KBShimmer Birthstone Collection - Ruby

Hey guys and gals! How is your Monday? Aside from waking up to the sad death of David Bowie, my days is starting out quite well. The cup of coffee I am drinking is helping out with that, lol!

Today I have something quite fun and definitely sparkly. Unless you have been avoiding the online nail world, you have probably seen the new Birthstone polishes from KBShimmer. They are all made out of highly reflective metallic flakies with a dusting of holographic sparkle and correspond to the particular gem or stone for each month. My birthday is in July, so my birthstone is a Ruby. And because I am a teenager trapped in a grown-up body, I must have ALL the birthstone polishes.

Please Note: Products shown were purchased by me for my personal use.

KBShimmer Ruby from the Birthstone Collection

Takko Lacquer Fall 2015 Collection

Hey y'all! So I have a big swatch post for you guys today! Takko Lacquer is restocking the fall collection this week as well as a few new colors. When the fall collection released, my package was stuck at a USPS processioning facility and I wasn't able to get them swatched before hand.

Since they are being restocked, I figured now would be a great time to share them and we can all ogle over them together!

Please Note: Products shown were provided by the company/creator for review purposes.

Takko Lacquer Paper Cuts, Filthy Rich, Coquettish, Matcha Latte, Pony, Rise & Grind, Rhinestone Eyes

Fair Maiden Polish High Priestess

Hey y'all! Hope you guys are having a great week! I have hit the end of my polish splurge and am sorting through so much polish right now, it's a little overwhelming. When you have been on a super tight no-buy for a few months, it can be super easy to go reckless when you get a chance to go shopping again.

Anyway, one of the several lovelies I snagged recently is a gorgeous shade from the Fair Maiden fall collection called High Priestess. The collection, called "Swords & Lace", consists of quite a few holos and a few other interesting shades all inspired by fairy tales and fierce lady characters. Right up my alley, folks. 

Please Note: Products shown were purchased by me for my personal use.

Fair Maiden Polish High Priestess

Twinsie Tuesday: Recreate A Fellow Twinsie's Mani

Hey y'all! Today's Twinsie theme is to recreate a mani from a fellow Twinsie. I decided to do an awesome Ikat mani from Lisa of The Polished Playground. I love Lisa's nail art and I think we have a similar taste for design.

July 4th NOTD with Incoco Nail Strips

Hi everyone! Happy July 4th to all my fellow Americans! After the last couples of weeks, I am feeling very proud of my country today. I truly hope the progress made recently continues to build momentum and we can look forward to more!

For my 4th of July NOTD, I did a simple accent with some Incoco nail strips I recently picked up at my local Walgreens. This is my first time using the Incoco strips, so I thought I would include a mini review along with my nails.

Please Note: Products shown were purchased for my own personal use.

Incoco Nail Strips in Brave Brilliance

Friday Favorites: Red

Hi friends! As promised, today's post is the first part of a new weekly series sharing my favorites from my stash! I decided to go by color, finish and then by brand. So hopefully I will get to use some neglected polish over the next several weeks, and you guys might find a new color or three to try!

Since we're starting with color, the first Favorites post is my fav red polishes! If you have read my blog for a while, you probably know that red isn't a shade I naturally gravitate towards. Over the last few years of polish collecting, I have come across a few reds that I do actually like. Although only one of them is a cream finish, lol! I do like my polish to have a little something extra!

Essie Dress To Kilt, Lacquer Lust Ruby Holo, Nubar Red Ruby Glitz, Zoya India

LOOK Proud Memorial Day Nail Art

Hey all, happy Memorial Day weekend to all my US friends! Today's post is a bit different than the NOTD/nail art posts I normally publish. A couple of weeks back, I posted a swatch review of a new drugstore brand called LOOK Nail Color (read the original post here) and had a very unpleasant experience with the brand. After my review, LOOK contacted me stating they had inadvertently sent me "hand poured" samples which they use for promotional photos and that they would be sending me "production quality" samples as well with no expectation of an additional review.

I did do a comparison swatch between the two set and attempted the original nail art design I was planning for the first post with the new samples and in all honesty, these are much, much better. If I had gotten the "production quality" samples, my review would have been very different! The formulas on all three are so much easier to work with and apply a lot better. I am a bit annoyed by the "hand poured" discrepancy but I am impressed that LOOK took the time to reach out to me and correct their mistake.

So! Now that I got all that out of the way, I can show you my original design that I had planned the first time around!

Twinsie Tuesday: Inspired By Artwork

Hey y'all! Another Tuesday is upon us, and this week's Twinsie Tuesday them is a good one! We are doing nails inspired by artwork! Now if you have followed my blog for a while, you would know that I am an art dork. I studied Fine Arts in college and as well as Photography and Graphic Design. So this theme is right up my alley! 

I decided to go with a more graphic look, as opposed to a painterly style and chose Piet Mondrian for my inspiration. His later work is very simplistic and uses very little color, except for primary colors and bold line work to convey depth. (Told you I am an art dork!)

LOOK Nail Color

Hi all! So today I have a new drugstore polish brand to share with you all! You may have seen a few displays popping up at your local Walgreens already. The brand is called Look Nail Color and it is geared towards nail art! Fun, right? I was sent three polishes from the first promo set called "Look Proud" and was released on May 1st.

Please Note: Products shown were provided by the company/creator for review purposes.

Look Nail Color in Broad Stripes Bright Stars, Oh Say Can You See, and Rockets Red Glare

Zoya New Year New Hue Promo Haul

Hi friends. Oh man I am so behind in posting these, lol! At least twice a year, Zoya ( a.k.a. the best mainstream polish ever) has a three-free promo where you pick three polishes and just pay shipping. It is a super sweet deal and I almost always take advantage! For new year's Zoya offered the three-free promo again, which include a free mini trio as well (swatches of those to come). I took the opportunity to complete the Ignite collection and score the three I was missing - Autumn, India and Remy.

Please Note: Products shown were purchased by me for my personal use.

Zoya Autumn, India & Remy (Ignite Collection, Fall 2014)

Twinsie Tuesday: Anti-Valentine's Day

Hi friends! I am back to posting the Twinsie Tuesday themes! I felt like I had missed so much when the kiddo and I were sick. I know life happens, but I don't like skipping out so much because of it.

Today's theme is Anti-Valentine's Day. Although I am a big fan of supporting love in any form (not just your significant other), I kinda got into this week's theme! Lately I have seen gorgeous red/black gradients floating around Pinterest - this one in particular. Even though it was meant for a Halloween look, I think the idea translates really well for an Anti-Valentine's one.

Indigo Bananas Swatch Spam

Hi friends! How was your weekend? It was so frickin cold and wet the whole time! I don't mind cold weather, but when it is cold and rainy, I get whiny, lol!

Today I have some swatches from the indie brand, Indigo Bananas! This is a long post with a lot of pictures, so be prepared! I selected four different polishes to swatch from the current offerings that, I think, best represent the brand. And not to spoil the post or anything, they are all really great!

Please Note: Products shown were provided by the company/creator for review purposes.

 Indigo Bananas Enchanted Lake, Gods & Monsters, 2% Butterscotch Ripple & Chill Out

Twinsie Tuesday: Holiday Special

Hey y'all! Today is a special edition of Twinsie Tuesdays. In case you didn't notice, all the Twinsies decided to take a short break over December, as the holidays and family commitments were taking up a majority of our time. But we wanted to do something special to celebrate the holidays with each other and you all, so we decided to do a double mani post honoring the Christmas and Hanukkah holidays.

I, personally, love this idea! While I'm not particularly religious, I believe it is important to recognize all beliefs and traditions. Only when we open our hearts to everyone can we truly begin to understand the notion of love and acceptance. Okay enough soapbox, time for the nail art!

O.P.I. Today I Accomplished Zero

Hi friends! How was your weekend? Did you partake in any of the awesome polish sales? I actually skipped out this year because I may or may not have gone on a spending spree a few weeks ago! Today's polish being one of them. I picked up O.P.I.'s Today I Accomplished Zero at my local Ulta, but never wore it.

As you can see, I am back to squared nubs. I broke off much of the nail on my ring finger yesterday. Shorty squares look so great with a dark and edgy polish, so I grabbed Today I Accomplished Zero since it was sitting in my untried pile. I really don't know how to feel about going short and square - I really love the longer round nails I had, but this polish is making me feel a little better!

Please Note: Products shown were purchased by me for my personal use.

O.P.I. Today I Accomplished Zero (Coca-Cola collection 2014)

Zoya Veronica Fall/Winter 2014 Color Trend

Hey everyone! Happy Halloween! No holiday themed nails from me today. If you missed it, I posted a super cool, edgy look on Tuesday.

Today's Color Trend post is probably my favorite one from the fall palette. Sangria is a rich and vampy cool-toned red. It is fun and modern, yet still maintaining an air of sophistication. Zoya Veronica from the Entice collection is a gorgeous representation of this fun fall hue.

Please Note: Products shown were purchased by me for my personal use.

Zoya Veronica (Entice Fall 2014)

Essie Dress To Kilt Fall/Winter 2014 Color Trend

Hi everyone! Hope you all had a great week! We are having glorious fall weather here in my part of the world. It is so nice to feel the cool breeze outside. Definitely my favorite time of year!

Today's Color Trend post is all about the ultimate classic color - Red. Pantone's fall palette is filled with vintage hues and Aurora Red is as vintage as it gets. A bright tomato red shade takes a grand departure from the standard Ox blood of the past. Sadly, no polish collection carried that trend into their fall offerings! But the closest one is Dress To Kilt from the Essie fall collection of the same name.

Please Note: Products shown were purchased by my for my personal use.

Essie Dress To Kilt (Dress To Kilt Fall 2014

Pacifica Red Red Wine

Hey all! Today I have a polish from the beauty brand Pacifica. I have used their products a few times, and have enjoyed the ones I own. I received one of the new nail polishes in my September Ipsy bag and decided to post it up on the blog. 

Side note - I have had my Ipsy subscription for about 6 months now, and I love it. If you are thinking about joining I highly recommend it. I am always really happy with my bags and am able to use at least half of the stuff in it.

Please Note: Products shown were purchased by me for my personal use.

Pacifica Red Red Wine

Rainbow Honey Summer Mix Tape Collection

Hey guys and gals! Another late post I am afraid. I'm still feeling sick from the stomach bug I had yesterday and have managed to do little to nothing productive today. Thankfully I had everything put together for this post and just needed to add the finishing touches before publishing it! 

This weekend, much to my surprise, I received some goodies from Rainbow Honey to review on the blog. The Summer Mixtape collection is being released in two days and I have three polishes to share with you guys. Plus a little bonus from Dee at the end of the post!

Please Note: Products shown were provided by the company/creator for review purposes.

Rainbow Honey Control

Control is a neon fuchsia with pink and purple fleck shimmer. It is the most ridiculously obnoxious bright pink ever and I frickin love it. So. Much. I am gonna wear this on my toes all summer long! The formula was slightly thicker and had some leveling issues, but smoothed out perfectly with a top coat. It does dry to a satiny finish as well, due to the neon pigment.

(Macro)

Rainbow Honey Work It Out

Work It Out is a dusty red toned coral crelly. This is such a unique shade, the dustyness just really puts it over the top. A certain mainstream brand that releases a ton of nearly identical reds every year should take note. While I don't have many reds in my stash (a grand total of four, I believe!) this polish is definitely a stand out. The formula is good, a little thin. I needed three coats for full coverage. It dries super glossy, but I finished it off with a top coat to seal it.

Rainbow Honey Elevate over Work It Out

Elevate is a glitter topper in a clear base full of various colors and shapes of glitter with a purple shimmer. The primary color is aqua with pink, green, yellow and white mixed in. It also has circle and triangle glitter shapes. There is a whole lot of stuff going on in this bottle! I really like the triangle glitters, I think they add a funky and unusual look to the glitter! The formula was good and easy to work with. I used the dab & spread method to apply because of the amount of glitter. I used one coat to get the amount of glitter coverage I desired. 

(Macro)

There are nine more polishes in the collection and from what I have seen on IG, they look very cool. And as a super nice gift for the release of the collection, you can take 20% off your purchase! Use the code MIXTAPE20 on your next purchase (expires 8/31/14). The Summer Mixtape collection goes on sale July 18th!

Please Note: Products shown were provided by the company/creator for review purposes. All opinions are my own. For more info, please read my disclaimer.

The Summer Mixtape collection is available on line. Products retail for $10 a piece.

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Happy 4th of July!!

Hey y'all! Happy Friday and 4th of July to my American pals! Today is a short and sweet post to share the festive skittle mani I did for the holiday. We are having a small cookout and then going to check out the fireworks show nearby. And then I am staying up late tonight getting ready for the girlie's birthday party tomorrow! Oof, I'm already exhausted and the day just started.

Used:

O.P.I. - First Date At The Golden Gate

Essie - Hide & Go Chic

Winstonia nail wraps in Americano

I had a few wraps left over from my original review (here) and decided it would be fun to use one as an accent nail. The Americano wraps are super cute and so sparkly! And they are on sale this weekend!

This mani literally took me less than 30 minutes to do both hands. And, yes, for once my right hand is painted too! Whenever I do nail art, I  am only able to do it on my left hand, since I am not ambidextrous at all. Nail wraps are great for that reason alone!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

O.P.I. Live. Love. Carnival. - Spring/Summer Color Trend

Hello everyone! Another Friday has come (one that I didn't accidentally skip, oops!) and we are almost done with the spring/summer Pantone color palette! We have two colors left and their polish counterparts are phenomenal! One of my absolute favorite colors is a bright coral and Pantone added the gorgeous red hued shade, Cayenne into the Spring color palette. O.P.I.'s Live.Love.Carnival. nails the color perfectly!

Please Note: Products shown were purchased by me for my personal use.

O.P.I. - Live. Love. Carnival.

Live. Love. Carnival. is a bright, almost neon, coral red. It is soooo bright and happy! I can't think of a better shade for summer manis and pedis. The formula was once again flawless, two smooth coats for full coverage. As I mentioned, it boarders the neon line so it doesn't dry super shiny, so be sure to add a nice thick top coat for a glossy finish!

Once again, I am over the moon for another O.P.I. Brazil shade. I have never been a huge fan of the brand, but this collection just killed it!

Only one more color left and it is another amazing polish from O.P.I. And it's pretty much a polish lovers dream come true! And I promise not to flake again, and skip a week!

Please Note: Products shown were purchased by me for my personal use. All opinions are my own. For more info, please read my disclaimer.

O.P.I. is available at beauty stores like Ulta and Sally's. Products retail for approximately $9 a piece.