Charged Up Nail Art!

Here is a fun, early days tape mani I did! I really love how this one turned out! Maybe I will do it again soon!  What do you think? I used Orly's Charged Up and Julep's Mandy to create this sharp look! :)

I am working on a Speckled Polish Post for you right now! :D You all like speckled polish?  Which brands do you have?

Northern Star Polish Review! New Colors for Release this Week!

These polishes were generously provided to me for review by Kristin Marz, owner and creator of Northern Star Polish.  The provided polishes and gifts are graciously accepted and kept, and do not affect my opinions regarding the products.  This blog review post is my honest opinion for the owner's and any consumers' benefit.  Thank you, Kristin, for the opportunity to review these awesome polishes!

Good evening, all!  I have some lovely goodies to show you from Northern Star Polish!  This awesome Indie brand has been on Etsy since March 2012 but these new polishes will be released on June 28 at noon Central Time.  These two beauties are part of the Paranormal X collection inspired by The X-Files.  Kristin thoughtfully included a description of ingredients as well as some other information and a wonderful little mini bottle of her cuticle oil (which I already have and LOVE by the way!  Yay for two bottles!).  First I will show you these gorgeous babies and then I will list information below regarding her Big 4-Free formula, etc. 

First up is TRUSTNO1, a purple base with electric blue flakie glitter!  My jaw dropped when I saw this one - there is nothing even close to similar in my collection!  Purple is the way to my heart!  I used my usual Orly base and G&G top coat for all of these swatch photos.  This is two coats of TRUSTNO1!  The formula is flawless.  It goes on evenly, the glitter is perfectly dispersed, and it's nice and opaque.

TRUSTNO1 is in the new bottles Kristin will be using now.  This is the first bottle of this shape that I have used and I love it!  It's easy to hold, store, and I admire the shape.  The brush is wide and flat making application that much easier and I was so happy to see it!  I think this is a change that will be welcomed!  :)

The second color that I received for review is called Enigmatic Doctor S, and it is a glitter blend that is super versatile!  Various sizes of purple, red, gold, blue, silver, and teal.  I am not one to buy a bunch of glitter bomb polishes, but I definitely loved the color combo in this one.  The application was wonderful: no fishing for glitter (and I realllly wanted those big ol' turquoise hexes! So glad I didn't have to dig!) and it was nearly a totally smooth finish on its own.  No glitter stuck up off my curved nails and only one layer of top coat was added just to smooth out the whole mani.

I immediately knew I wanted to wear it over a sky blue to compliment each glitter!  Here is Enigmatic Doctor S dabbed on in a reverse gradient over Sinful Colors Sugar Rush.

I also tried it out over TRUSTNO1 out of curiosity!  It looks nice as a reverse gradient, I think, but the colors don't pop off the dark base when layered on.  My pointer finger has two coats, my pinky has one, and the other two are sporting the awesome gradient!  You can see from the layered fingers that this densely packed glitter can be totally opaque on it's own in two coats.

Kristin was so sweet to provide a description of her products for us so that we know exactly what we are getting.  She uses "only stainless steel agitator balls, solvent resistant glitters, and proper suspension base (Big 4-Free: DPT, Toluene, and Formaldehyde and Formaldehyde resin free and never diluted with clear top coat)."  Northern Star Polish glitters and pigments are held and tested by Kristin before release.

You can really see all the hard work that went into making something new and creative with these two!  I cannot wait to see what else Northern Star Polish has in store for the opening on Friday!  You can purchase Kristin's creations on etsy at www.etsy.com/shop/NorthernStarPolish.  Northern Star Polish is also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/NorthernStarPolish. 

I hope you all love these as much as I do!  Mark your calendars for when her shop opens FRIDAY JUNE 28 AT NOON CENTRAL TIME!!! :)

Have a great night!

Cocktail Hour, Part II

Please note that some of these products were generously provided to me for review by Laura Garrett, owner and creator of ellagee Handcrafted Nail Polish.  The compensation in exchange for this review is shown below, and provided polishes/gifts are graciously accepted and kept, and do not affect my opinions regarding the products.  This blog review post is my honest opinion for the owner's and any consumers' benefit.  As usual, I would like to thank Laura again for the chance to show them off!

I have more awesome color-changing Cocktail Hour colors to show you today!  Here are two more from ellagee's thermal collection: Tequila Sunrise and Blue Hawaiian. This post is has a lot of pics! :)

Firstly, let me tell you about the polishes. Both colors are layered over a base because they are pretty sheer. I wouldn't recommend trying to wear them alone. For application: even over a solid base color three layers were needed to make them opaque and really show off the color change. Once I had achieved that though the gradient and changes were very prominent and very beautiful!

Tequila Sunrise: 3 coats over a base of a very pale yellow. (Orly base and G&G top coat). Here is an outdoor shot, natural temperature. It's very warm here in Houston so even the bottle changed very quickly!

Here is an indoor shot showing a cooler temperature color!

Now for the fun: this shows me dipping my nails into cold water from my fridge. Sooo fun to watch the color shift! Don't blink though, it happens fast!

Here are two cool pics of the color shifting back immediately after removing from the bowl because it's so warm outside. 

If you go to this link you can WATCH a video of Tequila Sunrise in action!: http://instagram.com/p/a3yYgEgI3r/

Next up is Blue Hawaiian: 3 coats over white (Orly base & G&G top coat)! I didn't think I would be very attached to this one but it turns out that I adore it. The gradient from white to blue is so shocking and yet it looks so smooth that I just can't stop staring! I didn't want to take it off at all!

The warm color is the white, which I think makes it that much more fun when suddenly your nails are a new shade!

Do you see the dot on my ring finger? I think it may be clumped pigment or something, but it came from the bottle. I haven't had this happen with any of the other colors or with any other brush strokes. It was weird but I didn't think it warranted removing the polish and starting over since this is after 7 coats of polish including my base and top. 

Here it is changing! Soooo amazing!

And here is a shot indoors in the evening with a natural temp gradient:

If you click on this link you can WATCH Blue Hawaiian in action!:

http://instagram.com/p/a6WdX2gI-G/

What do you all think of this collection so far? Or about thermal polish in general? It's so much fun!!! Don't forget you can purchase thermal polish by ellagee at www.ellagee.com and enter her weekly giveaways at www.facebook.com/ellageepolish.

Cocktail Hour! A Thermal Collection by ellagee, Part I

Please note that some of these products were generously provided to me for review by Laura Garrett, owner and creator of ellagee Handcrafted Nail Polish.  The compensation in exchange for this review is shown below, and provided polishes/gifts are graciously accepted and kept, and do not affect my opinions regarding the products.  This blog review post is my honest opinion for the owner's and any consumers' benefit.  As usual, I would like to thank Laura again for her awesome polishes and the chance to show them off!

Hi, everyone! I have two gorgeous colors to show you in what will be the first of a two part installment of posts. These lovely shades are from ellagee's recent collection Cocktail Hour, which includes but is not limited to thermal polish. If you're not familiar with this trend, thermal polish contains pigment which changes color depending on the temperature!

There is no shortage of beauty in the first creation I want to show you. This color was provided to me for review. Every polish maker, I think, needs their own black polish in a collection. I was a little surprised to open my package and find a black shade, but Laura does not make any plain-Jane run-of-the-mill polish! Little Black Dress is nothing short of impressive!!! This blackberry polish has a plum-silver sort of shimmer that makes it light enough to be vampy and sexy without just being plain old black polish. I was so taken by surprise when I saw the berry-black on my nails that I immediately contacted Laura to say "WOAH!" and thanks for a lovely color! I just can't get enough of it. Check out the pics which show two coats of Little Black Dress with my usual Orly base & HK Girl top coat.

I was thinking: what could I use to "accessorize" with this Little Black Dress that won't take away from it's allure.  I oped for an accent nail: OPI's Crown Me Already. What d'you think?

Next up is a beautiful thermal polish that I purchased for my own delight!  Frozen Concoction is TWO colors in one polish that gradient themselves into unique designs. Frozen Concoction is a gorgeous mix of "gold and green shimmer that is yellow-green when warm and deep lime green when cool." Sticking with the Cocktail Hour theme, this polish is "inspired by a frozen margarita with a lime on top."  I took a LOT of pics of this one changing, as well as a Vine video that you can find on my feed (@mrsgmom2c). You know I love my lime green polishes!!!! (EDIT: Will get an Instagram video up ASAP!)

In this photo you can see where my top two fingers are warm, while the bottom two have been in the cold water! My thumb is confused somewhere between the two LOL.

If you have longer nails the tips tend to be the second, cooler color. Here you can see how my nails are warm then cold as they reach off my fingertips.

I had so much fun with it because even when my fingers were cold I could change my tips by touching my nails to my cheek! Then the gradient effect was the opposite direction!

Here is one more pic to show you something else I just love about Laura's polishes: the shimmer. You just cannot miss the shimmer in every creation!

What do you guys think?!

You can get lacquer creations from ellagee's Store Envy shop at www.ellagee.com.

Or check out Laura's Facebook at www.facebook.com/ellageepolish and look for the GIVEAWAY tab because Laura does weekly giveaways for her adoring fans! :)

A Cosmic Gradient, and New Ellagee Polish Goodies!!!

Hi darlings! Remember those Avon Cosmic Collection holographic polishes I was so excited about? Well I got my order in: Starlight, Saturn, and Starburst! I was inspired to create a gradient with these as soon as I saw them. Scattered holographic sparkle galore!!!! Problem is that I failed pretty miserably at my gradient; it just didn't flow from one color to the next because of my quick application. We all have our off days! But before grabbing the acetone to nix the whole mani I decided to try my hand at some quick stamping with E napped. What do you think? ;)

Cleaned up with my lovely E.L.F. Concealer Brush and voíla!

Here is what Starlight looks like on it's own:

I pretty much drooled on my hand when I saw this one outside, you guys. Drooled. The color is smashing and the holo is very vibrant. This is two coats (my usual base & top, also) of Starlight to make it completely opaque. It's pretty typical of a good holo; kind of a creme and goes on flawlessly. Reminded me of CC Halo Hues application, actually. I'm also really proud of this pic! I wish it showed more of the holographic effect, but golly that's a great signature shot. Now if only I can duplicate it. :p

So if you have stuck around this long I want to show you my nail mail from the last two days!!!

First up is my giveaway winnings from the lovely Alexis of XOXO Alexis Leigh (http://www.xoxoalexisleigh.com/?m=1)  from the Spring Beauty Essentials Multi-Blogger Giveaway! Here is Sugarpill's Junebug, a loose eyeshadow, and LVX's Cerulean. I can't wait to try them!!! Thank you, Alexis! :D

Next up is my awesome purchase from ellagee's new Cocktail Hour thermal polish collection! This is Frozen Concoction & Blue Hawaiian!

And last but not least, Laura kindly provided some goodies for me to review for you all! I can't waaaaait to try them! This is Tequila Sunrise and Little Black Dress! Gorgeous, shimmering polish!!!!

Thanks for sticking around through my long post! :)

For fellow bloggers and/or polish makers: I am about to start working on a Giveaway! Just because! Would anyone be interested in joining in? :)

S-watch This!! Some Indie Holographics!!

Hey, lovelies!!! I have sooo much energy today! Five hours of straight sleep does a nursing mommy good - thank you to the hubby for taking the 2 am shift! ;)

E is napping so I wanted to share a couple stunning Holographics from Enkelini. If you asked me to suggest a high-quality, super holographic Indie polish I would send you straight to the Enkelini Etsy shop.

I purchased three stunning shades a while back: Pimp My Pink, Calliope, and Midnight's Rainbow. The application: completely smooth. Opaque in two or less coats. Super holographic! I used my good ol' usual top & base coats for each of these. Enjoy the eye candy!!!!!!

Pimp My Pink is what Barbie would wear if she wore holo pink polish lol. This baby is HOT pink & it is a stunner!!!!!!

I did a lot of research on red holos before this purchase, you guys. I did a ton of comparison checking and when I found this blatantly linear, shining red holo I knew I had found a winner. Some reds are much less holographic and I wanted something eye-popping. Ta da!!!

Last, but in no way least, is Midnight's Rainbow. This black holo goes on BLACK and the rainbow explodes out of it with holo-y goodness!!!!!! No shortage of amazing here! (Blurred a little to show all the colors my camera couldn't easily pick up.)

I'm still working off my phone but here is the link to the Enkelini Etsy shop & Facebook!

Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/Enkelini

FB: https://www.facebook.com/EnkeliniNailPolish

Textured Color Block! (And My First Tutorial!!)

Hi, all!  I'm gonna make this super quick for two reasons. (1) I'm swamped with cleaning and preparing for C's bday party tomorrow, and (2) the pics mostly speak for themselves!

For this mani I used Nails, Inc. Noho,  Milani TextureYellow Mark, Milani Texture Aqua Splash, and Milani Texture Spoiled in Fuchsia. I also used my typical Orly base & Sinful Colors Snow Me White for undies.

I'm including my pics I took step by step for a tutorial that I hope you enjoy! The pics may come up a little fuzzy since I'm posting from the phone, but maybe not. I hope not!!!

First I used SMW for a base. I love that I did, because I love the flat, basic white for the lines between the color blocks. Next I used my amazing striping tape to set up my design (leaving extra on the edges for easy removal).

Next, I started painting! I had all 4 colors open for this so I could move fairly quickly. Texture polishes tend to dry pretty rapidly, but I really didn't have problems with application, opacity, or removing my tape!

And here is the finished product! I am in love with this mani, however, when I got out into the light of day I did notice a few errors on my dominant hand. Well, that's sleepy mommy left-handed painting at night for you. Anyone have suggestions for a nice desk lamp that won't overheat or be in the way?

So what do you think?!? I think it's my favorite nail art I have done ever! Just need a little more time & light to perfect it.  Alright, off I go to clean again! Talk to you later! :)

KBShimmer's Sugar Plum Faerie

Oh my gosh! Has it been a week already since I posted?? I am sooo sorry. C's 6th birthday party is Sunday so I have been cleaning the house like a mad woman on top of my other motherly/housewifey duties. How has your week been?!

You may have seen my FB pic or Tweet or IG pic of KBShimmer's Sugar Plum Faerie! It's soooo lovely! What's even more exciting is that a KBShimmer admin retweeted my post, which has never happened to me before!

This beauty is a glitter bomb of the I Love It sort. You may know I don't always enjoy glitter bomb polishes, but I have never seen a KBShimmer I didn't want to put on my nails (and my shelf!!!)!

This is my usual Orly base coat, then a very thin layer of China Glaze's Creative Fantasy (just to make sure I can't see my nail line later), and two regular coats of Sugar Plum Faerie with a top coat of HK Girl. :)

Can you say "gorgeous!"? How about "Ooooh, sparkly!" I didn't have to do a single dab or fish for any larger glitter to even out my mani. I adore KBShimmer's polishes & I can never get enough!!!!!

Sorry, still working off my phone so i cant create any Links, however:

You can shop for KBShimmer at www.kbshimmer.com

http://www.etsy.com/shop/KBShimmer

And their FB is

http://www.etsy.com/shop/KBShimmer

Talk to you soon! :)

Behave Yourself!

Today I want to show you the lovely Barielle that Jill sent to me in a prize pack when I won Best Holo pic in Glisten & Glow's 3rd Anniversary Contest!

Jill sent me a great prize!  HK Girl top coat is the top coat I swear by - can't live without it!  She also sent me an Apple Jack Peel Glis-tics Cuticle Oil stick. I love love love it & use it often!

I thanked Jill for choosing such an awesome prize pack for me (and my first Barielle) and she said that she felt that Behave Yourself would be a great color on me!  I think she was right! ;)

Barielle's Behave Yourself is a beautiful, frosty pink.  The first coat made me skeptical because it was soooo streaky.  The second coat evened it out nicely & only left a few streaks that are not noticeable unless you're looking very closely (which, unfortunately, is what happens with pics!).  This is two layers of Behave Yourself topped with my HK Girl top coat!  It wore well for a couple of days and I really enjoyed how shiny & girly my nails looked in the sun.

Thank you, Jill!  I want very much to link her site to my post but I am working from my phone because my computer has reached an untimely demise.  If you look in my sidebar, however, I do have a quick link to the Glisten & Glow shop because, like I said, I ADORE G&G!!!!!!

Talk to you soon!!! :)