Tutorial: Euro Mod

So, my Euro Mod post seemed to be the most popular this week so far, so I decided to do a quick tutorial for you! I really enjoyed this look and I hope you do too!

Swatch and Review of Zoya: Naturel Part Deux Collection (Partial)

Press Sample

Recently, Zoya sent me two polishes from their Naturel Deux collection: Spencer and Aubrey. There are six in the collection, and you can view them all here. I am glad they sent two that were so different, so I would have a good contrast to show you. The Naturel Deux Collection is meant to help you transition from summer to fall colors and all of them have a neutral color palette.

Nail Art: Nailpolis Celebration

Nailpolis is a website that calls itself a museum of nail art. I haven't been the most active on it, but have dabbled here and there. Users are curators of their own museum's work, and you can follow other artists you like. They just rached 1 million followers on Facebook and are hosting a contest to celebrate! This is my design for the occasion! I used all Sally Hanse Insta-Dri products: Pronto Purple, Lightening, Blue-Away, Heat Flash, Rose Run, and Lickety-Split Lime. for my middle two nails I created a checkerboard design with all of these colors and added Pronto Purple over that. The pointer and pinky are simple polka dots!

Nail Art: Blended Tape Mani for Tri Polish Tuesday

Are you getting tired of Tri Polish Tuesday yet? This is the last one of this month, which means it is the last one with red, yellow and blue. I really loved these colors and was glad I got to use colors that blend so well to make so many more colors! I knew I wanted to create a blended sponged on mani for this last one, so that is what I did! I started with a white base (Sinful Colors Snow Me White) and added a tape pattern. Then I sponged on Sinful Colors Sail La Vie, Sally Hansen Mellow Yellow, and Butter London Come to Bed Red.

Nail Art: Euro Mod

I hope you all had a lovely weekend! Yesterday my husband and I stuffed ourselves silly for an event called Savor the Pearl, which is a fundraiser benefiting cystic fibrosis. We had one of those passport things where you go around to several places getting "tastes" and stamps. You have a week to do it, but since we don't live in the Pearl District in Portland, we went up for one day of binge eating. Oh my goodness, I still feel like I am recovering, but it was fantastic. I wore these nails out for it. I'm calling them Euro Mod because the look Mod, but I also inadvertently used all OPI polishes from their Euro Centrale Collection, which was one of my favorites! I used a base of You're Such a Budapest, which is the lilac/blue color, then I free hand painted vertical stripes of Vant to Bite My Neck? which is the deep purple color and then I free hand painted horizontal stripes with a deep blue I Saw...U Saw...We Saw...Warsaw. Finally I finished it with a large dot and smaller dots on each nail. Every nail is slightly different and I love how it looks so simple but complicated at the same time.

Swatch and Review of Morgan Taylor: Sapphires, Rubies, and Emeralds Oh My

 Today I have to share my first and only Morgan Taylor polish! I bought this a while back and just haven't thought to use it. I'm not sure where these are normally sold, but I found this one at a salon. Sapphires, Rubies, and Emeralds Oh My is a glitter bomb. It is loaded, and I mean loaded with glitter. The best part is that it has a good base color so you don't need many layers. I think the base is a blue/purple, maybe more blue than purple. I only needed two coats for the photos below.

Swatch and Review of Different Dimension 50 Shades and That Is So Fetch!

Today I have a new to me indie brand to share with you! Different Dimension is a brand I have been following for quite a while, but never purchased, until now! I have two shades to share with you today: That Is So Fetch! and 50 Shades. I'm not really sure what to classify them as, but maybe a glitter topper with a jelly base? The base is pigmented but not entirely a full coverage type of polish. That Is So Fetch! was inspired by Mean Girls character: Gretchen Wieners. So funny! 50 Shades was inspired by 50 Shades of Grey. 

Nail Art: Watercolor Flowers Tri Polish Tuesday

Today is Tri Polish Tuesday again! I am actually kind of proud of myself for keeping up with this challenge this month. To see my last two Tri Polish Tuesday designs click here: Aztec and Primary Colors Unite!. For those who don't know the three polishes to use for this month are red, yellow and blue. There is another facebook group I try to participate in which explains nail art techniques called Simples: Nail Art from Muggles to Mastery. I love the name! This week is a watercolor technique that I first saw from The Nailasaurus: Watercolor! I knew that this week I wanted to combine the challenge prompt with the new technique so, I decided to try to create a floral look. I am not terribly good at this technique yet, but I really like how it turned out! I started with a base of white, gave it a good top coat, then one nail at a time dropped blue polish in a corner and spread it around with a brush that had acetone on it. I then did the opposite corner with yellow and then finally smaller bits of red on top of the blue and yellow.

Nail Art: Strawberry Fields

Oh Mondays, I think everyone struggles on Mondays. I hope yours is going well though. I have a bright and cheery look for you today! I attended the wedding of one of my best and oldest friends this weekend. I wanted to make sure to create something extra special. She loves strawberries and her parents have a strawberry farm, so I created a sort of bridal-like look with strawberry and flower accents. I used all Sally Hansen polishes and there were quite a few! I first created dots with Xtreme Wear White On, I then waited for that to dry completely and added three coats of a sheer white Complete Salon Manicure in Polar Bear. I love the effect of this sheer white! I then painted on strawberries with Xtreme Wear Coral Reef. I painted leaves with both Xtreme Wear Green with Envy and Perfect Pear-ing and added dots for seeds and flowers with Mellow Yellow.  I then topped everything off with a matte top coat and called it good. I did the strawberry design on my thumb, middle and ring fingers and left the others pain.

Nail Art: Green Dotticure for #fightforlifeandlive

Because of the tragic suicide of Robin Williams, the nail community has decided to band together to create green manicures for mental health awareness. The ribbon for mental health awareness is green, hence the green manis. I think all of us have been touched in some way by someone we love or suffer themselves from depression. It is very tragic that Robin Williams felt he had to take his own life, but I hope that with his passing, others can learn that they are not alone in this battle and that the stigma of mental illnesses needs to be lifted. If you or anyone you know is seeking help and is in crisis visit: Save.org. 

Video Credit: Moderngreen

With that, I would like to share my nails. I meant to post these earlier in the day, but I went on a hike and suddenly, it seems, it is 8pm! I started with a white base and dotted a gradient effect with two sizes of dotting tool. I used Sally Hansen Mint Sorbet, Color Club Wild Cactus and Sinful Colors Calypso. I staggered the dots a little to give more of a gradient effect.

Nail Art: Fairy Dusted Ferns

Happy Saturday to you all! I hope you are having a relaxing, enjoyable weekend so far. Today I have a simple stamping mani to share. I started with a base of Deborah Lippmann Call me Irresponsible (swatches coming soon) and stamped a fern design from my Konad M83 plate over that with Sinful Colors Enchanted. I couldn't just leave it alone, so I decided to add some China Glaze Fairy Dust to that. It turns out Fairy Dust isn't always the best solution, I felt like it drowned out the stamping in this case, so I added another stamp over the Fairy Dust.

Swatch and Review of KB Shimmer: I Got a Crush on Blue (LEMMING CRUSHED!)

I have been lusting after this polish for a long time now, and finally it is mine!! KB Shimmer I Got a Crush on Blue, took my breath away when I saw swatches a while ago. This is so gorgeous,  I am just going to let the photos do the talking. More comments after the photos.

Swatch and Review of Island Girl Trio

So a while ago I created a Neon Tribal Print design with these three Island Girl polishes that I received from a good friend (hi Hollie!). I just realized that I never did a full swatch and review for you! I can't believe I didn't realize this earlier because I love these colors! Unfortunately I don't have names of these polishes, but they come in a set and are sold wherever Island Girl is sold- predominately in Hawaii and Las Vegas as far as I know. I did hear from a reader that they are sold in Guam as well. So, for this post I will call them pink, coral and teal. 

Nail Art: Aztec Tri Polish Tuesday

Hello all! I hope you are having a nice Tuesday. I am attempting to participate in Tri Polish Tuesdays more regularly. It is a nail challenge in the facebook group Crumpet's Nail Tarts. Last week I posted Primary Colors Unite! This week I have a little bit of a different take on the challenge. For this month the three colors are yellow, red and blue. I started with a coral base, Sally Hansen Coral Reef. Then I stamped an Aztec-like design with yellow, red and blue. For the yellow I used Sally Hansen Lightening, red-I used butter LONDON Come to Bed Red, and for the blue I used Sinful Colors Into the Blue. I also used the Born Pretty Store stamping plate D14 (10% off use HANDX31).

Press Release: Zoya Entice & Ignite Fall Collection

Press Release

Inspired by the classic wools, textured brocades and metallic accents of the season, Zoya's new ENTICE & IGNITE collections create a palette of lush, deep color including wines, browns, navies and greys. 

Nail Art: Bridal Inspired Foil Stamping

Have you all heard of the Sally Hansen Color Foil Collection? It has been out for a while, but for one reason or another, I haven't gotten my hands on them until now. I have a nail art look today using Leaden Lilac as a base color. This polish is different from the usual polish where you use a base and top coat. This one specifically states to not use a base or top coat. The polish dries to a very metallic foil looking finish which has a really cool effect. The color is an interesting mix of blue and purple, I would call it more blue than purple. It reminded me of the blue/purple Pure Ice Laven-Dare because I couldn't really tell if it is was more blue leaning or purple leaning. I decided to pair the two for this look. Turns out Laven-Dare stamps really well, so I used my MoYou Tourist Collection Plate 07 for this design.   

Born Pretty Store Review: Water Decals

Press Sample

I have another Born Pretty Store review for you! I have some adorable water decals, which I was ecstatic to receive, even though the theme is more winter than summer. I loved the deer and the trees! It reminds me of those leggings that were super popular this last year. Since it isn't winter I was trying to figure out how to still use these in a summery way, and this is what I came up with. I started with a base color of Rimmel London 60 Seconds in Caramel Cupcake, then I used the purple tribal print stripes and placed them on one side of my nail. I waited for the decal to dry in place and then I added a stripe of Sally Hansen Insta-dri Pronto Purple and dots of Sally Hansen Diamond Strength Luminous Tulips.

Born Pretty Store Review: Pressed Flowers

Press Sample 

I have another Born Pretty Store review for you today! I received some dried flowers from the Born Pretty Store to try out. They come in 12 different colors and in their own protective containers. They come as whole pressed flowers, so you could really use the whole thing, but I decided to break them up and combine two colors to make a more detailed design. I created something similar to my Sideways Moons, but with flowers. I started with a base color of Nails Inc. Sheraton Street, added top coat, and placed the flowers in the still wet top coat. Then I top coated over the flowers and voila! 

Swatch and Review of Daily Hues: Isys

I have a beautiful polish to share with you all today! Daily Hues Nail Lacquer is a (sort of) local brand for me. She is one state over, but it still feels local. I previously shared Blaze from Daily Hues Nail Lacquer and love the brand! Today I have Isys, a purple jelly with different size and shape glitters. The highlights for me are the circle glitters and the shreds of glitter. I don't have any other polishes with glitter shreds, so that makes this polish really unique to me. I applied two coats for the below photos.

Swatch and Review of wHet: Facetious

So I have a quick post for you today. As a follow up to my post yesterday: Primary Colors Unite!, I have wHet Facetious up for review today. I had never heard of wHet, but received this beauty in my Ipsy bag. Ipsy is a makeup/beauty product subscription for $10 a month you get about 5 good sized products to try and a makeup bag. I love it! If you would like to sign up through my referral link you may do so here: IPSY. Disclaimer: I do receive points if you sign up through my link. Facetious is a gorgeous deep blue crelly. There aren't any shimmers or glitters in it, it is just a solid gorgeous blue crelly. I only needed two coats for the photos below. 

Nail Art: Primary Colors Unite!

So, today is the first time I will be participating in Tri Polish Tuesday! It is a challenge that requires you to use the three polish colors for that month. This month is blue, red and yellow! I decided to create a dry marble using wHet Facetious, NYC Carnival Red which I also showed you in yesterday's post, and Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Lightening. I started with a base of Facetious and dry marbled over that. Then I placed some tape triangles on my nails and painted Facetious over that.

Swatch and Review of NYC Samba Collection

Today I have some simple swatches for your viewing and reading pleasure! I have two polishes from the NYC Samba Collection. I have a purple called Jacaranda Flower and a red called Carnival Red. My Rite Aid's display was pretty bare bones when I went, but I was able to pick up these two beauties and share them with you today!

Neon Week Nail Art: Neon Gradient and Rhinestones

Can you believe it is the last day of Neon Week already? It went by so fast for me. I enjoyed creating every neon look this past week and I think I learned a bit as well. Today I have a simple gradient with Color Club Flamingo, Wham! Pow! and Mrs. Robinson. I topped the gradient with China Glaze Fairy Dust and added some rhinestones on my thumb, middle and ring fingers. 

Neon Week Nail Art: Neon Advanced Stamping

I will be the first to admit that this design isn't my best. I have been trying advanced stamping and I am not quite so "advanced" with it yet. I still wanted to have a go and share it with you anyway. I used my Born Pretty Store plate QA 88 which I also used in my Turquoise Stamping Post. This advanced stamping technique is basically adding multiple colors to your stamp before actually stamping it on the nail. There are tons of ways to do this but on this hand I decided to just make decals. On my other hand I did a few straight from the stamp and I think they actually turned out a little better, live and learn I guess. I used China Glaze White On White as a base and Grass is Lime Greener and Flip Flop Fantasy over that.  

Neon Week Nail Art: Fashion Inspired Neon Statement Piece

This may be the most simple, yet complicated design I have for Neon Week. If you missed past Neon Week Posts you can read them here: Neon Mist (Day 1), Neon Monochrome Arrows (Day 2), Neon Rainbow Flowers (Day 3), Neon Galaxy (Day 4). Today's look is another one for Oh Mon Dieu Part Deux, Day 30 Fashion Inspired. I saw a very striking necklace on Etsy from the shop JustynaG and very soon couldn't get it off my mind! I posted a variant of it in one of my treasuries and have been wanting to recreate the look. This design is loosely based off of it, as you will be able to see in the photo from from the listing. I only used Orly Glowstick (a staple for neon week) and Sinful Colors Black on Black.