Sunday, August 31, 2014

6:00 AM

Let's Go Camping Nail Art Challenge Day 3: Campfires

 
     It's the last day of the Let's Go Camping Nail Art Challenge. I'm sad to see it end. I've had a lot of fun doing these manicure. I am a camping kind of girl at heart after all. But I already know what next months challenge is and now I can get excited about that. On with today's manicure before I get too far ahead of myself. Today's prompt is Campfires. Who doesn't love a campfire? I actually even love the smell! And I know I'm not alone in that, come on don't be shy, who else loves that smell? Something about it just screams summer to me whether it's an actual campfire or just a bonfire in the backyard.


      I've wanted to do a flame manicure for almost 2 years now, but haven't. It's not for lack of time, it was pure intimidation. I wanted to get it just right, like so many of the other fabulous flame manicures I've seen floating around the internet. The most common technique to get this look is the needle drag. Now I don't know about you, but every single time I try this technique something goes horribly wrong and I'm left with big gauges in my polish. I thought, this time, I try a different approach and use a nail art brush instead. Well umm yeah, about that...


     The technique had eluded me again! One of these days I will make it work. But this isn't a total loss. It still looks like fire and I'm pleased about that. I'm just missing the individual flames. It's an abstract campfire. Yeah, that's it, abstract. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. ;)

     My base is L'Oreal After Hours. Going for that early evening feel, when you crack open your first beverage and settle in for a night of good conversation while watching the flames dance. Now that's my kind of summer night right there.


      For my flames, I used 3 polishes from the Cover Girl Capitol Collection: Sulfur Blaze, Flamed Out, and Rogue Red. I dotted each one at the tip of my nail and ran my nail art brush through them. Anyone notice the names of the polishes were fire related? Just a happy coincidence. I really like the coloring on my pointer finger, but the "shape" on my ring finger. And just because I could I decided to throw a matte top coat on to see what it would look like.


     I actually like it this way better, there's more definition between colors. Which way do you like better, glossy or matte? I hope you have enjoyed this challenge and are looking forward to the next one with me. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!







Saturday, August 30, 2014

6:00 AM

Let's Go Camping Nail Art Challenge Day 2: Nature

  
     It's day 2 of the Let's Go Camping Nail Art Challenge and today's prompt is Nature. I hope you enjoyed yesterday's nail art. If you missed it just click here on Day 1.


     For today's theme, I had a few ideas running through my head and finally decided on a scene of flowers in a meadow and the sun shining down. My oldest son said it reminded him of a watercolor painting so I'll be interested to see if you feel the same.


Free-hand-nail-art-manicure

     I started with a base of Sinful Colors Rain Rubber to use as my sky. This is one of their textured polishes. It really does look like rubber when dry, and before topcoat of course. The coverage I got with this was amazing, what you see is 1 coat!



      I used a yellow striper to make the sun and 2 green stripers for the grass. Then I sponged on a mixture of China Glaze Pelican Grey and Milani White on the Spot for my clouds. I tried to sponge on a little orange into my sun to give it some depth but that didn't work out so well. It still has some of what I was going for so that's a plus. For my flowers, I used Rimmel Funtime Fuchsia and Purple Reign.  Looking at this picture now I see that some of the texture from Rain Rubber made it through the top coat. Maybe if a thin coat is used, all the texture would come through?

     So what do you think of my Nature manicure? Part of me wanted to add a little bug in there somewhere but I'm glad I decided against it. I like my flowers bug free anyway. Check back tomorrow for the last day of the nail art challenge. You'll get to see my version of a bonfire. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!





Thursday, August 28, 2014

11:30 PM

Let's Go Camping Nail Art Challenge Day 1: Under the Stars

   
     It's once again time for another nail art challenge brought to you by the Facebook group Challenge Your Nail Art. This time around the theme is "Let's go Camping!" and today's prompt is "Under the Stars".

    
     For this manicure, I had the vision of a wonderful night sky scene by the lake with the stars twinkling and some waves crashing against the shore. But then I got real and remembered that my nail art skills are severely lacking. I did manage to create at least part of that image on my nails!

blue-and-black-gradient-manicure

    I decided to recreate the night sky from a camping trip I took back when I was about 11. My family sat up almost until dawn watching the Northern Lights dance across the sky. And because we were so far away from any city lights the colors were amazing!

     To get this look, I started out with one coat of Sally Hansen White On so that my gradient colors would really pop. I used Sally Hansen Black Out, L'Oreal After Hours and Maybelline Blue Bombshell for my gradient.  I really wanted to capture the way it looks when the first rays of light start to change the sky from Black to blue.

Gradient-manicure-black-and-blue-nail-polish

     After letting my gradient dry I used a glow in the dark polish from Sinful Colors to make my Northern Lights. By removing almost all of the polish from the brush I was able to create the sort of wispy effect I remembered from my childhood.

     The stars are my absolute least favorite part of this manicure and the reason I don't "love" the finished look. I used my smallest dotting tool and went in with Sally Hansen White On to add them. I think they just look too much like dots instead of stars and that's my issue. Someone will have to give me tips on how to make them look more star-like.

      My favorite part of this manicure is that the Northern lights actually glow! I wanted to get a picture of that for you but realized that it just looks like glowing blobs. I did manage to get a picture where you can see some of the glowing effect and the rest of the manicure at the same time.


     I think it looks really cool this way, and really captures the look I was going for. So what do you think on my "Under the Stars" manicure? Make sure you stop back tomorrow to see what I came up with for "Nature". In the meantime let's check out what the other talented ladies came up with for today. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!







6:00 AM

MoYou London- Fashionista Collection Part 3. (Press Release)

    
     I've got another Press Release from MoYou London today. They have gone and released another 5 plates from their Fashionista Collection. This time around the focus seems to be on a more delicate side of fabrics with intricate swirls and elegant patterns. There are also some fun prints that remind me of needlepoint.
Hi there
Guess what? It's another Friday coming up and I am happy to announce the new release of the week. This time 5 more plates from the:

<< FASHIONISTA COLLECTION >>

Meet Coco - She loves scissors!

"Fashions fade, style is eternal."
— Yves Saint-Laurent
These 5 plates will be released this Friday the 29th of August.
Have a great day!
The MoYou-London Team




 























  


      I really like the look of plates 13 and 14. Especially 14. Can you say Ugly Christmas Sweater manicure? Which plates have caught your eye? Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!



Wednesday, August 27, 2014

6:00 AM

Rimmel London Limited Edition Festival Color Collection

     
     Today I have for you the Limited Edition Festive Color Collection from Rimmel London. I wanted to get this post up months ago when I first purchased these and well, life and other polishes got in the way. For that, I am truly sorry, and also because I fear these are no longer available in stores. You might find some on blog sales or E-bay though. All polishes are shown with 2 coats without topcoat.

Bright-Neon-Nail-Polish
From L-R: Purple Reign. Funtime Fuchsia, Green Eyed Monster, Instyle Coral and Midnight Skinny Dip


     Funtime Fuchsia is a bright neon fuchsia pink that dries to a  smooth, glossy, crème finish. This one looks like it would be fun for pedicures! A nice rich pink like this deserves to be shown off in your best set of heels.

Festival-Color-Collection-Neon-Pink-Nail-Polish
The photo was taken in a lightbox
     This one for me was almost a 1 coater! I've shown it here as 2 coats no top coat. Just look at that glossy finish! I'm in love <3 The formula has a great as that shine. Nice and smooth.

Neon-Pink-Nail-Polish-Festival-Color-Collection
The photo was taken in a lightbox

       Instyle Coral is a creamy peach leaning coral polish. I originally thought this would be a little bit lighter, but I actually like that it's darker than most coral polishes.  Although it's not quite as dark or as orange as my picture shows. This one was a little fickle when it came time to photograph.

Coral-Nail-Polish-Festive-Color-Collection
The photo was taken in natural lighting

     The formula on this one was a little thinner than Funtime Fuchsia and wanted to streak with thin coats. Everything evened itself out with the second coat and I was left with a smooth glossy finish.

The photo was taken in direct sunlight
    
     Green Eyed Monster is a neon green polish that reminds me of my flowers in springtime. When the stems have just started to sprout out of the ground. It's like my world is awakening after the long cold winter and everything is renewed.  Of course, I say that now knowing that in about 7 or 8 weeks there will be snow on the ground here. Getting a jump on my spring fever this year, no big deal.

Neon-Green-Nail-Polish-Festive-Color-Collection
The photo was taken in a lightbox

     This pretty green polish was not so pretty when it came to application. The first coat was a streaky mess. But I have yet to find a neon green polish that isn't. Also, when wet there were a million little brushstrokes visible. Yes, I said a million! Not to worry, though, once the polish dried those million little brushstrokes were gone. Poof, just like magic!  Oh but make sure you use a good base coat with this one. I have a feeling it will stain. I wasn't going to use myself as a guinea pig to find out.

Neon-Green-Nail-Polish
The photo was taken in a lightbox
     Midnight Skinny Dip is a deep royal blue polish and one of the two with shimmer in this collection. The shimmer is subtle on the nail but can be seen easily in the bottle. It kind of bugs me when polishes are that way. If I see the shimmer in the bottle and buy the polish, isn't is obvious that I want that shimmer on my nails? I mean if I squint really hard and look at it from an angle I can see the shimmer. But who wants to do all that?

Royal-Blue-Nail-Polish-with-Shimmer
The photo was taken in a lightbox
    I expected this polish to be more opaque with the first coat, but it was surprisingly sheer.  I do have to say I was also surprised that full opacity was reached after just 2 coats. With the first being so sheer I thought for sure I would need 3 if not 4.  Let's review; Color-gorgeous, Coverage- surprisingly good, Finish- eh needs more evidence of that shimmer, Base Coat- do I even need to say it? It's a deep blue polish, pretty sure it will leave a stain. Again I decided not to test that theory on myself.

Fetival-Color-Collection
The photo was taken in a lightbox

     And rounding out the collection is the perfectly named Purple Reign. This one reminds me of the purple pouch that a bottle of Crown Royal comes in.  It's not quite are dark as the pouch, but close enough that it invokes that image.  Purple Reign is a deep royal purple with iridescent shimmer.

Festial-Color-Collection-Purple-nail-polish
The photo was taken in direct sunlight

 
Photo credit: unto-the-breach.blogspot.com
     See how close they are. Please tell me they look alike and I don't just have alcohol on the brain. I do have one last BBQ this weekend before summer officially ends and I send my kiddos back to school. ok ok so back to the polish. Just like Midnight Skinny Dip the first coat was sheer but reached full opacity after 2.  The shimmer in this one is a little more evident on the nail. The sunshine really makes it pop!  Just like the other 4 polishes, Purple Reign dries to a super glossy finish. I'd even go so far as to say this one would make a good transition into all those dark fall colors that we will all soon be sporting. 

The photo was taken in direct sunlight

     
     This isn't the first time I've used these polishes, remember way back at the beginning of this post I mentioned purchasing these months ago? Well, they made an appearance on my blog for a nail art challenge, and if you'd like to see some nail art that had good intentions when it started, just click here on my Spring Renewal Nail Art Challenge Post.

     I'd have to say my favorites from this collection are Funtime Fuchsia and Purple Reign but I do like all the colors.  I can really only see myself using Green Eyed Monster in nail art. I'm not one to sport neon green nails on a regular basis.  Do you have any favorites? Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!


Monday, August 25, 2014

6:00 AM

Simple Nail Art

  
     Today I have a simple nail art look to share with you. It's going to be a quick post today since I just got back from my last camping trip of the summer. I love going away, but the adjustment back to everyday life can be brutal.

     The look I have for you today is really easy to do. I'm confident that anyone can replicate this look. And the great thing about it is, that you can use any colors you want. It does require a dotting tool or anything you can find that makes small dots.

Pretty-and-Polished-Carrigan-Lumina-lacquer-Soleil


      For this manicure, I did an accent nail of Lumina Lacquer Soleil with Pretty & Polished Carrigan. I chose these two colors because well the first reason is that I just love Soleil and want to use it in every manicure I can, but mostly because I knew that I needed a soft, feminine color to go along with all that sparkly. (And maybe because Carrigan was that days nail mail.) But I think they work really well together.

Lumina-Lacquer-Soleil-Pretty-and-Polished-Carrigan

     With my medium sized dotting tool, I added dots to the lower center of my nails tying the whole look together.  A little bit of flash on every nail never hurt anyone, am I right.  So what do you think of my simple nail art look? Would you add the dots to an existing manicure to change up your look from day to day?

     Now if you'll excuse me I  have to go unpack and get started on laundry. Or maybe I'll just relax and paint my nails. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!






Friday, August 22, 2014

6:00 AM

Mentality- Jill

  
     Happy Friday! Today I have for you a quick post about Mentality Jill. I picked this polish up about a month ago when Mentality had their big sale.  Jill is a coral jelly nail polish that dries to a semi-glossy finish.

Jelly-Finish-coral-nal-polish

      Like most jelly polishes Jill was pretty sheer on the first coat but builds up nicely after two.  True to the Formula I've come to expect from Mentality, there was no streaking. Here I've shown Jill with 2 coats no top coat.

Coral-jelly-indie-nail-polish

     Jill does leave a few brush strokes but they are hardly visible to the naked eye. I only noticed them while editing my photos. and even then they were barely noticeable. I wanted to mention it though because they are there. I have a feeling a good quality top coat would cover them up completely. Is this a color you can see yourself wearing?

     I'm really glad that I picked this polish up. Jill had a different undertone than the other coral polishes I have in my collection. It has a warmer feel to it, which I think makes it more diverse. I  can see myself using this in some pretty gradients this fall.
   
      Jill is still available for purchase from Mentality if you'd like to add it to your collection. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!



 *UPDATE*

    In the comments below there were a few people wondering what Jill would look like layered over a darker color. Here is a photo on a swatch stick with 2 layers of Jull over 2 layers of OPI 4 in the Morning without top coat. 


Thursday, August 21, 2014

6:00 AM

MoYou London Fashionista Collection Part 2 (Press Release)

   
     MoYou London has done it again! This time releasing more plates for their Fashionista Collection. These 5 plates focus more on the delicate pattern found in fashion today.
Hi there
Guess what? It's another Friday coming up and I am happy to announce the new release of the week. This time 5 more plates from the:

<< FASHIONISTA COLLECTION >>

Meet Coco - She loves scissors!

"Fashions fade, style is eternal."
— Yves Saint-Laurent
These 5 plates will be released this Friday the 22nd of August.
Have a great day!
The MoYou-London Team
 
                                
                                                                     
     While plate #6 looks really interesting, I'm not really sure how I would use it. Plates #7 and #9 have me interested, though. Is anything catching your eye?

    Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!




Wednesday, August 20, 2014

6:00 AM

Orly-Digital Glitter

   
     Today I'm sharing my thoughts on Orly's Digital Glitter. Digital Glitter was released in the fall of 2013 for the Surreal Collection. Looking at the bottle you'd expect this polish to be your typical glitter bomb. But in reality, Digital Glitter has a clear base with fuchsia shimmer. A mix of gold square and hex glitters and red micro glitter round out the colors.

     I know this was meant to primarily be used as a topper, I decided to see just how many coats it would take to reach full coverage. While not as many as I was expecting, it still took 4 semi thick coats to cover 98% my nails. By this time the polish was starting to look really think, so I gave up on the full coverage idea.  I was rewarded with a TON of sparkle for my efforts.


Purple-Gold-Glitter-Nail-Plish
The photo was taken in a lightbox

     I had a lot of trouble trying to photograph Digital Glitter. I had to turn my hand away from every light source, just to get some of the color to show up. Unfortunately, I lost a lot of the sparkle that way.

Purple-gold-glitter-nal-polish
The photo was taken in a lightbox

     You can get a glimpse of the sparkle in this macro shot. Digital Glitter appears more purple on the nails, my camera kept wanting to capture the gold glitters. This polish is so pretty in real life that I feel like this review doesn't do it justice. It's lighter, has a more purple look to it, and just sparkles like the sun.

Gold-Purple-Glitter-nail-polish
The photo was taken in Natural Lighting
    
     Overall I'd say you're better off using Digital Glitter as a topper, instead of trying to get full coverage. It's a prettier polish than my photos show, and I think it's a great addition to have in your collection. I feel like a bad blogger for not being able to showcase this polish properly. But I hope you enjoyed this post anyway.

     Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!









Monday, August 18, 2014

6:00 AM

Bonita Salon- #Pink

  
     Welcome to my 200th post! Today I have another polish from Bonita Salon to share with you, #Pink. The color of this polish is... yep you guessed it, Pink!  Well, actually it's an iridescent pink with purple shimmer.

Iridescent-Pink-nail-polish-with-purple-shimmer

      I was pleasantly surprised to find that the formula for #Pink was better than my previous experience with this brand. You might remember the troubles I had with Miss Piggy a few weeks back.

      While the application wasn't exactly flawless, the brush in Bonita Salon polishes allows for complete control. #Pink is a little thin but still gave decent coverage. Just,  don't play around with the polish or you'll get some dragging. Guess who found that out the hard way.



Pink-iridescent-nail-polish

     Full opacity can be with reached with 2 coats and #Pink dries to a semi-matte finish. Unfortunately, you lose 99% of the shimmer, once this polish dries. You do get this kind of cool rubbery effect, which is growing on me.

     As of right now, I think the formula's for Bonita polishes are like Essie's: Hit or miss. I've got a few more to try out before I know for sure. I'm glad #Pink isn't a huge PITA to work with cause I do like the color, and I think that rubbery finish could make for some interesting nail art. What do you think? Maybe some street punk inspired nails or just something totally 80's! Does it inspire a certain nail art look for you?

     Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!

Sunday, August 17, 2014

2:04 PM

Girly Bits- What Really Happens in Vegas collection. (Press Release)

   
     Today I have a press release from Girly Bits about the new What Really Happens in Vegas collection.

LACQUER      NAIL CARE      GLITTER      DIY POLISH     DISTRIBUTORS

NEW! AT GIRLY BITS

Vegas inspired shades and blogger collaborations!

What happens when you get a group of indie polish makers and bloggers together in Vegas? Laughter ensues, friendships are formed and inspiration happens!

Five out eight of our latest releases were inspired by a recent trip to the Cosmoprof North America Show (one shade is a relaunch from last year's trip...yep! WHIVEUOF is back for a limited time!!!)

In addition to our very sparkly Vegas inspired shades, we are also proud to present two collaboration shades, created with a couple of our favourite bloggers, Sassy Shelly and Polished to Precision.

All of our new releases will be available beginning Thursday, August 21st at 12noon EDT. NOTE: What Happens In Vegas...Instagram and What Happens In Vegas...Facebook will only be available for a limited time, until Sunday, August 31st at 3pm EDT<
What Really Happened in Vegas? Wouldn't you love to know! Okay okay, we'll tell ya! To start off with it was "Too Hot For Pants", then there was a "Selfie Bomb", a need to "Protect My Girly Bits"  topped off with an unfortunate "Accidental PPV" incident.

Shop early and save! Purchase the entire Collection of 4 for only $44 from Thursday, August 21st at 12noon EDT until Sunday, August 31st at 3pm EDT.
Too Hot For Pants 

Too Hot For Pants is a glowy fuchsia-red jelly, loaded with red and fuchsia shimmer and holo micro glitter. Lit from within! Just like us while in Vegas.
I am Canadian. I am used to hot, humid, sticky summer weather. Vegas is a dry heat. But it is still HEAT. And it was definitely too hot for pants. Thank goodness for maxi dresses!
Retail: $12

Selfie Bomb
Selfie Bomb is a sparkly gold holo micro glitter shimmer combination accented with pink and lavender microglitter.
Selfie Bomb was inspired by a moment at the Sparkle & Wine event when Linda from Nail Vinyls was attempting to take a picture of me and Missi from Different Dimension using her phone. Missi and I put on our best glam faces for Linda, as she raised her phone for the perfect shot. What she didn’t realize, is that she had flipped the camera app to take a selfie and basically selfie bombed our picture.
Retail: $12

Protect Your Girly Bits
Protect Your Girly Bits is a purple scattered holographic polish, accented with flashes of red micro glitter.
Since we were co-hosting an event at Mandalay Bay, we had a fair amount of polish there with us, and between shopping and receiving samples we somehow end up leaving with more than we came with. I did bring a fair amount of packing materials with me but I ran out, so I had to do some creative packing to be able to ship everything home. I just happened to have some… umm…left over feminine hygiene products with me that I no longer needed, and no room in my suitcase to bring home anyway. Thank you Always®, for being the perfect size to wrap around a bottle of polish and protect my Girly Bits!!
Retail: $12

Accidental PPV
Accidental Pay Per View is a silver holographic polish, accented with glowy blue shimmer and a subtle turquoise flash.
Three polish makers, who shall remain unnamed to protect the innocent, were sharing a room while in Vegas and one evening among wine and pedicures on tired feet, they were channel surfing for something fun to watch. Somehow, they accidentally clicked on a pay per view channel and next thing you know they had subscribed to watch a movie. Not so bad, except the type of movie they accidentally ordered is not exactly the type of movie you want showing up on your hotel bill. Oops! XXX
Retail: $12
You know we just had to release another What Happens In Vegas shade! After the frenzy to get your hands on our LE Facebook version last year we have changed the availability from a limited number to a limited time that our latest Instagram version will be available. Don't forget to grab last years edition as well!
What Happens In Vegas...Ends Up On Instagram
What Happens in Vegas….Ends up on Instagram is a bright raspberry-fuchsia scattered holographic polish, with flashes of glowy purple micro glitter, and bright pink micro glitter. Very flashy and blingy, just like Vegas.
WHIVEUOIG was created exclusively for Sparkle & Wine - a blogger/brand/stockist event co-hosted by Girly Bits and KBShimmer at Mandalay Bay while we were attending Cosmoprof North America in Las Vegas this year. It will be available for a limited time ONLY (Aug 21-31)
We are also re-launching last year’s exclusive Cosmoprof NA polish for a limited time. (Aug21-31)
Retail: $12

What Happens In Vegas...Ends Up On Facebook (Re-launch)
What Happens in Vegas…Ends up on Facebook is a medium plummy holographic polish, with flashes of glowy purple microglitter.
WHIVEUOFB was created exclusively for bloggers we met while attending Cosmoprof North America in 2013. It was released in limited quantity and quickly sold out. We are bringing it back for a limited time ONLY (Aug 21-31)
Retail: $12
We love collaborations! Our two newest blogger collaborations, Seriously Sassy (pictured above) and Mint-al Precision are sure to impress.
Seriously Sassy
Seriously Sassy is a collaboration polish with Sassy Shelly, for her 2 year blog anniversary.
It is a royal purple jelly, with blue to purple colour shifting glitter.
Retail: $12

Mint-al Precision
Mint-al Precision is a collaboration polish with Polished To Precision for her 1 year blog anniversary.
It is an aqua-mint shimmer, loaded with green and blue shifting flakes.
Retail: $12

DON'T FORGET TO MARK YOUR CALENDAR FOR AUGUST 21ST!
SOME OF THESE RELEASES ARE TIME SENSITIVE!


REMINDER TO OUR CANADIAN AND US CUSTOMERS: Free shipping on orders over $80 (No Coupon Code required.) SOME RESTRICTIONS APPLY
   I have to admit a few of these have caught my eye. Anything you're lusting after? Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!


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