Pahlish Happy Holo-ween Collection

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Today we have a little break from nail art because I wanted to post the Pahlish Happy Holo-ween Collection since the last restock will be tomorrow night at 7 pm central time. This is a collection of beautiful holos and they have the cutest ghostie bottles ever!

CYNA Halloween Challenge: Pumpkin Faces

*Nothing to Disclose*

Hi everyone! Today's Challenge Your Nail Art prompt is Pumpkin Faces. I really tried to hand paint some, but they just looked super wonky, so I opted to use some of my much loved Bundle Monster pumpkin designs (plate BM-224 and BM-H06). I have realized this October that I really need to get some new Halloween plates because I tend to use the same ones over and over (although these are great ones). For this mani, I started off with a base of OPI Toucan Do It If You Try. On my middle two fingers, I stamped on some pumpkins using Mundo de Unas Black. On my other fingers, I put on a coat of my absolute favorite Halloween polish ever, CrowsToes VooDoo. I loved how classically Halloween this mani was.

Don't forget to check out what the other fab ladies have done for today's prompt. Also check them out on Instagram with #challengeyournailart

An InLinkz Link-up

CYNA Halloween Challenge: Classic Orange and Black

*Press Samples Used in Post*

Hi everyone! Today starts another Challenge Your Nail Art mini-challenge and today's theme is Classic Orange and Black for Halloween. I kept in theme for this mani...sort of...with a little purple thrown in the mix! :) Earlier this month, Stef over at Fairly Charming did this amazing creepy eyeball mani, and I've been dying to try it out. She has been killing it with the Halloween manis this year, and I've pretty much wanted to recreate all of them! Mine did not come out nearly as amazing as hers since my hand is never too steady with dotting, but it still looks pretty cool. It looks more like a bunch of dots than eyeballs, but yeah...oh well.

I started off with a base of Zoya Willa, from the new Wishes Collection that I will be reviewing soon. It is a great black creme! Utilizing a range of different sized dotting tools, I then I used white (OPI Angel With a Lead Foot) to make the base of my eyeballs. Then I used 2 different shades of orange (OPI Where Did Suzi's Man-go and OPI A Roll in the Hague) and purple (OPI Funky Dunkey) to make the colored part of my eyeballs. Finally, I finished them off with teeny dots of Zoya Willa to make the pupils. Like I said...they really ended up looking like Halloween-y dots, but still looked pretty overall.

Here are the rest of the prompts for the challenge!

So do I get credit since I used black and two different oranges if I threw the purple in? #rulebreaker Be sure to check out what the other ladies have in store for today's challenge! You can also see their work on Instagram using #challengeyournailart. Thanks for looking everyone!

An InLinkz Link-up

Fun with New KBShimmer Winter Nail Vinyls

*Press Sample*

Hi everyone! Today I have some more nail art, but it is quite a departure from the Halloween manis that are abundant right now (I will have more of those starting tomorrow!). Along with the beautiful polishes and new cuticle oil scents, KBShimmer will be launching some Winter/Holiday themed nail vinyls with their new collection that is releasing on November 1st. I have two fun looks to share with you today that I was so sad to take off, but I figured people would look at me funny if I had Christmas nails for Halloween. :)

Hobby Polish Bloggers October Halloween Mani Link-Up

*Nothing to Disclose*

Hi everyone! Today I taking part in the first Hobby Polish Bloggers Monthly Mani Link-Up and this month's theme is Halloween! Hobby Polish Bloggers is a Facebook group that I'm involved in whose members are nail bloggers that blog for fun. It is a great group of gals that share blogging tips, discussions, and generally support for our fellow bloggers. This is a new monthly link-up that we are doing, so be sure to check out what all of the other ladies have done for their Halloween manis in the link-up at the end of this post. And if you are on Instagram, you can see their work under #HPBHalloween.

For my Halloween mani, I decided to FINALLY do a tutorial that I've been meaning to try for ages because it is too cute! If you have followed my blog for any time at all, you will know that I adore the nail art looks that The Nailasaurus comes up with and I'm often looking to her nail art for inspiration. Today I decided to copy her Halloween Patchwork nails. It's actually a quite simple design, but requires a bit of patience for the dry time because you have to make sure that each layer of "patches" is dry before you move on to the next. I started off with my orange base (OPI Where Did Suzi's Man-go) and after it dried I used straight Nail Vinyls to make the green (OPI You are So Outta Lime!) and then purple (Illamasqua Jo'Mina) patches. Then I used black acrylic paint and a fine nail art brush to paint on the stitching. I thought it turned out so cute! Also, I did my ring finger in honor of one of my other all-time favorite nail bloggers, Chloe's Nails, who I first saw doing patchwork manis back when I first started getting into nail polish.

So what do you think of this look? I know it's been done a lot, but I really love it! Be sure to check out what these lovely ladies have created! Thanks for looking everyone!

An InLinkz Link-up

KBShimmer Winter 2014 Collection Swatch and Review (Partial)

*Press Samples*

Hi everyone! I'm super excited to show you the KBShimmer Winter 2014 Collection today! This collection consists of 11 new shades and 5 returning fan favorites for the holidays. There are also 4 new cuticle oil scents and new winter themed nail vinyls. Today I have 10 of the new polishes and 2 of the returning favorites to share with you. These polishes will be releasing on November 1 on KBShimmer's website.

KBShimmer 2014 Toys For Tots Charity Polish: Pine-ing for Yule (Press Release and Swatches)

*Press Release, Press Sample*

Hi everyone! Today I have a very special polish to share with you that KBShimmer has created for their annual charity event to raise money for Toys for Tots. First I will share the official press release with you and then I have a full swatch and review! (I figured I would just combine the two so all of the info would be in one place!)

Press Release: 
KBSHIMMER ‘TOYS FOR TOTS’ CHARITY POLISH SET FOR RELEASE IN NOVEMBER 
Four dollars from each bottle of ‘Pine-ing For Yule’ will be used to buy toys for children. 

KBShimmer is excited to announce that the 3rd edition of their annual charity polish, Pine-ing For Yule, will go on sale November 1st, 2014. Owner Christy Rose says, “We here at KBShimmer are very fortunate, and we want to pay forward that good fortune by helping our local community. Creating a special Christmas themed charity polish is something I look forward to each year, and this year’s polish is a new favorite.”

All over the world, the evergreen, triangle shaped pine tree has become a symbol of the holiday season. This year, KBShimmer pays homage to the Christmas tree with the 2014 charity polish, Pine-ing For Yule. Holographic evergreen triangle ‘trees’ swim among red mini star ‘tree toppers,’ and holographic glitters in red and sliver light up this Christmas polish with their rainbow sparkle.

“As a mother, I know how important Christmas is for a child, and therefore choosing Toys For Tots as our charity was a perfect fit. This is the third year that we have donated to our local Toys For Tots group, a tradition I hope is in place for years to come” Rose said. From November 1st through December 15th, four dollars from the sale of each bottle of Pine-ing For Yule sold on
http://www.KBShimmer.com will be donated to the Terre Haute (the KBShimmer headquarters) chapter of Toys for Tots. Each bottle retails for $8.75.

Last year, KBShimmer raised about three thousand dollars to help ensure that every child had something to open during the holidays. Do some good this holiday season and get a fun polish for yourself (or buy a few extra as stocking stuffers or gifts).
______________________________________________________________________________

KBShimmer Pine-ing for Yule is a clear based glitter topper filled with red holo stars and green holo triangles accented by smaller red and silver holo glitters. For this mani, I used 1 dabbed coat of Pine-ing for Yule over a white base (OPI Angel With a Lead Foot). The larger glitters came out nicely on the brush and spread easily. I did do a bit of glitter placement with my brush as I was going, but not too much. I would recommend 2 coats of topcoat to smooth out the glitters (like KBShimmer Clearly On Top). I think this is such an adorable polish for the holiday season with it's "trees" and stars (the cutest use of triangle glitter that I've seen thus far). Also, you are supporting a fantastic cause with your purchase, so it's a win-win!

_________________________________________________________________________
For more information about Toys For Tots visit http://www.toysfortots.org. KBShimmer products can be found at http://www.KBShimmer.com. For sales outside of the US visit http://www.HarlowandCo.org.

KBShimmer was founded in 2008 by the husband and wife team of Jason and Christy Rose. KBShimmer offers unique and colorful nail glitter nail polishes that are Big 3 Free, with all glitter formulas being completely free of chemicals such as toluene, formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin and dibutyl phthalate (DBP). KBShimmer glitter polishes feature a flat glitter grabbing brush for easy application. KBShimmer also offers a 2-free quick dry polish top coat, olive oil lotion, sugar scrubs, lip balms, cold process soaps and other skin care products.

So what do you think about this glitter topper? Is your brain ready for Christmas manis yet? LOL...I know it is a shock to my system that we are getting so close! Thanks for looking everyone!

Hump Day Hare: The Blooming Desert

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Today I have a gorgeous fulfilled lemming to share with you guys. Hare Polish The Blooming Desert was an A Box, Indied exclusive that I missed out on and I was very fortunate to find it at a blog sale for a great price recently. It has now become one of my favorite Hare Polishes!

The Blooming Desert has a shimmering pink jelly base with white and orange glitters. The shimmer is just to die for! For this mani, I layered 2 coats of The Blooming Desert over China Glaze You Drive Me Coconuts. Eeeee....I love this mani so much!

Hare Polish is available from Nikole's Etsy Shop as well as from several other e-tailers around the world (complete list found here). Be sure to check out Hare's website, Instagram, and Facebook for updates on new collections and restock info.

Have you had any fulfilled lemmings lately? Thanks for looking everyone!

Black and Gold Brocade Stamping

*Press Sample*

Hi everyone! Today I have some nail art featuring a beautiful glitter polish from the upcoming FingerPaints Winter Wishes Collection (which I will be fully reviewing for you soon). While I was swatching this collection, I got the urge to do a gold and black pairing, so I decided to pull out one of my new MoYou-London Fashionista plates. When those plates were released not that long ago, they sold out quickly and I checked back constantly until they were restocked and I could grab two of the plates from the collection, one filled with paisley desingns and another with different brocade patterns.

For this mani, I started out with a base of FingerPaints Wrapped in Ribbons, a full coverage gold glitter polish. After it dried, I stamped using a brocade image from MoYou-London Fashionista plate 07 and Mundo de Unas Black. I realized when I got done that some people might think I was going for a New Orleans Saints look but that was NOT what I had in mind. I just think that black and gold are very striking and elegant together, and I thought this pattern looked great with the gold.

FingerPaints are exclusively available from Sally Beauty. As I said, I will have a full swatch and review of the Winter Wishes Collection for you very soon and they should be available in stores starting November 1st. 

MoYou London stamping plates are available from their website. They have tons of gorgeous plates to choose from, so check them out! They are also now offering free shipping to the US, so that is awesome!

What do you think of this black and gold combo? Thanks for looking everyone!

Press Release: Zoya Wishes Collection for Winter/Holiday 2014

*Press Release*

Wishes really do come true with this magical new nail polish collection for Winter/Holiday 2014! Zoya Wishes** is a densely pigmented assortment featuring both traditional and Magical PixieDust formulas in coordinating color combinations that can be worn alone or combined into stunning combinations, no matter how you wear them, this collection delivers a fanciful way to celebrate the season!

 

LynB Designs Spam

*Won in a Giveaway*

Hi everyone! Today I have a wonderful selection of polishes from a new to me indie, LynB Designs. I have seen her lovely creations around, and I was so excited when I was selected to pick 5 from her line to try during the Digital Dozen's recent HUGE 2nd Anniversary Giveaway. So a huge thanks to creator Jenna and to the ladies of the Digital Dozen for such an amazing giveaway! I tried to capture the essence of the beautiful header that she has on her Etsy Shop in my collage...but it was probably a massive fail. LOL!

Pretty & Polished LE Halloween Bonus Polish

*Press Sample*

Hi everyone! Today I have a gorgeous Halloween polish to share with you from Pretty & Polished. This polish is a free gift when you purchase the entire Halloween Trio during the month of October. It does not have a name, but has a scary pumpkin sticker on the bottom. :)

Smitten Polish Halloween Duo: Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Today I have Smitten Polish's limited edition Halloween Duo to share with you! These polishes have the cutest names ever for a duo: Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble! These have already been stocked once, but creator Noelie said that there would be an additional restock of the duo and she is aiming to do this on October 25th.

Zoya Ultra PixieDust Collection

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Today I have a recent release from Zoya, the Ultra PixieDust Collection, which are some new additions to the PixieDust line and are textured polishes that have larger and smaller glitter pieces in them. After seeing blog posts from Zoya bloggers, it seemed that two polishes from this collection weren't drying down to a proper textured finish like they were supposed to. I read that the retail versions of the polishes were working properly, so I went and purchased the set from Ulta. I'm happy to report that the retail versions do, in fact, dry down to a proper textured finish! There must have been some sort of anomaly with the early press samples sent to bloggers, but it appears to be resolved now. So on to the swatches!

KBShimmer Spot Sign

*Press Sample*

Hi everyone! I've got a really cool glitter polish to share with you today from KBShimmer! KBShimmer Spot Sign is part of their Winter 2014 Collection, but it was released a bit early so it is available for purchase now in the KBShimmer shop. This is the first polish that I've ever seen that has leopard spot glitters, so I was excited to try it out!

Spot Sign is a clear-based topcoat filled with holographic silver microglitter, black hexes and dots of various sizes, and black leopard spot glitters. For this mani I used 1 dabbed coat of Spot Sign over KBShimmer You're So Shellfish (because I love leopard spots over brights!).

The base glitters spread easily, but I would recommend to place the leopard glitters individually because of their size and shape. When you place the glitters, take care to place them in such a way that they sit well with the curve of your nailbed so that they will be flat. Also, I did find 1 or 2 glitters that were a tad bent on the end, so I just did not use those because they will stick up off of the nail bed. When topcoating, you definitely will want to use a thicker topcoat because they are thicker/larger glitters. So in essence: know that this glitter is going to require a bit more work than a normal glitter, but it is so cool that it is worth the effort! It really did not take me much more time to apply it than a regular glitter polish, I was just particular about my application. It's such a fun look and you get to have a cool leopard spotted look even if you aren't necessarily a nail artist!

KBShimmer products are available from their website as well as from Harlow & Co. (Canada).  Be sure to follow them on Facebook and Instagram for updates on new collections and to see swatches of all of their polishes. 

So what are your thoughts on the leopard spot glitters? Will you be picking this one up? Thanks for looking everyone!

Pahlish La Derniere Reine

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! I've been pretty blah lately as far as painting my nails (despite having SO MANY pretties that I need to wear) so I went for a palette cleanser. I chose Pahlish La Derniere Reine from the fall Royal Reverie Collection. I literally wore this from last Wednesday to Sunday (which is AGES for me). I did eventually stamp over it after a few days, so it is also a great base for nail art.

Pahlish La Derniere Reine is a light nude with copper and neon purple flakes as well as taupe shimmer. The copper flakes really shine here with the purple flakes being very subtle and just flashing occasionally. I was worried this would be weird on my skintone, but it was quite flattering. I used 3 thin coats for this mani and it applied perfectly. This is a wonderful palette cleanser with the lovely flecked creme Pahlish finish.

Then after a few days, I added some weird double stamping. It looked a bit cooler in person, but it wasn't a total success. I used an unnamed copper metallic from Anne and Florio, Nubar Risky Rose, and Bundle Monster Plate BM-H11 to do the double stamping (I turned the design upside down when I stamped the second time.)

Pahlish is available from Pahlish's Big Cartel Shop. Be sure to follow Pahlish on Facebook and on their blog for details about restocks (they are Fridays at 7 pm CST) and new polishes. Pahlish is also available from Llarowe, Rainbow Connection, and Edgy Polish. Thanks for looking everyone!

I Love Nail Polish Black Orchid

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Today I have a gorgeous vampy holo for fall to share with you! As soon as I saw swatches of I Love Nail Polish Black Orchid, from their Fall 2014 Collection, I knew it had to be mine! Black Orchid is a blackened warm purple linear holo with bronze microflake shimmer. This polish is absolutely STUNNING! Formula was great and it was opaque in 3 thin coats. Such a wonderful vampy holo!

I Love Nail Polish is sold on their website. Be sure to follow them on Facebook and Instagram for updates on new collections/pre-orders. Thanks for looking everyone! 

Scofflaw Nail Varnish Wifwolf Limited Edition

*Press Sample*

Hi everyone! Today I have a limited edition Scofflaw Nail Varnish shade that will be available at the next restock ONLY on October 12 at  8 PM CST. This polish is not going to be available for pre-order, but will be available in limited quantities only (so be sure to be there on time if you want to grab it...it will go fast).

Scofflaw Wifwolf is described as a cool dark brown with orange, copper, and purple shimmer as well as pale ghostly flakes.

Interesting etymology fact from Finch: a wifwolf is what a female werewolf would be called (I never knew this!) (http://powderroom.jezebel.com/fun-with-etymology-feminist-werewolves-1566671211)

You guys know I'm loving browns this fall, and the color of Wifwolf is so rich and decadent! Formula was fantastic and spread easily with great coverage. It would be completely fine at 2 coats, but as usual, I did 3 thin coats (I just prefer it that way). The shimmer and flakes create wonderful glowy depth to this polish in true Scofflaw fashion. I attempted to do some paw print stamping to keep with the wolf theme, but my plate was being weird and I could not get the image to pick up, so just enjoy the beautiful shimma!

Scofflaw Nail Varnish is available in creator Finch's Big Cartel Shop. Be sure to follow Scofflaw's Facebook page and Instagram for updates on restocks and new collections (as well as to see lots of pretty swatches.) There will be a new summer collection lauching next month, so be on the lookout for that. Thanks for looking everyone!

Elevation Polish Arabian Sea 2

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't posted the past few days, I've had a bit of blogging burnout. I recently slayed a longtime lemming when Llarowe restocked their Elevation Polish Llarowe Exclusives. I picked up Malaspina Glacier and Arabian Sea 2, and I immediately had to put on Arabian Sea 2.

Arabian Sea 2 is an aqua-mint creme with gold flakes and golden microshimmer and blue microshimmer. The color is absolute perfection! I pretty much buy ALL OF THE seafoam/aqua-green/minty greens that come out, but this one is really a special one. I feel like it might have a smidge more of a greenish tinge to it in real life (it seemed to be brought out more by the gold stamping in the bottom pictures). The shimmer is subtle but striking. Formula was very nice (per usual with Elevation Polish) and I used 3 thin coats for this mani. Gah, I've waited ages for this polish and it did not disappoint!

Then, to keep with the sea theme, I stamped it with MoYou-London Sailor plate 05 and China Glaze 2030. Totally out of season...but I love it!

Elevation Polish is available from creator Lulu's Big Cartel Store. She has a lot of info on restock dates and availability on the Big Cartel site as well as on her blog. Her shop is restocked on the 7th and 22nd each month unless otherwise noted. Elevation Polish is also stocked at Llarowe (and note that Arabian Sea 2 is a Llarowe exclusive polish). 

Thanks for looking everyone!