ANNOUNCEMENT and Sundress Inspired Mani

I have no excuse, I realize. Well, actually I do.

WE BOUGHT OUR FIRST HOUSE!
:)

Mr. Polish are thrilled and to add to it ...
WE ARE HAVING OUR FIRST BABY!


Haha, might as well throw it all out there.



Long story short, we spent the summer working like crazy to save up the last bit that
we needed to buy a home (which we did in October) and then BAM, we
find out we are expecting the first week of February. Second trimester, here I come!


Okay, enough about me, here is a mani that I did back in June for my youngest
sisters high school graduation. I wanted to recreate the print on my dress and I
feel like it turned out pretty well!

 

 

 

We are having fairly mild weather here today (about 10 degrees) and felt like
getting into the Spring mood a little bit.

OPI "Animalistic"

To date, this was literally one of the hardest polishes for me to photograph accurately. In retrospect, I really should have taken advantage of the sun that I had that day and did an outdoors shot, however we are all much wiser after the fact...

OPI "Animalistic" 3 coats

Short and sweet for today.
I will be posting a new, recent mani in a few days time!

Essie Jag-U-Are + Accent Nail

Good morning. While going through my drafts I found another Valentine's themed mani. Really, this would be appropriate any time of year because it doesn't have anything specific to Valentine's Day other than colour. (ie: some stamping would be specific to that holiday, etc ... does that make sense?)

Essie Jag-U-Are

3 coats, no topcoat

Jag-U-Are is a very pretty warm based medium red with golden shimmer. It was fairly sheer at one coat but 2 thins coats more and you get this beauty. I wanted to add some glitter so I added my favourite red glitter polish ....

Milani Ruby Jewels

2 coats layered over Jag-U-Are, 1 coat Seche Vite

The ring finger ended up looking a lot thicker than I like however I could deal because it was so preeeeetty.

Ruby Jewels is a gorgeous red micro glitter suspended in a cherry red, sheer base; because of the tinted base is is possible to make this glitter polish opaque on its own, however I wasn't going through the effort of applying or taking it all off. ;)

What is your favourite red glitter polish?

Sally Hansen Sonic Bloom Gets Fractured

A couple days ago I promised you a non-traditional (ie: not black and silver) shatter/crackle/fractured mani. Today is the day I will show you exactly what I mean. 

I started off with a base of Sally Hansen Sonic Bloom.

Sonic Bloom, 3 coats with 1 coat Seche Vite

I have to say, Sally Hansen Sonic Bloom did not photograph very well. It is a very vivid, bright coral-red creme polish; what you see is a a more muted coral but know that it really is more red and brighter IRL.

Absolutely delightful to wear but horrendous to photograph. Easy application. As with all the Insta Dri polishes, as well as the Complete Salon Manicure line by Sally Hansen, the brush is large and flat. It takes some getting used to and I wouldn't recommend it for those with tiny fingers.

I wore Sonic Bloom for a full day last week and after work that day Mr.Polish and I stopped off at a Winner's we don't usually frequent and saw a Color Club Fractured display. *happy dance* I grabbed only one, "The Great Divide", and knew I was going to layer it over Sonic Bloom when I got home...

The Great Divide with 1 coat of Seche Vite on top

Ouu, pretty shimmer! The Great Divide is a gorgeous deep blue teal with a strong golden shimmer throughout. I haven't seen a shatter/crackle/fractured polish like this IRL so it completely blew me away. This layering combination is very different than what I've seen around and it really reminds me of lava, even though it's not red and black. Is that weird or do you see what I mean?

I'm strangely attracted to how different this is. And now, for a couple more "comical" right hand pictures ... and before you say anything, I have no idea why the left side of the photo's are so over-exposed. I tried to lower the brightness but then it made my hand/nails too dark to see properly. Just go with it. ;)

PS: I picked up a special little polish for my future 500 follower give-away. I like to be prepared and this little beauty was the last one I could find, ANYWHERE. ;)

Lots of Layering featuring Barielle, China Glaze & OPI

I was so excited to tell you all about the polishes (below the pictures) that I nearly forgot to write an intro, haha. Uhhh, let's just look at the nails, okay? I'm too excited to share this with you to chat anymore ... ;)

China Glaze in Ruby Deer, 2 coats - no top coat

Barielle Elle's Spell, 2 coats over top of Ruby Deer

OPI Heart of Gold, 2 coats over Elle's Spell & Ruby Deer

Ruby Deer, could you be any more perfect? Two coats needed for flawless red goodness. Application was smooth and dreamy. High shine finish with no topcoat.

Elle's Spell, wow. This is my favourite (and only) red flakie polish and looked great over Ruby Deer. I didn't want to waste it by trying to build it up to opacity on its own. No complaints in regards to application, it was great.

Heart of Gold, where have you been all my life? I didn't pick up As Gold As It Gets from Essie's new Luxeeffects collection but I'm not sure I need it when I own the beauty that is Heart of Gold. (Okay, who am I kidding, a mini-flakie? Yes, I need you. Please don't be offended by my "you're not needed comment" ;) Haha.) Anyway, Heart of Gold is a beautiful gold shimmer polish in a pale, sheer gold base. It is meant as a layering polish and layer, I did! Wow.

All in all, this has awesome full-mani potential. Sadly, I only did the 4 nails you see pictured and was very nearly heart broken to have to remove it. Oh well, I'm sure I will do this again, it was that good. Mr.Polish considers it "magnificent" and that's sayin' something, folks!

What polishes have you layered recently?

Orly "Moonlit Madness"

As of today you can expect 2 posts a day for the next week or so. I want to get through a back-log of photo's to try and get through all of my un-tried nail polishes. (Practically 80% of my collection is still un-trieds and I'm working at getting through them all. This project will definitely take me at least this full year. Might as well start now!)

I don't show too many Orly polishes and I wanted to share another one with you today. 

Moonlit Madness, 2 coats

1 coat Seche Vite on top

When I first bought this polish I thought it was a deep berry colour. When I applied it, it appeared much more red toned, which I ended up loving. Whenever I wear red polish I feel very self conscious. I've mentioned my aversion to this particular polish colour in one of my posts last summer but I think I'm slowly getting over it the more I wear it. 

Moonlit Madness. First off, the name makes zero sense to me. That aside, I am in love with this polish. It applied evenly, no dragging, brush-strokes, etc. Well pigmented too, although I could have applied a 3rd coat to make sure everything was covered evenly. The shimmer is beautiful as well. I kept twisting and turning my hands to look at it from all angles. Normal, right? 

Stay tuned for another post coming later today!

Color Club "Back To Boho" Collection - Part 2

As the title suggests, I'll be showing you the second part (of 3) of the Color Club "Back To Boho" collection. For your viewing pleasure: Blue-topia, Red-ical Gypsy, Rad Nomad, and Shabby Drab.

 From L to R: Blue-topia, Red-ical Gypsy, Rad Nomad, Shabby Drab

No topcoat - LOOK AT THAT SHINE!

Blue-topia (pictured with 2 coats) is a very dark navy that looks black indoors except at the cuticle line where the layers of polish weren't perfectly matched up. It has a jelly, high gloss finish.

Rad Nomad (pictured with 2 coats) is a medium cool-toned dusty purple crème. It applied like warm butter and dried very shiny. I'm very attracted to the depth of colour this polish has.

Red-ical Gypsy (pictured with 3 coats) is a jelly finish and dries very glossy. It is the "perfect blood red" polish and now carries the title of "My Favourite Red Polish Without Shimmer or Flakie", haha. (Milani's "Ruby Jewels" is my favourite red with shimmer and Barielle's "Elle's Spell" is my favourite red flakie polish.) 

Shabby Drab (pictured with 3 coats) is a light blue-toned lilac colour and my photo's show it leaning more blue than it really appeared IRL. I think it is the most perfect spring polish shade, it practically screams "paint a daisy on me!" - I really like the slightly dusty quality to this polish, as well.

All of these colours are very well pigmented and went on with no application problems. They. Are. Perfect. You need these polishes in your life. Trust me. There is no clear cut winner out of these 4 beauties.

Slightly random, but still polish-related ... I've recently come across the term "crelly" for a crème-jelly finish, and thought I should mention it. I don't think any of these polishes fit that description, but I found it somewhat amusing. 

Have you heard of the term "crelly"? 

I'm Back! (Forgive Me?)

Wow, I feel like I should re-introduce myself. It's been far too long and for that, I apologize. (Which is sad considering my last/previous post was an apology.)

Summer where I live lasts a very short time and I will blame good weather for my absence. ;)

Just a quick update on the status of my Blogroll. I am continuing to get emails from everyone, which is fantastic, however I overlooked something when creating the little "fill out form". If you could send me your GFC Username that would make things so much easier for me. :) If you don't see your blog in my blogroll send me another email with your GFC and I will make sure you are added!

Now, I hope I don't make your eyes bleed with my current mani, but I thought you deserved to see the state of my nails after such a long time away. I haven't been pampering them as usual and you will be witness to that neglect should you decide to risk it. (Ever the drama-queen, hah.)

Essie Too Too Hot, 2 coats in all it's chipped glory. (Inside)

(Outside) Nothing better than some moderate chipping and tip wear, not to mention my ghastly cuticles. AAK!

Ouch, right? Haha. Everything about my nails is one big hot mess, hence the polish choice. (Essie -Too Too Hot) Today is day 3 for wear and although I used my lovely Seche Vite they still look like they've taken a run through the mill.

Alright folks, one last thing. I have to admit, taking my hiatus this summer has been very *gasp* enjoyable. Yes, I felt horrible that I couldn't quite muster the energy to post daily or even weekly, but it did put things into perspective. I was literally spending a minimum of 2+ hours PER DAY on blogging. (Prepping, polishing, drying, clean-up, photographing, editing, writing, posting, replying, etc.) It drained my energy and my enthusiasm.

That said, daily mani posts are probably going to be a thing of the past. All I can say is that you can expect a Blue Monday, Pink Wednesday and one other mani a week. I think that is a very reasonable posting expectation.

*Whew* That was a lot. I hope you're still sticking with me! I have plenty of idea's for future posts.

I'm out of the loop, how has your summer been AND what was your most worn summer polish shade?

Revlon Firefox & Stylish Blogger Award

Good afternoon. Today I'm wearing my Revlon Matte Suede polish in Firefox. You might have noticed that I'm not a big red polish wearer; I prefer blues, greens and purples. For some reason I always feel like there is a spotlight on my nails when I wear red and it makes me self-conscious. I could wear a glitterbomb or the brightest neon and not bat an eyelash, but for whatever reason, red gives me a slightly uncomfortable feeling. Maybe it's just me?

Revlon Firefox, 1 coat.

Revlon Firefox 2 coats (clear polish sandwiched in between the 2 layers.)

Firefox with Essie To Dry For Top Coat

I like the matte suede finish, but the shimmer that shows through when the topcoat is added is amazing. (Enlarge the photo's to see what I mean!) Lately, I have been having problems with my mani peeling off. Literally half of the polish would peel right off like an orange peel. As I said in the photo caption, I layered a clear polish (Color Club Vivid Top Coat) between the two layers of Firefox to hopefully help keep my mani in place.

To finish, Kassie from Unique-Desire nominated me with the Stylish Blogger Awrd. Thank you Kassie, you're so sweet! :)

The rules are:

1. Thank the person that gave you the award and link back to them

2. Post 7 things about yourself

3. Pass the love to 15 bloggers

4. Let them know they received this award

Seven Things About Myself

1. I’m a very friendly person, I love getting to know people.

2. I bit my nails from ages 2-20 and now think it’s a disgusting habit.

3. I owned approximately 15 polishes before March 2011 and now own 359!

4. I spend about 2 hours a day on my blog. (Polishing, photographing, uploading, writing, replying to comments/emails.)

5. I have never been outside of Canada.

6. I was married 9 days before my 21^st birthday.

7. Calla lilies and tulips are my favourite flowers.

Fifteen Bloggers

1. Ali's Nail News

2. Babbling Brooke

3. Big Apple Red Nails

4. Bright Lights, Big Color

5. Did Someone Say Nail Polish?

6. Elemental Styles

7. Getcha Nails Did

8. Jessica's Nail Art

9. Nail Polish Art Addiction

10. Nailspotting

11. Of Faces And Fingers

12. Polish Obsessed

13. Rebecca Likes Nails

14. Sweet Kawaii Boutique

15. The Nail Phile

Have a great Tuesday! Thanks for reading. :)

Inspired Mani: Flash

Is anyone familiar with the comic book character 'Flash'? Well my husband loved that comic book growing up so I did a nail look inspired by it. For all who don't know what he looks like, see below.

Source: http://www.desktoprating.com/wallpapers/flash-wallpaper.htm

Now, onto the look!

I painted all my nails, except my ring fingers with OPI "Malaga Wine". The ring fingers were polished with Wet'n'Wild Fast Dry "The Gold & The Beautiful".

I added SV (Seche Vite) on top of the gold and once it was dry I cut a piece of tape and placed it on my nail sideways. The exposed area was polished with OPI "Malaga Wine". I pulled the tape off as soon as my nail was painted.

To finish the look I used my Nail Star Two-Way Nail Art polishes in Black. I roughly outlined between the red and the gold and added my top coat. (Seche Vite)

I didn't do any clean-up before I took these pictures so I apologize for that. (*Ahem* ring finger) I figured you'd rather see this look than not at all, so I'm sure a little polish mistake won't take away from the look. :)

I hope you're all having a great Wednesday!

Thanks for reading.