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Tuesday, September 30, 2014

31 Day Nail Art Challenge - Colors

Hey there!  I was trying to do weekly posts on The 31 Day Challenge, but time has gotten away from me. So this post is going to be a recap of Days 1-10, Colors.  Being new to blogging and not great at nail art this was definitely a challenge to me, but I love a good challenge!




Day 1 - Red Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Zoya Racquel
1 Coat Barielle Elle's Spell
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

This is really not my best work because I had a hard time with cleanup.  Red nail polish and I don't always place nice together!   I do love the color combo though!

Day 2 - Orange Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
Thumb, Index & Pinky Fingers - 3 Coats Funky Fingers Drop The Bass
Middle & Ring Fingers - 2 Coats Rica Polish Whiteout
Flowers - Funky Fingers Drop The Bass & Zoya Pippa
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I really love how this turned out.  I don't normally like orange polish on me, but this one is so pretty especially with the yellow shimmer in it.  I used dotting tools to do the flowers.  

Day 3 - Yellow Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
Index & Pinky Nails - 2 Coats Sinful Colors Unicorn over 2 Coats OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls
Middle Finger - I did an ombre dotticure over 2 Coats OPI MBSW.  The colors I used are Sinful Colors Unicorn, Lime Crime Crema de Limon, and Zoya Pippa
Ring Finger - 3 Coats Different Dimension Big Bang
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

Again, I'm not usually a fan of yellow polish on me, but I was really happy how this turned out.  

Day 4 - Green Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Zoya Alexa
Dots - OPI Skull and Glossbones
Accent Nail - 3 Coats Different Dimension Big Bang
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I've never done dots on just the tips of the nails, but I really like how this looks.  One day I'll learn to get all my dots even!  

Day 5 - Blue Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
Thumb & Pinky Fingers - 2 Coats Different Dimension Wave If You Sea Me
Index & Middle Finger - 2 Coats Rica Polish Whiteout and 1 Coat Sinful Colors My Buoyfriend.  I used straight Nail Vinyls to do the stripes. 
Ring Finger - 2 Coats Rica Polish Whiteout.  The anchor is a nail decal from Lacquer by Lissa
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I bought the anchor decals earlier in the summer and have been wanting to do a nautical themed mani with them.  I really love this!  

Day 6 - Violet Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Limited Edition Hypothermia
Accent Nail - 2 Coats Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Sample Spring 7.1
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I went with different shades of purple for violet day.  Hypothermia is gorgeous purple holo and Spring 7.1 is a lovely lilac with purple glitter. Julie from Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer knocked it out of the park with these colors!  

Day 7 - Black & White Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Bonita Colors Dying To Party
French Tips - 1 Coat ellagee My Sweet Romantic Teenage Nights.  I used straight Nail Vinyls as a guide to do the tips.   
Accent Nail - 1 Coat Funky Fingers The Notebook
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I had a lot of different ideas for black and white day, but was looking at some of my untried polishes and thought these would make a great combination.  Unfortunately I couldn't capture the holo in ellagee My Sweet Romantic Teenage Nights in the picture so I'll definitely need to do another post featuring that gorgeous polish! 

Day 8 - Metallic Nails


Polishes Used: 
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Zoya Rory
Accent Nail - 1 coat Zoya Trixie and straight Nail Vinyls
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I honestly was not looking forward to this day as I don't own a lot of metallic polishes. I remembered I own the Zoya Surf collection from summer 2012 and those polishes have a metallic/foil finish so would work perfectly. My friend Sara from My Life In Polish gave me the inspiration for this manicure.  

Day 9 - Rainbow Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Zoya Purity
Zoya Sooki, Arizona, Pippa, Josie, Ling, and Mira
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I kept going back and forth for what to do for rainbow nails and decided to do a Saran Wrap mani. I painted two coats of Zoya Purity and topped it with two colors on each nail in rainbow order and then blotted them with the Saran Wrap.  I like the sort of tie dye look that I ended up with. 

Day 10 - Gradient


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Essie Sand Tropez
Gradient - Essie Sand Tropez, First Timer, and In The Cab-ana
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I definitely need some work on gradients!  This was my first attempt at one, and although it wasn't a complete fail it wasn't great.  I do love the color combo though!  I think Essie made these colors to be together!


And here is a collage of all 10 of the color category manis.  The orange day was my favorite of all of them.  Which do you like the best?  Have you done any nail art like this?  Will you try any of these?  

Please give some of my friends some love on Facebook - Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer, Rica Polish, My Life In Polish, ellagee, and DIFFERENT Dimension

I'll have the next 10 days which are styles up on the blog for you soon.   

Thanks for reading!  

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Hobby Polish Bloggers Facebook Giveaway


Hey there!  I have teamed up with some awesome ladies from Hobby Polish Bloggers to bring you an amazing giveaway.  The giveaway goes until September 30, 2014 and is open to anyone 18 and older.  The prizes are:

1st Prize: $165 USD via PayPal
2nd Prize: $90 USD via PayPal
3rd Prize: $75 USD via PayPal

Please check out the list of our sponsors below and don't forget to follow their blogs.  Enter below for your chance to win today!

 

Good luck! 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday, September 15, 2014

Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Doctor Who Collection - It Got Away From Me, Yeah...

*press sample*


Hey there!  Today I'm so excited to show you two polishes from the upcoming Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer It Got Away From Me, Yeah...Collection inspired by Doctor Who. This month Julie is releasing 6 polishes based on the Women of Doctor Who. Next month there will be 5 polishes based on the Men of Doctor Who and in November she's releasing 4 polishes based on the Doctors.  The two polishes I have to show you are Is That A Technical Term, Jiggery Pokery? and A Snogging Booth?. 

Is That A Technical Term, Jiggery Pokery?


Is That A Technical Term, Jiggery Pokery? is based on the character Rose Tyler and is a hot pink jelly base with silver, pink, and hot pink holo glitters. The glitters are in different shapes including circles, hexes, butterflies, and stars. This is a re-release from October 2013.  


The glitters in this polish are gorgeous and can be worn over many colors. For these pictures I used 1 coat of Is That A Technical Term, Jiggery Pokery? over 2 coats of Zoya Demi.  My accent nail is 3 coats of Jiggery Pokery alone. 


The glitter placement on this was great. I didn't have to go fishing for glitters and dabbing wasn't necessary to get them to go on evenly.  I used one coat of KBShimmer Clearly On Top to smooth everything out.  

A Snogging Booth?


A Snogging Booth? is based on the character Clara Oswen Oswald and is a clear base with red and black microglitters. 


This is two coats of A Snogging Booth? Julie makes amazing microglitters and this is no exception. It dries slightly textured, but one coat of KBShimmer Clearly On Top smoothed it out. 


There are four other polishes in this part of the collection:

A Long Time Ago Tomorrow - a Tardis blue creme with a pink/purple/blue shift.  This polish is based on the character Amelia Pond. 

Just Admiring Your Skills, Sweetie - purple with pink to purple shift. This is based on the character River Song.  

I'm Dr. Martha Jones. Who The Hell Are You? - bright fuchsia creme with green/gold/blue shifting glass flecks.  This polish is based on the character Martha Jones. 

You Just Want To Mate?! - bright red with orange, red, and gold shimmers. This is based on the character Donna Noble. 

The It Got Away From Me, Yeah...Collection will be available in the Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer shop starting Sunday, September 21st, at 3:30pm EDT.  The linear holographics and shifters will be $12, the cremes, shimmers, flakies, glitters, and microglitters will be $8.50.  The Doctor Who set will be restocked from September through November, at which point they will be retired.

Don't forget to follow Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest.  

Thanks for reading! 

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Influenster Vita VoxBox Review

I received my first Influenster Vitality VoxBox last month. I have been on Influenster for nearly a year so was excited to finally get one. 


This is everything that I got! I'll describe each product below. 


I have an addiction to lip balms so the Softlips Cube was right up my alley.  The flavor is pomegranate blueberry, and it comes in the cute, cube shaped container.  The product is described as 5 in 1 lip care with lip perfecting technology. The 5 things this product does are hydrate, replenish, smooth, protect, and shine. After using the Softlips Cube I have noticed my lips feel smoother, and I love the flavor. My one complaint is that it doesn't easily fit in my pocket. 


Next is Pure Leaf Sweet Tea. I'm a big fan of iced tea, and this one is really good. It definitely has a fresh brewed taste. 


Another product included was Playtex Sport Fresh Balance tampons. 


As someone with problem skin I was very happy to get the Elizabeth Arden Flawless Future Serum. This innovative skincare system with a fine-tuned blend of barrier supporting Ceramides, protective protein complex, and powerful skin brighteners helps intercept early aging signs, so your skin looks stress-free, even when you aren't. I just started using this product so I don't have results to report yet. 


Next I got First Degree Burn Cream. I am very clumsy so I'm sure this will come in handy. Luckily I haven't had a reason to use it yet though! 


Finally I got Bikini Ready Energy Gummies. These are a dietary supplement which taste great, boost metabolism, and increase energy. 

Overall, I'm pleased with my first Influenster Vitality VoxBox.  Feel free to watch my YouTube video when I opened my VoxBox.  Are you already a member of Influenster?  If not, you can sign up for an account at www.influenster.com or I can email you a referral link. 

Thanks for reading!


Monday, September 8, 2014

31 Day Nail Art Challenge - Week 1

So, I decided to participate in the 31 Day Nail Art Challenge that Chalkboard Nails put together.  I'm not great at nail art so I figured this was a great way to work on my skills.  At the end of each week I'll post the manicures I did for you all to see.  I hope you like everything!  

Here are the challenges for each day.  This started on September 1st.  


Day 1 - Red Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Zoya Racquel
1 Coat Barielle Elle's Spell
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

This is really not my best work because I had a hard time with cleanup.  Red nail polish and I don't always place nice together!   I do love the color combo though!

Day 2 - Orange Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
Thumb, Index & Pinky Fingers - 3 Coats Funky Fingers Drop The Bass
Middle & Ring Fingers - 2 Coats Rica Polish Whiteout
Flowers - Funky Fingers Drop The Bass & Zoya Pippa
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I really love how this turned out.  I don't normally like orange polish on me, but this one is so pretty especially with the yellow shimmer in it.  I used dotting tools to do the flowers.  

Day 3 - Yellow Nails


 Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
Index & Pinky Nails - 2 Coats Sinful Colors Unicorn over 2 Coats OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls
Middle Finger - I did an ombre dotticure over 2 Coats OPI MBSW.  The colors I used are Sinful Colors Unicorn, Lime Crime Crema de Limon, and Zoya Pippa
Ring Finger - 3 Coats Different Dimension Big Bang
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

Again, I'm not usually a fan of yellow polish on me, but I was really happy how this turned out.  

Day 4 - Green Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Zoya Alexa
Dots - OPI Skull and Glossbones
Accent Nail - 3 Coats Different Dimension Big Bang
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I've never done dots on just the tips of the nails, but I really like how this looks.  One day I'll learn to get all my dots even!  

Day 5 - Blue Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
Thumb & Pinky Fingers - 2 Coats Different Dimension Wave If You Sea Me
Index & Middle Finger - 2 Coats Rica Polish Whiteout and 1 Coat Sinful Colors My Buoyfriend.  I used straight Nail Vinyls to do the stripes. 
Ring Finger - 2 Coats Rica Polish Whiteout.  The anchor is a nail decal from Lacquer by Lissa
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I bought the anchor decals earlier in the summer and have been wanting to do a nautical themed mani with them.  I really love this!  

Day 6 - Violet Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Limited Edition Hypothermia
Accent Nail - 2 Coats Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Sample Spring 7.1
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I went with different shades of purple for violet day.  Hypothermia is gorgeous purple holo and Spring 7.1 is a lovely lilac with purple glitter.  

Day 7 - Black & White Nails


Polishes Used:
1 Coat Nailtiques Formula 2
2 Coats Bonita Colors Dying To Party
French Tips - 1 Coat ellagee My Sweet Romantic Teenage Nights.  I used straight Nail Vinyls as a guide to do the tips.   
Accent Nail - 1 Coat Funky Fingers The Notebook
1 Coat KBShimmer Clearly On Top

I broke the nail on my index finger and had to cut nubbins so I decided to keep it simple for this black & white mani.  
 
I hope to be able to do all 31 days of the challenge, but the inspired by section makes me nervous!  We shall see!  I linked to the shops of the polishes I used, but don't forget to check out the brands' Facebook pages as well.  

Thanks for reading!





 

Thursday, September 4, 2014

Rica Polish

*press sample*



So this review is long overdue, but I want to share with you some amazing polishes from a friend of mine.  Rica Polish is a rather new and up and coming indie brand.  If you haven't checked out these polishes you need to.  There is a great selection of colors and finishes to keep every polish fan happy.  Today I'm reviewing Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Namaste, Summer Mint, and Shipwreck Siren.  

First up: Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (from the 80's To The Max collection)



I'm going to start with Girls Just Wanna Have Fun - cause of course we all do!  This is a thermal, color shifting, polish which goes from pink when warm to purple when cold with a holo shimmer.  


This is the normal state that I could capture in my house.  My tips were always a little colder than the base of my nails. 


This is the purple when cold.  This color was so much fun!  I'm sad I couldn't get a great transition photos.  All pictures are 3 coats of Rica Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. 

Next up is: Rica Namaste (from the Inner Bliss collection)


Namaste is absolutely gorgeous so I was so excited to receive this one to review.  I had it on my wish list for a long time.  It's described as a lavender crelly with a sprinkle of violet, green and holo silver glitters.  

  
My 6 year old nephew loves helping me pick out nail polish and when he saw this one he said I love the purple and green glitters in it.  Sadly with the lighting I had (overcast was not helping) I won't say these photos are true to life color wise, but this is so pretty.  It's a little lighter, almost more periwinkle in real life.  2 coats were used for these photos.  

Next up is: Summer Mint


Summer Mint is one of Rica's stamping polishes.  These are one coat creme polishes that are made to be used to stamp.  Sadly, I don't have decent stamping plates so couldn't show how awesome it is, but I love this color as a creme so decided to wear it that way.  Summer Mint is a gorgeous bright pastel green.  It's really hard to describe!  Everyone needs this polish though!


I added some chevrons using Rica Whiteout just for fun!  I had purchased Whiteout to have a one coat white polish and thought they would look great together.  I was right!  These pics are 2 coats of Rica Summer Mint although only one coat was needed.  

Next up is: Shipwreck Siren (from The Ocean Breathes collection)


This was by far my favorite of the group, but it was so hard to narrow them down.  Rica Shipwreck Siren is described as a sultry violet with intesnse pink-red shimmer.  It's absolutely stunning!  Ricarda knocked this one out of the park!  



Even indoors in artificial lighting it's gorgeous!  


And just for fun I added some pink stars as an accent nail.  These pics are two coats of Shipwreck Siren.  

These are the first polishes I was sent to review, and all I can say is I love them all!  The formula and dry time are fantastic.  Plus, just look at how gorgeous these colors are.  Rica Polish is one of my favorite indie brands and should be one of yours too!

All polishes used one coat of Nailtiques Formula 2 and Zoya Get Even as basecoats, and Rica Glossy Glam as a topcoat.  You can purchase these polishes in the Rica Etsy shop and please follow her on facebook