Don't Like Your Mani? You Can Fix It

I was high on life the other day. I had a nice meeting, I went on a shopping spree, and it was a gorgeous day so I layed out (in the new blurple bikini I got on the shopping spree!) and I thought some neon nails were in order. I decided to go with Color Club - Ultra Violet, a neon purple. I thought it would be amazing but it just didn't wow me. I think that it just wasn't working with my red skin. I didn't want to change it. I wanted to like it. I wanted to give it a chance. So I decided to start digging through my stash to find a way to spruce it up. This is what I came up with.

I added some flowers with white NP and Konad plate M65. Then I took it up yet another notch with a coat of Cover Girl - City Lights, a holographic glitter top coat. I really like that! I actually have had it on for 4 days and still plan on wearing it for at least another.

I appreciate the shade more like this. I love the delicate, full coverage flower pattern and the glints of rainbows from the sparkles. Plus when the blue shimmer in Ultra Violet flashes at me I get completely entranced .

So if you have a nail polish you want to love but it just isn't working for you, there may be a way to help it be more desirable!

-Elaine
:c)

New House Key

This is a cute mani I did the other day. I started with what may be my favorite white: Color Club - Oooooo La La. It is a clean white, but has a pearl finish making it far more wearable than a white out white. Next I added a coat of LA Colors - Silver Glitter. That looked rather awesome but then I added one more touch: a gradient of rhinestones to my ring finger in pinks, blues and green.

And where did I pull the inspiration for this mani from? That is where the goofy name of this post comes in. It seriously was inspired by a new key I got cut. It is white with silver glitter and rhinestones! >>>

Isn't that adorable? It is much easier to figure out what key you need when you're fumbling in the dark after a few cocktails...

What do you think?
-Elaine
:c)

Zoya Sparkle Collection with Close-Ups!

Half of Zoya's summer release this year, as I am sure you know, is the Sparkle collection. The "sparkle" in these isn't really glitter, but it isn't really shimmer. If you are around here regularly, you have probably seen my glitter close-up shots which make it really clear how glitter looks. They are usually larger particles that are regular geometric shapes like squares and hexagons. The sparkles in the Zoya Sparkles are smaller than typical glitter and they are irregular in shape. They are more like a shimmer, but shimmer to me is very, very fine like a dusting of shimmery particles and Zoya Sparkles are much larger than typical shimmer. So I have been calling what is in these "sparkles" as opposed to "glitter" or "shimmer". All these swatches are three coats.

Charla - sun/shade/close-up - Ooooh. This is a bright sky blue jelly crammed with gold sparkles. The gold in the blue gives a green to teal tinge to this shade. Really pretty.

Ivanka - sun/shade/close-up - Charla is something special, but I think I like the look of Ivanka on my nails more. I love the jewel green with the bright, dense, gold sparkles.

Allegra - sun/shade/close-up - This is a hot (not neon, just hott!) fuchsia jelly with pinkish, purplish sparkles.

Mimi - sun/shade/close-up - This is a bold, royal purple jelly with purple sparkles that have a slight gold duochrome.

Nihdi - sun/shade/close-up - This is a tomato-red jelly with gold sparkles. I really like this red/gold combo. The base is slightly different than the others as it seems to be closer to a creme than a jelly. It also looks like the sparkles are less dense than in others. It's probably the only one that I would have let get away with two coats, but this swatch is three.

The formula of these is pigmented enough that if you did a thicker coat you could do two coats, but I did three for all because in the strong sunlight there was VNL.

Unfortunately when I ordered these I somehow forgot about Gilda! I intended on getting the whole collection and just missed! Gilda is a bright pink sparkle. If I get it one day I will swatch it but there are no promises at this point!

What do you think of the Sparkles? Still waiting to pull the trigger on your Zoya Exchange? That is how I got mine... and 11 other Zoyas...
:cD

Yellow Polka Dot Bikini

I am super in love with my mani, but super upset that pics do not capture its awesomeness. The problem lies in the fact that I used neons (China Glaze - Poolside specifically) for this mani and we all know how hard it is to photograph them. The neon glow and brightness doesn't translate to digital pics, but I will try to explain as we go.
:c)

I started with a base of pure white creme. This allowed me to do less coats of the neon and really made the color pop. Next I painted two coats of China Glaze - Yellow Polka Dot Bikini. Holy cow is that bright! Super neon, hi-liter yellow. I wore this out to see friends the other day and in dim lighting my girlfriend asked if it glowed in the dark! Nope, just super neon!

For the dots, I knew I would be using three different colors and wanted them to look random which actually takes some calculating. To make sure I got the pattern right, I used my polka dot image from Konad plate M79 with white polish first on all the nails. Then I went over the dots with a dotting tool and China Glaze Sun Worshiper, Pool Party and Flip Flop Fantasy.

Besides the fact that my pics don't show off the neonness, they show some white around the dots where I didn't necessarily cover my white base dots fully, but in real life I swear you don't see it. I am staring deep into the dots on my hands and I don't see the white spots. It's like this:

See what I mean? But it actually looks really cute and bright in real life. I hope you can picture it in all its glory!

Have a great Sunday!
-Elaine

Sally Hansen - Hidden Treasure vs Gosh - Rainbow

Sally Hansen - Hidden Treasure and Gosh - Rainbow

When I first started seeing swatches of the new hot drugstore release, Sally Hansen - Hidden Treasure, I started thinking that it looked just like a little gem I got from a friend overseas. It's by a brand called "Gosh" which is sold in Europe and Canada, and not to us US girls. I have showed you a little of what Gosh - Rainbow can do, and if you like what you saw and couldn't get it, I have good news. There are dupes!

In sunlight, one coat layered over black:
Sally Hansen - Hidden Treasure (HT) on index and ring
Gosh - Rainbow (GR) on middle and pinky

In shade, one coat layered over black:
Sally Hansen - Hidden Treasure (HT) on index and ring
Gosh - Rainbow (GR) on middle and pinky

still one coat, just at an angle

still one coat, just close-up

At first looking at the bottles they look much different, don't they? HT looks like it is more white and cloudy, while GR is crystal clear. HT looks like it flashes some more pastel shades, and GR look like a prism. But on the nail... they look the same. The photo directly above makes it look like HT may have a more dense coverage, but it is just based on those two nails. I had a lot on brush when I painted my ring finger, but you can see it is not as dense on the index. It was just a fluke. To me they flash the same colors, at the same angles, and have the same intensity and density.

So if you are not in the US and can't find HT, then you can get yourself Rainbow. If you can't get Rainbow in the US, you can get Hidden Treasure (maybe. It seems as though it's hard to spot!) and if you can't get either, it looks like a new release from Nubar is a twin too: Nubar - 2010

What do you think?
HAPPY FRIDAY!
:c)
-Elaine

Preview: Orly Cosmic FX - Fall 2010

I am sure you guys have seen this, but I can't believe my eyes! I am super excited about this collection!

As ORLY continues to pioneer the nail category with distinct and trend setting finishes and color, the brand introduces its latest addition to its portfolio of textured finishes with Cosmic FX. The new, limited-edition collection delivers multi-dimensional flashes of intense shimmering shine that is so electrifying your nails will explode with color! This lighting phenomenon is achieved by ORLY’s exclusive MINERAL FX technology.

The innovation infuses natural rock minerals, crystals, and glass to give nails a special optical effect with extreme luster, rich pearlescence, and a smooth, sparkling spectrum of concentrated color.

The MINERALFX technology includes specialty mica, that allows for a clearer, vibrantly bright lustrous shimmer. Crystals allow for a multi-dimensional color transformation. Glass particles carefully controlled in shape and size create a luminous phenomenon. This combination infused with the Silica and specific colors selected create this exclusive technology that gives nails a unique optical effect that’s magnified as the lighting source intensifies or viewing angle changes.

Cosmic FX perfectly accentuates the looks seen in the Fall 2010 runway collections – from the futuristic Audrey Hepburn at Miu Miu to Ann Demeulemeester’s feathered and metal cuffs and Issey Miyake’s colorful leggings.

The six Lacquers in the Cosmic FX Collection include:

Lunar Eclipse: Blue with Pink Purple Fx

Galaxy Girl: Purple with Blue Green Fx

It’s Not Rocket Science: Green with Gold Blue Fx

Space Cadet: Green with Purple Gold FX

Halleys Comet: Turquoise with Green Yellow Fx

Out of this world: Purple with Pink Silver Fx

AGH! Why are these not available until September! The wait is going to kill me!

Marilyn Dragonfly

Hi! I am so excited about my manicure today. First off, I was very excited about the base color I chose. I got my Zoya exchange package yesterday with 16 new Zoyas! WOO HOO! And the first one I put on is one I actually had to throw in at the last minute by swapping out one other one I had on my list to get it once I saw Scrangie's swatch of it: Marilyn. It is a soft pink, with a hint of peach, and a pearl finish. Super pretty. Super unlike me... but super pretty!

Then I had to snaz it up. So did some Konad stamping. I used plate M5 and Revlon - Punch Chrome and China Glaze - Adore.

Close-Up

Thumb

What do you think?!
:cD
Elaine

Cool Hidden Kiwi Treasure

Hi! This is a quickie NOTD post. This is China Glaze - Kiwi Cool-Ada with a new release from Sally Hansen layered on top: Hidden Treasure, a rainbow flakie polish in a clear base:

Have a good one! Be back soon with more!
-Elaine
:c)

NOTD: Milani - Hi-Tech

It was such a sunny day I just had to do a holo shade. That is the best NP for a sunny day! I chose Milani - Hi-Tech and oh baby this is amazing!!!

This is an outrageously bright, lime green that is impressive right there but then add the amazing holographic particles and whoa baby! This even very prismatic in low light, not just sunlight.

If you have seen the Milani 3D Holographic line in store and thought they didn't look that impressive don't trust it. In the bottle they look sort of holo. On the nail they really shine. And they are well pigmented. I have tried 3 of these shades and all of them got on in two coats.

Here is the blue one, Cyberspace I snapped a while back:

I loved this on me too. I also tried the purple one, Hi-Res, and loved that too! I may have to give in to the other three now too. :c)

Melons and Mangoes

Woo hoo! Sunshine! How about a bright summery mani? :c)

I did a little something with a couple of my brightest, nearly neon, orange shades. I used Kleancolor - Mango and Santee - Neon Orange.

I put on Mango, the lighter of the two, first. Then I painted half the nail diagonally with Neon Orange. If you want to try this and can't get it on neatly, don't worry. I just slapped in on all over to get it where I wanted and cleaned it up later.

Once I had my base colors on I used a dotting tool to get the contrasting dots on either side of the diagonal.

I didn't really consider these neons at first, but now that I have them on they sure look rather neon. They photographed like neons too. They gave me a hard time. The pictures make them look all radioactive and more yellow than it looks in real life. The Kleancolor looks more peach in real life and the Santee looks more red/pink/coral in real life. They look more like the bottle shot above than the on-the-nail pics. I like them in real life more than the pictures. But this was the best I could do. Here is a swatch I did of Santee - Neon Orange a while back:

What do you think?
-Elaine
:c)