Category: Red Nails

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Can’t Beet Royalty (& a new Miracle Gel Shiny Top Coat)

PR Sample/Gifted

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! Who else is in shock that Christmas is less than two weeks away?! While I’m super excited that this year is almost over, I can’t believe it either!

But before we skip ahead, I have a fun gift that Santa dropped off on my doorstep last week. Sally Hansen recently reformulated their Miracle Gel top coats (both glossy & matte) & they were so kind as to send me a bottle of their top coat & an accompanying shade: Can’t Beet Royalty.

2 coats + Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Glossy Top Coat

First off, let’s talk about this beautiful Christmas-y red.

The formula is slightly cruelly, but still lovely, & I got almost full coverage in 2 coats (there was a bit of faint nail line, but it really wasn’t anything worth applying another coat of polish). As I’ve mentioned before, the larger brush means better application, because you’re able to do a single swipe over the nail. The colour is perfect for the holidays, & you know I will never shy away from a good red any time of the year. I also felt like this shade is very complimentary to my skin tone.

Now, as for this brand new formula for the Miracle Gel Shiny Top Coat, I’m pretty impressed!

It boasts 8 days of chip free wear, which is always a plus. It again applies quite easily, & I noticed that it definitely has a speedier dry time than past versions. My one & only complaint was that I tried to apply it over some nail art, & it smeared everything. So I don’t know if it would be the best nail art top coat—I might try waiting a bit longer before applying—but it was great over a single colour. & I did notice it held up really well through work, which it helpful when you’re dealing with copious amount of stock boxes.

Such a pretty red!

How gorgeous would this look with some gold glitter in a gradient? Very festive! I swear my nails has been the most festive part of me this year. Christmas 2020 definitely feels very different.

What do you think about Can’t Beet Royalty & the brand new Sally Hansen Miracle Gel top coat? Have you tried either out yet? Let me know in the comments below what you think!

These items were sent to me for review. However, all opinions are my own

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SWATCH SUNDAY — China Glaze Santa’s Side Chick

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. December is in full swing, & the Christmas vibes are… starting. Haha. Truthfully, I’m still not 100% feeling Christmas yet this year, especially because the weather outside is warm & not December-y at all. But all the more reason to pull out my Christmas polishes from years past.

Today’s Swatch Sunday pick is a oldie from China Glaze The Glam Finale Holiday 2017 collection: Santa’s Side Chick.

I originally picked this shade up at Winners, in a two pack with Slay Bells Ring, post holidays. I think it was something crazy silly like $5 for the whole thing, which was an awesome deal! But I’ve never actually worn this shade before, so I was excited to pull it out this year!

2 coats.

First thing I noticed about this shade was that it dries down to a beautiful satin matte. Seriously, I love a good matte nail polish. The polish itself is a beautiful bright berry, with this stunning underlying shimmer.

The formula was pretty easy, only needing two coats for full coverage. Like I find most reds, it’s a bit more jelly, but still had great coverage on the nail. It also dried really quick, which is always nice! & it dries really evenly, which I always appreciate in a matte polish.

Check out that close up (minus the cat hair, haha 🙈) — such a pretty shade, & finish. I

’ve actually been wearing this shade for the last three days — both matte, & with glossy top coat. You know how much I love a good red nail polish, so I’m glad I finally put this one out! Plus the name just makes me laugh so much. Best nail polish name ever!

What do you think about this beautiful Christmas red? 🎄 When do you pull out your holiday collection shades — just around their intended holidays, or anytime of the year?

Let me know in the comments below.

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#GlamNailsChallengeOct — Bats

Hello lovelies & happy Monday! Can you believe we are so close to the end of October? Seriously… where did October even go? I can’t believe that it’s almost Halloween. I seriously want to petition to make Halloween a whole week instead of just one day. It’s just over too quickly!

We’re also down to our second last design for GlamNailsChallengeOct! Today’s prompt is Bats. While I would have loved to freehand some cute bats on my nails, after my first attempt, I knew it was going to end up being super frustrating & I decided to pull out some nail stickers to create my cute Halloween look.

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Hard As Nails
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • NYC Color Frightening Fingers in Red
  • Essie Shine Of The Times
  • Dollarama Halloween Nail Stickers

Aren’t these super cute?

I was actually really impressed with these nail stickers. While I don’t wear them a lot, they’re great to grab for a quick nail art look. These particular stickers were bought at my local Dollarama, while picking up Halloween decorations, & they stick to the nail really well. I wore this look through a long day at work, & I didn’t have them peel off or stick off the nail at all. Granted, I applied two coats of top coat, but even still you can’t even feel the sticker on the nail. I love it! & I also love the little bit of glitter on the stickers. They’re actually some of the cuter stickers I’ve used.

What do you think about this nail art look? Do you ever use nail art stickers? Which brand are your favourites? Let me know in the comments below!

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#GlamNailsChallengeOct — Blood

Hello lovelies & Happy Monday! Hope everyone is having a lovely start to their week. Can you believe how quickly October is speeding along?

The countdown to Halloween is officially on, & I’m fully embracing spooky season. Which means we have another fun design to share for #GlamNailsChallengeOct! Our next prompt is Blood & I decided to go with a blood splatter look using my favourite Saran Wrap Splatter technique!

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Hard As Nails
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • ACO by Ardene Tea Party
  • Sally Hansen CSM Cherry Delightful
  • Sally Hansen CSM Red Over Heels
  • Crinkled Saran Wrap

I absolutely love when people rock those blood splatter nails, using a straw, for Halloween, but I never have enough time for clean up, so I decided to take a shortcut & use my Saran Wrap Splatter technique to get a similar effect that still gives off the blood splatter look. I decided to go with a pretty pastel base (ACO by Ardene Tea Party) because I loved the contrast between the pretty & the gruesome.

Halloween always makes me feel extra creative when it comes to nail art. Even if I don’t have a lot of time, I can still come up with a fun look!

What do you think about this blood splatter look? Would you rock these Halloween nails? Let me know down in the comments below, & stay tuned because the next manicure I have to share for this challenge might be my favourite Halloween nail art I’ve ever done!!

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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!