How To Depot Lipsticks: Using Heat

Recently I decided to depot all of my MAC lipsticks, I did this because of two reasons. One, they were taking up so much room in my MUA kit and two, by depotting them it meant I could get 7 free MAC lipsticks (praise the lord for Back-2-MAC). I posted a picture of me depotting my lipsticks on Instagram and a lot of you said you'd love to see a tutorial, so here it is. 

If you're debating on whether to depot your lipsticks, I'd say go for it because it saves so much room and you're also getting your money's worth as you can scrape out every last bit of lipstick. A lot of people worry that depotting a lipstick will change the colour, consistency and finish of it but it really doesn't, the lipstick remains exactly as it did in the tube. People also worry about application, the most common question I get asked is 'how do you apply lipstick from a palette/pot?' and the simple answer is a lip brush, you can also use your finger if you want a wash of colour. Another thing you should know is that you can depot any lipstick you like, it doesn't matter about the brand, finish or colour, you can depot any, it doesn't have to be a MAC lipstick like many people believe. 

If you'd like to know how to depot lipsticks using heat, keep on reading.

What you will need...

You Will Need:

• Tissues - These are primarily used when sanitising equipment as you'll pour IPA onto a tissue and then clean a piece of equipment. They are also used to remove lipstick off the spoons, knife and disposable.
• IPA - IPA (aka. Isopropyl Alcohol) is used to sanitise equipment (e.g. palette, knife, spoons, and disposable) as it will kill any germs or bacteria. 
• Palette - You can depot your lipstick into anything you like (e.g. a palette, pot, container or pill case), I use the connectable pill cases from Muji as I find these are the best. They are connectable meaning you can move/re-arrange the lipsticks, they are easy to store, they don't take up much room and each pot has its own lid meaning when you're using the palette, you're only getting air to one lipstick and not all of them. 
• Matches - These are used to light the candle. Obviously. 
• Candle - Without the candle, you'll be setting alight thin air. A candle and matches are essential for depotting lipsticks using heat. 
• Knife/Spatula - This is used to chop the lipstick into small pieces. 
• Teaspoons - One is used to place the lipstick on, the other is used to scrape off the excess lipstick. 
• Disposable - This is used to scrape out the lipstick from inside the tube, you'd be surprised at how much lipstick is actually left within the tube. You don't have to use a disposable, you can use anything you like (e.g. a cocktail stick, cotton bud, spatula) you just need to make sure you use something small and sturdy. I always use the end of a disposable as you can wipe them clean, sanitise them and then re-use them. 
• Scissors - These are used to cut the labels to the correct size.
• Sticky Labels - These are used to identify what lipstick it is. I always write the brand, lipstick name and finish. It's important as an MUA to know everything about a product just incase a client doesn't like a certain finish or is allergic to a certain brand. It's good to write down the name of the lipstick for when you run out and need to buy a new one.
• Pen - This is used to write down information about the lipstick (e.g. brand, name, finish, tone, colour).
• Sellotape - I place a small piece of sellotape over the label just to protect it. If any liquid/substance was to land on the palette, the labels wouldn't ruin. 

Method

1.) The first thing you need to do is place the candle on a plate, then light the candle using the matches.  

2.) Using the knife, cut the lipstick into small pieces and place on one of the teaspoons. I would recommend melting the lipstick bit by bit rather than as a whole. If you melt the lipstick as a whole, it'll take a longer to melt and spillages may occur. 

3.) Hold the spoon over the candle and you'll notice that the lipstick will start to melt within a few seconds. Some lipsticks may take longer to melt than others and this is purely down to the finish of the lipstick, matte lipsticks take a while to melt whereas frost/shimmer lipsticks take seconds to melt. It's also important to know not to hold the spoon too close to the flame as you could burn the bottom of the spoon or boil the lipstick (something you don't want to do!)

4.) Once the lipstick has melted completely, give it a stir with the end of the disposable as this will get rid of any lumps and bumps. 

5.) Pour the lipstick into the pot and scrape off any excess using the other teaspoon. I will warn you that this step is tricky and it does take a steady hand. 

6. Repeat step 2. 

7. Repeat step 3, 4 and 5. 

8. Using the end of the disposable, scrape out the lipstick from inside the tube and place onto the teaspoon. Again, place the spoon over the candle and melt the lipstick.

9. Pour the last bit of lipstick into the pot and leave to set. If should take around 5 minutes to cool down and set completely. 

10. Cut a sticky label to the correct size. 

11. Place the label on top of the lid.

12. Write down information about the lipstick. Include as little or as much as you like. 

13. Place a piece of sellotape over the label. 

Video Tutorial

I hope you found this helpful and I hope it was easy to understand. If you decide to create your own lipstick palette, tweet me a pic as I'd love to see. 

My MAC Lipstick Pallettes

I've also thought I'd show you my MAC lipstick palettes as I thought this would give you an idea of how to put lipsticks in order. I know a lot of people struggle to put lipsticks in colour order so I thought that showing mine would help. If you just remember colour (light/medium/dark) and tones (red/purple/pink/beige etc) you can't go wrong. Another way of putting lipsticks in order is by their finish, for example, matte, satin, amplified, cremesheen, glaze, frost and lustre.  

Nude Palette (Pink Toned)

Left to Right:

'Please Me', 'Overtime', 'Creme Cup', 'Hue', 'Innocence Beware', 'Mlle', 'Myth', 'Fleshpot' 

Nude Palette (Beige Toned)

 Left to Right:

 'Midi-Mauve', 'Kinda Sexy', 'Honey-Love', 'Blankety', 'Marquise D', 'Frou', 'Tanarama'

Orange/Coral Palette

Left to Right:

 'Good To Go', 'Hibiscus', 'Watch Me Simmer', 'Costa Chic', 'Ravishing', 'Ever Hip', 'Viva Glam Nicki' 

Coral Palette (Red Toned)

Left to Right:

 'Insanely It', 'Party Parrot', 'Impassioned'

 Pink Palette

 Left to Right:

 'Pink Pigeon', 'Candy Yum Yum', 'Behave Yourself', 'Pink Nouveau', 'Pink Friday', 'Naughty Sauté',

 'Saint Germain', 'Viva Glam Gaga'

Purple/Dark Pink Palette

 Left to Right:

 'Cyber', 'Rebel', 'Strong Woman', 'Up The Amp', 'Girl About Town', 'Quick Sizzle', 'Lickable', 'Love Forever' 

 Red Palette

Left to Right:

 'Media', 'Hang Up', 'Diva', 'Unknown Pleasures', 'Runaway Red', 'Russian Red', 'Must Be Red', 'Lady Danger' 

I hope you enjoyed this post and if you have any questions, please feel free to comment below. I'd also like to mention that I'm still ill so there will be no videos from me for at least another 5 days. And for all those dying to see my 'Draw My Life', you're going to have to hold your horses.

Thanks for reading and I'll talk to you soon!

Mucho love,
Cole
x

How To Create: Tartan Nails

It seems like forever since I've sat down and written a blog post and that's probably due to the fact I've been busy for 10 weeks solid. If you follow me on Twitter or have watched the videos my Mamma put up on my YouTube channel, you'll know that I have been training to become a Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist. So if you were sat there wondering if I'd been abducted by Aliens, fear not, I was in fact training. 

Now I'm qualified and no longer have to train anymore it means I have lots of time to write posts and make videos meaning you're going to see a lot more of me. 

I thought I'd get back into the blogging business by showing you a funky, on trend nail tutorial. Tartan is huge this A/W so I thought I'd show you all how to create Tartan Nails.

What you will need:

• Taupe Nail Polish
• White Acrylic Paint
• Black Acrylic Paint
• Red Acrylic Paint
• Top Coat
• Thin Paint Brush

Please note that if you do not own acrylic paints you can use nail polish instead. I purely use acrylic paint for nail art as it dries very fast meaning I can complete my designs in no time. If you're wanting to buy acrylic paint, check out your local art shop as they stock acrylic paint sets for as little as £10.

Step By Step:

Step One:

Apply the taupe coloured nail varnish to your nail.

Step Two:

Using the white acrylic paint and a thin paint brush, apply a large white stripe across your nail. Place this more towards the tip of the nail than the root of the nail.

Step Three:

Using the black acrylic paint and a thin paint brush, apply a black line at either side of the white stripe and also in the middle of the white stripe.

Step Four:
Again using the black acrylic paint and a thin paint brush, apply two black lines vertically down your nail.

Step Five:
Using the red acrylic paint and a thin paint brush, apply one red line horizontally across your nail (towards the root) and one red line vertically down your nail.

Step Six: 

Apply a top coat to protect the design and you're done!

I hope you liked this tutorial and if you have any requests please feel free to comment below. 

Thanks for reading,
Cole
x

How to create Cupcake Nails!

If you have followed my blog from the very beginning you will know that I have already done a cupcake nail tutorial (of which I have now deleted), so you're probably wondering why I'm doing another. Well I'm going to tell you now.
The reason why I am doing another cupcake tutorial is because, to be quite frank, this cupcake design is 100% better than the other one. The old design is absolutely naff in comparison to this one.

So if you would like to create super funky cupcake nails, keep on reading!

What you will need:

• Mint green nail polish
• Bright pink nail polish
• Pale pink nail polish
• White nail polish
• Red nail polish
• Pale blue nail polish
• Yellow nail polish
• Orange nail polish
• Green nail polish
• Dotting tools
• Nail art brushes

If you would like to create cupcake nails all you have to do is follow my nice and easy steps!

Step One:

Apply 2 coats of the mint green nail polish to your nail. (This is the base)

Step Two:

Apply the bright pink nail polish to half of your nail. (This is the cupcake case)

Step Three:

Using a thin nail art brush and the pale pink nail polish, add several lines to the bright pink part of your nail. (cupcake case)

Step Four:

It's time to create the cupcake icing. Using a thin nail art brush and the white nail polish, create a curvy semi circle on top of the join between the mint green and bright pink nail polish. If this step sounds complicated, have a look at the photo below.

Step Five:

For the cherry you will need to use a large dotting tool and the red nail polish. Simply dot a large dot at the top of the cupcake.

Step Six:

For the sprinkles you will need to use a thin nail art brush and the pale blue, yellow, orange, green and pale pink nail polishes. Simply create small lines on the cupcake icing.

Step Seven:

Apply a top coat. This will not only protect the design but it will also give the nails a nice shine too.

And we're done!

I hope you liked my cupcake design and if you have any nail tutorial requests, please let me know.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post!
:)

How to create Marble Nails (Without Water)

Don't get me wrong, I like creating marble nails using water as it's a funky method and the results are lovely, you're also able to create different patterns but what I don't like is how messy it is. Today I'm going to show you how to create marble nails without using water, it's simple, easy and most of all, not messy!

What you will need:

• White nail polish
• 3 other nail polishes of your choice. I opted for neon pink, peach and pastel yellow. 
• Sandwich bag

You may also want to use nail polish remover and pointed cotton wool buds for any errors (nail polish around the nail).

If you would like to create marble nails without using water, all you have to do is follow my nice and easy steps.

Step One:

Apply one coat of the white nail polish to your nails. 

Step Two:

Apply splodges of the 3 different nail polishes to your nails. 

Step Three:

Place your nail onto the sandwich bag and fold one end of the sandwich bag over your nail. Pat your nail gently, you'll notice that the nail polish merges together. 

Step Four:

Repeat step three. Repeating step three creates more of a marble effect.

And we're done!

It's simple yet effective. I cannot wait to try this using other colours too, I'm thinking navy, grey and black would look cool in the Autumn/Winter months!

I hope you liked this tutorial and if you have any questions or requests, please feel free to comment below!

:)

Outfit Of The Day: Coral is a summer colour but it's not very summery right now!

If you know me well or have watched any of my hauls on Youtube, you'll know that I absolutely love coral. If you had a peek inside my wardrobe you'd probably think that I have some sort of addiction to coral clothes, shoes and accessories. 

One piece of coral clothing I've been loving lately is a jacket I recently bought from Zara. Online it was described as a 'jacket with zips' and that's basically what it is, a jacket with lots of zips. Zara sold the jacket in 2 different colours, fluro coral and cream. I obviously went for the fluro coral colour as it's fun, vibrant and most importantly, coral. 

It's a beautiful jacket and I have been dying to feature it in an OOTD, it's just the rain has prevented me from doing this. 

Jacket: Zara, Ombré T-Shirt: Topshop, Jeans: Topshop, Converse: Schuh, 

Necklace: Accessorize, Ring: My Shop

This is the kind of outfit that I'd wear when going shopping. It's simple and comfy yet it looks quite jazzy. I especially like the ombré t-shirt as it's different to a plain white t-shirt, the 'ombréness' also ties in well with the jacket too. 

The Topshop leigh jeans are also the comfiest jeans in the world and I think this is due to them being so super soft. I especially like the colour of these leigh jeans as they're not too light or too dark which means I'll be able to wear them in both summer and winter. These jeans were well and truly worth the £38.00 price tag!

I also had to include my funky coral converse just because they're simply amazing. I got them for my birthday last year and have loved them ever since. I only wear them in spring/summer as they're more summery than wintery, I also fear that the snowy/rainy weather conditions will also ruin them hence why I don't wear them. I love wearing these converse and must get at least one compliment when wearing them.

Do you like coral? Or have a slight coral obsession like I do? 

:)

How to create Floral Nails!

I recently posted a photograph of my floral nails on Instagram and I have to say that I got plenty of positive feedback, 162 'loves' to be precise. Many of you also said that you'd like a tutorial so since I love you all so much, I decided to do one. So without further ado, here is my floral nail tutorial.

To create floral nails, you will need the following:

• Mint green nail polish - I used Essie 'Mint Candy Apple'
• Bright pink nail polish - I used China Glaze 'Shocking Pink' 
• White nail polish - I used China Glaze 'Snow' 
• Yellow nail polish - I used Ciate 'Big Yellow Taxi' 
• Dotting tools - Can be purchased on eBay
• Thin nail brush - Can be purchased on eBay

You don't have to use the exact nail polishes that I did, any nail polish will be fine so please don't feel like you have to rush out and buy these certain nail polishes. Also, cocktail sticks work as great nail art tools. 

If you would like to create floral nails all you have to do is follow my nice and easy steps! 

Step One:

Apply two coats of the mint green nail polish to your nails.

Step Two:

It’s time to create the base flowers on your nails. You will create flowers on every nail (except your ring finger nail).

For the base flowers you will need to use the bright pink and white nail polish, as you’ll be mixing the two together, you will also need a dotting tool.

How to create a flower the simple and easy way:

Step Three:

Using the bright pink nail polish and a dotting tool. It’s time to add darkness to the centre of each of the base flowers.

Step Four:

Now it’s time to add a hint of white to one half of each of the flowers. This is done to add dimension to the flowers.

To do this you will need to use the white nail polish and a thin nail brush.

Step Five:

Now it’s time to add a hint of pink to the other half of each of the flowers. Again, this is done to add dimension to the flowers (make them more life like).

To do this you will need to use the bright pink nail polish and a thin nail brush.

Step Six:

You will need to add ‘pollen’ to each of the flowers. To do this you will need to mix both the yellow and white nail polish to create a pastel yellow colour. You will also need to use a thin nail brush.

Step Seven:

To create flower leaves you will need to use green nail polish/paint and a small dotting tool. Simply dot a couple of ‘leaves’ around each of the flowers.

Step Eight:

It’s time to create stripes on your ring finger nail. First, apply three white stripes.

For this you will need to use the white nail polish and a thin nail brush.

Step Nine:

Next apply three pink stripes.

For this you will need to use the bright pink nail polish and a thin nail brush.

And we're done!

Here's another example of floral nails using different colours:

Video Tutorial:

I hope you like my floral nail tutorial and hopefully it was easy to follow. 

Many thanks for reading!

:)