Category: Manicure

Posted on

SWATCH SUNDAY — Morgan Taylor Looking For A Wingman

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday!

I had originally had different plans for my Swatch Sunday post — I had done a couple Insta-polls asking what people wanted to see for this post, & the consensus was still Summer-y & something new… but life got in the way (aka my 1 year old refusing to sleep) so instead I grabbed an untried shade from my stash that I bought pre-COVID times. & I think today’s shade is perfect for impending Fall weather: Morgan Taylor Looking For A Wingman.

Looking For A Wingman was originally released in 2016 as part of their Fall Sweetheart Squadron Collection. The shade is a beautiful (slightly) pink leaning burgundy cream, which is absolutely perfect for Fall!

For my swatches, I did 2 coats over my base coat, plus finished it with Essie Speed Setter top coat. Usually I would use Gel Setter, as it gives the glossiest finish, but my local Shoppers was all out when I went to pick some up.

The formula was really easy to work with, & the opacity built easily in two coats with no weird patchiness. Reds always seem to be hit or miss in formula, I find, so I’m very happy when I find an easy to apply one! As you know, I’m such a sucker for a good red!

What I really like about this shade is even though I would consider this a Fall shade, the colour itself is bright enough that it works as a good transitional shade. Am I the only one who has colours she prefers for seasons? I feel like people think I’m a little strange because I have set “Spring/Summer” shades & “Fall/Winter” shades. Maybe it’s my years of retail seeping into my brain?

I did find a few places online where it appears this shade is still available including, NailPolishDirect (UK based), but a lot of the places seem be for beauty professionals, so I’m not sure how easy it is to track this shade down.

What do you think about this Morgan Taylor shade? Have you started embracing the Fall vibes? Are you dreaming about Pumpkin Spice yet? Let me know down in the comments below!

Posted on

Neutral Leopard Print

Hello lovelies & happy Thursday! I hope everyone is well caffeinated. Today I’m sharing my current nail art obsession: leopard print!

Not going to lie, I’ve been obsessed with leopard print a long, long time. I used to own the most amazing leopard print dress during my teenage years — sadly I have no idea what happened to it, but it was glorious. Now a days, I don’t have much leopard print in my closet, which is even more of an excuse to wear it on my nails! (& maybe go shopping…).

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: OPI Nail Envy
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • Essie Ballet Slippers
  • Essie Kaf-tan
  • Essence Black is Back
  • NailStuff.ca 7mm detail brush(COFFEE10 to save 10%)
  • NailStuff.ca Dotting Tool Trio

Oh man, I really really love how these turned out. Obviously, with my nails being sort of short right now, I need to find cute looks I can wear on my nails. Small delicate designs like this work really well on short-length nails.

Can you tell I’m really, really obsessed with Essie Kaf-tan right now? It’s so funny because I didn’t think it was a colour that was all that “Me” but I can’t help but reach for it for every design I do right now. It’s just such a fun, unique colour for my stash. & it’s definitely going to be a Fall shade staple for me! Which means I’d better in go get myself another bottle then!

What do you think about this leopard print look? Are you digging this pattern right now? Let me know what you think down in the comments below!

Posted on

Freehand Stripes

Good morning lovelies & happy Tuesday! Hope everyone is having a lovely week so far. ♥️ I’ve been mostly stuck in bed or on the couch because I messed up my neck somehow, but at least that gives me a chance to work on some blog stuff!

Now I know I said I wasn’t going to start thinking about Fall quite yet, but man… I had one sip of Pumpkin Spice latte & now it’s all I can think about! Haha. I kid, but I’ve definitely been finding myself drawn more to darker colours the last few times I’ve painted my nails. In fact, I’ve already switched my pedicure over! Today’s manicure was a combination of both; a little bit Autumn, with some lighter shades thrown in as well.

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: OPI Nail Envy
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • Sally Hansen CSM Pat On The Black
  • Essie Kaf-tan
  • Essie Bikini So Teeny
  • Quo by ORLY Breathable Sheer Luck
  • Dimension Nails Blue Morpho Butterfly
  • NailStuff.ca 7mm detail brush(COFFEE10 to save 10%)

Stripes make your nails look longer, right?

As you might have noticed from Sunday’s swatch post, I’ve rounded my nails off again. I’m really trying to get them to grow a bit better, & I find an almond/rounded look suits me better for healthier nail growth. So we’re back to rounded, & hopefully with some serious nail self care, we can grow them super long again! (Like circa 2017 long!)

I really like the pop of colour on the dark base colour. Pat On The Black is such a perfectly dark burgundy shade, I love wearing it in the Fall. & when you add the stripes of lighter shades overtop, they really pop! It also lightens things up, so I’m not fully committing to Fall just yet. However, I’ll drink Pumpkin Spice if I want to… that I’m not budging on! Haha.

What do you think about this striped look? Do you prefer a square or rounded nail shape? Let me know down in the comments below!

Posted on

SWATCH SUNDAY — Nubar Prize

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! I hope everyone is having a lovely, relaxing, beautiful start to their week!

I’ve been trying to figure out what shade to share for this week’s Swatch Sunday. I’m definitely finding myself being drawn towards darker shades, but I took a poll on my insta-stories, & the winning vote was to keep things Summer-y. So I dug deep into my stash, & pulled out an oldie but a goodie: Nubar Prize.

Anyone else crave holo during the sunshine-y days of Summer? I definitely grab from my stash of holo more so in the Summer, especially July/August, because that’s when you see the sun most often.

Nubar Prize is a pink jelly polish choked full of scattered holo glitter. Sadly, Nubar no longer exists or makes this shade, so this polish is definitely a special one to me. The base is so bright, & the holo sparkles from every angle.

2 coats + top coat

Surprisingly, for a shade that is jelly like this, you can get fantastic opacity in 2 coats with no visibly nail line, or need for undies. & just look at all that glitter! There is no inch of the nail that doesn’t sparkle. It really makes me wish I had a back up bottle of this shade… or a good dupe! Let me know in the comments if you know any good dupes first this shade!

What do you think of Nubar Prize? Do you have a favourite holo shade? Let me know down in the comments below!

Posted on

SWATCH SUNDAY — ACO by Ardene 80s Prom Dress

Hey lovelies! & happy Sunday. Can you believe it’s August?! How did that happen? The pumpkin spice is calling me already. But since it’s still Summer, I won’t get into the Autumn colours just yet… though I will say, I’m already planning a post featuring my picks for Fall so stay tuned!

But let’s starting off August by embracing Summer! In fact, let’s go way back with a neon Ardene nail polish circa 2014! 80s Prom Dress.

For those who don’t know, Ardene is a Canadian retailer that focuses more on clothing now, but used to be all about jewelry & accessories & has a pretty impressive nail polish selection. I used to be a manager in the company, so I would see first hand all the nail polishes as we got them! It also means I own entire drawer of their polishes.

80s Prom Dress is a beautiful neon coral jelly, with a striking fuchsia shimmer. The formula is semi sheer, so I applied two coats of polish over a base of YSL Corial Colisee to make sure I had full opacity. & the two go so well together, you can’t spot where one ends & the other begins! You can also build full opacity with this shade, but it takes about 4 coats.

I love how unique this shade is. The colour is so vibrant, the shimmer stands out, & the combination is perfection. & feel like the name suits this shade so well, because this totally is the colour you would expect to see on a garishly loud prom dress from 1982.

A close up to really see that beautiful glowing fuchsia shimmer.

What do you think about this beautiful neon shade? Are you still all about summer shades, or do you find your mind wandering to Autumn polish? Let me know down in the comments below!