Manicure Monday: Ruby Opal

Posted on November 28, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Happy Monday! I’m kind of happy to be back into my regular routine. Today’s look features a polish of my own called Dynamica; it’s a red crelly with a wee bit of scattered holo goodness. I swatched it in my Wacie Wednesday series ages ago, and lamented then that I didn’t use it in a sandwich mani with some glitter. Well, today is that day. The glitter I paired it with is Lynnderella‘s Red Opal. All photos were taken in direct sunlight.

I used two coats of Red Opal as my base. Red Opal is so packed with glitter and has such a rich red base that it could be worn at two coats on its own. There are so many kinds of glitter in here, holo, metallic, and iridescent, that it has a lovely dimensional appearance. I used one coat of Dynamica over Red Opal; Dynamica is a warmer red and changes things up a bit, and adds that hint of holo sparkle.

This late afternoon sun is not the best for holo shots, but it’ll have to do. It was dark and overcast all morning and afternoon, and then just now, this was the little bit of sun out, and really, I was glad to get it. It still looks pretty cool.

Red Opal might be discontinued; other Lynnderella polishes are sold on lynnderella.com. Dynamica isn’t for sale yet, but may be in the future. I’ll let you know.

Red Opal was purchased myself.
Dynamica was made by me.

Swatch Sunday: Wet ‘n Wild’s Everybody Loves Redmond

Posted on November 20, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Welcome to Swatch Sunday! Here’s the second swatch of the weekend. I’m wearing Wet ‘n Wild’s Everybody Loves Redmond today; here’s three coats with one coat of Seche Vite.

Everybody Loves Redmond is a red creme. Application was good; at the first coat, the color goes on really nicely, though it has a jelly/crelly-like sheerness. With additional coats, the coverage gets better, but my nail lines are still visible even after three. The polish dries quickly and with a glossy finish; I used top coat for extra shine and protection.

I like this polish. It’s not fancy, but I’m really impressed with how it looks alone. The VNL is kind of annoying, but the color intensity and shine are both really gorgeous. Of course, this polish is also suitable as the color for a glitter sandwich, or anything you may need a jelly-ish polish for. I’ve enjoyed wearing it! It’s definitely not bad for the price.

So I did some checking to see if Wet ‘n Wild still sells this Fast-Dry line; they do, but on their website it’s marked down and some shades are unavailable. Wet ‘n Wild polishes are sold in stores nationwide.

My father gave me this polish for Christmas last year, haha.

Manicure Monday: Decadent Sands

Posted on November 14, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Hey! It’s Manicure Monday! Today’s look is all about a microglitter polish I made for myself, a little something I call Decadence. I also wanted to do a nail art look with only one polish and some negative space, so here we are. All I used for this look is Decadence and Seche Vite.

Decadence is a microglitter with silver, red, and blue holographic glitters. To achieve the look, I used some French tip guides along the base of my cuticle, making a half moon shape, and applying two coats of Decadence. I peeled off the guide, added a third coat of polish, and sealed it with top coat. The result is a little lopsided; the glitter is very dense on most of the nail and quite sparse on the half-moon, but it’s kind of cool, like sands through the hourglass.

I’m kind surprised the negative space turned out so well. One of the nude polishes I wore a few weeks ago stained my nails an ugly yellow, and since then, I’ve wanted to do nothing but negative space manis. Of course, I had to wait for my nails to grow out a little. There’s nothing like growing out stained nails.

The following photos were taken outdoors in direct sunlight. I love microglitters so much. They’re the best way to pack everything you want — color, glitter, whatever you like — into one bottle.

Decadence is not available for purchase (yet). Lemme know if it’s something you like.

I made this polish.

Swatch Sunday: The New Black’s Gold Leaf Foil

Posted on October 30, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Welcome back for Swatch Sunday! Today’s swatch is of a mystery polish from The New Black I’ve just been calling Gold Leaf Foil. The New Black doesn’t label any of their shade names, which is kind of frustrating. I’m wearing Gold Leaf Foil over Sally Hansen’s Black Out (black), Octopus Party’s Universal Loner (red), and Indigo Bananas‘s Klein Trink Wasser (blue) with one coat of Gelous.

Gold Leaf Foil is a clear-based glitter topper with metallic gold shredded glitter. Application was easy enough; the product consistency delivered the glitter well enough and wasn’t too difficult to work with. The glitter itself was the troblesome part. The glitter pieces are unevenly shaped; some pieces are very large and others are barely there. The very coarse pieces don’t always lie flat, which sometimes leads to them getting snagged and/or pulled off. It does dry quickly and with a good shine; I used top coat for extra smoothness.

Coarse shredded glitter is probably my least favorite glitter shape. I mean, I love how they look, their shine and madness is unmatched. I love how this looks over the cremes. I just don’t like how these large glitters stick up. If you look at the sunlight photos in the next set, you’ll actually see that my pinky nail has more glitter on it than the studio set. That’s because, between the time I took the photos outdoors and indoors, the glitter actually got pulled off somehow. In the studio photos, you can just see where it used to be.

Here are the sunlight photos. I took these a bit late in the afternoon so it’s not the harsh sunlight I usually shoot in. Like I said, this is a pretty cool looking glitter, even if working with it is kind of annoying.

sstnbglfmm

So I can’t find a source on where to get The New Black these days. I got this set — this polish came with a black creme and a set of gold studs — from Ulta when it was in the clearance section. Sephora’s website has a two bottle set in their clearance section as of this writing. Other than that, they seem to have been discontinued.

I bought these polish myself.

Manicure Tuesday: Red vs. Blue Multichrome

Posted on September 6, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Welcome to Manicure Tuesday! I know, it’s weird for me too. I like today’s look today, though, even if I did a bit of a sloppy job. For this look, I used MAC’s Queen’s Honor (red) and Nails Inc.’s Baker Street (blue); my thumb and pinky have Queen’s Honor alone, my index nail has Baker Street alone, and my middle and ring nails have a gradient made with both colors. I then applied a coat of Orly’s Synchro (the multichrome) on each nail, then finished with Seche Vite and Essie’s Matte About You top coats.

I love Synchro, because I can confidently say I don’t own another polish like this. The red to blue multichrome is totally unique and I don’t have another polish that uses it. That said, I feel like I’ve never used it to its full potential. I wore it only once over red, and this time I decided to switch it up a bit and use red AND blue. I am stunned by how good it looks over the blue, I might even like it better than over red. Blue is the color I see the most of wearing Synchro, and it makes both colors look icy and interesting. Mattefied, it looks like an ethereal brocade. It’s really cool.

My gradients didn’t come out as well as I’d hoped. I had a hard time blending the two colors. When I do gradients, I don’t usually pick two colors of the same intensity, I pick one that’s lighter and one that’s much darker, and then it evens out somewhere in the middle. This gradient left a dark purple center that I didn’t really like, but it ended up being covered by Synchro, so it’s hard to tell it’s a gradient at all. It’s pretty subtle. I can’t tell if it’s the look I wanted or not. I still like it though.

Shifty!

Outdoors, Synchro really shines! The shift occurs pretty easily both indoors and out. These photos were taken in direct sunlight. Try not to notice my green pool.

Queen’s Honor was a limited edition polish from MAC and has sold out; other MAC polishes are available at your local MAC counter. Baker Street and other Nails Inc. polishes are sold at Sephora. Synchro has been discontinued by Orly; other Orly polishes are sold at Sally Beauty Supply.

I bought these products myself.

Swatch Monday: SpaRitual’s Intention

Posted on September 5, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Hope you had an awesome Labor Day weekend, reader! The very long weekend — in addition to today’s holiday, we all had a hurricane day on Friday — has shifted my posting schedule a bit. Here’s the swatch I intended for Sunday, but is going up on Monday instead; here is SpaRitual’s Intention. I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

Intention is a sheer red with red, pink, and gold glass flecks. Application was easy; the product consistency is on the thinner side, and as you may have guessed, the first coat was a bit thin, but still had good color and coverage. All three coats were necessary for good opacity. The polish dries with a satin finish, and with the glass flecks, it creates an almost metallic look. I used top coat for extra shine and protection.

I love Intention, and I’m happy to be using it so soon after trying out Intuition a few weeks ago. I bought these at the same time and think of them as sister polishes. I really love the glass flecks in them; admittedly, I didn’t even realize they were glass until I was doing the shoot for this swatch and saw the label — “infused with recycled glass” — and thought it was really cool. I even checked my other bottle and it says the same thing. I had no idea! I mean, the effect is a bit different from a regular shimmer polish, but now I know why.

In the sun, the red really warms up, and the shimmers glow really nicely. I love reds, and this is a new favorite for sure!

Intention and other SpaRitual polishes are available on sparitual.com.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Siren’s Holiday Soirée

Posted on August 27, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Happy Saturday! I’m so excited to bring you today’s swatch, because I don’t have anything else like it in my collection. This is the Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Siren from December 2014, Siren’s Holiday Soirée. I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

Let me preface this by saying I have no idea what caused the huge chip. It’s not there in the sunlight photos, which I took first, only in the studio set that was taken later. Such is life with chunky glitter sometimes.

We’re number one! We’re number one!

ssbeglshsbcs

Siren’s Holiday Soirée is a raspberry jelly polish with red and pink matte glitters and blue/purple iridescent glitters. The jelly is very translucent, allowing all glitters from each coat to shine through. The product formula supports and distributes the glitters well, but isn’t thick. The polish dries quickly and with a glossy finish. Some glitters — notably, the iridescent shreds — don’t lie flat or hang off the edge of the nail, and so it can be rough to the touch, rougher than the typical glitter texture. I used top coat for smoothness and extra shine.

I’ve gotta say, of all the BEGL Sirens I’ve worn so far, this is my favorite. I can’t get over the iridescent glow. Perhaps glow is not a strong enough word; these glitters are like little blue fires burning inside this bottle. I love the matte monochromatic glitters in here too, I love the texture and solidity they add, but the burning from the iridescents is just too beautiful.

In the sunlight, the burning isn’t as strong, but it’s still there. In light this strong, you can see all the way through the jelly, and the matte glitters are more visible. I’m really impressed by this polish.

ssbeglshsbcodfs

Siren’s Holiday Soirée was a limited edition and has since sold out. Other Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquers are available in their online shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Review: Highlight Cosmetics’s Liquid Lipstick in Broadway Red

Posted on August 23, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Hello, reader! Ready for another lipstick post? The lovely people at Highlight Cosmetics were kind enough to send us a sample of their liquid lipstick. The shade I’m trying out is Broadway Red.

Broadway Red is a matte red with shimmer that, when dry, creates a metallic look. As is typical of liquid lipsticks, it comes with a doe-foot applicator, which makes for easy and precise application. The product formula is really lovely; it dries super quickly, practically the second I put it on, and the wear time is really good. As long as I’m not putting oily things on my lips, it stayed on and looked perfect; it stands up to liquids pretty well, but not pizza and lip balm. After extended wear, my lips did feel a bit dry, likely after coming into contact with liquids. At the end of the day, I used bi-phase makeup remover to take it off, and it did leave some staining behind; this was gone by morning.

I’m new on the liquid lipstick bandwagon, and I finally see what the fuss is about. It’s so nice to not have a ton of lip color come off on the glass. Because I haven’t previously tried this kind of product, I don’t really have a lot to compare it to. I can’t speak for how well it holds up against other brands. My hope is that all liquid lipsticks wear as well as this one does.

Apart from the impressive wear times and color quality, Highlight also uses some natural ingredients. Turmeric and tea leaf extracts are in here, which are both known for their uses in folk medicine. Safflower oil is included to help moisturize the lips. I didn’t really notice a difference in lip moisture, and I even felt a little dried out at some points, but for such prolonged wear, I don’t mind. Highlight liquid lipsticks are also free of gluten, parabens, are non-toxic, and cruelty-free.

At 25 dollars for 4g/.14oz, Highlight liquid lipsticks are comparable to other lipsticks on the market. They can be purchased on Amazon and from the Highlight Cosmetics website.

Other products I used in this look:
Face:
Dr. Jart+ Premium Beauty Balm SPF 45
Revlon Photoready powder in Translucent
Benefit Dallas bronzer
Benefit High Beam highlighter
Anastasia Beverly Hills Clear Browl Gel

Eyes:
Urban Decay Primer Potion in Sin
Urban Decay eyeshadows Foxy and Tease, found in the Naked 2 palette
Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner in Zero
Maybelline Great Lash waterproof mascara

Highlight Cosmetics sent this product for review. All opinions are my own. Other products mentioned in this post were purchased myself.

Manicure Monday: Toggle to the Top

Posted on June 13, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Happy Monday! This week’s look is just one polish, Essie’s Toggle to the Top! I’m wearing three coats of Toggle to the Top with one coat of Seche Vite.

Toggle to the Top is a fairly unique polish in the Essie lineup. I can’t think of too many others in their core line that have glitter in them. It’s a rich and deep red, gorgeous on its own, but the glitter adds edge and dimension. It makes me feel super sexy.

I kind of messed this mani up with my new brush. The old brush I used to clean my cuticles with eventually became so ragged I had to toss it, and I’m still learning how to work with my replacement. As sexy as I feel in this polish, I can’t stop looking at the mile between my cuticle and the polish.

But yeah, I love this polish, and I wish Essie did more like it. I know they (re)released Starry Starry Night, and I failed to get in on that because I couldn’t find it anywhere. I don’t buy too much polish anymore, but that’s definitely one I’d snatch up if I had the chance. I’ve never understood why they shy away from glitter. The LuxEffects collection, while they still have a place in my heart, and kind of old and boring now. Toggle to the Top is a perfect example of an elegant glitter polish that isn’t overdone or tacky.

Toggle to the Top and other Essie polishes are sold nationwide. My bow charm is from Daily Charme.

I bought these products myself.

Swatch Sunday: Rainbow Honey’s Sakura Matsuri

Posted on May 8, 2016 by Stacie Wacie

Happy Sunday! It’s been a great weekend so far! My swatch this Sunday is Sakura Matsuri from Rainbow Honey; I’m wearing one coat of Sakura Matsuri over Essie’s Mint Candy Apple (blue), Ciaté’s Candy Floss (pink), and OPI’s Dutch Tulips (red), as well as a coat of Seche Vite top coat.

Sakura Matsuri is a clear-based glitter topper with pink matte, red metallic, iridescents in blue and green, and pink and white flower-shaped glitters. Application was okay; it was sometimes hard to get the flower glitters, and when I did, I’d get tons of them, as well as a lot of lacquer on the brush. It was difficult to apply to the smaller nails, and took quite some time to dry. The glitter still had a bit of texture when dried, so I used top coat.

This is my first Rainbow Honey polish, and I think it’s adorable. I think it’s pretty unique as far as toppers go, since the flowers are the main focus of the concept, and quite a literal execution with the flower glitters. The polish is fairly monochromatic; the glitters all stay within very light shades of pink. The red accent glitters add sparkle, and the iridescent glitters add dimension. The flower glitters are always the focus of the look, and the other glitters don’t detract from it.

In the sun, you can see how the colors vary, and you can see the definition of the glitters best. You can also see how the glitter smudged the red polish. I actually didn’t notice this until I was processing these photos.

ssrhsmmc

The Rainbow Honey online shop is currently on hiatus, and I’m unsure whether Sakura Matsuri is still for sale.

Wacie.com

Home of Wacie Nail Company

Tag Archives: red

Manicure Monday: Ruby Opal

Red Opal was purchased myself.
Dynamica was made by me.

Swatch Sunday: Wet ‘n Wild’s Everybody Loves Redmond

My father gave me this polish for Christmas last year, haha.

Manicure Monday: Decadent Sands

I made this polish.

Swatch Sunday: The New Black’s Gold Leaf Foil

I bought these polish myself.

Manicure Tuesday: Red vs. Blue Multichrome

I bought these products myself.

Swatch Monday: SpaRitual’s Intention

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Siren’s Holiday Soirée

I bought this polish myself.

Review: Highlight Cosmetics’s Liquid Lipstick in Broadway Red

Highlight Cosmetics sent this product for review. All opinions are my own. Other products mentioned in this post were purchased myself.

Manicure Monday: Toggle to the Top

I bought these products myself.

Swatch Sunday: Rainbow Honey’s Sakura Matsuri

I bought this polish myself.

Red Opal was purchased myself. Dynamica was made by me.

My father gave me this polish for Christmas last year, haha.

I made this polish.

I bought these polish myself.

I bought these products myself.

I bought this polish myself.

I bought this polish myself.

Highlight Cosmetics sent this product for review. All opinions are my own. Other products mentioned in this post were purchased myself.

I bought these products myself.

I bought this polish myself.

Red Opal was purchased myself.
Dynamica was made by me.