Friday, August 30, 2013

Neon Refresh

China Glaze Highlight of my Summer started to get chippy early, to prolong its life a few more days I did some stamping!

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For this simple full patterned nail look I used Bundle Monster plate BM-322 and a thick black polish (vintage Sally Hansen 10 Day No Chip, Blackberry). The full nail pattern is made up of squares outlining the negative space, making the base colour look as if it is made up of diagonal lines intersecting eaNeonch other. 

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I love quick and easy ways to make a mani last longer. I had no issues with the plate, just remember to stamp in the direction of the design (diagonally) lightly for these types of designs to get the cleanest design.

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Highlight Of My Summer

I figure this is probably one of the last bright, neon summer shades I will be wearing this year. So sad that summer is coming to an end :(

On the bright side... literally!... this polish is such a cheery shade. Indoors it looks like more of a pastel mint, but outdoors it is crazy bright! Such a great colour for summer, with an equally fitting name. I am loving the neon pastel trend.

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On a not so great note, application sucked... it really, really did, so disappointing! I'm actually thinking of applying an aqua base next time I try a neon from this collection because the application is similar to a holo with the wrong base, streaky with bald spots if you go slightly over the same spot a second time. Application was frustrating. I applied three coats total and I still notice uneven and streaky areas :(

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Does anyone have any tips for application of the Sunsational Neons? Such beautiful colours, such a shame for the formula.

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Bundle Monster 2013 Nail Plate Collection - Exciting News!!


Woohoo! Can't wait for the new collection, here is the email I received from Bundle Monster this afternoon:

CONGRATULATIONS! You have much to be excited about because we are happy to announce to you first that you’re a winner in our Create Your Own Contest! At least one of your design submissions has been qualified and will be featured on our 2013 nail stamping plate set that is fan created. 

 We know this has been long awaited and we are happy you stuck it out with us. We are overjoyed with this set because our fans showed us their creativity and hard work and we’re glad that we could produce a set like this that has never been done before. 

We are bragging about you and the other winners here: www.bundlemonster.com/cyowinners. Don’t be shy, spread the word and post it everywhere! 

Congratulations to all the winners! The release date is set for mid to late September, I will keep you posted as more information is released.


Monday, August 26, 2013

Revlon Polish in Mississauga

Do you have a secret store you hoard cheap polish from? I used to, and it was the best, within walking distance of my house, dangerous, I know! Unfortunately they moved so I hardly check them out anymore, when I do it's not the same as it used to be.

Another spot I venture to from time to time is located in Dixie Mall, Mississauga, they have a warehouse type store with various cosmetics for cheap, specifically lots and lots of Revlon polish. This place has what you'd typically expect if you have ever been to a Revlon Warehouse sale. 

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As you can see the polish selection is from current collections! All polish is $2, or 3 for $5.

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Just something I thought I'd share if you are in the area :)

Friday, August 23, 2013

Glitzy Skittles

Happy, Happy Friday! What a busy week it was, especially getting back in to the groove from my trip. Thank God for the weekend and beautiful summer forecast :)

So...I did it again, picked off a good chunk of my mani before I intended on switching it up. I like to get full wear out of my mani's, so even though I picked off most the polish from my nails I decided to do a fun and easy Skittle refresh!

I had actually planned on doing a skittle mani before the chips started, so here was my chance!

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My ring fingers were glittery before the chips, I spiffed them up for a wedding ;) I applied two thick coats of Cult Nails Walk of Shame.

I decided to leave my pinky nails orange since the polish wore there the best, this of course is OPI, Y'all Come Back Now, Ya, Hear.

The middle finger has a white chevron pattern stamped over top the orange. (my other hand has the reverse, orange on white, I picked the orange off that one too!) I used Sally Hansen Whirlwind White for stamping and Bundle Monster Plate BM-201.

The pointer finger is simply white to match the middle finger, again I chose Sally Hansen Whirlwind White.

Finally, for the thumb I applied a pretty gold foil to match the gold glitter on the ring finger, OPI Glitzerland.

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This is my first skittle mani which utilizes, for the most part, a different colour on each nail. I am pretty happy with it :)

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Orange Marmalade

As soon as I got home from my trip I needed my polish fix! I was feeling a juicy orange polish, and I just knew that OPI Ya'll Come Back Now Ya Here! would satisfy. I haven't used OPI in a while and forgot how awesome the formula is to work with, a very pleasant surprise :)

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I applied three coats of this jelly polish with no issues. I had put off wearing this shade worrying it may be too sheer and take forever to dry, however, I am happy to say I was totally wrong! Plus I love how shiny and juicy it looks against my freshly tanned skin :)

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Bio Seaweed Gel Review - Followup

I am home from my vacation, although I wish it could have lasted a little longer...

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The same can be said for one half of my review of Bio Seaweed Gel polish. I'm talking about my little sandwiching experiment, didn't go exactly as I had planned. Here is my mani before my vacation:

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I was hoping since I sandwiched a regular polish I between a gel base and top coat I would be chip free for the same amount of time as a gel polish alone. Unfortunately this was not the case, I think what made this worse was the fact that I used a neon, China Glaze Son of a Peach, which are notorious for chipping and short wear time.

At first I tried to ignore the lifting of the polish and tiny chips, but I am a picker! I couldn't help myself, but I picked the whole mani off by the end of my trip! I definitely do not recommend this, it is not so easy on the nail bed.

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I definitely want to try this method again with these tips in mind:

- After the base had been cured apply a gel too and cure before adding the regular polish and another UV top.

- Do not wrap the tips with the regular polish! I think this was my main issue! The regular polish started to peel from the wrap which cases the gel to lift up as well.

- Do wrap the tips with the UV base and top coat.

- Take your time! Let the regular polish dry as long as possible before applying and curing the final top coat.

Also consider I was in a hot, tropical destination with wet and busy hands most of my trip, I am sure this was also a factor in quick wear of the polish.

On to regular usage of the UV Bio Seaweed Gel polish with UV base and top coat on my toe nails if you recall, this is what my toes looked like before I left for my vacation:

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This wore fantastically! I did some nail art on the big toe and sealed it with a regular top coat and you could see clearly the difference in shine between the big toe and others.

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 The gel stayed super shiny and lasted my whole trip and then some :) very happy with the wear considering I did a lot of barefoot walking on the beach with gritty sand :)

Monday, August 19, 2013

Polka Dots!

I was food shopping the other day when I came across a huge display of Maybeline Color Show polishes. The ones I picked up totally stopped me in my tracks! I had seen the Polka-dot polishes advertised the last time I was at the movie theatre and thought they looked neat! Super cool how what was once considered an Indy style of polish now easily accessible for cheap!

The Polka Dot collection includes five polishes, one is a black and white matte glitter in a clear base, while the other four have a coloured jelly base with the same glitter. The colours available are pink, blue, real and orange. I originally grabbed  the four coloured polishes, but decided on the blue and teal, Drops of Jade and Blue Marks the Spot

My boyfriend saw the orange, Dotty, and thought it was so cool, I told him no, I'm just going to get two today, to which he snatched the bottle up and said its cool, I want to get it for you lol. He's awesome right!? Supporting the habit! Dotty is more of a rust, combined with the black and white glitter it is pure Halloween to me :)

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Below are swatches of one thick coat.

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And a second coat on top.

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Have you seen these? Which are your faves?

Thursday, August 15, 2013

A Gel Sandwich Test and Review

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I received a package from Bio Seaweed Gel Last week with some samples to share with you! Here is a little background on the product from their site:

Bio Seaweed Gel is a professional gel system. Gel polish is applied to either natural nails, artificial nails or even acrylic nails just like regular nail polish but with many more advantages. Gel cures (dries) instantly under UV/LED light so there is no more waiting time as per regular nail polish. Gel is designed to be durable and more suitable for the busy everyday life, created to last 2+ weeks with no chips, lifts or cracks. That is essentially the difference between gel polish and regular nail polish.

Now, you ask yourself how is Bio Seaweed Gel is different than all other competitor gel polish brands? Our brand offers a distinct value and difference because: No dehydrators to thin or stain the natural nails – regardless of wear time. Created to promote natural nail growth. FORMALDEHYDE, TOLUNE, DPB, SOLVENTS & BHA FREE Safe and gentle both during application and removal: no sanding, buffing, primers or bonders needed for application. The industry’s quickest soak-off removal in under 10 minutes.

Versatility: A separate Diamond Shine Top and No-Sanding Base Gel Polish, as well as a Strengthener Builder Gel to complete tip and sculpture extensions.

User-friendly: simple steps and self-leveling make Bio Seaweed Gel quick to learn and a pleasure to work with, our products never shrink or wrinkle – ideal for nail art (140+ colours!)

Innovation: UNITY All-In-One Gel Polish is the original professional top, base, colour & strengthener all-on-one bottle, with no cleansers needed! (the colours dry to the touch with no sticky inhibition layer unlike any other).

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They supplied me with two coloured UV gel polishes, one UV diamond shine top coat gel, a coarse nail file and some fun nail art stickers! I will be testing the wear of the UV gel polish on my toes with the UV gel base (purchased by myself) and UV diamond top coat. On my fingers I wanted to try something a little different. I've always wondered what the wear would be like of a regular polish sandwhiched between a UV base and top coat. What better time to try this then on my vacation right!? I will be testing the wear for a full week and report back with the results when I am back. 

On my toes: 

Base Coat - 1 coat, cured for 2 minutes
Summer Peach - 2 coat, cured for 2 minutes
Diamond Top Coat - 1 coat, cured for 2 minutes

On my fingers: 

Base Coat - 1 coat, cured for 2 minutes
Son of a Peach - 3 coats with LOTS of dry time
Diamond Top Coat - 1 coat, cured for 2 minutes


Sweet Peach is a tad off, it is not as pink/red. more of a bright coral.

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My matching nail art lol. I am wearing this on my vacation ^_^

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I had some issues with the application of Son of a Peach that may have been due to the reaction with the base coat. I applied three coats to even it out the best I could. If doing this again I would apply a topcoat right after the base, cure and then apply the regular polish and finish off with another UV top coat to seal it all in. The key here is to ensure the polish is 100% dry before applying the top coat and curing.

 Bio Seaweed UV Gels are easy to apply, the formula is thick but easy to manage and the colour options are awesome!

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I will report back after my vacation to let you know how the mani and pedi stood up to a week on the beach!

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Funky French Refresh

Today I have a quick and easy refresh I did for my funky french hot pink tips. Nince I used a neon it started to chip earlier than I wanted to. To try and hide the chips, I made a few touch ups to nails that needed it and applied a cute floral stamp from my jumbo Cheeky plate, E. I love this plate! The full nails designs are super sized and most of the designs have a mirror image so they are easy to work with when placing them on either your left of right hand.


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In the photo above the design I used can be seen in the second row, the third and fourth images from the right. You'll need to enlarge the photo to see them better. I have had no issues with this plate the images have always stamped very cleanly, kinda makes me want to buy more lol. The only think I don't like about it is the metal plate with the designs is starting to peel away from the plastic board it is affixed to.

Back to the manicure, I used Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Whirlwind White for stamping and applied the design to the middle of the pink French tip.

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This design also helps to even out the shape of the French tips and makes them look more uniform. Add a little rhinestone to each little flower and you have a tropical summer mani :)

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I love this mani, it makes me want to do more fun coloured Frenches and experiment with more design options.

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Hot Pink Tips

I had been thinking of doing a traditional French manicure for a while now, and just as I started to apply my base I changed my mind! I still did my French, but with China Glaze Shocking Pink.

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I started off with a coat of Nail Tek Foundation II which I followed up with a generous coat of OPI Bubble bath, my favourite sheer nude! I think my bottle may be discolouring or something, were there different batches of this shade? I have seen other swatches online that appear to be more pink, mine leans slightly more milky. It is perfect for covering up and natural nail bed imperfections and staining in one coat!

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I then took out Shocking Pink and free handed the tips following the natural line on my nails, I didn't want any white to be visible under the pink tip! I applied two coats and some minor touch ups here and there. Overall I think I did pretty good, haven't free handed in a while. Added a nice thick coat of Seche Vite to even everything out and I was done. I LOVE this look! I was thinking of doing this for my vacation but wasn't sure I would really like it for a full week, not bringing any polish with me.

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Any ideas for a fun vacation manicures?

Monday, August 12, 2013

Son of Peach!

Today I have a new favourite summer shade, China Glaze Son of a Peach! This bright summery shade is soooo summer! so pretty! I had some application issues but it may have been due to the fact that I was testing it with gels, more on that in an upcoming post.

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I used three coats to even everything out, two regular to thick coats and one thin. I don't have too much more to say, I'm just really loving it right now.

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I did some simple nail art with Bundle Monster plate BM-318 and some silver rhinestones. Summery tropical and fun :)

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More information on this mani coming up soon.

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Clean Splat!

Woo! I leave for vacation today! I have a bunch of posts scheduled, so lets hope blogger works for me while I am away. By the time most of you read this I will be up in the air flying south, I cannot wait!

Back to regular scheduled blogging...

I'm pretty sure if dexter ever killed a clown this is the blood splat it would leave behind lol. Today I have a pretty cool DIY nail decal idea I'd like to share. Remember these nails, I loved the look but the splatter it was super messy, it involved a lot of clean up plus I wasted polish when I missed the nail! The napkin I placed below my nails to prevent the polish splatter from ruining my desk gave me an idea.. it looked so cool, a great mix of all the colours. I thought to myself, what if I do the same process on plastic, blowing polish with a straw randomly in different colours and peel of as nail decals?

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Honestly it was that easy. This is what you need if you'd like to try the same:

- plastic sandwich bag
- a straw
- an assortment of polish colours
- a clear topcoat
- tweezers

Step one - Choose your polish colours.
Step two - Apply polish to the end of the straw or dip it in to the polish bottle. Be carefully, you don't want to much Polish on the straw.
Step three - Blow!

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Step four - Continue this process until you have a good portion of the bag covered with drips and drops of polish. You don't want it to be too saturated.
Step five - Let the polish dry. I let it dry over night if you can.
Step six - Once the polish is dry apply a clear top coat over the splatters. Random sections are good, they will dry faster.

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Step seven - Wait for the top coat to dry.
Step eight - Once the clear polish is dry (completely dry works best, give it a few hours if you can, it will be easier to work with), use your tweezers to gently pull u a strip of the design.
Step nine - Position and place on the nail, press down to make it stick in to place.
Step ten - Apply a thick layer of top coat.

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Thats it! pretty easy and quick, something you can do the day before and really takes no time at all. I love creating my own nail strips, every nail unique and it looks like a lot more time was spent. Anybody can do it :)