SWATCH SUNDAY — LA Colors Gel Color Craze Color Shifting Top Coat Retrograde

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! A beautiful sunny Sunday once again. I know I shouldn’t complain about the beautiful weather — especially since we’ve been having cooler morning & evenings which are giving me all the Autumn vibes — but we’re still desperate for rain on the East Coast with all the fires we’ve been having.

Today though, it’s all about nail polish & I’m excited because I found a new & fun shade while perusing my local Walmart! They’ve recently– in like the last year or two — started selling LA Colors & I always love checking out what new shades they have in the display. I noticed these Color Shifting Toppers the last time I was there, so I decided to pick up two of them. The first one I’m excited to share is this green to blue shifty duochrome called Retrograde.

2 coats applied over Essie Frock n Roll + Top Coat

For this application, I applied two coats of Retrograde over a dark base — in this case, I picked Essie Frock n Roll. The base of Retrograde is fairly thin, as you would want a topper to be, but it has a fun metallic duochrome effect that builds very nicely. I feel like you could almost wear a couple coats of it on it’s own, since the base layer definitely disappears beneath the topper.

The shift is also gorgeous — there are flashes on blue & green, as the main ones, but you also get purples as well. Very mermaid-y, which I love, but the jewel tone is perfect for this time of year. I’m not usually someone who reaches for green very often, as well all know (& I’ve said plenty of times) but a shade like this with the multichrome shift is definitely one I will wear. In fact, I wore this manicure for almost 5 days!

LA Colors shades retail at Walmart for $3.97 CAD — which is a pretty awesome deal! The Color Shifting Topper line has 10 shades to choose from, all with celestial names. I picked up Retrograde & Nova, but I’m definitely going to be going back for more shades! They are all such fun colours, & I love anything that can switch up shades already in my collection with a fun twist. Also, I bet these would look beautiful swirled into a drag marble design. That might have to be my next thing to try!

What do you think of LA Colors Gel Color Shifting Topper? Are you a fan of the LA Colors brand? Like I said, I love how affordable these shades are — &, like the crackle shades they’ve released, I find they’re really stepping up their game! So many fun options you can play around with.

Happy Sunday!

♥︎

SWATCH SUNDAY — Reese’s x Sally Hansen InstaDri Feeling Hungry

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. Well, Sunday. Santa had a late present for our house — the stomach flu. My husband & I have avoided it so far, but it’s struck everyone else down. Ugh.

Today I’m sharing a new(ish) shade, which was released this past Halloween. I haven’t been buying much polish lately, but when I saw clearance at my local Shoppers, I couldn’t say no! I actually picked up two shades, & will share number two next week!

Today’s pick: Reese’s x Sally Hansen InstaDri Feeling Hungry.

2 coats + Top Coat

I’m such a sucker for a purple, & as soon as I saw this crushed metallic purple, I knew I needed it. I’ll be honest, I didn’t pay too much attention when this collection was first released, but I should have because I was missing out on this polish!

Formula is smooth, easy to apply, & coverage is about what you would expect — one coat is too little, but two coats is perfect. Make sure your getting your second coat down near your cuticles though, or else it creates a weird effect.

I also love the InstaDri brushes, because I find they make application easy. (Unless you’re painting them at 11pm with not enough light & create a wonky cuticle line.)

Sadly, this shade was a limited release for Halloween, but check the clearance sections wherever you buy nail polish, because you might get lucky! I purchased this bottle for only $3CAD at my local Shoppers Drug Mart.

What do you think about Sally Hansen InstaDri Feeling Hungry? Do you remember these Reese’s themed shades? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

🖤

SWATCH SUNDAY — China Glaze Slay Bells Ring (Holiday 2017 The Glam Finale Collection)

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! The last Sunday before Christmas! I can’t believe we just blinked & December (& 2024) is basically over. It’s kind of crazy the way this year has just sped by. This year has been… a lot. But I have a good feeling about what 2025 is going to hold.

Today I pulled a Christmas shade from way back in 2017. I got this beauty as part of a two-setter at Winners (or Marshall’s) for like $5, I think. So I’m excited to share, because it’s not usually a shade I would grab for the Holidays. This is China Glaze Slay Bells Ring.

3 coats (probably only needed 2….) + top coat

Slay Bells Ring is a beautiful dark gunmetal grey, which applied smoothly & with minimal streakiness. The formula was easy to apply, & dried quickly. I probably would have been fine with only 2 coats but I thought maybe a third would make it darker. It didn’t.

This colour is beautiful, but I think the reflective quality of it makes it so unique. I posed in front of my Christmas tree, & it very easy reflected the lights which made it so beautiful!

I could definitely see this being perfect for New Years Eve with some holographic glitter or flakies applied overtop. It would give Mirror Ball easily! (& now I’m getting ideas for my New Years Eve celebrations.)

What do you think about this shade Slay Bells Ring from China Glaze? I can’t believe I haven’t bought any Christmas/Holiday polishes this year (or asked for any from Santa). I don’t know if I’m just not feeling the Christmas spirit, or just underwhelmed by the polishes I’ve seen. Either way, I’m glad I still have lots of shades to wear from years past.

Happy Sunday!

🖤

GLAM NAILS CHALLENGE DECEMBER (2024) — Ornaments 🎄✨

Hello loves & happy Friday. It’s a busy Friday here, & Christmas is so close. It is also time for the next prompt of Glam Nails Challenge December which is ornaments. & I had the perfect nail art stickers from NailStuff to create this easy look!

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

How cute are the holographic gold & white nail art stickers?! I chose a darker base shade so they would really pop against it & show off! & then used a thick & glossy top coat to seal them in best I could so no edges would be pulled. & I just think they look so beautiful — plus they were simple easy to do. & that holographic finish really catches people’s attention.

What do you think about this ornament nails (poised perfectly in front of my own decorated Christmas tree)? I do love a simple nail art look sometimes & there is nothing less time consuming than nail art stickers!

Don’t forget to pop on over to Instagram & follow all the amazing designs using #glamnailschallengedec24.

🖤

GLAM NAILS CHALLENGE DECEMBER (2024) — Christmas Plaid

Hello loves & happy Monday! It’s a sunny albeit chilly Monday here. Definitely feeling like December — although a sprinkling of snow might have been nice. But today is the next prompt for Glam Nails Challenge December, & it is Christmas plaid.

I’m not 100% sure what a Christmas plaid is, though I would assume one done in your typical Christmas colours would make sense. So that’s what I did for today’s look! & they are certainly feeling Christmas-y.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: NailStuff Essentials Base Coat *
  • Top Coat: Nail Stuff Essentials Quick Dry Top Coat *
  • Santee Magnetic Nail Polish Sandburst
  • Essie Bordeaux*
  • Essie Off Tropic *
  • NailStuff Essentials White Dove *
  • Quo by Orly Black Striper
  • Nailstuff.ca Mermaid Tail 7mm liner brush
  • Largest size from NailStuff.ca Dotting Tool Trio 

*PR/gifted

Ooooh I love how these look. I tried to give this magnetic shade a velvet finish. Honestly think I might have to invest in one of those fancy U-shaped magnets in the new year if I’m going to be playing with my magnet shades more frequently.

I love the hold with the plaid pattern over top, as opposed to using the gold as an accent.

What do you think about my Christmas plaid nails? Are you a fan of this look? Let me know all your thoughts on this look, & if it feels Christmas-y to you.

Don’t forget to pop on over to Instagram & follow all the amazing designs using #glamnailschallengedec24.

🖤