Liebster Award!

Hi guys!

I've been nominated for a Liebster Award by Jo from The Polish Magpie (thank you, thank you, thank you!), which is very exciting! If you aren't familiar with the Liebster Award, it is basically a way for bloggers to promote blogs that they like and find out a bit more about the bloggers who write them. I have a list of 11 questions to answer about me and my blog, and I have tagged 11 other blogs with 11 more questions in the hope that they will answer them too and continue the awards!

Anyway, here are the questions that Jo has asked, and my answers to them:

1) What made you start a blog?
I love the idea of documenting things, and a blog seemed a really cool way for me to create a portfolio of my nail designs and share my love of polish with others! I had thought about scrapbooking, but a blog is way easier to update and share with people. I just hope my blabbering is interesting for people haha!

2) Where do you get your nail art/make-up inspiration from?
I am a huge fan of Instagram, and my biggest inspiration comes from my favourite accounts on there - namely @BadGirlNails, @narmai, @Yagala and many, many more. I love to find inspiration in anything and everything, from pretty prints that I come across on Pinterest, to the world around us. I often look at things and think 'how could I translate that onto my nails?'

3) What polishes are at the top of your want-to-buy list?
I am currently in love with ILNP polishes and reaaalllllyyyyy want more of their flakie goodness. Other than that I have a list as long as my arm of indie polishes that I want to buy, especially from Polish Me Silly - their glitters are amazing! I'm also really enjoying colour changing polishes at the minute, so anything that is thermal/solar changing is on my wishlist!

4) Honesty time – How many untrieds to you have in your stash?
Ermm... A lot! At least 30 I would say. I have been planning to separate them for a while from my stash and only use my untrieds on new designs, but I have so many pretty polishes I don't know if I could commit to that. One day soon I will re-organise my collection and put some of my untrieds to the test! :)

5) Indie or mainstream?
Until recently I had only ever bought mainstream, but I am starting to support more indie brands and find the quality and prettiness sooooo good. I love mainstream brands for consistency, but if I want something a little bit different or extra special I will opt for an indie polish.

6) What’s your nail & cuticle care routine like?
Twice a week I give my hands and nails a good scrub, remove all polish, push back my cuticles and have a file and general tidy up. Day-to-day I apply hand and cuticle cream multiple times and one thick coating just before bed to let it absorb in overnight. My nailcare must-haves are Lush Lemony Flutter Cuticle Butter, Sally Hansen Cuticle Eraser + Balm, L'Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream, and Lush Handy Gurugu. I have many, many lotions, oils and creams that I apply depending on what's in my handbag, but those are my faves that I religiously use.

7) Is there a nail art technique that you haven’t tried yet, that you’d really like to? Or one you’d really like to improve?
Watermarbling! I have only managed to successfully watermarble once and that was at least three years ago! Every time I try it something goes wrong and I just can't get it to work. It's got to the point now where I pretty much just avoid it :( I will get the hang of it one day, but for now it's the only technique that I am afraid to try because of the immense sense of failure I experience every time I do haha!

8) Any brands that you would really like to try, but haven’t yet?
I have no self restraint, so if I want a polish I tend to just go ahead and buy it (my bank account does not thank me for this). The one brand that I would love to try but haven't yet is Color Club - they have some gorgeous holos and pretty sparklies that would love to try out. Color Club Halo Hues 'Harp On It' is my number one pick at the moment.

9) You can take 5 polishes with you to the desert island. Which 5 do you pick?
Rimmel - Black Out
OPI - My Boyfriend Scales Walls
Barry M - Dragonfruit
China Glaze - Fairy Dust
ILNP - Supernova

10) What got you started in nail art?
A few years ago when Barry M released their nail art pens and crackle polishes I was obsessed with polka dot nails with a crackle accent. I loved having nails that were a little different to block colours, but never knew where to go from my usual polka dots and crackle. Then I started in a job where all of the other girls loved nails and nail art, and it just took off from there. I caught the bug! My boyfriend supports me so much, and is even subscribed to the Reddit Laqueristas sub-reddit and sends me photos of cool nails that he spots online. 

11) Tell us 3 random facts about yourself

• I love music and have a passion for playing instruments and singing - I have performed on German TV and sang at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
• I jumped out of a plane at 15,000 in New Zealand and it was the most exhilarating and wonderful experience of my life.
• I am so phobic of spiders that the mere presence of one can make me vomit and pass out (not every time, but this has happened more than once!)

I have nominated the following blogs for the Liebster Award - I got the follower counts from Bloglovin' so I'm sorry if they are incorrect!:

• Amateur Manicure
• Nail2Express
• Mad About Red
• AnnaBean's Nails
• Nail Parade
• My Mint Nails
• The Beauty Of Nail Polish
• Nails By Rabbit
• Nail Girl
• Nails By Cassis
• Nailallure

And my questions are:

1) What is your favourite part of blogging?
2) If you could only wear ONE polish for the rest of your life, what would it be?
3) Be honest, how many bottles of polish do you have in your stash?
4) What's your favourite nail art technique and why?
5) Describe your nail style in three words.
6) What are your top tips for nail and handcare?
7) How often do you change your manicure?
8) Which nail/beauty blogs do you religiously follow?
9) Which brand do you own the most of in your collection? Or which is your favourite?
10) Aside from your blog, where is the best place to find you on the internet (Instagram, Facebook, etc.)?
11) What is the most unusual polish that you have in your stash?

I really enjoyed doing this, and think it's such an awesome way to discover new blogs and meet new people. Thank you again Jo for nominating me, and I can't wait to read everyone else's posts!

Thanks for reading,
Helen x