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Monday, December 31, 2012

The New Black Pardon My French Pink and Grey duo

I was at Nordstroms and they had a display of their clearance makeup... They had a BUNCH of New Black polish there so I bought a couple duos.


This is the Pink and Grey Pardon My French set. They are usually $10 for the pair but they were on sale for $6.70.
BTW: I broke a bunch of my nails somehow, so they are all nubbly now... yuck.
I also just got my striping tape in the mail, SUPER EXCITED!!! Last night was kind of a rough night for me so I went super minimalistic with the designs.


The blue I used is Kleancolor Shining Sea.

As I am looking at close up pictures I notice that I got a little shrinkage, you can see it on the tips of my index and middle finger where the tips of my nails are slightly visible. This is from the Seche Vite (I can tell because I never got around to top-coating the other three fingers). I usually prevent this from happening but I was really pre-occupied last night... relationship drama. For all of you out there who experience this kind of shrinkage from Seche Vite, just seal the free edges of your nails. Top coat the top and then the edge of the tips; this holds the top layer to the end and prevents the shrinkage from pulling the lacquer away from the tips, you may still get some shrinkage on the sides though.

})i({ - Amy

GIVEAWAY WINNER ANNOUNCED!!!

Yahoo!!! 
Drumroll please... And the winner is : PENNY MARSH

Congratulations Penny. I will be e-mailing you shortly to get your mailing address  and you have 48 hours to respond or I will pick a new winner. 

This was pretty fun and it was interesting to hear from you guys. 
To everyone who entered and is following my blog now, I hope you enjoy my posts and the pictures in the future.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thursday, December 27, 2012

Ruby Wing Eclipse and Sephora by OPI It's Real 18k Gold Top Coat

I may have put pictures of this into one of my Photo Dumps before... But I kinda like this polish. I really want to get Ruby Wing Moonstone (I havent gotten around to it), but Eclipse is nice and understated.
For Christmas, Boyfriend got me the 18k topcoat because I refused to buy OPI The Man With the Golden Gun (too rich for my blood). I like how the flakes are super small in this one... it makes for a nice accent.


Pretty, right?






This is before and after sunlight... the after usually gets a bit darker, but it is super cold outside and I cheated and used indirect light from the window. But you can tell there's a difference (just remember its usually a much bigger difference)







Eclipse is a bit streaky but evens out mostly after the second coat and this is two generous coats. Its nice, but no one would ever notice it but yourself. The top coat on the other hand is beautiful!!! I love the little flecks of gold. It goes on really smooth (this is one coat), it dries quickly but a bit rubbery, and it lays flat...

Do you have any solar color changing polishes? Maybe a better one (dont hold out on me)!

})i({ -Amy

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

JENsations You Give Me Butterflies

Yippidee Doo! Boxing day and I dont have to do anymore Christmas posts as of 40 minutes ago!!!
As I have said before, I love pretty bottles. I dont drink much but I still wander around the liquor store for ages just to look at the pretty bottle shapes. So sometimes I buy polish, just for the bottle it comes in. That and the fact that I love Etsy led me to JENsations polish. She has some of the best glitter shapes and the CUTEST little star bottles


I used You Give Me Butterflies for a simple mani today...




For the base I used The New Black in Horchata Cream... This is one coat of You Give Me Butterflies, there is a little bit of fishing and placing but otherwise a very glitter heavy topcoat. There are small pink holo hex glitters and the butterflies are the same type of glitter
I am in love with this glitter! How precious is this??? GO OUT AN BUY THIS FROM JEN!!!  This is what she says about her polishes

---------- What's Inside JENsations Polishes? ----------

★ All of my custom blended polishes are made with a special 3-free, cruelty-free base [Toluene, Formaldehyde & Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP) Free] that will suspend glitter [glitter won't all fall to the bottom].

★ All glitters used are solvent resistant [glitter won't bleed into polish]. On rare occasion I use a bleeding glitter on purpose to get the perfect shade of base, but it will be noted.

★ All polishes come inside a unique star shaped bottle. 10 ml in size. Contrary to popular belief they are easy to store [simply store them sideways; see photo above].

★ Each bottle contains two stainless steel ball bearings [they will not rust or affect your polish] for easy shaking. Pigments & glitters tend to settle over time so please shake gently before using =)

★ Each bottle is custom made with my very own two hands so there may be a slight variation in each bottle.


I can't wait to use this more and more as spring comes... maybe even in a sammich? I hope so!

})i({ -Amy

PS: GO ENTER MY GIVEAWAY!!! DO IT!

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 12

YIIIIPPPPEEEEEE!!! Christmas nails are done!!! Hopefully you are all entering my GIVEAWAY and following me now... DO IT! Some of my stuff is interesting, and I would like to think I am pretty entertaining... maybe. ANYWHO, this last mani is so far from Christmas. I am calling it my Christmas Handbag to kinda try to tie it back.


So I used Zoya Toni as a base except for Orly Lucky Duck on the ring finger, then used bits of chain from Hobbly Lobby and studs from the Born Pretty Store. Then I used Essie Matte About You to make it look like leather. I like how this one came out... its not very Christmas-y but it looks pretty bad ass!

What did you all get for Christmas? I got a bunch of nail stuff and a wallet that I have been wanting for forever.... and my first HELMER!!! Super excited about that, got it blinged out and filled up already. Then had prime rib for lunch with boyfriend, then went to the parental's for dinner and ate prime rib again... pretty darn stuffed!

Well goodnight all, hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

})i({ - Amy

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 11 GIVEAWAY!!! (Not open internationally... SORRY)

WOOT So I said I would have a giveaway because I got my first follower on Day 3 of my Christmas nails! HERE IT IS!!! I bought myself the Illamasqua Christmas Duo and I LOVE them, so I hope you will too!!!


So I didnt really do a Christmas mani... If you've been reading my blog you'll know that I am totally over this project. But I did paint both colors so that you all would know what you were getting!


Those are shots of Viridian a gorgeous shimmery blue green (or a viridian for those of you who know your colors). It applies super smooth in potentially one coat, but I did two. Very smooth, very nice formula, very unique color!


Glitterati is a beautiful deep and vampy red/burgundy. I love how this looks, much thicker than a jelly, this is two thin coats and the glitter can still peek through!

Together these feel like Christmas, but I love them separate like this! Glitterati would be perfect on Valentine's Day, and I am gonna wear the shit out of Viridian through the winter! Great new additions to my collection, and hopefully yours!

Giveaway is below, wish you luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

})i({ - Amy

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 10

YIPPEE I bought new green polish!!! If you've ever read my "About Me" you will know that I love bottles... so I went to the mall to help a friend buy her sister a present for Christmas. I asked "what kind of stuff does your sister like?" She told me think of a gay male gangster... and I thought of Hot Topic! I havent been in Hot Topic since I was in High School and was really kind of looking for an excuse to see what it was all about... LOOK WHAT I FOUND THERE!!!


How adorable are these little bottles??? I have never heard of this brand Black Heart Beauty and dont even know if I like the polish but I love the colors and the fact that they are in little skulls, and $5 a piece! So for my Christmas mani I used that green, its called Jealous Type, and Essie Forever Yummy.


 I also used my stripers... cus thats about all I use for nail art. I got the stars from Wet and Wild Hollywood Walk of Fame and the multi colored hex glitters from American Apparel Galaxy and the tops of the ornaments are small studs. This was a pretty easy mani... other than fishing the glitters out.


This is probably one of my favorites... but since I cant paint my right hand like that I had to wipe it clean :( so sad. Its times like these I wish I had a room mate, ooooh I would paint her nails so hard! Oh well.
SO: Jealous Type was about what you would expect from a jelly... poor first coat application, cleared up by a second coat... but the color is pretty damn cool! Forever Yummy is a dream, like I have said before.
COME ON CHRISTMAS, I am ready!


What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Friday, December 21, 2012

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 9

So I am really over these dark Christmas colors... today's nail is fluro: NEON CHRISTMAS!!! (I have to make this exciting or I will give up, I am so over doing Christmas nails!)


This was really hard to capture with the camera... I used Urban Outfitters Neon Red and Illamasqua Nurture with Sephora by OPI  nail design pens in Inked in Pink and Read Between the Lines. I drew little Christmas trees and presents.


The pens were easy to use... no different from Sally Hansens, but I picked them up at TJ Maxx for 3.99 a piece. I bought the pink and green, and also a blue called Graffiti Girl Blues, and a purple called Connect the Dots... so expect more of these drawn on designs sometime.

This doesnt scream Christmas, but like I said... Im sick of Christmas nails already. I cant wait to do the one I have planned for Christmas day, but other than that, I know theres only 2 others, BUT JEEZ how many of these do I have to do? 12? oh yeah, right. I guess I should stop whining, that's not that many...


What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 8

So I knew I had to paint my nails last night.... but it was also an incredibly stressful day at work. When I got home my boyfriend had bought me some Woodchuck Hard Cider. I dont drink very often (and the boyfriend NEVER drinks and NEVER has - he's mormon) but I love hard ciders. I used to live in Australia and developed a huge taste for Strongbow cider (among a taste for ALL other alcohols... which is kinda why I dont drink much anymore - long story) and then I moved to Vermont where they make Woodchuck. In a time where Strongbow was hard to get Woodchuck became my go to drink. Anywho, their Fall flavor put me back in the mood to do Christmas nails (I will be perfectly honest I wanted nothing more to do with these damn Twelve Nails of Christmas posts). As described by Woodchuck: "There are few things as spectacular as fall in the Green Mountains that surround our cidery. When you add cinnamon, nutmeg, and a hint of American white oak, you either have yourself some mighty fine cider or your standard Vermont tourism cliche." It tastes like Christmas to be perfectly honest. (RAMBLE RAMBLE RAMBLE- My apologies)

So keep in mind that I had two too many of these when I was painting; I dont know why I thought that would be a good idea... my cuticles hate me

Anywho this is two coats of OPI I'm Not Really a Waitress with a thick coat of Sation I Love Miss Self. INRAW is a mini bottle from a big sample set I bought CHEAP from Ulta, and I got ILMS at Marshalls recently for $2.99!


I LOVE this glitter; its a mix of mini holo silver hex glitters, small red gold green and holo silver hexs, and medium silver holo hexs. SUPER GLITTER! It goes on very well, and I really only thickened it up where I thought it needed more greens... they are kinda sparse. Very nice formula though, and you might be able to build it up on its own, but it would probably be chunky, it dries very smooth in one coat though so I dont know why I think that.


I wish I could capture it better on the camera... it is SUPER sparkley and the small green hex glitters really pop against all the red.
I've never really been much of a red gal, so I had no idea that I even had INRAW...
Here it is on its own:


What a pretty red! I didnt know I would like this so much... but I totally do. I may have to start wearing red.


What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 7

I had to have an easy lazy day right??? This was a super easy mani that is a little less CHRISTMAS-IN-YOUR-FACE: just a bit more subtle.



I love OPI Live and Let Die from the recent James Bond collection; it is a deep forest green with golden flecks. I paired it with Julep Demi... I dont usually like Julep much... their formula doesnt work well with the "way" I paint my nails. I must drag too hard or something. BUT this color is amaze-balls. I love this red, its rich and deep... but not really a burgundy. It reminds me of red leather. If you love red, you should have this! I even like the formula on this one. This is two coats of each with one coat of OPI Gold Shatter over Demi.



I like the understated Christmas-ness of this one... The gold really sparkled once I put the top coat on, which is good cus it looked a bit dull before then.


What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 6

I love poinsettias! They remind me of Christmas every time I see them.


This was actually a super easy mani: I used Orly Luxe and then used my LA Colors Art Deco Stripers to paint the details... I know a lot of bloggers like to use a striping brush and then their nice polish to do designs, but I seriously love having these stripers. They were super cheap, I dont have to clean the brushes off after Im done, I can just trim the brushes (because they usually come in all terrible and jacked up) and they are really easy to use... what more could you ask for?


I really like how this one came out...the colors are vibrant and the subject is recognizable (sometimes thats a big issue for me).


What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 5

This is a really simply mani... I have used Orly Rock-It for almost everyone of these Christmas nails, but this one really makes sense. I paired it with Color Club  Ho Ho Holly, they are both a glass fleck rich hued polish and go GREAT together. I have been using Rock-It for all the other mani's because I dont have much red... but I used it here to match the finish of Ho Ho Holly.

This is a little bit o' nail art that I wanted to do... I thought a snowflake would be really nice.


Look at those rich colors! Look how well they go together! I love it, they were meant for a Christmas pairing.


What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Monday, December 17, 2012

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 4

This morning I woke to find not only had someone followed me and commented on my last post.... but that it was Cynthia from Of Life and Lacquer which is one of my very favorite blogs!!! I am honored, Cynthia! 
For the rest of you out there, you have no idea how much I want to celebrate getting my first follower... yeah, its pretty cool *nonchalant shrug on the outside - super freaking out on the inside* I think I want to do an after Christmas GIVEAWAY (but still in the Christmas spirit - a Christmas set), stay tuned, be on the look out, stay excited, AND FOLLOW ME!!!
Anyways, back to our regularly scheduled programming: 

I love holo polish!!! I went nuts at Urban Outfitters when I saw these! 


This is Green Holo and I also got Pink Holo (and Chilly and Peppermint, which aren't holos but are cool). I have wanted to paint a design over holo polish for forever and this was the perfect opportunity. I love my little holly sprigs, they are too cute!



How great is that holo? No special base coat, no dragging, this is just two coats. The effect is stunning in daylight or even inside, its very eye catching. The polish was $10 so not a bad deal in my opinion, run out and get this!


What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 3

So this is my first experience with caviar beads... not so easy. I really wanted to do a pattern with them, because it was something I hadnt seen before. There's a reason not many people have done this... its a right pain in the ass.


It didnt come out so bad. The point was a bit crooked but I cant really complain. I started by painting a little red triangle at the top of my nail, cover it in caviar beads and using an orange stick to push it all into place and lined it up. Then the next section, same with the stick, and so on. It was a bit weird.



I used Orly Lucky Duck for the green and Essie Forever Yummy for the red... OMG this is a beautiful true red that is easily a well applied one coater.

The whole half hour it took me to apply the caviar beads (which I think was pretty quick considering the work) my little pup was sleeping on the bed, watching me paint! Isnt he precious?


I wish I hadnt applied so much top coat, this is before top coat and look how beautiful the beads are... the top coat didnt even make them last all that long, le sigh.


What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Saturday, December 15, 2012

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 2

I LOVE THESE NAILS!!! I think I am getting the hang of these Christmas nails, the only problem is that I dont have much for Christmas colors... le sigh, that just means I have to buy more polish right???


So this is Orly Rock-It for a base again... its very festive, dont judge me! I just used my Art Deco stripers for the stripes, but they're fun none-the-less


I really like the way these came out, they look a lot like candy canes. If I were more patient then the white stripes would have been smaller and closer to the green stripes to offer some variation in spacing... but Im not so they arent.


What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Twelve Nails of Christmas: Day 1

So I wanted to do a bunch of Christmas themed nails for December... I was gonna do a new one every two days, but its already the fourteenth... So I have TWELVE DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS!!!! I could've done like the song and started with a partridge in a pear tree... but I didnt, could be a good idea for next year though.
I started with what I thought looked kinda like nails dipped in glitter frosting. I have no idea if theres a name for this... It doesnt look all that great in the pictures, but its not so bad in person, promise.


This is Orly Rock-It with Julep Vivien tips and a CND Silver Chrome with Sation I Love Miss-Self tip. Its basic and was a decent place for me to start I guess... I promise they will get better.


I thought they were kinda cute after they were done, a mild entry into Christmas.

What do your Christmas nails look like? If I get any emails with pictures I want to post them on a "day after Christmas" post.

})i({ -Amy

Monday, December 3, 2012

Photo Dump


I dont know what the deal with blogger is, but it doesnt like the files from my camera's sd card and almost always rotates them weird. It can be a big hassle to post pictures sometimes. Anyways, I have a couple of photos that I wanted to post but didnt really want to do individual blog posts for. 

Lets start with this ADORABLE fox! I found these socks at Target and had to have them. When I went home to stare lovingly at them I realized I could paint it on a nail. So I did... with different colors, and better proportions.



Isnt he precious??? The base color is Essie's Chinchilly. I have been looking for a tan colored polish for forever... and when I was at Target (same trip as the socks) I found nothing close to what I wanted but did find an Essie mini set with Chinchilly and Forever Yummy with a glass nail file. I have ventured a bit off topic, basically the color I was really searching for was probably Essie's Case Study which I found at Marshall's and I bought the mini set from Target because I have been having a really hard time finding a glass file... PHEW!


... and this is what my sweet baby Bandit was doing during all of that! All curled up in my expensive shearling coat... oh well!


This is OPI's Houston We Have a Purple, which isnt purple but in fact a superb raspberry jelly!


This is me being bored and screwing around with dotting tools that I promptly broke and then replaced... I dont even know what the base is.


This is Enchanted's Ciao Milano, Its amazing... I'm wearing in now as I type even though these pictures were taken 5 mani's ago. I was experimenting with bases, mostly dark or similar colors, like black, OPI's Lincoln Park After Dark, Essence's Chic Reloaded and Orly's Royal Velvet. I think it's best over black, but you all probably knew that!


Anywho, that was my photo dump... hope you enjoyed!

})i({ -Amy