Essence - #116 Gorgeous Bling Bling

Hey there!  Long time, no read!

I apologize for missing in action.  I will explain at the end of this post, but first I have a simple work mani to show you, a nice terracotta with gold flakies from Essence.  This one is called Gorgeous Bling Bling.... below is two easy coats.  I thought this was a nice polish, it stood out in a sea of reds, pinks and neutral nail polishes, yet, is tasteful/respectful.

I got my 8 ml bottle for $1.99 at Ulta.

My husband's mother passed away, in her home, and on her own terms on November 16th. I wasn't going to say anything but decided maybe I should since she let me do a post on her nails last year.  So we travelled down to Florida for her funeral and my husband and I stayed down there for Thanksgiving as well.  Needless to say, I was on the road for two and half days and had spotty internet along with a hectic schedule so... that is where I have been.  Although we are all saddened by her death she is in a better place. 

Well, that is it for now.  Thanks for stopping by.

Sinful Colors - Savage

Hey there!

I have a quick swatch to show you for this weekend.  Savage by Sinful Colors reminds of those polishes that have a rubber-matte like finish.  I didn't have any issues applying this, and the blue is quite bright.  I'm not sure if Sinful intended the finish to dry this way.  Maybe it does dry flat, because is leans neon and some neons dry flat.  Here it is two coats.

I did not add a top coat because I ended up adding an indie glitter on top, called Sea Monster by Priate Polish.  Click here for that post.

If you like mattes, a matte top coat would probably even out the paint. 

That's it for now.  Enjoy.

Reader Recommended Posts & Give Away Winner

Happy Tuesday Morning!!

The Giveaway is finally over and the winner is Christine L. from Steamy Nails!  Lucky!!!

If you didn't win, don't feel bad. I will have another big holiday giveaway coming up soon, with multiple prizes, so keep in touch!

Thank you to everyone who has participated.  I am more than pleased at the turn out and the links that were provided are very nice indeed.  I hope you find these links to be helpful and inspirational. I learned several new things by taking a look at them.  The first half, I sorted the topics by alphabetical order. Then the second half of the list is all nail art related, grouped by design. The very last link is how to make a light box for photographing nails or products.

Check them out and enjoy!

Clean Up Process
http://www.lacquerized.com/2010/02/clean-up-in-6-easy-steps.html

Recommended by Helena at Lacky Corner

http://nailpolishinmyeyes.blogspot.com/search/label/Cuticle%20Clean%20Up

Recommended by Toni Anne Berman

http://polishorperish.blogspot.com/2010/09/how-to-get-that-picture-perfect.html

Recommended by Manicurette

Cuticle Care

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9szl80dRnIs

Recommended by Steamy nails

http://loodieloodieloodie.blogspot.ca/search/label/Cuticle%20Care

Recommended by Jenn, Paperbacks and Polish

Cuticle Cream – Badger

http://nouveaucheap.blogspot.com/2012/07/my-new-holy-grail-cuticle-product.html

Recommended by Michele

Filing and Shaping Nails

http://loodieloodieloodie.blogspot.hk/search/label/Nail%20Files

Recommended by Elizabeth

Nail Care for Long and Healthy Nails

http://www.makeupveda.com/tutorials/item/134-nail-problems-?-here-are-some-tips-for-long-and-healthy-nails

Recommended by Lulu

Nail Polish Bubbles

http://thebeautydepartment.com/2012/04/avoiding-nail-polish-bubbles/

Recommended by Angelica Ng

Nail Polish Finishes by Type

http://www.lacquerized.com/2010/04/finish-it-up.html  

Recommended by Lacquer Tracker

Soybean based Nail Polish Remover

http://irelishnailpolish.blogspot.com.es/2012/10/soy-nail-polish-remover-by-karma.html

Recommended by Criminal Nails

Nail Art tutorial

http://nailside.blogspot.nl/2012/09/tutorial-vertical-lightning-bolt.html

Recommended by Cait

http://www.thebudgetfashionista.com/archive/bow-nail-manicure/

Recommended by Lulu

http://www.lucysstash.com/2012/06/ladybirdladybug-manicure-with-tutorial.html

Recommended by Aylin Leto

Galaxy Nails

http://pinterest.com/pin/86131411593719354/

Recommended by Calli

Nail Art Gradient

http://manicuriously.blogspot.com/2012/05/ombre-with-fizzy-pop.html

Recommended by Abby

http://www.thenailasaurus.com/2012/04/gradient-nails-picture-tutorial.html

Recommended by Sharon

Glitter Gradient

http://pshiiit.com/2011/11/05/video-tuto-pshiiit-se-degrade-avec-essie-et-opi/

Recommended by Ruth

Make your Glitter Mani Super Smooth

http://idrinknailpolish.blogspot.com/2011/10/tip-tuesday.html

Recommended by Drastic Actions

Epic Comparison of all Indie Black and White Glitter As of 05/12

http://www.chalkboardnails.com/2012/05/ultimate-black-and-white-glitter.html

Recommended by the Sneakerette

Water Marbling FAQ: Filtered vs. Tap Water, Room Temp. vs. Cold

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZFJubfWGWg&list=SP4B6CE9EFF85ED1C1&index=16&feature=plpp_video

Recommended by Funkiichicka

What Works Best for Stamping
http://www.ooohshinies.com/2011/09/how-to-mix-and-match-for-stamping.html

Recommended by Alison G

How to Make a Light Box for Photography

http://www.chalkboardnails.com/2012/03/intermediate-nail-photography-lightbox.html

Recommended by Tami McTaggart

Pirate Polish - Sea Monster

Hello out there!!!

Tonight I have another indie glitter to show you, from Pirate Polish called Sea Monster.  Sea Monster is an aqua glitter with some holographic square glitter and matching jumbo hex glitters.  Maybe the jumbo glitters are the monsters in the sea of aqua glitter, which could represent all the plastic trash swirling around in the real ocean.. maybe? 

Well to me, looks like crushed crystals.  It's really pretty, very sparkly, I never once thought of monsters or swirling trash, or seaweed or what ever the heck else is in the sea.... anyhow.  I wore this over three different polishes, so hang on, this is going to be a pic heavy post, and I'll keep the text to a minimum. 

One coat over Sinful Colors Savage

One coat over one of my frankens...

I tried a glitter gradient here, over one of my frankens, I'll post later.

Bottle shot here.

Over a lavender, Sugar Plum Fairy by Funky Fingers.

Artsy photo, I thought the lighting was interesting here. 
Also over Sugar Plum Fairy, click two posts back for a swatch.

Do you like???  I do!!!

The jumbo glitters stick out, but they all do.  Just slap a thick, thick coat of top coat over it and it will be fine.

Pirate Polish is made by the very talented Lacquer Tracker, she has a blog and and etsy store.  Check it out here.  Oh, and her Christmas glitters are out now.

Thanks for stopping by!

Ruffian Gone Wrong

Hey Guys!

I really love this color combo, but need to find another way to wear it.  Rose gold with Tiffany blue.... I tried to do a ruffian with Anise's Wildcat and China Glaze's For Audrey.  Maybe Wildcat wasn't thick enough?  I don't know....

Below is one coat of Wildcat.

I wasn't impressed with Wildcat's formula, it was actually kind of sticky and I kept pulling the paint off with my brush... goes on like a pastel.  One stroke and leave it alone, can't go back over painted areas or else it just pulls off and clumps.  Anyone tried anything from Anise?  They're available at DSW shoe warehouse for $6 a bottle, but they are always BOGO 1/2 off.  This is my first bottle from them. 



You MUST CLICK ON THE VIDEO, before you leave, it is only 3 seconds long!

NO H8 - Funky Fingers - Sugar Plum Fairy

Wow, I did, three posts in the span of 36 hours!  I don't want to miss out on supporting No H8. Luckily I have the day off from work to join in!  Here is a nice lavender with gold shimmer from Funky Fingers, the same company as Color Club.  There should be a Color Club dupe to Sugar Plum Fairy.  Two coats.

In this photo, the gold shimmer is more apparent.

Now it is obvious why bullying should not be tolerated, and the person that started this mess should understand why people start blogs and why people read them.  Part of it is getting away from picture perfect magazines and to see how real women, in real life, wear and interpret fashion and what not.  Everyone has a special talent that they bring to the table, and if the "clean up or die" group can look past messy cuticles then maybe they might be able to see where someone's strengths are.  AND hey if you can't stand to look at messy cuticles then just click off.

The main reason why I support No H8 is because we should move towards a kinder world and it starts with being kind to each other, tolerating differences, and embracing diversity.  When we keep moving forward and evolving, culture changes for the better.  Bullying used to be though of as a rite of passage, wearing eyeglasses was not attractive, and smoking indoors was the norm... Not anymore.  It is amazing where we can go when we have an open mind and do the right thing.  Even when the right thing is not popular.  Luckily anti-bullying is popular.

Speaking of cruelty, Color Club and Funky Fingers is one of the few nail polish companies endorsed by leapingbunny.org - an organization that endorses cruelty free cosmetics.  Some people will say we "need" to test on animals, or we will end up testing on humans.  Well we do/did test on humans and we were barbaric with that too, just look at the Tuskegee trials in Alabama back in the 60's and 70's, and that is not an isolated incident.   If we (us nail polish consumers.. consumers in general) don't start to demand that cruel practices stop, it will continue.  The manufactures will not find other methods of testing if we don't demand that they stop the cruelty. The market will meet the demands of customers or go out of business.  Cruelty free for a kinder world for humans, animals and the eco-system.  No more bullying, human to human kindness will hopefully translate to human to animal kindness and human to eco-system kindness.  That's the message we need to send.

I first heard about No H8 here.

China Glaze - Jolly Holly

Hey there lovely ladies!!!

Another quicky, but beautiful swatch to show you today.  This is Jolly Holly from last year's China Glaze's Holiday Collection.  Two coats with Revlon's Quick Dry top coat.

Isn't it a gorgeous blackened, shimmery, green?  Must HAVE!

If you missed the blue version of this click to yesterday's post, here.

OPI - Unfor-Greta-bly Blue

Post Election nails!

I decided to wear blue to mark the occasion of President Obama being re-elected.  So here is OPI's Unfor-Greta-bly Blue, from the Germany Collection... a royal blue with blackened shimmer, along the same lines as Germanicure and Oktoberfest.  The formula is a little thin, but builds nicely, and dried uber smooth.  I did three coats.  The top coat is Out the Door.

Under florescent light.

Under halogen light.

A very nice, fall, wintery blue to have in a collection.

That's it for now!

GIVEAWAY! One Year Anniversary!

Hey everyone!

I'm hosting a small giveaway to celebrate my one year anniversary, which is November 7th!  I certainly have grown quite a bit in a year.  I've met some wonderful people, improved my photography skills and have stopped biting my nails... I think permanently, because I don't have the urge anymore.   So far, I am not bored; none in the least.  I am still excited to read other bloggers' posts and I am constantly amazed at the talent and creativity out there.  So what I'm trying to say is, that you can still count on me to continue to post nail and nail polish related content through 2013.

I've amassed 92 wonderful followers in a year and this is my first giveaway.  Seeing as I don't have many followers and about 300 hits a day, there's a better chance than most,  that if you enter this giveaway, you'll win.

Rules First:

This giveaway is open internationally, but I can not ship to Mexico, Central America, South America, Russia, the Middle East and Africa.  I know... I'm very sorry, (insurance reasons).

Requirements:

You must be a GFC follower, or follow via Bloglovin.

You must leave a link in the comments section to a nail related blog post or you tube video that you have found helpful.  It can be a how-to, nail and hand care, product review, etc.  Please also include what the post or video is about.

Dates:
Starts now.  Ends November 12, 2013, eastern standard time, midnight.  I will announce the winner on Tuesday morning.

Prize:

OPI DS Magic, OPI DS Opulence, Badger Shea Butter Cuticle Care Balm (USDA organic!), 2 Revlon Crystal Files.

Good LUCK!

a Rafflecopter giveaway