Beautiful Ruffian Mani

I won't keep you all very long because I assume it's just as beautiful where you are as it is here in Houston, so I'll just make it quick.

I have attempted this mani a few times and just never had a steady enough hand for it, but this time it worked out so well.  I did a ruffian mani!

Oooohhhh!  Isn't it wonderful?  I had lots of compliments on it for sure.  I know a lot of women, mainly the younger ones, think that mauve is such an "old lady" color - for lack of a better term.  But I on the other hand think that mauve can be so beautiful...like my mani!  (:

WHAT I USED:
Zoya Trixie - silver
Julep Joy - mauve

Water Marble Wednesday

Hooray for another Water Marble Wednesday!  I decided to do a random pattern on each nail.  I didn't even use the colors in the same order for each nail either.  They came out looking like neon wood grain to me.  lol You tell me what you think.

Oh and why did I add a bow?  I really don't know.  It was a better idea in my head and then it was stuck once I decided that it wasn't anymore.  Oh well!

WHAT I USED:
white base
Orly Oh Cabana Boy - pink
Color Club Lava Lamp - orange
popBeauty Loud Lime - green
Milani Blue Print - blue striper polish
China Glaze Creative Fantasy - purple

Pastel Braided Mani

So for the longest time, I couldn't figure out how to do this braided manicure.  I know that sounds silly, but I just couldn't.  I tried it with tape and it came out all wrong and then I tried it by myself and it was really wrong.  lol  Finally I gave in and looked up a photo tutorial (they are all over the internet) and could have kicked myself in the butt for not getting it the first (or second) time.  So here you have it.  My braided mani.

I have seen some tutorials where the person paints the entire nail first and then does the braid effect over it, but I didn't do mine that way.  I just painted a half moon of turquoise over my naked nail and then built the braid up from there.  I found it much easier and it dried faster since I didn't have so many layers of polish on.

I really love how the metallic silver pops out from the pastel colors.  I feel like this is a very Spring-y manicure but I guess it translates well into Summer, right?  I feel like I did a pretty good job on my lines too. I didn't use any tape so I just free-handed all the lines.

WHAT I USED:
Color Club Blue-ming - turquoise
Sinful Colors Sweet Tooth - purple
Zoya Trixie - silver

I'm really happy someone came up with this and then decided to do a tutorial for it otherwise I'd be left in the dark.  lol

SoFlaJo Salmon-Chanted Evening

*This product was provided to me for review.*

Get it?!  LOL I love clever little names like this.  Anyway, thanks for stopping in today everyone.  I am so excited because I received a fun little sample of one of the polishes from SoFlaJo's new Summer collection, Wet Dreams.  There are 6 beautiful colors to choose from and I got Salmon-Chanted Evening.

Oh and before we get started, here is some information about her polishes.
"All SoFlaJo polishes are made from natural pigments and glitters with bases free of the chemicals Toluene, Formaldehyde Resin and Dibutyl Phthalate and Formaldehyde. All SoFlaJo polishes contain stainless steel mixing balls (and always have)."
Just in case you all wanted to know.  ;)

Salmon as I will so sweetly call it, is a gorgeous pewter color with a pink flash and holo micro shimmer.  The pink flash was bit tough for me to capture so I had to manipulate the photo above just a bit so you can see a slight tinge of pink.

My first coat had full coverage but I did two just to even out some of my brushstrokes and edges.  My first thought was that this polish was going to be a little sheer or "brushstroke-y" as are most of the polishes I have like this, but it applied effortlessly.  So pretty!

If you are interested in this shade or any others from the Wet Dreams collection, you can visit SoFlaJo.com for other blogger reviews and a link to her shop.  You can purchase a full size bottle for $10.00.

Have a wonderful Sunday!

Water Marble Wednesday

Better late than never right?  I had to work a mid shift today so my morning was spent making this happen and editing the photos and what-not, and now my evening is spent writing up the post.  (:  Enjoy it!

I really liked my last weeks mani with the marble and stamping combo so I did it again.  I know there is a lot going on and I don't care.  I love it!  lol

As you can see, I only did the marble on my pinky, ring and thumb fingers.  With the other 2 I did a 3-color gradient with stamps.  I chose cupcakes because the colors of the whole thing reminded me of sweet treats.  Mmm!  I tried to do 2 different colors for the cupcakes but it didn't quite work out.  The black "wrapper" is too dark and the blue "icing" on the other is too light, but whatevs.  I still think it's such a fun mani that those things don't matter.

When it was all complete I wasn't really digging the shine so I used a matte top coat and then I was 100% happy with the whole mani.  By the way, I used like 5 colors for the marble.  Crazy right?  I just love how the whole "rainbow" came out though.

WHAT I USED:
Sinful Colors Unicorn (not seen) - pastel yellow base color
Color Club Wing Fling - pink
Wet 'n' Wild 9021-Orange - orange
China Glaze Lighthouse - yellow - it didn't really show up ):
Color Club Fly With Me - light green
Color Club Metamorphosis - teal green
Love & Beauty Black Glitter
Bundle Monster plate bm-14

Tye-Dye Stamping

At least that's what I'm calling it.  I haven't seen this technique too much through the other nail blogs, but I have seen it.  Basically I couldn't decide what color to use so I used them all.  (:

This was my first attempt.  I think the tye dye effect came out just the way I wanted it to but the stamping didn't quite work for me.  I'm not the best stamper in the first place.  I used a bright green, neon orange, and blue polish over a baby pink.  I really loved how all the colors worked together but again, the stamping job is so sad.

So my second attempt came out much better BUT the tye dye effect didn't quite work.  However I did get tons of compliments today so it can't be all bad right?  Once I was finished and happy with how it all came out, I used a matte top coat to make the color really pop and it did.

WHAT I USED:
China Glaze White on White - white
popBeauty Loud Lime - green
Color Club Lava Lamp - orange
Ulta Blue Streak - blue
Hard Candy Matte-ly In Love
Bundle Monster plate bm-214

I hope you all love it as much as I do.  I'll definitely be doing this technique in the very near future until I get it perfect.  You may have also noticed that I changed my watermark this time around.  I'll be playing with it a little more until I get it just the way I want it so don't be surprised if it's different tomorrow.  lol

Cirque Lonesome George

What better way to end a moody Monday than with a beautiful holo...Cirque Lonesome George!  I just got this in a swap from a dear friend and it's even more beautiful than I thought it would be.

It's definitely not the strongest holo but sometimes I feel like those super strong linear holos take away from the beauty of the actual color.  So since I love green, I just fell in love with this.  I know there are a lot of photos but I wanted you all to see it in all it's glory and beauty.

This is also my first and only Cirque polish right now but I think I will definitely be purchasing more of them.  I really love the Arcus collection...like a lot.  *.*

I know this post was super short but I'm sure the amazing swatches make up for it.  And I'm super tired.  Maybe tomorrow I'll have more brain activity so I can participate in my own blog more effectively.  lol

OPI Magazine Cover Mouse

Today is just going to be a swatch post but a great one!  A dear friend sent me this polish knowing that I was falling all over it and couldn't buy it at the time.  She runs a little blog called My Nail Polish Obsession...you may have heard of it.  (:  If not, you should.  Her stash and swatches are amazing!

I applied 2 coats of OPI Magazine Cover Mouse but honestly, for everyday wear (not photos), you don't need but 1 because the base is very saturated.  At first this polish looks all red, but when you get a closer look there is actually a pink flash in there.  I'm sure it's speckles of pink glitter or sand and not part of the red base color.  I feel very girly in this color for sure.

I'm not normally a red polish kinda girl but I've been listening to Lana Del Rey a lot lately and she really inspires me to lean towards reds since it is her signature color.  This polish is from the OPI Couture de Minnie collection that I won't own any of (except this one of course).  Why you ask?  I HATE Minnie Mouse!  I don't know why but I've never liked her or Mickey.  They are just weird to me.  lol So with that said, I won't support her collaborations with OPI.  I sound like a crazy person. (:

Have a great day and don't forget to tell certain men in your life Happy Father's Day.

Guest Post for Dizzy Little Digits

Hey All!

I know I posted today already, but I wanted to let you know that I did a guest post for Denise of Dizzy Little Digits while she's in Ireland.  See a mani preview below and check out the full post on HER BLOG!  

You can read all about my super sweet inspiration for this mani.  ♥

Water Marble Wednesday - Purple and White w/ Stamping

Hey everyone, 

Welcome to the a super fun Wednesday...why is it super fun?  It's my comeback to Water Marble Wednesday.  I originally stopped doing it because it was getting so close to the hectic holidays and then I didn't have any ideas so I just stopped.  I actually do have a lot of ideas running through my mind now so I'm hoping I can keep it up every Wednesday.

I ultimately wanted to do every nail, but the white polish wasn't wanting to cooperate so I just marbled my pinky, ring, and thumb fingers.  This way the other two could be accent nails.

I started with one coat of the purple on all nails and then I used both the purple and white for the marble design.  I did like a chevron/zig zag design in the water and then I added the dots to spice it up a bit.  For the stamped nails, I used two coats of the purple and then stamped the same design on each nail overlapping.  And that's it.  It was super quick and easy and I think it came out great for the fact I haven't done a water marble in a while.  I did get some air bubbles, but the black dots covered it up.

WHAT I USED:

Color Club Lavendarling - purple

Sally Hansen White Tip - white

BBCouture Dark Knight - black

Bundle Monster plate bm06

There you have it!  If there are any color/polish combos you'd like to see in the upcoming weeks, let me know in the comments below.  (:

A Girl Obsessed w/ Glitter and Gradients

Hi Everyone!  Did you all enjoy your Monday?  I actually had a pretty good day considering I was completely bogged down with a huge project at work.  I also had to go in at 6am...ugh!  So you can only imagine how tired I am.  Aside from that though, I am really excited to show you this mani.  I feel like it's super fun and flirty and has a lot of my favorite things in nail art.

Here I have my glitter, gradient, stamping, star mani...all of my favorite things.  lol  I started with a base color of pastel yellow and then used a shimmery coral color to gradient my pinky, ring, and thumb fingers.  On my middle and pointer fingers I used 4 different polishes to stamp random stars which I thought was gonna look bad but actually turned out pretty cute.

The glitter topper is the main reason I'm so in love with this mani.  It is A Girl Obsessed Fruity Pebbles.  I'm not sure if you all heard about it maybe a month or two ago but she, the maker, wasn't happy with how the polish turned out because the glitter she bought was starting to break down in the base.  She had already mixed so many bottles and decided to sell them on HER ETSY SHOP as a Limited Edition polish.  I tried so hard to get my hands on a bottle and I just didn't make it in time.  They were sold out in seconds.

Well I just received a swap from an amazing lady and nail polish enthusiast, Jen from Jen's Nail Files and she included this in it eventhough I didn't ask for it.  I am so thankful because in the week I've had it, I've already worn it twice on two different manis.  lol I just love rainbow glitter.  I'll definitely do a proper swatch/review post on this polish in the near future but I couldn't go another day without showing you all this mani.

WHAT I USED:
Sinful Colors Unicorn - yellow
Sinful Colors Luminary - coral
A Girl Obsessed Fruity Pebbles - glitter
Bundle Monster plate bm-206

So that's all for this night!  Have a good one! (:

Sation Shyest Shade

Yea for Saturday!  I did have to work today (blech) but I am so happy to be off now and spend time with my boyfriend, my Facebook friends, and my blog.  That last statement sounded a little like a loser.  lol I don't care though cuz that's all I got. (:

This wasn't supposed to be today's post, but I couldn't stop staring at the photos on my desktop so I decided that you all needed to see it too.  This is Shyest Shade from Sation which is not a widely available brand to me unless I go to China Town to the nail supply shops.  They have them all!  I'm always on the lookout for an amazing white glitter (which to me is all of them...I'm addicted) so of course I had to snag this beauty.

Shyest Shade has two sizes of hexagonal glitter and tiny glitter in a semi-clear base.  Some of the glitter is clear and some is opalescent which is so pretty.  I applied two coats over a white base but...

...just so you can see it without a white base, this is 2 coats alone.  I think if you are really light handed with it, it could be a great white glitter topper over pastel colors.  It is so packed full of glitter that you don't have to worry about placing them.

So what do you all think?  Are you big fans of white glitter like me?  If so, what is your favorite?!

FEVERlacquer Easter Dress

I feel like I haven't swatched a polish (no nail art) in a while and I can't believe I haven't done this one at all.  In all fairness, I have worn it multiple times but I never get photos.

Here I have FEVERlacquer Easter Dress and I love it.  It's such a fun color that's great on anyone (as far as I've seen) and the best part...it's a jelly!  I see it as the turquoise blue cousin of I Shall Call You Squishy from the same collection.  You can see my swatch post for that one HERE.

Easter Dress does have a bit less shimmer than "Squishy" but it's still there.  It's like a secret surprise when you get in the sun or enlarge the photo...go ahead.  Enlarge them!  lol Pretty right?  The polish maker, Casandra, was amazing enough to send me a lot of these beauties a while ago (which I swatched and posted immediately) and I have to say, FEVERlacquers are definitely some of my fave polishes, indie or mainstream.  I'm still trying to get into the indie scene so slowly but surely I'll try more, but so far these are great.

One last thing I noticed about FEVERlacquers is that they have a great shine to them after they dry so a top coat isn't needed.  Of course you may want to apply one to protect your mani, but like I said, you don't need it to create a great glossy finish.

Have a great night!

China Glaze Blue Sparrow and Nail Foils

Yes I'm double posting today.  lol I just did not want my only post today to be a somewhat negative review. That doesn't make for a Sunday Funday does it?  I wanted to do something super bright and fun just because.  I also haven't used this polish yet.  Well sort of.  Funny story...I know I've told you all differently but this is actually my first China Glaze polish ever (I said it was In the Lime Light), but I didn't like it once it was on the nail wheel so I took it back for an exchange.  Now here I am 2 years later searching everywhere for it.  I'm so glad I found it.

Here I have 3 coats of China Glaze Blue Sparrow which is a definite neon so it dried matte.  I'm not a big fan of blue but this is super pretty.  It's actually darker IRL so it's like a cobalt blue with neon blue micro glitter.  There also is no visible nail line IRL either.  The flash just shows it all.  

I added my essence Gel-look topcoat to really bring out the sparkle.  I noticed that each coat of Blue Sparrow dries super quick, but you should still wait a minute between coats because I did get some dragging and bald spots on my second coat.  I know this used to be part of China Glaze's core line but then I found it on clearance at Sally's for $2.99 so it may not be anymore.  

Anyway, I have been wanting to use my nail foils again from Dollar Nail Art.  I think I bought 6 or 7 of them.  They are super cool.  I did a tutorial awhile back which you can view HERE on how to apply them.  They have over 100 different designs and each one is $1.00 just like everything on their site.

This is my favorite photo btw.  Anyway,  I decided to apply the glue in random spots over my dry polish.  After it dried I just started sticking the foils on in random spots until all the glue was covered.  The designs I used are called Leopard, Ocean Mist, and Laser Optics.

You have to be careful about what top coat you apply because it can mess with the foils and wrinkle them up.  I noticed that the Laser Optics (purple) and the Leopard foils didn't react at all to the top coat, but the Ocean Mist wrinkled up.  The site says these wrinkles will smooth out but that's not the case.  It says not to use a quick dry (like Seche Vite) or super shine top coat directly over the foils so I used a gel top coat and then Seche Vite.  I really think it's just the one foil (Ocean Mist) that is reacting weirdly because I've never had an issue with this top coat combo over foils before.

I am super duper in love with this mani.  It was so easy and since I did random spots, each nail is different than the next.  I think on my other hand I'm going to try and do a pattern with using the same polish and foils.  I'll let you know how it goes.  (: