Tag Archives: accent nails

Swatch Sunday: Nicole by OPI’s Love Your Life

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Happy Sunday, reader! My swatch today is of a polish I’ve had for a long time. This was 2009 or so, long before indie polish came into my life. I had ten dollars to burn and I was at Ulta. I found a polish with heart glitter in it and the rest is history. This is Love Your Life from Nicole by OPI; I’m wearing one brushed coat over OPI’s Don’t Bossa Nova Me Around (taupe), Ciaté’s Sugar Plum (lavender), and Sally Hansen’s Kelp Yourself (green), as well as one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Love Your Life is a clear-based glitter topper with matte pastel pink heart glitters and a mix of fine iridescent hex glitters. Application was okay; the base is thick — unsure of whether this is due to formula or to age — and the bigger glitters tended to sink and had to be fished after. The iridescent glitters distribute well, at least. The hearts are a bit difficult to control with the brush; I kind of just brushed them on and left them where they landed. Though the product consistency was thick, it dried quickly, and with a glossy finish. I added top coat for protection and shine.

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You probably already have some fun dainty pink heart glitter polishes already from an indie, and if you do, you don’t need this polish. If you don’t, though, I do recommend it. It’s pretty simple, it’s just hearts and iridescent glitter, but I think it works. It’s annoying that the hearts are a little hard to get out, but it’s actually a good thing because you can control how many you want. You can make a mani as wild or as demure as you like. It also goes well over most colors, because it’s so light and pink. I actually really like it over these pastel cremes; when I swatch, I like to use some constrasting colors to make the swatch visually appealing, as well as show it some colors it might not normally be used over. I had to go for pastels this time, though, because it’s got that perfect Valentine’s candy vibe.

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Love Your Life and other Nicole by OPI polishes are available at Ulta and other stores nationwide.

I bought this polish myself.

Manicure Monday: Green Glass Gold

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Happy Monday, reader! I have to admit, I’m not all that pleased with the way my mani turned out today. Have you ever paired two polishes together thinking they’ll look great together, but then they don’t? That’s exactly what happened today. For this Manicure Monday, I’m wearing Color Club’s Fly With Me with The New Black’s Textured Gold Leaf Foil. All nails are topped with Seche Vite top coat.

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Fly With Me is gorgeous, right? It’s a translucent green with green-to-gold shifting flecks. I really loved this collection because the shifty flecks give these polishes a finish all their own. I don’t have anything else like them. The end result is part metallic, part shift, all shine and glamour. I love it.

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You can see the green shift best here.

You can see the green shift best here.

It’s the Textured Gold Leaf Foil that I don’t love. I mean, there are things about it I love: I really love that the glitter pieces are inconsistent; some are really chunky, some are fine. I love how reflective it is; I can see myself in that really huge piece on my middle nail. However, when it says it’s textured, it means the chunky pieces, either due to the pieces piling up on themselves or to just plain being chunky, tend to stick up in places, leaving bumps on the surface of the mostly-smooth nail. Even two coats of Seche Vite wasn’t enough to smooth it down. It also doesn’t stand out enough from the gold flecks in Fly With Me, that’s really the problem I have with it here. It blends in too well and just looks odd. I shouldn’t blame the polish for my mistake, I suppose. Not every combination can be a hit, and sometimes we don’t learn that until it’s too late.

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Sunlight photos! You can really see the translucence of Fly With Me here; note the visible nail line on the index finger. Also, the Gold Foil is really shiny here. You can see my striped sweatshirt.

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Fly With Me is discontinued by Color Club; other Color Club polishes are sold on colorclub.com. The Textured Gold Leaf Foil is sold as part of the Shattered Demi Lovato set; that’s available at the-new-black.com.

I bought these polishes myself.

Swatch Sunday: Nails Inc.’s Cornwall

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Welcome to Swatch Sunday! Today’s polish is Cornwall from Nails Inc. I’m wearing one coat over China Glaze’s Pelican Gray, Essie’s Good Morning Hope, and Julep’s Bess. All nails are topped with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Cornwall is a clear-based glitter topper with matte blue and white short bar glitters. Application was easy enough; the glitters stick to the brush well, and the base consistency is such that the polish doesn’t drip off the brush or pool on the nail. However, this means it also doesn’t spread evenly, which makes the glitter drag and clump on itself. This can result in a heavy application in some cases. The bar glitters are short, so they don’t lean off the edge of the nail like the longer ones do. The polish dries quickly and with a textured finish. I used top coat for smoothness and shine.

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I have to admit, I have a hard time calling this a glitter polish. I think that’s what made the feathered topper trend so successful, albeit short-lived. Even though there was nothing new about either glitter toppers or bar glitters, this was still a pretty unique look that anyone could achieve. I still think it’s a cool look. It’s a shame these polishes didn’t really make it past 2013.

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The sun’s been good to me; I’ve been able to get direct sun pictures for the past few posts. These photos were taken outdoors in the late afternoon. I’m grateful; it’s helping me improve my macro game.

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The shimmer you see here is from Pelican Gray, not Cornwall.

Cornwall and the other Feathers polishes seem to be discontinued by Nails Inc. Other Nails Inc. polishes are available at Sephora, which is where I got this one.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Darling Diva Polish’s The Pumpkin Queen

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Happy Sunday, reader! 2016 is off to a great start, isn’t it? I hope you’re all having a fantasic weekend. Yesterday, we looked a summer polish, and today we’re looking at an autumn polish. From a destash mystery bag, the same one that yielded this beauty, this is Darling Diva Polish‘s The Pumpkin Queen. I’m wearing one coat of The Pumpkin Queen over Nails Inc.’s Eaton Terrace and Baker Street and OPI’s I Just Can’t Cope-acabana, as well as one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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The Pumpkin Queen is a clear-based glitter topper with a mix of glitter that is predominantly matte and metallic orange hexes and metallic green hexes and squares. Though these colors are the focus of the polish, it’s actually quite colorful; there are glitters in red, yellow, and blue, as well as very large purple hexes. The glitters brushed on easily, though sparsely at first. The base consistency is good; it carries the glitter without goop. It dries quickly and with a smooth finish, though the purple hexes don’t lie flat on the nail.

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Though the glitter mix is inherently autumnal, wearing this polish in January doesn’t feel completely out of place. Because there aren’t any seasonally-shaped glitters, and because the mix is so colorful, it’s not strictly a fall polish, even though it’s intended as one. I like the blue glitters best; they stand out from the rest of the glitters, but they also make the orange bolder. I really love the purple hexes too, but they feel just a tad out of place. Overall though, I like this polish, even though it’s not something I would have bought myself.

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I did a little bit of homework on this polish; it’s a polish from 2012. I don’t even know if I have any others that old, because I didn’t get into indie polish until 2013. How cool, it’s vintage! I also love the printed label, it’s like a bootleg.

The Pumpkin Queen is no longer sold by Darling Diva Polish; other polishes are available from their shop.

I got this polish in a grab bag.

 

 

Manicure Monday: Violet Gradient with Violet Glitter

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Happy Manicure Monday! I don’t feel like this mani is my best work, but I still rather like it. For this look, I used Essie’s She’s Picture Perfect, Revlon’s Amethyst, and Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s Might Not Recover, all with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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I put She’s Picture Perfect and Amethyst together for their similarities: they’re both shades of purple and they both have a strong pink/purple flash. I thought it would be great to see that pink/purple flash show up in both colors of the gradient, like this unifying shimmer that really pulls everything together. Unfortunately, it’s not easily seen in the gradient, either in photos or in real life. Also, the colors didn’t blend as easily as I expected them to; the deep purple just looks so sponged-on, even after three rounds with the sponge. It’s still pretty, but it’s really not my best work.

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I added Might Not Recover as an accent nail at the last minute, and I gotta tell you, I’m stunned. I just can’t believe how much it sparkles. Like it was sparkly in the bottle, but damn. I also chose this polish for its similarities in color, but I like that it stands apart from the rest of the mani while complimenting it. The bling is just a tad bit overwhelming, which means it’s just the right amount (like there’s a such thing as too much). I always have an issue with microglitters still having some texture after I put down top coat, but this one has stayed nice and smooth, and I love it.

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In the end, everthing goes together really well, yeah?

I got She’s Picture Perfect from Walgreens and Amethyst from Big Lots, though both brands are sold nationwide. Might Not Recover and other Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquers are available in their shop (which is temporarily closed). The Fimo bow is from Claire’s.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Dainty Pink Water-Marble

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Happy Monday! This Manicure Monday’s secret word is dainty. We’re like baby princesses over here. My main polish in this mani is Model City‘s Fairy Godmother; I’m wearing it alone at three coats on my thumb and pinky, as well as in a watermarble with Elevation Polish‘s Hitsujiyama Park and under MAC’s Just Jewels. All nails are topped with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Perhaps the most unique thing about this polish, as well as the most obvious, is the strong pink pearl flash. This is what really sets it apart from the other pale pinks in my collection. There’s also a hint of holo; unfortunately it’s nasty cloudy outside, so I can’t demonstrate the pretty holo effect properly.

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I decided on a water-marble pretty last-minute, and it was hard choosing the right color to contrast with the pale pink. I wanted one that was still pale so as to be dainty (ahhhh!) but dark enough to contrast with what I was already using. Hitsujiyama Park is just a shade or two darker, and has about the same amount of holo and lacks the pink flash, so I went with it. In the end, I wish I’d gone with something just a tad darker, but I really like the result I got. I bet there’s a sub-species of unicorn with stripes like these. A Zebracorn, if you will.

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Finally, I used some glitter. MAC’s Just Jewels is a sheer but powerful shimmery topper with some multi-colored metallic glitters mixed in. It’s a little too strong for the watermarble, but I think it pairs really nicely with Fairy Godmother. The heavy pink shimmer is just what Fairy Godmother needs.

Fairy Godmother is discontinued; you can get other Model City polishes from their shop. Hitsujiyama Park and other Elevation Polishes can be purchased from their shop. Just Jewels is discontinued; other MAC polishes can be found wherever MAC products are sold. My bow charm is from Claire’s.

I bought two of these polishes. One polish was sent for review; my opinions are not influenced in any way.

Manicure Monday: Nighttime Blizzard

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Happy Monday, reader! Welcome to this week’s manicure. My look this week is simple but striking. I used Sally Hansen’s Blazing Blue as the base, Digital Nails‘s Winter is Coming for the glitter accents, and one coat of Seche Vite to finish it off.

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Blazing Blue is a polish I’ve had a long time. You can’t tell from the photos, but this bottle is about half-full. Of course, this was a well-loved polish back when I only had 20 bottles or so; this is one of the stalwart veterans from when I first started my collection. This is actually the first time I’ve used it in a couple of years. I must admit, however, I hated using it today. First, I had to thin it, because it was a goopy mess when I first opened it. I also hate the Insta-Dry brush; it’s too wide for my small nails, and so I didn’t get a good application. Even worse, the formula is really smudgy; when I applied the glitter, some blue came off on the brush and left some holes in the color. Some smudged on the glitter, too. When I cleaned up my cuticles, I had so much smeared blue on my hands it looked like a pen exploded. I still couldn’t get some of it off, and my cuticles are still a mess. Cleanup took ages. I love this color, but it was such a hassle to use today.

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Winter is Coming is amazing. It is packed with white and various colors of blue glitters in a myriad of shapes. There are also some rose-gold glitters in there that I didn’t notice until today. It all comes together in a light blue jelly base. Some of the glitters are the same color as the base, but that’s kinda cool; you see the glint without being able to see where it comes from. The lighter ones stand out very well. It’s a great glitter topper and I suspect it would look fantastic over anything.

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You guessed it — my DSLR is still out for repairs. I took it to a local repair shop, and they ended up having to send it to Canon. So yeah. I do apologize; I had no idea it would be gone this long, and I’m dying to start swatching again. I’ve got so many polishes I want to use, and so many I thought I would have gotten to by now that are just sitting on my desk. Hopefully it won’t be too much longer.

I bought all these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Autumn Moons

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Happy Monday, reader! Today’s Manicure Monday finds me with very short nails; I went bowling on Saturday night and kind of trashed them. At least they grow back. I went for a mature yet cute look today to remind myself that these are, in fact, not a child’s hands. I used Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s Newborn Solstice Sun, Essie’s As Gold As It Gets, and China Glaze’s Angel Wings. All nails are topped with one coat of Seche Vite.

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I wore Newborn Solstice Sun on its own quite some time ago when I swatched it. Even though it’s gorgeous on its own, I wanted to try something new with it. I went through the bag of tricks: rhinestones and loose glitters, vinyls and striping tapes. I wanted to get really crazy with it. Once my nails were unexpectedly cut down, though, I decided to keep it simple. I’m wearing Newborn Solstice Sun alone on two nails, as well as the darker shade in the half-moon. It’s a beautiful polish; the color is so deep, and the glitters add depth and sparkle. This is a huge BEGL favorite for sure.

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I used Essie’s As Gold As It Gets as the undies for my half-moon. It’s so soft, you can barely tell I used anything there. I wanted just a hint of sparkle, and that’s exactly what I got. I used China Glaze’s Angel Wings as an afterthought; I actually had an accent ring finger nail that was just covered with red and gold rhinestones, but it looked too Gryffindor, so I took it off and just used the gold glitter instead. It still looks out of place to me, but at least it’s not as ridiculous as the rhinestones were.

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Newborn Solstice Sun was a limited edition polish; other BEGLs can be purchased from the BEGL shop. As Gold As It Gets and Angel Wings are available wherever Essie and China Glaze are sold. I got my rhinestones from Amazon. The red bow vinyl is from Monster Polish as part of their Doctor Who collaboration with BEGL. I always associate the red bowtie with Pee-Wee Herman, though.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Lemon Butterfly Fizz

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Happy Monday! It’s still Monday somewhere, so let’s take a look at my mani this week. For this look, I used Color Club’s Daisy Does It and Ellagee‘s Chronic Badass. I’m pretty chuffed with it. I’m also thrilled with the photos, since I’m still on my backup camera; I can’t believe this is the same camera that took last week’s sad photos.

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Daisy Does It is gorgeous, and I was afraid I — or the backup camera — would fail to do it justice. It’s a sheer yellow with yellow-to-gold shifting flecks, but I couldn’t get the shift to show up in the studio. Everything else is accurate, though: the lemon yellow, the barely-there nail line, the tons of shimmer that make it almost metallic. I love this polish and the rest of the collection; the shades are pretty simple but have tons of dimension and personality.

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I’ve loved Chronic Badass ever since I swatched it earlier this year. I picked it to go with Daisy Does It because I just love purple and yellow together. Before I put it on, though, I had my doubts. I didn’t want the pink and purple glitters to interfere colorwise with the green shift, but it actually looks pretty cool. The shift only shows up in certain lighting conditions anyway, so I worried over nothing. The shimmer itself is really powerful and seems especially so on the accent nails. The topper makes it seem much glassier than the nails without it. It’s gorgeous.

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I hope to have the camera fixed in time to start weekend swatches again; the camera place nearest me is only open 8 to 5 Monday through Friday, so finding the time to get there will be a challenge. I’ve missed my blog, though. I miss my camera.

I bought these polishes myself.

Manicure Monday: Arctic Circle Marble

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Hey guys! I’ve got a few minutes to post my Labor Dabor post before it turns Tuesday. I actually had a post typed up and then my new keyboard, whose CTRL button only works if you mash it so hard your finger turns white, did not work and ate my post. We’re also stuck looking at pictures from the backup camera this week, so these photos are not up to my usual standards. For this look, I used OPI’s I Vant to Be a Lone Star, Elevation Polish‘s Pitaraq, Essie’s Blue Rhapsody, and Lynderella‘s Something Blue, all topped with one to two coats of Seche Vite top coat.

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For my watermarble, I used clear polish between drops of Blue Rhapsody and I Vant to Be a Lone Star. My base was two coat of Pitaraq. This was my first time doing a negative space watermarble, and I envisioned frosty silver and blue rings over the icy metallic shimmer. The marbling process, however, wasn’t as painless as it could have been. It dried on the water before I could swirl it and tore my design a little. The rings are also so wide it hides the base glitter. I still like it, but it was better in my head.

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Something Blue as a glitter accent was a bit of an afterthought. I was shopping my stash, found Something Blue, and tried it over I Vant to Be a Lone Star. It was a perfect match; the silvery blues blend in beautifully. Of course, since this camera sucks, you can’t see the fine details, but the blue glitters are nearly but not quite the same color, and adds a bit of shimmer as well. I love Lynnderella polishes, even though they’re quite new to me, and it’s especially satisfying to use one I had to fight on eBay for. It was the last bottle! Shop victoriously, indeed.

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I’ve really missed doing my weekly swatches. I bought a new battery for my main camera and I hope that fixes it. If not, I’ll have it serviced soon so I can get back to them. I have enjoyed my time, though. I’ve been wear-testing a few new Wacie Nail Company polishes, including the one I hope to release for my birthday. I’ve also been playing Dragon Age: Inquisition and I’m so absorbed in it I can barely pull myself out. Hope to see you this weekend with new swatches, and if not, see you Monday!

I bought these polishes myself.