NotD: Flake Topcoat

Hello, hello. First, I'd like to welcome all my new readers. I hope you're all as excited about the giveaway as Kat and I are. We wanted to make sure the prizes were nice and something we would want to win. I think we nailed it (pun completely intended ^_~ Haha).

Ok, so today I have a lovely combination of KleanColor Black Hole and Color Club Snow-Flakes. I love the color range of this topcoat: green, yellow, orange and red.

It reminds me of the expensive Christmas wrapping paper I always want to buy. I just can't justify spending so much on less paper which is going to be ripped up within seconds of passing out gifts anyway. Haha.

Check it out in sunlight. Isn't it so pretty?

The KleanColor polish had a terrible drying time. Has anyone else noticed this? My first KleanColor was a glitter topcoat, which had a clear jelly base and typical drying time. So, I didn't know what to expect from their pigmented polish when I ordered this. Also, I still say they have a sweet smell while drying, which I love. Some people think they stink. Which do you agree with?

Thanks for reading! Comments and feedback are always welcome. Mata ne. See you later!

Fab Collab: 500 Likes Giveaway! (CLOSED)

Who doesn't love a giveaway?! My Friend Kat's Facebook page has reached 500 likes and we couldn't think of a better way to celebrate than to give a bunch of things away!

We're collaborating and together, we have come up with three different prize packs to celebrate. We have a "Color Lovers" prize pack, a "Nail Art Lovers" prize pack, and a "Shimmer & Shine" prize pack.

We hope you enjoy our pages, our nail art, and our prize packs! Thanks for stopping by! Feel free to interact with us on our blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

The Color Lovers prize pack includes:

• e.l.f. Metallic Neon Trio - Electric Rave
• e.l.f. Vacation Trio
• e.l.f. Purple Pleaser
• Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Parrot
• Flower fimo slices
• Hot Pink Striping Tape

The Nail Art Lovers prize pack includes:

• Revlon Girly
• Revlon Heavenly
• Revlon Sparkle Aplenty
• Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Rock Star
• Silver Rhinestones wheel
• Multicolor Rhinestones wheel
• Donna Michelle nail art beads
• Silver and Light Pink Striping Tape

The Shimmer & Shine prize pack includes:

• e.l.f. Party Purple
• e.l.f. Dark Glitter Purple
• Color Club Berry and Bright [SCENTED!]
• Loreal Notting Hill Blues
• Orly Fowl Play
• Purple and Red Striping Tape

This giveaway is currently for US residents only. Good luck everyone and happy polishing!

~ * Kat Stays Polished and Lacque Enthusiasm * ~

a Rafflecopter giveaway

KBShimmer Spring 2013 Press Release

You know this is going to be a phenomenal line when you want them all! Ok, I'll just let you read it for yourselves. Let me know your thoughts and which ones you want. From here on is a direct repost of their press release.

KBSHIMMER ANNOUNCES RELEASE OF NINE NEW POLISHES
KBShimmer Spring Polish Line Set For Release February 15^th, 2013

KBShimmer is excited to announce the addition of 9 new colors to their 3-Free glitter polish line.  Owner Christy Rose says "With Easter, warmer weather, and Spring Break fast approaching February is the ideal time to introduce softer pastels to our lineup, but also to add a splash of bold color." 

The spring lineup includes three glitter top coats, two bold jellies, and four creamy pastels, one of which is scented.  "Our new line was created to play off the softer palette of spring, but also to accent unique glitters like small black dots and spring 2013 Pantone colors like the color of the year, Emerald Green.  We are also excited to debut this collection in our new printed bottles.  With the printed bottles, and our glitter grabbing flat brush, we feel our polish is a solid addition to any collection" says Rose. 

KBSHimmer - spRING 2013 COLLECTION

A Dot Mess - Fuchsia and black dots, hexes, and micro slices in a clear base - Top Coat

Pastel Me More - Pastel colored glitters in a rainbow of colors and range of sizes - Top Coat

Squared Away - Square glitters in a variety of sizes, colors and finishes including metallic and holographic in a clear base - Top Coat

Spring Training - Soft green crelly full of pink, purple, blue and green floral toned glitters, scented with a floral freesia note - Full coverage in 2-3 coats

Where My Peeps At - Soft yellow crelly with circle and tiny hex glitter in fun jelly bean like shades - Full coverage in 2-3 coats

Lottie Dottie - Turquoise and fuchsia dots and coordinating glitters micro slices in a soft white base - Full coverage in 2-3 coats

Iris My Case - Violet pastel crelly with glitters in purple, pink, silver and blue - Full coverage in 2-3 coats

Get Clover It - Emerald green jelly with micro shimmer and circle glitter in shades of green, gold and turquoise- Best in 3 coats or layered over coordinating polish to cover nail line

I Got A Crush On Blue - Royal blue jelly with holographic silver glitters ranging from micro to extra large- Best in 3 coats or layered over coordinating polish to cover nail line

Shipping February 15, 2013

KBShimmer products can be found at http://www.KBShimmer.com.  For sales outside of the US visit http://www.HarlowandCo.org.

KBShimmer was founded in 2008 by the husband and wife team of Jason and Christy Rose.  KBShimmer offers unique and colorful nail glitter nail polishes that are Big 3 Free, with all glitter formulas being completely free of chemicals such as toluene, formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, and dibutyl phthalate (DBP).  KBShimmer glitter polishes feature a flat glitter grabbing brush for easy application.  KBShimmer also offers a 2-free quick dry polish top coat, olive oil lotion, sugar scrubs, lip balms, cold process soaps and other skin care products.

###

If you would like more information about KBShimmer, contact Christy Rose by emailing sales@kbshimmer.com or visiting http://www.KBShimmer.com.

- 2013 KBShimmer. All rights reserved

NotD: First Dotticure and...

Another Liebster Nomination! I'd like to thank Ruby Tips & Toes for the nomination. I'd love to go through the questions, but the 11 random facts and 11 blogs would be hard, since I've already been nominated before. So, I thank you, but will have to pass this time. I also want to apologize for being a little absent recently. The beginning of the year always seems to be hectic. Plus, I think my daughter is going through some growing pains. Honestly, I'm torn, too. I love my little girl, but I'm also glad she's starting to do more on her own. Anyway, I'm getting off track. Haha.

Okay, I know it's crazy that this is my first dotticure. Technically, it's just my first full dotticure done with actual dotting tools. I've had dots on a couple nails done with alternative tools, but not a full mani. So, here it is.

Spoiled by Wet n Wild Pumping Gas (Brown)

I used Sinful Colors Ocean Side, a pretty smoky blue, and Spoiled by Wet n Wild Pumping Gas, a yummy looking cocoa brown, as the accent nail color. I liked the subtlety of this color combination. Sometimes, I don't feel like a drastically different accent nail.

Sinful Colors Ocean Side (Blue)

This is in florescent light. Since the colors were pretty reserved, I added a pop of fun with blue rhinestones on the accent nails for some of the dots. I really like how it turned out.

And the alternate perspective. I don't know why my fingers look so crooked. Haha.

That's all for this post. Hope you all have a wonderful start to the week. (^_^)

NotD: Milani Hi-Res & Stamping

Well look who decided to finally make a new post! Haha. Sorry for the absence. It's been a little crazy around here. Today I have the lovely purple holo from Milani, Hi-Res.

Milani Hi-Res

I wish it had been sunny today. I used the flash instead. This is definitely one of those polishes where you find yourself constantly staring at your nails. Seeing the whole spectrum of colors on a purple background? Dreamy. Then I thought of shattered dreams...

Well what did you think I was talking about? (^_~) I used Julep Morgan and Bundle Monster Plate 208. In all honesty, I think black would made a better impact. Guess I'll know next time. Here's one more with the flash.

So, that's all for today. Thanks for reading!

Zoya Daul Swatches

Well, hello. ^_^ Glad you came back for my swatches of Zoya Daul. I noticed that Daul tends to be a little sheer, so I wanted to try some layering. First let me say, this polish is so gorgeous regardless. I don't mind a little bit of visible nail line and with the highly reflective gold shimmer, you barely notice. So, let's get to it, shall we?

Zoya Daul Swatches

The thumb is two coats with no undies. As you can see, the ring finger matches the best if you want true color. So, here's what's on each of the other nails.

My index finger is Sinful Colors Fiji.

Middle finger is Color Club Shabby Drab.

Ring finger is Wet n Wild 2% Milk. It's a skin-tone neutral. I think that's why the color stayed true.

Pinky is Sinful Colors Snow Me White. I was holding it like this on purpose because I thought it helped pick up the color underneath. Haha.

Finally, here's a gorgeous shot in direct sunlight. This shows the colors underneath the best. It was hard getting an angle that wasn't all shimmer.

Zoya Daul Swatches in Sunlight

So, if you're like me and don't like to spend $6-8 on polish, layering is a good option. I love it over all of these colors. What do you think?

Thanks for reading!

Zoya Yara & Aurora Swatches

I got my 3 free Zoyas in the mail yesterday and thought I would swatch them for you all. These are my first Zoyas, so I was excited to try them. I chose Yara, Aurora and Daul. After swatching them, I realized I would need a more extensive swatch of Daul. I want to show Daul on it's own as well as with undies and layered over some colors. So, be on the lookout for that post. For now, here are the other two for your viewing pleasure. ^_~

Zoya Yara

Yara is a beautiful olive green with gold shimmer. This is 2 coats with no topcoat and coverage was great. I can't wait to wear it again so I can actually enjoy it.

Next up is the gorgeous Aurora. A beautiful reddish-purple jelly full of holo goodness.

Zoya Aurora

I apologize for my cuticles. Aurora was the last one I swatched so my cuticles got progressively drier. (o_O) It's also my right hand, which gets neglected because I usually take pictures of my left hand. But since I spent so much time on my Pure Ice mani, I didn't want to take it off the very next day. That's why these swatches are on my right hand. Haha. I'll try to maintain both hands properly from now on.

So that's it for today. I will try to have the Daul swatches up tomorrow. Did you guys get the Zoya deal? What colors did you get?

Pure Ice My City Mani

So, I took on a huge challenge and decided to enter the Pure Ice My City nail art challenge. I've only been on this nail art journey since about July and haven't done much free-hand at all. So, I'll just jump right in with my photo.

St. Augustine is the oldest city in the U.S. and has such a rich history. Fort Matanzas, on my index finger, is a national monument. Of course, being in a coastal city that was settled by explorers, there were bound to be pirates. We have a pirate museum as well as the Black Raven pirate ship as seen on my thumb.

My middle finger is a palm tree on the beach. St. Augustine has beautiful beaches. Not only for tourists, but beaches surrounded by nature that you have to know about in order to enjoy.

My ring finger is the Bridge of Lions which is guarded by two marble lions. Crossing the bridge brings you from the main land of St. Augustine to Anastasia Island where you can find the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum as shown on my pinky. Rumored to be haunted, the lighthouse was even on Ghost Hunters.

These are just the big draws to St. Augustine. There's so much to explore in our little city. I love it!

As always, thanks for reading. ^_^

NotD: Sssnake Print

Hey, guys! So, if you read my last post you've already seen a preview of my nails. I liked them but felt that I could improve them. As we all know, this can lead to disaster. So, did it? Well, you'll just have to read and see. ^_~ I used 3 of the polishes I just won (also in my last post). First, here's my base color.

OPI Stranger Tides

OPI Stranger Tides is just that: strange. It's the oddest color nail polish I've ever seen. I'd place it somewhere between alien and zombie skin. Hahaha. I would describe it as a green hued grey. Weird, right? Not something I'd wear on it's own, but it works for nail art! Here's another pic. You can see a little more of the green in this one.

Then, I stamped using the snake skin print on one of my new Bundle Monster Plates, BM-215, and China Glaze Trendsetter.

Golden Python Snake Print Nails?

Now, I haven't matted anything in a while so...

As you can see, this kind of lightened the mani. That's when I thought I should add another color. Not only so it was more visible, but also to add more depth and maybe even make it look a little more realistic. I used Orly Nite Owl for just a little deeper color and some shimmer. Here's the final product.

Snake Skin Nails

Of course it's impossible to stamp the same pattern perfectly twice, but I didn't want to anyway. I wanted the colors to compliment each other. I like how it turned out. What do you think?

Thanks for reading! ^_^

Nail Mail/Haul (Pic Heavy)

Hey hay haaaay! So, today's post is my nail mail from yesterday. I was expecting one package and was wonderfully surprised to find three. I won a giveaway from Geeky Owl but wasn't sure when that would arrive. The other two I ordered from Amazon, but was only expecting one yesterday. So, here they are packaged.

I actually got excited and started opening before I took pics. haha. Let's continue, shall we?

Look at all the adorable owl stickers! Okay, enough of that. Here's what was inside. ^_^

Cute feather hair clip, candy (om nom nom), a note with (of course) an owl on it, some moustache tattoos and the polishes. Here are names and a couple bottle shots, from left to right.

Look at that beautiful shimmer. It showed up red/pink in the pic but also shifts to purple. Love!

How cute is it that she even included a polish with owl in the name. Well thought out!

Sorry for so many pics, but there are only two more. My order of Bundle Monster's 2011 plates and some wheels of rhinestones.

I plan on including one or two of these wheels in a giveaway. So, stay tuned for that. It will happen when either Kat Stays Polished or I reach 500 likes on our Facebook pages. Only one of us has to get there, since the other will probably gain likes from the giveaway itself. It's a little ways off still, so we're stocking up on prizes. Hopefully, you all will like the selection. ^_^

Alright, that's all for today. I also have a mani that I started, but it got too late. So, I'll be finishing that tonight. Want a sneak peek? What's one more pic, right? Hahah.

Why aren't these finished, you ask? Well, I could call them golden python nails. ^_^ But I actually want to add another color of the same stamped pattern for more interest. I'll let you know how it turns out and what polishes I used tomorrow.

Have a good one!