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!