Pure Ice Oh Baby!

I was recently at Walmart and checked out these Pure Ice polishes.  They're cheap, but there are some fun colors.  I'm always looking for interesting topcoats, so when I spotted Pure Ice Oh Baby! I couldn't resist putting it in my basket. 

The first time I wore it, I wore it over Essie Go Overboard, which on it's own is a gorgeous dark teal cream.

Photo Credit: ommorphia beauty bar

When I added a layer of Oh Baby! on top, it was completely transformed.  I was in love!  It added some awesome depth as well as a holographic effect from turquoise to purple.

More recently, I wanted to experiment with some other colors, and I decided to pair it with Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Grey Area. 

This is a terrible photo, but it turned out kind of cool.  It added tons of blue shimmer on top of the grey.  I didn't get a better picture because I went to bed too soon and it got mushed about, so I took it off really soon after I'd done it.

I'm so glad I added this one to my collection.  It's versatile, and I can't wait to try it over more colors!

Do you have a favorite effect polish?

Another Capitol Colours Mani

Today I have another Hunger Games inspired mani using the China Glaze Capitol Colours collection.

First I want to share with you one of my very favorite polishes of all time, Stone Cold.  It is a gorgeous soft charcoal matte, I am totally in love with it.  It's unique and sophisticated and just beautiful.

So pretty, but I wanted something fancy.  I decided to do a french tip and I hadn't tried out Luxe and Lush yet, so I decided to do some flaky glittery tips.

I liked how it turned out, but to be honest I'm not a huge fan of the type of flaky glitter in Luxe and Lush.  It doesn't lie flat, and I don't have a glitter tamer, so even with a coat of Seche Vite over top , it was catching on things.  I think with this type of polish it really needs a couple of topcoats at the least.  It is pretty for sure, but I also just hate removing glitter polishes, especially ones with large chunks.  Oh well, I guess it's worth it for the prettiness!  I hope you like this one, and that you got to enjoy the Hunger Games this weekend if you are a fan like me!

Happy Hunger Games Day!

As this post publishes at it's schedule time of 12 AM, I'll be sitting in a packed theater watching a midnight show of The Hunger Games.  SO EXCITED!  In honor of the occasion and my acquisition of one of the best polishes I've ever seen, here is another Hunger Games mani using the China Glaze Capitol Colours polishes.

I wanted to use Riveting and Stone Cold.  There are some absolutely fabulous Hunger Games manis out there today - check some of them out on my Pinterest nail board!  I was so impressed and would have loved to do something fancy, but I'm just nowhere near as good at freehanding as many of these ladies.  I decided to do a funky french mani, and then I decided to use my zig zag scissors instead of doing a straight line.

After I'd painted them, I put on a coat of Seche Vite to seal it before mattifying.  Here are a few shots of this one shiny.  I didn't love it, honestly I like Stone Cold how it comes out of the bottle with it's soft matte finish. It's one of my favorite polishes ever, and on Monday I'll have a few swatches of it on it's own.

Next I applied a coat of Essie Matte About You to transform it.

I don't love it as much as I'd hoped I would.  Because the Riveting was applied over the darker polish, it is a tiny bit spotty and darker than when it's on it's own.  When it was shiny it wasn't as visible, but after I applied the matte it didn't look as gorgeous as it does on it's own with a matte topcoat.

I'll be wearing this tonight to the movie, but I'm not sure how long I'll keep it on after that!

Have you ever done nails inspired by a book or movie?  Will you be seeing The Hunger Games this weekend?

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Prep's Cool

When I first bought my Sally Hansen Salon Effects back in November, I actually bought four boxes.  I finally decided to use another one, and went with Prep's Cool, a cool black and silver argyle design.

I had even less trouble with application this time - so easy!  I used acetone when I went to take it off and the silver came off super easy, but the black took a lot more work.  I did have an idea that you could easily remove all the silver and be left with just the black diamonds on your nails - a creative mind could find something fun to do with that!

This was tons of fun to wear, and I got a bunch of compliments on it!

Wish List

I have tons of polishes I am drooling over at Pinterest and on my Amazon wish list, and they just keep getting fuller.  Right now, these are the ones I would most love to get my hands on.

Image Source: Beautopia

Zoya Ki.  Just look at that gorgeous duochrome color!  It reminds me of those oil puddles on the ground that always look so pretty, or of peacock tones.

Image Source: Chloe's Nails

I've been wanting some magnetic polish for a while, but what I really like about the China Glaze Magnetix is the differently shaped magnets.  Specifically, I am totally in love with the star pattern!  This color is Cling On and I love it.

Deborah Lippman makes some pretty fabulous polishes, and this was one of the first ones I ever laid eyes on.  It's called Across the Universe and it is basically 'my' colors - my very favorite blues.  I don't have many glitter polishes, they're not totally my thing, but every once in a while I see one that I know I'd love.

These are just some dotting tools - it's one thing I don't have that would let me do more fun stuff.  I also want some stamping plates, but don't have any particular ones that I'm really coveting right now.

Image Source: Goose's Glitter

This is another glitter polish.  There are tons of stores on Etsy that seem to have homemade glitter polishes - these people are doing crazy sales because these polishes are so popular.  This one is Oh Yes I Did from Laquistry.  Like I said before, I am not a huge fan of a lot of these polishes that are completely saturated with glitter.  But I really love the color combo in this one, it is a little bit more unique.

Image Source: Let Them Have Polish

This gorgeous one is Fantasy Fire from Max Factor.  I LOVE this color combo because it's unusual, and look at the way the glitter just glows.  It really looks like burning embers.  These sell for around $30-35 on Ebay, so it's not likely I'll add it to my collection any time soon.

Image Source: Let Them Have Polish

This is Get It On 'Em, one of the polishes in OPI's Nicki Minaj collection.  I don't know what it is about this color.  Sometimes I look at it and think it's hideous, but I'm strangely drawn to it, and I think I need to have it.  I think it would look really great under a black crackle, I'm not sure I'd be brave enough to wear it on it's own.

Image Source:  Let Them Have Polish

Honestly, there are tons of Zoya polishes I'd love to own.  They make great, solid colors that are a nice addition to a collection.  We have an Ed Wyse in town and I went for the first time the other day, their selection of OPI and Zoya polishes is insane.  The beautiful teal cream above is Bevin, and the green below is Shawn.  It looks in the photo above like Bevin comes out a little matte, but it's also gorgeous with a shiny top coat.  I love Shawn for it's pure green-ness, one of my favorite colors in nature.

Image Source: Let Them Have Polish

Image Source: Polish Mayhem

I have been interested in matte polishes lately, and Orly Purple Velvet is just one of the ones on my list.

These last three are the ones I want the most, I just drool over them.

Image Source: Scrangie

I have one Holographic polish, it's from the Sally Hansen Magical collection from a few years ago that's been discontinued for a long time.  I REALLY want to add some true holos to my collection, and just look at how absolutely amazing this Gosh silver holo is!  It is amazing.

Image Source: Chloe's Nails

So, this is actually two polishes, but I love the combo so much!  This is a manicure the Chloe did over at Chloe's Nails.  The top coat is the one I want most, it's Teal Scales from Funky Fingers.  Just look at that!  I have never seen a crackle that looked so pretty.  It's layered over China Glaze Flying Dragon, and I just think the combo is to die for.

And this is one of my biggest lemmings right now - the China Glaze Capital Colours collection.  This is the official ad, but these colors are way more amazing when you see them actually on nails.  You can see them all actually swatched over at Vampy Varnish - but be prepared to fall in love with them!  She has a giveaway going for the ENTIRE COLLECTION that ends today, and if I won it... I would be beyond ecstatic!

What's on your wish list?

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I was ready for a change today and I definitely wanted something green for St. Patrick's Day this weekend and for my St. Patrick's Day themed Bunco night.  I just got some new craft scissors that I've been wanting to try out with tape, so I picked out some greens and went to work!

First, here are some swatches of the first color I applied.  This is a brand new one that I picked up at Ulta last Sunday called Limelight.  It's not quite 100% opaque after 2 coats, but I left it because I was going to be covering part of it.  It's a really pretty, springy green.

Next I got out my tape and scissors and put some stripes on with Sinful Colors Show Me the Way and then Sally Girl 812098 on the tips.  I don't know if the Sally Girl ones have a name other than that number, it bugs me when polishes don't have a name.  By the way, if you like doing tape manis and you don't own a bottle of Seche Vite, go get one right now!  It is awesome in general, but in terms of drying each layer before putting on the next, it cuts down the time you need to wait to put tape on by a lot.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Acrylic Comparison

After getting my nails filled and re-shaped, I have been about 100 times happier with the way they look.  I decided to post a comparison, especially for anyone living in Bellingham, WA who might be looking to have their nails done.  The first set I got at Beauty Nails in the Bellis Fair Mall.  I was not completely happy with them from the start, and I also noticed that my fingers were VERY sore after having them applied.  They stayed sore all around my nails for almost 24 hours.  I did not like how thick and round the nails looked, and  even though one friend told me they didn't look that thick, I was not happy.

When it came time to get them filled, I went to Happy Nails over by Sehome on the recommendation of several friends.  Oh my gosh.  They did an amazing job.  They were a bit more (really, maybe $5 more), but it was worth it.  Not only did she give me the square shape I wanted, but after she put on the acrylic she used the drill to file them down so they were not anywhere close to the thickness they'd given me at the other place.  They look 50 times more natural, and I love them.

I will not go back to Beauty Nails in the mall again, and Happy Nails has a loyal customer now!