Manicure Monday: Monochrome with Accents

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

It’s Manicure Monday! Today I’m wearing Lost Soul from LA Colors, and my accent polish is L’Oreal’s The Sparklicious. I have on three coats of Lost Soul, one sponged coat of The Sparklicious on my accent nails, and one coat of Seche Vite.

Lost Soul is a cool gray polish with a faint silver shimmer. I’m always a little afraid of these LA Colors polishes; the quality is hit or miss. I’m happy to say this one is pretty good. The consistency is thin, but even; this actually looked pretty nice at one coat. That said, I still went for three coats, because I wanted it to be very opaque to support the glitter.

The Sparklicious is a clear glitter topper with holo silver bars with black and holo silver hexes. The glitter didn’t brush on well, and left behind a lot of clear lacquer. I don’t like to dab glitter on with a brush, so I brushed it onto a sponge and applied it that way. It’s not very even, but that’s not noticeable at first. The black and silver glitters complement the gray polish well.

I was hoping the baby shimmer in Lost Soul would be more apparent in the sunshine; it is just barely visible, but still more visible in the sun than in the studio. Those holo glitters just blow up, though.

The one thing I don’t like: when I apply the glitter this way, no amount of top coat can ever smooth it down. There’s still a lot of texture there. I’m okay with some texture, but having it on only a couple nails is kind of annoying.

Manicure Monday: Minimalism with Color

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

I really love this week’s Manicure Monday. I paired these two together on a whim, not really knowing if they went together or not. This is one dabbed coat of Literary Lacquers‘s My Secret Garden over three coats of Revlon’s Barely Blush, topped with one coat of Seche Vite.

As you can see, Barely Blush is a polish I’ve had for a long, long time. I’ve raved about Revlon’s Sweet Nothings collection before, and how easy they are to wear; even though they can be layered over anything and still look amazing, I’ve only ever worn them alone. I love the pearly, subtle shimmer over bare nails so much. Barely Blush is a sheer nude with a pink-to-purple shift and tiny iridescent glitters. I love it. I can’t get over it.

My Secret Garden from Literary Lacquers is a clear glitter topper with pink, lavender, blue, yellow and green matte hexes with iridescent sparkles. I was afraid the glitter would overpower the softness of the base color, and that the base color wouldn’t be a strong enough foundation for it. I’m so glad I was wrong. The bright glitters definitely stand out, but I don’t think it takes too much away from the rest of the manicure. It also looks very nice over Barely Blush: the twinkly glitters in My Secret Garden and the pink pearl shimmer in Barely Blush lift each other up quite well. It’s like a marriage made in polish heaven.

Outdoors, sunlight

I’m also going to say this counts for the Summer of Untrieds Challenge, since this is the first time I’ve used My Secret Garden, and it’s the first time I’ve featured Literary Lacquers on the blog. Everybody wins.

Manicure Monday: Sweet Pink and Bold Glitter

Posted on June 23, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

Manicure Monday is good this week. Everything I love is here: pink, glitter, shine; I couldn’t hate this if I wanted to. For this manicure, I’m wearing two coats of Julep’s Carrie with two coats of China Glaze’s Razzle Me Dazzle Me on my accent nails. All nails are topped with one coat of Seche Vite.

Carrie is a sweet candy pink creme. It’sa really nice polish, though I wish I’d gone with three coats instead of two. Consistent with my Julep experience, the first coat was streaky and thin, and while the second coat did a lot to even out the color, there are still some bald spots. Other than that, I like it a lot. I have no other complaints than the coverage.

Razzle Me Dazzle Me is a graffiti-style glitter from China Glaze, filled with various shapes and sizes of black and pink glitters. At first, I didn’t notice the pink glitters were pink; they appear silver at first look, but are much rosier and smokier than silver. In any case, they give off a ton of shine. The black glitters are much more prominent, obviously, so much so that it overpowers the base color. I didn’t plan to use two coats of glitter, but the first coat was kind of lopsided, and I wanted to even it out. Mission accomplished, I guess.

This is an outdoor shot. It was cloudy out there, so I didn’t get many good shots, but I wanted to show you this one because of how shiny the glitter is. See how it looks green? I was standing in front of a tree. And in the other photos where it looks gold? That’s my yellow shirt.

I love this manicure. I don’t wear pink polish often enough.

Manicure Monday: Double Reverse Green on Green Gradient

Posted on June 16, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

So for this Manicure Monday, I did some actual nail art instead of phoning it in with glitter. I always feel a little weird when I do a glitterless mani, like my nails are still naked somehow. This week, I did a double reverse gradient with Julep’s Payton and Color Club’s Twiggie. Payton is shown on the non-accent nails with two coats. All nails have a coat of Seche Vite top coat and Hard Candy’s Matte-ly in Love. Photos were taken indoors and outdoors.

So the colors I chose this week go well together, but were still somewhat incongruous. Payton is a gorgeous kelly green creme that went on sheer with the first coat; the second coat even it out, but it was still deliciously shiny, a finish I’d expect from a jelly. Twiggie was a much more solid creme, and was opaque on its first coat. Together, Twiggie is the foundation of the gradient, and I didn’t get the opacity I expected from Payton, and the resulting gradient left me a little underwhelmed. Payton was so sheer that it didn’t cover over Twiggie as well as I thought it would. I will say this, though: I hated putting the matte coat over Payton. It was so shiny and so beautiful on its own that I felt like I was sucking the life of it by mattifying it. I really felt like I did this polish a disservice.

If you’re wondering how to do the double reverse gradient, it’s way simpler than it looks. Here’s the tutorial:

1. After you lay down your base colors, do a gradient the same way you usually do. For what it’s worth, I like to use eyeshadow sponge applicators instead of makeup wedges; for me, it’s more precise and makes less of a mess.

2. After your first gradient is dry, put down your striping tape as desired.

3. Do your second gradient, reversing the colors from the first gradient.

4. Peel off the tape, apply your top coat, and you’re done!

Outdoors, full sun

This really looked better in my head. I expected a stronger difference between the colors, but the sheerness of Payton didn’t make that possible. I also feel like I’m missing something; maybe I should have done a coat of Fairy Dust or something under Payton, just to add a little extra sparkle. On the plus side, and this was completely unintentional, it reminds me of a soccer field. I have been so caught up in watching the World Cup matches that I’ve been unable to think of much else. Despite the issues I’ve had with the polish compatibility, I love how this turned out.

PS: I have Payton on my toes as well. I love it. It’s like every toe is cosplaying as the toe from The Big Lebowski.

Manicure Monday: Gold and Glitter Magic

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

Manicure Monday this week was amazingly fun. I’ve got two polishes that, at first, don’t look like they would pair together well at all. Somehow, though, it works. I’ve got on three coats of Disney Villain Varnish Queen of Hearts, with Digital Nails’s When Life Gives You Lemons as an accent. Photos were taken in the studio and outdoors.

When I think of the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland, I don’t think of gold. Just saying. Regardless of what villain this polish was meant to evoke, it’s a beautiful rich, warm gold with tiny microglitters. It takes three coats of achieve full opacity, but the application is smooth and easy. I kind of feel bad that I don’t use it very often. This is the first time I’ve used it as the main color in a manicure, and I didn’t realize what a beauty it is. It’s totally gorgeous.

When Life Gives You Lemons is a Digital Nails glitter. I feel like that’s all I need to say. It’s a clear base with an impressive show of purple and gold glitters, yellow holo dots and stars, tiny bar glitter (which I actually didn’t notice until I was reviewing my photos), shreds, iridescents…. The sheer amount of glitter in this bottle should be overwhelming, but isn’t. It spreads smoothly and evenly, even the large shapes. It’s also incredible in the sunlight.

While I’m not sure where you can still find the Villains Varnish collection, Digital Nails still has a few bottles of When Life Gives You Lemons in their etsy store. (It feels really good to review something that’s still available, for once.) The price is a bit higher than usual, but it was created as a charity item, with the profits from each bottle going to Alex’s Lemonade Stand, and will fund cancer research. To date, this and its sister polish, I’m a Survivor, are the most expensive polishes I’ve ever bought, but I know I bought more than nail polish; I bought a little bit of hope.

Manicure Monday: Soft Steel Shimmer

Posted on April 21, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

Today’s Manicure Monday is softer and simpler than I usually like to be. I feel strange when I do these simple manicures and actually like them; it’s like I’m growing up or something. I’ve heard my mother dismiss colors with the phrase “Maybe if I was younger”, and I’d think “Who cares?” When I do subdued manis like these, I feel like I’m becoming my mother. Here, I’m wearing three coats of China Glaze’s Recycle, with Essie’s Pure Pearlfection on the accents.

Recycle is a color I’ve liked for a while. I’ve been using it a long time; this is actually my second bottle of it. It’s a nice neutral, and it’s so versatile; nearly every glitter or effect topper works well with it, and it looks good alongside any color in a gradient or dotticure. I bought it for the first time a couple of years ago because I needed a soft gray for a look and could never find the right one. It goes on well, it wears well, and I’ll probably buy it until I die.

Sunlight shot!

Pure Pearlfection was one of the first Essie polishes I ever bought, and this is the first time I’ve ever used it. I feel like this is the weakest entry in the LuxEffects line; it’s pretty, but it’s no Shine of the Times. However, I feel like maybe these polishes were made for each other; on their own, they’re subtle. Together, they are magical.

Wacie Wednesday: Dang

Posted on April 16, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

It’s Wednesday, and right on schedule, we’re looking at something new from Wacie Nail Company. This is Dang, a blinding glitter topper, named for the first thing I said after I created it. I’m wearing one coat of it over The New Black’s Black, e.l.f.’s Smokin Hot, and Essie’s Aruba Blue.

Dang is another happy accident; it’s the result of mixing glitters together without intention. It’s a clear base with various sizes of holo silver hexes and holo silver hearts. Because there’s so much glitter in it, it’s impossible to not get a good glitter payoff. However, the hearts don’t come out very frequently; as you can see, I didn’t get one on every nail. It doesn’t even matter if the hearts are scarce, though. There’s tons of glitter to make up for it.

Something I like about this mixture is that it’s sparkly (to the point of blindness in the sunlight), but it’s not trying too hard for it. There’s not a ton of different shapes and colors and craziness jumping out at you for attention. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that kind of polish; those kinds of polishes are what drew me to indies in the first place. No, this is a glitter that glitters. It’s like a formal gown for your nails. Like diamond earrings for your nails. They’re your nails, but glitterier. I actually wore this to a red carpet party during awards season. My nails were dressed better than anybody.

Outdoors, shade

Outdoors, sunlight

I admit, I thought Wacie Nail Co. would have launched by now. Other projects I’m involved with are taking priority over my nail polish business, and it might be a while before I have a chance to reclaim all the time and money I’m putting into other things. My time is going to schoolwork and other entrepreneurial things; my money is all going to the vacation I’m taking next month. I’d planned eight polishes for the Wacie Nail Co. first-ever spring line, but as of right now, there are only seven; I haven’t had the time or means to save one from prototype limbo. Hopefully, there will be a launch before summer. If not, the spring line will become the summer line, which actually works out since I don’t have plans for a summer line. Either way, it will be soon. Please continue to watch this space for more Wacie Nail Co. news.

Manicure Tuesday: Harvest Glitter on Brown

Posted on April 15, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

I’m back! I had an unexpected hiatus last week; I underestimated my workload and didn’t have time to take photos of my nails. I did do a puzzle piece manicure that was in theme with my job, but I didn’t have the time to take proper photos of it. My thrice-a-week blogging schedule will resume this week. Due to exhaustion, this week’s manicure post is a little late. For Mani Tuesday, I’m wearing Pretty & Polished’s Hows About a Roll in the Hay over Julep’s Vera.

Vera isn’t such a bad polish, really. I have on three coats here, but I could have gotten away with two. The formula is typical of Julep polish: thin but easy to use, quick-drying and shiny. I just can’t get past it being the same color as chocolate milk. I actually forgot chocolate milk was a thing until I had to work early one morning, my friend had some in the fridge, and I had flashbacks about grade school cafeteria lunches the whole rest of the day. Now I can’t get past this polish being Yoo-Hoo brown.

I had really high hopes for Hows About a Roll in the Hay from Pretty & Polished. I ordered it as soon as I laid eyes on it and couldn’t wait to get it. I own many of the P&P thermal polishes and a few of their glitters; I’ve been very happy with them. In this one, the glitter sinks, leaving a quarter-inch layer of lacquer all around the top of the bottle. My first application attempt left me with a thick layer of polish with maybe two pieces of glitter. I had to leave the bottle turned upside-down for 15 minutes before I got a good glitter distribution. This is probably not a problem; there’s actually a ton of glitter in this bottle, and it’s probably perfectly reasonable for it to settle and sink a bit. I’ve never had this happen with any of my P&Ps, so that’s why I feel a bit annoyed by it.

Despite the trivial issues I have with the polishes, I’m happy with the look I got. I like the autumnal warmth of the color combination. It also reminds me of breakfast foods. And grandma couches.

Manicure Monday: Green Green Ocean

Posted on March 24, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

It’s Manicure Monday again! This week I’m wearing Green Ocean from Sinful colors over various greens. At least, they were green before I started. This is one coat of Green Ocean over two coats of Julep’s Fiona, Revlon’s Posh, and Zoya’s Envy.

Green Ocean is a ton of iridescent shred and hex glitter floating in a green-tinted base. As you can see, depending on the color it’s layered over, the glitter looks different, as is the case with most iridescent glitter. Over the yellow-green Fiona, the blue color is the most obvious. Over Posh, it’s the darker blue-to-purple. Over the dark Envy, the shape of the glitters is more defined. Shredded glitter sometimes stands up and doesn’t lay flat on the nail; I used two coats of Seche Vite to smooth it down, but I still have some bumps and points from it. Despite that, this is still one of my favorite glitters. You can tell by looking at the bottle; I’ve had this bottle for years, and even though this is it’s first time on the blog, it’s a pretty well-loved polish.

A quick word to the other polishes I used: Julep’s Fiona is a yellow-green with good coverage; it dries to satiny finish. Revlon’s Posh dries with a beautiful shine, but remains still a bit translucent after two coats. Zoya’s Envy is so dark it may as well be black, but it looks great after two coats .The colors do appear a little different after applying the glitter coat, and I can’t tell if the green tint of Green Ocean is strong enough to change it, or if it just looks different because of the glitter. Either way, these nails are totally blinding in the sunlight, and they’re a ton of fun to wear.

I know the last day of spring was last week, but this is probably the best spring manicure I could have hoped for.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Custom Gin and Tonic

Posted on March 15, 2014 by Stacie Wacie

I’m sharing with you today one of the most unique polishes in my collection. At some point, perhaps intoxicated, I thought that a nail polish mimicking the crisp, bubbly appearance of gin and tonic would be a really cool thing to have. I thought about making it myself, but it would be many months before I started blending my own polishes, so I commissioned a custom polish from Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer. I don’t think it could have come out any better. I’m wearing two coats of Gin and Tonic over L’oreal’s Broadway Boogie and The New Black’s Black, as well as two coats of Seche Vite.

Gin and Tonic is a glitter topper with loads of iridescent glitter, white dots in large and small sizes, and green crescent moons. The combination really does evoke the effervesence of the cocktail. I forget whose idea the moons as limes was, but it was totally genius.

I’ve worn this before over nudes, but I wanted to try over black this time, just to see what it looked like. I’m not liking it as much. The iridescent glitters look awesome on the black, but the moon limes get lost. Besides, the iridescents aren’t really the point anyway. They’re meant to add a little something extra to the nail without totally taking it over. I guess this means it’s not as versatile as it could be, but it suits my purpose and my tastes well enough. The only problem with it is that it makes me wish I was drinking a gin and tonic.

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