Sunday Stamping - Stamping and Glitter Gradient

Hey guys!  Today's Sunday Stamping prompt was to combine stamping and another technique.  I decided to mess around and just do something simple and combine a glitter gradient and stamping.  What do you think of this combo?

Sunday Stamping - Stamping and Glitter Gradient

My base is OPI's Push and Shove.  I used one coat of Lay Down that Base and two coats of Push and Shove.  The glitter is actually one of my favourites, OPI Which is Witch from the 2013 Wizard of Oz collection.  It's a mix of hex and tiny holographic bar glitters and I think it looks subtle, yet stunning over the chrome Push and Shove.  The little rainbows catch the light at random moments and in my photos they went crazy holo.  My stamping polish is Kleancolor Metallic Fuschia and the image is from Pueen 25.

OPI Push and Shove

I had no formula issues with Push and Shove.  The first coat dried quickly and didn't streak and the second coat finished everything off nicely.  Push and Shove definitely shows off every imperfection, but I think it's still a fun polish.  I could actually see myself in the reflection in the polish.  It would certainly look better with smoother nails, but I'm glad I picked this up and I'll have to try it over a gel base sometime to get that smoother mirror finish.

OPI Push and Shove

So what do you think of Push and Shove?  According to the packaging it's only supposed to last one night.  Would you buy a polish that only lasts a few hours?  I like my manis to last a day or two at least, but even if I can get a day or two of wear at home, as soon as I go out my polish chips which drives me crazy.  I will edit this post later and let you know how it holds up!

Update 3/31/2014:  My mani lasted through the night with no chips or tipwear and I had washed my hands a couple times as well as did dishes and only had minor tipwear.  So it's holding up better than I expected.

Sally Beauty is marking these down and I purchased mine for $5.75.  Nail Polish Canada sells this as well for $9.95 if you don't have a Sally Beauty near you and shipping is currently free as of this blog post.

A England - Order of the Garter

Hey guys!  So, I have to confess one of my deep dark secrets to you all.  I am a picker!  Now, I'm not talking about a nose picker, I'm talking about a polish picker.  If I have chips or indents or imperfections I tend to pick my nails.  I've come a LONG way as I can control myself most times, but I used to bite and pick my nails constantly.  Previously I was very much the sort to just "trim" my nails with my teeth.  Who needs a nail file, eh?

So I was wearing gel under my last mani and apparently I did a terrible job because I went too close to my skin with the gel in many areas and it was lifting.  And...so starts the obsessing.  I noticed myself starting to peel at it with my nails so I took a cuticle stick and peeled the gel off my nails.  Definitely not the best or smartest way to do it, but it was intensely satisfying.  I don't think I peeled any of my actual nail off, but I definitely shouldn't have done that without my peel off basecoat underneath.  So now that I've spilled my dirty little secret, on to the polish! 

A England Order of the Garter

 I actually put this on yesterday over the gel base, but it was thin, patchy and streaky even with three thin coats.  Let me tell you I was not impressed as the other A Englands I've worn in the past were super smooth and some of them one-coaters.  So, in the end I peeled off everything and decided I'd try again today.

A England Order of the Garter

This time I let the polish sit with the lid unscrewed but still on top of the bottle and let it thicken a bit overnight.  This is three coats of A England Order of the Garter and one coat of HK Girl topcoat over a base of Nail Pattern Boldness Glitter A-Peel.  I used one thin coat and two thicker coats to get the opacity here.

A England Order of the Garter

The first coat was very sheer and patchy and even though I waited for 15 minutes between the first and second coat this time there was still some dragging and with the third coat I ended up getting a few bubbles.  Even though the application was less than stellar, I'm glad I tried again because it's worth it for this gorgeous blue glass-fleck polish.  It's a stunning blue and I'm a sucker for anything that adds dimension to the polish like shimmer or glass-flecks.

Do you own any A England polishes?  A England polishes can be purchased online at my favourite Canadian e-tailer Nail Polish Canada, prices are around $13.50 regular price and shipping is currently free as of this blog post date.

Zoya - Belinda

Hey guys!  Today's mani I did things a little differently. One of my biggest concerns with my nails is the ridges.  Some of my nails are better than others, but some look like they're ski slopes for microbes!

I wanted to change things up a bit and try an at home gel mani using regular polish on top and see how I like that.  I was going to put on Nail Pattern Boldness Glitter A-Peel underneath, but I forgot...OOPS!  But, I went ahead with my plan and put on Zoya Belinda from the 2013 Zenith Collection.  I had a difficult time capturing this one.  My iPhone4S picked the colour up as more blue/black than purple in the picture below, but it's definitely purple.  The bottle shot is definitely more accurate in colour.

Zoya Belinda

This is two coats of  Zoya Belinda with HK Girl topcoat.  For me application was actually a bit tricky.  I found the formula very thin and watery. The first coat went on kind of patchy, but a second medium coat worked to smooth everything out nicely.  I did have trouble with the polish pooling in my cuticles and while it didn't stain my skin, it stained the edges of the gel a bit.  That would by my mistake however as I tried to get as close to my skin as possible for it to look more even, but I should have stayed a bit further away.

Zoya Belinda

This polish is a beautiful blacked purple which Zoya describes as a "cosmic purple metallic".  I'm not exactly sure what cosmic purple looks like, but when I think of metallic polishes, I think of finishes that are brushtrokey and and well...looks like metal in some way.  I didn't really have a problem with brushstrokes in the finish.

Zoya Belinda

Even without topcoat the finish is smooth and glossy and it has tiny red, purple and blue shimmers that peek out from the base.  They were really hard to capture and I think the topcoat may have hidden them a bit.  While I don't have a macro camera and this shot may be kind of blurry, it does show all those little hidden twinkles a bit better.

Zoya can be purchased online at my favourite Canadian e-tailer Nail Polish Canada, prices are around $9.75 regular price and shipping is currently free as of this blog post date.

cosmic purple metallic.

OPI - Innie Minnie Mightie Bow

Hey guys!  Just a quick post to show you a pretty polish from OPI.  This is actually one of the brands that I only have a few polishes from, even though OPI is one of the more popular brands.  I had some bad experiences with one of the polishes from the same collection and since then I haven't bought any more recently.

OPI Innie Minnie Mightie Bow

This is two coats of OPI Innie Minnie Mightie Bow with HK Girl topcoat.  This polish is from the Couture de Minnie Collection released last year.  This polish is a one-coat polish if you want a smooth, even finish and don't mind a wee bit of visible nail line.  I used two to deepen the colour, but it all depends on your application habits for how thick or thin your coats are.

OPI Innie Minnie Mightie Bow

If only all of their polishes had the same formula as this one!  I wasn't able to capture it very well, but it definitely has a glow from within and has amazing shine even without topcoat.  The polish does show my ridges unfortunately, but many polishes do unless I use multiple layers of basecoat.

OPI polishes can be purchased online at my favourite Canadian e-tailer Nail Polish Canada, prices ar around $8.95 regular price depending on the finish and shipping is currently free as of this blog post date.

Sunday Stamping - Skyline

Hey guys, today I have my Sunday Stamping mani from Adventures in Stamping.  The theme for this Sunday is "Skyline". I had a lot higher hopes for this mani, but unfortunately it didn't turn out very well.  So, I consider this one a fail, but I figure if I only showed you my triumphs. the blog would be very empty!

I didn't have a skyline type stamp so I had to improvise.  The stamps I used were from a set of two super jumbos plate from AliExpress that are a cheap knockoff of all the Konads plates from m1 to m81.  I used the clouds from m79 and the "building" image from m69.  I'm not exactly sure what the image is supposed to be, but I made a decal out of it and coloured the back in all black using Wet 'n Wild Black Creme polish. 

Sunday Stamping Skyline

The cloud stamping was Konad White and the clouds didn't pick up completely in some spots, but I think it's because of the way I scraped the image.  It was very finicky and I had to do it multiple times to even get the images as they are on my nails. 

The decal was actually pretty difficult to work with.  It was wrinkled a bit and didn't quite lay flat and you can see where it wrinkled by the cloud in my middle finger.  I was going to put decals on the other nails, but figured I'd stick with the one accent nail.  I was also going to add some yellow dots for lights, but at that point I gave up.

Color Club Endless Summer

The base for this mani was one thin and one thicker coat Color Club Endless Summer topped with Seche Vite.  The first and second coats were slightly patchy, but after topcoat they smoothed out a bit better for the background.  Endless Summer dries to a matte finish and dries quickly, very much like a neon. You can see on my ring finger that it could have done with a thicker coat and some balding on my middle finger by the cuticle.  If I were wearing this on it's own, I would probably have tried three thin coats.

Overall, I don't like how this turned out, but at least I tried!  Perhaps with practice I will get better at using the decals.  I think next time I'm going to try using a different clear coat instead of Seche Vite, and maybe not let them sit so long if I can help it.  If you have any tips to share regarding decals, or any questions about decals, leave me a comment below. 

Colors by Llarowe - Behead the Drama Queen

Hey guys!  The polish I have to show you today is currently 

 discontinued.  It seems evil of me to share it with you when it's not available any longer, but if you desperately need it, there is a chance you can find someone selling it on one of the many groups in Facebook for selling and swapping polish.

I was just starting to get into indies and unfortunately by the time I realized what a gorgeous polish this was it was discontinued.  Thankfully, I was able to purchase one from another CbL lover that lives in the US. 

Colors by Llarowe (CbL) Behead the Drama Queen

This is two medium coats of Colors by Llarowe (CbL) Behead the Drama Queen with a coat of HK Girl topcoat.  The first coat gave pretty good coverage, but the second coat definitely added a deeper colour and more shimmer.  I just love this polish, it really reminds me of a peacock's feathers.  This beauty shifts from a deep emerald green to a dark teal depending on the angle and light.  The shimmers do still stand out in low light.

As you can see my this picture, there is a little bit of a ding in the glass bottle.  It sounds like this polish had a little bit of an adventure on it's way to me and got a little beat up.  I have kind of a weird humour and I mentioned to the girl I got it from that "This polish made it all the way to Canada and all it has to show for it is a stupid ding".  Or something to that effect.  I thought it was kinda funny at the time :P~

       

Colors by Llarowe (CbL) Behead the Drama Queen

Even without the HK Girl topcoat, this polish was shiny and smooth.  I have to say that this has easily become one of my favourite polishes.  I love me some holos, but shimmers are by far my favourite finish and this one is stunning.  I'd definitely like to see more like these from the lovely Leah Ann.  Maybe this one will make a surprise return and I'd highly recommend picking it up if it does!

You can purchase Colors by Llarowe at their website HERE.  Currently many of their polishes are out of stock, however you can subscribe to their emails for restock updates.

Nail Art - Colour Blocking and Stamping

Hey guys, I wanted to just do a quick post to show you some nail art that I did with the polish I posted yesterday.  China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy inspired me!  While nail art is not really my forte I love how it looks and I love to experiment.

Today's nail art is Colour Blocking and Stamping.  I don't know where the colour blocking first came from, but I first saw this on Chalkboard Nails.  She has a great post and tutorial explaining how to get the effect HERE.

Colour Blocking and Stamping Nail Art

Instead of dividing my nail into three parts, I chose to just do them in half (well, close enough).  Like Chalkboard Nails I just used a regular piece of tape to help me paint my second colour.  For this mani I used all China Glaze polishes except for the stamp which is Konad White.

Colour Blocking and Stamping Nail Art

The pinky/purpley colour is China Glaze Dance Baby, topped with China Glaze Fairy Dust and then stamped with MoYou Princess Collection plate 14.  I love how this turned out!  It looks bright and fun and the stamp looks like an abstract floral motif!  The picture above is kinda blurry, but it shows the sparkles a little better.

China Glaze - Flip Flop Fantasy

Hey guys!  On one of the Facebook groups I belong to, a request was put out to ask if anyone has successfully photographed China Glaze Flip Flip Fantasy.  I bought this a while back from Sally's and though I did my usual one-finger quick swatch when I brought it home, I haven't worn it as a mani.

Previous to my obsession with polish, this is a colour I would have looked at and immediately passed over because it's so bright and I wasn't sure how I'd like it with my colouring.  I also have an aversion to yellows and oranges.  My tastes have grown since then and I'm experimenting with all kinds of colours and Flip Flop Fantasy was recommended as one of those "knock your socks off" type of colours.

China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy

I can totally understand why the request for a successful pic of this polish was put out there.  While I was able to capture the orangey undertones of it, I failed to capture the true beauty of the polish.  It really is much brighter and in your face than my photos.  It also leans slightly more pink than shown here.

China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy

Photos are two coats with HK Girl topcoat, no white undies.  I did use two coats of Orly Ridgefiller to give it a smoother base.  In the photo above, you can see a little bit more of an uneven finish.  Even though I did wait between coats, I had a slight problem with dragging at the cuticle and some streakiness, even on the second coat.  Creme finishes dry a little slower than neons, and neons dry quickly, but often with a matte finish.  This was somewhere in between.  Since I want to show you the polishes how I would normally wear them, I stayed with the two coats.  Looking at them up close, I can see the imperfections, but from a couple feet away they're not noticeable.

This is an excellent colour for summer, but I'd also wear this at any time when I needed a pop of colour as I don't really adhere to wearing only "seasonal colours".  I'm sure this would also make a great statement colour on your toes when it's time to break out the flip flops!  Unfortunately that could be a month or more away still here in "Winterpeg".

I did want to note that there are at least two different versions of this polish, the one I have that leans more orange and one that is definitely more pink. Chit Chat Nails, one of my favourite Canadian bloggers has a great comparison on her blog showing the two versions.

Check out Chit Chat Nails

These look like two completely different polishes and this is a great comparison.  Perhaps I will have to seek out the other version as I do actually like both.  Let me know in the comments below which one you prefer. 

China Glaze polishes can be purchased online at my favourite Canadian e-tailer Nail Polish Canada, prices start at $6.95 and up depending on the finish and shipping is currently free as of this blog post date.

Hard Candy - Crush on Raisin

Hey guys!  I have to give props to one of the brands that really kick-started my polish obsession.  This brand is Hard Candy.  They're a cosmetics brand that has a wide variety of products and can be found in Walmart. Back in March 2013 they had a huge contest on their Facebook page for their latest polish collection, 45 polishes in all.  I was one of 5 lucky winners and from that day on my collection has exploded.

While I have most recently been buying mostly indies I do like the Hard Candy polishes.  They have a wide range of glitters, but my favourites are their "Crushed Chromes".  These polishes are all foil finishes, which I actually really like.  

Hard Candy Crush on Raisin

This is two easy coats topped with Seche Vite.  The formula on Crush on Raisin was very smooth and easy to apply.  It's on the thicker side, but not too thick to work with.  I actually prefer thicker polishes over thinner polish so it doesn't pool in the cuticles.  I love the depth and shine to the polish.  While it's not a duochrome or multichrome, it does have a very slight shift to it.  The best way I can describe the polish is a more like a rose gold and in my opinion it seems like a very unique colour.

Hard Candy Crush on Raisin

I love how these polishes have these little flecks that peek out from the base and the high shine that is almost reflective.  Unfortunately foils can be prone to brushstrokes as show off every little imperfection on the nail.  I didn't really have any problems with brushstrokes, and personally they aren't a polish deal breaker for me anyway.  As I noted previously I have deeply ridged nails and you can see that especially on my pinky and ring finger.  I have a full-length groove on my right ring finger and it's very evident with this polish.

At this point I've come to accept my flaws and let them go.  If I didn't wear a polish because it showed off my ridges, I'd never be able to wear them.  What do you think?  Are you a foil or metallic finish fan?  I know that they're not everyone's cup of tea.  Let me know in the comments below and thanks for reading!

Hard Candy polishes can be purchased in the Walmart beauty section.  They retail for $3.99 in Canada and each polish is 7.8ML or 0.26 FL. OZ.

Sunday Stamping - St. Patrick's Day

Hey guys!  Today's post is one I am considering making a series.  There is a wonderful Facebook group called Adventures In Stamping that has a Sunday challenge every week.  This challenge is a different theme every week and this week is St. Patrick's Day.

I absolutely love nail art, but my creativity and talent is very limited.  The thing I love about the ladies in the group is that everyone is at different skill levels, but everyone is kind.  Though I've been stamping for a while now, I'd definitely classify myself in the novice category, but I'm okay with that.

I had visions of this spectacular mani with rainbows and a pot of gold and four leaf clovers as well as some stamping, but I neither had the patience or the skill to pull it off.  I literally spent forever trying to freehand a passable four leaf clover and failed.
 

Today's mani will be two-fold.  I want to show off one of the gorgeous new colours I got from Llarowe that I mentioned in my Heavenly Nail Mail post, as well as do a little bit of stamping (and I do mean a little bit).  In today's mani I used polishes from two of my favourite brands, Colors by Llarowe (CbL) and A England.  All nails were topcoated with HK Girl Topcoat.

The base for all my fingers except my ring finger accent nail is CbL Young Grasshoppa.  My accent nail is CbL Coconut, a white jelly polish that is quickly becoming one of my favourites for nail art.  The accent nail is a base of Orly Ridgefiller (I have ridges on top of my ridges!), one coat Coconut, one coat Seche Vite and then stamped with A England St. George. St. George is a gorgeous scattered holo and has perfect pigmentation.  It's a one-coater and stamps like a dream.  I used MoYou London Princess Collection plate 14 for the stamp.

Sunday Stamping - St. Patrick's Day

Young Grasshoppa was an easy two coats to acheive full opacity.  The first coat was smooth and even, but the second coat gave the finish more depth and pop.  The linear holo is very defined, even in indoor lighting.  This polish was recently reformulated and re-released.  It's previous incarnation was a sheer jelly holo polish, but I am very happy with the reformulation. 

Sunday Stamping - St. Patrick's Day

I would like to note that Young Grasshoppa is very close to another CbL polish called Seahawks Lime which was a special release that has been discontinued. Young Grasshoppa is just a hair darker than Seahawks Lime and has a slightly stronger holo effect.  If you would like me to do a comparison of them, please let me know in the comments. 

Thanks again for checking out my blog!  Wishing all of you that celebrate a very happy St. Patrick's Day tomorrow!

You can purchase Colors by Llarowe at their website HERE.  Currently many of their polishes are out of stock, however you can subscribe to their emails for restock updates.

~Nothing to disclose, polishes were purchased by me~

Check out the great St. Patrick's Day manis from other bloggers below.

An InLinkz Link-up

Heavenly Nail Mail 3-13-2014

Warning, this post is picture heavy!

Hey guys!  I had an exhausting day at work!  I actually got my mail really early today, usually my mailman comes around 10:30, but this morning he was here at just after nine and it was a new mailman.  I knew I had a long day ahead of me with projects, so even though I was so excited, I didn't tear into my mail right away.  While working from home has it's advantages, unfortunately I still have to work!

All day I was working on a project that was time consuming, monotonous and brain-melting.  At least that's what it felt like. After work I was so tired I had lost some of my enthusiasm for the bounty that was waiting for me.  Yes, it IS possible, even with the colourful array of polish goodness that was in the box, I was that tired.

Anyway, after some supper, a movie and a rest on the couch, I couldn't resist the siren song of the beauties that awaited me!  I had to take pictures of my bounty, and I figured I could share them with you! 

I present to you, my heavenly nail mail!  Not quite the full Spring Frenzy 2014 Collection, but close.  And a few extras.

Colors by Llarowe Spring Frenzy 2014 Holo Glitters

Left to right: Pink Sprinkles Oops, Tazmo Kramer, Shimmering Waters, Turquoise Twinkle, Bea Stings and Purple Pizazz.

Colors by Llarowe Spring Frenzy 2014 The Shimmers

Left to right:  Will You Still Love Me Teal-morrow, Little Boy Blue,

Connie You Saucy Minx and The Great Pretender

Colors by Llarowe Spring Frenzy 2014 The Sheens

Left to right: Julie Julie Julie, Neon Punk, Waters of Belize, Coral Confusion

Colors by Llarowe Spring Frenzy 2014 The Holos

Top Row: Woodstock, Young Turks, House of Blues, The Mighty Red Baron, House of Blues, My Big Girl Panties
Bottom Row: Lucy, I'm Home, Concrete Jungle, Deanna It's Blue and In Another Dimension

And some of my Lemmings!

Left to right: True Colors, Young Grasshoppa, Fresh Cut Grass and Melon Wine

 

All of my new babies!

And finally, all of the pretties together!  I can't wait to wear ALL of these.  It's a shame I only have 10 fingers!  As much as skittles are fun, I love to wear a full manicure to really get the effect of the polish.  Please let me know in the comments below which one you want to see most, and maybe that will be the next polish I swatch!

You can purchase Colors by Llarowe at their website HERE.  Currently many of their polishes are out of stock, however you can subscribe to their emails for restock updates.

Welcome to PJ's and Polish and Colors by Llarowe - Beat It

Wow, my first post!  I'm so nervous and excited all at the same time.  I've had a little bit of experience with blogging, but this seems so much more personal.  My previous experiences were providing content that didn't have a lot of depth to it for the most part.

I am hoping to post swatches two times a week, which may or may not include nail art.  I'm a little intimidated by all the amazing nail artists out there, and freehand is my enemy.  Stamping and I are coming to terms, but I don't think we're quite friends yet.  Please keep in mind I am not an expert or a nail technician, just a regular girl who loves all the pretties.  I've come a long way with my application, but I'm sure there are still lots of tips and tricks out there I haven't learned.  I consider myself still a newbie, but I've come across some amazing brands and amazing polishes, and a few polishes that drove me to muttering obscenities on a couple occasions.

Winter has been rough for me and I have struggle with keeping my nails long.  While they've been getting stronger than ever before, I still have issues with them breaking once they get past a certain length, especially in winter.

I'm starting off my brand new blog with a fresh start.  My nails are freshly filed down, AND they're also square(ish).  I've always had rounded nails as my nails naturally just like to grow this way.  So I figure I'll try something new.

So, on to the polish!

Colors by Llarowe (CbL) - Beat It

This is Colors by Llarowe (CbL) Beat It. Beat It was part of the Michael Jackson collection.  This is two coats and HK Girl topcoat.  The formula on this polish is a little bit on the thick side, but it is still easy to work with.  I supposed I could have thinned it a bit, but I chose to work with it as it is. The first coat was a little uneven, but not streaky or unmanageable.  The second coat smoothed everything out nicely.

Colors by Llarowe (CbL) - Beat It

This is such an interesting colour.  In some lights it's slightly blue, in others it's slightly green and it's just a hair away from black in others.  Llarowe describes this polish as "Charcoal linear holo with blue flash." and that sounds pretty accurate to me.  The holo on this one is clearly linear, but not as powerful as some of the other CbL polishes. 

You can purchase Colors by Llarowe at their website HERE.  Currently many of their polishes are out of stock, however you can subscribe to their emails for restock updates.

And this concludes my very first post!  Thank you for checking out the blog and I hope you'll continue to keep reading.  If you'd like to follow me, you can do so via Facebook, Pinterest and Bloglovin' from the main page.