Lets Go Sparkling

Color Club, Beyond The Mistletoe - Full Collection Swatches

2011-10-29T15:49:00.000-07:00

All are 3 coats except Jingle Jangle. Over all this is a great collection, many of the colors were prettier on the nail than I thought they would be based on how they looked in the bottles. My only complaint is that besides Holiday Splendor, the glitters should have had a tinted base. I think the ones with clear bases need underpants. Holiday Splendor is awesome though. With a thick top coat these are pretty smooth but not totally. Holiday Splendor is though because it has less glitter than the others.

By the way, you can find the whole collection from Ross or DD's for $8.

Candy Cane - light rose pink with some other pink glitters, no holo

Sugarplum Fairy - very light purple with holo glitters, very pretty, reminds me of a franken I made called Unicorn Vomit

Jingle Jangle - this is 4 coats. It has periwinkle glitter, soft purple glitter, and aqua glitter that looks green under artificial light.

Gingerbread - light gold with some green and holo glitters

Beyond The Mistletoe - light green glitter with holo glitter, this is the only one I'm slightly bored by, it's not very exciting but it's still very pretty

Holiday Splenor - I saved the best for last, this is a very bright kelly/grass green with lots of delicious holo glitter, my camera could not properly capture the amazingness of this color

NOTD: Orly Hally's Comet

2011-10-21T17:27:00.000-07:00

This has been my top lemming for ages and now it's miiiiiiine!!!! Allyson from Ali's Nail News sent it to me. (thanks secret pumpkin goddess!!!)

Putting this on was like a spiritual experience. It's even more beautiful than I imagined!

Here it is with 3 coats. The formula was great, no application problems at all. It really glows!

ELF Desert Haze, Pure Ice Oh Baby

2011-10-16T08:37:00.001-07:00

I'm not into neutral polishes at all but I loved this color! ELF's Desert Haze is a lovely cream light taupe. The formula is good, I didn't have any problems with application. I topped it with Pure Ice's Oh Baby for a little extra sparkle.

Here it is with Oh Baby over it.

Oh Sally.

2011-10-09T08:16:00.000-07:00

This page is on the Sally Hansen website. They are giving tips for "Rescuing old polish" by putting nail polish remover in bottles that have gotten thick. This is a BAD, BAD IDEA! Putting acetone in nail polish permanently ruins it. That's why we use it to take nail polish off. That's why they make nail polish thinner, which is like $4 at Sally's Beauty Supply (not related to SH).

Is this a ploy to make you buy more Sally Hansen nail polish? Is it like magazines telling you that nail polish expires after a year? *ahem* Nail polish does not expire, like ever... true story! Or is Sally Hansen, and company that's been around for 60 years, really that ignorant? What do you think?

NOTD: Kleancolor Military Green + Sinful Colors Nail Junkie

2011-09-18T09:15:00.001-07:00

This combo is AMAZING! It's like some fairies and leprechauns threw a rave in the forest. Nail Junkie is a MUST HAVE for everyone (of Hottie and UFO), get ye to Walgreens. This is 2 coats Militay Green, 1 coat Nail Junkie.

NOTD: WnW Fuchsia Rama + Hard Candy Beetle

2011-09-14T09:27:00.000-07:00

Here is Beetle over Fuchsia Rama. This color combo is so gorgeous! I've never worn Beetle before and I figured I would wear it alone but I was searching for something to layer over Fuchsia Rama and this was sitting right in front of me. You can buy Hard Candy at Walmart.

NOTD: WnW Fuchsia Rama (jelly!)

2011-09-12T19:58:00.000-07:00

Wet N Wild's Fuchsia Rama is a great berry semi-matte jelly. You can see in the second photo that it doesn't have a lot of shine. It does have a jelly formula though. Unlike some jellies it applies very evenly, even on the first coat. In this photo I used 3 coats, so it's not a jelly that needs a lot of coats. I didn't have time to apply a quick dry top coat but this polish dried quite quickly on it's own and I only had like two barely noticable marks at the end of the day.

These photos were taken outside, and the color is accurate. Inside the color is a little darker, like a deeper berry color. I wish I had remembered to take a photo with a shiny top coat on, I have it on my toes too and it's beautiful and "squishy" with the shine. Over all I'm really happy I got this color, I think the formula is great, the drying time is great, the opacity is great (for a jelly), and it's just $2. You can't beat that. It's a great end of summer, beginning of fall color.

NOTD: Hot Pink & Black Crack

2011-05-22T11:17:00.000-07:00

You've probably seen the resent Crackle nail polishes released by OPI and China Glaze. I didn't know about them until they were all sold out, lucky for me Sally Hansen came out with a collection of Crackle polishes. I only got the black but there is also a glittery silver, glittery gold, royal blue, red, hot pink, and purple. These were $8 at walgreens in a LE display.

Some tips for application: Your base color should be completly dry. Apply the crackle to the outer edges of the nail first, and work quickly because it dries very fast. Apply a pretty thick coat, a thin coat will just dry before you can evenly spread it on the nail. Try not to leave the bottle open too long, the nail polish in the neck will dry quickly and clump up on the brush, making it harder to apply the polish.

Color Club - Pick Lust & Sally Hansen - Ink Splatter

NOTD: China Glaze Its Poppin' & LA Splash Sparkling Oceanspray

2011-03-31T14:03:00.000-07:00

This is so summery, I love it! Its Poppin' is a great pink, if you can get your hands on it do it. The LA Splash glitters are of course fab, if you have Ulta near you get some (or buy them from the Ulta website or cherryculture.com).

Essie Lilacism & Van D'Go

2011-03-23T12:40:00.000-07:00

This is way late, I'm not sure you can even buy these any more but here are the swatches that have been sitting in my NOTD folder for months. Surprise!

Essie - Lilacism 4 coats

Essie - Van D'Go 4 coats

Top 7 Favorite Spring Nail Polishes!

2011-03-20T12:51:00.000-07:00

I was going to pick out just 5 but couldn't resist adding the last two. These are my favorite picks for spring. I'm going to be wearing Lilacism with aqua glitter over it very soon!

L-R: ChG For Audrey, Essence VIP Appeal, Essie Lilacism, SC Forget Now (!!!),
CC Bizerk Turq, WnW Lavender Creme (yes its pink), Essence Pool Party, Essie Van D'Go

Wet N Wild Lavender Creme

2011-03-20T12:37:00.000-07:00

This is a great color, the formula is nice, its cheap blah blah blah... but its not actually lavender, its pink. How are there so many color blind people in the cosmetic industry???

Wet N Wild - Lavender Creme 3 coats

NOTD: Super Man Inspired

2011-03-08T12:32:00.000-08:00

I planned this when my sister was going to do a super hero themed birhtday party for her twins, and I was going to buy a super man shirt to match, but she changed it to a stinkin' boring sports theme. I still wanted to do this mani though, and it turned out great! The girl I sit next to in math liked it too. I'm totally bummed I don't have a reason to buy a super man shirt though. I think I'll find a way to get over it though lol.

NOTD: Orly Out Of This World

2011-03-06T15:35:00.000-08:00

This was from the Cosmix collection. Its a gorgeous dark purple with shimmery bits that change from purple-yellow-green. Its sort of similar to Sinful Colors I Love You but darker. I have two other colors from the Cosmix collection that I will try to swatch during spring break.

NOTD: SH Spectrum over dark blue!

2010-09-07T08:30:00.000-07:00

Ahhh its been a long time! I'm so busy and tired lately that I hardly ever do my nails, a lot of days they have been *gasp* naked!

Anywhoo, I am wearing one coat of Sally Hansen's Spectrum over a dark blue from Forever 21. It so soooo gorgeous! It shifts from turquoise blue to green to pink to purple depending on the lighting. I could only capture the blue in these photos but you can still see that its amazing!

NOTD: China Glaze Octa Gone Wild

2010-08-12T15:51:00.000-07:00

I think this is the 3rd mani I've done in as many weeks. I've been so busy and tired. I start school again on Monday so I probably won't be posting as much as I usually do. I'm going to try though.

Don't hurt yourself trying to get your hands on Octa, Milani's Hi-Res (on right) is a 98% dupe. Its just a touch warmer and has a bit less holo glitter, and I think it's a bit less sheer.

Franken: Boogie On, Leprechaun!

2010-08-06T10:41:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! Sorry for the lack of post. I was sick for a while and as soon as I got better work became hellish so I've been too tired to even do my nails for two weeks.

I've been looking forward to making this franken for a few weeks. The Joann holo glitter comes in a sample pack like this. I've heard some of these glitters bleed, so I will experiment with the other colors and report back. This green one was perfect though and I am very happy with this color. Its so summery and fun.

I used:
-wnw Kaleidoscope & Hallucinate as a glitter base
-Joann's green holo glitter
-CoastalScents.com Golden Fairy Dust
-tkbtrading.com Taurus Orion (just a little, I wanted a sheer tint of color)
-tkbtrading.com holographic glitter

The easiest way to remove nail polish (especially glitter)

2010-07-23T15:39:00.000-07:00

I love changing my nail polish several times a week, but taking it off can be a major pain in the butt. If you're trying to take off a glitter it can be 10x harder than any other finish. I use to avoid glitters because they would take so long to remove & I'd always get bits of cotton stuck to the glitter and end up needing double the amount of remover and cotton. Since I've discovered the Scrubby Tub removing all nail polish has become much faster and far easier.

The scrubby tub is basically a plastic tub full of remover. It's lined with rubber and in the middle there is a hole with rubber bristles or a sponge that help to scrub all the polish off your nails. I typically let my nail soak for a few seconds before I begin scrubbing, especially if I'm wearing glitter. It doesn't take too long, maybe 5 minutes for a non-glitter and 10 for the most stubborn glitter. The best part is that I don't ever have a fresh mani ruined by bits of cotton that get left over from cotton balls.

There are a few brands that have these tubs. I have one by Studio Tools from Target. Sally Hansen and a couple other brands have these too, right next to the regular remover at any store. The SH one above has 3 holes. Mine only lets you do one nail at a time. After a lot of uses the remover will get dirty, mine always turns a dark purple color. You just have to dump out the dirty remover and fill it back up with fresh acetone. I know its time to change it when the bottom of my nails start to get a red tint. I haven't counted but I'm guessing I get 30-50 mani's out of it before it needs changed. I just pour the dirty remover in a glass jar and leave it open so it can evaporate. Then you'll see a big blob of nail polish at the bottom, just let it dry out and throw it in the trash. DO NOT pour it down the drain! You don't want those chemicals getting into any ones water supply. These typically run at $4-$5. Get one noooooooooooow!

Franken: Siren's Tears

2010-07-21T07:27:00.000-07:00

I know, ANOTHER franken. Sorry if anyone is getting tired of these, I just haven't been buying a lot of np recently because nothing has interested me lately. Plus making custom colors is more fun. Anyhow, I've been on a glitter kick lately so here is the latest. Its mostly royal blue with some purple (which didn't show up in these photos but does in person) and a tiny bit of green shimmer. There also seems to be some aqua glitter but I didn't put any in there lol.

What I used (pic at end of post):

WnW's Kaleidoscope
blue glitter tkbtrading (Her Majesty)
silver holo glitter tkbtrading
purple glitter coastalscents.com
blue (in jar) glitter nail supply store

sunlight (click to enlarge photos)

artificial

shade

flash

supplies

Franken: Unicorn Vomit

2010-07-19T18:16:00.001-07:00

The name just really seemed to fit :) Made with wnw's Kaleidoscope glitter as a base & some purple glitter I have from a local nail supply store. In real life the holo glitter is crazy blingy, the blue and green really POPS! I was swimming today and I kept on staring at it. Its quite sheer at 3 coats but to be honest its awesome enough to stand alone. I think I'll make another for a give away sometime in the near future.

Franken: Shimmer Plums

2010-07-18T11:30:00.001-07:00

I made this with China Glaze Strawberry Fields + Sinful Colors Daddy's Girl. I want to say it was 3/4 SF & 1/4 DG but it might have been more DG than that.

These pics are with flash/sunlight, in normal lighting its a bit darker and more subtle. Its a gorgeous reddish purple with gold shimmer, and a tiny bit of pink and green shimmer in some lighting.

NOTD: Sinful Colors Forget Now

2010-07-09T08:36:00.000-07:00

I went to 3 walgreens to find this. This color is so amazing, I love it. Its a bright cool pink with sparkles that move between purple and gold, and its more vivid than these photos show. It took 3 coats.

edit: this mani lasted 4 days with a bit of tip wear but no chips before I took it off

Red Creme/Jelly Swatches

2010-07-06T16:49:00.000-07:00

I finally had some time this morning to do some swatching so I finished up my reds. All of these colors are good quality and all but one are easily found at the drugstore. Kleancolor's Neon Fuschia I've found at just about all the dollar stores around me. The one bad thing about this brand is that it smells strongly of burnt plastic, I don't know why but make sure you wear a base coat incase there is something funky in it (its made in China, idk). None of these swatches have a top coat over them.

Milani Neon Red. Not neon, not red. Its a milky coral/peach jelly. Dries to a satin finish. 3 coats, applies pretty evenly.

Kleancolor Neon Fuschia. Obviously this is not fuschia at all, its bright neon red jelly. It has a bit of orange to it but is still red. Out of these 5 colors this is my favorite because I've been wanting a neon red for a while. 3 coats, no application problems.

Wet N Wild Red Red. This is a nice bright cool red. 3 coats, good quality for just $1.

Rimmel Stiletto Red. Medium red that leans towards warm. The Rimmel brush is huge, I though I would have a hard time doing my pinky nail because its so small but it was fine. 3 coats.

Sinful Colors Ruby Ruby. Looks like a dirty red in the bottle but applies much brighter on the nail. 3 coats, nice red jelly.

NOTD: Del Sol Rock Star (color changing!)

2010-07-06T08:05:00.000-07:00

My walgreens just got the Del Sol brand last week, they have a huge rack of I'm guessing 20 ish colors. The Del Sol nail polishes all change color in the sun. They are $8 so I only got one, hopefully they will go on sale so I can get more.

The one bad thing about this color is that it took 5 coats to get this opaque and its still very see through. The glitter isn't dense and doesn't sparkle much. The colors are very pretty though so I can forgive.

Rock Star is blue in the shade and teal in the sun.

NOTD: SH Laser over black

2010-07-02T14:13:00.000-07:00

My middle nail on the right hand broke down to the skin so I cut the rest of my nails way down. I don't like when they are really long but I don't like them short either. I think I will be happy with this length for now though.

I LOVE this mani though, Sally Hansen did a wonderful thing when they made the new HD collection. I have 3 of the colors and I wish there was a red HD so I could alternate red/blue for the 4th of July. I want to get two other colors so I can do skittles, that would look awesome.

2 coats WnW Black
1 coat Laser