Category: Spring

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SWATCH SUNDAY — ORLY Desert Rose

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. It’s a sunny Sunday here, although the snow situation is a little depressing — Spring is definitely feeling far away. So I thought I would pick something Spring-y to wear on my nails for this week.

Today’s polish is one that I picked up a little while ago now, on a whim while making a NailPolishCanada purchase. I saw the colour & thought it was so pretty, so I added to cart: ORLY Desert Rose, originally released as part of the Neon Earth Collection for Summer 2018.

2 coats + Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat

Desert Rose is a beautiful vibrant coral pink, with reddish undertones. It plays a good balance between that coral feel and the red feel, which are probably two of my favourite colours to wear. The formula was really easy to apply, & went on smoothly, with a good self level. I did apply Seche Vite over which added some extra gloss, but that was because I was planning on wearing the shade & needed it to dry quickly.

This colour is definitely the vibrancy I need for these never ending snowy days. It’s the perfect brightness, & the colour is absolutely gorgeous. I looked back on Nail Polish Canada, but the listing is no longer available sadly (I think it was on clearance when I bought it), BUT I did find it on the official ORLY website for sale, so if you’re looking at this shade, it is still available for purchase through them.

What do you think about ORLY Desert Rose? Do you love this shade for Spring? Are you already dipping into your Spring shades? Let me know in the comments below!

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Blue Groovy Flowers

Hello loves & happy Thursday! & happy March 2nd. February is now behind us, & this year is already speeding by. How is it possible we’re 3 months into 2023 already?

But you know what it does mean? That we’re only 18 days away from Spring! I’ll enjoy that fact while I munch on my storm chips & prepare for another 20-25cm of snow to fall here in Halifax. I’ve also decided to distract myself from the impending snowstorm with some floral on my nails. If there is one thing that can distract me from the fact that Winter has really just started here, it’s a cute simple floral nail art design.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Glow & Shine 
  • Top Coat: Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat
  • Essie All the Wave
  • Essie Cocktail Bling
  • Essie Sweet Souffle
  • Essie Set in Stones
  • NailStuff.ca 4mm Micro Detail Brush
  • Dotting tool (NailStuff.ca — Dotting Tool Trio)

I’m a little rusty on my flower painting, as you can see, but I still think these turned out cute. I went much more simple for this look, aiming — kind of — for like a 70s wallpaper design. Not my most favourite floral ever, but still a fun look to wear. I have no doubt there is going to be a lot of floral on my nails in the near future, so I hope you’re ready.

All floral, all the time.

Well maybe not all the time.

What do you think about this simple easy groovy floral look? Is this a good nail art design to usher in the new month, & hopefully Spring? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below, & let me know what Spring nail art trends you’re loving right now.

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Pastel Neon Half Moons

Hey beauties & happy Tuesday!

I hope everyone’s weekend & beginning of a new week was lovely. We’re quickly approaching March, & that is probably the weirdest nail art month for me because it’s the least inspiring — aside from St. Patrick’s Day, of course. Naturally, I’m craving Spring, as I have been for the last few posts, but Winter has actually hit Halifax which is lame.

So give me some neon!

Today’s look was a quick & easy look to satisfy my neon cravings. A little hint of Spring, even when it’s way below freezing.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Glow & Shine 
  • Top Coat: Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Neon Electri-Lime 
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Orchid-ing Aside
  • Paper Hole Reinforcements (Dollarama stationary section)

How cute are these! I love the pastel purple & the neon green paired together. It’s a nice bright look on a chilly day — which we’ve been having a lot of lately. I may not be able to break out the Spring dresses yet, but at least I can wear some Spring nail polishes. It’s the little things that make me happy.

Also this is a super, super easy look to do. Half moons this way were one of the earlier nail art techniques I taught myself — circa like 2011/2012 — but even after all the years, it’s still one of my easy nail art go tos. Seriously… if you’re wanting to dip your toes into the nail art game, but nervous about technique, go with this easy look! As long as you make sure your base is well dried, it’s pretty hard to muck this look up.

What do you think about these pastel neon half moons? Are they giving you all the Spring vibes? Let me know what you think down in the comments below, & if you would try this easy nail art look.

Have a lovely Tuesday! ♥︎

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Essie Sunday Funday

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday!

It’s a beautifully sunny, albeit freaking chilly, Sunday here on my part of the East Coast. Winter seems to be lingering now. So I thought I would remind myself of better, warmer days with an old favourite Essie shade for this week’s Swatch Sunday post — Sunday Funday.

It was originally released as part of the Summer 2013 Naughty Nautical collection.

2 coats + Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Top Coat

For a polish which has been in my stash for (I think) at least 8 years, she applied like a dream. I needed to shade my bottle a bit, since it had settled leaving the colour weird, but I found it had no effect once it was on the nail — you can see in the bottle there is still some colour separation showing.

The polish itself is a beautiful pinky coral, with a gold glass shimmer. It gives it a nice sparkle. I had a bit of trouble with photographing, as everything was photographing really yellow, but I think that’s a phone camera issue rather than a polish issue. These pictures are definitely as colour accurate as I could get.

As mentioned, this shade was originally released in 2013. It was part of the core collection for a while, I do believe, but Essie lists it as no longer available on their website sadly. I did find a listing for it on Sparkle Canada, but I’ve never bought from them so I’m not sure how legit that is. Obviously, if it’s a shade you need to have, Ebay always might have it, as well as any nail polish clearance bins.

What do you think about this punchy Essie shade? Are you are ready for Spring & Summer shades as I am ready to share them? Let me know what you think of Essie Sunday Funday! & I hope you have a Sunday Funday (that’s just fun to say) too!

♥︎

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Fuchsia Floral Accent Nails

Hello beauties & happy Thursday! I’ve been struck down by a cold from Hell, but that doesn’t mean I can’t show off some pretty (early) Spring nails — right? Especially since it’s supposed to be relatively warm today.

It feels like ions since I last did any floral. Floral has always been one of my favourite go to nail art looks, but I think I went through a floral rut for a while, because I was not inspired to do any on my nails. But I’m back, & I’m showing off the prettiest floral in hopes that Mother Nature gets the message.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Glow & Shine 
  • Top Coat: Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Lilac Insomniac
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Ski Bunny
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Unicorn Top Coat
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Wet My Thistle
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Me, My Elf & I
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Blacky-O
  • NailStuff.ca 4mm Micro Detail Brush

Okay, first off I apologize for my shitty pictures because I’ve been having photo troubles lately. My photo quality has been dipping dramatically, so I might switch back to just using my photo box & daytime lamp for a while to see if it makes a difference. Second — I’m so happy with how this look turned out! It definitely took some time to get the colouring right on the flower. But I decided not to go super complicated in the background. & I’m so happy with how cute they look!

What do you think of this floral look? Have you missed the floral as much as I did? Let me know down in the comments below!