Category: Summer

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Pink Gel & Floral Nail Art 💖🌸

Hey lovelies! I totally meant to post this manicure last week, but I got knocked out by the cold from hell which left me ravaged & not in the mood to do any posting! But my sinuses are finally recovering, & now I can finally show this fun look I did last week!

I was super curious about doing nail art over my gel manicure base, so I wanted to give it a try. I plan on also doing some nail art using all gel, but I was curious what would happen if you painted some nail art over just gel. (Including topping it with a regular top coat.)

Products used for this manicure: 

  • Olive & June Peel Off Base Coat *
  • Olive & June Gel Polish Base Coat *
  • 2 coats Olive & June Gel Polish XOXO *
  • 1 coat Olive & June Gel Polish Pink Goldfish *
  • Olive & June Gel Polish Top Coat *
  • Sinful Colors Bold Color
  • Essie Mint Candy Apple *
  • Essie Satin Sister
  • Butter London Coming Up Roses *
  • Nailstuff.ca Mermaid Tail 7mm liner brush
  • NailStuff.ca Dotting Tool 
  • China Glaze Fast Forward Top Coat

**gifted/PR

I think these are so just so pretty! I will say, the quick dry top coat I used (China Glaze Fast Forward Top Coat) did dry down in a way that made the nail art flowers almost look like 3D stickers — which I thought I was very cool. I’m curious what would have happened if I had used the Olive & June Gel Top Coat — & I might have to experiment to see what happens!

As I mentioned, I’m still so new to the world of gel, so I’m enjoying playing around with it.

What do you think of this little bit of nail art? Would you like to see me do a series or feature on nail art using only gel nail polishes? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!

Happy Wednesday

💖

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Essie Gel Couture New Highs 💙(Dopamine Rush Collection 2025)

PR/Gifted

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. Unfortunately, it’s a pretty blah rainy Sunday (again). But I thought I would punch things up with a fun Essie colour I was recently sent for PR! This is Essie New Highs from the newly released 2025 Gel Couture Dopamine Rush collection.

2 coats + Essie Gel Couture Top Coat

Described as a “Ultramarine” Blue on the Essie website, I feel like this blue is much more exciting on the nail than in the bottle. The formula is on the thinner side, so two coats was a must for opacity. The formula dries quickly, but an added coat of top coat gave it a more plush finish.

The colour is really nice. It’s not a navy, but it’s not a cobalt. It feels bright, even though it’s on the darker spectrum of blue shades. & I quite enjoy it! Also, looking at the rest of the shades in the collection, I might have to search out a couple more to add to my stash.

Essie Gel Couture shades are available anywhere you buy Essie, ranging in price from $11.49 CAD to $16.49 CAD (when not on sale).

What do you think of Essie Gel Couture New Highs? Are you a fan of this vibrant blue? What are your thoughts on the Essie Gel Couture line? I was definitely late to trying it, but I’m a huge fan of the formula & love all the colours I own! & I especially adore the top coat! It has a great lasting quality & dries quickly.

Let me know what you think down in the comments below!

Enjoy your Sunday!

🖤

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Outlined Glitter Jelly Nails

Hey lovelies, happy Wednesday!

Long time, no post. I’ll be honest — blogging has been really hard this month. Even wanting to do my nails has hit a road block. I’m still painting them, but I don’t necessarily have the energy to do nail art. Hoping once this month is over, I’ll feel super inspired again.

But I did manage to do a simple nail art look recently, so I’m excited to share it!

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Couture Top Coat 
  • Base Coat: China Glaze Calcium Gel Fortifier
  • Essie Love Sheen (Silk Watercolours collection)
  • Ardene Secret Diary
  • Quo by Orly Nail Art Striper in Black

I started off by creating a jelly sandwich using Essie Love Sheen & Ardene Secret Diary. Originally that had been my only plan for these nails. But the next day, I couldn’t help but thing that some black outlining would really up the dramatic factor of this manicure — & I was right!

I don’t do outlining often, mostly because it takes a very steady hand I don’t always posses. But I’m so super proud of how these turned out & how neatly I managed to outline them! & nothing makes me happier than a cleanly drawn manicure!

What do you think about my outline glitter sandwich nails? Are they dramatic & fun? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!

& if you have some nail art inspiration you want to shoot my way, I’m always looking for new inspiration for my nails! & with this nail art block I’m going through, I’d love some help to break out of it!

Happy Wednesday loves

🖤

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Olive & June Gel Polish XOXO & Pink Goldfish

PR/Gifted

Hello my lovelies & happy Sunday! May is very quickly speeding along — can you believe it? Summer is almost here.

Today I’m excited to share some more polishes I was recently gifted from Olive & June. They reached out to me about trying their Gel Polish system, & I said yes! While I don’t use gel polishes a lot, I’m always curious. They sent me a beautiful PR package with everything I could need to create a beautiful gel manicure, & I’m excited to share two shades with you (& a little review) today!

Products used for this manicure:

  • Olive & June qPeel Off Base Coat
  • Olive & June Gel Polish Base Coat
  • 2 coats Olive & June Gel Polish XOXO
  • 1 coat Olive & June Gel Polish Pink Goldfish
  • Olive & June Gel Polish Top Coat

I’m not well versed with gel polishes — it’s not my usual medium — but I will say I found this system easy to use. I used the provided peel off base coat for easy removal, & then followed directions.

The gel polish itself is pretty opaque. 2 coats of the pink polish XOXO, curing for the 2 minutes between each coat, & then I topped it with the shimmer Pink Goldfish. & then I finished it off with one coat of the Gel top coat.

You have no idea how many compliments I got on this colour! I’ll probably do a quick tutorial video the next time I go to apply this polish just to show how easy the whole system is to use.

The most important steps are cleaning up your cuticles, remembering to remove any oils from your nails with acetone, & making sure not to floor the sides with gel polish. For a first try, with this system I think I did awesome! & I can’t wait to try out all the colours they sent me a— maybe I’ll do a skittle look next!

I’m also so glad for the peel off base coat, because I HATE removing gel polish, so I love an easy removal option.

What do you think of these polishes from Olive & June’s Gel Polish line? Have you tried out their new system yet? Tell me all your thoughts down in the comments below.

🖤

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Essence Shine, Last & Go 13 Legally Pink

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. Well, at the very least — it’s a very rainy Sunday here. Hopefully all these April showers bring some beautiful May flowers because… I’m over it. God, I’m so over it.

But today I have another shade from the stash to share for Swatch Sunday. So many polishes from years past I’ve never shared, so I’ve been really trying to post them for you more often! Today’s pick is from Essence’s Shine Last & Go line, which (I think) was their previous nail Polish line to the current reformat.

This is Legally Pink.

2 coats + top coat

We all know I am a humongous fan of Essence Nail Polish, especially with it being affordable & so easy to grab (the Shoppers is literally in my back yard basically). So I’ve accumulated a few dozen over the years.

Legally Pink is a creamy vibrant coral pink, which — depending on the lighting — can lean very pink or more on the coral side. It is a fiery Spring pink for sure, which is probably why I bought it in the first place. Formula is smooth, & easy to apply & has a nice solid finish in two coats without looking chunky on the nail. It dried down quickly, & I finished it all off with some quick dry top coat as I was wearing it for the next day.

See what I mean about the colour shifting. In the top photo you can see how it looks coral (borderline red) on two nails, then leaning more pink on two nails. When I say this shade was so freaking impossible to photograph true to colour, you can see why. But it really, truly is just gorgeous & Summer-y so we’ll forgive her for not wanting to get her photograph taken!

Because this shade is 5 or 6 years old, she’s not available in stores where Essence is sold. I did see a few listings online for old bottles, so if you really want it, you could definitely seek it out!

What do you think of Essence 13 Legally Pink? Are you a fan of Essence’s line of nail polishes. Give me all your comments & thoughts down below — & let me know what your favourite line of affordable nail polish is!

Happy Sunday

🖤