Tag Archives: Model City

Manicure Monday: Feather Weather

Posted on by

Happy Monday, reader! It’s the official first day of spring, and it’s time for spring manicures. Probably nobody was thinking brown for spring, but it’s what I’m rocking. For a change of pace, I got some feathers out, and there’s something about birds and spring, right? For this look, I used Model City Polish‘s Dark Roast, feathers from a Ciaté nail art kit, and Digital Nails‘s Spectraflair holo top coat for an extra holo finish. All photos were taken in direct sunlight outdoors.

Dark Roast is a great holo. It’s a rich brown, but the holo is pretty strong, and there are these tiny gold shimmers in it. It dries shiny. I felt kinda bad putting the feathers over it, like it was too pretty to cover up. The feathers were kind of a pain, and as you can see, it looks a little messy, but I’m rolling with it. I used the holo top coat over the feathers just to pull it all together, and I think it came out all right.

I heard a sad rumor that Model City Polish closed down, and though I haven’t seen anything official, I do see that their etsy shop is on hiatus. That really bums me out. Model City was one of the first-ever indies I bought from, they gave me my first press samples, and everything they made was quality. It’s sad to see them go. I feel like a bad fan because I’ve just heard about it.

I don’t know where to get Ciaté’s nail art kits anymore. Digital Nails’s Spectraflair top coat is sold in their etsy shop.

I bought these products myself.

Manicure Monday: Pink Holo Stripes With Sprinkles

Posted on by

Happy Monday! I dug deep for today’s mani. I didn’t feel satisfied just putting glitter over polish, so I got the holos out and the striping tape. I should do this kind of thing more often. For this look, I used Elevation Polish‘s Hitsujiyama Park (light pink), Literary Lacquers‘s Laughs in Flowers (pink stripes), Model City Polish‘s Pour Me Another (dark pink), and OPI’s Pink Yet Lavender (glitter). All photos were taken outdoors in direct sunlight.

img_61562

img_61622

With this mani, I just wanted something pink and flashy. I chose three pink holos of varying colors and holo strength; Hitsujiyama Park has the least holo and most opacity, Pour Me Another has a strong holo flame but is pretty sheer, and Laughs in Flowers has fine holo glitters mixed in to create a unique finish. These three polishes, when combined, create a distinct and cohesive look. I’m looking forward to pairing them again soon!

img_61702

img_61742

Pink Yet Lavender is a glitter topper, so I brushed it over the striped nails and sponged it on the others. I have to admit, this wasn’t quite what I expected when I started. In the bottle, the glitter looks more rose gold, likely due to the tinted pink base. On the nail, it pulls silver. I don’t mean to say I don’t like it, but I definitely expected more pink glitter, that’s why I chose all pinks for this mani. Pink Yet Lavender, at least, has some holo glitter in it that helps tie it all together. Also, sponging took a significant amount of product. You can see the fll line on the bottle; this is the first time I’ve used this polish and that’s where it is now.

img_61802

img_61852

mmphswsmm

I am having a lot of fun wearing this, all things considered. The stripes add a fun visual, the glitter adds sparkle, and the holo pushes it over the edge. This took a lot longer than the usual Monday mani, but I’m glad I spent the time on it. I used to push myself really hard to do nail art, and I feel like lately all I’ve been doing is wearing glitter over a base, and that feels lazy. I definitely need to get out of my lazy mani zone.

Hitsujiyama Park and other Elevation Polishes are sold in their online shop. Laughs in Flowers was an Addicted to Holos box exclusive from March 2015 and is no longer available; other Literary Lacquers are sold in their etsy shop. Pour Me Another is also a long-gone limited edition; other Model City Polishes are for sale on etsy. Pink Yet Lavender is also discontinued; OPI is sold in stores nationwide.

I bought these polishes myself.

Birthday Mani Digest 2016

Posted on by

Welcome back, reader! As you know, I took a bit of time off these past couple weeks to celebrate my birthday. It was only supposed to be one, but the arrival of Hurricane Matthew led to everything being postponed. That madness is now over, and now I’d like to show you what my nails were up to during the downtime. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve seen most of these lovelies already. I promise I will not be mentioning my birthday again until next October.

Birthday Mani #1: Pink Frosting With Sprinkles
Essie’s Good Morning Hope with Lynnderella‘s Icing Glass Garland

img_5668i

The first birthday mani was a fun warm-up with an untried Lynnderella topper. I had a lot of fun wearing this; Icing Glass Garland was a lot more interesting in real life, however. There is a lot of iridescence and color-changiness. It doesn’t look like much over Good Morning Hope, but it still made for a fun and dainty look.

Birthday Mani #2: Cupcakes
Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s Eleanor, China Glaze’s White on White, LA Girl’s Black, Orly’s Water Lily, P2’s French Kiss, Ciate’s Pillow Fight

img_56872i

I always do cupcakes to celebrate my birthday, and this year’s mani was actually done in the middle of the hurricane. Even though the hurricane was an unwelcome birthday event (thanks, universe), we still had a good time. A lot of our friends live in evacuation zones and came to stay with us when the call came to evacuate, so we still had a party and ate food and played board games. It was not the worst experience.

Birthday Mani #3: Hello Dalek
Digital Nails‘s Hello Dalek

img_57352i

This was last week’s Manicure Monday post, but I’m including it for continuity. Monday was my actual birthday, and it was a ton of fun to wear a party on my nails as well. When your birthday is on the worst day of the week, you have to party any way you can.

Birthday Mani #4: Glitter Frosting
Digital Nails’s Pandorica, Model City Polish‘s Sheena is a Punk Rocker, Wacie Nail Company’s Your Daring Escape, Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Walk Through the Tulips
img_57562

This look includes the polish I made myself for my birthday! Your Daring Escape is a silvery-white holo with holographic glitter and pearl pink and metallic silver flakies. I wanted a holo-meets-glitter-gradient look, but as the sun never came out that day, a lot of the beauty got lost.

Birthday Mani #5: Stripey Blue Frosting
Literary Lacquers‘s Bluestocking Romance, Hard Candy’s Sky, China Glaze’s Mosaic Madness

img_57912

This was the mani I got the most compliments on for sure. I’d always wanted to do this moving stripes design, and this was the day I felt like dealing with the striping tape. It came out so much better than I expected it would, though I’m a little disappointed it smeared a little with the top coat. I’d totally do it again.

I also want to take this time to share some birthday manis of years past. I realized at some point that I’ve been doing the annual cupcake mani for five years now; the annual cupcake mani predates wacie.com, even. I love doing little retrospectives like this; if I’ve learned anything from this, it’s that my cupcake painting skills have gotten only marginally better.

2012
Colors Unknown, but probably all Sinful Colors

ir92y

Look at this. I almost don’t even want to share this, but we all have to start somewhere, right? I do remember waiting practically all day for the dots to dry, and they still smudged when I put the top down. Not only was this before wacie.com came to be, but I think it was also before the days of quick-dry top coat. Those dark, dark days.

2013
Sally Hansen’s Mint Sprint, OPI’s Eurso Euro, P2’s French Kiss, Sally Hansen’s Hard to Get, Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Floppy. Hoppy. BUNNIES!

photo

These look more like mashed potatoes than cupcakes. This was my first birthday post on the blog. Going back and reading the post, about it, I completely forgot all that stuff happened! I do remember doing this mani in Boyfriend’s tiny Atlanta living space, trying not to bother him and his roommate with nail polish smell. I got acetone on his desk and ruined the varnish. I still feel bad about that.

2014
Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Dawn Breaks and If You’re a Seascape, Indigo Bananas‘s Moonlight (Clair de Lune), P2’s French Kiss, American Apparel’s Neon Pink, Essie’s Fiji, Ciate’s Candy Floss

IMG_02002

That P2 polish finds its way into every birthday mani, doesn’t it? I loved this look a lot. I totally wore it to a fancy restaurant. Here’s the post!

2015
Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Ocean Warmed by the Sun, Digital Nails’s Purple Reign, Nails Inc.’s Pudding Lane, Hot Topic’s Light Blue, Estee Lauder’s Black Plum

12145279_905705656183566_853061513_n

This is last year’s mani, and the mani that celebrates the big 3-0. This was also one of the last photos I took on my phone before Drunk Me left it on top of the car and broke the camera forever. Good times!

Again, a huge thank you to everyone who wished me a happy birthday; I cherish all of you! Thank you so much for tolerating all of the birthday posts.

Pretty sure I bought all these polishes myself.

Empties Roundup: September 2016

Posted on by

It’s the end of the month, and you know what that means: Empties Roundup! It’s the end of September, and I’ve got a lot of stuff to share. Let’s get started!

La Lavande French Triple-Milled Soap in Gardenia

img_53492

So obviously this wrapper has been empty a long time, you can’t really use a bar of soap without wrapping it. But yes, I did hang onto this wrapper longer than I want to admit just to photograph it and then write about it. It was really nice soap; it lathered well, had a strong gardenia fragrance, and didn’t dry me out. It took me a couple months, probably, to use the whole thing. I replaced it with another soap bar from my shamefully large soap hoard.

L’Occitane en Provence Shea Butter Hand Cream, 30ml tube

img_53532

I love this stuff. I love L’Occitane. This was the last tube from a L’Occitane hand cream sampler from Sephora and I’m so sad they’re all gone now. They all made my hands feel so soft and moisturized, and they were the perfect handbag size. My new handbag lotion is Pacifica’s Tuscan Blood Orange because it was on sale at Target.

Model City Cuticle Oil in Cactus Flower

img_53632

I’d been using this for so long there’s practically no label left. Believe it or not, I bought three of these bottles and this is the last one. It lasted forever! It did a fanastic job of moisturizing and smelled wonderful. I’m now using an oil from Smokey Mountain Lacquers from my expanding cuticle oil stash.

CeraVe AM Facial Moisturizing Lotion

img_53712

Here’s another product I use on the regular. I know it’s for dry skin, and as such, it makes me feel a bit oily after a while. It doesn’t break me out, so I just deal with it. I’ve decided to try a new one though, Cetaphil’s daytime moisturizer lotion. I’ll probably come back to it if the new one doesn’t work out.

Revlon’s Photoready Powder in Translucent

img_53752

Project Pan has its first casualty! This was actually most of the way used-up when I started the project, so I don’t think it counts, but it is nice to use up something. I’m actually undecided on whether I’d buy this again. I really liked it over BB cream; it helped smooth out imperfections that weren’t 100% covered, and made me look more done-up than I was. On the other hand, it wasn’t a setting powder, which was really what I wanted. It didn’t make me feel finished, it felt pretty creamy a long time after applying. For now, I’m using another powder from my stash, Benefit’s The Pore-fessional Agent Zero Shine.

Bath and Body Works’s Butterfly Flower Shower Gel

img_53792

Another month, another empty shower gel. I forgot how nice this fragrance was! It’s pretty strong in the shower, but after drying off, it’s really subtle. Of course, lotion in the same scent helps with a fragrance’s staying power, but sometimes I don’t want to smell like a perfumery. Also I’d used up the lotion months ago.

Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Day hand soap in Peony

img_53862

I’m so glad I finally tried these! I was complaining to a friend about how hard it is to find a good hand soap. Antibacterial ones break my hands out so bad, and they’re bad for you in general, so I spent a lot of time looking for The Soap. A friend recommended I try this brand out and when I saw this at Target, I scooped it up. I’ve since replaced it with another Mrs. Meyer’s soap, this time in Geranium.

Shea Moisture Manuka Honey & Mafura Oil Intensive Hydration Hair Masque

img_53912

I love Shea Moisture products, and their hair masques and deep conditioners are products I always rebuy. I probably use them more than I do actual conditioner. This one made my hair feel very soft and easy to detangle. It also smells lovely! I loved it, but as I like to try new things, I’ve replaced it with Carol’s Daughter’s Sacred Tiare restoring hair mask.

Lubriderm Advance Therapy Lotion

img_54222

This is my favorite lotion. It moisturizes, it smooths unhappy skin immediately, and it doesn’t have any fragrance. The fact that it’s fragrance-free is probably my favorite, because I can use it with any bath product. I hate it when fragrances compete! I have three bathrooms in my house and there’s a bottle of this in each one. That’s kind of a lie, because I haven’t replaced it right away. I bought a JĀSÖN lotion this time because it was on sale at Target.

MAC Prep + Prime Skin Primer

img_46432

Another Project Pan casualty that doesn’t quite count, because it was basically empty when I pulled it out. I didn’t expect to have to replace this AND the Revlon powder at the same time, but here we are. I’ve been thinking of trying another foundation — maybe NARS or Kat von D — and so I don’t want to buy another primer until I’ve decided on a foundation. For now, I’m using a backup Smashbox sample I’ve had bumming around, but I’ve already had to cut the tube open, so I’m kind of running out of time. It’s also the last empty I need for a Back 2 MAC lipstick, so I’m not too sad about it.

And there you have it, nine products that have gone to the big beauty counter in the sky. I wonder if I’ll ever have an Empties Roundup this large again. What did you use up this month?

I bought all these products myself.

Manicure Monday: Latte

Posted on by

Happy Monday, reader! I’m excited to be wearing a holo today; I’m excited to have an excuse to leave my office and take advantage of the sunshine. The polish I used today is Model City‘s Latte; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

IMG_34072

IMG_34112

Latte is a polish from Model City’s 2014 fall collection, a collection of holos based on coffee drink favorites. I loved this set; it was autumnal and neutral but still had enough holo to warrant spending time outside. Of course, in Florida, autumn is just extended summer, and it feels weird drinking pumpkin spice lattes out of the red cups when it’s still 80 degrees out. We have to do them in frap form.

IMG_34182

IMG_34252

IMG_34242

This polish is my favorite from the set, I believe. It’s so versatile. It would pair with anything, it would be a suitable base for any glitter, and would work into any nail art look you could imagine. Wearing it alone today was actually a tough choice; I had to stop myself from digging through my stash to find a polish to wear with it. I’m really glad I wore it alone, beacuse it’s such an elegant and clean look. It makes me feel pretty! Also grown up.

IMG_34332

IMG_34372

IMG_34412

My photos don’t really do this polish justice. The holo effect got a little washed out in the harsh sunlight. The polish itself is pretty pigmented and the holo takes a back seat to the color, but there’s more to it than is visible here.

Latte is currently not in stock by Model City Polish; other MCPs are available in their etsy shop. My star studs were found in an outlet store.

I bought this polish myself.

Manicure Monday: Pink Spring Mystery

Posted on by

Welcome back, reader! Happy Monday! Today’s manicure was done with a chunky springtime glitter and a mystery polish. Spring is springing in Florida, and I get closer with every pastel polish I wear. For this look, I used Model City Polish‘s Breath of Spring and a Sally Hansen mystery pink, as well as a coat of Seche vite top coat.

mmpsm

mmpsm2

Next to knowing that the mystery polish is from Sally Hansen, I know absolutely nothing about it. This is one of my older polishes, a leftover from when I had a terrible habit of peeling the labels off of things. I really did a number on this one; I’ve stripped it of anything identifiable. I also remember buying this polish to match a pair of glasses I was wearing at the time. Despite everything, I actually really like this polish, and it’s a shame I can’t tell you anything about it, because I almost want to recommend it. The product consistency is on the thin side, and it took three coats to reach full opacity, and it took ages to dry… Maybe I don’t want to recommend it after all. It had the most gorgeous shine after it dried, though. I feel like that’s not very common. Though it was fiddly to apply, it didn’t need top coat at all, and I was really impressed. It’s kind of a shame I covered so much of it up.

mmpsm3

mmpsm4

Breath of Spring kind of took over this mani. I wanted just a small but concentrated bit of glitter at the base of each nail, but because of the variety of shapes and colors of glitter, it looked uneven, and by the time I got the look I wanted, it took up half the nail. I think it’s still a cool look; the glitter comes in bright but seasonal colors, and there’s just a hint of holographic goodness in the base. It’s a beautiful topper that would look fantastic over anything. I really enjoy this combination.

mmpsm5

mmpsm6

Breath of Spring has been discontinued by Model City; other Model City Polishes can be found in theiretsy shop. Sally Hansen, and maybe even this polish, can be found in stores nationwide.

I bought these polishes myself.

Swatch Sunday: Model City Polish’s Sheena is a Punk Rocker

Posted on by

Happy Sunday, reader! This week I’m wearing an oldie-but-goodie, a first polish from a beloved indie. This was even one of my first-ever indie polishes. All the way from 2013, here’s Sheena is a Punk Rocker from Model City Polish; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite.

ssmcpsiapr

ssmcpsiapr2

ssmcpsiapr3

ssmcpsiapr5

Sheena is a Punk Rocker is a black jelly polish with magenta dots and silver holographic hex glitters. Application was easy; the jelly base was thin at first, but built up to deep black in three coats. The glitters spread evenly and lay flat on the nail. The polish dries quickly with a glossy finish, though with a little bit of texture from the glitters. I used top coat for extra smoothness and shine.

ssmcpsiapr4

ssmcpsiapr6

The shine is probably the first thing you noticed about this polish. It is shiny. The shine from both the glitter and the jelly gloss overwhelmed my camera, so the focus is off in a few of these photos. The shine is probably my favorite thing about the glitter jelly polish, especially in black. It’s the icing on top of a very glittery cake.

ssmcpsiapr7

ssmcpsiapr8

I totally bought this polish because it was named after a Ramones song. Believe it or not, this is actually my second bottle of it. I bought a mini in my very first Model City order, and I loved it so much that I went back for the full size when it was restocked, as well as the other two polishes in the collection. These are very special polishes to me and I’m so sad MCP doesn’t make it anymore.

Sheena is a Punk Rocker has been discontinued; other Model City polishes are available from their etsy shop.

I bought this polish myself. The Ramones are awesome.

Manicure Monday: Dainty Pink Water-Marble

Posted on by

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.

mmdpwm

mmdpwm2

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.

mmdpwm3

mmdpwm4

mmdpwm5

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.

mmdpwm6

mmdpwm7

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: Wanna Be Your Boyfriend

Posted on by

Happy Monday night! After a long day and a busy weekend, I’m finally getting around to sharing some new manicures. For this installment of Manicure Monday, I’m wearing Wanna Be Your Boyfriend from Model City Polish. I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Rica‘s Glossy Glam top coat.

IMG_81842

IMG_81882

Wanna Be Your Boyfriend is a black jelly polish with blue metallic dot and fine teal holographic hex glitters. Application was pretty standard for a glitter jelly polish: it was thin on the first coat, but the other two coats evened out the opacity and created a beautiful dimensional layered effect with the glitter. Drying times were good, and the jelly dries with a glossy finish, though also with a texture from all the glitter. I used a top coat to smooth it out as well as make it extra shiny.

IMG_81932

IMG_82042

So uh, I love The Ramones. In the summer of 2013, I was first discovering indie polish, and when I saw Model City had a little Ramones collection, I was all over it. At the time, these three polishes were unique little gems in my collection, and the fact that they were named after some of my favorite songs were a total bonus. It’s been almost two years since I bought this polish, and even though it’s simple, it’s still special to me and I still don’t have anything quite like it.

IMG_82082

IMG_82132

I wanted a little extra punk, so I got the studs out. I actually ordered some real metal spike charms to put on; they were set to arrive today but didn’t. I had to get the lame-o Claire’s studs out instead. They’re plastic with silver paint, and you can see that the paint is coming off the points. One of the studs on my right hand is entirely black by now. Oh well, I still think it’s cool.

Wanna Be Your Boyfriend has been discontinued by Model City, but you can find their other polishes in their etsy shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Manicure Monday: Love in Silver

Posted on by

Here’s this week’s Manicure Monday, and possibly my last mani before Christmas. I’m accidentally festive, too! For this mani, I’m wearing two coats of Julep’s Zelda, one coat of Model City‘s Love Hurts, and one coat of Ciate’s Speed Coat Pro top coat.

IMG_24812

IMG_24892

 

Zelda is a cool champagne metallic polish. It is probably the best Julep polish I’ve ever used. I got opaque and even coverage in one coat, and it was dry to the touch in about five minutes. The consistency was perfect, and it dried with a shiny foil finish. I wish every Julep polish was like this. It’s so easy to apply and wear.

IMG_25022

IMG_25272

IMG_25252

Love Hurts is a clear glitter topper with black glitters, some fine silver glitters, and holographic red hearts. The glitter distribution with this one is really nice; I got tons of hearts on the brush when I dip in, way more than I wanted, which rarely happens. I had to dip in a few times, just to get the black and silvers. The consistency is pretty nice; it wasn’t too thin or too thick, and it dried pretty quickly. My one issue here is that the heart glitters seem to be losing their color. It’s not bleeding into the lacquer, but it looks like some came off onto my nail. It’s too bad, but it’s kind of cool, like stylishly distressed jeans.

IMG_25092

IMG_25182

You can get Zelda from Julep.com, or from anywhere Julep is sold. Unfortunately, Love Hurts has been discontinued by Model City and is no longer available.