OPI My Very First Knockwurst and Essie Beyond Cozy

Happy weekend, ladies! :) I am so relieved to be home for the weekend! I'll have some down time to just relax, which also means time to catch up on blog posts! I think I may make a few scheduled posts for the next week or two since I am finishing up my current University year.

Today I have for you a simple mani I did a week or so ago: OPI My Very First Knockwurst with a slight glitter gradient of Essie Beyond Cozy.

OPI My Very First Knockwurst
Essie Beyond Cozy

OPI My Very First Knockwurst
Essie Beyond Cozy

My Very First Knockwurst is probably my favorite pink-nude creme in my collection! Its formula and application is a dream and I love how it looks against my skintone. I added a slight gradient effect to my ring finger with a recent purchase of mine, Beyond Cozy, which is a silver and gold fine glitter. I love this combo together!

What do you think of this pairing?

-Shelby

Ulta3 Mulberry and Ulta Boogie Nights

Hey there! I have quite a few posts I need to make, I've been stocking up whenever I can on photos of my manis, just in case! I'm hoping my back up photos will help me not take such a long break again :)

Below I used Ulta3 Mulberry and Ulta Boogie Nights!

Ulta3 Mulberry Ulta Boogie Nights

Ulta3 Mulberry
 Ulta Boogie Nights

Ulta3 Mulberry
Ulta Boogie Nights

I never can get enough of glitter gradients! This one is no exception. Mulberry is a wine leaning berry creme. In some lights it takes a purple tint. Unfortunately, the formulation of this polish was pretty bad, but I added some polish thinner to remedy it. It's gotten a bit better, but still not ideal. Although, I really do love the outcome and the polish was nice and smooth :). Boogie Nights is a gold glitter with lots of rainbow medium-sized glitters throughout. This glitter will go with almost any color since it contains all the colors of the rainbow. Also, the formula was easy for a reverse glitter gradient. 

What do you think of this mani?

-Shelby

OPI Can't Find My Czechbook and Simmer & Shimmer

Hello ladies :) I hope you all are having a wonderful Wednesday! I am so glad the week is already halfway over, I can't wait to come home and see my boyfriend this weekend. It'll be nice to relax after a long week. Last night I tweaked my back a bit and can't ride my bike around campus. So I'm hoping by this weekend I'll be feeling much better!

A couple days ago I wore a couple new polishes I got recently: OPI Can't Find My Czechbook (Euro Centrale collection) and Simmer & Shimmer (Burlesque collection)

Below I wore 2 coats of each; CFMC on all fingers but my ring finger, S&S as an accent nail:

OPI Can't Find My Czechbook
OPI Simmer & Shimmer

OPI Can't Find My Czechbook
OPI Simmer & Shimmer

I love this combo! When I first saw promo pics for the Euro Centrale collection, Can't Find My Czechbook immediately stood out to me. It's the perfect bright blue for summer and man, did it not disappoint! It applied flawlessly and I have nothing negative to say about it (other than my photos which do not do the color justice)! I finally got my hands on a couple more of the Burlesque glitters- I am in love with the glitters from that collection and was more than stoked to get more! Simmer & Shimmer is a dense uniform-sized glitter in blue, pink, gold silver, etc. I love the small-sized glitter in the same color, especially because it fully covers the nail in 2 coats! I love glitters like this!

Do you have either of these polishes? What's your go-to glitter-cream pair?

-Shelby

Few of my most recent Manis!

Hello again, ladies! Yes, I am back with a post after who knows how long! Like I said before, life gets in the way. I am a first-year college student and timing is never perfect for photos, but now that spring and summer are approaching, I plan on doing a lot more nail posts, especially once I move home for the summer :) I still have a lot of untried polishes in my stash and I want to purchase a couple of polishes from the spring 2013 collections as well! Side note with that...I am in love with EVERY color from the new Butter London collection...my wallet is already crying.

So I thought to make up for my ultimate lameness, I could show you guys a few of the manicures I've done lately. I don't remember all of the polish names and the photo settings are not ideal, but I'm going to give it a whirl anyway!

China Glaze It's a Trap-eze

 This first mani is a combo of 3 different colors: a lavender (possibly Essie St. Lucia Lilac or China Glaze Light as Air), a Sally Hansen nail art pen in white and China Glaze It's a Trap-eze to top off the white. I loved the effect of this design, but I wish I had made the white area in the center thinner. That way the lavender would've shined through more!

SOPI Seriously, It's a Naan-Issue
Nails Inc. Warwick Way & The Thames

SOPI Seriously, It's a Naan-Issue
Nails Inc. Warwick Way & The Thames

I love dot manis! I wish I used lighter colors for the dots or a lighter base for the polish, but whatevs. I just used alternating dotting tool sizes to create a little pattern. Warwick Way is a little on the thin side. Seriously, It's a Naan-Issue is perfection! 

Revlon Coastal Surf

I love Revlon Coastal Surf! It is such a gorgeous shade of blue- this makeshift photo does not do the color justice! Also, the formulation was great! Barely needed two coats :)

Unfortunately, I can only remember 1 polish from this mani- Zoya Ziv. Ziv has been my recent go-to gold polish and it just looks great with every type of mani! I used a nude base and sponged on Ziv as well as an Indie glitter on the tips. I love the effect this created! I will definitely recreate this for an actual post!

Revlon Provence
Confetti Lonesome Dove

Yet another poor photo, but I love this design! It's the "puzzle piece" design. I painted half my nail Revlon Provence and the other half Confetti Lonesome Dove. Then I took large dotting tools and did purple on the gray half and gray on the purple half, spacing the dots out to create this look! I love Revlon Provence, its formulation is great. I also really like Lonesome Dove, it is a great neutral gray and wallet-friendly!

I hope you guys enjoyed this!

-Shelby

OPI Did You 'Ear About Van Gogh? and Ciate Party Shoes

Hello ladies! I hope you all are doing well! I've been enjoying my time off of school, but unfortunately I start back up on Monday! The other day I did a nice nude mani with a twist that I thought you guys would enjoy seeing!

Below I used 2 coats of OPI Did You 'Ear About Van Gogh? and 1 coat of Ciate Party Shoes!

OPI Did You 'Ear About Van Gogh?
 Ciate Party Shoes

OPI Did You 'Ear About Van Gogh?
Ciate Party Shoes

Did You 'Ear About Van Gogh? is a dark nude creme with a tinge of gray to it. This polish has a little bit of a tricky application, but the color pay-off makes it worth it. Opacity can be achieved in 2 very careful coats! I added Party Shoes to spice it up (and cover any minute patchy areas), which is a gold and holo glitter in a slightly gold-tinted base!

I hope you guys enjoyed!

-Shelby

OPI The Spy Who Loved Me

Hello ladies! I hope you all are having a great week- excited for the holidays? I know I am!

I am finally getting around to trying all of the OPI James Bond polishes that I received for my birthday in October.

Yesterday I tried out The Spy Who Loved Me, which I used 2 coats of below

OPI The Spy Who Loved Me

OPI The Spy Who Loved Me

OPI The Spy Who Loved Me

The Spy Who Loved Me is a fiery bright red with a ton of gold and red shimmer. This polish has a great formulation and went on it 2 easy coats. It is very "glowy" and I like the look a lot!

Do you like The Spy Who Loved Me? Do you have any of the polishes or want any of the polishes from this collection?

-Shelby

OPI Ski Teal We Drop and NYX Gilded Glitter

Good evening ladies :) I hope everyone is having a good week so far! I have a chemistry final tomorrow that I'm preparing for. I'm so excited to finish up on Friday and start my holiday break :)

I used a couple untrieds of mine & wanted to share them!

OPI Ski Teal We Drop

OPI Ski Teal We Drop

OPI Ski Teal We Drop

OPI Ski Teal We Drop is a gorgeous teal creme from OPI's Swiss collection. Oh my goodness, how did I not use this until now!? This polish is perfection, perfectly opaque in 2 coats and has a wonderful formula. Love love love it!

NYX Gilded Glitter

NYX Gilded Glitter

Today, I decided to add NYX Gilded Glitter, a gold leaf-like glitter, to my manicure. I think this is a great substitution to the actual gold topcoats. At around $2, it's a bargain and a way to try out the trend without shelling out the $30 for OPI's! The pieces are on the small side, but I like it a lot! The formula was great, I got an even spread of glitter, but it did have a longer dry-time.

What do you think of these polishes?

-Shelby

Sephora by OPI Don't Feed the Hand Models, Butter London West End Wonderland and Zoya Ziv

Good afternoon ladies! I hope you all are having a lovely holiday season. I've been doing some Christmas shopping recently and oh man, are the stores packed. I walked into Sephora today to take a quick browse and the line was 15 people long. Geesh, I'm glad I wasn't purchasing anything :)

Last night I visited with my boyfriend and played a fun game with him and his sisters (telestrations): it's a combo of telephone and pictionary. If you guys have kids/nieces/nephews/etc. around the age of 10-15 you should consider getting this game for them! Lots of fun and laughs :)

I have a mani for you guys that I did a few days ago; I absolutely love the combo!

What I used:
2 coats Sephora by OPI Don't Feed the Hand Models (except ring finger)
2 coats Zoya Ziv (ring finger)
1 coat Butter London West End Wonderland (ring finger)

Sephora by OPI Don't Feed the Hand Models
Butter London West End Wonderland
Zoya Ziv

Sephora by OPI Don't Feed the Hand Models
Butter London West End Wonderland
Zoya Ziv

Sephora by OPI Don't Feed the Hand Models
 Butter London West End Wonderland
Zoya Ziv

Don't Feed the Hand Models is a gorgeous cool-toned nude creme. This kind of nude is what suits my skintone best; the more beige nudes don't suit me too well. This was opaque in 2 coats. Ziv is a phenomenal gold foil. I am smitten for this polish! It may be my new fav :D. Or maybe the combo of Ziv and West End Wonderland, a gold and red glitter polish. They are just stunning and almost look like one polish when combined. 

What do you think?

-Shelby

OPI Miami Beet and Icing Pop a Bottle

Good evening ladies! I hope everyone had a nice weekend; I had a lot of fun just spending some time with my family and my boyfriend :)

I've been meaning to try the Icing polishes, but never got around to it, until this weekend. I picked up 2 colors, one of which is featured in this post: Pop a Bottle

OPI Miami Beet
Icing Pop a Bottle

OPI Miami Beet
Icing Pop a Bottle

OPI Miami Beet
 Icing Pop a Bottle

Miami Beet is a gorgeous pinky red creme. I love this shade! It's a perfect winter red, in my opinion. I like it against my skin tone and it had a great application; opaque in 2 coats. Pop a Bottle is a fine glitter consisting of pink, blue, and gold fine glitters in a dark pink base. I added a Sally Girl large and small gold glitter on top to make the accent nail pop more.

What do you think?

-Shelby

China Glaze Champagne Kisses and Sephora by OPI Don't Be Eggnog-ious

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in the US! I did a very fall-esque mani yesterday and wanted to share it with you!

What I used:
2 coats China Glaze Champagne Kisses
1 coat Sephora by OPI Don't Be Eggnog-ious

China Glaze Champagne Kisses
Sephora by OPI Don't Be Eggnog-ious

China Glaze Champagne Kisses
Sephora by OPI Don't Be Eggnog-ious

China Glaze Champagne Kisses
Sephora by OPI Don't Be Eggnog-ious

Champagne Kisses is a stunning fine milled rose-gold-like and holo glitters in a clear base. In two coats, the nail is no longer visible. I love China Glaze fine glitters- they are gorgeous! I added Don't Be Eggnog-ious, a small and large copper glitter in a clear base, for that extra oomph! Love the combo!

What do you think of this?

-Shelby

Nails Inc. Piccadilly Circus, Julep Oscar and Orly Too Fab

Hello ladies! It's been a few days, I know- I've been meaning to make a post, so now I am!

I honestly haven't had the time to complete the challenge. I joined before I moved to college and didn't know how hard it would be to do major designs at school. I figured I'd do them at home, but when I'm back on the weekends, I like to visit with my parents and my boyfriend. And then there's the never-ending pile of homework....

On another note, I've thoroughly been enjoying the Autumn season, especially the nail polishes that tag along with it. My favorite colors are definitely dark berry/wine/red colors. I feel like they are classic and go with every fall-inspired outfit! Today I am using a gorgeous polish in that color family- Nails Inc. Piccadilly Circus!

Below I used 2 coats of Piccadilly Circus

Nails Inc. Piccadilly Circus
Julep Oscar
Orly Too Fab

Nails Inc. Piccadilly Circus
Julep Oscar
Orly Too Fab

Nails Inc. Piccadilly Circus
Julep Oscar
Orly Too Fab

Piccadilly Circus is a dark berry red creme with a touch of purple. This may be my new favorite red polish! The application was literally perfect. I could've gotten away with 1 coat- I was surprised how opaque it was! On my ring finger, I added 1 coat of Julep Oscar, a finely milled gold glitter in a clear base, and 1 coat of Orly Too Fab, a larger gold glitter suspended in a clear base. These two glitters look great together! Too Fab just made Oscar pop a little more! I also must say that Piccadilly Circus is a different color in every light! I was going to photograph it under my daylight bulb, but it was a bright cherry red. Under normal lighting, it was a true berry red! Also, the name is cute- anything circus-related gets a smile out of me :)

What do you think of this manicure?

-Shelby

OPI Uh-Oh Roll Down the Window & Glow Up Already!

Good morning ladies! I hope everyone's week has gone well so far. I'm super pumped because Thursday is my Friday and I am going home for the weekend, which happens to be a day longer than usual due to Veteran's Day :)

Yesterday I used a couple untried OPIs in my stash!

What I used:
2 coats OPI Uh-Oh Roll Down the Window
2 coats OPI Glow Up Already! (ring accent)

OPI Uh-Oh Roll Down the Window
OPI Glow Up Already!

Uh-Oh Roll Down the Window is the perfect army green creme! It was perfectly opaque in 2 coats and I cannot get over the name- love it! It makes me giggle every time I pick up the bottle, which is a definitely plus. Glow Up Already! contains gold, green and orange same-sized glitters in a clear base. This glitter needed 2 coats to fully cover, but it also would've looked pretty on all nails with just 1 coat!

What do you think of this mani?

-Shelby

Butter London Wallis

Good afternoon! Today I have for you a widely talked about polish here in the blogosphere: Butter London Wallis. I was very excited to get this polish and was hopeful that it'd live up to the hype!

Below I used 2 coats of Wallis

Butter London Wallis

Butter London Wallis

Wallis is a dark olive green with tons of gold shimmers. So gorgeous!

The application was pretty good. 2 careful coats for full opacity. Wallis is a stunner in the light or in the sunlight. Also, it was a hit with my boyfriend :) Definitely lived up to the hype!

What do you think of Wallis?

-Shelby

Zoya Paloma & China Glaze I Herd That

Good afternoon! Today's mani is inspired by what my boyfriend had in mind! I asked him which colors he'd like to see on my nails next and he said berry and pumpkin orange. I decided to do a bit of both with a jelly sandwich!

What I used:
2 coats Zoya Paloma
1 coat China Glaze I Herd That
1 coat Zoya Paloma

Zoya Paloma
China Glaze I Herd That

Zoya Paloma
China Glaze I Herd That

Paloma is a raspberry jelly; I love it! The formula was great and worked perfectly for the jelly sandwich. I Herd That (such a cute name!) contains copper, gold and red micro glitter. I think this combination is gorgeous and I may use this combo again for the holidays!

What do you think of this mani?

-Shelby

Misa Someone Like You and Wet n' Wild Glamorous

Hello ladies! Today I did a simple mani because I've had a looong day. I feel like classes and homework has completely absorbed my life, it's crazy!

Anyway, on to polish!

I used the same polishes I used on my roommate last week; I liked it so much I had to do it myself!

What I used:
Misa Someone Like You
Wet n' Wild Fergie Glamorous

Misa Someone Like You
Wet n' Wild Glamorous

Misa Someone Like You
Wet n' Wild Glamorous

Someone Like You is one of my absolute favorite nude shades! It goes on like a dream and is the perfect shade against my pale skin. I also think Glamorous adds some elegance to the manicure as well. I like this glitter a lot; it's similar to a million other gold glitter out there, but it's still great! It contains large and small circular gold glitters. As you can see, I filed down my nails quite a bit! They were getting a little too long for my liking and one happened to break, so it was a good reason to shorten all of them. They'll grow back out soon :)

What do you think of this mani?

-Shelby

Models Own Gold Finger

Good evening! I just got back for the weekend from Davis and have a few polishes to show you guys from this week! Tonight I'm going to show you a polish I got from a British company, Models Own, which I haven't had the best luck with so far. Luckily, I enjoyed Gold Finger a little more :)

Below I did 2 coats of Gold Finger

Models Own Gold Finger

Models Own Gold Finger

Gold Finger is a medium-sized gold glitter. This had a decent formula; it was opaque in 2 coats, but didn't cover the tips too well (as you can see). I think this would make a great accent nail or a nice topcoat! I like this way better than Balearic Cool, but not as much as my other glitters!

What do you think of Models Own? Do you like this shade?

-Shelby

Orly Solid Gold!

Hello! Today I am excited to show you an untried Orly of mine: Solid Gold! I am so glad I was able to find this polish. It wasn't listed on Transdesign, but I snatched it on Head2Toe's website instead :)



Below I used 3 coats of Solid Gold plus a topcoat!

Orly Solid Gold

Orly Solid Gold

Solid Gold is a bright, gold suede! This color is so gorgeous with a topcoat! I didn't exactly like the matte, original version against my skin, but the topcoat did this polish wonders! The formula wasn't too bad; it was a little patchy, but it was good considering it was a matte formula! 

I couldn't leave Solid Gold alone, so I added a coat of China Glaze Twinkle Lights to spice it up!

China Glaze Twinkle Lights

China Glaze Twinkle Lights

Twinkle Lights contains silver, gold, red and green fine glitters in a clear base! I thought Twinkle Lights was a great addition, but I also like Solid Gold on its own! This is a very festive look and I think it'd be pretty for a holiday party. I also think it's a bit fall-esque since I think Solid Gold is both a fall and winter color! Twinkle Lights I also got off of Head2Toe's website, since I couldn't find it on Transdesign. C'mon Transdesign, step up your game! :P

What do you think of Solid Gold? Do you like it with Twinkle Lights? Do you own either of these?

-Shelby

Guest Post on OhThreeOhFour!

Last week, Dulcie from ohthreeohfour asked me to guest post on her blog while she's moving and of course I said yes! You guys should check out her blog, if you haven't already. She likes glitter as much as I do, if not more! Thank you so much Dulcie for this opportunity!

check out the post here

here's a quick photo of the gradient I did for the post!

Make sure to check out Dulcie's blog & my guest post!
-Shelby

Misa Someone Like You & China Glaze I'm Not Lion

Hello again! Last night I was trying out another glitter gradient and was very pleased with my outcome!  I was inspired by another blog post to use fine glitter for the gradient, rather than chunky glitter!

I used 2 coats of Misa Someone Like You & sponged China Glaze I'm Not Lion onto the tips!

Misa Someone Like You
China Glaze I'm Not Lion

Misa Someone Like You
China Glaze I'm Not Lion

Misa Someone Like You
China Glaze I'm Not Lion

Someone Like You is a nude creme with a bit of a pinky/peach tone to it! This color applied great and was fully opaque in 2 coats! This color always makes me think about the Adele song & I start singing haha. To add some sparkle, I added I'm Not Lion, which is a gorgeous silver and gold fine glitter that's somewhat holo in the sun. In photo 3 you can see how it twinkles in the sunlight! I think this mani is very classy/elegant yet fun! I would wear it to a formal event or cocktail party if I were to go to one!

What do you think of this mani? Are you getting tired of glitter gradients? :P

-Shelby