Swatch - China Glaze Budding Romance

An unusual colour and one many would consider ugly will be reviewed today. 

Budding Romance:
Mossy mustard green crelly. Jelly-like but builds opacity nicely with no VNL. I applied 2 medium coats easily. This one is from the Avant Garden collection released in 2013.

Specifications:
Formula - Good, easy application

Pigmentation - Okay, jelly-like but two thicker coats covered everything

Shine - Shiny!

Dry Time - Average

Removal - Easy

Staining - None

Bottle Vs. Mani Colour - Darker and with brown tones instead of green on the nail vs. bottle colour

I quite like these strange, unique colours. This could also be a really handy colour for nail art maybe? Sometimes I hold on to strange colours also for nail art purposes.

Avant Garden collection polishes: Budding Romance, Dandy Lyin' Around, Fade Into Hue, Fancy Pants, Keep Calm Pain On, Life Is Rosy, Mimosa's Before Mani's, Passion For Petals, Pink-id Promise, Snap My Dragon, Sunday Funday, Tart-y For The Party.

NOTD - Surreal Monet Layering

An awesome layering combo will be shown today. What was initially a quick pick of two polishes for a fast mani turned into something divine and unexpected. The colors were soft and reminded me of Monet's Water Lilly painting (my favorite painting). I got a lot of compliments on this mani and also comments on its similarity to an OPI polish. Let's hop to it!

(Picture heavy to show all angles and the crazy duochrome of this combo!)

Mani Composition:
Base - China Glaze Queen B (one coat)
Topper - Orly Angel Rain (one coat)
Seche Vite top coat (one coat)

The duochrome of this mani is incredible! Mostly it shines purple but the green is strong at certain angles. Brush strokes were not noticeable as long as application of Angel Rain is even with a light touch. Having a dark blurple like Queen B really gave this mani it's personality making it dark and blurple. Angel Rain doesn't really lighten the shade of Queen B, instead AR adds duochrome to the dark blurple.

I was getting comments that this layering combo looks similar to OPI Peace, Love & OPI. I, also, thought the same thing while wearing the mani, so here's a quick breakdown in words:

OPI is a duochrome also of purple and green. However, OPI shine mainly a different shade of green (nicer green in my opinion) and flashes purple at certain angles. Also, OPI has a charcoal/pewter base colour as oppose to blurple. All in all, the two mani's are very different.

I looooved this mani! If you guys have these polishes, you must give this layering combo a try, you won't be disappointed.

Do you like to layer duochromes on creams or wear them on their own?

NOTD - Halloween Nails!

Hope everyone had an awesome Halloween! Hope you guys got to have a festive and exciting way to celebrate the day. I did not get up to anything whatsoever; didn't even dress up for work. I realized, since my teens, I have only dressed up and done something festive two or three times. Perhaps next year I should force myself to do something even if Halloween falls on a weekday. Enough rambling, on to the manicure!

Short blurb on the manicure: me and my fellow polish loving co-worker went to work on Halloween with very similar nail art. We went around the office showing other girls our mani's and everyone thought we had done our nails together! Guess great minds think alike ;)

So much blood! Middle finger has blood dripping and pinky blood splatter. My Frankenstein ended up having very creepy, soul-less eyes that I thought was very fitting. Originally, the index fingers were supposed to be stamped with skulls but it was bed time (I need my sleep!). The thumb was an excuse to use one of my "fuzzy" polishes and I also ran out of nail art ideas. In case you are wondering my right hand had an identical mani.

Mani Composition:
Thumb - OPI My Vampire Is Buff (MVIB) topped with China Glaze You're A Hoot
Index - Zoya Arizona (base) topped with Zoya Rica
Middle - OPI MVIB with dripping OPI All I Want For Christmas (Is OPI)
Ring - Nicole by OPI Sweet On Pete, OPI Black Onyx, OPI MVIB
Pinky - OPI MVIB (base) spattered with OPI AIWFC

This was a fun mani to do. I got to try out a lot of nail art techniques that I have been wanting to do, such as the dripping and splatter techniques. The dripping turned out nicely, but the splatter needs more work (I think I need a thinner straw).

Did you guys do Halloween themed nails for Halloween?

NOTD - Fourth of July Nails

So fourth of July has come and passed, which means time to show what mani I sported for the American holiday! Since I did not get the chance to do a Canada Day inspired mani, I knew I had to come up with something for July 4th. Yes, I finally went out and bought a white polish (this was tough considering the public subway system was on strike).

Trying to think of a design that would only use tape was tough, but in the end I really like the design. The colour-block nails kind of remind me of a famous painting that I cannot recall right now.

Mani Composition:
All fingers had 2 layers of OPI Alpine Snow as a base.
Thumb & Pinky - OPI Gettin' Miss Piggy With It, Color Club Beyond The Mistletoe
Other fingers - China Glaze Phat Santa, OPI Dating A Royal

I am very pleased with the end result after many hours of thinking of a design and actually doing it. A friend of mine even commented that my thumb and pinky nails looked like fireworks! The holographic glitters in BTM definitely added a bit of "oomph" to nail. Hope you guys had a great Fourth of July holiday weekend and thanks for stopping by~

What did you sport on the Fourth of July?

NOTD - Neon Leopard Holo Garbage

Any thoughts on the odd title? I just had to use the word "garbage", you will know why later if you do not already know. Recently, I got to go to one of my favorite polish supply stores! Yay~ I actaully had quite a bit of self-control in the store to my own surprise. When I got home I couldn't wait to use my new pretties! Awhile back Rebecca Likes Nails did a leopard mani using a couple of polishes from the China Glaze Sunsational collection. Needless to say I loved the combination and had to recreate the mani! My version is identical to her's except I wore Orly Sparkling Garbage on my pinky (hence the title).

The leopard print was kind of butchered, since I had to use a very awkward tool (the flat head on the back of a tiny needle). After searching all over the apartment for a "dotting tool" this was my best alternative. Should have brought my dotting tools! Anyway, I'm calling this "abstract leopard" haha.

Mani Composition:
Index & Middle - 2 coats China Glaze That's Shore Bright (with Top Coat)
Thumb & Ring - 2 coats China Glaze Highlight of My Summer and ChG TSB leopard print
Pinky - 3 coats Orly Sparkling Garbage

Gosh! I am loving everything about this mani: the colours, the combination and that holo glitter! Thanks for the inspiration Rebecca~

How do you guys like this mani? Do you own any of the polishes used in this mani?

Swatch - China Glaze Turned Up Turquoise

This post will be a quicky! I have been on the job hunt lately and boy am I out of practice with interviews and what not. Lots to do, but painting my nails keeps me sane. I'm sure this is true for many of you reading this ;)

China Glaze Turned Up Turquoise:
A neon turqoise with strong green tone and subtle sheen for a velvet/pearly look. This is from the 2005 Nervy Neons collection, and had been re-released a couple of times in different collections. This was the most impossible colour to photograph!!! In real life, the colour is much darker, more green and not washed-out looking. Though, I do love this colour my camera made up in the second photo.

Shown is two coats with no top coat for index and ring fingers (top coat on middle and pinky) in the pictures below:

Specifications:
Formula -Average
Pigmentation - Okay, 2 thin coats can give full coverage (if work carefully); otherwise need 3 coats to get rid of patchiness
Dry time - Fast (work fast to avoid dragging)
Shine - None, matte
Removal - Easy

I have used this colour in nail art before, and actually liked it better then than I do having it has a full mani. In fact, I like the colour in the pictures better than what it is in real life... well how about that?

NOTD - Fix My Fail Contest Entry

Hello everyone! Today, I have my mani entry into Lacquer or Leave Her's Fix My Fail Contest. The contest is just for fun, and it is fun to do as well! I definitely had a great time trying to think of how to keep as many of the original fail mani elements as possible. There were two choices and I chose the Aphrodite Lacquers Margarita Fail. Here is what I came up with:

L-R: China Glaze Def Defying, Color Club Eternal Beauty, Kiss French Manicure White

I used two coats of ChG Def Defying then used a dotting tool to dot on the flowers and dot-stripes with CC Eternal Beauty and Kiss white. The concept behind this was that the mani was supposed to kind of resemble a shooting star. Where the flowers are the stars and the white dots trail behind them going from large to smaller dots. I love the holographic flowers, so pretty and eye catching~

Thanks Lacquer or Leave Her! for holding this contest! This was the push I needed to get back into nail art.

Swatch & Review - China Glaze Hologlam collection

Here comes the highly anticipated China Glaze Hologlam collection. I am definitely late to this game, but no one ever gets tired of looking at holographic polish swatches, right? The collection contains 12 colours, but I only picked up the six more unique colours. There is so much to say about this collection, in other words, this will be a long post, so get comfortable! Pictures first, the rant comes second.

The polishes all had great pigmentation, only two coats were needed for full coverage. All swatches show two coats without top coat (base coat presence is specified).

These four swatches were done with OPI Nail Envy as base coat. Therefore, some of these swatches are patchy. I thought I would show these imperfections, so you guys can avoid the mistake of using a base coat under these polishes.

When Stars Collide:
Plum purple. This is a beautiful colour and truly unique for a holo polish. I expected this to be my favorite out of the collection and it is. Holo strength is strongest out of the six, you can even see the holo indoors slightly (first picture).

Strap On Your Moonboots:
Navy blue. Expected stronger holo for this dark colour. Slight staining of nails noticed after removal.

Not In This Galaxy:
Peachy coral. Holo is stronger than expected. This is my surprise favorite of the collection. The colour looks so pretty and delicate.

Infra Red:
Magenta. Holo not as strong as expected; in fact, it might be one of the weakest ones out of the six. However, I do love the colour of this polish. Definitely one of my top choices out of this collection.

Why it took me so long to figure out not to use a base coat escapes me. Anyway, these next two swatches are without base coat (or top coat as mentioned above).

OMG A UFO: 
Moss green. Colour is a tad lighter than bottle colour. Stronger holo than expected. Very unique colour.

Take a Trek:
Denim blue. In real life there is no green tints/hue/influence at all in the colour of this polish. I have noticed some internet swatches show this colour as teal, but this is a true blue. Weaker holo than expected, weakest of the six actually. The colour is very interesting, I do not own any denim blues so this is a great polish to add to my stash.

Specifications:
Dry time - Fast, but not as fast as Color Club holographic polishes.
Shine - Dull, no shine, flat-looking, top coat recommended (see below for TC details)
Wear - Chips easily and tip wear in 1-2 days
Prone to - Brush strokes due to slightly frosty finish
Removal - Easy

*Application: on bare nail was awesome! Dragging will occur if you take too long, since the polish dries faster than regular creams.
Application warning: do not use base coat! This will cause major dragging and clumping resulting in major bald spots and lumps. Some bloggers use Nfu Oh Aqua Base under finicky holo polishes.

*Top coat: does not affect holo, so I recommend putting some on otherwise the mani looks dull. Tried Seche Vite and OPI Top Coat, found SV scattered the holo a tiny bit making holo tiny bit weaker (not noticeable difference).

*Holo property: under the sun is quite strong and very noticeable (stronger than shown in pics). Indoors you will see muted holo as well (not as subtle as I expected actually). Different shades have different holo strength. I tried my best to gauge holo strength among the six.
Holo strength (strong to weak): When Stars Collide, OMG A UFO, Strap On Your Moonboots, Not In This Galaxy, Infra Red, Take A Trek

I like that there are some unique colors and the colors show up strong. However, this collection is just wimpy compared to the Color Club Halo Hues collections, which offer Hercules' strength holo and super easy application with awesome formula (with base coat!). Not to mention the CC polishes are quite a bit cheaper.

What are your thoughts on this collection? Will you be picking some up or passing? 

NOTD/Haul - Random Pick-Me-Up Glitters!

I was having a pretty rough day yesterday, so I decided to run some fun errands and catch some sun. In the end, my errand trip did cheer me up significantly! Managed to lend a few good movies, pick up my ring from routine rhodium plating (it was so shiny!), and stumbled across some polishes resulting in this haul.

In Canada, there is a Claire's (or Icing now I suppose) equivalent called Ardene's. The store used to only sell jewelry, polish and hair accessories. However, somehow over the last 10 years or so, clothing and shoes have taken over half the store. Anyway, the bright colours and girly atmosphere drew me in; nothing cheers me up more than a super girly store (okay....maybe except polish). Seeing the polishes, I rummage through them a bit not taking them seriously because I admit I am kind of a polish snob. Polish snob meaning I do not "usually" buy drugstore, clothing store, or other random polishes. With that said, if there is a unique polish I will get it! Back to the polishes, I liked some of the glitters they had and I look up to see a sign saying they are 80% off! Immediately, I grab all the glitters. Some of you may wonder just how much each polish cost after discount...hold on to your hats...they were 90 cents each (and that's after taxes)! Could not pass up on that deal.

There are some truly spectacular polishes in here that I am extremely excited to try out. I especially love the holographic label sticker on the bottle of the bottles. All nail polish should have their names printed in holographic paint!

 Just look at these two holo glitter polishes that caught my eye! So pretty and sparkly!

 Here is a closer look at Tigers eye, the silver holo glitter polish that I could not wait to layer over something.

I layered one coat of Tigers Eye on top of China Glaze Turned Up Turquoise. Not sure how I feel about this combination. It looks kind of tacky to me, but I will wear it for a couple of days to see if it grows on me.

In case some of you are wondering about the quality of the glitter polish, this guy is definitely not nearly as good as China Glaze, OPI, or any of those types of brands. This polish takes a longer time to dry, dries kind of sticky, smells awful (like plastic) and the holo part of some glitters have stripped off. However, the glitter coverage was pretty good and application was easy. All in all, the quality is not great but I still like the look of the polish. For 90 cents, I am very happy!

What are you guys' take on clothing store polishes? Do you guys consider yourselves polish snobs?

Swatch - China Glaze Stella

I have a couple of hours of free time today, so I figure I would do a swatch posting! This is going to be quick and short.

China Glaze Stella:
Dark warm (red leaning) purple shimmer that has this glow from within look with dark edges. This polish is from the Retro Diva collection released by China Glaze a few years ago. Pictures show 2 coats without top coat.

Specifications:
Formula - Great
Pigmentation - Great, a 1 coater (2 coats necessary if do not use thick coats)
Finish - Little bit of shine, TC recommended
Dry time - Faster side for dark colour
Prone to - brush strokes (slightly), less noticeable when dry
Wear - tip wear in 1 day, chipped within 3 days 
Application tip: try to apply fast and not go over same spot too many times (will start to drag due to faster dry time)

This is a beautiful colour with a great formula. I just wishes tip wear on this was better, because nothing bothers me more than seeing this white outline at my nail edge. Overall, this is a definitely like for me and I will be wearing it many times due to the beautiful colour.

What do you think about this colour? Do you own this polish?