SWATCH SUNDAY — Essie Not A Phase

*pr/gifted

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! A beautiful Autumn Sunday. Today I’m sharing a lovely new shade with you I was recently gifted by my friends at Essie. They were kind enough to send me a whole slew of beautiful polishes, & as soon as I saw the dusty red (& the name!) I knew it was going to be the first swatch I had to share with you.

This is Essie Not A Phase.

2 coats + top coat

Okay, we all know my love for red is undying. What you might not know is my love of Emo & Pop punk music (especially between 2002-2010) is equally unwavering. So when I saw the name of this shade, I knew that it was going to become a favourite.

The formula on this polish is fantastic. It’s very opaque. I did two coats, but honestly I probably could get away with one with careful application. The shade is a nice change from the usual cherry red, which it’s more dusty colour. Very fitting for this time of year & the changing leaves on the trees.

Oh man, I’m kind of obsessed with this shade. It would be so fitting in an Autumn toned skittle which I may have to do soon! So if you’re looking for a different shade of red — I definitely recommend searching this one out!

Even better, this shade is in the current core collection, so you’re able to pick this polish up wherever Essie nail polish is sold.

What do you think of Essie Not A Phase? Do you love this red as much as I do? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!

Happy Sunday

🖤

GLAM NAILS CHALLENGE SEPTEMBER (2024) — Owl 🦉

Hello lovelies & happy Wednesday! Can you believe that we only have 2 more Glam Nails Challenge September prompts for this month? We’re very quickly approaching October & full blown spooky season, & I’m very excited. but we still have a few more days of September, & a couple more fun designs to share!

Today’s prompt is Owl & I decided to create this cute little owl accent nail.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie First Base 
  • Base Coat: LA Colors Mega Grow Treatment 
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Sally Hansen Good. Kind. Pure. Beet It.
  • Sally Hansen Good. Kind. Pure. Eco Rose.
  • Sally Hansen InstaDri Burnished Wine
  • Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Let’s Snow
  • Sally Hansen InstaDri Up To Snuff
  • Sally Hansen InstaDri Ghouls Night Out
  • Nailstuff.ca Mermaid Tail 7mm liner brush
  • NailStuff.ca dotting tool from Dotting Tool Trio

I’m actually super surprised I’ve never attempted an owl accent nail before, but I think it turned out pretty cute! These colours just scream Autumn vibes too, which I’m here for. Over all, a cute easy little owl that fits the prompt perfectly! & I couldn’t be happier with it.

Sometimes all you need is just a cute little accent nail.

What do you think about my cute owl accent nail? Do you like how he turned out? Would you wear this design? Let me know what you think in the comments!

Are you following along with the other nail art designs for this month’s Glam Nails Challenge September? Don’t forget, you can check out #glamnailschallengesept24 on Instagram, & see all the other beautiful designs being shared!

Happy Wednesday!

♥︎

Crimson Stripes

Hello beauties & happy Friday! It’s officially the weekend (basically), & that means we need to cap off this week with some more nails. I’ve really been trying to do my nails as much as possible — both for the challenge this month, & then sneaking in some non-GlamNails nails as well.

Today’s look is a simple one, but I just love it because it’s been a while since I did stripes on my nails. & I just adore the subtle effect.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie First Base 
  • Base Coat: LA Colors Mega Grow Treatment 
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Sally Hansen InstaDri CinnaSnap
  • Sally Hansen InstaDri Zip Wine
  • Sally Hansen InstaDri Just In Wine
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Top Coat Moonlight
  • NailStuff.ca 16mm Striper Brush

Oh man, I just love stripes! & these ones are subtle but then you get that sparkle from Moonlight & it shows up so well. I love it.

Plus, we all know I love a red nail moment. Red nails will forever be a favourite of mine, even when I’m like 80! I’m never ever going to grow tired of them. But it is fun to find a way to spice them up a little bit every so often.

What do you think of this crimson stripe look? Do you like it as much as I do? It feels like a good amount of Autumn vibes, which is perfect because our weather is finally feeling Fall-like again, after some seriously balmy temperatures. & considering how much I live for Fall fashion, I’ll take it.

Happy Friday!

🖤

SWATCH SUNDAY — Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Pucker Up

Good morning lovelies & happy Sunday! I hope you’re having a lovely weekend. This Summer has been so busy I feel like I’ve been neglecting my blog responsibilities & dropping the ball on posting — really hoping August will be better for me! In the meantime, I dig into my stash to find a fun, Summer appropriate colour to share!

This is Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Pucker Up.

3 coats + top coat

Pucker Up is a vibrant cherry red with a creamy crelly formula. By that, I mean it has both qualities but leans a bit more in the creme direction when it comes to finish. It did, however, take 3 coats for almost full opacity, but with the thin formula it didn’t take long to dry.

Using a quick dry top coat did help with drying, however it caused some serious shrinkage at my tips & around the cuticles that I’m not happy about.

We all know I love a good red nail polish year round — it’s usually my go to colour when I don’t know how to paint my nails. & this vibrant red is just perfect for Summer. I also think it compliments my skin tone very well.

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Pucker Up is part of the Xtreme Wear core line, so it’s available where ever you purchase your Sally Hansen nail polishes. I picked up my bottle at my local Walmart — I think it was something like 2 for $6 CAD which is a pretty good deal

What do you think of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Pucker Up? Do you like this vibrant red? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below & let me know what your favourite Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear shade!

SWATCH SUNDAY— OPI Big Apple Red 🍎

Good morning lovelies & happy Sunday! & happy early Canada Day to all my fellow Canadians. We’re looking at a very, very rainy Canada Day which is kind of lame, but that’s Nova Scotia for you.

I am very excited because I was at the thrift store on Friday & they sometimes have barely used nail polish there, so I always check it out. That’s when I stumbled across this beauty: this is OPI Big Apple Red.

2 coats + top coat

In a surprising turn of events, OPI Big Apple Red is one of those red nail polishes that I didn’t yet own. It’s a gorgeous cherry red nail polish, which a smooth application & cream finish.

According to Google, Big Apple Red was voted as the most iconic red nail polish of all time — so the fact I didn’t yet own this shade is actually a crime.

We all know red is definitely my favourite nail colour, & this is an absolutely stunning red. It had perfect coverage in two coats, which I’m all for when it comes to a red. It also garnered a ton of compliments & “nice nails” while I was at work, so that is always an indication of a beautiful polish.

What do you think of this iconic OPI red? Do you have Big Apple Red in your collection? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below & what nail polish shade you consider “iconic”!

🖤