Once Upon a Time

Once Upon a Time is one of three Whimsical polishes I own.  I featured Wicked a while back and still have one more to try out.  Once Upon a Time has a clear base with lilac and mint green glitter.  I had a bit of a tough time deciding what to layer it over before finally deciding on Revlon Hazy a pale gray creme.  I think this combo looks lovely together!  I can't wait to try this one layered over some other colors as well!

Let it Snow II

Sorry for the short absence guys, my work schedule has been crazy lately and I haven't even had my nails painted for almost a week!  I'm starting to have withdrawal   Here is the last mani I did a few days back and didn't get a chance to post.  I am planning on participating in the new 31 Day Challenge with Crumpet's Nail Tarts starting in January.  I will try to post more details soon, I am trying to get everything prepared for that.  I may not be able to keep up with the daily posting but I will give it a shot!

This one is a base of Zoya Purity stamped with Orly Grave Mistake.

Let it Snow

I have been seeing some really great snowflake inspired manis lately but hadn't attempted one myself yet.  I had an idea in my head of how I wanted it to turn out and other than the purple snowflake on my middle finger not showing up very well, I am pleased with how it turned out.  Base is China Glaze Bizarre Blurple with some silver glitter sponged on the tips.  I used various stamping plates and colors to stamp the snowflakes for a cool winter evening look.  What do you think?

Elegant in Red

Something a little simpler today.  This would be the perfect accent for that LBD at the holiday party...

This one started with two coats of China Glaze Ruby Pumps and a coat of Seche to speed the drying process and smooth it out.  Once it was good and dry I used Salon Perfect Liquid Gold and Konad m63 plate to stamp the swirl design over the red glitter.  I sealed it all with a topcoat of NYC, so far one of the only topcoats I have found that doesn't smear the stamping design.  I love how this turned out!

China Glaze Ruby Slippers and stamping (no flash)

China Glaze Ruby Slippers and stamping (flash)

Presents!

Today's Holiday Challenge theme is presents.  I thought going into it that this would be an easy theme...I was wrong.  I spent more time on this one than I have on any of the others so far.  I kept messing up my index finger and repainted it at least 4 times before I finally decided to just use the glitter on it too.  I can't wait to see what everyone else has come up with for today!

Feeling Frosty

 A couple of weeks ago I ordered some of the holiday polishes from Lush Lacquer.  I hadn't been really in the mood for much of anything Christmas related, but all of the sudden the weather got colder and the Holiday Challenge helped with that some as well.  Frosty is another amazing creation from Lush Lacquer.  I have yet to be disappointed with any of their polish that I have tried and this one is no different.  This was the first milky glitter from them I have tried and it is amazing!  What you see here is two simple coats.  No placing the glitter just so or going back to fix "bald patches", it applied like a dream!  I topped it with a coat of Seche and done! -One quick note though, the glitter in the polish is red, not orange like it appears here but I could not get it adjusted correctly without messing everything else up!

Festival of Lights

Today's theme for the Holiday Challenge is Festival of Lights.  I know that can have several meanings; for me I went with Christmas lights.  I started with a base of Zoya Purity.  Once it was dry I created a gradient look using Color Club Take me to Your Chateau.  I used a striping brush to paint on the cord for the lights in black and then topped it all with China Glaze Fairy Lights.  Once that had dried I used the same striping brush to paint on the lights in various colors and sealed everything with a topcoat of NYC.

Tale of an Upgrade

Many of you know that I am a nurse with a full time job and going to school full time.  Needless to say things have been crazy lately with the holidays and such and I haven't had much time to even paint my nails let alone blog.  I try hard to fit everything in because I really enjoy being busy and having tasks to do.  Last night I was picking through my pile of untried polish because I wanted something new and something simple.  I chose OPI Casino Royale.  Beautiful color and great formula as you would expect from OPI.  By the time I was done with my nails though, I was exhausted and went to bed without even getting a picture!  Today, I had to work so by the time I got home my mani was showing some wear but I still wanted to be able to share this new color with you all.  So I took a pic of my flawed, unshiny mani with tipwear...and then I upgraded it!

OPI Casino Royale (day 2, flash)

After I took that first picture, I got out my stamping plates and some polish and went to town!  I used Cheeky plate CH11 and Essie Loophole for the stamping and then went back with Zoya Zuza for the dots to add a pop of a different color.  Once that was done I applied a fresh topcoat and I am good to go for another day!  

Day 2 mani upgrade (no flash)

Gingerbread and Candy Canes

The Crumpet's Nail Tarts are at it again with another challenge!  I missed the first day but plan to be on with the rest of the days.  Today's theme is gingerbread and candy canes.  This seemed like a perfect time to use my new polish from Pretty and Polished Love Always, Candy Cain.  This is a beautiful polish with a clear base and various sizes and shapes of red and white glitter including hearts!  This polish is perfect for this theme and would also work well for Valentine's day....I suspect we will be seeing it again!
Anyway, on to today's nails!  I started with a coat of Essie Grow Stronger, I have had a few issues with chips and peeling lately so I am working on getting my nails back into shape.  I used China Glaze Starboard  for the green, Essie Loophole for the silver and Zoya Purity for the white.  Orly Grave Mistake has really become my go-to red for stamping, I also added in a little accent of Ulta Flamingo on the index finger for the striped stamp for a little extra something.  The gingerbread and dots are done in Color Club Antiquated.  Be sure and check out what the others have come up with for today's theme!

My First Lippmann

I have put off buying any Lippmann polish up until last week because of the price but when Beauty Brands had them on sale, I picked up a couple.  I selected Bitches Brew because I liked the name and the color looked like something I would wear often.  OMG! I can't believe I waited this long to try this brand!  I was amazed with the results of this polish!  I still think the $16 price tag is steep and I probably won't buy unless they are on sale or I can find them cheaper, but the quality is excellent.  The formula on this is thickish but not difficult to work with.  The thickness also did not affect the dry time which was average.  The coverage is amazing and it is a gorgeous color that I got loads of compliments on.  If you don't own any Deborah Lippmann polish, this would be a great one to start with!

butter LONDON Cream Tea

This is one of those polishes that I had been wanting for quite a while for no real reason.  I passed it up in the store a few times thinking that I really didn't need another white polish.  When Ulta had their last butter LONDON sale though, I picked it up. It has been sitting in my "to be swatched" pile ever since.  Finally last night I got around to trying it out.  I have to say that I'm not overly thrilled with this one.  It took me four coats to get what you see here and there are still some patchy areas.  For me, that is too much work for the look that it gives.  Not to say that it isn't pretty, just too much effort for me.  I may give it another chance someday but for now it's not at the top of my list.

butter LONDON - Cream Tea

OPI Roadhouse Blues Swatch and Review

 Last week I happened upon Roadhouse Blues at Ulta on clearance so of course I grabbed it!  I am a sucker for dark creme shades and this one was no different.  Do I have other similar colors, sure but I didn't have this one!  Anyway, on to the color!  This one is a dark navy cream that leans a little purple in certain light.  As with most OPI polish, it goes on well and dry time is average.  These pics were taken after work on day 2 so you will see some tipwear.  Keep in mind, I was my hands like a million times a day plus use alcohol hand sanitizer which kills the shine.  All things considered, it still looks pretty decent.  You could touch up the tips and add a fresh topcoat and get a few more days of wear I'm sure.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have been trying to keep up with a daily thankful post on my personal Facebook page, it is nice to notice how many things we have we may take for granted that we are thankful for. I have to work today so I won't be able to spend the day with my family like I had hoped but, such is the life of a nurse! I wanted something festive but simple for today so I chose a base of Revlon Hot for Chocolate and then layered Lush Lacquer Korny Candy over the top.

Don't forget to enter my giveaway!!

My *Almost* 100 Follower Giveaway!

If you follow me on Facebook, you probably saw me post the other day that I would be announcing my giveaway this weekend and now is the time!  I decided to go ahead and post this early because....well, because I can!
This giveaway will have four winners.  I am going to do this a bit different, meaning the first name drawn will have their choice of any one of the four prizes, the next winner will then get their choice and so on.  Unfortunately this giveaway is open to U.S. residents only.  Now, on to the prizes!

Prize #1 - Revlon Whimsical and SinfulColors Cinderella

Prize #2 - Lush Lacquer Sugar Daddy and Salt n Peppa (mini bottles)

Prize #3 - Julep January plus basecoat, glycolic hand scrub and glitter pots

Prize #4 Illamasqua Radium plus nail decorations

Please note all of these prizes have been purchased by me and none of the companies listed provided any prizes for this giveaway.  Now what are you waiting for, go enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Number One Nemesis

 I am sure by now you have all seen numerous swatches of this color but it is new to me!  I picked this one up several times while in the stores when it first came out but just never bought it until the other day when I saw it on clearance at Beauty Brands.  Number One Nemesis is of course from the Amazing Spiderman collection that OPI put out this summer.  It really is a pretty color, deep metallic green with some gold shimmer to it; this one is said to be a dupe of Chanel Graphite.  Shown here with two coats (though I should have done three) and a coat of Seche.

OPI Number One Nemesis

Blue Midnight for World Diabetes Day

 A few days ago I saw a few posts on Facebook about bloggers doing blue manis for World Diabetes Day.  As a nurse, raising awareness for this disease is part of what I do so if I can do it in a way that fits into my "other life" as well that's just an added bonus!  I found this polish while I was on vacation and picked it up because I hadn't seen them locally and I am so glad I did!  I have quite a few Pure Ice polishes, for less than $2 they are a great deal and they really have some fun colors.  There is nothing on the bottle that hints that it is a matte/velvet polish but there was a huge display that indicated that part of them were.  I found this one to be very easy to work with which is especially great for a budget-friendly polish!

Pure Ice Blue Midnight

Check out the other bloggers participating in this cause by clicking on their links below!

Juelp Nora

Sorry for the absence lately guys, I have been on vacation!  If you have "liked" my page on Facebook, then you already know that my nails did not fair so well while I was gone.  They were starting to peel a bit before I left but the dry air really did a number on them.  I hope to have some new stuff up in the next few days but be forewarned, my nails will be short!
This was the last polish I wore before heading out on vacation.  I have been a Julep Maven now for quite some time now and I have quite a collection of polish that I have yet to get up on the site!  Nora is from the November box and is a lovely shade that Julep calls a "silver aubergine".  The silver I see, the aubergine is not as noticeable to me in person as it is on the site.  Unless you hold it next to a silver polish, it really looks more silver.  That said, I still do like the color.  I used the "sandwich" method with this one to increase wear time; one coat polish, one coat tc, final coat polish.  I managed to get two days from this one before I had to remove it, for a matte/suede that is pretty decent, and part of that was due to my nails themselves peeling, not the polish.

Julep Nora

For me, the monthly Maven program is by far the way to go, Julep can now be found at Sephora but the perks and discounts of the program are a better option for me.  If you aren't a member yet, you can sign up here.

Zoya Pinta

If you have followed my blog for any length of time at all, you probably know that Zoya is among my favorite brands.  I especially love their cream finish polishes and that is what I have to show you here today.  Pinta is a luscious purple cream with blue undertones.

I got loads of compliments on this polish and I have actually worn it twice recently which I almost never do (because of the massive list of untrieds I have)!  If you haven't tried Zoya yet, what are you waiting for?!

Evolution of a Halloween Manicure

Things have been insane around here lately with work, school, and trying to plan a vacation that includes three dogs!  I had no real plan in mind while working on this Halloween manicure but I knew it needed to include some of the amazing test products I got from KKCenterHk.  They contacted me a while back about testing some of their products, you will be seeing more from them in the future!!
I started with three thin coats of Julep Parker on all nails except my ring finger and painted those black.  I selected a few decals from this set.  I tried soaking them for a few seconds and sliding the decal off (typically how water decals work) but couldn't get it to work so I just pressed it to the nail and that worked perfectly.  The only difference is if you do it that way, you will end up with a silver decal and your design will be flipped.  (I did go back later and try it again and they will slide off with enough time in water, 20 seconds or so and some pressure) Remember to seal it with a topcoat!

Then I added a coat of Lush Lacquer Hey Jack! to my index finger, (amazingly easy to use glitter with a clear base) added a decal on my ring finger and sealed it all with a coat of Seche.

Wicked

Simple swatch of a gorgeous polish!  I wanted to go ahead and post this one tonight in case I don't have time to post tomorrow.  Wicked is a beautiful sheer green polish packed with various shapes of glitter and can be purchased directly from Pam via her Facebook page found here.  I wanted this one to really pop so this is shown layered over OPI Did it on 'Em.  Perfect for Halloween!!

Sometimes you have to be a Villian

 This has been a crazy week so far!  I have fallen way behind in the Halloween Challenge and it makes me sad.  I thought I would have more time and I just haven't.  C'est la vie I guess.  Although I have't done well keeping up with the Challenge, I do have something AWESOME to show you today.  I had heard that some Walgreen's stores had Disney Villainous Villains makeup sets and after scouring countless stores, I could never get my hands on any.  I did see some of the artificial nails, and while some of them had some cool designs, they just weren't for me.  However, on a recent shopping trip with some friends of mine we stopped into a Disney Store and happened upon a set of Villains Varnish!!  Now we're talking!  Of course I bought a set and today I have the swatches for you.  Each is inspired by a Villain in one of Disney's movies.

First a shot of the boxed set.

Now on to the swatches!!  First up is Ursula, a gorgeous frosty silvery-lilac shade with silver microglitter.  This one was much more pigmented than I thought it would be, I expected it to be sort of sheer but it isn't at all.  Does need a topcoat to minimize the texture from the glitter.

Next up is Queen of Hearts, a sort of "old gold" shade with gold microglitter.  This one went on very well with two coats as well, again you will need a topcoat here due to glitter.

Then we move on to Mother Gothel, the first of two cream shades.  WOW, I know the deep burgundy color isn't really that unique but I am in LOVE with this shade!  The perfect vampy burgundy with a flawless application, shown here without a topcoat; look at that shine!!

Next up is Maleficent, a beautiful teal shade with a sort of frosty metallic finish (but without the dreaded brushstrokes!!)  Very easy to apply, also shown without a topcoat.

The last glitter in the set is Evil Queen.  This one has a black base with purple microglitter.  (Similar to Wet n Wild Night Prowl but with a much more pigmented base)  The base here is pigmented enough that what you see here is one coat with a topcoat. I had a tough time getting the glitter to really show up on the nail.  Sometimes it looks sort of reddish, and other times it is more purple...

And last but not least is Cruella DeVil a luscious red cream with orange undertones.  This one is two coats, no topcoat.

As a huge Disney (and nail polish) fan I was thrilled to see this set and even more thrilled to see how great they are.  It would be amazing if they put out other sets as well.  For reference this set of 6 was $29.50 and can be found online through the Disney store website (where it is on sale for $22.12).

What do you think?  Will you be picking it up?