toothpick if you don't have any nail dotting tools.

 

 

to finish it off, i painted over a layer of NYC 'lights-camera-glitter' to add to the starry effect and removed the excess nail varnish from around the nails with a nail varnish remover soaked cotton bud.

 

 

and here's the finished result! i'm really pleased with it as it came out a lot better than expected and was surprisingly quick and easy to do, even though it looks quite complex. let me know if you have a go... next time i plan to do them on my nails too!

models own kaleidoscope collection

whilst i'm on the subject of the models own beetlejuice collection i thought i'd show you their new kaleidoscope collection aswell. 

absolutely love all of these colours and they will make a nice change from the spring pastels that are so popular right now. i've got my eye on 'blooming pink' to wear with a contrasting bright blue dress next weekend. i'll let you know if i give in to temptation...

models own - pinky brown beetlejuice

 

although the models own beetlejuice collection came out a while ago, i am still madly in love with it. i got three out of the five colours in a set for christmas, and although i think it regularly changes, at the moment my favourite shade is 'pinky brown'.

i'm actually quite surprised at how well my camera managed to capture the multi-tonal effect as i was worried i wouldn't be able to show it in its full glory! pinky brown changes from purply to pinky to browny to bronzy depending on the light and which angle you're looking at it from. pretty advanced for a nail varnish i think! 

pinky brown also looks like it's made up of tiny flecks of glitter which adds to the shimmery effect, but only needs two coats and is much easier to remove than standard glitter polishes. all in all a much loved gift and one i'll continue to use throughout the summer months. you can find a set of all five beetlejuice polishes and a base/top coat for only £20 on the models own website.

models own - grow-fast mascara

i recently branched out from my usual maybelline mascara comfort zone and started using models own 'grow-fast mascara'. it is 'designed to strengthen and increase the length of your lashes' and contains procapil and panthenol.

it took a bit of research (wikipedia and a balding blog, i kid you not...) to find out exactly what procapil and panthenol are. apparently, procapil is a plant complex that 'repairs, nourishes and prolongs the hair cycles of the telogen phase of hair growth', and panthenol is a 'provitamin of B5, emollient and moisturiser'. this all sounds promising but i am wary of certain statements made by cosmetic companies so will have to wait and see if the claim to strengthen and increase the length of my lashes does actually prove true. unfortunately, my cynical side says no.

packaging wise, i'm not a massive lover of green but it has come in handy for actually finding the product in an overflowing make up bag, a problem i never really thought would be solved!

the mascara wand itself is something i'm not used to aswell. usually i go for wands with big and thick bristles, but this wand is long and thin, and the bristles are quite rubbery. models own state they are 'diamond moulded'. i'd challenge anyone to find out what this actually means...

regardless of my high hopes for this mascara, i wouldn't say i've been disappointed. it provides good coverage and i've found the brush a lot easier to control than i thought i would. i have found that if i put on too many coats then my lashes have a tendancy to clump, but that's probably a result of my over-enthusiastic approach towards getting longer lashes. is this mascara too good to be true or worth pursuing? watch this space.

models own - blooboo

i fell in love with models own nail varnish a while ago when i saw their range of colours and pretty reasonable price tag. at only £5 it makes it relatively easy to experiment with what i consider to be a high quality nail varnish. 

blooboo is a light, sky blue colour, with a shiny and slightly pearly finish, and the large top makes it easy to keep a steady hand.

the only negative i would say is that all the models own nail varnishes i have tried so far require two coats. definitely worth it in the long run though!