Tag: Manicure

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Claire’s Khaki Green

Good morning lovelies & happy Sunday! Another beautiful sunny Sunday. I know we still have a little under a month of Summer left (according to the calendar) but man oh man, do I feel the Autumn polish vibes calling. So I decided to pull out one of those more Fall-esque shades for today’s Swatch Sunday post. 🍂🍁

This is Claire’s Khaki Green.

2 coats + top coat

I’ve written before about my absolute love of Claire’s polishes, even after all these years. Working for the company really introduced my absolute nail polish obsession, especially they were always very good for duping current trends in their polish brand — like crackle, feather, etc.

Khaki Green is a beautiful olive geeen with a stunning shimmer of golden bronze that really pops on the nail, especially in the sunshine. It is definitely giving late Summer/early Autumn, & would be the perfect addition to any Fall nail polish collection. & I love how the shimmer actually shows up better on the nail than in the bottle, which I feel like is virtually unheard of (it’s usually the other way around.)

Seriously — look at that shimmer. It’s just so stunningly beautiful!

The formula on this guy was good & easy to apply. It actually had a good shiny finish, although I did add top coat to really gloss it up. Over all, a good shade from a mainstream brand that isn’t necessarily known for their nail polish. I always love when you kind find hidden gems where you wouldn’t normally think to look.

Sadly, this shade is a few years old now so (I’m guessing) no longer in rotation. But I definitely recommend checking out the shades they release, because there are always fun colours & finishes you wouldn’t expect.

What do you think of Claire’s Khaki Green? Do you like this shade of olive green with shimmer? Is this kind of colour one you would reach for come Autumn? Let me know your thoughts down in the comments below!

Happy Sunday 🖤

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GLAM NAILS CHALLENGE AUGUST (2024) — Stained Glass

Hello lovelies & happy Wednesday. I hope everyone is having a lovely week so far. The weather here has been weird — cold then hot & muggy, with sporadic rain. Makes it very hard for a girl to know what to wear!

But today marks another prompt for Glam Nails Challenge August, & today’s prompt is stained glass. & obviously, I had to pull out an old favourite for this prompt — the stained/shattered glass look I love so much. This time, I used a flakie topper which gave it more of that stained glass effect I think.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie First Base 
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • OPI Turn On The Northern Lights
  • ‘Ard As Nails Fairy Flakes

  • NailStuff.ca dotting tool from Dotting Tool Trio

How pretty is this look! I’ll admit, fishing out the flakies vs the usual hard glitters I usually do this kind of look with was a bit more time consuming than I was expecting, but then end result is so worth it! I’m kind of obsessed with these flakies over this dark base & it’s giving straight up Autumn—& I’m okay with that. Time to pull out my over the knee socks & sip on some pumpkin spice.

I’ve been wearing this look for a few days, & I got curious how it would look matte-ified & oh man… I think I love it even more! What do you think — shiny or matte?

I love a good stained glass look, so this was a fun prompt. Plus it let me tap into those Autumn vibes I’ve been seriously craving, & I’m not mad about it at all. Over all, this might be one of my favourite designs of the challenge thus far. It’ll be interesting to see what the rest of the month holds!

& as always, you can follow along with the Glam Nails Challenge on Instagram with the hashtag #glamnailschallengeaug24 & see all the beautiful nails that have been created!

Happy Wednesday

🖤

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GLAM NAILS CHALLENGE AUGUST (2024) — Desert 🏜️

Good morning lovelies & happy rainy Monday!

Can you believe that August is almost over? We are like 4 days away from PSL coming back, & August is slipping away. Which means we only have a few more prompts to go for Glam Nails Challenge August! & the next prompt is desert! I was excited for this one, but decided to go a bit abstract with the prompt & used desert inspired colours for this abstract stripe design!

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie First Base 
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Essie Cocktails & Coconuts
  • Essie Rocky Rose
  • Essie East Hampton Cottage
  • Essie Cacti on the Prize
  • Essie Mani Thanks!
  • Nailstuff.ca Mermaid Tail 7mm liner brush

How pretty is this colour combination?! I will be honest, I don’t think I’ve ever worn a manicure which had so much real life enthusiasm! I swear, I was getting so many amazing comments & reactions to this design I didn’t want to take it off. I think it has something to do with how long my nails are right now — they definitely garner a lot of attention!

Definitely a bit of an interpretation of the prompt, but that’s the fun of nail art! You get to do whatever version of a prompt that you want, & I love that about this kind of challenge. Makes me get creative!

What do you think of my desert nails? Do you love how this design turned out? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below! & don’t forget, if you’re on Instagram, to check out the hashtag #glamnailschallengeaug24 to see everyone’s beautiful version of this prompt!

Happy Monday

♥︎

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Color Club Bright Night

Good morning lovelies & happy Sunday! It’s a beautiful sunny Sunday here on the East Coast — & not too humid, which is a nice change of pace. The mornings are already starting to give us those small hints that Autumn isn’t too, too far away.

& I kind of love it.

Today, I’m sharing a fun polish I pulled from my stash which I feel like is perfect for both late Summer/early Fall vibes. This is Color Club Bright Night.

2 coats + top coat

This beautiful cobalt blue was originally released as part of the Summer 2013 collection, but then became part of the permanent core collection because she’s still available on the Color Club website.

The formula on this one was easy to work with. With it being slightly neon, it does have a bit of a matte finish, so like all mattes it dries a bit quicker so two coats was definitely required to alleviate any patchiness. & of course, I added top coat for a glossy finish.

Anyone who knows me, knows I love a good blue nail polish — especially a cobalt blue! This shade reminds me a bit of Sinful Colors Endless Blue so I would be curious to do a comparison between the two to see how close they are.

& if you have both these polishes & have compared them — let me know down in the comments below!

What do you think about Color Club Bright Night? Are you a fan of these bright cobalt blue shades as well? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below.

Happy Sunday 💙

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GLAM NAILS CHALLENGE AUGUST (2024) — Blueberries 🫐

Hello lovelies & happy Wednesday! & a beautiful sunny Wednesday it is! It’s also time for the next prompt of Glam Nails Challenge August which is blueberries! I always find these fruit prompts a bit more challenging to do, but thanks to Pinterest, I found the inspiration I needed based on this design — I just did my own spin on their version.

he polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie First Base
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Essie Bikini So Teeny
  • Nails INC Hotter Than Hot
  • OPI I Cannoli Wear OPI
  • Essie All The Wave
  • Essie No More Film
  • Essie Wind in the Willow
  • Essie Satin Sister
  • Essie Expressie FX Iced Out
  • NailStuff.ca dotting tool from Dotting Tool Trio
  • Nailstuff.ca Mermaid Tail 7mm liner brush

First off, shout out to Essie First Base & Speed Setter for being the base coat & top coat combination to last on my nails! I’ve been wearing this design for 3 days with minimal, minimal wear.

Second, I love how these turned out — & I got a ton of compliments on this design which always makes me feel good. It took a bit to get my blueberries perfect, but I think I was successful in that. & I really, really love how they turned out. Such a cute design! & I love the layer of Iced Out over the whole design because it reminds me of the blueberry milk nails that were really popular for a minute last year.

What do you think about this blueberry design? Are you a fan of fruit themed manicure? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!

& as always, you can follow along with the Glam Nails Challenge on Instagram with the hashtag #glamnailschallengeaug24 & see all the beautiful nails that have been created!

♥︎