MUA Nail Constellation Leo and Libra

I am so far behind! I was meant to put this post up a while ago. I picked up two of the MUA Nail Constellations during their £2 offer on them in my big MUA Haul.
I never really understood the caviar nails thing, it looked messy and not a lovely texture, but these looked so pretty and they were only £2 so I thought it would be worth an attempt.

This was my very first attempt at these, by smooshing my finger in the beads once I'd poured them into a dish. It didn't turn out so well, as you can see! It made for a very lumpy looking nail, so I wouldn't advise doing this. I put a top coat over and it lasted until I took it off the next day. Libra itself is beautiful, a base of black beads with a smattering of pale blue thrown in there, like a genuine night sky.

This time I just sprinkled the beads over a wet nail which made for a much prettier effect, way less blobby but also way more messy - even using a bowl to sprinkle over. I didn't put a topcoat over this to test it, it lasted all of a few hours. However part of that is down to the fact I couldn't stop messing with it because it felt so rough and unusual. The tip wear is insane on this either way.
Leo itself is very pretty and bright and spring-y, mostly pink beads with a few blue scattered throughout.

Overall they are gorgeous looking, but you do need a topcoat over them to make them last more than a day, which can cause the colour in the beads to bleed - leaving you with a lot of white beads stuck on your nail. Removal is also a giant pain in the butt, I had to peel off Libra after I'd put the topcoat over it, it just did not want to come off even after being soaked in nail varnish remover for a while.

For me these are way more trouble than they're worth, I'm not a fan of the feeling of the beads on my nails, and either they fall off quickly or they're a massive pain to remove. Maybe if you're in love with the look these are a good option as they are super affordable, but for me it's been a lesson in learning to trust my instincts when it comes to trends and things I probably won't like!

Nail Constellations are available at Superdrug or MUA online and retail for £3.