SWATCH SUNDAY — BlackHeart Metallic Purple Blue Galaxy (Hot Topic Brand)

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend so far — can you believe this is the last Sunday of September? Where has this month gone? It’s passed by very quickly.

Today I’m excited because I’m sharing a shade I’ve had in my stash all Summer, but have been waiting to share because it felt more Autumn-esque. At the beginning of Summer I was browsing my local Hot Topic, & as always, I have to look at the nail polish! They had some fun colours in those skull shaped bottles, & I ended up buying two since they were buy one get one 1/2 price!

This is Blackheart Metallic Purple Blue Galaxy.

2 coats over NailStuff Essentials Raven + Top Coat

So first thing I noticed when I checked the formula was that it is very, very thin, & therefore very sheer. As a result, I made the choice to apply over a base of black just to avoid needing 4+ coats. Personally, I like the plain black base as it made the purple & blue shimmer the easiest to see.

The colour itself (to me) is the textbook definition of a blurple, which we all know is one of my favourite kind of polishes. The duo-chrome effect flashes either purple or blue depending on how you shift the nail. The colour feels very Halloween-adjacent, which — as a girl who loves Halloween — I’m absolutely here for. & obviously the skull shape of the bottle also adds to the Halloween-y vibes.

Check out that shifty glitter. It’s beautiful. The base of this shade is more of a jelly, so for me I really liked to have the black base so I don’t have to do quite so many coats.

Absolutely gorgeous, & I total win!

Hot Topic’s Blackheart Nail Polish retails for $6.50 CAD but often has a deal like BOGO 50% off which brings the price down. The formula’s & colours are my favourite though because they’re fun finishes, which I’m all about. & obviously, the Skull shaped bottle makes me happy.

Have you ever tried Hot Topic’s nail polish? What do you think of the brand? I’ll definitely be checking back into my local store, as I saw a pink & black glitter online, & I need it. So stay tuned!

& happy Sunday!

♥︎

Glow-in-the-Dark Inspired Stars ⭐️

Hello lovelies & happy Tuesday! I hope you’re having a beautiful start to your week.

I’m starting my week off (ish) with a fun nail art look. It feels like absolute ages since I attempted any kind of nail art on my nails… I’ve mostly just been wearing solid colours, press on nails, or maybe like a glitter accent nail (very 2013). So it was kind of fun to dig into my nail desk box, find my good nail art brushes, & give some art a try.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Strengthner
  • Top Coat: Sinful Colors Power Paint Top Coat
  • Essie Bell Bottom Blues
  • OPI Suzi Shops & Island Hops
  • OPI That’s Hula-rious
  • Essie Bikini So Teeny
  • Quo by Orly Breathable De-stressed Denim
  • NailStuff Mermaid Tail Brush
  • Bobby Pin (couldn’t find my dotting tools haha)

So the inspiration behind this nail art look are glow-in-the-dark stars. Truthfully, I was seeing way too many videos of Hilary Duff’s Glow in the Dark star dress she’s wearing on tour, & this blue base was the perfect not-black shade, that I really wanted to see if I could freehand some stars on my nails!

& even though it’s been forever since I did any freehand designs on my nails, I’m so obsessed with how these turned out! Plus, I got complimented on them while out & about, so I feel pretty awesome about this nail art. They look exactly how I imagined them in my head!

What do you think about my glow-in-the-dark inspired star nails? Do these remind you of being a kid, like they do me? Would you wear this look? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below & if you love them too!

Happy Wednesday darlings.

♥︎

SWATCH SUNDAY — OPI Miss Piggy’s Big Number (2014 Muppets Most Wanted Collection)

Hello beauties — long time no see!

Life has been a bit tricky lately, & my ability to blog has kind of taken a backseat. But I’m missing sharing my nails, so I’m trying to get back into my regular routine. I even have some PR/nail mail to share that I recently received.

But first, let’s start off our week like we usually do with some fun polish for Swatch Sunday. & I decided why not to throw it way, way, way back with OPI Miss Piggy’s Big Number from the 2014 Muppets World Tour collection.

2 coats + top coat.

Okay, so this shade has been in my collection a long time — possibly back to 2014 when this collection was released. But I don’t think I’ve worn it too often in the years since I’ve owned it. Formula on this shade is a metallic blue finish with a bit of a purple flash. I needed two coats for full coverage which is pretty good.

In the close up you can see a bit more of that purple flash, plus how it dries with minimal brush strokes. I feel like with this kind of polish, you kind of can’t escape brush strokes — no matter how hard or careful you are to try to avoid them.

This colour though — I love this colour. It’s such a vibrant blue which I’m a huge fan of, & it’s perfect for this time of year where the weather so quickly switches between bright, sunny, & warm to cold & grey. This shade is perfect to rock while switching between temperatures.

Sadly this shade was released 12 years ago, so I don’t think it’s going to be an easy one to track down if you’re looking for it. Ebay might be your friend, but I feel like it may be a bit of a quest if you’re on the hunt for it.

What do you think of OPI Miss Piggy’s Big Number? Do you remember this shade, or the collection it was a part of? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below. & also — if you like these throwback Swatch posts, let me know & I will make sure I do more!

♥︎

SWATCH SUNDAY — Essie You Do Blue 🩵

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! A beautiful, sunny Sunday. It’s been feeling like Spring (most of) this week, so I thought something Spring-y on my nails would be perfect. & what is more Spring-y than a beautiful periwinkle blue?

Without further ado, this is Essie You Do Blue.

2 coats + top coat.

The formula on this creamy blue is smooth & easy to apply to the nail. I am quite a fan of the wider Essie brushes they’ve been using in the last few years. It took me a bit to get used to them, but they are much better when it comes to application.

My favourite part of this polish, though, is that is has this gorgeous fuchsia shimmer that really pops in the sunshine. It gives the extra dimension that makes it a little extra special, & for me that makes this shade a winner. I own a lot of blue nail polishes, but the ones that have shimmer or sparkle added — especially unexpected ones — are always the ones I reach for first!

This shade was originally released, as far as I can tell, during early 2020 as part of the Flying Solo collection. I think after that it made it to the core collection, but I did pick up mine on clearance for $1 so I’m thinking it may not be in regular circulation anymore — although the Essie website does have it listed as available for sale so I could be totally wrong.

Over all, I’m totally obsessed with this colour — it’s not just the pretty periwinkle blue, but that stunning shimmer. I adore it.

What do you think of Essie You Do Blue? Do you think this shade screams Spring as much as I do? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below, & let me know your thoughts on this pretty blue shade!

Happy Sunday!

♥︎

Spring Robin’s Egg Nails

Hello lovelies & happy Monday.

Starting off this full first week of Spring… with a snowstorm. & oh, how I wish I were kidding. But it isn’t going to stop me from rocking some Spring inspired nails! & what is more Spring like than some robin’s eggs? I recently score a killer deal on an Essie shade at my local Shoppers ($1 clearance!), & it was the perfect Spring-y blue, so I knew it would be perfect for some speckled egg nails.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Maximum Grow
  • Top Coat: Seche Vive Gel Like Top Coat
  • Matte Top Coat: NailStuff Essentials Matte Top Coat
  • Essie You Do Blue
  • OPI That’s What Friends Are Thor
  • Small nail art brush

I won’t lie, these nails are actually super super easy to do. All you need to do is create some messy specks using a nail art brush — the messier the better. But the real trick to this look is obviously the matte top coat to give it that eggshell finish. & bam! Instant Spring inspired Robin’s egg nails.

&, obviously, if you paint you nail a selection of pale pastel shades, you could create Mini Egg inspired nails easily (as I have done in years past).

What do you think of my Robin’s Egg nails? Would you wear a simple nail art like this to channel Spring? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below!

♥︎