Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Candy Swirls Mani

Hello to the awesome-est readers in the universe!!! Today I have something very fun and colorful for you. I've been finding a lot of inspiration on HannahRoxNails on YouTube. I just love the way she explains nail art and makes it sound like something I could actually attempt! Too many of the designs I see are so intimidating but she really makes them do-able for anyone - even ME!
 
This design is based off of her Lollipop and Sprinkles Nail Art video.  I started with a base of Sally Hansen X-Treme Wear - White On and the rest was done with acrylic paint. This was really a lot of fun too do and honestly wasn't too difficult! I'm very happy with the way it turned out and it makes me want to be even more adventurous!
 
Nails4Dummies - Candy Swirls Mani

Nails4Dummies - Candy Swirls Mani

Nails4Dummies - Candy Swirls Mani
 
I highly suggest you go check out her channel and try one of the designs, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at how easy it is!

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

I am so excited to bring you the lovely Fall 2013 PixieDust collection from Zoya! To get all the disclaimer stuff out of the way, these polishes were sent to me for review but trust that will not affect my opinions! So without further ado, here they are!

I honestly didn't think I was going to like these at all! I'm not a fan of textured polish. I have never owned a crackle or a sand or a sugar or any of those other interesting textures that polish companies come up with to entice us. In fact, I'm not even a huge fan of using glitters - GASP! I love they way they look, I hate working with them and cleaning them up!

Even though I was fully prepared not to like these, I was more than pleasantly surprised at the amazing formula on these polishes and how easy they were to apply. I like the look of these PixieDust polishes more than the sand or sugar polishes because of the micro glitter. It makes them look less like spackle on a wall!

First up is Chita. I have to be honest about the green and let you know that I'm not a big fan. Even though it went on really smooth with no issues, I have a couple of issues here. The first is that I don't like green (unless it's lime green!) and the other is that I don't really like the silver glitter in with the green polish. These are really more of personal preferences though, so if you like green, don't hesitate to pick this one up! I used two coats but with this one, you could certainly get away with one!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

And here it is with a coat of Seche Vite on top. Much better in my opinion, what do you think? Then again, I'm a sucker for a gloss!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Then comes Sunshine. Am I the only one that's a little bothered by the fact that this blue polish is named Sunshine??? I feel like it should be yellow or gold with that name! Either way, this one is a lovely deep sapphire color!

You could definitely get away with one coat but I used two because I like the deeper blue color I got with the second coat. I was disappointed that this one had the silver micro glitter like the green. The blue is absolutely gorgeous, I just wish the glitter was blue too, I think it would have give it a really rich look. Formula-wise, it was amazing!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

So I added some Seche Vite to this one too and oh my goodness, isn't Sunshine gorgeous??

 Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Next is Dhara. Orange has to be my least favorite color ever. That being said, I didn't actually mind this one! It's got a gold and red-orange shimmer to it and it's quite pretty even though it doesn't play well my skintone! Formula is lovely once again and this is two coats as one just isn't quiiiiiiiite enough!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

I think I actually liked Dhara better matte but I had to gloss it up anyway!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Then comes Tomoko, a gorgeous champagne polish. Even though Zoya describes it as a champagne silver, it felt more gold to me. Regardless of what you call it, she is a beauty! It looks more like a foil than anything and sparkles like crazy! Two coats are a necessity with Tomoko but it's so smooth that you really won't mind! Be careful with getting her on your skin, that micro glitter is very friendly and likes to stick around and cuddle!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

The addition of Seche Vite didn't change the look of it too much, that's how sparkly it was to begin with! This baby sure dazzled in the sunshine though! It's such a soft and lovely shade that I think it would even be work appropriate!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Next up is Arabella, a beautiful fuchsia pink with fuchsia glitter and mayyyybe just the barest hint of purple sparkle in their too! I was actually kind of surprised at how dark this one came out on the nail after a necessary two coats but she's still a pretty lady!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

I much prefer Arabella with a coat of Seche Vite on top, would you look at that?? So incredible - I could stare for hours!!

 Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Finally, I saved the best for last. This amazing beauty is Carter! With a cool name like that, how couldn't she be a stunner? This was actually the first one I applied and I was completely amazed at how smooth these PixieDust polishes applied. That being said, this was actually the thickest but not to the point that it caused any issue with application. In the bottle, I didn't notice the fuchsia micro glitter but once it was on the nail, WOWEE! This is definitely a new favorite of mine...sigh!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

And then, after Seche Vite - SHUT THE FRONT DOOR!!! I wanted to lick my fingers!!

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

Nails4Dummies - Zoya PixieDust Fall 2013 Review

All in all, a fabulous line from the lovely geniuses at Zoya. I highly recommend leaving a good margin between the polish and your skin during application as the micro glitter is REALLY hard to get off the skin! Also, it dries really fast as long as you use thin coats. I accidentally used too much on one finger and it would not dry!!! But using two really thin coats not only made application easier, but it dried awesome too. So which one is your favorite?

Friday, July 19, 2013

Mint Manis For Talia Joy

This week saw the world losing a beautiful little soul in Talia Castellano. I only discovered Talia's YouTube channel a few months ago but I was hooked from my first video. Here was a young girl at an age when most girls are intensely self-conscious, showing her beautiful face to the world even though she had lost her hair to cancer treatment. Talia taught us to be grateful for our blessings and to smile in the face of adversity.

 
 I can't count the number of times when I was playing "poor me" that her beautiful, smiling face popped into my head and knocked me right out of my funk. If she could deal with so much, so young and so gracefully, I could dang well buck up and put a smile on my face when dealing with my trivial problems.
 
I personally dealt with cancer when my stepson was diagnosed with osteosarcoma (bone cancer) at the age of 11. He is now cancer free going on 3 years but the ugly disease stole his leg. Childhood cancer is a terrifying and incredibly unfair disease that I have seen affect far too many families.

I have to admit that after reading on Talia's Facebook page that she had passed, I picked up my little baby girl that just turned 1 (I have 3 girls!) and held her so tight and cried like crazy! For the last few days, every time I tell my girls how much I love them, I get a little teary-eyed. But I don't regret that, it's one of the gifts that Talia gave to us as she left this world - thankfulness. 
 
My nails were done using 4 polishes. The base is Barry M - Mint Green. Then I added touches of Avon - Don't Be Jaded, Catrice - Jade Is Not My Name and Essie - Go Overboard.
 
Mint Manis For Talia Joy
 
Mint Manis For Talia Joy
 
Mint Manis For Talia Joy
 
Mint Manis For Talia Joy
 
Mint Manis For Talia Joy
 
 
Thanks to Nicole from Nail Polish Wars, today bloggers and nail artists are painting their nails mint in honor of sweet, beautiful, courageous, spunky, amazing Talia Castellano!!! Please check out all of the manis in the inLinkz for more amazing manis!

 
Talia Castellano
 
Enjoy your peace little Talia - you earned it!
 
 

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Purple Cartoon Nails

Happy Wednesday!! Am I the only one that when I see the word Wednesday, pronounces it "WED-ness-day"? I can't be the ONLY one!  

Today's mani is really fun and this post is super pic-heavy because I couldn't choose between them and I don't have to...it's my blog and I'll do what I want! ;)
 
The base is two coats of Color Club - Wild At Heart and I framed it with a England - Camelot and the little white bits are acrylic paint!
 
These first pics are in full-on sunlight because how could I not show you the holographic yummy-ness? It's awesome, right? Feel free to drool away.
 

Nails4Dummies - Purple Cartoon Nails
 
Nails4Dummies - Purple Cartoon Nails
 
Next up are the pics I took in my light box - it's still pretty, just not as sparkly!

Nails4Dummies - Purple Cartoon Nails
 
 

Nails4Dummies - Purple Cartoon Nails

Nails4Dummies - Purple Cartoon Nails
 
You had to know this was coming - I had to do it! I added the Lancôme matte top coat and it looks so cool this way! If you haven't done cartoon nails yet, you really should try it, it's so fun and looks wicked-cool!
Nails4Dummies - Purple Cartoon Nails
 
 
Nails4Dummies - Purple Cartoon Nails

Nails4Dummies - Purple Cartoon Nails

Nails4Dummies - Purple Cartoon Nails

Friday, July 12, 2013

Stained Glass Nails

Let me just say I have been having the worst luck with my nails and hands! I had finally gotten my nails all grown out and pretty and then I broke one turning on the faucet!!! Who does that? Then I woke up one morning to find that I had chewed the heck out of my cuticles while I was sleeping! So my hands may be a little ugly ( I had to retouch the really icky parts of my cuticles - trust me, you would thank me if you saw the before shots!)
 
The base here is aEngland Camelot. Then I used striping tape and applied a coat of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in White On. Then I used neon acrylic paints to make it purdy! I followed the awesome YouTube tutorial by HannahRoxNails that you can find HERE! I still need more practice and they aren't perfect but I liked them a lot!
 
Nails4Dummies - Stained Glass Nails

Nails4Dummies - Stained Glass Nails

Nails4Dummies - Stained Glass Nails
 
Whaddya think?