Review: Fuse Gelnamel

Left to right: E-MOTION, V-AMP, SONIC BLUE-M

Fuse Gelnamel Starter Kit
RRP: AUD49.99
Packaging: 5 out of 5

Fuse Gelnamel (single)
RRP: $14.99
Packaging: 5 out of 5

I was sent a generous package from Fuse to try their gelnamel kit. And here's my thoughts on the products!
I can sum this all up in one word for you: wow! I'd never tried gel manicures before and this really impressed me. Yes, the process is in a way more tedious but trust me, the result is worth the steps taken. I won't go into the details of how you use the products. I was going to do step-by-step photos but Chloe Morello uploaded an excellent video a while back so I'm not going to let a good resource go to waste!

The brushes that come with the polish have short bristles, which I found made it a lot easier to coat my nails; I felt more in control of where I was applying the polish. You have to be careful to not apply too thick a coat or on your skin because you will feel like your finger is being cooked when you place it under the LED lamp. I like that they use LED instead of UV, which I believe is a health hazard. Most importantly, I love how quickly the polish dries! If you thought the OPI Drip Dry sped things up, this is even faster. All it takes is 30 seconds per nail and it comes out DRY so there's no way you can smudge it!

My favourite colour is V-AMP. It's a beautiful dark reddish purple. It's the perfect colour for autumn and winter. The finish may look dull initially but it gradually turns glossy. I had never done such a fabulous looking manicure before. I am not trying to be arrogant be, I am trying to praise Fuse! Although there are a few steps, they've made it very easy to understand and simple to do, plus they've left very little room for errors. Depending on your technique, the nail may come out uneven. It just takes practice to make sure you coats are always even. I also have not experienced any bubbling with this polish.

The polish generally lasts me a good five days before any chipping happens, which is more than I can ask for because A. I hardly ever wear nail polish for more than 5 days and B. my nail polish sometimes chips within 4 days. I love how my nails are left in good condition after I've removed the polish. There's no discolouration or peeling of my nails. Speaking of removal...

Sensationail Gel Polish Removal Kit 
RRP: AUD24.99
Packaging: 5 out of 5

From the same company, I was sent a gel polish removal kit. I will not say much about this because frankly I don't find it effective at removing the gel polish efficiently. I seem to have more success picking at the polish and gently peeling it off with my own nails. I probably shouldn't be admitting this but my nails are left in good condition, which shows how great the gel polishes are! I find that soaking my nails in the acetone provided did not speed up the removal process at all. In fact, I felt like it made the polish stick to my nails. Perhaps I just need practice. I will keep you posted on this front.

The only down side of the Fuse gelnamels is that there aren't that many colours available... yet! I'm hoping they will release more these amazing gems soon! For more information, feel free to check out the Fuse and Sensational websites.


Have you ever tried gel polish before at home before? What do you think?

Nail Colours for Summer

Hey ladies, just thought I'd do a quick post on what colours I've been wearing on my nails lately.

For my fingers, I've been using OPI's Alpine Snow. I noticed that white is in trend right now, especially now that our weather Down Under is warming up. I really like it because it makes your digits look clean and sophisticated.

For my toes, I've been wearing OPI's Do You Lilac It? Seriously. Do you? I know I do! Purple is my favourite colour and the best way to keep it on my digits is to go for lighter shades during the warmer seasons. Please excuse my ugly blister patches...

Lastly, I just want to make a quick mention of another two hero nail products. The base coat and top coat. Both by OPI (of course!). The base coat keeps my nails from being stained and protects my nails from being stripped and peeled. I notice this whenever I remove my nail polish and my nails seem to take forever to recover. Now, it's no longer a problem. The top coat keeps my nail polish on for longer and gives it a beautiful shine. It also does not cause streaking like my previous Cutex base + top coat. Tip: avoid buying those two-in-ones. Generaly rule of thumb is that base and top coats do two different things and so should be two different formulas.

What's your favourite nail polish colours for this Summer?

Nail Polish for August

Here Down Under, it's warming up a little, especially where I live. We are so very close to Spring now and I'm counting down the days 'cause I'm a warm weather person. On the other hand, for those of you who are living in the Northern hemisphere, you'll be bidding Summer farewell and welcoming Autumn soon.

I present to you two nail polishes; I've got you covered no matter what part of the world you live in.

I notice that as the weather warms up, everyone just whips out their pastel polishes. Although I am a huge fan of pastel colours, I reckon it's nice to be different; to stand out from the crowd. Go BRIGHT pink instead of PALE pink!

I wore OPI A Definite Moust-Have in the photo above. Kudos to OPI for coming up with a collection based on my childhood favourite Disney character, Minnie Mouse. I'll be the first to admit that I am not the biggest fan of pinks, especially hot or neon pink. However, for some strange reason, this colour really appeals to me. It has a very subtle gleam/sheen. I tested it out with base or top coat and it lasted four days without chipping.

As the weather gets colder, you see photos of berry hued nails plastered all over the internet. Personally, I prefer to dark purple colours. It's no-brainer 'cause purple is my favourite colour! OPI has taken it to the next level by coming up with a new collection called Liquid Sand. So if you're bored of the Shatter or Caviar look, give this a try. I apologise that this photo is not an accurate representation of what the nail polish looks like in real life. However, it's the only way you can see the texture. My friends Oooh'ed and Aaah'ed over my nails when I wore it. It looked like I had deep purple sand on my nails. I think it looks classy and sexy and would work really well with a dark vampy look.

Edit: The polish is very easy to apply but a bit of a nightmare to remove. It requires a fair bit of nail polish remover. And you'll get glitter all over your fingers afterwards. It chips more easily (lasted only two days) and if you apply a top coat over it or you'll lose the matte finish. The name of the shade that I wore in the photo is Vesper.

Have you tried any of these nail polishes? What will you be wearing this month?

First Impression: Bobbi Brown Sea Pearls Collection

Bobbi Brown recently released a new collection called Sea Pearls. I thought I'd share with you my first impression of two products from the collection: Shimmer Nail Polish in Pink Pearl and Shimmer Brick Eye Palette.

If you're a fan of Bobbi Brown, chances are you know about her highly acclaimed Shimmer Bricks for the cheeks. So I was pretty eager to see if the Eye version would live up to the name. The packaging is gorgeous as usual. Upon opening the palette, I was greeted with a lot of shimmery powder and glitter everywhere. A chunk had chipped off one of the eyeshadow tiles during its journey in the mail. I carefully swept it all off the plastic and the mirror with a brush. The instructions on the box said to be careful with this delicate product, it was handmade in Italy.

 I swatched the colours on my arm and found the eyeshadow to be smooth and relatively pigmented, considering they are pale and shimmery colours.

I immediately spotted some colours that I liked. There were some that I felt that I would not use either because I don't know how to use it or because I think it would not look flattering on me. I will have to experiment with this palette for a while before I'm confident enough to write some form of tutorial on it. Please leave me a comment down below if you're interested to see one.

As for the nail polish, this is the first time I've tried a Bobbi Brown one. It is really easy to apply. I am usually a messy applicator and I go back in with a cotton bud dipped in remover to clean up afterwards. With this nail polish, I found that the brush was easy to control. I swept it on my nails with very little mess left to clean up.

I wore it for three days without any top coat and it didn't chip. And it takes a fair amount of remover and working to get every last bit of the polish off. From there, I deduced that it has good staying power. But I could be wrong.

Without flash

The nail polish has a shimmery and pearlescent finish. To me this shade of pink looks elegant and sophisticated; I would use it for special occasions, like to a wedding or a formal dinner/event. I personally would not wear this as an everyday colour.

With flash

Bobbi Brown products are of high quality and these products did not fail to meet that standard. At this point, I cannot say that they are must-haves in your makeup collection. I can, however, say that they would be luxurious additions.  The Shimmer Brick Eye Palette retails for $99; the Shimmer Nail Polish in Pink Pearl for $26.