Polishing with the Un-Named

Hey all you polish girlies! As I was looking at all my polishes I came across this polish that I got a while back called "Designers Choice" that I got for 99 cents. It's such a pretty copper/yellow duochrome foil that I had to was just sitting on my shelf calling my name.  I started out with Orly Bonder then applied 3 coats of this cheap polish.  I will say that the saying "you get what you pay for" definitely applies to this polish...

Here's what it looks like in regular light- kind of a coppery foil with a hint of reddish yellow

It's thin and I had to put the top back on and shake it up a few times during application to keep it from I found that it was thin then it would be really clumpy- especially at the end of my nail where it would gather and just clump up and I would have to wipe it off. I just kept in mind that I paid less than one dollar for it, so...

In direct sunlight- has a yellow foil duochrome

Lastly, I applied Seche Vite top coat, as always, as this stuff works miracles to seal off the color! I just got this bottle a few weeks ago and it's already almost half gone! But it's only $6 at Wal-Mart and Sally's. All in all, it was worth my $1 and I will probably use this to make Frankens and such. I am happy with the results I got and wish it had a name, but alas, I suppose I will give it a name...

Here is the straight cooper foil color in the sunlight

Here it has a green tint to it

Here's a clear view of the duochrome colors- red, orange, gold,
green, and yellow

We'll call this one DC (Designers Choice) Golden Girlies...

Happy Fat Tuesday!

Good evening polish people! So, since I'm new to Louisiana I don't know much about Mardi Gras, but I thought in the spirit of things I would join the festivities in my own little way- by dedicating my daily look what they call "Fat Tuesday".  Alls I know is we got to wear jeans to work today- hey, whatever Fat Tuesday is- I'M IN lol. So, I know the colors for Mardi Gras are typically purple, green, and gold, so that's what I went with.

I started out with Orly Bonder, then used 2 coats of Nfu-Oh 51. I LOVE this color! It's about the best color out there! Then I used Red Angel Plate RA-120. I'm not sure what it is, but it looked like it went with the theme and it looked nice when I used Orly Glitz as my stamping polish. Then using my dotting tools I used Revlon Posh to fill in some of the stamp. I finished that with a green rhinestone on each finger- I didn't want to go overboard. And of course ended with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat. I really like my end result and these polishes work great together. Orly Glitz worked perfect as a stamping polish and I defintely recommend.

Franken with m60

WOW! This has been a crazy week! I had the best of intentions of posting my 3rd day of nails for V-Day, and I did new nails for the 14th, but they I was so tired and they looked crappy and I couldn't bring myself to even take pictures:(

I had this ingenious idea to make frankens for all my new co-workers, so I came home Monday night- which is the night I have to take Addie to dance and didn't get home until around 7. I started making mixing after I got home and got done around 1 a.m. I was so happy with my results! I made 8 V-Day themed polishes that I wanted to take pictures of and had the best intentions of posting, but was just so tired:(  Then I finally got around to creating this awesome look for Valentine's Day, but they just sucked. I feel like I am failing as a blogger- I am only able to post once a week because my life is so crazy! I want so bad to do swatches, take pics, and post them. I sit there and just stare at my polishes, buying new ones, reading other bloggers, rearranging my polishes- everything but taking pictures.  It's just so hard to get good pictures when I don't have decent lighting inside and hardly any time to do so.

Plus, I have really gotten into making frakens and have just ordered some more empty polish bottles, so I will be working hard, just may not be posting a lot.
I polish my nails at least every other day, but just don't have time to do everything else to get them on my blog...not sure what to do.

Nevertheless, I was able to create a look for today. For today I wanted to use a franken I made this past week. I have this tank that's this chartreuse, green, gold looking and I wanted to have a polish this color. It looks like China Glaze Trendsetter (which I have swatched) but a little lighter and not as green.  Well, I do like my results, but it's not as green as I would have liked, and I will continue to work on this until I get my desired color.

 

Konad plate m60

First I started out with Color Club Stuck On You basecoat. Then I used two coats of my franken You Are My Sunshine.  It wasn't the best on application, kind of sticky and took a while to dry. Patience is a virtue...

Then I used my new Konad plate m60- my only Konad plate- with Konad special polish in silver.  Now I don't know what the reason was, but I had the HARDEST time getting my stamp to go on my nail.  I had to go over some of my nails twice with the stamp, which I've never had to do before and had to repaint two of my nails b/c I messed up.  I was about to lose patience, but I really wanted to use this paisley stamp. I was determined to make it work. I am pleased with my results. I will try another stamp color next time and see if that was my problem.  My theory on Konad polishes might soon change...I finished up with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat of course:)





Valentine's Day Nails- Day 2

Happy Sunday to all! Yesterday I was so busy and tired I didn't get a chance to do another look, so I'm going to change what I said yesterday...SO, today, February 12 is Day 2 of my Valentine's Day Nails, and yesterday being the first (not Friday like I had originally said).  Kade woke up with a bad cough at 2 a.m. and needless to say I'm very tired and still getting ready to begin again on Monday...yay! That' quite a note- I spend my weekend getting ready for the following week- guess that's life, huh?
So, without further ado, my second look:

To create this look I started out with Color Club Stuck On You basecoat. I think I like it better than Orly Bonder. It does that same job, but Orly seems to  be more rubbery and CC looks shinier and not as sticky if that makes sense. Then I used one coat of Color Club French Tip, which is just an opaque white. I then applied 2 coats of Revlon Popular (formerly known as Starry Pink- was released with Whimsical and a few others), which I bought a while back, but haven't used yet.  I saw this and knew it was out of season, but I just couldn't get my mind off of it, and there were only 2 left in the ULTA where I saw it, and knew if I didn't get it, I would regret it.  It's a light sheer pink with silver hexagon glitter and some silver mini glitter.  I wanted to use white so it would bring out the light pink in Popular. The first time I tried this I failed and it was so sticky and clumpy that I had to start over. I had to be more patient this time and let this sit for like an hour- so I thought it would be a opportune time to take a short nap lol.

So, I knew I wanted to try using my dotting tools and paint something simple.Well, what's easier to draw than a heart! So, I picked out my colors- first I outlined the heart with Sephora by OPI Queen of Everything, then using the same size dotting tool, I then used Color Club Hot Like Lava to paint the inside of the heart. I love this color, as you can see in the above pic, it's a foil color (part of the CC Foiled Collection), and has a bit of pink shimmer in it. Finally, I let that dry and took some light pink rhinestones and put on the edge of each heart. I topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat, of course. Voile!

Valentine's Day Nails- Day 1

Well, after this week of horrible weather, it's finally sunny outside...and we have Kade lol. So, it's kind of hard for me to swatch seeing as I'm constantly chasing a 15 month-old around the house, cleaning and cooking! I did manage to create this Valentine's look last night, though. I really wanted to start out with some non-traditional colors (well anything that wasn't red, pink or white). I will start from yesterday and create Valentine's Day look each day until Tuesday.  I want to see what I can come up with. I'm sure other bloggers are doing something very similar.

Pure Ice Kissy Kiss, butter LONDON Knackered,
 Konad Special Polish in Black with RA120

I used Orly Bonder- I like using a bonding basecoat even if I know I'm not going to keep the mani very long- it does what it says and the polish adheres easier to my nails. I used one coat of Pure Ice Kissy Kiss, which is a sheer jelly periwinkle color (shown in the first picture below) that I thought would bring out the lavender in butter LONDON's Knackered, which I swatched a few weeks ago with butter's Spring 2012 Collection. I love this color because it's so versatile! It's a beautiful duochrome with multi-colored micro glitter and looks different everytime I use it. I love how it shimmers and changes colors in the sun. I can take a million pictures this polish on!

I only used one coat since I knew I was going to stamp. Using Konad Special Polish in black I used Red Angel stamp RA120, as shown left.  I'm not a hearts kinda gal, but since this look is for the holiday dedicated to love, I thought I'd branch out.  Again, on the Konad special polish, I love it even though some say it's not necessary and to use regular polish, which I've been doing, but find that I like Konad better and don't mind spending the few extra bucks. I love the easy pick up and application. I never doubt it's ability to do what it was created to do and all I have to worry about is my ability to apply it well lol. I still need quite a bit of practice on my stamping, but I'm getting there.  Finally, I topped that off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat. I absolutely LOVE this stuff and will never use anything different! I will have to get a bottle to include in my giveaway (it's $10 at most retailers).

I wasn't quite thinking it through when I was stamping and should've put the hearts facing the other way so I wouldn't have to turn my hands upside down, but oh well. And my middle finger (of course) has a heart that looks a bit smudged, so please just keep in mind that this is the holiday for love:) I stopped with this simple look, because I didn't want to start a project that I literally couldn't finish. I need more practice before I start doing more complicated looks.  If left to play, I will work on my nails for 2 hours!

I will try to post another look for today (this is actually Friday's look) sometime tonight if I can get a chance to swatch.  Right now I'm cooking peanut butter brownies, washing dishes and clothes, so I'm a busy body today, but I'm sure I will make the time to do another look:)

Bootie Babe Polishes

 After I saw this post about the Bootie Babe Cometics brand- that consists of about 12 colors of nail polish- on Follow the Yellow Polish Road's blog, I knew I had to have a bottle! So, I ordered Electric Lemon and Bossy Mossy. I thought they would be a bit darker, but about 5 days later I received a bright yellow, that looks a bit sheer and will probably need a white coat underneath, and a lime green color that is nice for spring. I couldn't wait to try these cute lil polish bottles shaped like booties!

Bootie Polish in Electric Lemon and Bossy Mossy

First of all, I have to say, when I picked up my package, it was sent with "SUPERBOOTY LLC" as their return address. I think it's hilarious, but a little embarrassing, and had the post office been opened I would have explained what I bought ha!
   I first started out with Color Club Stuck on You basecoat then as I applied Bossy Mossy I realized this is a very thick one coater jelly. I take my time and use the least amount of strokes I can. Realizing the quality of this polish, if I know how to apply, it turns out beautifully.

I used one coat of Seche Vite top coat to finish off the shine, and I was very pleased with my results.  I haven't tried Electric Lemon yet, but will add swatches once I do. Please try to forgive me for the poor suckish lighting...I had to take these early in the morning when their was no sun and it was still overcast, then I took my pictures for polishes at night on my kitchen table.  I am working on making better lighting, but this is all I have for now.

 Well, this is all I have for now. This new job is keeping me really busy, and Valentine's Day is coming up, Addie's 9th Birthday party is coming up and ahhhh...just a bit overwhelmed! I still want to giveaway my stuff, but need more followers!!!! Please pass my blog on if you like it!!!!! Peace!
 

Stamping With ULTA For Bitten and RA-104

Wow, this has been a long week! I have been dying to swatch and photograph, but the weather has been horrible all week! Storms Thursday through Saturday afternoon. I don't mind swatching inside, but my camera seems to work best on macro when I'm outside without the flash, so I don't argue with it.  Doesn't matter how awesome my nails look, if I can't get a good pic, then I can't share :(

So, last this past week I ordered a lot of goodies from Amazon that I've been picking out for a while now- Red Angel Plates, MASH dotting tools (as shown below), MASH plate holder, some Konad special polishes, nail art rhinestones and tweezers for them, Konad plate, and a MASH crystal/glass file, and finally some empty polish bottles so I can make Frankens! So excited!! I got half of my stuff, but still waiting for the rest. I love getting packages! Oh, and I ordered some Bootie Babe polishes! (will post when I get those!)

I was really inspired and wanted to use just about everything I got all at the same time, but it's not as easy for me as it looks.  I was so excited and started out with a look I thought would look great, but it turned out crappy, so waited until this morning to try something else.

I started off with Color Club Stuck On You basecoat, then two coats of ULTA For Bitten, which is a beautiful deep red/purple/gold duochrome, shimmer that I have bought a few weeks ago, but haven't used yet. I think I will try this again soon without stamping, which kind of hides its beauty.

ULTA For Bitten

I then used my new Red Angel stamps, which I found I like a lot more than the Bundle Monster plates I have, as they are larger- BM has 6 on one plate while RA has 4 and RA was a bit cheaper. The Nailasaurus made put all the plates side by side with their size in this review. I think they only have that one set, though, so I'll be watching to see when they make more! As shown to the right, I used the stamp highlighted on plate RA-104. I used Konad Special Polish in White, which  I understand aren't necessary to use, but I wanted to see for myself. Since I've only used it this once and I haven't been stamping for long, I don't know how much my opinon counts, but I like the special polishes...this is why:

1. As shown on the left, the brush is shorter than regular brushes (compared to Sinful Colors brush), which makes painting the stamp faster and easier so polish doesn't drip.

2. All the colors are very opaque, since they are made for stamping, you don't have to spend time testing polishes, which I will still do...

3. The stamp picks up the polish very easily, without hardly any pressure picking up and applying to the nail.

4. The price of the polish runs anywhere from $3 to $6 a bottle...yes, they are simply for stamping, but in my opinon it's worth it, especially when using white and black, since I will probably use them the most.

5. They dry very quickly and I can still use a regular top coat after a short time.

I finished it up with 2 coats of Seche Vite topcoat.  I tried to get different angles to show the polish in different light, although I didn't have much light to work with as it was overcast for like the 20th day in a row...I just couldn't wait to swatch. I do still need some work as far as my stamping, but I suppose everyone has to start somewhere.  I don't really know how crazy I am about the white over this color, but I went with it, but might try again with a darker color for stamping.
I am excited to get the rest of my loot in, so I will try to get another post or two in this week.

And, to end today, here's my little helper that loves to grab my polish and drop it in the trash thinking he's helping me pick up:)