Stamping with MPolish Snowberry!

Hey y'all!

Tonight on the blog I have some simple stamping over a jelly polish base. 

Here's a picture of the polishes and stamping plate I used to create this look:

Left to right: Essie protein base, Mango Bunny Fern Bunny, MPolish Snowberry, Seche Vite
Front: Cici&Sisi plate #3

I started as usual with my base coat to protect my nail and then followed that up with painting Fern Bunny on all of my nails. I waited a few minutes for that to mostly dry and then moved on to the stamping portion. I decided to keep with the theme of the polish which felt very forest-y to me so I chose a leaf pattern to stamp over the base color.

Leaf image from Cici&Sisi plate #3

I used MPolish Snowberry for the leave image on my nails. You can find this awesome stamping polish HERE. 

I waited for the stamping images to dry for a few minutes and then top coated with Seche Vite. Here's a macro to show the details of the stamping. I am thrilled with the results.

What is your favorite way to use nail stamping? 

MPolish watermarble

Hey y'all! 

Today on the blog, I have these glorious watermarble nails brought to you by MPolish. MPolish is an up and coming indie polish brand that specializes in FIVE free stamping polish. 

I purchased the full spring line on the date of launch, February 17th and she sold out minutes later! Keep reading and you'll see why! 

Colors (left to right): Apricot Delight, Starflower, Apple Blossom, Sweet Clover, Snowberry, and Bells Of Ireland. 

The spring line of MPolish includes 6 iridescent colors that work best when stamped (or watermarbled in this case)   over a darker color. They are beautiful over almost any color but when you put them over a darker base, they almost glow. 

(I am loving the idea of taking a macro this way, I totally borrowed the idea from my friend Manna over at Manna's Manis. Go check her out!)

Here's a picture of the polishes I used for this marble:

Shown here (left to right): Essie protein base, Zoya Sailor, MPolish Apple Blossom, Snowberry, and Starflower, Seche Vite 

Pictures do not do these polishes justice, you really must see them in person. I cannot stop staring at my nails! 

Even though they're stamping polishes, I had to try watermarbling with them. My thought process went something like: I watermarble with the same mainstream polishes that I use for stamping > MPolish is a stamping polish so it's highly pigmented > let's give this a whirl. 

Isn't it beautiful? 

Now, I won't say that I had an easy time getting them to spread at first but I was using cold tap water. It's typically easier to get polish to spread in room temperature water. I will be trying this with them again using room temp water so I can report on their true watermarbling abilities. 

*****UPDATE: I tried marbling with them again with room temperature water and they spread like a dream!*****

What I can say is that these polishes are unlike any others I have in my collection of over 300 polishes both in quality and distinctive finish on the nail. You will not be disappointed in MPolish and you definitely need the whole collection even if you're not an avid stamper as they can be used for other nail art techniques! 

As I stated before, MPolish sold out during her launch, but she is currently accepting pre-orders for a second release of the full spring line. You can place your order HERE.

What polishes are you most looking forward to for the spring? Did you manage to snatch up some MPolish?

**these polishes were purchased by me. The review aspect of this post express opinions that are solely my own.** 

Polish Me Silly Jam and Jelly Oh My! swatch and review

Hey y'all!

Today on the blog I have a new (to me) polish by Polish Me Silly called Jam and Jelly Oh My! I have been itching to purchase a thermal polish and then I saw this one in a destash and had to snatch it up.  

Shown here is three easy, thin coats with Seche Vite top coat. As soon as I finished this mani, I knew I was going to be in deep, deep love with this polish. Its like an instant gradient on your nails! I will have to say though, I was nervous after the first coat because it was VERY sheer. By the second coat, I was starting to think I had bought a dud because I could still see my visible nail line. I decided to go ahead and add a third coat and boy am I glad I did! After that third coat, I could see the color shifting start and I was giddy. I added a coat of Seche Vite to help it dry faster. I am happy to say that my top coat did not mess with the thermal effects of this polish. Way to go Polish Me Silly! 

How about some macros to show how this polish shifts in different temps? 

First up is how the polish looks after I dipped my hand into warm water. Its a lovely pink with tiny micro flakies through out. A stunner on its own buttttt...

Then we see the macro of this polish in its cold state - after I dipped my fingers into cold water. It changes to a lovely blurple shade with pink micro flakies throughout. Both versions of this polish are stunning but nothing is as pretty as the effect it naturally had on my nail. Mostly pink with a gradient to purple at the tip.

(I am still loving macros with the polish name. I totally got the idea from my friend Manna over at Manna's Manis).

Do you own any thermals? Do you have a favorite? I would love to find some more great ones!

**this polish was purchased by me. All opinions expressed in the review portion of this post are my own.**

Mango Bunny Fern Bunny swatch and review

Hey y'all!

Today on the blog, I am featuring a brand new (to me) polish that I purchased from a destash of a fellow polish lover. This polish is made by the brand Mango Bunny, a five free indie polish brand that specializes in fun crelly and jelly finish polishes. Meet Fern Bunny: 

That. Jelly. Though. 

Jelly and crelly polishes are a somewhat new obsession for me and I just cannot get enough of them. When I came across Fern Bunny in a destash, I had to have it. 

Fern Bunny can be described as a dark green jelly packed full of a mixture of small white glitter and larger triangle glitter. It's like an instant jelly sandwich in a bottle. 

I totally stole the idea to take my macro this way from my polish friend, Manna over at Manna's Manis. I think it looks so neat to have the name of the brand or polish next to a swatch.

It dries to a glossy finish on its own but it is shown here in two easy coats with Seche Vite on top for extra glossy shiny goodness. I did have to leave the polish sitting upside down for a little while (think minutes) so that the triangles would be easier to fish out, but it was worth it! 

Fern Bunny is a part of Mango Bunny's "Bunny Tails" collection that released right around the holiday 2014 season. It is still available on Mango Bunny's SITE!

What is your favorite jelly polish? I'm always looking for more! 

**this polish was purchased by me, I am not affiliated with Mango Bunny polish. All opinions expressed in this post are my own.**

Monthly mani swap!

Hey y'all!

Today on the blog I have the pictures from the monthly mani swap I participate in! 

My lovely partner hails from a fantastic group I'm a part of on Babycenter. It's truly the happiest place on the Internet. You can find her on INSTAGRAM (and you should because she's super talented)! I picked her quatrefoil design and she picked my houndstooth design. I love how they turned out! 

Here's a picture of what I used: 

Left to right: Nail Envy, Funky Fingers Partly Cloudy, Zoya Lordeana, Seche Vite, and NYC Matte Me Crazy. I also used my large green dotting tool and the medium sized blue one for the design. The awesome thing that I couldn't get a picture of was the solar changing properties of Partly Cloudy. The couple of days I wore this mani, there was no sun! 

Here's a solo shot of my mani swap: 

What do you think of this design? I love how elegant it looks! 

Nail Polish Indie Brand - Barbie Girl

Hey y'all!

Tonight on the blog, I have this beautiful polish to show off (again). I reviewed several polishes from Nail Polish Indie Brand back in the fall but I feel like I've really amped up my swatching game since then. So here we have a new swatch of Barbie Girl! 

This polish combines all three of my favorite things that one can find in the polish world: holographic glitter, jelly squishyness, and bright neon pigment! 

I mean, just look at it! LOOK! 

Barbie Girl is such a beautiful polish with a winning formula. It is a jelly polish so while it has great converage, you can still see the visible nail line. It is shown here in two coats with one coat of Seche Vite. 

It definitely looks different in certain lighting but the neon always pops.

Look at all those gorgeous little glitters! 

As you can tell, I'm kind of in love with this polish, and all of the polishes by Nail Polish Indie Brand. If you want to check them out, you can find them HERE. 

What's your favorite nail polish finish? 

**this polish was originally sent to me as a press sample for my honest review** 

Gradient bow nails!

Hey y'all! 

Today on the blog, I have these super girly gradient nails with a bow charm accent nail. 

I was really pleased with how these turned out. I'm not typically enthusiastic about 3D nail art or nail charms but I decided to step out of my comfort zone and give them a chance. 

I purchased these bow charms from Amazon. 

Aren't they darling? 

Here's a shot of the polishes I used:

Left to right: Essie protein base coat, Zoya Bar, OPI Flamingo Tini Pink, OPI You're Such A Budapest, Zoya Willa, Zoya Purity, and Seche Vite. 

________________________________

I started out as usual by applying my base coat. I've really been struggling with my nails peeling which is why I switched to the protein base coat. I've only been using it a couple of weeks so I'm not sure how much it's doing for me yet but I will keep y'all updated. 

After my base coat was on, I put two coats of Zoya Purity on my index, ring, and pinky fingers and two coats of Zoya Bar on my middle finger and thumb. I topped my middle finger and thumb with Seche Vite. 

That sparkle though...

Moving on to my gradient nails, I used both of the OPI's and a regular makeup sponge to create the gradient. I made three passes over both index fingers and both pinky fingers and immediately topped with Seche Vite after the third pass. 

Moving on to the accent nail, I used a small dotting tool and Zoya Willa to create the dots and allowed that nail about 5 minutes or so to dry so I could top coat without smearing the art. I applied Seche Vite to the entire nail and gently applied the bow charm to the nail with a pair of tweezers and allowed the top coat to dry. I took a macro because adorable! 

A few thoughts about these charms - they're affordable and super cute but they definitely aren't practical. I lost one off my right hand while I was sleeping last night! All in all, I'm calling them worth it though because they just add such a ultra feminine flair to any mani. 

What are your favorite nail art supplies? Do you like 3D nail art? 

Stamping over a glitter base!

Hey y'all! 

Tonight on the blog, I have some stamping nail art for you! 

I wasn't super happy with how this came out because the stamping isn't very visible over the glitter base. The idea was good I think, but the execution was poor. 

Here's what I used:

Lots of polishes! From left to right, Essie Protein Base, Zoya Tilda, Zoya Staasi, Zoya Jesi, Zoya Binx, Zoya Willa, and Seche Vite. 

I started with the base coat, and once that was dry I put Zoya Tilda on my index, pinkie, and thumb. I did two coats of Tilda and then topped with Seche Vite. Moving on to the middle fingers, I sponged on Staasi, Jesi, and Binx with a makeup sponge. I went over each nail 3 times to achieve opacity. I wish I had taken a picture of how it looked before I stamped it because it was so pretty! 

After my glitter based had dried most of the way, I stamped with Zoya Willa over it using Cici&Sisi plate #8. Here's a macro of the stamping. You can see the details better here:

Overall, I liked the mani, it just didn't turn out the way I had pictured in my head. I decided to share anyway because I made a promise to myself that I would share my fails as well as my wins. 

Do you have a mani that didn't turn out the way you wanted? 

Peacock nails!

Hey y'all! 

Today on the blog I have these super cute peacock nails! 

This was one of those manis that I didn't really have a clear vision for when I started. I just sort of went where my inspiration took me! 

Here's a picture of what I used: 

Left to right: Nail Envy, Zoya Staasi, Zoya Jacqueline, Zoya Willa, Seche Vite 

I also used water decals from Born Pretty Store and my blue dotting tool for the design. 

Here's a macro of one of the designs, look how cute those water decals are! 

And a macro of Zoya Staasi. I absolutely adore this polish! 

I'm really happy with how these turned out. I usually don't like how my unplanned manis turn out but these were a pleasant surprise. 

Have you used water decals? What are some of your favorite looks to use them for? 

 

Simple glam Valentine's Day makeup!

Hey y'all! 

I've slowly been working on getting the courage to blog about makeup and do some tutorials. This is my first one! Eep! It's a simple glam look that can be good for any time but I thought the red lip really said: VALENTINES DAY!!! 

So let me start by showing you most of what I used:

All of the products on my face and eyes are as follows:

- Loreal True Match in N3 mixed with Elf shimmering facial whip in Spotlight

- Elf Shadow Primer to prep my eyelids 

- Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette: White Chocolate and Champagne Truffle 

- Loreal Infallible gel liner in blackest black for my winged liner 

-Loreal Infallible Voluminous Smouldering liner in black on my waterline 

- Tarte Lights Camera Lashes on my lashes 

- Mirabella primer for face

- Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Brightener/Illuminator for concealer and under eye brightening 

- Be A Bombshell Smooth Criminal Powder to set my under eyes 

- Elf bronzer in St. Lucia for contour

- Elf baked blush in Peachy Cheeky 

- Elf matte lip color in Rich Red

- NYX brow gel in chocolate 

- home made makeup setting spray 

Most of the steps:

So here's what I did: 

1. Start with clean, moisturized skin. 

2. Prime eyelids. 

3. Dusted White Chocolate all over my lid up to the brow bone and then dusted Champagne Truffle over that. 

4. Did a medium sized wing with my eyeliner and also filled in my waterline. 

5. Curled my lashes and applied 2 coats of mascara. 

6. Prep face with primer. 

6. Placed dots of foundation and shimmering facial whip all over my face and then blended it in with my flat top kabuki brush. 

7. Applied my concealer under my eyes in a V shape. Applied the same concealer to my nose, in between my brows, and along my jaw for a highlighting effect. I blended all of this in with my flat top kabuki. 

8. Set my concealer with my powder. 

9. Contoured using the bronzer. 

10. Applied blush to the apples of my cheeks. 

11. Filled in my brows with NYX brow gel in Chocolate and set them with clear brow mascara by Elf. 

12. Applied my lip color. 

13. Set my face with setting spray. 

I hope this is informative and helpful. If you're curious for more information, please let me know! 

What do you think of this look? What makeup look will you be rocking for Valentine's Day? 💋💋💋

Bestie twin nails - Valentine's watermarble edition!

Hey y'all!

Tonight on the blog, I have this super cute pink watermarble that is perfect for Valentine's Day! 

One of my best nail buds and I decided to team up for bestie twin nails. Say hello to Megatuce! 

If you haven't visited her blog or Instagram, you're definitely missing out. Not only is this woman an amazing nail artist (can you say stamper extraordinaire??) but she is also about to release her very own line of 5 free stamping polishes AND the best part is that she is an amazing person. Megatuce is one of the sweetest, funniest women I have ever had the pleasure of knowing and I have the world of nail art to thank for bringing us together! 

/end sappyness! 

Here is a shot of our nails side by side. Aren't hers just stunning? 

And here is a shot of what I used to create mine: 

The watermarble was done with OPI Kiss Me I'm Brazilian and Orly White Tips, and the heart details were free handed with white acrylic craft paint and a small detail brush from Michael's craft store. 

I am so happy to have had the opportunity to do this with Mega. And again, go check her out . You can find her on Instagram and on her BLOG. Her highly anticipated polishes should be releasing this month! 

Nautical Dotticure!

Hey y'all! 

Tonight on the blog I have this nautical dotticure featuring Zoya Sailor and Zoya Rebel. I kind of felt like I needed a break from all of the Valentine-y colors! This was my first time using Rebel and...be still my heart. This polish is to die for! 

Here's a shot of what I used:

Pretty simple tools tonight, anyone can recreate this mani! I started with a base of OPI Nail Envy to protect my nails since they've been peeling terribly lately. I moved on to my case colors after that - Sailor on my index, middle, and pinkie, Rebel on my ring and thumb. I used the smaller side of my white dotting tool to create the dots and inverted the colors. Once I was finished, I debated adding something else and after much consideration, decided to add an anchor on my ring finger. I used gold acrylic craft paint and a small detail brush that I cut down to a very thin brush. Both the paint and the brush are from Michael's craft store. 

Once the mani was mostly dry, I top coated with my usual, Seche Vite. I am really pleased with how this turned out. It definitely feels out of my normal range of manis and I like that it's simple enough that anyone can do it! 

What do you think of this look? What are your favorite colors to pair up for dotticures?