BURKATRON

I don't often share swatches of singular nail polishes but this one swayed me! it's from the new illamasqua creators collection that I was lucky enough to sample; a collaboration with some of the uk's most loved bloggers (including the lovely milly who's created a very wearable copper toned lipgloss which you can see here !) back to this little beauty though, a galactic inspired glitter polish from style suzi called perseid.  perseid glitter polish* glitter rich it has a gorgeous pearlescent finish with undertones of purple, blue and green. it's a tricky one to photograph as you can't catch the full iridescence on camera! you'll need just two coats for full coverage; it's described as a black polish I find it more purple toned until the second coat is applied. definitely one I'll be wearing this A/W and a good alternative to the standard black polish, well done suzi for creating this little rascal! what do you think.. one for you maybe? caroline x

hmmm after compiling these snaps from the last few weeks I can conclude that I seem to spend a vast proportion of my time eating (or taking pictures of me eating) oh dear. so food aside here's what I've been up too when I'm not glued to my laptop! on my nails, illamasqua  radium  | fresh flowers from my mom | jelly bean heaven | ben & jerry's & star trek (great movie!) | selfridges haul | brunching, yes a healthy start to my weekend | on my paws nails inc you're a peach, seche vite top coat and neals yard hand cream | antipasti | walking the pups new nails inc polishes, swatches coming soon | ootd, asos shirt & topshop leighs | my best friend bought me the most amazing gift- a cath kidston button making kit yipeee | cider & train travel.. bank holiday road trip | muse in concert- incredible | inside the emirates to see muse | tea & sunshine (one day of good weather finally!) | ootd, vintage shirt & plaits | sushi nibbles  I have a little feat...

there's a few bit's and bobs that I'm currently lovin' in my daily routine; I thought I'd bundle them together for a post as they're not items I'd usually review individually! so without further ado here's a few things I though were worth of a mention/shout out/thumbs up/not a complete waste of money:  ren t-zone balancing day fluid for oily combination skin:  this hasn't knocked my socks off but it's a really clean daily moisturiser that absorbs quickly and is very gentle on my skin (the only disappointment is that it hasn't left my skin feeling amazingly baby soft but as a base for make up I give it a thumbs up! nail decorations:  these are basically fimo pieces for your nails, available in several designs and sold in topshop they're a super quick nail art alternative and just darn cute. illamasqua precision gel liner*  this is soooo good! this eye liner applies uber smooth and stays put all day long on me which is rare as I'm alway...

drum roll... this weeks nail crush goes to  illamasqua noble ! you may have noticed I have a soft spot for blue nail polishes so I was excited to receive this one as it had been on my wish list for quite a while! similar to the shade 'pique blue' that I bought in & other stories recently this turquoise blue has a more radiant finish and is 10x more glossy! the formula is gorgeous, it's light to apply (not heavy and sticky) and the pigment is as always brilliant. I love illamasqua polishes because they dry quickly and you never need more than two coats for full effect.  this is two coats swatched above.  illamasqua nobel* £14.50 I adore this colour it's really vibrant (this would look great against darker skin) definitely a contender for my top 5 summer polish colours. I'll be wearing this one with white tee's, denim cut offs (...and a slathering of st tropez aha!) what do you think? I'm a big fan of their polishes- have you tried them yet? caroline x

wow wee! exciting news gang, illamasqua's  latest collection is about the hit the shelves! I was lucky enough to go to the paranormal launch this week (I even got to chat with the awesome alex box the beauty and the brains behind the creative process eeeeek!) so today I can show you some of the new range before it lands april 30th.. HURRAH! the launch was a true illamasqua event! tarot cards and smoke machines with a haunted house vibe (luckily there's nothing scary about the make up) it's actually pretty damn cool. illamasqua are quite rightly a huge cult brand; always at the front of innovation (remember the speckled nails from their imperfection range?) and known for their fantastic pigments this collection is a little more punk meets 90's which would always be a winner for me. cue a photo of my other half getting his nails 'illamasqued' sorry james I couldn't resist aha! so here's a few of the new additions...  first up there's a few new lipstick...

wow. that was my initial reaction when I opened these nail polishes for the first time. illamasqua  seem to have finely tuned the knack of creating shades more unique than others out there on the market (and almost always better quality too)  I wanted to review these separately but they're so damn good I had to do them all together because I'm so impatient to show you them on!  if you're looking for the perfect spring/summer nail colours these may just be for you: superstition is a knockout hot pink coming soon to their collection!! (I'm super excited to swatch this one for you!) this is one crazy, vibrant, beautiful shade!  this is how it looks on: the varnish is rich, bright and long lasting. I find it really hard to critise the formula of illamasqua polishes because all the ones I've used have been pretty darn perfect.  for full intensity I'd apply two coats (it's almost a one coat polish because the pigment is so good) next up is my favourite out of the ...

as you may or not know I'm on holiday this week (it's my birthday trip to new york hurrah!!) it feels really strange scheduling a post in advance as I usually write them on the day but here I am (...sort of!) I love packing for holiday; I'm always torn at what to bring with me but I'm being pretty strict this time (must. not. go. over. luggage. allowance. caroline!) I wanted to bring my everyday make up with a few extras to ramp up my look in the evening! I love peeking into my friends make up bags so I hope you guys enjoy this post! so here's a little run down of the contents of my travel make up bag! 1.  mac lady danger lipstick : this is my all time go-to red lipstick for nights out & cocktails! 2.  illamasqua precision ink in havoc:  this is my current most used ink eyeliner and lasts through the day without smudging! 3.  maybelline dream touch concealer:  this is my favourite concealer for touching up dark circles. perfect for early morning flights...zz...

oh my, it's love. I can't remember the last time I was this excited about the launch of a new collection, I only discovered illamasqua last year and loved it at first try. the launch was a few weeks ago and I've been itching to share these polishes with you! every now and again a nail trend arrives and the last few have left me underwhelmed (leather, concrete & velvet nails? nope not for me!) I'mperfection  is the name of this collection (I'm perfection...get it!) a clever and thought provoking campaign designed to encourage us to embrace our so called 'flaws' rather than hiding behind them. I for one can't wait for the arrival of my summer freckles and a less made up face- this campaign is everything I love! the collection has some striking blushers and lipsticks that you may want to investigate but for me my heart has been well and truly stolen by these pastel critters.. taking inspiration from nature these rather ingenious nail polishes were born!...

repainting my bedroom | today's make up | dog walking in my bf's big furry coat! brrrrr | my new iPad case, a present from my bestie |  la moda  bags, coming to an outfit post soon! | new  office  sale boots |  snow day!! | sale shoes from  river island  (only £10!) | my brothers new kitten beth, I've already become a insta-cat-spammer aha, she's so darn cute! | went to see gangster squad- ryan gosling & josh brolin heaven! | working on a nail art tutorial for company magazine woooooop, excited! | new jonathan aston  tights (look at those models legs, wish mine were that long aha!) | so that's my little instagram round up, I've not posted one for a few weeks so I thought I'd have a lot more pictures aha! I'm obviously slacking on the insta-spamming..wink. I've had a really exciting week though; illamasqua picked me to be in their new feature called beauty spotlight, my jaw pretty much hit the floor because I was the first blogger involved (wow...