Floral Sky

I happened to purchase Essie Haute as Hello on the same day that piCture pOlish Sky arrived in the mail, and I knew the two would look great together! 

I started by painting all my nails with three thin coats of piCture pOlish Sky.  The floral nail was inspired by this mani by @lifeisbetterpolished on IG.  The darker outlines are Essie Haute as Hello, and the lighter shade is the same polish mixed with a bit of white.  The leaves are LaCC 1963 and Essie First Timer.  One coat of Seche Vite to smooth everything out! 

I posted a swatch of Haute as Hello on IG, which you can see here.

I really loved how bright and fun this simple mani was, I wore it for four days!!  What do you think? :)

Rock the Boat

Sunday was my 2-year blogiversary, and I completely missed it - oops!  Unfortunately my life has been so crazy for the past while that I didn't have the foresight or funds to plan a giveaway or anything, but I'd like to thank you all for sticking with me through it all!  :)

I don't have a fancy post to celebrate, but I do have a swatch of a beautiful polish I wore last week!

This is four thin coats of Essie Rock the Boat, followed by a coat of Seche Vite and topped with a coat of Sally Hansen Big Matte Top Coat.  You could get away with three thicker coats too, if you've got a heavier hand than I do.  This gorgeous baby blue is from the terribly named Summer 2013 Naughty Nauticals collection.

I absolutely loved wearing this simple look - the baby blue with super subtle silver shimmer looks so delicate when matte, and it really got me in the mood for spring!  What do you think?  :)

Live and Let Die & Shine of the Times

Just a quick (and extremely belated) post this morning with the mani I wore for Saint Patrick's Day, haha.  

I've been wanting to wear this combo ever since I got Essie Shine of the Times for Christmas in 2012; I'd tested it over green and knew it would be a good layering combo for Saint Patrick's Day.  However, come that day in March 2013, I was in London and had unfortunately not had the foresight to pack these polishes for my trip.  Another year passed, and I finally got around to wearing this!  Here is one coat over OPI Live and Let Die, topped with Seche Vite. 

Even though I'm mostly Irish, we've never really done anything extravagant for Saint Patrick's Day -  most of the perception of the holiday now is just a blown-up Americanized version of what it originally was.  Therefore I thought it suiting to wear these subtly festive polishes together; I love how the dark green base really brings out the golden and bright green shifts of the flakies!  How do you like it?  :)

Merino Cool & Pirouette My Whistle

Good morning!  Who's looking forward to the weekend ahead?  I definitely am!  Today I've got a simple layering combination that I wore yesterday to share with you. 

This is two coats of Essie Merino Cool, followed by one thick coat of OPI Pirouette My Whistle and topped with Seche Vite.  I really love both of these polishes alone, and though they make a slightly odd combination, I do like it!  

What do you think of these two polishes together?  :)  Leave a comment! 

Studded 50/50

Good morning!  I had received four of Essie's spring/summer polishes in the mail while away and was super excited to play with them when I got home, so I decided to combine them all (along with some Born Pretty Store studs that also arrived while I was away) in this nail art look!

I alternated the base colours on each nail, taped off half, and painted the rest with another colour.  After removing the tape, I used a slow-drying top coat and tweezers to apply the square studs.  This look was pretty simple to achieve, but looked very striking!  Swatches aside, this was actually the first mani that I wore when I got home last week! 

The light periwinkle blue is Rock the Boat from Essie's Summer 2013 Naughty Nauticals collection.  Formula is a little thin, and requires three coats for opacity.  Lovely shade with a beautiful shimmer!

The other three polishes are from Essie's Spring/Summer 2013 Resort collection.  The bright teal-leaning-blue is In the Cab-ana, which only needs one coat for opacity if you're careful!  Super bright and awesome shade with a fabulous formula!  The light pinkish lavender is Under Where?, and is also on the sheer side, requiring three coats for opacity.  Very pretty shade for nail art, but unfortunately doesn't really flatter my skin tone.  The bright green is First Timer, which joins the bright blue in the almost-one-coater club with another great formula and an awesome shade!

I know I'm pretty late to the party with these, but all in all I'm still really loving them!  Essie always comes out with some great cremes, and these will definitely all become staples in my collection.  Did you pick up any of these or other polishes from Essie's spring/summer lines?  :)

Winstonia Store Review: 3D Nail Art Charm #4

So I may have accidentally lied in Wednesday's post about showing you the second charm yesterday, but better late than never!  This is the second 3D nail art charm that I chose from the Winstonia Store; it's a super cute black and silver bow with a rhinestone in the middle!  

This look turned out somewhat similar in style to the other one, but I still love it! 

Attaching the charms is super easy.  After my polish base was dry and top-coated, I just attached the 3D charm with a dot of nail glue.  This one isn't curved on the bottom like the other, but due to it being flatter it actually felt more secure.  As with the previous one, it lasted well for the few hours that I wore it.  

I wanted the bow to be the focal point, so I went with a relatively uniform look on the rest of my nails.  The lighter blue is three coats of Essie Rock the Boat, and the brighter blue is two coats of Essie In the Cab-ana.  Awful names, gorgeous shades!  I topped each of them with one thin coat of Different Dimension Social Suicide, which is definitely my favourite black and white glitter topper of the ones I own!  

I love how the black and white glitter compliments the colours of the bow, it came together even better than I'd expected!  

You can find this 3D nail art charm on the Winstonia Store here; this is design #4.  If you missed Wednesday's post, be sure to check that out here.

Overall, I'm really in love with the two 3D nail art charms that I've tried!  Although they're not practical for everyday wear, they make a cute and fun addition to a manicure for a special occasion!  

Have you tried 3D charms on your nails before?  Would you?  :)  

Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent for review and my honest opinion. 

Triangular Geometrics & Round Nails

Oh dear, I have round nails!!  They were getting quite long, and I was planning on going back to super-nubs before leaving for a month on Saturday, but I decided to go round for a few days just to give it a go...

I was talking to Alexis while filing them (and freaking out,) and we both agreed that round nails look much better with nail art.  So what did I do?  Nail art it up!! 

Matt Smith is still somehow managing to make it into non-Doctor-Who posts.  My apologies. 

This nail art was initially inspired by this manicure by Alexis, although mine turned out quite differently in the end.  I'm pretty happy with it!  

I started with two thin coats of OPI You're Such A Budapest, freehanded the lines with Essie Good As Gold, and filled in a few of the lines with piCture pOlish Peaches n' Cream over white acrylic paint.  It's all topped off with two coats of Poshé, which I just got my first bottle of over the weekend and LOVE! 

Anywho, while it is an interesting change, I'm still not quite sold on the whole round-nails thing, personally.  I'll definitely be back to my lovely squares within a few days.  What do you all think of the look?  :)

Recoil

And... I'm back!!  I'm so excited to get back to nail art after all the swatching last month (though I still have a ton more to do...)  I really missed doing my Castle Mani Monday posts during January, and I've got one today!  (P.S. There's a tutorial at the end of the post!)

Tonight's episode is 5x13, Recoil, so I've done some dragon-inspired nail art.  Those of you who regularly watch the show (or obsess over it, like myself) should understand the reference here.  Just to clarify, I'll leave you with this still from the episode. 

Nathan Fillion, Penny Johnson Jerald, Stana Katic, Jack Coleman

If you don't watch the show are just aren't up-to-date with it, I won't explain so as to keep this as spoiler-free as possible.  Just enjoy the pretty nail art!  ;)

I started with two coats of OPI Skyfall, and then sponged on the scales with Essie Good As Gold.  Topped with one coat of Seche Vite.  Tutorial time!!

1. Start with your base colour, and add a coat of fast-drying top coat to speed up the process. 

2. Once the base is completely dry, take a piece of tulle and stretch is over your nail.  I have a ton of this stuff lying around from making tutus, but you could get some small pieces of it in remnant bins at fabric stores for pretty cheap. 

3. Paint a little bit of your second polish on a makeup sponge, and dab it on through the tulle.  The key here is to be irregular, make sure you only have a little polish in random spots on the sponge and apply it lightly. 

4. Carefully remove the tulle. 

5. Repeat on the rest of your nails, and finish with a top coat! 

This is a pretty darn cool look in my opinion, and super easy to do!!  I think it would look great in a whole lot of colour combinations, I just might have to re-do this for when I go to see the second installment of The Hobbit! ;) 

Anyways, tonight's episode promises to be an eventful and exciting one, I'm really looking forward to it!  If you're a fellow Caskett shipper, are you excited for tonight?  If not, did you at least enjoy the nail art? :)

Indie January: Candeo Colors Smores

I'm back from the dance convention; it was such an amazing weekend!  I was chosen as a Senior Outstanding Dancer Runner-Up, so I got invited to the national finals in New York!  I'm not sure if I'll be able to go yet, but I'd really love to!  

Continuing on with Indie January, today's post features Candeo Colors Smores, a mix of small and medium brown hex, black squares, large white hex and small gold holo hex glitters in a clear base.

I layered one dabbed coat of Smores over Essie Little Brown Dress, and I love the result!  One coat of Seche Vite here, though I'd recommend two for a completely smooth finish. 

This combination was super cute in person, it totally looked like smores, and it was super glittery!

Candeo Colors polishes are available through Llarowe and the Candeo Colors website; keep up to date on Facebook. 

There's only two days left on Indie January, and I'm itching to get back to posting nail art, I've got some awesome stuff piled up!  How do you like this polish?  My friend is convinced that it absolutely does not look like smores... Does it look like smores to you?  :)

Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent to me for review. 

Indie January: CrowsToes Morticia

Hooray, it's Friday!!  I wanted to let you all know that the Indie January posts from today to Monday will be scheduled, as I'm out of town for a dance convention.  Where I can't wear nail polish.  Sad Emma.  

Anoywho, Day 25's polish is CrowsToes Morticia, a mix of red, black, and gunmetal glitters in a clear base.  I've layered it over two polishes for different looks, so keep reading!  :)

The first combination (which was actually the second I did, but whatever) is one coat of Morticia over Essie Macks.  This polish is packed to the brim with glitter and is therefore super goopy, so I applied it how I described in this post.  Two coats of Seche Vite, though I'd recommend one more for a completely smooth finish. 

I obviously liked this combination the best of the two (scroll down and you'll see why...)   I think that the mix of glitters worked really well with the rich red base. 

Below, I've layered one coat of Morticia over Orly Decoded.  Yea, this one just... isn't working for me.  At all. 

CrowsToes polish is currently in stock on Llarowe, and follow The Polished Crow's blog for updates.

Are you like me and prefer the glitter with the red base?  Or do you like the grey or something completely different? I won't judge, promise.  ;)

Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent to me for review. 

Indie January: ILNP All Gold Everything

Indie January Day 11!  I've just about survived my first week back at school and dance after Christmas break... Then again, it wasn't really much of a break since I had to go in and do extra classes to learn the syllabus for my RAD Solo Seal exam that I'm doing in March.  

That aside, today's polish is from yet another new-to-me indie brand, I Love Nail Polish.  At least my nails can look pretty while the rest of me is sore from some intense conditioning classes this week.  -_-

I<3NP All Gold Everything is from the brand's New Year's Collection; it's a clear-based glitter topper packed with different kinds of gold glitters, and a few gold flakies!  I chose to layer this stunner over Essie Stylenomics, which I just picked up the other day at Winners for half-price.  (I know, late to the party.)  

Application on this polish was fabulous, the glitter spread perfectly with no extra work!  My only complaint about this polish is that it smelled weird.  Not like strong nail polish smell, something different.  It wasn't very pleasant while I was painting; however, I'm willing to get past that because it's such a gorgeous polish!

The blackened green base of Stylenomics really complemented the gold glitter; the whole mani had a very luxurious look to it!   I'm sure you've all seen pictures of the I<3NP packaging, Barbra goes so far above and beyond with her bottles and boxes!  Unfortunately I don't have the right lighting setup to take bottle/box pictures.  Boo.  Cue another me-holding-the-bottle shot. 

I think these bottles are the best things ever!  The logo and labels are adorable, and rubberized caps make everything better.  My friend came over to borrow some nail polish and I was literally shoving these in her face saying "Look! Aren't these so cute?! No, you can't borrow that one, I haven't swatched it yet! What if your dog eats it? What? Of course I trust you!"

Sorry, got a little carried away there, (love you, Michaela!)  I<3NP is currently available through Etsy, and like the facebook page for updates! 

I've got two more polishes from I<3NP to show you sometime this month and they're both gorgeous, so keep an eye out for those!   Gee, this has been a very wordy post.  Do I need to ask questions at the end of posts or will you comment anyways?  ;)


Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent to me for review. 

Indie January: Girly Bits Ornamental My Dear Watson

Today's post is later than usual, due to a stubborn computer than took two hours to install updates before it would let me do anything.  Grrr.  Arrg.  Anywho, today's polish is my first Girly Bits, Ornamental My Dear Watson.  I've layered it over two polishes for two different manis; take a look!  :)

Ornamental My Dear Watson is a clear based glitter topper packed with light multicoloured glitter.  For the first mani, I've layered one coat over Essie Coat Azure, with two coats of Seche Vite for a smooth finish. 

Formula was pretty easy, I just went over the nail a few times to evenly spread the glitter.  I think the amount of glitter in this was perfect, it stands out but lets the base colour shine through too!

The second combination I chose was one coat of Ornamental My Dear Watson over Contrary Polish Firebrand.  Two coats of Seche Vite. 

I'm a huge Sherlock fan, so I absolutely love this polish based on the name alone!  Of course, the light glitters are absolutely beautiful and this polish is completely unique in my collection!  :)

Girly Bits is available on Llarowe, Girly Bits BigCartel shop, and Etsy.  Like on Facebook, and follow Pam's blog and Instagram! (@girlybitscosmetics)

Which combination do you like best?   Are there any other colours you'd like to see it over?  Comments make me happy (as does my new blog look)!  :D

Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent to me for review. 

Candy Canes

I'm back after a (long-than-anticipated) Christmas hiatus to show you my Christmas day nail art, and I've included a quick tutorial at the end of the post!  :)

I started with 2 coats of OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls and a coat of Seche Vite to speed up the drying.  After taping off stripes, I used Essie Macks for the red and topped the whole look off with two more coats of Seche Vite to smooth out the stripes.  

I say that this was my Christmas day mani, when in reality it only lasted the first part of the day.  Of course, thanks to Christmas and review packages arriving, I now have an obscene amount of untried polishes (and a storage rack!) so I had to paint my nails on Christmas day! 

Here's a quick picture tutorial for this look; it's pretty self-explanatory since I mainly made it to post on Instagram, but if you have any questions just leave a comment! 

My pile of untried and to-review indies has grown to the size of Mount Doom, so I'm planning to do a month of everyday indie polish posts.  I usually post sporadically so posting every day will be a challenge, but I'm really looking forward to it!  I hope you'll follow me along the way!  :) 

Silver Snowflakes

Another Christmas-y manicure today!  Christmas is less than a week away (*gasp*) and time for Christmas nails is is running out, so let's get right to it!  :)

I started with two coats of OPI The Spy Who Loved Me and one coat of Seche Vite to speed up the drying before stamping the snowflake design from BM-323 with Essie No Place Like Chrome.  I finished the look by placing silver holographic glequins from the Born Pretty Store in the centers of the larger snowflakes, and applying one last coat of Seche Vite

. 

OPI The Spy  Who Loved Me is a gorgeous bright red with a goldish-red glass fleck/shimmer.  It applied so perfectly, and is a great holiday polish! 

I really liked this look and was planning on wearing it for two days, but I got a huge dump of indie nail mail the next day, so off it came!  :P  

Christmas seems to have come so quickly this year, and I'm going to try to get in as much Christmas nail art as I can!  I'm still stuck on what polish to wear on Christmas, but I'm not really sure how much it matters since I'm pretty sure I'll be getting some polish for Christmas and will probably do my nails multiple times that day anyways, haha!  

Have you decided what your Christmas manicure will be?  A favourite polish or nail art?  :)

One Ring

The first installment of The Hobbit is coming out this weekend; who's as excited as I am?  :)  I got really into The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings in the spring when I decided to read all the books, and I've been in love with Middle-Earth ever since.  Prepare yourselves for an awesome Lord of the Rings post!

This is hardly original in terms of nail art, but I'm really proud of it!  I used two coats of Essie Good As Gold for the base, and painted the script with black acrylic paint.  

This is the rhyme from which I took the line to write on my nails.  In the book it's written in the Common Speech, but I painted it on my nails as it appears on the One Ring itself: written in the Black Speech using the Elvish form of script as invented by the Elf Fëanor, Tengwar. 

The script on my nails should say "One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them," though it's probably missing the last two words because of my lack of ability to space words properly.  Cue artsy picture with a book. 

I could get all into the history of the One Ring but that isn't exactly relevant to a nail polish blog, so if you're interested, you can read more about it here.   

I'm not seeing the movie when it comes out on Friday; as much as I'd like to I have a dress rehearsal that night and a show on Saturday night.  However, I'm super excited for Sunday because I'm going to my friend's house at the crack of dawn to have a Lord of the Rings movie marathon (yes, all 10 hours) followed by going to see The Hobbit!  :) 

Are you planning on seeing The Hobbit?  Anyone as excited as I am and willing to geek out with me?  :)