SWATCH SUNDAY — Orly Naughty

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! I feel like it’s been ages since my last Swatch Sunday post (because I took last Sunday off) but we’re back, & back to business!

As is tradition, I was gifted some Winners/Marshalls gift cards for Christmas, so naturally I always have to peruse the nail section to see what they have going on. I’m always looking for shades that are different from ones I already own, but within my wheelhouse, & when I saw this shade on the shelf I knew I needed to add it to my stash.

This is Orly Naughty.

2 coats + top coat

This beautiful reddish brown shade is deep, & dark with a creamy formula. I did find this formula patchy, so I had to be careful with my application — especially around the cuticle line. I did find on a few nails I had to go back & carefully fill in where it was looking thin. But once I applied my top coat, it did smooth everything down nicely.

I love this colour so much! It’s deep, dark, & vampy. It fits the January vibe that this year has started with. I do love a dark nail. I did end up adding some glitter on top of this guy — Essie Nail Art Studio Lustrous Luxury which gave it more of a purple look. I’ve actually been wearing that for the last 3 days because I couldn’t figure out any nail art to wear over it, & can’t bare to take it off!

What do you think about this Orly shade? Are you a fan of this deep, dark shade? I don’t often see Orly popping up at Winners, hence why I was exciting to pick it up when I saw it. Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!

Happy Sunday

♥︎

Red & Gold Shattered Glitter Placement ✨❤️

Hello lovelies & happy Wednesday! It’s another chilly wet Winter day, & the January vibes are just not it. Have I mentioned I’m not a fan of Winter?

But I have just the thing to cheer myself up… new (sparkly) nails! There is nothing that I love more than some sparkle when I’m feeling down, & I recently pulled out a glitter topper I had almost forgotten I owed. The end result was another perfect glitter placement design.

I’m never going to get tired of these!

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Miracle Cure
  • Top Coat: Seche Vive Gel Like Top Coat
  • Orly Color Blast Garnet Luxe Shimmer
  • Sinful Colors Twilight Twinkles
  • Small dotting tool

I know this isn’t a super complicated look — still trying to ease myself back into nail art inspiration — but I love how these look. They’re just fun, & pretty, & I never get tired of red nail polish. I also feel like these would be so pretty for February & Valentine’s Day nails!

What do you think about these red shattered glitter nails? Do you love? Also — as always, if you can think of any glitters similar to these in different colours, let me know. I used to have a holographic silver one by Color Club that dried up that I’m desperate to replace!

Happy Wednesday

🖤

SWATCH SUNDAY — LA Colors Metal Finish Nail Polish Dynasty

Hello lovelies — Happy Snowy Sunday!

You’ll excuse me if I’m late getting this post up. It was a very busy week, with so much to do (& I’m nowhere close to being ready for Christmas!) But, I do have a brand new polish for you to enjoy as part of this week’s Swatch Sunday — this is LA Colors Metal Finish Nail Polish in Dynasty.

2 coats + top coat.

I won’t lie… when I initially picked up this polish I thought it was supposed to be a more chrome like finish like the cap of the nail polish bottle. But the colour to me is screaming old fashioned jewel toned Christmas, so even though it wasn’t exactly as I expected it it’s such a pretty shade for this time of year.

The formula on this shade was interesting as again it wasn’t quite was I was expecting. It was more of a cruelly base with beautiful shimmers packed in. The pretty flakes of glitter does give a jewel like effect.

First coat was very thin, streaky & patchy, but upon my second coat you could see how lovely it looked. I did have a couple places where it was tricky to get a smooth line though — the formula dries quickly, so I feel like you need to be quick with application. This isn’t to knock on the polish, just is good to know when you’re using it! Still doesn’t take away from how I feel about this shade.

Upclose, you can see that cruelly formula & metallic flake polish. Definitely not what I’m expecting when I think of a metal finish polish — but very pretty. Looking at swatches of other LA Colors Metals polishes though, I would have loved to see a foil finish in this colour. It would have been gorgeous!

I picked up my bottle of LA Colors Metal Nail Polish at my local Walmart for $3.97 CAD. For a shade under $4, I think this is a great deal! & regardless of it not meeting my metal expectations, this shade is very different than a lot of the red nail polishes that I own. So I love that.

What do you think of LA Colors Metal Finish Nail Polish in Dynasty? Do you think this is a great holiday polish option? What do you think of the finish — does it say “Metal Finish” to you? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!

Christmas-y Abstract Stripes 🎄

Hello lovelies & happy December! We’re already three days into December, & that’s kind of crazy. & it’s feeling festive with our first bit of winter-y now (although it’s a snow/rain mix) so I guess Christmas is really coming. So naturally it felt like time to create some kind of Christmas nail art look to share with you — & what’s more Christmasy than red & green.

I wanted to create a look that was festive but I wasn’t sure what to do. These started out as some simple red & green nails, & kind of transformed from there. I ended up adding in some hints of pink as well, & I just love the whole look! Definite Christmas vibes.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Miracle Cure
  • Top Coat: Sally Hansen InstaDri Top Coat (red bottle) 
  • Butter London Pure Colour 21X Nail Lacquer Branwen’s Pearls *PR
  • Orly Color Blast Garnet Luxe Shimmer
  • China Glaze Emerald Fitzgerald
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Wrapped in Love
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Living In The Presents
  • NailStuff 11mm Mermaid Tail brush

How fun are these? Kind of gives a little bit of candy vibes — like ribbon candy, or a really fancy candy cane, or maybe just ribbon. The thought of adding like bows, to give the impression of ribbon, crossed my mind but I was scared I would ruin the whole look so maybe I can try again another time with added bows!

What do you think of these Christmas-y abstract stripes? Are you feeling the holiday vibes now & ready to rock some festive designs? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below, & if you’re currently wearing something festive on your nails I want to know! I need all the holiday nail art inspiration I can get!

Enjoy your Wednesday!

♥︎

Festive Berry Toned Colour Blocking

Hello lovelies & happy Thursday!

I hope everyone is having a lovely week so far. With the day off for Remembrance Day on Tuesday, I feel like my whole week is so askew! But I am trying to keep on my painting & posting schedule as best as possible, so here we go!

Today’s look is a simple one, but perfect for this time of year. The holiday vibes are really hitting hard now, so why not have nails to match! & I much prefer a pink Christmas vibe, myself.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Top Coat: Sally Hansen InstaDri Top Coat (red bottle) 
  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Miracle Cure
  • Sally Hansen InstaDri The Queens Velvet
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Frosted Berries
  • OPI Infinite Shine Bring Out The Big Gems

I’m a huge fan of designs like this which feature similar tones all paired together. It looks so beautiful. & I’m very into this pinky red colour scheme right now! As a lady truly dedicated to a crimson nail polish, it’s a nice change from my usual go to shades.

& colour blocking like this is so easy to do! Obviously if you don’t feel comfortable free-handing, you can use nail tape/vinyls — but honestly, once you practice doing it without, you realize how quick & easy it is!

What do you think about my berry toned colour blocking? Do you like this combination of colours? Let me know all your thoughts in the comment below, & if you would wear this design!

Enjoy your Thursday!

🖤