31DC2016 - Metallic - Stamped Magnetic

*Nothing to Disclose*

Hi everyone! Today we are on to Metallic nails in the 31 Day Challenge, and I decided to use an old polish that is apparently right on with the current magnetic trend right now (plus a little stamping, of course!).

Paint All the Nails: Secret Santa Edition

*Press Samples Included*

Hi everyone! Today we have a very special edition of Paint All the Nails...Secret Santas! For this link-up, we were all randomly assigned a Secret Santa and instead of a gift we recreated one of their nail art looks! I was super excited to get the fabulous Lucie from Lucy's Stash as my Secret Santa and I had a blast looking through her nail art looks! There were SO many fabulous things to choose from because Lucie is a nail art master. I decided focus on her winter/Christmas designs because I have barely been able to do nail art for the season so far this year and I fell in love with two of her designs...so I did them both!

Double Stamp All the Nails!

Hi everyone! Today Paint All the Nails is doing double stamping! I love double stamping and I'm often inspired by the double stamping looks that Deborah from Love Varnish is famous for doing because they are always so elegant! Today, I decided not to go for a traditional elegant double stamping look, but instead went for a Halloween spin.

For my mani, I started out with a base of China Glaze Lady and the Vamp (which has such a weird name because I'm imagining a vampy red) and then I put Sally Hansen Jack-O-Lantern over it for a little old school glittery goodness. Then I used the MoYou-London Festive plate 16 and Pretty Serious Presence to stamp on the spider webs. Next I stamped on some spiders from the same plate using Konad Black to stamp. It was a very cliche Halloween mani, but I really enjoyed it. I love the depth that double stamping adds to a manicure...you can almost make something that looks like a decal using the technique.

Femme Fatale Cosmetics Art of Witchcraft

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Today I have one of my recent purchases from Color4Nails to show you and it is a beauty from Femme Fatale Cosmetics. This past year, Femme Fatale did a little revamping of their brand with new bottles and collections and I feel like they are really on their A-game with some of the refined beauties I have been seeing in recent releases. Today I have Art of Witchcraft, which is from their Snow White Collection. This collection, their new White Witch collection and a few other Femme Fatales were actually restocked today at Color4Nails (I MAY have picked up 2 more!). 

Nail Pattern Boldness Heady Topper

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Sorry I've been a bit absent this week. I have a ton of upcoming stuff to show you, but I had to take a slight mental break from swatching/blogging this week. I'm going to be getting back to it this weekend, and next week should really kick things into high gear because I have lots and lots of stuff in my swatch queue. For today, I'm going to share a mani with you that I did AGES ago (I really don't even remember when I did it to be honest). Back around the first of the year, Llarowe had a major sale and I picked up a Nail Pattern Boldness polish that I had been eying for ages, and that's what today's post is about.

Nail Pattern Boldness' Heady Topper is a sparkling holo glitter topper filled with silver and gold microglitter in a slightly different sizes. Formula was really nice and it spread easily and the glitter coverage was great for a topper, but it was, of course, sheer so it let plenty of the base color shine through. I do not think this would be one I would try to wear on its own because it wouldn't build up easily, and it's really not meant to be worn that way. I used 2 coats of Heady Topper over China Glaze More to Explore from the spring Road Trip Collection. The thing that sets this apart from other holo glitter toppers is the use of the gold along with the silver and the varying sizes of the glitter, so I think it is a truly special topper. I really love versatile polishes like this that you can pretty much use over anything just to give your mani some extra bling!

Nail Pattern Boldness polishes are available on their website. Be sure to follow on Facebook and Instagram for swatches as well as updates on new collections and restocks. Nail Pattern Boldness polishes are also available from Llarowe. Thanks for looking everyone!

China Glaze Electric Nights Nail Art

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! I showed you the ridiculously bright and gorgeous China Glaze Electric Nights Collection yesterday, and I couldn't resist doing some nail art with them pretty much immediately. For this mani, I started off with a white base (KBShimmer Eyes White Open) and then randomly sponged on these neon cremes from the Electric Nights Collection with pieces of a make-up sponge: Glow With the Flow (pink), Red-y to Rave (red-orange), Home Sweet House Music (orange), Daisy Know My Name? (yellow), Treble Maker (green), DJ Blue My Mind (blue), and PLUR-ple (purple). To finish it off, I stamped over the whole thing using Mundo de Unas Black and Bundle Monster plate BM-604. This was such a fun mani and I really didn't want to take it off. I need to get my mind back into spring-mode because these colors are making me long for summer!

As I said yesterday, China Glaze's Electric Nights should be available in April in stores that carry China Glaze (I get mine from Ulta and Sally Beauty Supply locally). You can also order them online from Head2Toe Beauty now if you want to get them a bit early like I did. 

China Glaze Electric Nights Collection

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Today I have China Glaze's Electric Nights Collection for Summer 2015 to share with you! This is a 12 piece collection that contains 9 neon/bright cremes and 3 neon glitter toppers. These pretties will officially be hitting stores in April, but I picked mine up online from Head2Toe Beauty.

China Glaze Road Trip Collection (My Picks)

*Purchased by Me*

Hi everyone! Today I have 9 of the 12 new Spring 2015 shades from China Glaze's Road Trip Collection. I must say, though there have been a few individual shades from China Glaze that I have liked recently, but I can't remember the last time an entire China Glaze collection excited me so much! I saw Love Varnish's amazing swatches of this collection and I immediately ordered 6 of them (all of the shimmers and 2 of the crellys) and then promptly picked up 3 more of the crellys at Ulta. I can really appreciate something simple that is done well, and that is what this collection is. There are 3 more crellys that I did not get, but I may get them too before it's all said and done.

Thyroid Disease Awareness Mani

*Nothing to Disclose*

Hi everyone! Today I have a special event to share with for you! @citruseyes on Instagram recently organized a group of nail artists to bring awareness to a topic that is very near and dear to her heart: Thyroid Disease. We were each tasked to create a mani this January for Thyroid Disease Awareness Month to share on Instagram. During the month of January, you can participate on Instagram by creating your very own mani!

Here are some instructions from @citruseyes for participating in the event on Instagram during the month of January:

To share your thyroid disease awareness mani or to see the beautiful works above up close, use the hashtag #TDAMani - Symbols for thyroid disease awareness are: blue, paisley design, and the butterfly.

Nails above include works from:

@fervnails @nailsbymercedes@miaonoirnails @krbnails @nailkazam @nails_by_xoch @vickylovesnails @pinkannelie @isaisis97@_nailsbymeg @tinseltownnails @amina2inspire @nanazcheekz @bittysweens @pinkyboonails@polishisthenewblack @journailism @mvargas_nails @procrastinailart @nailingthatpolish@thegirlyengineer @hashtagnailpolish @astoldbyannalisa @caribbeancuticles @ilysespieces@prestonails @mypolishedtips13 @littlepandapit @clairelofthouse @thepolishedphd @marshinis.nails@bostonmerlin10 @handtasticintentions @xiii_lacquer @emismanis @courtneydoeshernails@cmlovesnails @npadd1 @anonymouspolish @pikapolish @b_jessica_3 @citruseyes

Here is some more information from @citruseyes about Thyroid Disease to increase our knowledge:

January is thyroid disease awareness month and several nail artists have collaborated in order to spread awareness. The thyroid is the butterfly shaped gland located in the neck that is responsible for releasing hormones that regulate growth and metabolism. Some examples of thyroid diseases include: Hashimoto's thyroiditis, Graves' disease, thyroid cancer, and postpartum thyroiditis (but there are more); thyroid conditions related to these disease are hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism.

There are no cures for most thyroid diseases but there are various treatments available such as surgery, medication, hormone replacement, and lifestyle modifications. Often times, patients may not “look” physically sick but are still in pain and suffer regularly. For more information on some of these diseases, please continue reading onto the next caption.

   

Hypothyroidism is a condition when thyroid hormone levels are low and can be caused by the autoimmune disease Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, radiation therapy, or thyroid removal due to cancer or hyperthyroidism. Symptoms may include:  fatigue, lethargy, puffy face, constipation, weight gain despite poor appetite, cold insensitivity, dry skin, slower heartbeat, and more. It can lead to a fatal condition known as myxedema coma if hypothyroidism is not treated and becomes long standing. Babies born with congenital hypothyroidism risk mental retardation and growth delays.

Hyperthyroidism is the opposite: it is when thyroid hormone levels are high. It is oftentimes caused by the autoimmune disorder Graves' disease but can also result from toxic multinodular goiter or thyroid adenoma. Symptoms may include: anxiety, increased irritability, diarrhea, weight loss despite increased appetite, heat insensitivity, hand tremors, insomnia, rapid heartbeat, and more. It can lead to a fatal condition known as thyroid storm if hyperthyroidism is not treated properly. Thyroid storm can lead to heart failure, irregular heartbeats, and death.

Thyroid cancer, like other forms of cancer, needs to be detected early in order for early treatments to increase the chances of survival and decrease the chances of complications. Symptoms may include: a swollen throat, pain, difficulties swallowing, hoarse voice, and feeling a lump present on the throat.

Some thyroid issues can also occur post pregnancy. Postpartum thyroiditis is when the thyroid becomes inflamed after childbirth. Symptoms can either be hypothyroid-related or hyperthyroid-related symptoms. In mild cases, treatment may not be necessary, but in some cases, patients can develop chronic hypothyroidism.

For my mani, I started with a base of Illamasqua Noble (my all-time favorite blue creme). Then, using the symbols for Thyroid Disease Awareness, I added a butterfly on my middle finger (unnamed plate) and paisley patterns on my other fingers (MoYou-London Fashionista plate 11...which is a STUNNING plate). The silver I used to stamp was China Glaze Millennium. Overall, I was really pleased with how cohesive this skittle mani looked! That Mo-You plate has so many pretty paisley designs that it was hard to choose!

So, if any of you want to participate this month to help raise awareness for Thyroid Disease, please use #TDAMani on Instagram so everyone can see your work! Thanks again to @citruseyes for asking me to participate in this event! Thanks for looking everyone! 

CYNA 12 Day of Christmas: Glitter

*Nothing to Disclose*

Hi everyone! Per usual, I'm behind on a challenge. I actually have skipped a few days, but I DID do the Glitter prompt for Challenge Your Nail Art's 12 Days of Christmas Challenge on the right day and everything, it's just taken me this long to actually post it. For this mani, I started off with a base of Darling Diva Polish's The Arcanist. Next, I used one of my favorite Christmas glitters ever, Darling Diva Polish A Christmas Story. Finally, I finished the mani off with some gold stamping using China Glaze 2030 and a design from the MoYou-London Fashionista plate 07. I don't think this is necessarily a holiday design, but with the color combination that I used I felt like it looked like really elegant Christmas wrapping paper or something. Definitely not my straightest stamping job, but it wasn't that noticeable in real life.  I actually wore this for a few days and I got tons of compliments on it.

I will add the InLinkz for the other ladies that completed this challenge soon! Thanks for looking everyone!

a-England Dancing With Nureyev with Subtle Stamping

*Purchased By Me*

Hi everyone! Today I have for you the subtlest stamping ever. When I put on a-England Dancing With Nureyev, I thought that the perfect thing to use to stamp would be China Glaze Strap On Your Moonboots from the Hologlam Collection because it just seemed like they would pair perfectly for tone-on-tone holo stamping. Well, they almost paired too perfectly!

CANVAS Lacquer High Garden

*Press Sample*

Hi everyone! Today I have a glitter topper from CANVAS Lacquer to share with you, and it is appropriately Game of Thrones themed since the season finale is tonight!

CANVAS Lacquer High Garden is from their Ice and Fire Collection, and it consists of pink, mint, and black hexes with a sprinkling of larger lavender dots and lots of fine gold glitter in a clear base. This polish definitely represents the softer side of the Seven Kingdoms which has been rarely seen on the show lately with all of the blood and gore that has been dominating the story line.Glitter density was good and it distributed easily without much dabbing needed at all (save the placement of a few of the larger dots here and there, which is typical for larger glitters like that). I layered 2 coats of High Garden over China Glaze Sweet Hook for this mani and it ended up looking very candy-like. I think the Knight of the Flowers would approve.

CANVAS Lacquer is available from creators Alana and Lan's Etsy Shop. Follow their blog and Twitter for new brand info and to see more swatches. Thanks for looking everyone!

30 Day Challenge, Day 26: Inspired by The '90s

Hi everyone! Today's prompt for the 30 Day Challenge was Inspired by the'90s. I decided to do a mani inspired by Treasure Trolls! Everyone in the '90s had at least one of these, even if it was a baby one that you could put on the end of your pencil. I actually had an idea to do this mani a few years ago, but I never did do it. I'm not sure how well I pulled off my inspiration, but I thought it was sort of cute.

I started off with a base of OPI Taupe-less Beach. I used several China Glaze neons to make the "hair" using a striping brush. Then I placed glitters from Glam Polish Star Candy for the belly button jewels. It is a very loose interpretation of Treasure Trolls, but also very easy (and I like easy). 

Source

L-R: China Glaze I'm With the Lifeguard, China Glaze Love's a Beach, China Glaze Towel Boy Toy, China Glaze Sun-Kissed, China Glaze Surfin' For Boys, Glam Polish Star Candy

Be sure to check out what everyone else is up to for today's challenge! Thanks for looking everyone!

An InLinkz Link-up

30 Day Challenge, Day 25: Inspired by a Villain

Hi everyone! Today's mani for the 30 Day Challenge had to be Inspired by a Villain. I know that most Batman fans really hate the Batman movies that Joel Schumacher directed because they were so over the top and silly, but I still adored Jim Carrey's portrayal of The Riddler in Batman Forever. My husband and I have actually discussed at length who could possibly play the role of The Riddler if Christopher Nolan decided to bring the character into his movies, and we couldn't come up with anyone who could do the role justice. So for this mani, I decided to pay homage to The Riddler.

For my mani, I started off with a base of China Glaze Four Leaf Clover (which is much greener in real life...the neonish pigments in it make it look bluer in pictures). Then, because I don't have a nail art pen (YET!), I used a black Sharpie to draw on the question marks. This was, in fact, a terrible idea because topcoat made this a streaky mess. Thank goodness I took pictures first. I will be purchasing a black and white nail art pen soon.

 

Source

Be sure to check out what the other ladies have done for their Villain manis! Thanks for looking everyone!

An InLinkz Link-up

30 Day Challenge Day 22: Match Your Nails To Your Drink

Hi everyone! Today's 30 Day Challenge prompt was to match our nails to our drink. I decided on a Sonic Cherry Limeade. My husband likes to stop and bring me one as a treat sometimes. Also, the more cherries...the better. If I ever get one without cherries, I'm not a happy camper. So for the mani, I started out with a base of China Glaze Sugar High. I then painted on the cherries and lime slices with acrylic paint.

 

Be sure to check out what the other ladies have in store for today! Thanks for looking!

An InLinkz Link-up

30 Day Challenge, Day 14: Studs/Loose Glitter

Hi everyone! Today's 30 Day Challenge prompt was to use either studs or loose glitter, so I chose studs. I used The Nailasaurus's Nimbus Nail Art Tutorial for my base using Sinful GelShine Wisp (white base), KBShimmer Honeydew List (green), China Glaze Sugar High (warm medium pink), and China Glaze Dance Baby (cool lighter pink). These colors together really gave an impressionist rose garden vibe. This is a really simple nail art look that anyone can do from beginners to experts, so be sure to check it out if you are wanting to try your hand at nail art.

I just so happened to have recently received some assorted pastel studs (Item #7218) from Born Pretty Store for review. This is a 400 piece set that has a mixture of round and square 2 mm studs in a variety of pastel shades (pink, blue, purple, peach, mint, and honeydew green). For my mani, I used the square honeydew green studs at the base of each nail. This was my very first time trying studs of any kind and they were very easy to use. I placed a dot of clear nail polish where I wanted the stud to go on my nail and then used that dotting tool to pick up the stud and place it. The dotting tool still had a bit of clear polish on the end, so it picked up the studs easily. Then I used two coats of quick dry topcoat over the whole thing to seal the studs in place. I thought them sticking up a bit off of the nail would bother me and make me want to pick at them, but I think adding the second layer of topcoat made the edges smoother and caused them not to bother me at all.

As you can see, there are 12 slots for the 12 assorted colors/shapes, but mine must have gotten jostled aroud in shipping because they were a bit mixed up. There are tons of studs here so this will allow you to do studded manis to your heart's content! There is a set of neon studs that I have my eye on next!

Be sure to check out Born Pretty Store for all of your nail art supply needs (you can use my coupon code JCX31 for 10% off your order).  I've always had great experiences with ordering from them at very reasonable prices. Also, you can't beat free worldwide shipping! You can also follow Born Pretty Store on Facebook and Instagram.  

KBShimmer polishes 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.

Both of these China Glaze polishes are from past spring collections, and I recently purchased them from Cherry Culture during a recent sale. 
*Studs were sent for my honest review, polishes were purchased by me* 

Be sure to check out what everyone else is doing today! Thanks for looking everyone!

An InLinkz Link-up

30 Day Challenge, Day 10: Gradient

Hi everyone! Today's prompt for the 30 Day Challenge was Gradient. I saw a gorgeous mani a few days ago that used pink and yellow (it was this tape mani from Enamel Girl) and I just adored how bright and cheerful the color combo was, so I decided to use those colors for my gradient. I started off with a base of China Glaze Lemon Fizz and then sponged a gradient using Lemon Fizz and KBShimmer Life Rose On. I thought the perfect way to accent this mani would be with these gorgeous pink butterfly stickers (Item BLE1390) that were sent to me for review by Born Pretty Store. I was absolutely in love with this mani and didn't want to take it off to do the next prompt! LOL...and now Dani and I have both done a pink and yellow gradient and we didn't even plan it that way!

There were pink and orange butterflies (as well as plain black ones) included in the package. There was a good variety of decals that you could mix and match and use for several manicures. These applied very easily and weren't prone to bend and get stuck together. So pretty for a spring manicure!

Be sure to check out Born Pretty Store for all of your nail art supply needs (you can use my coupon code JCX31 for 10% off your order).  I've always had great experiences with ordering from them at very reasonable prices. Also, you can't beat free worldwide shipping! You can also follow Born Pretty Store on Facebook and Instagram. 


KBShimmer polishes 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.

*Water Decals were sent for my honest review, polishes were purchased by me*


Be sure to check out what the rest of the ladies are doing for the challenge! Thanks for looking everyone!

An InLinkz Link-up

30 Day Challenge, Day 3: Texture Polish

Hi everyone! Today's theme for the 30 Day Challenge is textures. China Glaze's Sea Goddess Collection came out earlier this year and I only really fell in love with one of them enough to purchase it. China Glaze Seahorsin' Around is a teal texture polish that is packed with golden and multicolored shimmer. The formula was good on this one, with full opacity in two coats. I felt like the multicolored shimmer disappeared into the base a bit as the polish dried down so it wasn't as apparent on the nail when the polish was dry, but it still had wonderful sparkly depth. I had read rumors of staining with this polish, but I had none whatsoever. Dry time was pretty average for textured polish, though I did manage to smudge my thumb at some point after I thought it was fully dry (it was easily fixed with another dab of polish though, an aspect of textured polishes that I love). Overall, I really like Seahorsin' Around and I'm glad I picked it up.

I am still seeing Sea Goddess Collection out at Sally Beauty and Ulta still, so be sure to grab this one before the displays disappear.

*All products in this post were purchased by me*

Be sure to check out what everyone else in the challenge has in store for today! Thanks for looking!

An InLinkz Link-up

St. Patrick's Day Mani

Hi everyone! Today I have my St. Patrick's Day Mani to share with you all. I went pretty simple, but I really loved this design. I started off with a base of China Glaze Four Leaf Clover, which photographs extremely inaccurately...but it is a very bright, almost neon green in real life. Next I used Bundle Monster plate H04 and Konad Special White Polish for the shamrock design. Finally I topped the whole thing with 2 coats of INM Northern Lights Hologram Top Coat "Gold".

 

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Thanks for looking everyone!!