Thursday, August 11, 2011

Milani 3D polish

After doing two dark colo.rs in a row (I didn't post DS Fantasy, a very dark blue), I wanted to lighten up.  I love to do two tones with the Milani 3D colors.  They are so perfect with it.  It always looks airbrushed.  This combo is Cyberspace (blue) and Hi-Res (purple).  So pretty.  Application is smooth.  I wish the brushes weren't so narrow. 

 This morning I decided to Konad fish to finish off my mani.  I didn't use a topcoat this time because it always smears and I wanted a good picture.  I took this pic by a sunny window and it made the colors look washed out. I'll repost a better pic later.
I used Konad m27.  I first tried it with the small stamp for better placement.  With this plate, the larger stamp works better.  The large stamp picks up the design better and placement wasn't a problem.   *Now I'm my posts are all caught up.   :)  As I was going through my polishes, I created a basket with all my untrieds.  Sept. I'm going to try to swatch them all.  Turns out it was mostly all my polishes due to all the recent hauls that I've been doing.  Up until May. I just had 2 bottles of Sally Hansen and a set of bright minis from Claires.  Yep that's it.  I had moved and tossed out everything I had minus 1. (there was an OPI and 4 China Glaze that got thrown) With 2 children under age 2 at the moment, I had no time or desire to paint my nails.  I think I had about 30 bottles that I had acquired throughout my teen years and never bought polish after that.  After this month I'm easing off the polish buying.  I'm going to enjoy all the beautiful new colors I have. 

OPI Burlesque Simmer and Shimmer

This is from my most favorite OPI collection -Burlesque.  I simply cannot rave enough about it.  The entire collection is fantastic!  I didn't stamp or shatter or do anything because this color is so beautiful on it's own.  Simmer and Shimmer receives a lot of complements. 

This is my four year olds little fingers.  She loves polish too.  This color got her the most complements yet.

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Blizzard Blue

I'm posting this manicure because I don't want to forget aabout it.  This is going to be a retry.  I love this color.  Blizzard Blue is slightly sheer and needed 3 coats to reach opacity.  I want to try layering this over an aqua.  I used Pacific Blue from the same line to Konad.  It doesn't stand out how I imagined it.  Next time I'm going to use OPI Blue My Mind for the stamping.  The design is Konad Plate m65

Frankenpolish

  I haven't posted anything for this month and today is the day to catch up.  I mixed this color hoping to achieve something dupable to Absolutely Alice (which I missed out on and it is my only lemming). I am happy with the result.  If I never find A.A. it's okay because I have this mix.  I used 2 coats.  Application was slightly thick.  This isn't an exact dupe because the gold gliiter I used was not as fine as A.A, and my version is a lighter blue.


I used Spark De Triomph, Blue My Mind, and Last Friday Night

I added a decal just for something a little extra

Saturday, July 23, 2011

OPI Fiercely Fiona and "The August Blues" preview


Another day, another manicure.  I removed the depressing "suede/silver shatter" and decided to go for something fun and summery even though it's cloudy and rainy.  This is from the OPI Shrek collection of last year.  "Fiercely Fiona"-it's the color of Fiona's skin tone.  My daughter has the toy to compare.                                            I used 2 coats but it could've used a third to even out the streaks.  Streaks are normal with this type of color.  On that note is also wasn't as streaky as some other pastels.  I thought it applied well.    I like this yellow/green better than a normal yellow because its not blinding on my fingertips.  This is my 3rd manicure with this color but the first time I'm posting it.  I've been wanting to do this watermelon stamp and "Fiercely Fiona" is a good base color.  The stamp is from Konas plate m55.  It includes a variety of summer fruits.  The colors did smudge when I added a top coat (a random mini bottle that said top coat).  I decided to add gems to distract from the smudging. I might keep this on until August.  If not, I'll use Paint my Moji-Toes Red (OPI South Beach 2009) to finish off the month.  It's been on my toes all of July and never made it to my fingertips.
Fiercely Fiona, Paint My Moji-Toes Red, Konad Special Polish -Green

This is a preview of my "Blue collection".  I lined them up for August.  Blue is the color I'm most drawn to when buying polish.  (Left to Right)  CA Colors #47, SH XTWear  "Blizzard Blue", OPI Burlesque "Simmer and Shimmer", Milani 3D "Cyberspace", my own Frankenpolish, OPI "No Room for the Blues", OPI Katy Perry "Last Friday Night" (my favorite), SHXTWear "Pacific Blue", SHXTWear "Deep Blue Sea", another Frankenpolish I mixed, OPI "Blue my Mind", and OPI DS "Fantasy"   

I still want to get a pastel blue like "What's with the Cattitude" and next month OPI has a bright turquoise foil to be released "Swimsuit, I Nailed It" from the upcoming Miss Universe.  I know that some mainland shops have this collection out but here in Hawaii, I don't expect to see it til the end of August.  I'm telling myself I won't buy it....but when I go to pick up "It's My Year" (a light purple shimmer from the same set) I will probably get it too.  I just really like blue polish.

OPI Lincoln Park After Dark Suede and Silver Shatter

This is from 2009 OPI Suede collection.  In 2009/2010, nail polish was the last thing on my mind.  This year when I looked back on previous OPI collections, there were quite a few great colors and finishes.   I found this last month and wanted to give it a try. I was in a purple mood because of the weather.  The sun comes out and then an hour later it's raining.  A couple hours later-blue skies and hot weather.  So hard to plan anything (frustrating).
 It dries super fast and has a suede-like feel.  It chipped fast.  My pinkie chipped right after I painted it. 

I wanted to cover up the not so perfect paint job with silver shatter.  It didn't break apart well and I'm thinking it's because of the suede finish.  This is coming off first chance I get. 

Friday, July 22, 2011

OPI Sparkle-icious

IThis picture is not that great.  I took it in the sun and couldn't see the screen.  I felt like somrthing festive so I used Sparkle-icious from OPIs Burlesque  and did a Konad design.  I thought it would look like streamers. Of course it was completely different than I envisioned it.  The polish chipped fairly quick and I didn't get a chance to retake the picture before it happened. I removed it today.  This picture is from Tuesday (four days ago).  It's looks so pretty in the bottle but this is my second manicure with this polish and it doesn't look right on my nails somehow.   I still really like this polish.  
Removal was very easy.  I used 3 cotton balls torn in half and tin foil.  I soaked each half cotton ball with acetone remover and held it in place by covering my nail with tin foil.  Not even 5 min later the polish was completely off.  I didn't resoak the balls, I flipped them over and repeated on my other hand.   I had looked this up online and it works amazingly. 

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

OPI Thanks So Muchness

 I wanted to try one of my new colors from my last haul.  This is "Thanks So Muchness" from the OPI Alice in Wonderland collection.  I also wanted to compare it to "Ali's Big Break" from last holidays Burlesque collection.  On my ring finger I painted "Ali's Big Break".  Once applied it's really hard to tell the difference.  In the bottle "TSM" is a rich shimmer (it's the same formula as "Blue My Mind" from OPIs permanent set-a beautiful royal blue).  "ABB" has fine gold glitter distributed throughtout the bottle but once applied it's hard to see.  If you look close "ABB" is slightly darker and has depth, while "TSM" is shimmery.  Both colors apply smooth and were 2 coaters for me.


I used Konad plate m65 Rose design in Konad black.  It looks like a manicure the Red Queen would wear.  I wonder what kind of manicure Alice would have?           Manicure consisted of OPI Natural Nail Base coat, two coats Thanks So Muchness (2 coats Ali"s Big Break on ring fingers), Konad plate m65, and Sally Hansen Complete Care as a top coat.                              

Ali's Big Break
Thanks So Much-ness

*Note   I'm on day 3 with this manicure and I absolutely love it!  I will definitly be doing this design again.  The reds are beautiful and it makes a dramatic statement contrasted with the light color clothing that I normally wear.  I'm happy that I stepped out of my comfort zone and did red tones this month. 

Friday, July 8, 2011

OPI Houstan We Have a Purple, OPI The Show Must Go On, Extra-va-vaganza, White Shatter

"Houstan We Have A Purple"
I picked this color up on Wednesday and tried it on that night.  Its from the Texas collection for this Spring/Summer.  I wasn't interested in this set until I recently heard that six of the colors had a new "sorbet" formula.  I decided to try one out and went with the purple. This is the only one I'm getting since I really don't like the other colors
 It's dark in the bottle and you can't tell that its slightly translucent.  It goes on smooth and dries super shiny.  This is 2 coats.  I tried to do an orange Konad tip but it didn't show and then I tried a red design and you couldn't see it.  That ruined the manicure so I took it off.  Removal was very easy. I will be using this polish a lot since it is very versatile.  I want to try putting a Konad design under it to see if it looks like something floating in a jelly candy.  I hope they do another sorbet set with a better variety of colors. I wouldn't mind a bright blue or a caramel orange.

"The Show Must Go On"
How true.  I didn't want bare nails for the day.  After I removed my new sorbet polish I continued with my July red theme.  This is last Dec Burlesque Collection.  This color is always changing.  It looked dark red when I bought it, the next day it was more of an orange tone, when I painted it on, it was a pinkish color with no trace of orange.  Sadly I didn't keep it on too long either.  I applied white shatter over and it didn't shatter.  It was more of a haze.  I used too little polish and put too much pressure on the brush.  This was my second failed try with this shatter.  No pic because it was awful.


"Extra Va-Vaganza"

Third time is a charm.  Another color from the Burlesque collection.  This is two coats.  Its not as loud as I thought this glitter would be (which is great).  Its one that I think could be used year round because its about as neutral as a glitter can get.  It goes good with my skin tone.  The edges of my finger are red because I didn't completely remove The Show Must Go On.  I was rushing and planned on giving the white shatter one more try.


White Shatter

Okay. It finally worked for me.  Black,silver, and white shatter all have their own formulas.  They apply so differently.  Black shatter is the best for me.  This white I have mixed reviews.  I had to apply it thick and with  a light touch.  It shatters more like a crushed candy.  It is not goopy like the black and goes on smooth.  Thats probably why I was applying it too thin at first.  I have the urge too scrape it off like peeling paint but yet I want try it with more colors.

As I'm typing this today, my pointer finger already is chipped after doing dishes.  I applied the gliiter on thin but I didn't use my usual OPI natural nail base coat and had remnents of my previous polish
 

Sunday, July 3, 2011

OPI Flit a Bit and OPI Conga-line Coral

Here is one of the five OPI colors that I found at Trade Secret for $2.  Because these usually are $8.50 each, I grabbed every clearance color. This is from last years "Summer Flutter" collection.  It's called "Flit a Bit".  I didn't know I would like orange so much.  It's a nice shade for spring, summer, and fall.  I used Sally Hansens speed dry in "Lightning" to do the Konad stamps.  I'm glad the image picked up on camera.  It's not that noticeable in person. 

Here is a pic of the "Summer Flutter" display.  All of the colors are really pretty.  I wish it was part of their permanent collection.
My orange manicure didn't last because I was messing with the nail polish remover again.  I was cleaning empty polish bottles so I could mix Franken polish.  I made three of them.  I will swatch them next month because two are blue and another is purple with pink sparkles.
This is my third mani for the month of July.  This is another clearance OPI.  Conga-Line Coral  from the Spring 2009 South Beach Collection.  It's a color I would normally not use.  Turns out, I really like it.  It's bright and shimmery.  A fun color.  I will probably be using it again through this month and also in November with a glitter top coat.  The hibiscus Konad stamp turned out nice.  My nails are super soft right now from using clorox last week.  I'm getting a lot of breakage and will have to file my nails shorter for my next mani

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Spark De Triomphe with White Shatter

June 23, 2011

This is from OPI's Serena Glam Slam collection.  It's one of the French sets. I couldn't wait to try this color on.  Spark De Triomphe is super pretty. It has fine glitter and larger round flecks. The pictures didn't catch the depth of this polish.  It could be a top coat or opaque on its own.  I used three coats.  I didn't want to cover it up so I used white shatter only on the tips.  Glad I did.  It didn't shatter well.  Could be the angle I applied it or the texture of the SDT.  I noticed with glitters, if you don't use a top coat before applying shatter, it won't shatter as much.  Can't stop looking at all the sparkles.  This is a great year round color.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Serena Grand Slam


Okay, totally excited!  I went to my local salon today to see if the last bottle of OPI My Private Jet was still there.  It wasn't.  That's okay.  I bought Serena Grand Slam Spark De Triomph with white shatter instead.  It's a super nice combo.  I didn't want to get another shatter but I really liked the gold glitter in SDT.  It reminds me of pyrite (fool's gold).  I asked if the Grand Slam England that I prepaid was in.  They said no, but when I went to the grocery store my phone rang.  It just arrived early this morning and was in the back.  I was so excited that I forgot to buy my produce at the grocery store. At least I remembered the milk.  Both sets are really nice.  I think I'm going to use Spark De Triumph at soon as my Mermaids Tears start showing wear.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

OPI Mermaids Tears

I’m hoping this manicure will last longer than the last two.  This is OPI “Mermaids Tears”.  I really love this Jade color. The Konad stamp is smeared because my two year old kept shaking the table and grabbing everything.  But I think it still came out okay considering.  The smearing is only noticeable in the close up picture.  In person at a glance, no one will notice.  I don’t even notice it without my reading glasses.

A Case for my nail polish collection

June 18, 2011
 I went to Ross’s today to look for something to keep all my polishes in. I found this black case.  I didn’t realize I was actually going to fill it up.  Maybe I should hold back on getting new polishes.  Or maybe I could always get a second case J.   It reminds me of a treasure chest. 



OPI Planks a Lot

June 16, 2011
“Planks a lot” is the basecoat.  I did a Konad design with a teal California brand.  (Not that noticeable).  I’ve been wanting to try out “Funky Dunkey” from the OPI Shrek collection.  I found one left at the salon hiding behind other leftover collections.  I’m practicing free hand French tip.  I have the Konad French tip plate but with I usually have to do it twice over to get the tips opaque.  I don’t use the special polish since I like to do different color tips and don’t want to spend extra on a rainbow of colors.  Konad polishes also have expiration dates.
This manicure was on for three days. 

OPI Steady as She Rose

June 14, 2011
This is “steady as she rose”.  I’ve been overlooking this color since it came out.  All the swatches I had seen made the color look really washed out (even the pic I took makes the color look pale). I finally noticed it when I bought “skull and gloss bones”.  The color is so pretty.  I have a couple shirts that are this color.  In my opinion, it looks like a combo of “sparrow me the drama”, “planks a lot”, and “skull and gloss bones”.  A dusty, pinkish-lavender.
This is two-coats.   I wanted to do a feathered black French tip and a Konad white bow-but that didn’t turn out. I painted “teenage dream” and a silver stripe to cover it up.  I’ll try this again another time.  It only lasted two days.  The random black polish chipped superfast.


OPI Give Me the Moon (take two)

June 8, 2011
I went back to my favorite “give me the moon” with French tips in “skull and glossbones” from the pirates set. I also did Konad flowers and some jewels.  S&G is such a nice gray.  I ended up getting the regular size bottle.  I knew if I didn’t I would regret it when my mini ran out and the color was no longer available.  I also picked up “steady as she rose” but I’ll tell you about it next mani. 
I kept this on for six days because I loved it so much and I also was too busy to redo my nails.  So that worked out.

Milani 3D

June 7, 2011
Went to CVS pharmacy and scoped polishes while I waited for a prescription.  I guess I’m the last person to know about holographic polishes.  I bought four of the Milani 3D polishes.  The holo really isn’t that noticeable in the bottle.  If I hadn’t seen other swatches online-I wouldn’t have even bothered to get it.



The top pic is “HD’ (a silver) over the previous “stranger tides” and below is “Hi-Tech” (a green) over everything else.  I really liked the green.  It shows the holo best.



                     That night I still wanted to the try the blue Milani called “cyber space”.  I decided to do a gradient which gets nicely blended with this set.  And yes, with all these coats layered over each other it didn’t dry and I had to remove it. 

OPI Stranger Tides

June 6, 2011
This is “Stranger Tides” from again the OPI pirates collection.  It’s two coats and I didn’t do a good job painting. I was overtired from my day.  I took this pic the next morning before leaving the house.  It’s a khaki or olive green. I don’t know really how to describe it.  It’s the same color as my front door.  My camera didn’t pick up the colors pigment. 

OPI Give Me the Moon

June 4, 2011
This is OPI “give me the moon” from their Night Brights collection with NYC starry glitter and black shatter.  Give me the moon is my favorite from all the colors I currently have.  The NYC glitter adds a really nice touch.  I needed to retry my shatter because it had gotten really clumpy and not usable.  I picked up a lacquer thinner and now keep my shatter in the
fridge.  IT WORKED! My shatter is good as new.  I also give the bottle a good shake after painting each hand and when I’m done, I add the thinner before putting it away.  It’s really humid where I live so I need to take extra measures to keep my polish good.   *Note-when I bought “give me the moon”, I also saw “my private jet” but it wasn’t the original holo release.
This manicure lasted all of two days.  I ruined it by handling polish remover.  Oh well, I get to try more colors.


OPI Sparrow Me the Drama

May 30, 2011
     My latest addiction has been nail polish. It all just started when I went to buy OPI black shatter to see what all the fuss was about.  I went home with my shatter and the Katy Perry mini collection.  Totally loved it!   I started checking online for reviews, blogs, upcoming colors, all the collections I missed.  I’ve bought more polish in the last two months than I did in all my previous years.  Since I’ve been doing my nails so often now, I wanted to take pictures and share with everyone.  My cuticles are not the best though.
For the month of June I’m doing mostly light pastel colors.  I’ve been rocking dark colors all last month and am ready to lighten up.
May 30, 2011
This is OPI Pirates of the Caribbean “Sparrow Me the Drama” with Sally Hansen X-treme wear in “celeb city”.  I eagerly waited over a month for this collection to arrive in salons.  Since I live in Hawaii, everything arrives well after all the other states.  I tried ordering online, but shipping for six bottles was going to cost over $40 (cancel order!).  But my local salons have been getting a lot of business from me.  I’ve been trying to hit all OPI retailers looking for discontinued colors.  Anyway back to the subject, I bought the mini set and found the silver shatter at other location that charged $15. Later, I picked up the other colors.  The mini bottles are hard to paint with.  However, they are perfect for my four year olds tiny fingers.  I tried and love the entire pirates set.  The silver shatter covers too much of the base color for my liking, so I prefer to Konad with silver polish instead.
This manicure lasted 6 days with no chipping.  I couldn’t believe it.  It’s not like I wasn’t doing dishes or laundry.  I even went swimming.
I finally took it off so I could try a different color.