Category Archives: Manicure Monday

Manicure Monday: Cracked Blue Frost

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Hello, readers! It’s Monday again, and I have another mani to show you. I’m wearing China Glaze’s Crackle Glaze in Oxidized Aqua over Julep’s Char, topped with one coat of Rica‘s Glossy Glam top coat.

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For a Julep polish, Char, a deep blue creme, is pretty good. I had almost-opaque coverage in one coat; I guess these darker colors use more pigment, because I never have to struggle with the darker colors, only the light ones. It dries with a beautiful gloss. One thing I do notice, however, is the smell; Julep polishes generally have a mild smell, but this one is way different and much stronger. I suspect the pigment is the culprit; I have a similar shade from OPI that has the same odd scent. I’m looking forward to wearing Char on its own.

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Over Char is Oxidized Aqua, an icy blue crackle polish. This is the part of the mani I don’t like so much. You know how it is with crackle polishes; you sacrifice many tiny cracks for good coverage. I wanted good coverage, and so I have one or two cracks on each nail, which looks pretty silly. Also, I had to redo some nails because the crackening never took place. Overall, I guess it isn’t that bad. I can talk about how lame the polish is, but I only have myself to blame. I didn’t have to use it.

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Let’s talk about the new top coat! I got a bottle of Rica’s Glossy Glam in the March/April Beauty Quartet Box. I’ve heard so many good things about this top coat and I see it everywhere, so I’m excited to have the chance to try it out myself. I’ve used it in two manis now (the first is one you’ll see later this week) and I’m pretty happy with it so far. It doesn’t feel totally dry after five minutes, so I’ll have to remember to give it ten. The shine is beautiful, and my nails are so smooth; I don’t feel any of the cracks or ridges from the crackle polish when I touch my nails. I find that impressive.

Char is available wherever Julep polishes are sold; I got mine from their website. Crackle Glaze appears to be discontinued by China Glaze; I got mine at Big Lots. Glossy Glam is available from their etsy shop.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Red Static

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Manicure Monday!! I’m posting super-late because real-life not-nails stuff is a little more important right now. Updates this week, unfortunately, will be late if they come at all, and I do apologize. For right now though, let’s look at my new nails! I’m wearing Julep’s Rose and Nails Inc.’s Belgravia Place, each at three coats, topped with one coat of Alter Ego‘s She Shines top coat.

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Julep’s Rose is a gorgeous creme whose color I can never quite pin down. Is it red? Is it pink? Is it the sweetest, ripest, juiciest raspberry? I have no idea, but I love the polish. It had good coverage at one coat, which I find unusual for a Julep creme. It also had a beautiful glossy shine, which I think the top coat dulled quite a bit.

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Belgravia Place is a clear glitter topper with red and silver holo bar glitters. I decided after my bar glitter swatch on Sunday that I would wear this one as a full coverage glitter. I did get full coverage, but not without a price; I couldn’t get the tips smooth and free of jagged glitter, no matter what I did. I pulled away the offending bits with tweezers, I trimmed them with cuticle scissors, I filed down and wrapped with top coat whatever was left, and I’m still getting things snagged on them. You can see on my ring finger where some fiber of who-knows-what is still stuck to it. So frustrating.

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I love both of these polishes, but I don’t feel good about this combo. In my office, Rose looks like a very red creme, but in other lighting conditions, it looks more pink, and the combo isn’t as cohesive as I’d have liked. I also expected something else from the glitter, like more red. I definitely thought I would have two very red shades here, and neither of them really lived up to my expectations. I don’t blame the polishes here, but I am a little disappointed, especially with all the work I spent trying to get this glitter to not cut me every time I scratch myself.

You can find Julep’s Rose and Nail Inc.’s Belgravia Place wherever these brands are sold. I happened to get mine from the Julep website and Sephora, respectively.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Skyglow and Yellow

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Manicure Monday is here! I think this week was kind of a dud. My base polish was pretty hard to work with and the mani quality suffers because of it. I’m wearing three coats of Sally Hansen’s Quick Canary with two coats of Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Prototype JJ 1.1 on my accent nails. All nails are topped with one coat of Alter Ego‘s She Shines top coat.

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I want to love this mani. I love the big clashing colors, and I love the glitter and how it overwhelms everything else, but I had so much trouble with Quick Canary that I’m put off the whole thing. I just could not get it to dry. I guess it needed to be thinned; the consistency was thick, but was still easy to apply, so I kept going and put down two more coats. Then I put on the glitter and top coat. Those dried, but Quick Canary was still wet, and so while I’m trying to clean up my cuticles, my top layers are sliding around on top of wet, gooey polish. Not cool, Sally. I did the best I could, but my cuticles are still a raging mess.

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I’m glad the other polish behaved. Prototype JJ 1.1 is a fun glitter topper; I’ve nicknamed it Skyline because it reminds me of a night out in the city; the bright lights of buildings, the glowing sky, the feeling of being swallowed up by the tall buildings and swathes of people. I love the frenetic pace of huge and complicated cities, and wearing this polish is wearing that energy on my nails. It’s the one redeeming thing about this manicure.

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Quick Canary is available wherever Sally Hansen polishes are sold; I got mine at Target. Prototype JJ 1.1 is a one-off bottle and is not available anywhere else. Other BEGL polishes are for sale in their shop.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Serenity Gray

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Manicure Monday today is awesome! I got to pair a favorite creme with an insane glitter shifter. I’m wearing two coats of Sally Hansen’s Grey Area with two coats of Digital Nails‘s Serenity on my accent nails. All nails are topped with one coat of Alter Ego‘s She Shines top coat.

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I almost don’t even want to bore you with the details of my gray polish. I know you’re not looking at it. You’re probably not even looking at these words, and I don’t blame you. Grey Area is a warm charcoal creme that’s pretty versatile. It’s one of the first polishes I bought to use for nail art, and it does everything well, even water marbles. It goes on opaque and smooth and glossy in one coat. It’s the best. I love it.

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Serenity, the show-stopping glitter you see here, is one of the most exciting polishes I have in my collection. The shift is so strong and so dramatic, and occurs in any lighting condition. I cannot stop waving my hands around in front of my computer monitors, just to see it happen. It’s green-to-purple at most angles, and when a light source is directly in front of it, the purple-to-pink-to-gold happens. It’s incredible. I’m just going to stop writing now and let you drool over this glitter.

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I really love this combo. The gray is dark and interesting, and the glitter just makes my eyes fall out of my head. It’s truly stunning. I’m also a little upset I waited this long to try it. Also, I’m trying the accent nails in a different place today because I saw other people do it and it’s cute.

Grey Area is available wherever Sally Hansen is sold; I think I got this bottle from Target. Serenity can be found in the Digital Nails shop.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Pink and Nude Watermarble

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For the first time on this blog, I tried a water marble. I’ve actually tried some before, but circumstances kept me from finishing them. This mani didn’t turn out quite the way I imagined it, but it’s growing on me. My water marble was done with L’oreal’s Broadway Boogie and Sinful Colors’s Timbleberry. I have one nail each with Broadway Boogie, Timbleberry, and Ciate’s Love Letter. All nails are topped with one coat of Alter Ego‘s She Shines top coat.

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At first I was just going to do a gradient with these colors, and then put the glitter on top. I’m so glad I did something different. Gradients are just so easy; they’re my fail-proof nail art look. I used to be hooked on watermarbles and did them constantly, but as I started to wear more indies, I just got used to laying down glitter and calling it a day. It feels good break away from that.

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A quick word about the polishes I used: Broadway Boogie, a warm nude creme, really lengthens my nails. Timbleberry, a bright warm pink, is very vibrant, though faded a little in the marble. Love Letter, a shifting pink-to-orange microglitter, complements the warm and cool tones in this look.

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I would love to do another look like this. I used to do so much nail art, and now I barely do any. I kind of miss it.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Blurple Jelly Sandwich

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I’ve been looking forward to this manicure for a lot of reasons. Number one, I adore this color. Number two, I’m using a Wacie Nail Company polish in an actual manicure. Number three, Wacie Nail Co. sales info is coming! I’m wearing two coats of Wacie Nail Company’s Dang! under three coats of Wet ‘n Wild’s Black Light Party and one coat of Alter Ego‘s She Shines top coat.

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On its own, Black Light Party isn’t that special on its own. It’s very translucent, and though it’s the perfect candidate for the jelly sandwich, I don’t feel like it gives enough coverage to make wearing it alone worthwhile. I put it on my toes without the glitter, and it just looks like a watery sad mess. The color is beautiful, though, and the pink-gold shimmers throughout really make it. It gives the holo glitters underneath just a tad more shine and fun.

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I was a little uncomfortable using Dang! as the glitter in this mani, but I think it worked out well. Mostly I was unsure whether I should. Even though Wacie Nail Co. has been in the works now for at least a year, I feel a little weird seeing it in a manicure. I also feel a little like a jerk talking about a polish nobody can buy yet. I was also unsure of how well Dang! would work as a full-coverage glitter. I didn’t have to worry about that, though; two coats was enough to cover my nail completely.

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In the sun, the blurple is much more on the purple side, and the glitters show really nicely through it. The heart glitters are a lot more obvious.

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So I promised Wacie Nail Co. info, and here it is: The shop will (finally) open this month! wacie.com’s second anniversary is Wednesday, and I’d hoped to have a couple of special polishes in stock by then, and to have Dang! in stock today, but it’s taken a lot longer to get some supplies in than I expected. I’d also like to bring some swatchers on board so you don’t have to take my word for it. I think that, at the soonest, the end of March is when you’ll finally be able to buy your own Wacie Nail Company polishes.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Pink and Glitter Cutesy

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It’s another dainty manicure today! Pink nail polish is the best. I’m wearing three coats of Julep’s Martha with three coats of Digital Nails‘s Bonnibel on my accent nails, as well as one coat of Alter Ego‘s She Shines top coat.

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I started with Martha, and believe it or not, I struggled to find a glitter to pair it with. I hear you, saying that it cannot be that hard to match something to a light pink. It’s really not. I have so many polishes, though, and so many possible combinations; I wanted something that was just right instead of good enough. Bonnibel turned out to be perfect; the pink crelly and Martha are about the same color. The glitter makes it sparkle just enough. This a soft, girly, and — here’s that word again — dainty look. I like it.

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I like this week’s polishes. Martha is a typical Julep creme; to call it a crelly might be more accurate. I used three coats because the second coat was still streaky and uneven. The third coat gave me full opacity. Bonnibel was opaque in two coats, but I used three because I wanted more glitter, especially the big round pink dots. My first coat totally lacked these; I had to sit the bottle upside down to flush them out. I’m really surprised at how well they go together.

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Martha is available from julep.com or wherever Julep polishes are sold. Bonnibel appears to be out of stock at Digital Nails (for now). You can shop the Digital Nails etsy shop here.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Teal Glitter Gradient

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I started this Manicure Monday with no real plan. I had a glitter and a bright base color, but I didn’t really know what to do. I thought at first I would use some nail vinyls to create a pattern, but I screwed it up. I tried stamping and blew that, too. I didn’t want to do a gradient because I always do those, but here we are. I used Sinful Colors’s Nail Junkie (how appropriate) and Essie’s Naughty Nautical, as well as two coats of Digital Nails‘s Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That top coat.

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Naughty Nautical is a teal polish with fine rainbow shimmer. Nail Junkie is a thin teal jelly with many colors of fine iridescent glitters. I paired them together thinking I would just wear Naughty Nautical as a base for Nail Junkie, but I thought that was boring and forced myself to do some nail art. It’s not as intricate and ambitious as I wanted it to be, but I like the look I got. I acheived it by putting down two coats of Nail Junkie, then doing the gradient. It looks like the glitter is sponged over the teal polish, but that’s not the case. I also considered painting another coat of glitter over the gradient, but I decided that what I had was enough. You can also see the nail with the stud has no gradient; it’s only the base color and glitter.

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I’m pretty happy with it. It’s been a while since I’ve done anything nail-arty and fun. I really want to do more of that instead of just painting glitter over a base. Also, I’m really embarrassed by how dry my hands look in these photos. I put lotion on before I took them, I swear.

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You can get these polishes wherever Essie and Sinful Colors are sold. Mine are from Walgreens.

I bought this polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Theory Black

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Another Monday, another manicure! I’m excited today because I’m got to use an indie polish I’ve had my eye on forever. It’s just as lovely as I imagined it would be! I’m wearing two coats of e.l.f.’s Sea Escape with one brushed coat of Kunimitsu Nail Potions‘s Beautiful Theory and one coat of Digital Nails‘s Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That top coat.

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Sea Escape is a black polish with teal shimmer. The shimmer is pretty weak and doesn’t show up much, even with top coat. It’s gorgeous in the bottle, but on the nail it’s not as obvious. The polish itself applied nicely; I got an opaque first coat, just like the last time I used an e.l.f. polish, so it’s got that going for it, at least. I hate to admit it, but these e.l.f. polishes are growing on me.

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Now let me tell you about the real star (pun!) of this manicure. Kunimitsu’s Beautiful Theory is a glitter topper made up mostly of purply iridescent glitters. There are also gray/greenish stars, purple butterflies, and other assorted purple and white hexes and shimmer. It looks absolutely magnificent over this black polish. The glitter brushes on very easily and dries quickly. It’s smooth to the touch after one coat of top coat. I really need to use this more.

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I got some sunlight photos. Even in the sun, Sea Escape still looks kind of blah. The turquoise flecks shine a little brighter, but not like it does in the bottle. Beautiful Theory looks about the same; the shimmers and iridescence pop out nicely in any lighting. I really love this mani. The dark colors and the chunky yet still delicate glitter feels really elegant.

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Sea Escape was in the e.l.f. Disney Villains collection we talked about a few posts ago. Sinful Colors’s What’s Your Name would be a more accessible dupe, I think. Kunimitsu Nail Potions are available from their etsy shop, though Beautiful Theory doesn’t appear to be in stock at this time.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Pre-Valentine’s Pretties

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My Manicure Monday post this week is accidentally romantic! I’d paired these two polishes together because I just liked the way they looked. Then it turned out their names were funny together. Then it just happened to be the Monday before Valentine’s Day! I actually really hate Valentine’s Day, but I never turn down an excuse to dress up and be pretty. I’m wearing three coats of OPI’s Sprung, one brushed coat of Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s Idealistic Future, and one coat of Digital Nails’s Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That top coat.

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Sprung is a lovely metallic copper with gold and cinnamon shimmers. It’s very shiny and reflective; if you look at the photo where I’m holding the bottle, you can see the reflection of my fingers on the polish. How crazy is that? I’m not sure I’ve ever used a polish that metallic. I didn’t notice it until I put it on. I almost feel a little bad about covering up all that shimmer with glitter, but it shines right through it. It’s awesome.

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I used these two polishes together because I felt like Idealistic Future was the only glitter topper I had that could stand up to Sprung. Sprung has so much going on in it; there’s so much shimmer and color that any glitter I chose either competed with it or demanded too much attention. This was the only glitter that coexisted with it.Even though this look is perfect for the Valentine’s Day weekend, I’m probably not going to wear it that long. I have some super-awesome swatches lined up.

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Sprung is discontinued by OPI, but it looks like a few are still available online. I get my other OPI polishes at Ulta. Idealistic Future has been discontinued by Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer, but you can purchase other BEGLs from their shop.

I bought these polishes myself.