I bought the glitter nail paints from nykaa.com as soon as they were launched.
I had spotted the color of the OPI nail paint in Colorbar a year back but did not buy it because it was expensive (around 300 bucks). But when I saw the same color in OPI I bought it. In my defence, I did look for the color in Colorbar on nykaa but did not find it. Love this color.

Left to right: Maybelline color show paparazzi purple, Maybelline color show starry nights, Maybelline color show denim dash and OPI ski teal we drop.
MRP of Glitter mania range of Maybelline color show: Rs 125
MRP of denim dash: Rs 75
MRP OF OPI : Rs 670

 Starry nights

Paparazzi purple

Denim dash. It has silver shimmer in it.

Ski teal we drop

I used to get manicure pedicure done at the salon once a month but the manicure never lasted more than a week. Then I started doing it once a week at home and now don't need to go to a salon for it. Money saved... atleast 1000 bucks per month saved. 

Below is the step by step instruction with product details. I chalk out an hour for this over the weekend. 

1) Fill a bucket with hot water... not too hot... enough to be able to dip your feet comfortably in it. I have bought a round, wide bucket specially for this. 

2) Add a foot soak. There such few options in India of this. I generally use Body Shop's Peppermint Reviving foot soak but am looking for cheaper options now. MRP of this is Rs 895. Add a few crystals of the soak in the water and dip the feet in it. And also the hands. 

 3) After 10-15 mins, use a nail cutter to cut nails on toes and fingers. Then I use the attachment below to remove all the dirt from the side of my nails. It is a very helpful tool and effectively removes dirt and dead skin. I use this for my fingernails also.

4) Use a pumice stone or foot scrub like below to remove dead skin from the feet. Scrub well specially on the sides of the feet.

5) Apply a foot scrub to the feet and hands. I use Body Shop's Peppermint Smoothing Pumice Foot scrub priced at Rs 595. It is quite good and a little quantity goes a long way. Scrub well. 

 6) Use the smoothing foot scrub like below to clean the feet and hands. I have the one from OVS and have also used from Oriflame. Any brand should be good. Wash the feet and hands after using this and wipe them with a clean cloth.

7) Use a cuticle remover. I don't have too many cuticles but this does help in cleaning the nails. I use it only on my fingernails and not on toes. Sally Hansen cuticle remover priced at Rs 650 (I think). This bottle should last a year if used once a week. A little goes a long way. 

Apply the gel on the sides of the nails and leave on for 15 seconds. Don't keep it for very long else it will dry off making it difficult to push back.

Use a cuticle pusher to push back the gel towards the nails. Cuticles are effectively removed. Cuticle stick from Colorbar (don't remember the price).

Shown below are pushed back cuticles. Wash the nails in soapy water and wipe with a clean cloth. I clean them off with the water with foot soak.

 8) Apply foot cream and massage feet. I am using Lush fair trade foot lotion which has peppermint and feels very relaxing. Priced at Rs 970 and should easily last a year.

Apply hand cream and massage. I am using Body Shop's Vanilla Bliss. It is limited edition priced at Rs 495. I think I bought it for 50% off. Love it. The fragrance is my favorite... it is thick enough to moisturise but gets absorbed easily.

9) Use a buffer to smoothen and give nails a shine. I use Colorbar's pack of 3 nail buffers priced at Rs 350. The colored side removes ridges and the white side gives my nails a shine.

10) And now the nails are ready for a paint. The base is Sally Hansen miracle cure. I don't think this does anything special and I am trying to finish it off.

And the nails are ready for the paint. I keep my nails short and use a filer only if required.

I use a darker, neutral colour for my feet so that it does need to be changed too often. I have applied Bourjois grey nail paint on my feet.

And a bright fuschia - OPI Dim Sum Plum on my fingernails.

And last... but not the least... Inglot drying drops. The cap is a dropper. 1 drop is enough for 1 nail. This is ok types... nothing great. I went to Inglot looking for a nice drying coat and the SA recommended this. Not too happy with it.

Its done... Leaving the 2nd toe blank is not a trend... the nails have broken off and I don't want to paint baby nails. That is the picture of my happy feet.
I will tell you a secret... I hate my feet specially the toes. They are so ugly. Sigh!!!

Those are happy fingernails...

Nail paints used: Maybelline Colorshow Shocking Seas, Maybelline Express Finish Fuschia Fun

Colorbar Moss Agate. Love this shade.

Max Factor nail paint (hate tiny nail paints) with L'Oreal color riche Le Vernis gold polka dots. Looks like a 80s saree design.

My hubby was not home this weekend and I had ample time to myself.

This is what I did. It was time consuming because I planned to do only half the nail and then decided to cover the whole nail with spots.

How to do it:
- Apply base coat. I used Sally Hansen's miracle cure
- Apply base nail paint. I used Colorbar's white shade first but the nail paint has dried. I removed it and then used Inglot's white shade
- Use a toothpick to make dots. I did not have any (keep forgetting to buy them)... used the brush from Inglot's nail art pen.
- I made the dots with different shades of nail paints - all Inglot
- Apply Inglot gel top coat

I have/am going to finish so many products this month that I decided to blog about them.

1) Nivea lemon and oil body wash: MRP Rs 165 for 250 ml. I bought this for my brother when he had come to stay for a few days. I would never have tried it otherwise. After he left, I used it to finish it off. A good product. It smells of lemon (obviously) and lathers well. It also consists of small yellow beads giving it an attractive look. The bottle is travel friendly and the flip cap does not open up while travelling.
Will I re-purchase? Yes. Why not.

2) The Nature's Co Peppermint face wash: MRP Rs 325 for 125 ml. I bought this when Vellvette sent me a coupon for a spa at their store. I visited their store in R City, Ghatkopar. This was a forced purchase. Details here. Anyway, I have been using it for the past few months. The face wash is for oily skin. It is slow to lather specially if face is already oily and smells like spirit... you know, the product which doctors use to disinfect before giving an injection. Yuck!!! On applying, it tingles in a good way. After washing the skin does not feel squeaky clean... it does not feel dirty but I don't get the squeaky sound which is a test of cleanliness. This may not be a bad thing but I am so used to judging cleanliness by this that I prefer it that way. The face wash is ok. Nothing great. And the price is a hindrance for me.
Will I re-purchase? No.

3) Baby Lips Coral Crush: MRP Rs 125. The Maybelline Baby Lips lip balms do stand out in the market. I have bought one in every shade. Finally, I finished 1 lip balm and can now open a new pack. They make my lips smooth and keep them moisturized. They did not work when my lips became very dry and damaged but I think that was an extreme reaction to some lipstick. For regular usage, they are good but if you are looking for specific care/concern this may not be the ideal product.
Will I re-purchase? Of course.

4) Clinique Clarifying Lotion : MRP Rs 1400 for 200 ml. This toner has lasted me for around 2 months. The brand does have a bigger bottle which is cheaper but would be difficult to carry while travelling. This bottle is sturdy and travel friendly. I wish they had 100 ml bottles to carry while travelling. The SA at the store told me it is a clarifying lotion. It tones but also removes dead skin cells. I wish I could see the effect on my skin. Earlier, I used Vichy Normaderm toner. I don't think Clinique lotion has made any significant difference to my skin. It did not stop breakouts (I get 1 pimple every month). I soak a cotton with the lotion and dab onto my face. The product tingles a little and may burn if there is a cut on skin. Also, it has a lot of alcohol and smells like it. I am so confused... the SA at Clinique tells me that alcohol is good for skin while the one at Keihl's tells me that it is not good for sensitive skin. Arrgh!!! I am still trying to figure it out.
Will I re-purchase? No. I will be trying Keihls caldula toner next.

5) Garnier deo Absolute Dry: This is my favorite antiperspirant. MRP Rs 150 for 150 ml. It is a little expensive compared to other deos in the market but I love it. Earlier, my underarms would smell and the deodorant (Fa, Charlie, Reebok) would add to the smell and make it worse. Plus, they started making my underarms dark. Oh, how I hated those days. Then, I discovered Garnier deos. I do not smell at all now. The deos does not smell too great but it is not bad. The point is that it does its job well. It does not darken my underarms and I am so glad.
Will I re-purchase? Yes. I have been using this for years and have not even tried any other deo.

6) Bourjois magic nail polish remover: MRP Rs 400 (I think, it has been months since I bought this). This nail polish remover reduced my nail care time drastically. No more turning off the fan... soaking cotton... closing the lid fast so that the remover does not disappear... rubbing.. rubbing... and then repeating for each nail. You just have to dip your nail and turn 1-2 times and ta da... nail polish gone. It has a very sweet fragrance which gets on my nails. I don't always like the fragrance. The liquid is non sticky. I have been using it for months and it got ruined when I used it to remove glitter nail paints. Now, I am using it to remove only glitter nail paints and Colorbar ultimate nail polish remover (similar one minus the smell) for regular nail paints.
Will I re-purchase? Maybe not. I think the Colorbar one is better ... it does not have the fragrance.

7) The Body Shop Satsuma Body Mist: MRP Rs 745 for 100 ml. It smells just the way I like it... like fruits. I prefer fruity fragrance to anything else. It has lasted me months. I apply it on my body after a bath and it smells good. On the downside, it is a mist so cannot be applied on clothes. Plus the lasting power is low. You can smell it as soon as I apply it but not later.
Will I re-purchase? I don't know. I am using the Victoria's Secret body mist and it lasts slightly longer.

8) Sally Hansen Insta Brite: Rs 775 for 13.3 ml. Yep, it is damn expensive. I bought it 'coz my nails were yellowing due to excessive use of nail polish. I thought this would help. But nope. It is the biggest disappointment. I apply it before nail polish but it is transparent and does not whiten the nails or cover up the yellowing at all. Hate it. Have used it as base coat to finish it off.
Will I re-purchase? No. I am trying out Inglot nail whitener.

9) Colorbar nail polish remover. MRP Rs 125 for 110 ml. I am a fan of this product and this brand. This is the best nail polish remover I have used. It beats Lakme also. It removes nail paints quickly. The bottle is plastic and travel friendly. It is also acetone free.
Will I re-purchase? Yes. Have started using the next bottle.

10) Kerastase Elixir Ultime: MRP Rs 2300 for 125 ml. It is very expensive but I bought it at a discount. Love this product. It smells of coconut which I do not like but the fragrance does not linger. 2 pumps are required to cover the entire hair. It gives a healthy shine and reduces frizz. I use it on towel dried hair and apply more on the ends than on roots. If used too much, it may make the hair look oily but does not feel sticky at all. If there is one product you can splurge on, this should be it.
Will I re-purchase? Yes. I already have a back up bottle.

11) Chanel Inimitable Intense mascara: My sister sent me this sample along with other goodies from USA. It has lasted me months. I love it. It gives volume and length to lashes. I would love to buy the full product if I already didn't have so many mascaras. Someday... when I finish off my current stash.

I try some nail art every week but for the past 2 weeks I have not done anything. This weekend I decided to try something complicated, absolutely new and exciting- ombre nails. 'Ombre' means 'shaded'. It means multi coloured with colours graduating from light to dark (or vice versa).
The technique is actually quite simple. Take 2 colors... any 2 colors. I used pink Colorbar and purple Inglot nail paint. Put a few drops of each colour on a plastic... even a polythene will do. Place them next to each other. Take a wet sponge (I used a make up sponge)... dip them in the colour such that both colours come onto it. Dab them on the nails. Ensure that one colour is on top and another on the bottom on each nail. I had to do it 3 times and got the nail paint around my nails. Once it is dry, apply a top coat. I used the Inglot gel top coat. The top coat will make it look even.
Now take a cotton bud, dip it in acetone and clean up around the nails. Tada.... ombre nails are done.

You can go through this link for step by step instructions:

http://www.glamour.com/beauty/blogs/girls-in-the-beauty-department/2012/05/gradient-nails-picture-tutoria.html
The only difference is that I did not paint my nails first. Actually, I did but used the purple nail paint which is much darker and the pink was not visible. You can skip the bottom coat.

I have been trying out nail art recently and decided to post the pics:

Used- Inglot white nail paint (hate how streaky it is), Colorbar crackle nail paint. This does not look too good but I wanted a twist on the usual crackle.

                                      

Used- Inglot pastel pink, Revlon glitter nail paint. I loved this one. Instead of painting the whole nail with glitter I have only used it on the top half. This reminds me of a fairy.

Used- Maybelline Colorama, Inglot nail art black pen. Polka dots are the easiest to create. I love the base- mint Maybelline nail paint... I just painted the dots with Inglot nail art pen.

Used- Maybelline express finish for base, L'Oreal color riche Le Vernis orange paint for dots. I saw orange on orange on one of the blogs and decided to try it out. The base is a shimmery, light orange nail paint. The dots have been painted on with a tooth pick. Compared to a nail art pen, the dots are large. I like them. Using tooth picks is so much cheaper and there is no constraint of nail paint used.