Tag: Manicure

Posted on

SWATCH SUNDAY — (part of) the Essie Rocky Rose collection

3FE18565-55A9-44B7-B8C6-1FF27C9EE5A6
{PR SAMPLE}

Hello lovelies & Happy Sunday! & Happy Thanksgiving weekend to my fellow Canadians–I hope you’re enjoying a lovely feast with friends & family. Today I’m very thankful for everyone who takes the time to sit & read the blog, & comment & like. I wouldn’t be where I am if it wasn’t for you guys. & I wouldn’t have the opportunities I have if it wasn’t for you guys.

Like being sent PR packages from Essie!

Today I have a couple of polishes that we’re so kindly gifted to me from Essie themselves! They sent me 4 shades from the Rocky Rose collection from this past Summer. The collection itself features 9 neutral toned shades & is described in the PR materials as “a collection that harnesses the sun-saturated grandeur of the iconic desert landscape.”

Can’t get more awesome than that!

C07659A7-1A52-4B66-BB02-8B988B476AB7

For my swatches, I received the shades The A-bliss, Cliff Hanger, Set in Sandstone & No Shade Here. I will add, only two of the bottles came with the actual polish names on the bottom so I’m guessing based on the other swatches I’ve seen.

Now let’s get to the swatches.

Continue reading “SWATCH SUNDAY — (part of) the Essie Rocky Rose collection”

Posted on

China Glaze Halloween 2019 Swatches — To Catch A Colour Collection

F76F90DE-633E-4213-AD93-ED2092838018

{PR SAMPLE}

Hello lovelies & Happy Friday!

Today I’m switching things up a bit & sharing my swatches for China Glaze Halloween 2019. I know, usually I would wait & write up a Swatch Sunday post featuring these beauties, but I was too excited about this new collection to wait!

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it before, but China Glaze always makes my favourite Halloween nail polish collections, because they’re always super unique & fun for Halloween, but still work really well for other times of the year. This year, the collection consists of 6 brand new polishes: 1 textured shade, 3 regular metallic/scattered holo shade, & two fun glitter toppers.

9A7743BE-AE53-4AC8-BA18-4B3A34734A86

So without any further ado, let’s get to the swatches!

Continue reading “China Glaze Halloween 2019 Swatches — To Catch A Colour Collection”

Posted on

GlamnailschallengeOct—Ghosts 👻

6BFA27D0-E1DF-4432-81ED-1E3A98CA3982

Hello lovelies & happy Wednesday! The week is certainly speeding by! Today I have another fun look designed for #glamnailschallengeOct–ghost inspired nails! & be still my Halloween loving heart, because these turned out so much fun. I decided to try out a look I’ve always wanted to try, using watered down acrylic paint.

F093700A-35A3-47B1-8926-96BE2B0F972A

0B4941D6-F9CD-4DE9-9296-85626A02A3BA

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Quo by ORLY Bonder
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Joe Fresh Gel Look Gothika Blue
  • China Glaze Fairy Dust
  • White acrylic paint
  • Black acrylic paint
  • Thick nail art brush (I used an old one from Bundle Monster)
  • Small dotting tool (Mine are from NailStuff.ca)

.

5EFA1380-E304-4564-800A-2D0DE88414D7

4698DFF5-B64A-4D54-9379-79B3E6716F50

First off, loving this base of Fairy Dust over Gothika Blue because it really does look like the night sky. Also why do I always forget how amazing China Dust Fairy Dust is over pretty much everything, but especially over dark polishes. I don’t wear it nearly as much as I should. Could you imagine it over a dark red to black gradient?! Okay I’m getting some nail art ideas for more Halloween designs! Definitely going to need to try that out in the next couple weeks before Halloween. It would look so good!

Okay back to this design, haha.

C8B82B1B-D030-4326-A2BD-0B1E019C51AC

2EB77859-9EF2-4119-9E96-100A6246F950

This design turned out pretty much how I imagined, although I kind of wish I had watered down my acrylic slightly more to give my ghosts a more ghostly appearance, but I think the trick is the try & only do one coat of white vs. a few coats. My thumb kind of turned out my favourite, because you can see the the base peeking through his ghostly body. & I love how it looks. Next time I try this technique, I’ll know what works a bit better & I’ll be able to get them all perfect.

2A2C77C4-09ED-4198-93BC-CA514813383F

8D1FAFC1-2537-4E43-AA9B-340CB3518E93

What do you think about today’s ghostly look? Have you started planning your Halloween looks yet? Let me know down in the comments below what you think about this design, & as always check out #glamnailschallengeOct on Instagram for everyone else’s amazing designs this month!

🎃

Posted on

GlamnailschallengeOct — Stars ⭐️

5A3B9392-E07F-47DC-B6F3-26CCA38E51E5

Good morning lovelies & happy Monday!

Hope everyone is having a beautiful start to their Monday! Today I have the second challenge for #glamnailschallengeOct: stars. I was trying to come up with the most witchy star manicure I could–because it’s October, & that means every manicure needs to be Halloween related, naturally.

I decided that yesterday’s Swatch Sunday pick China Glaze Choo Choo Choose You was so magical, it would be the perfect base for this star design, that kind of came out reminding me Wizard robes.

E584F492-9278-49AE-B1A7-7A3EE60B56F1

64DA1BDF-9FB2-4540-8BA4-4E00F109C3CB

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Quo by ORLY Bonder
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • China Glaze Choo Choo Choose You
  • China Glaze Sleeping Under the Stars
  • L’Oréal Feeling Kilty
  • Born Pretty Store Classic Patterns Stamping Plate BP-L006 (item #17924)
  • NailStuff.ca Clear Stamper
  • Latex Free Make Up Sponge (for the gradient)

.

E1C103B0-ED61-45D8-9778-FC6B70ECD6C2

E592AE13-DBD6-4109-A0BB-2C7786D21782

I’m really digging the gradient of China Glaze Choo Choo Choose You & Sleeping Under The Stars, I feel like they really compliment each other well. But I also feel like there is this grungy quality (in a good way!) when Choo Choo Choose You is sponged that makes me so happy. Add in the stars, & I really am getting a wizardly vibe… & I dig it.

00344A7B-5850-4436-9A22-31AE0DA0A77D

3E8AFF4D-D97E-4AA6-B193-FC9862A6CB05

Oh look, a cat hair… are you even really a nail blogger if you don’t occasionally get cat hair in your manicure.

Also this gradient combination is just soooo good. I wasn’t sure how well these two colours would blend, but I think it turned out really really awesome. & I ♥️ it. So much so I wore this manicure for a full 4 days before having to change it due to a whole lot of top wear happening.

F04C2AF6-14A9-454C-94F4-E66758E1C229

Are you excited for the manicures to come this month thanks to #glamnailschallengeOct? We’re two prompts down, & 7 more to go! Don’t forget to keep track of all the manicures by following the above hashtag, & stay tuned for some fun designs that will be coming! & let me know down below if you like these challenges & want to see me take on more!

Posted on

SWATCH SUNDAY—China Glaze Choo Choo Choose You

5972E858-F7D9-4792-BE30-015000EAE8C9

Happy Sunday everyone! Can you believe it–the first week of October is finished–how crazy is that? It also means we’ve got our first Swatch for October & today I went with an older Fall polish that I just absolutely love: China Glaze Choo Choo Choose You.

If you’ve been around the blog for a while, you might remember I posted this polish over 5 years ago, so if you’re in the mood for some hilarious throwback, definitely check out that old post.

& now for an update swatch post for this gorgeous shade.

2DD72252-3C77-4679-97FC-2218EC9D7E1D

C7549DCC-FA0D-4EE8-BC93-196ADD81129C

For my swatches, I did my usual base coat, applied two coats of colour, & finished off with my go to top coat (Essie Speed Setter). Looking at my pictures though, I probably should have done three, because I can see a bit of nail line peeking through. The base is this Smokey grey, with a gorgeous bronze-y shimmer that transforms depending on which was you move your hand, with even the occasional flash of green.

It’s very pretty.

2160C32D-01C3-4B26-80FB-A490CE173FBB

1B722B60-5230-4865-9A61-5365BA17B9B9

For a 5 year old polish, the formula on this one is still as good as the day I bought it. The first coat goes on a bit streaky, as most polishes like this do, but you have almost complete opacity on the second coat. & shorter nails could definitely get away with just two, I just think it’s longer nails that might need 3 for full coverage.

4B5C49AB-B398-4185-BFCB-31408C3897F6

BE02FC3D-CD1F-40DD-A20C-70CB4521F952

& naturally because I couldn’t help but notice the similarities between China Glaze Cowboy Bye (from the Gone West collection) & Choo Choo Choose You, I needed to pair the two side by side. Obviously Cowboy Bye has that beautiful holo scattered glitter, but I feel like the two bases of the shades are very very similar, which could explain why I love Cowbye Bye so much.

2C1D720D-ADEE-4D6F-8759-623DBCEC746E

What do you think about this shade? Do you own Choo Choo Choose You? What is your favourite older Fall shade that you return to year after year?

Let me know down below in the comments!