Category: Layla

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Layla Cosmetics Hologram Effect 08 Flash Black

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. & happy Father’s Day to those who are celebrating those Dad figures in their lives.

Today’s Swatch Sunday post is another beauty pulled straight from my stash. Years ago, my local Lawton’s Drugs used to have a crazy selection when it came to their clearance nail polish. Honestly, it was my favourite place to shop because you could always find something new & different to you (it’s one of the first places I ever found Color Club). They also used to sell a ton of shades by the brand Layla Cosmetics, which is a European brand.

Today’s polish is from the height of the initial holographic craze, circa 2014/2015 or so — although I found blog posts dating back to 2012. This is Layla Cosmetics Hologram Effect 08 Flash Back.

2 coats + Top Coat

This beautiful liner holographic nail polish is a stunning dark grey (I wouldn’t quite call it black) with a very strong & beautiful liner holograph effect. The formula was smooth & easy to apply — especially for a nail polish that is over a decade old.

The trick with holographic shades like this, is you really have to make sure your first coat is dry-dry before attempting a second coat, other wise it can drag up your first coat. But other than that, I have 0 negatives about this shade. I have 3 or 4 others from this collection, & I just love them all. They were my first real introduction to liner holographic nail polish.

Sunny days were just meant for holographic nail polishes. Look at those rainbows! 🌈

Do you remember this line of nail polishes by Layla Cosmetics — or any of their interesting polishes. I loved finding them in the clearance because they were usually $3-$4 & they had so many cool ones — thermals, spotted, etc.

What do you think about this holographic shade? Do you think it’s as fun as I do? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!

🖤

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Layla Pro Nail Polish SG31

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. It has definitely been a while!

This is actually the first time I’ve painted my nails all week after surviving covid. & I won’t lie — it was a rough week for sure. I have never felt so sick in as long as I can remember. But I’m back, slowly & surely, & ready to share a fun nail polish for this week’s Swatch Sunday.

Once again, I went shopping in my own nail polish stash, & found a beauty I’ve owned for quite a while. This is Layla Cosmetics Layla Pro Nail Polish in SG31.

2 coats + top coat

I actually have a couple polishes from the Layla line I’ve picked up over the years in my local Lawton’s clearance bins. &, truthfully, I have two difference bottles for this particular shade; this bottle, titled Layla Pro & the Ceramic Effects line which is the exact same polish.

According to what I read online, the Pro line was released for nail polish professionals, in bigger bottles than their other shades. I picked up this bottle a few years ago for the very affordable price of $3.25 on clearance. What drew me initially to this shade is it’s very close to the original version of Color Club’s The Uptown — although not a direct dupe.

For my swatches, I did two easy coats. The first one applied fairly thinly, but the second one I applied a bit more generously. The flakies are very densely spread through the formula, so you get a lot of coverage. It’s a beautiful polish, with the perfect shift for Autumn weather.

I’m already kind of on a purple kick, & flakie kick, so it’s giving me the best of both worlds. I love the shift between orange, gold & green depending on how you move your hand. I also, obviously, had to top it with some matte top coat

Have you ever tried Layla Cosmetics polishes? Do you love a good flake polish? I feel like you don’t see shades like this as much anymore — outside the Indie polish world. I kind of miss when unique shades like this would pop up in mainstreams store. Can we petition for 2024 to be the year of the mainstream flake polish?

Have a fantastic Sunday!

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Not-so-Simple Red & Gold

Good morning lovelies & happy Friday! & happy almost weekend. Today I’m sharing a manicure I did recently which was quick & easy, & got a lot of compliments!

Originally I was just planning on wearing the base, but decided I needed more than just simple red nails, so I added the stripe & gold. & I love it! Plus this whole look was completed in under 30 minutes from base coat to dry.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Good. Kind. Pure Hardener
  • Top Coat: Seche Vive
  • Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Cherry Delightful
  • Layla Cosmetics Ceramic Effect in Shade 53
  • Essie Mosaic On Down
  • NailStuff.ca 16mm Striper Brush

Again, these were so simple to do! The hardest part was trying to make sure that I had my lines in the middle of my nails & they were straight. I know I could have used nail vinyls, but lately I feel like I’m more inclined to hand paint my nails over vinyls (or even stamping) because there is less waiting around for my base to dry.

What do you think about this design? Do you like this not-so-simple red & gold look. I think this would look awesome in a variety of different colour schemes. I’m already picturing a pastel/spring coloured look in my head as I write this!

Let me know what you would like to see down in the comments below!

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Glam Nails Challenge October — Spider 🕸

Hello lovelies & happy Wednesday! Half way through the week already — can you believe it?! We’re also already on our second prompt for GlamNailsChallengeOctober… & my second Halloween design of the season.

Today’s prompt: Spider. 🕷🕸

Which, anyone who knows me, knows is one of my least favourite things in the whole wide world. But for nail art, I guess I can do it. So I decided, why not do some holo-ween spiders! Because holo makes everything better!

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie First Base
  • Top Coat: Seche Vive
  • Color Club Sidewalk Psychic
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Get Mod!
  • Starrily Vantablack
  • Layla Cosmetics Flash Black
  • NailStuff.ca 16mm Striper Brush
  • NailStuff.ca Dotting Tool Trio

How much fun are these? Again, spiders are not my favourite thing. In fact, I’ve been known to run screaming away from a spider, usually in tears. But these holo spiders turned out pretty cute, so I don’t mind wearing them on my nails.

October is the one month a year where spiders on my nails are okay, haha.

I really, really wanted to rock some holographic nails for this look. I thought this holographic orange-y colour was perfect as the base for this nail art. Plus we’ve had some beautiful sunny days the last few days, which were just calling for some holo.

What do you think about this nail art look? Are you currently rocking any Halloween designs? What is your favourite Halloween nail art design to do? Let me know in the comments below!

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Pink & Purple Holo Half Moons

Hello lovelies. ♥️

I know, it’s been a while.

Sorry for the extended absence, but we had some devastating event occur here in my beautiful home province of Nova Scotia, & it kind of knocked the wind out of me emotionally, which left me with little urge to post. I’ve literally spent the last 2 weeks almost just playing around making macrame plant holders, & trying to calm my brain. But nails & nail art make me happy, so I’m glad to be back.

So let’s talk about nails shall we! More specifically, how about this holo half moon look!

For this look, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Good Kind Pure Hardener
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • Layla Cosmetics Retro Pink
  • Color Club Eternal Beauty
  • Paper Hole Reinforcements

I feel like you just can’t properly document a holo look like this in a light box, so naturally I needed to capture it in all its glory in the sun! & look at that holo shift, isn’t it beautiful? Color Club Eternal Beauty might possibly be one of my all time favourite holographic shades, & definitely hands down my favourite purple holo. The liner holo shift is just so strong, it’s blinding. I can’t get enough.

Isn’t this a look? I know I’ve done pink & purple moons a lot, but that’s because it’s a classic. I play around with other colour combinations, but deep in my heart I am a pink & purple kind of girl.

What do you think about this nail art look? What is you favourite holographic nail polish? Let me know what you think down in the comments below!