Purple and Pink Galaxy Nails

Ahhh, it's soooo good to be on winter break! All I'm going to do is sleep, hang out with friends, and be lazy. (It feels weird not having to study though...) Anyway, today I have some nail art for you! I did some purple and pink galaxy nails after being inspired by Grape Fizz Nails' pink galaxy nails. Next on my galaxy nails list is a "normal" galaxy one!

I first used Sally Hansen Lacey Lilac as my base color. Then, using small torn-up pieces of a make-up sponge, I sponged on Cult Nails Love at First Sight, Cult Nails Kiss My Rose Bush, Love & Beauty Pink (Creme), and Essie Go Ginza, in that order. I didn't have a set template for the galaxy so I just went with it. (The whole mani actually turned out much better than expected!) To add some sparkle, I used two coats of China Glaze Fairy Dust. Unfortunately, the sun was already going down by the time I got to take pictures so I couldn't capture the holographic brilliance. :( When it was relatively dry, I used Kiss White Striper to make some dots (a.k.a faraway stars and falling stars) and big stars. I topped everything off with Poshe Fast Dry Top Coat.

I'm glad to be back! Now, I'm off to work on something for this lovely, little blog that will be revealed next year, 2014! :D

Thanks for looking! See you on the other side of the day!

Michelle

China Glaze It's a Trap-Eze!

Self-purchased

 

China Glaze It's a Trap-Eze! is a sheer, milky white jelly that's packed with multicolored glitter in a variety of sizes. The glitter mix is very Milani Gem-esque. It's seriously like a party in a bottle! I used 2 coats, though you could also use 1 coat for a delicate/toned-down look. (I like it both ways.) When I swatched this polish on my nail wheel, it was either a bit dried out or there was too little of the jelly base (the glitter really is packed in there!) so I had to add in 2 drops of thinner before wearing it. The thinner helped it a little since I didn't have any problems with application. There's no need to dab with this one - there's sooo much glitter! The dry time was quick to average. I used 2 thin coats of top coat, but it's still a little gritty.

I'm glad I finally got this one! It's been off-and-on my list since it first came out because I figured I could just do a jelly sandwich to make up for it. But when I saw it on sale at Cherry Culture (which also had a coupon code), I went ahead and grabbed it. ^__^ It was a good decision. I like that decision.

Thanks for looking! See you on the other side of the day!

Michelle

Forever 21 Pink Blossom

Self-purchased

 

Forever 21 Pink Blossom ("Blossom" on the tag) is a warm, bright pinky-coral textured creme. There's also a very subtle silver shimmer that disappears once on the nail. I used 3 thin coats because thicker coats wouldn't have dried well or become textured, making the application tricky. It also doesn't level at all. Definitely an unforgiving formula! The chunky brush handle and fluffy brush didn't mitigate the application problems either. Unlike the Milani creme textures, this one had a much smoother texture. The dry time was average. I didn't use a base and top coat. As you can see, I'm pretty half-and-half on this one. The color is very pretty, but the polish can be a pain to apply.

On another note, I don't think Forever 21 polishes are going by the name "Love & Beauty" anymore (as evidenced by Pink Blossom's bottle). They recently revamped their polish line, and are now using square bottles and round/fluffy brushes. I much prefer their old line because the bottles were easier to hold and put away and the brushes were much better.

Thanks for looking! See you on the other side of the day!

Michelle

Nicole by OPI Khloe Had a Little Lam-lam

Self-purchased

*Hello everyone! These next few posts will be scheduled. I will be MIA because of finals. Break is finally around the corner!*

 

Nicole by OPI Khloe Had a Little Lam-lam is a beautiful, deep teal creme that leans a little green. I wasn't able to quite capture the color as it either showed up a little too green or too blue. I applied 2 coats, using it as my base for my previous mani. This is one of the gems I never knew I had - I'm so sad I waited so long to wear this! It had a good formula, flowed on smoothly, and was easy to control. Since it was so pigmented, I used 2 coats of base coat. During removal, I wasn't very careful and ended up with slightly stained nails and fingers. You should also be careful during application because it can also be a pain to clean up. It had average to slow dry time, but it dried incredibly shiny! I didn't use top coat.

Thanks for looking! See you on the other side of the day!

Michelle

Underwater

Today, I have a mani that was on my mind for quite some time. I finally just went with it to see how it would turn out. Luckily, it came out pretty well! (Though I could have done better on the glitter gradient...) The mani conjured thoughts of Ariel the Little Mermaid, mermaid tails, and sparkly fish scales so I bequeathed it "underwater". :D

I used Nicole by OPI Khloe Had a Little Lam-lam, a dark, green-leaning teal creme, on all ten fingers. I can't believe it was my first time wearing this gem because it is seriously gorgeous! Then, I applied Jordana Carnival, a Deborah Lippmann Across the Universe dupe, on my middle and ring fingers. After declaring my ring fingers as my accent nails, I tried to do a glitter gradient with Milani Gold, my go-to gold glitter polish. Next time, I'll use a less chunky glitter polish so I can do a proper glitter gradient.

Thanks for looking! See you on the other side of the day!

Michelle

Moustaches and Polka Dots for Movember

Today, I have a mani that showcases moustaches (and polka dots) for Movember! Movember actually started as a way to raise awareness about men's health issues, such as prostate cancer. (I feel that much of the public, unfortunately, doesn't actually know about the movement's focus.) I'm showing my other hand because, even though I waited for what seemed like forever and floated my fast dry topcoat, I still managed to badly smear my left ring finger. Figures. -_- 

For my base, I used Wet 'n Wild 2% Milk, a great sheer beige nude. For the polka dots, I used Ulta Little Black Dress and my second smallest dotting tool. On my accent nail, I used a moustache glitter that came from my Doctor Lacquer Stubs & Movember polish and bag of moustache glitter set. I'm feeling quite fancy now!

Thanks for looking! See you on the other side of the day!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Michelle

Orly Snowcone with White Polka Dots

Today, I have a very simple, but cute manicure! I can't keep my nails naked for very long before I start picking at them anymore so I chose to do some polka dot nails. I did this really quickly (probably 15-20 minutes tops) so please pardon the slight smears!

I used Orly Snowcone, a wonderful cornflower blue creme, as my base. I got it in a mini bottle so I'm thinking about either purchasing a full-sized one or hunting for a cheaper alternative once I'm done with it. Then, using my second smallest dotting tool, I carefully dotted with Zoya Purity, an opaque white creme. I'm really making progress with polka dots since they're much rounder and more uniform now. :P I topped everything off with NYC Grand Central Station, a new (and very cheap!) fast dry topcoat I recently got and am testing.

Thanks for looking! See you on the other side of the day!

Michelle

Inspired by Smudged Polish: Girly Pink and Black Manicure

Today, I have a mani I wore a couple or so weeks ago. It's a skittle manicure inspired by Smudged Polish on instagram. I actually didn't like it as much as I thought I would! I guess I prefer girly manicures on others' nails to mine. On another note, I can't decide if Julep Brandt is a grey-toned black or a very deep charcoal!

What I used:
Duri Rejuvacote as basecoat
Thumb: polka dots with Julep Brandt over OPI Don't Burst My Bubble
Index: OPI Don't Burst My Bubble
Middle: Cover Band Sticks 'n Stones over OPI Don't Burst My Bubble
Ring: individually-placed glitter from Milani Silver over OPI Don't Burst My Bubble
Pinky: Julep Brandt
Poshe Fast Dry Top Coat

Thanks for looking!

See you guys on the other side of the day!

Michelle

Halloween/Spider Web-inspired Glitter Gradient

Today, I have a Halloween/Spider Web-inspired glitter gradient! I'm super late in posting this because of MIDTERMS, MIDTERMS EVERYWHERE. 

I first used China Glaze Glistening Snow, a full-coverage holo silver glitter, as the base glitter. Unfortunately, I couldn't capture the majestic holographic sparkle on camera, only glimpses of it. :( Then, I used LA Girl Uninhibited, an underrated drugstore black glitter topper. I created the gradient using the polish brushes. It was really simple, yet very pretty; I ended up wearing it for almost a whole week! 

Though it long passed, I hope your Halloween was enjoyable!

See you guys on the other side of the day!

Michelle

Orly Miss Conduct

Orly Miss Conduct is a gorgeous magenta/red-violet/berry with holographic glitter-flakies. The base closely resembled a crelly, and was already very pigmented on the first coat. I used 3 coats for swatching purposes, but I think it could have passed with 2 coats. The color became deeper and richer with each coat though. The formula was wonderful - smooth and easy to apply and control. It dried to a nice shine. The only complaint I have is that top coat dulled the holographic effect of the glitter-flakies a little. (The plus side is that the base appeared to have even more depth.) I used 1 coat of top coat here.

What do you guys think? I'd love to know!

See you guys on the other side of the day!

Michelle

Mint Candy Apples in Candy Land

(Sorry, I'm really bad at naming posts...)

Today, I have a mani that's inspired by Tales About Nails' accent manis. (Make sure to check her out because she has great swatches as well!) I wore this mani two weeks ago, if I remember correctly.

I have Essie Mint Candy Apple on all my nails, except for my accent nail, which had Jindie Nails Candy Land on. To add a bit of sparkle, I applied a piece of glitter from Milani Gold on my middle finger with a dotting tool.

What do you guys think? I'd love to know!

See you guys on the other side of the day!

Michelle

P.S. Changed the font and placement of my logo again. I wanted to make it reader-friendly! :)

Opal Nails

First of all, I'm sorry you guys! As I've mentioned many times before, I'm back at school and spending a lot of my time studying, eating, and sleeping (a.k.a. having no life). I have 3 midterms this week and another one in two weeks. On top of all that, I have two weekly quizzes. (Isn't that grand?) So long story short, I'll now sporadically post short(-ish) posts.

Today, I have some opal-inspired nails! I have been getting into opal jewelry lately because I think it is so pretty! I really love how opals are translucent and reflect rainbows. They were also supposed to be an alternative to Wet 'n Wild Fergie High Mountain, but that didn't work out. :/ However, I did find my favorite glitter layering because of this mani! :D

I used Essie Marshmallow as my base because I wanted a soft appearance. I then layered 1 coat each of Jordana Lunar Lights and NYX Girls Glided Glitter. I think Gilded Glitter may either have a tinted base or glitter that melted into the clear base. However, I do like the effect of the tinted base because it mimics the nature of opals - no two are alike.

What do you guys think? I'd love to know!

Also, I've changed the font and placement of my watermark again. Is it too distracting? Should I just leave my watermark in the bottom left corner again?

See you guys on the other side of the day!

Michelle

P.S. Changed my nail shape back to squovals! (These pictures were from the vault.) So, so happy to have them again. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't get into oval/round nails.

Nail Polish Jewelry Wednesday - Be Happy, Tulip

I named this little one "Be Happy, Tulip". I had a hard time coming up with a name because nothing came to me, though I knew I wanted "tulip" in the name. I really like that flower! After looking at it for a while, the hot pink base seemed cheery to me so I gave it this name.

Wearing China Glaze Re-fresh Mint on my nails!

I used Jordana Lunar Lights and OPI Kiss Me On My Tulips. It didn't come out the way I expected. I thought Lunar Lights would come out with a warm-colored shift. In my book, this combination was a failed experiment, but still pretty nonetheless.

What do you guys think? I'd love to know!

See you guys on the other side of the day!

Michelle