OPI Glacier Bay Blues & Candeo Colors Dive Bomb

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OPI released this epic multichrome with the Canadian Collection back when they weren't 3 Free. It's a blue-green-indigo dream!

OPI Glacier Bay Blues

I added two layers of this glittery top coat because I've had it for over 18 months and still haven't worn it, oops!

Candeo Colors Dive Bomb

What do you think?

xxx

NPA

From the Vault... SPAM

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These photos have been sitting in my edited file for a few months now, so I decided I had to post them now or say bye-bye...

Enjoy!

 Pahlish Twelve Drummers Drumming

 Twelve Drummers Drumming - I can't remember if this was 2 or 3 coats... Probably 3 since it's sheer. It's got a creamy nude base with gold/orange micro-flakes, iridescent and copper glitter. Beautiful!

L'Oreal 811 

 811 - do these mini sized L'Oreals actually have names or is the boring number all we get? Gorgeous blue with green shimmer though! This was 2 coats.

Sation Delete Your Junk Male

 Delete Your Junk Male was part of the Miss Antoinette Collection, but I couldn't get it to photograph true to life so I never posted it. In person, this is a dark pink jelly with subtle white sparks, just like Love Is In The Heir! Sadly it just looks super coral/orange/red in photos... Maybe it's got some neon to it? Anyway, this was at least 3 coats because she's pretty sheer.

 OPI Every Month Is Oktoberfest

Every Month Is Oktoberfest is a deep aubergine loaded with rich rusty shimmer. Two thin, easy to apply coats and you're good to go. Faboush!

Red Carpet Lacquer Glades over BYS Black & Gold

 Glades is a glitter colour-shifting top coat. The glitter is translucent and when layered you see a shift from green-yellow-orange. I applied two coats over a back base with gold shimmer flakes.

Elevation Polish Grotte et Cascade

 Grotte et Cascade is a rich, deep brown with blue, purple, pink and red micro-flake shimmer. It's opaque in 2 coats and sooooooooooooooo gorgeous! I've been rocking it a little this winter already.

Lilacquer Leeloo Multipass

 Leeloo Multipass - who didn't love The Fifth Element?! It's quite possibly the only Mila Jovovich film I've ever seen :) And Brucey is AWESOME as per usual. LM is another shade that would not cooperate with the camera. It's a warmer orange with pink shimmer, but it looks terribly yellow toned in these shots :( This one was a streaky sucker; I might have ended up with 4 coats because I was trying to even it all out! I think 2-3 coats was opaque.

Daring Digits Love Dragon over Pahlish Eight Maids A Milking

 Love Dragon is a pink to purple shimmery micro-flake top coat. I added two coats to a pink and purple Pahlish glitter and it looked so sparkly! The name is fantastic too!!!!!

Dollish Polish Mermaid Scales v2.0 with stamping and gems

I tried my hand at a mermaid tail themed manicure and all was swell until I put top coat over the rhinestones. It went all bubbly and nasty :( I learnt not to top coat these gems though... I used BM 209 and China Glaze Millennium for the stamping.

China Glaze Full Spectrum

 Full Spectrum is a pink/silver duo-chrome choc-a-block full of rainbow hexes. I've since sold this because I'm not that in to the rainbow glitter, but the base is pretty. This was two thin coats.

Femme Fatale Quivering Heart over Hits Unconventional

 I've posted Quivering Heart before, but this is it layered over a darker base. I love how the moody red-purple duo-chrome sets off the gold sparks in QH.

Candeo Colors Sweet Sierra over Essie Madison Ave-Hue

Sweet Sierra is a lavender and rose pink holo glitter top coat. It's squarey-hex and sparkles like mad! I'm wearing 1 coat over a pink from Essie.


Yes, that got rid of so much backlog! Now I need to go study and edit some newer snaps!!!!!


xxx
NPA

A Girly Glitter: Rainbow Polish Cupcakes

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Hey ladies,

 

I have a seriously girly polish to share with you today. It's pink and white and sparkly!



 

Rainbow Polish Cupcakes over Candeo Colors Prenses Ros

Cupcakes is a mix of pink and white matte glitters as well as pink holo glitter in a clear base. The only fault I could find, was that the lacquer base is slightly thin so there is about 5mm of excess clear sitting at the top of the bottle. I shook it quite a bit to avoid the 'dead space', or too much clear got on my brush.
I layered two coats over a semi-sheer light pink with silver holo glitter. It looks so sugary sweet!

Love you all, but I'm really busy with a case study, so leaving it short and sweet.


xxx
NPA

Candeo Colors Prenses Ros & Strea Cende

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Greetings readers/nail aficionados!!

Yesterday was ANZAC Day (originally the commemorative day for all the Aussie & Kiwi soldiers who perished at Gallipoli in WWI, and now a day for paying tribute to all our armed service war veterans).
I was shockingly bad this year, I didn't go to a Dawn Service (ok I haven't been to one since I was a kid and the whole family got up and went to the Central Hamilton one for my Nana, who was a WAC in WWII. She fed all the soldiers who were training at the Papakura Army Camp; go Nan!!!! She's a bloody mean baker :) ) or watch any documentaries on TV.
But my excuse is that my sister came back from Melbourne for the first time since July last year, so we cleaned and baked in the morning and spent the rest of the day with her.

Funnily enough, it doesn't feel like 9 months since I've seen her - just like when I catch up with old school friends! And the dogs are in seventh heaven. Especially Charlie - not sure Buster remembers her :)

My eldest sister also arrives back in NZ today from Saudi Arabia. I haven't seen her since July last year either (my Nana's 90th Birthday, was the last time everyone came home), so it's a busy few days for me. Thank God I'm on holiday!!!

Now on to the POLISH:
These semi-sheers from the Candeo Aruba Collection are my new 'go to' soft shades. I finally took some photos to share with you!

Candeo Colors Prenses Ros

Prenses Ros is a semi-sheer soft candy pink with silver holo hex glitter. This one starts out very sheer, but after four coats the pink really deepens and my VNL wasn't too obvious. It isn't loaded with glitter, but once you get a couple of coats down it's a glitter sandwich in one lacquer. I found the formula to be a bit streaky after one or two coats, but application is fairly nice. I just love the outcome Prenses Ros has. You don't expect the pink to pop so much and the holo glitter glows in all light!

Candeo Colors Strea Cende



Strea Cende is a semi-sheer warm nude with gold holo glitter, light copper glitter and golden shimmer. She's a beaut!!!! Maybe it pulls a tad orange on me, but who knows, that might just be my horribly stained nails' doing!!! In fact my tips could have used some whitening, they look pretty manky in these photos! The formula was again easy to apply and I didn't have any issue with streakiness. I used three coats and there is a little VNL, but it looks right with a sheer shade, you know? I did top it with some some sort of top coat which is why there are a few air bubbles, my bad.

You can find these pretties and many more on Candeo Colors' website for US$9 a piece. They offer international shipping and Llarowe stocks them too.

Do you have any Candeo lacquers? I'm still lemming Jellybean, even if I never end up wearing yellow polish. It just looks so fun! Would've been a great Easter manicure, darn it!


xxx
NPA

The BATTLE # 5: Pretty vs Punk - PRETTY

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For Challenge 5 I was faced with Pretty vs Punk. I personally go pretty every time, I just can't pull off punk! But I wanted to have a stab at both looks, so I kept Pretty ultra simple...

 What could be prettier than Candeo Colors Orchid?!

Candeo Colors Orchid over China Glaze Taffic Jam

shade

shade

macro

I've posted Orchid before worn alone, but I found the glitter got a bit too textured with multiple coats, so I layered it over China Glaze Traffic Jam a berry pink creme. I used 2 coats for these photos and it was just perfect. So very very pretty and the holo glitter looks like it's glowing under the shimmery base.

Tomorrow I'll show you my Punk look.

Don't forget to see what the other BATTLE participants are up to:
Two Matejas Creating
An Indie Girl's Passion
Lacquered Tips
My Wondrous Marvellous Obsession
Cats n Nails
Jibber Jabber
Life in Color!

Annie Suzie 

Polished Polygot


xxx
NPA

Sour Grapes? I think not!

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Candeo Colors Sour Grapes left the sweetest of tastes on my tongue!

Erlack, that was cringe worthy. Moving on to something that's not...

Sour Grapes - 2 coats - natural light

Sour Grapes - 2 coats - natural light

Sour Grapes - 2 coats - white light

Sour Grapes - 2 coats - close up

So Sour Grapes photographs blue, but it's a grapey-violet shimmery base with lavender hexes in 3 sizes and square glitter too! There's also some small-medium black hexes in the mix to spice things up. In the last photo you can see the true purple colour near the cuticle.

The formula is pretty great, with a bit of a shake you get a bit of everything on your nails and full coverage in 2 coats. It does dry rather textured so I recommend 2 layers of a thick top coat. I didn't use my usual SV for the swatch so it doesn't look quite even enough.

I really like SG but I do wish it was slightly sheerer so the glitter doesn't get quite so buried. I might try layering 1 coat over a base to see if that sorts it out.

You can purchase Candeos on Etsy for US$8 each. There are so many great shades I want but right now the Melinda (Candeo's creator) has the shop set to vacation mode. I'm sure you can private message her though.

Do you have any Candeo Color lacquers? Has anyone resisted the indie polish scene thus far?

xxx
Michaela