Manicure Monday - Chanel Le Vernis in Pirate

No rest for the wicked, even though it is a Bank Holiday. Having spent most of the day watching Poirot and Miss Marple, I am feeling a great sense of nostalgia for the glamour and sophistication of the 1930s. The women of that time looked absolutely immaculate and so in a homage to that period, I have chosen classic red for my nails this week.

Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour in Pirate - £16.50

I own many different reds, all with slight variations in shade or finish, but to get a real thirties feel, I chose Chanel's Pirate, what I would class as a true red.

It gives a gorgous finish in just 2 coat and I instantly feel more elegant having applied it, even as I sit here in my pyjamas!

1 coat OPI Nail Envy, 2 Coats Pirate & 1 coat Seche Vite

I am not a big fan of reds in summer, but with the gale force winds we had today in Kent, for me, summer has officially finished and I am fully embracing autumn and the colours that go with it. I have naturally very fair skin and I love the way the contrast of the bright red of Pirate sets this off. I would class this as a neutral to cool red as a more orange toned red would not produce this effect.

Chanel Le Vernis in Pirate is available nationwide or online at http://www.debenhams.com/, http://www.boots.com/ or http://www.garden.co.uk/ for £16.50.

The Monday Manicure - OPI's Wing It! & Catch Me In Your Net

Yes, I know that it is technically Tuesday, but every Monday I will be doing the Monday Manicure (I painted my nails yesterday but the light wasn't good enough to photograph them then).

Let me know if there are any particular brands or colours or finishes that you would like to see in future weeks and I will try my best to oblige.

This week I have chosen colours from OPI's Summer Flutter Collection as I refuse to wave goodbye to summer until after the Bank Holiday weekend. I had difficulty restricting myself to just 1 so I have painted my toes as well so I can show you 2 different, yet spectacular shades.

I have used Wing It! on my fingers and it is an eye catching mix of red, orange and pink shimmer with a fine sprinkling of glitter. It is quite difficult to accurately describe but it reminds me of how petrol can sometimes look when the sun hits it (not the most glamorous analogy). This shade would look fantastic with a tan, alas my hands are deathly pale even in August, and is a must if you have plans for this Bank Holiday. It screams summer even if the UK weather disappoints. It applies like a dream, but the main drawback is that even with 3 coats, the nail line is still quite evident. If this bothers you, then it might be better to just use on the toes.

For my toes, I chose Catch Me In Your Net, which has a similar finish to Wing It!. Again it is a mix of colours with fine glitter, blue, turquoise and light green. It is my favourite out of the 2, mainly because I feel it is the more unique shade and it looks great on both warm and cool skin tones. It applies like a dream and I only needed 2 coats for an opaque finish (however it can be a pain to remove!).

The perfect manicure & pedicure ingredients:

2 coats of OPI Nail Envy (base)

3 coats of Wing It! for fingers

2 coats of Catch me In Your Net for toes

1 coat of Seche Vite top coat

Leighton Denny Corrector Liquid as required

1 application of OPI Avoplex Cuticle Oil

1 pump of Decleor Nourishing Comforting Hand Cream

1 pump of Margaret Dabbs Intensive Hydrating Foot Lotion

Overall, OPI is my favourite nail brand as I find it the easiest to apply and for me, it lasts the longest. The Summer Flutter Collection doesn't disappoint and these colours are sure to catch anyone's eye. If you don't really like to be noticed, then you can still carry off these shades, just restrict them to the toes.