Category: Winter

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Zoya Ray

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday!

Hope the world isn’t too crazy where you are — here on the East Coast, things are starting to get a tad crazy, so I need a good non-real world distraction. & what is better than nail polish? Lately, I’ve been really feel dark green shimmery nail polishes. They’re definitely out of my comfort zone, but they give me holiday vibes, & I think that is exactly what I need in my life right now.

So I decided to pull a fun Zoya shade from deep in my stash. Today’s pick: Zoya Ray.

2 coats + Top Coat (Essie Gel Setter)

Zoya Ray was originally released in 2012 as part of the Diva Collection. This shade came to be part of my stash in 2015 thanks to Winners, as it was tucked into their polish selection. I remember the colour catching my eye & the name is actually my middle name, so I knew I needed to have it. It’s a great Fall shade, but an even better pick for the holidays. & considering how quickly it’s looking like a lockdown for Christmas, I need all the beautiful polishes I can find to cheer myself up!

The formula on this shade is easy. I took 2 coats for application, although the first coat had almost complete opacity.

The shimmer is what really makes me love this polish — like I said, I’ve been really drawn towards green shades lately, & this one is just such a beauty. It’s also such a perfect Christmas tree green. I definitely will be pulling this beauty out again for some beautiful Christmas-y tree designs in the next couple weeks!

I did some internet snooping, but sadly it looks like this shade has been long discontinued. You might get lucky, & find it in a clearance bin, & if you do I definitely recommend picking it up!

What do you think about this Zoya shade? Do you own it? What is your favourite holiday Green? Let me know in the comments below!

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Criss Cross Freehand Pattern

Hello lovelies & happy Wednesday. It’s definitely a very, very chilly Wednesday here on the East Coast, & I don’t think I’m quite ready for it! I’m naturally a person who is always cold, so when the weather shifts, there is not enough layers or tea in the world to keep me warm!

But even if I’m cold, I still have cute nails to show off! I picked up a couple nail art stripers on clearance at Lawton’s a while ago, but hadn’t really played with them, so I decided to play around with some line work. I originally intended to do a kind of x-pattern look, which so of shifted as I was doing it. I’m not sure what to call this kind of pattern, but I absolutely love it. & it’s a look that even looks good on nubby nails like mine!

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Hard As Nails
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • Matte Top Coat: Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Matte Top Coat
  • Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Clean Slate
  • Color Club Art Club Pink Pastel

Oh man, I think this pattern turned out so neat! It actually wasn’t super difficult to do either; I started with painting an X on my nails, then when it each triangle section to repeat the same pattern over & over so you would get this interlocking/woven effect. It sounds complicated, but it really wasn’t. Just required a bit of a steady hand, & a little concentration, but the end result is totally worth it!

Also yes I’m totally obsessed with using my matte top coat again. I saw that Sally Hansen has a new Miracle Gel matte top coat, so I’m going to see if I can pick some up the next time I’m out. I also think I’m due for another “battle of the matte top coats”, so maybe I’ll have to add it to the mix!

What do you think about this look? Is this something you could see yourself rocking?

Also now that we’re hitting mid-November I was thinking of starting to post the occasional Winter/maybe Christmas look? Do you want to see that, or do you think it’s too soon?

Let me know down in the comments below!

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Pink Stamped Reindeer Nails

Hello lovelies & happy Monday!

Hope everyone is well caffeinated. Today I’m starting off the beginning of this week with some fun stamped sweater nails. It’s been quite a while since I last pulled out my stamper, & this time of year always makes me want to use it more often.

Today’s stamping plate combo is one I’ve used before, but I love the sweater print with the reindeer head. I also pulled a polish shade from deep, deep in my stash (definitely pre 2009) but it still applies like a dream! You’ve got to love that.

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Hard As Nails
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • NYC Color Lexington Lilac
  • Revlon Iconic
  • Starrily Vantablack
  • Born Pretty Store Stamping plate BP-L032 (item #23268)
  • Born Pretty Store Stamping plate BP-L018 (item #19373)
  • NailStuff.ca Clear Stamper (COFFEE10 saves you 10% site wide!)

I had totally forgotten about this pretty polish. I picked it up years & years ago, I think at Zellars (for my fellow Canadians, who remembers Zellars?!) & probably only wore it once or twice. I also really like this untraditional sweater colour scheme. Sometimes, even this time of year, I just really feel these pale muted colours.

Also be prepared to see this stamped reindeer head over the next couple months, because it’s one of my favourites!

What do you think about this stamped design? Do you love this colour scheme as much as I do? Let me know in the comments below!

Have a happy Monday!

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Vintage Floral featuring Sally Hansen Good Kind Pure

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{PR SAMPLE/GIFTED}

Good morning lovelies & happy Thursday! I hope everyone’s week has been going well!

Today I’ve got a super pretty manicure to share with you, & one of my absolute favourite nail art designs — FLORAL! I was feeling inspired by the beautiful Good Kind Pure polishes I shared in my Swatch Sunday post, & naturally they were calling for me create a pretty floral look with them! & oh how I adore the outcome; it looks like vintage wallapper, in the best possible way.

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For this look, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Good Kind Pure Hardener
  • Top Coat: Sally Hansen Good Kind Pure Top Coat
  • Sally Hansen GKP Almond Tan
  • Sally Hansen GKP Pink Cardamom
  • Sally Hansen GPK Eco-Rose
  • Sally Hansen GKP Peony Origins
  • Sally Hansen GKP Beet It
  • Sally Hansen GKP Golden Quartz
  • NailStuff.ca Mermaid Tail Brush Trio (I used the 7mm liner brush)
  • NailStuff.ca Dotting Tool Trio 

Remember, you can use COFFEE10 at checkout at Nailstuff.ca to save 10% off your purchases!

Usually I try to paint pretty realistic designs when it comes to floral (green for leaves for example) but I really wanted to use all the Good Kind Pure shades for this design. & I actually really love how these turned out! The dusty colour scheme definitely reminds me of vintage wallpaper, or that couch that everyone’s grandmother had (you know the one). But I really, really, really love it. Plus I never get tired of painting roses on my nails.

Ahhh, I just love these so much! The pink roses, the burgundy leaves. Gives me those Spring vibes I desperately need as we slide full force into Winter now. We have like 3 winter storms headed out way in the coming week or so, so I’m probably going to pull all the floral in my closet I own so I can just live in denial about the fact Spring is not-so-close.

What do you think about this floral look using these new shades from Sally Hansen? I’ve been having a lot of fun playing around with them, & still have a few more looks to share, including the perfect dotticure for Valentine’s Day!

Also let me know any tips you have for escaping the Winter Blahs!

 

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FASHION FRIDAY — Coffee Shop OOTD

Hello lovelies & happy Friday! Also happy second edition of my new feature, Fashion Friday.

I was so happy to see people embracing my new content direction as this is something I’ve really been debating doing for a few years now, but was honestly scared to start. I have so many fun ideas I can’t wait to share with you guys coming up! & please don’t hesitate to share anything you’d like to see me cover. I’m really hoping for this Friday feature to be a really approachable look at Fashion, & a lot of what I share is you going to be me delving into my own closet & the items I own & love. I have this sentimental attachment to clothing (& the memories associated) that I hope you guys will enjoy reading about as much as I love writing about.

First up though, how about a good old fashioned outfit of the day!

Moneau Pineapple Summer Dress. Danier black turtleneck sweater. Not Pictured: Black tights. Nine West Deep green knee high boots.

Okay, so I love dresses. Like REALLY love dresses. From May to October, you can rarely catch me wearing pants. But being that it’s the middle of January in Canada, it’s not so easy for me to just throw on a dress. However, lately when I’m not in the mood for another day of jeans & sweaters, I’ve really been into laying long sleeves & thinner sweaters under my favourite dresses (along with a pair of tights, or two.) It quite honestly is the easiest way to take a Summer dress you love, & winterize it.

This Danier turtleneck has been in my collection a very, very long time (like 2009-ish) & I had completely forgotten how cute it looks under spaghetti strap dresses (& even tanks) like this. This outfit was my Family Coffee Date OOTD, & it made me feel so cute & so put together when I went out. My only complaint? I wish I had a cute little belt to empahsize my waist (this dress is a little bit big on me) but I just found a couple of my favourite cincher belts (including a black one that would be perfect with this look) that I’ll be able to pull out next time.

What do you think about this look? Do you find ways to Winterize your favourite fashion items so that you can wear them all year long? Let me know your secrets down in the comments below!