Gradient Cactus Nails

Good afternoon & happy May everyone! Who else excited for warmer days. I feel like I’m saying this every post, but I’m just. so. ready. This winter has felt just so darn long & I’m craving neons & brights.

I was also craving a gradient as it felt like absolute ages since I had created one, so I decided to go with a blue toned look. & to finish off the look I added these absolutely adorable cactus stickers that Victoria from NailStuff.ca sent to me because she knows my love for cacti! 🌵 Have you checked out her collection of nail stickers & nail decals? I’m obsessed. So many fun designs for easy nail art this Summer.

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: OPI Nail Envy
  • Top Coat: Seche Vive
  • Essie Fashion Playground
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Sugar Fix {PR sample}
  • China Glaze I’ve Got A Blue Attitude
  • Sally Hansen MG Make It N-Ice {PR sample}
  • Edge Perfection Cuticle Barrier {PR sample}
  • Cacti Nail Stickers {gift from Nailstuff.ca}

My gradient skills were a little rusty, but I love this look so much. The colours used almost give the gradient a thermal polish feel & obviously I couldn’t do a gradient without adding a little glitter. & finishing off the look with the stickers just made them a little more fun!

What do you think of this look? Share your thoughts down in the comments below!

SWATCH SUNDAY — Color Club Almost Famous

Good morning lovelies & happy Sunday. I thought I was brighten things up a little for this week’s edition of Swatch Sunday & bring out the sunshine with my colour pick. Today’s polish pick is Color Club Almost Famous! This shade was originally released as part of the Poptastic Spring 2010 collection, & (I do believe was) eventually was added it to the permanent collection. I picked up my bottle a few years back at Lawnton’s in their permanent Color Club display.

For today’s swatches, I did 2 coats of polish plus top coat. I did have to go back & touch up the streaky spots though, where I hadn’t applied enough polish. The formula isn’t the greatest, but that is a universal yellow polish problem for me. The colour, however, is so much fun! I love the brightness of it — it’s the perfection transition shade from Spring to Summer!

Oh hello Sunshine, I’ve missed you. ☀️

If you’re looking to add this shade to your collection, I found a few links: Amazon.ca, Nailpolishcanada.com, & Amazon.com. Sadly it’s not listed on the main Color Club website, so I’m thinking the shade may have sadly been retired–& truthfully I haven’t seen it in my local Lawton’s display, so it would make sense.

Do you have a favourite yellow polish? What is your go to yellow? I’m always looking for shades outside my usual purple/blue/pink wheelhouse, so share your favourites down in the comments below!

SWATCH SUNDAY — Julep Alyssa (It Girl)

Good morning lovelies! & happy Easter to those who celebrate! Today I’ve got another Spring-y swatch to share with you. Today I’m wearing a new-ish to me polish: Julep Alyssa (It Girl).

I was looking for a polish to wear as a base for some Spring/Easter Nail Art, & I thought this minty turquoise polish would be an awesome polish choice. This was another polish that was gifted to me, courtesy of @helloluli_, & I think it is such a beautiful shade for Spring.

For my swatches, I did 2 coats of polish over my base, & finished off everything with glossy top coat. According to the Julep website, their polish formulas are designed to make your nails look more beautiful — they are also vegan. I’m always here for polish that is going to help my nails, especially because pregnancy has left my nails looking rough (hence why they’re staying so short). The polish definitely dried quickly, which I appreciate–no one wants to wait forever to apply nail art.

Seriously, this colour is so gorgeous, I’m so in love with the Spring-y vibes it’s giving me. The formula was a bit thick for my liking & the brush was a bit big for my small nail beds, but other than that the coverage was good & it dried down just lovely so that I was able to add nail art on top as soon as I finished taking these pictures.

I am definitely a sucker for a pastel blue shade & I can see myself wearing this a lot.

By the looks of things, this shade might be hard to track down as it’s currently out of stock on the Julep website & I couldn’t really find another source to buy. I know I see Julep shades popping up in my local Winners & Marshall’s stores on occasion & eBay might also be an option.

So what do you think of this shade? Share your thoughts down below! & stay tuned this week to see what nail art I added on top for my Easter celebrations. 🌸

Spring Half Moons

Good morning & happy April! Now that the weather has been turning around & I can finally break out the Spring dresses, it means I need a manicure to match!

& I was really, really feeling a Peach & mint combo. I thought about some floral, but honestly I was feeling so exhausted that I decided on something a little faster. & so I turned to a tried & tested favourite! The half moon.

The polishes I used for this look were:

  • Base Coat: Nailtek 2
  • Top Coat: Seche Vive
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Malibu Peach {PRsample}
  • Essie Mint Candy Apple
  • Paper Hole reinforcement stickers

This is the greener version of Essie Mint Candy Apple–I also have the blue version as well (which was gifted to me, & I do t think I’ve worn it yet so I’ll have to change that!) This colour scheme definitely screams Spring to me, so bright & colourful & vibrant. It’s exactly what we need after these long months of snow & cold & yuck.

Just look at how lovely that combo is!

What colour combinations are you loving for Spring? What kind of nail art are you looking forward to for the warmer months? Let me know down in the comments below! 🌸

Pink Drag Marble with Gold Glitter

Hello lovelies & Happy Tuesday! Hope everyone is recovering from the time change this past weekend. I’m currently trying to recover from another fantastic cold, but I did manage to get my nails done before it struck me down this weekend! & it was so exciting to play around on my nails.

& what was I feeling? A drag marble. & oh boy was I rusty!

The polishes I used for this manicure:

  • Base Coat: OPI Nail Envy
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Ardene ACO Dashing
  • Ardene ACO Road to Nowhere
  • Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Black Heart
  • Sinful Colors Twilight Twinkles
  • Nailstuff.ca dotting tool

It’s been forever since I attempted any kind of drag marble design & my base shade (Ardene Dashing) was a little too quick drying which added some difficulty to my look. But the more I look at this design, the more it’s grown on me. I added a bit of gold glitter flakes which I’m not sure if it added to the design, but I was a little haphazard with my placement.

& my favourite nails? My thumb & my pinky. The design on both definitely turned out be best. As you can see, the swirl on my thumb looked just perfect. If only every nail had turned out this amazing.

What do you think of this look? Which nail do you think turned out best? Which colour combo do you think I should try next?

Share you thoughts down in the comments below!