Erica's Nails & More Nail Art Challenge!! Day 9!

Hellooooo!!!

It is the last day and I am cutting it close! 

Today's theme is to re-create a favourite & to honour Erica and her awesome challenge I chose her polka dot nails! I picked this mani because the colour combo seemed totally funky and awesome to me. Looks so cool!

Here is her mani: http://ericasnailsandmore.blogspot.ca/2013/02/february-nail-art-challenge-day-8.html#more

& Here is mine!

I didn't have any of the same colours as Erica but I think I chose similar ones! Color Club Chelsea Girl, Essence Wanna Be Your Sunhine & China Glaze Harvest Moon. CG Harvest Moon is my untried! I think Erica's look much prettier and neater than mine. My dots are just too darn big!!! Color combo is cool though! :)

Thanks for looking, and thanks for sticking with me through Erica's Nail Art Challenge. It was so much fun and I'd like to thank her for being so awesome! :) Thanks Erica!

Erica's Nails & More Nail Art Challenge! Day 8!

Hello and welcome to day 8 of Erica's Nails & More February Nail Art Challenge!

Today is just a quick post. The theme is "polka dots". 

I did a very pink dotticure with little flowers. 

I used OPI Alpine Snow, OPI Kiss Me On My Tulips & SH Insta Dri Pink Blink (my untried!)

It is quite a simple design, but I quite liked the way it turned out :)

Thanks for reading :) xo

50 Follower Giveaway for some Rainbow Honey goodies!

Hello polish people!

I realized I hit 50 followers!! I never thought in a million years that 50 people would care about what I had to say about nail polish. But I love sharing my thoughts with you all and to show my appreciation I am having a small giveaway to celebrate!

Up for grabs is a full sized polish from Rainbow Honey's Valentines Day Collection called Sweet Talk & also a cuticle balm from Rainbow Honey in Vanilla Dreams.

Check out the Rafflecopter Widget below to enter and thank you! <3 xo

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Erica's Nails & More Feb. Nail Art Challenge, Day 7!! Inspired By A Tutorial!

Hello!! Day 7 of the nail art challenge here!

Today's theme is "inspired by a tutorial".

Here is the tutorial I picked, found on Simple Nail Art Tips, a webpage belonging to a friend of mine :) http://www.simplenailarttips.com/nail-art/simple-rainbow-on-matte-black-nail-art-tutorial

Original Design by: Sun Dancer: http://solensdanserinde.blogspot.ca/2011/09/awesome-rainbow.html 

Here is my take on it: I used GOSH Nero as my base and mattified it with NYC Matte Me Crazy. Then I added the rhinestones using a dotting tool and the matte top coat as glue. I got my rhinestones from www.bornpretty.com :) I highly recommend them!

Then I thought it needed some "oomph" but I knew with all the shovelling I had to do today (we had a MASSIVE snowstorm) that a full mani of rhinestones wasn't going to hold up. So instead I just added them to the pinkies & added Finger Paints Twisted (My untried!) to the other nails. I like how it turned out. I loooooove Twisted. Who doesn't love rainbow flakies!?

What do you think about my take on the tutorial? I kinda like it! I'm a fan of rainbow, matte, and flakies! Haha!

Thanks for reading and don't forget to check out the other awesome nail art!

Erica's Nails & More Nail Art Challenge! Day 6 Gradient Nails!!

Whoa!!! Day 6 already?? Time flies when you're having fun :)

Today is gradient nails. If you follow my blog you know I struggle with gradients. I think if you haven't got the blending down, it's best to pick similar colours in tone/intensity. That way its easier to blend the line of colour and make them mesh better.

I chose Nails Inc Baker Street and Joe Fresh Fluo Blue.

Then I topped it with my untried, Enchanted Polish Daydream Surprise. I'm not sure if I like the long bar glitter in this one but I love the shimmer (which is super awesome but didn't really show up in my pics). I also like the way it looks over the gradient!

& There you have it! Day 6!
Thanks for reading and don't forget to check out the other awesome nail art from the other challengers!

Ericas Nails & More Nail Art Challenge! Day 5 Valentines Day Nails

Happy Valentines Day & welcome to day 5 of Erica's Nails & More Nail Art Challenge!

Today is clearly themed Vday nails. I spend my Valentines Day with my fur boyfriends and girlfriends at my local SPCA. I go about three times a week, and this week is no different :) Furbabies need loving too. Plus its way more fun than the same ol' dinner & a movie.

Anyway, I digress. Here is my manicure!

I used OPI Pink Friday, China Glaze Seduce Me, China Glaze Midnight Kiss & Rainbow Honey My Love! I was so happy to get my Rainbow Honey order so quickly & I was most excited to try the LE, My Love (my untried!). I love it! It is full of gold sparkle and pink shimmer, iridescent goodness, and silvered white and pink heart glitters! Very pretty combo. I added some stripes and heart rhinestones too :]

Do you like it? I'm quite happy with how it turned out! I like that CG Seduce Me darkens the tone of it a bit and the heart rhinestones and Pink Friday still add a bit of fun!

Oh and looky at what I got in the mail!! I was part of a Secret Cupid Swap and this is my gift that I received from the lovely Chasadie! I LOOOVEEE IT so I had to show it off! I had been lemming Zoya Aurora for FOREVER. And I wanted to try a liquid sand so badly and she picked the PERFECT colour :) I also got a ton of cool samples (I'm most excited about the John Frieda ones ;) I don't know how she knew that those are some of my favourite candies but they almost didn't make it to the picture because I ate them all up immediately!

And just for a bonus, here is a picture of my last years Valentine, Mr. Duke!! I am happy to say that a year later, he is in a happy forever home. Warm, safe & sound with a forever family. Now THAT is a happy Valentines Day story <3

Don't forge to check out the other awesome nail art from Day 5!!

Erica's Nails & More Nail Art Challenge! Day 4: Inspired By A Pattern

Hello everyone and welcome to day 4!
I can't believe we are at Day 4 already! Time flies when you are having fun :)

Without getting emotional, I was inspired by my late fathers bathrobe. If he didn't have to leave the house after dinner he would always announce "I'm going to put my comfortable clothes on!" and would go get into his comfy plaid pants and blue, green, and black plaid fleece bathrobe. I love that bathrobe. I also have the same trait as my Dad. Don't have to go out? I'll just put my pajamas on at 6pm. Always better to be comfortable.

I used China Glaze First Mate (my untried!), Holly-day & GOSH Nero. I used striping tape and a *lot* of dry time to  make the plaid pattern. It did come out looking quite close to the pattern on the robe :)

Plaid takes awhile with all of the dry time, but I like it because it is simple and looks clean! I find this manicure and pattern as  just as comforting as the bathrobe :)

Check out all the other nail art from day 4!

Old School Sally Hansen Saturday! Nail Prisms Ruby Diamond Swatch

Happy Saturday everyone!

Is anyone else getting the snowstorm that I am? I am seriously NOT looking forward to getting out and shovelling the driveway for the 10th time :P It is a whiteout outside! 

Today I am showing off a swatch of an old Sally Hansen polish, Ruby Diamond. Sally Hansen really had some gems back in the day. The Nail Prism line had some awesome holographics, duochromes, multichromes, and layering polishes! 

Ruby Diamond is a warm pink linear holographic. Two coats would have been fine, but I did three. These pictures were taken indoors in natural light so it doesn't really show off its true beauty! It is much more holo in real life and in the sun :)

This polish is older, I think released in 2002 (don't quote me on that). Keep in mind this means it is not Big 3 free! However, it IS awesome. Sally Hansen really hit the nail on the head for polish lovers with the whole Nail Prisms line. I think they are getting back on track with trends now as well with the release of their new lustre shine sparkly duochromes!

Thanks for reading and if you are in the middle of the big storm like me, stay inside and stay safe :)
xoxox

Erica's Nails & More February Nail Art Challenge! Day 3: Glitter Loaded Nails!

Hello everyone and welcome to Day 3 of Erica's Nails & More February Nail Art Challenge!

I like to franken in my spare time :) Mostly I make polish for friends as gifts with names from our inside jokes... or I add them to swaps when I don't have any cool extras or candy around. I thought glitter loaded nails would be the perfect opportunity to show you guys one of my glittery frankens!

I have an obsession with Tolkien. Lord of the Rings is one of my favourite adventure stories in the whole world. Most of the polishes I make for myself, I name after Tolkien related things. I was originally going to name this one "Courage For Our Friends". Eowyn says this is Merry before the great battle for Middle Earth when arriving at Pelonnor Fields. Neither are even supposed to be fighting in this war but both end up playing important roles in the battle. I'm still a little unsure of its name but I will stick with it for now.

I used a clear base so I could layer it and:
Micro squares of light pink and copper
Medium bright pink, light pink, magenta, apricot squares & gold hexes
Larger matte pink & purple squares
I am thinking of adding some gold shimmer to it to spice it up some more!

This polish is my untried considering I just made it ;)

What do you think of my franken?!
Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to check out the other awesome nail art from the challenge!!

Pure Nail OIl by Anna Seidel of Simple Nail Art Tips Review!

Herrrroh!

I've had this post written up for a couple weeks now! Can't believe I didn't hit the publish button!

Today I'm talking nail care. I'm a part of an awesome Facebook group where I've had the pleasure of meeting some amazing girls and women, just as obsessed with nails as I am! While in the group I noticed some of the girls (Erica from  Erica's Nails & More & Shea from Omg Wait, What Polish Is That?) raving about a new-to-me product called Pure Nail Oil. To my surprise, it was made by a fellow member! Anna from Simple Nail Art Tips! She knows her stuff when it comes to nail care and even developed her own nail and cuticle oil!

It's called Pure Nail and Cuticle Oil and it hydrates and moisturizes your nails and cuticles and greatly improves their health and appearance.

After seeing the results from Erica & Shea and browsing Anna's website, Simple Nail Art Tips (Anna's before and after pictures sealed the deal for me!) I purchased the starter kit.

The starter kit comes with a 2ml pen applicator (super awesome for in your purse, car, or office desk) & a 15ml bottle in the scent "Crisp". Anna also included some scent samplers so we can see what smells she is cooking up for the future!

The starter kit comes with instructions. The first three days are "hydration" days. First you take off ALL THE POLISH. Yep, you've gotta get naked. You apply the oil to your nails, behind your nails free edge, cuticles, and fingers down to your first knuckles. Massage the oil in and let your dry fingers, nails and cuticles soak it all up. When you notice its soaked in, apply more. Do this often, especially after washing hands, showering, etc. Do this for three days, and then you can move on to a twice a day application (& most importantly, put your polish back on!)

Anna is so confident in her product, she even gives out the recipe because she sincerely has nothing to hide, believes in her product, and she wants your  business. (Lets face it here, who has time, money, or equipment to be mixing up oil blends when we have no idea what were doing?) Here it is the recipe directly from her website, Simple Nail Art Tips:

• 4 oz Jojoba Oil
• 4 oz Grape Seed Oil
• 4 oz Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 3 drops Tea Tree Oil
• 2 mL Vitamin E Oil
• 2 mL Vitamin A Oil
• 2 to 4 mL Essential Oil (depending on the strength of the essential oil.)

Jojoba oil is the smallest oil molecule and can actually penetrate the nail plate, moisturizing and hydrating them. Anna mentions that dry nails break, and hydrated nails bend. I can attest to that. I have dry nails and they snap off like crazy, especially at their corners.

Since I know polish is responsible for the majority of strength in my nails, I filed them down a bit so the wouldn't experience too much stress and breakage without their polish protection. I then went nakey nakey for three days and followed the directions. Here is my before and after the three day hydration treatment!

• Smells very nice. Subtle, not overpowering, but very nice. Everyone in my family liked the smell. I also loved her scent sampler for Winter! I'll be purchasing it when it comes out.
• The pen made application VERY easy and convenient. I carted it around with me and it was easy to sort of paint on the oil. There was also no risk of spilling & you could get exactly the right amount on your fingers. Ana also has instructions for refilling the pen on her webpage, which is awesome.
• Felt calming to my skin immediately. Pleasant and enjoyable to use.
• I loved that it came with directions.
• I loved that there was enough oil in the order to last not just through the 3 day hydration, but this amount will last me a nice amount of time.
• My hangnails are completely gone. I don't have any to speak of anymore.
• It immediately moisturized my nails and softened my cuticles. My fingers just sucked in the oil (they must have been thirsty). The oil didn't "linger" on my skin. It did its job!
• My cuticles are no longer (sorry about this) crusty, or overgrown. They are behaving!
• The almost calloused hard bits of skin on the sides of my fingernails from working with my hands are softened and almost gone!
• Cuticles are not splitting anymore. In fact they have healed right up and are looking smoother and healthier.
• The skin around my fingernails is no longer red or inflamed. It is looking much more calm. Inflamed skin around the fingernails has been a problem for me for as long as I can remember. I am overjoyed that it is finally going away!
• The skin on my fingers is actually smoother. It looks less wrinkly/puckered and it is certainly not dry and flaky anymore. Its like they had been dried up before, and now they are hydrated and plump like they should be.
• I may just be super obsessed with this oil, but I swear this is more growth than normal for me. It looks like the nail growth is not only more, but of healthier nail. The colouring of the nail is so much better.
• Note: I've since learned from Anna that oil doesn't actually help the nail grow faster, but it can hydrate the nail so there is less brittle breakage off the tips, thus giving the illusion of a faster growing nail. This is what I experienced. And it is awesome.
• My nails are much more flexible. They have been bending instead of cracking and snapping off at the corners. They aren't peeling or splitting anymore either. My nails used to peel off in sheets or split vertically which was VERY inconvenient and sometimes very painful. They aren't doing this anymore though!

Overall, I definitely give this a buy. It did exactly what Anna claims it will do. I really liked using it. I like the smell, I like the feeling of it on my fingers, and I like that it did its job. When I run out, I will definitely be purchasing more. My job and life is hell on my hands and cuticles and this oil actually stands up to it and is improving the appearance and health of my nails and cuticles. Colour me very impressed with this product. Thank you to Anna for creating something that can actually stand up to my unruly fingernails and cuticles!

I'll will be continuing to use Pure Nail and Cuticle Oil twice a day and will update its effects on my nails in a post in the future.

You can buy Pure Nail and Cuticle Oil directly from Anna at her webpage, Simple Nail Art Tips HERE. The starter kit retails for $24, as does the refill kit! Shipping is free in the US and VERY reasonable worldwide. Anna also has exceptional customer service and does everything in her power to keep her customers happy. You can also check her out on her facebook page, Simple Nail Art Tips Facebook Page.

Thanks to Anna for creating such a great product! :) xo!

*All products in this review were purchased by me. These opinions are my own*

Erica's Nails & More February Nail Art Challenge! Day 2: Half Moon Nails!

Happy Monday!

Today is Day 2 of Erica's Nails & More February Nail Art Challenge! The theme today is half moon nails. I love funky half moon nail manicures. I also love that they are easy to do with the paper reinforcements. They are cheap and they make the mani look neat and clean with very little effort!

This is what I came up with!

I started with a coat of Layla Titanium Sky. A light blue true chrome polish. It is my untried! I love Layla chromes and this one is no exception. Although they do show all imperfections, they really do have a mirror-like and brushstroke free finish. I'm glad I gave Titanium Sky some love. Then I stuck on my paper reinforcers and used Zoya Song (my all-time favourite blue right now). I love blue, and I love the way this mani turned out!

Then I went a little overboard. I thought these colours were perfect to try and make "Rainbow Fish" nails. I stamped with Titanium Sky and Bundle Monster plate 209 to make the "scales". I added rainbow "dots" with Zoya Megan, Suri, Zuza, Blaze, & Layla Mercury Twilight. I added a few pieces of glitter too.

I think my rainbow fish nails need a bit of improvement but I quite like the idea behind it! I just need a bit more practice with my dotting.

I hope you enjoyed my Day 2 nails and don't forget to check out the other awesome nailart from the challenge!

Guest Post at Nastastic Fun!! Check it out!

Hey guys!

I did a guest post for my friend Krystal at Nailtastic Fun!

Check it out HERE!

xoxo!

Could You Guys Do Me a Favour? (FT Valentines Day Nail Art!)

Hello!!

One of my favourite (and Canadian!) online polish retails, Harlow & Co are hosting a Valentines Day nail art contest!

This is my entry!

I used Picture Polish Fairy Floss for the base (from Harlow & Co) & then the plaid was done with striping tape, a LOT of dry time, Color Club Poptastic, & OPI Kiss Me On My Tulips! I added hearts on the ring finger and thumb and topped it all in topcoat. 

If you could all do me a favourite and click HERE, find my picture, & vote for me. I would be super thrilled. I am very proud of how this mani turned out :)

Thank you for reading!

Erica's Nails & More February Nail Art Challenge! Day 1: GALAXY NAILS

Hello!

Fun news! I'm participating in the February Nail Art Challenge put on by the fabulous Erica from Erica's Nails & More!



Today is the first day and the challenge is Galaxy Nails! I know people say there is no "right or wrong" way to do Galaxy Nails. But mine always end up looking smudgy and very UN-space-like. Anyway here is what I came up with!

Don't laugh!! It really was my best efforts! I tried these a couple of times and this was definitely the best outcome.

I used GOSH Nero as my base. Nero is a fabulous one coat black. I sponged with OPI Alpine Snow, HITS HK Mint, Joe Fresh Fluo Blue, OPI Koala Berry, & a-England Avalon. I topped the whole thing with OPI Last Friday Night for some sparkle and smoothed it all one with g&g HK Girl topcoat.

Keeping with the theme of untrieds.. I used OPI Last Friday Night for the first time. Why did I wait so long to use it??? Its PERFECT for layering! 

I hope you liked my efforts and be sure to check out the other awesome nail art from the challenge!!