Thursday, May 26, 2011

Jesse's Girl Wild Thing

Today I want to show you Jesse's Girl Wild Thing, a bright neon purple that caught my eye a little while ago.  I've worn it several times and it's so pretty!  It dries quickly with a matte finish, like most neons, and it's very opaque.  The formula is not great, and since it dries quickly I feel like I have to work super fast to prevent an uneven finish.  I hate when I can't take my time, so this one is frustrating to use, but the intensity of the color makes it all worth it.  I wanted to try some fun tips, so I used some crafting shears with a zig-zag pattern and cut some strips of tape to use as guides.  Then, I painted the tips with Sally Hansen Byte.  I was hoping for more contrast, but this combination is very subtle.  I like it anyway.




Thanks for looking!

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

NOTD: Sally Hansen Shining

Today I want to show you an oldie but a goodie.  This is a go-to color for me, I just love it!  Sally Hansen Shining is a deep wine color with loads of shimmer.  It's opaque in 1 coat, even better!  When I purchased it I thought it was a dupe for Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Wined Up, but upon closer inspection in the sunlight you can see that Shining has just a touch more purple in it.  Maybe I should do a comparison... It will have to wait until it's sunny here again.

This is 1 coat of strengthening base coat, 1 coat of hydrating base coat (not sure if layering them like that even helps to be honest), and 1 coat of Shining.



Then, I decided to try some nail art.  Now, I am in no way artistic and I'm a klutz.  I'm surprised this didn't turn into a mushed-up blob, truthfully.  Here we go.





Can you tell it's supposed to be a flower? :) 

Thanks for reading!  :)

Sunday, May 22, 2011

NOTD: Funky Mani

This weekend I was feeling adventurous so I tried some more nail art.  This time I used polish only, no stickers or tape.  This one is 100% free-hand and it actually went quicker than taping my nails off.  The lines aren't as straight since I didn't use tape, but I like the result nonetheless.

I started with 1 coat of base coat.  Then, I painted my nails with 2 coats of the purple-no-name franken I showed you in this post, however, to recreate this look you could use any shade of purple or any color you prefer.  Then, I painted a diagonal line in OPI Mrs. O'Leary's BBQ and filled in the top part of my nail.  Finally, I added a silver stripe using a striper brush, applied quick dry top coat, and I was all done.  By the way, Mrs. O'Leary's BBQ is one of my all-time favorite colors.  The formula is fantastic and you only need 2 coats.  It dries super glossy and the color is this rich purple-burgundy.  I think it's a perfect fall color.





I hope this gives you some inspiration for fun manicures!  Thanks for looking!  :)

Friday, May 20, 2011

Make Up Store Greta

Make Up Store Greta! Behold and bask in her glory!  I just received her and I can't wait to show you!  The holographic effect is stunning, perfectly linear, and everything I hoped it would be.  I wanted to mention a couple points before I get to the photos.  The Aqua Fix is the base coat that is necessary under the holographic polish.  The application is allegedly a PITA without it, and I'm not going to waste my precious holo experimenting.  Attempt at Greta's risk.  Also, allegedly, matte top coats work as a substitute for the Aqua Fix if you don't have it.  Again, attempt at Greta's risk.  Finally, most top coats will dull the holo effect.  I wore this for less than a day without top coat and had major chipping.  I work in an office, which means my little pretties are subjected to frequent typing, and by the day's end there were noticeable chips and tip wear. *sad face*

Alright, on to the photos.  These were all 1 coat of Aqua Fix, 2 coats of Greta, and no top coat.


 At certain angles it looks like plain silver nail polish.  So boring...


Put her in the sunlight and BAM!  Eye-searing holo!


She photographs well in dim light too.



Are you basking?



Do you like holographic nail polish?  Which is your favorite?

Thanks for looking! :)

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Sally Hansen HD (Hi-Definition) Polishes

Alright, so I've been eyeing these little beauties for awhile and finally, finally caved.  I got 4 of them, but today I'm only going to show you 2 of them because I haven't had a chance to try the others.  The first one I tried, which was my favorite in the bottle, was DVD.  It's a light purple, almost blue, shimmery duochrome.  It's very sheer and I applied 3 coats before giving up and deciding it needed something opaque underneath.  I ended up applying 2 coats of LA Colors Tropical Breeze (a medium purple) and then 2 coats of DVD.  I also found some cute nail art stickers this weekend and I just had to try them out.  It's hard to tell in the photo, but the centers of the flowers and the dots are holographic.  So pretty!

This is 3 coats of DVD by itself so you can see how translucent it is.


And here it is layered over Tropical Breeze.




What do you think?


Now for Byte, which is gorgeous too.  It's a bright pink shimmer with a blue duochrome effect.  This one is also pretty sheer and I layered it over Jesse's Girl Breathless (iridescent bright pink) to achieve the desired opacity.  It's a stunner in the sunlight.

This is 3 layers of Byte by itself.


This is 2 coats of Byte layered over 1 coat of Breathless.




I had to use more of my new nail art stickers.  They're so easy to use!  Do you use nail art stickers?

Thanks for looking!

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Sinful Colors Hazard & My Purple Franken!

Hello!  Happy Weekend to everyone!  I haven't posted in awhile so I have a couple things for today.  First, I want to show you Sinful Colors Hazard, a creamy bright orange.  In the bottle the color is perfect and I was afraid it would dry darker, but it didn't.  It's gorgeous on the nail.  Application on this was a PITA because it kept streaking and I had major cuticle drag.  I wore Essie Feed Me (a hydrating base coat) underneath, so I thought maybe that was the problem.  I took it all off and started over fresh without any base coat to see if that made a difference... nope!  I guess it's just the Sinful Colors formula.  I have that problem a lot with Sinfuls actually, that's why I usually avoid their cremes.  Anyway, this is 3 coats of Hazard, which was total overkill because it's very opaque.  If it had been easier to apply 2 coats would have been plenty for full coverage, but I needed 3 coats to even everything out.  :/  I finished it off with a quick dry top coat.




What do you think?  I just love this shade for summer!

Next, I want to show you a purple franken that I made awhile back.  I just love purple nail polish and couldn't find anything to match what I wanted, so I decided to make my own.  This is really a franken of a franken so I can't remember exactly what I used for it, but I'll try to post a general recipe for you.  I still haven't named it yet either.  What should I name it?  Suggestions welcome!



Recipe:
1/2 bottle clear nail polish (I used Maybelline Express Finish Base & Top Coat)
a little bit of bright red
some OPI DS Mystery for the purple base and gold flakes
some white to lighten it
silver metallic for shimmer
neon purple to get rid of the dustiness

I think that's everything.  It was one giant experiment and I just kept adding and adding until I had what I wanted.  The trick with frankens is to start out by adding small amounts so you can continue tweaking it without ruining the look you're attempting to create.  What do you think?  Do you make frankens?

Thanks for reading!! :)

Monday, May 9, 2011

NOTD: Pacific Blue & Flakies

My NOTD didn't turn out how I wanted today.  It's still pretty, but just isn't what I imagined.  I started with a coat of hydrating base coat, as usual.  Then I applied one coat of Sally Hansen Pacific Blue, which is definitely a one-coater.  Then, I added a coat of Wet n Wild Don't Be A Dum Dum, which is a sheer, shimmery teal.  Finally, I added a coat of Nubar 2010 and 2 coats of quick dry top coat.  I really hoped the orange-yellow-green flakies would "pop" on the blue background, but they really didn't.  I also had trouble photographing them. The flakies were not cooperating today, so please don't mind the dim lighting.  That's the only way I could get them to show.


Sorry for the blurry photo, but it shows a nice range of colors.


I topped it all off with Essie Matte About You to see how it would look.




This NOTD wasn't what I imagined, but it's still fun.

It's supposed to be sunny the next few days so I will probably break out some holos soon! :)

Thanks for looking!

Saturday, May 7, 2011

LA Colors Electrified

I absolutely love metallic nail polishes, especially colored ones.  I found LA Color Electrified at my local dollar store recently and couldn't pass it up.  I'm so happy I purchased it!  It's a pink metallic, but it's almost like it's a pink base with silver flecks.  The application on this was a breeze.  I applied it over one coat of hydrating base coat.  I only needed one coat of Electrified for full opacity and it dried within 5 minutes.  I applied a coat of quick dry top coat and was ready to go within 10 minutes.  Fabulous!  I wore this manicure for 4 days (which is long time for me) with minimal tip wear and only had 3 small chips.  I'm logging this one as a last minute, hassle-free, blingy option.  In other words: awesomeness in a bottle.

Photos taken in sunlight.




What do you think?  Do you like metallic nail polishes?

Thanks for looking!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Sally Hansen Poppy

So last summer I sprained my ankle, and while at the drugstore getting a brace I grabbed a fun color to cheer me up, since I couldn't cycle for at least 2 weeks while it healed.  It was Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Poppy, and I only wore it on my toes once.  Somehow, I managed to forget about it until a few days ago when I sort of "rediscovered" it.  I can't believe I forgot about it!  It's so pretty and when I think of the perfect summer color this is it!  It's an orangey-coral polish with a slight shimmer.  The application was a little splotchy and I had some cuticle drag but it was evened out after 2 coats.  I got away with wearing it for 3 days before it chipped.  Not bad, but not great either.


This is 2 coats of Poppy over a hydrating base coat.  I finished it with a coat of quick dry top coat.




These photos were all taken in natural light, but the color is slightly more orange than it looks here.

What are your favorite colors for summer?  Is there any one color that you think of when you think "summer"?

Thanks for looking!