MORE MAGIC! Kind of...

I LOVE AMAZING TOP COATS!!

I'm sorry. I had to start the post off that way. Because I do. Top coats are literally what make my world go 'round - fast dry, super shiny, glitter, whatever. I love them. All of them. Right now I'm dying for somebody to make a glow-in-the-dark top coat that won't have the chemical composition of a radioactive wasteland (heck, it could probably be radioactive and I'd still wear it).

Anyway, this post is about two of my favorite nail polishes EVER: Zoya Wednesday and nails inc. Electric Lane Glitter Holographic (you guessed it...) Topcoat! 

Wednesday is a hard color for me to describe. It's a greenish-blue shade, but definitely not teal. Not as blue as aquamarine. Light, but too blue to be mint green. And on top of all that, she has a little bit of dustiness in her color that is just so pretty I want to cry...

Zoya Wednesday

Is she a bluish teal? (I promise my hands didn't look that red in real life, by the way.)

 Or is she mint green??

Does anybody else see how much Wednesday changes color in different light?? I'm surprised the contrast came out that much on my camera! Hopefully now you can see why I have such a hard time describing Wednesday's exact color - sometimes she's green, sometimes she's teal, sometimes she's dark, sometimes she's light. Whatever Wednesday is, I love her for her perfect formula (I mean PERFECT)...and her confusing color.

And now for the magic. Prepare yourself. Are you sitting down? Well, find a chair. I added one coat of nails inc. Electric Lane Holographic Glitter Topcoat (and, yes, that is all the name of one nail polish) and got this:

Huh? What? Not extremely impressed? Disappointed that you dragged over a chair and prepared yourself for nothing? 

BAM! Do you see that rainbow that just appeared on my nails?!

To get the full spectrum of holographic sparkle, I actually had to take purposely fuzzy pictures. But do you SEE that amazing rainbow-ness? I like how much it shows up in the bottle, too, in the next picture:

AAAH! IT'S AMAZING! 

Okay, so maybe it's not THAT mind-blowingly insane, but I still really like this topcoat. nails inc. says to try it over lighter colors in particular, so be expecting some more posts with Electric Lane once winter comes and bright colors are no longer...sniff, sniff...weather-appropriate (although in my world, neons are ALWAYS appropriate).

How do you like Wednesday and Electric Lane? What's your favorite special effect topcoat?

Stay happy! (I know I will, my nails looking the way they do...)

Midnight Manicures - Literally!

Long time, no post! With school having started last week, I barely even had time to do my nails (seriously - the horror!!), much less take any pictures of them. But anyone who knows me knows that I couldn't ACTUALLY not do my nails even if that meant staying up past one in the morning after finishing homework at midnight to make sure my nails looked alright...

Anyway, my first nail polish of the week was Sweets Way, which was in my last post. I thought that after stepping into school with nails that looked like the top of a cupcake, I couldn't just do an ordinary nail polish, right? So I tried doing a twist on French nails. 

Long story short, I am not the steadiest of hand. But I still really liked the way my nails turned out! Here's my "French" manicure, with Zoya Tanzy tips and Essie Hi Maintenance for the sheer coat over:

Sorry for the bad pics - I actually didn't have a real camera on hand, so these were all taken with my phone's camera! It's probably better that things ended up like that though...if the pictures were better quality, the horrible state of my acetone-yellowed nail might have been even more revealed. And that would just be awful.

A couple days later, Christmas came early for me when my Zoya Back-to-School BOGO (buy one, get one FREE) promo order arrived on my doorstep! 

Yes...that's my homework they're on top of...any colors catch your eye?

I haven't gotten around to using any of them yet (although the glowy red catches my eye every time I walk by it), but a few days later I did Zoya Dannii (yes...I double-checked the spelling there), a shimmery-ish light purple:

In some lights, Dannii's shimmer seems to lean on the gold side, but in the bottle it looks more silvery. In really bright light, the silver side of the shimmer comes out more:

Dannii also turns, in my opinion, into a prettier shade of purple in brighter light. Dannii applied perfectly in two coats with perfect formula; however, she dried that slightly grainy way that the Zoya glittery-ish polishes do. (I just noticed that I call my nail polishes "she" sometimes...is that a bad sign?)

Anyway, it looks like it's going to take me awhile to figure out how nail polish can fit into my school schedule. Getting back into the classroom was definitely a strain for me this week - I'm pretty sure I fell asleep in at least one class every day (shhh...let's not tell anybody!). 

Stay happy!

nails inc. Sweets Way

I'm kind of on a sweets kick. I went to a sleepover last night and only ate dessert - fondue AND s'mores - and then for breakfast I ate some MORE s'mores, and then I got home and ate some cookies, and then with dinner today, I had another GIANT cookie for dessert. It kind of went with my last nail manicure, Zoya's Yummy (which I can assure you ALL of that food was), but I think today's nails match my sweet tooth even better: nails inc. Sweets Way.

Earlier this year, nails inc. released a bunch of special effect sprinkle nail polishes. Basically, these polishes are different colored round glitter pieces in a fairly sheer base which, layered, looks like frosting and sprinkles. There are four colors: a white base with pink and blue sprinkles, a coffee base with brown and white sprinkles, a blue base with teal and yellow sprinkles, and a pink base with pink and purple sprinkles.

Sweets Way was the most obvious pick for me because, being the white-based "frosting", I assumed it would match more colors of nail polish.

nails inc. Sweets Way

I've been over how nails inc. names all their polishes after places in London before, and I'll admit, I was skeptical when I heard the names of these polishes. Sweets Way, Pudding Lane, Sugar House Lane, and Topping Lane definitely don't sound like your average street name (really...Pudding?), but I did actually check and...apparently whoever names streets in London had as much of a sweet tooth as I do, because all four of those places actually exist.

Anyway, here is Sweets Way:

Sweets Way (shade)

Sweets Way (sunlight)

I think Sweets Way actually looks a lot like sprinkles in frosting in the sun! I was pretty impressed. Especially  from a distance, my nails looked...well, good enough to eat! Up close, though, and particularly in the shade, the glitter pieces look more like glitter than sprinkles.

See how the "sprinkles" are actually shiny up close? Maybe the effect would be more realistic with a matte nail polish!

Overall, I'm fairly satisfied with Sweets Way. It only took 3 coats to get a completely opaque look. Unfortunately, because of the thick, chunky nature of the polish, it was a little harder to control application. And, as with most glitters, it ate topcoat like I eat chocolate. Even after a coat of Gelous AND a thick layer of Poshe, my nails still have a slightly rough, bumpy finish.

How do you like the cupcake-y look? Sweet? Not so sweet? Let me know!

Stay happy!

Zoya Yummy

This morning, I ate a really, really good cookie for breakfast as one of my last before school starts up again. I'm not kidding, this cookie was heavenly. Anyway, I got to thinking...school's starting, but that doesn't mean that I can't eat cookies for breakfast. Likewise, fall is coming, but that doesn't mean it's too late to wear summer colors!

That said, I have for you a delicious treat today: Zoya Yummy, a "bright, cheerful light robin's egg blue in a milky creme finish" (according to the Zoya website).That description is spot on!

Zoya Yummy

Yummy is great because it's bright without being eye-searingly neon. And even without being neon, it definitely pops.

Zoya Yummy indoors

As you can see, Yummy looks different in various lighting. The three photos above were all taken indoors at the same time of day, and they still look like they could be different nail polishes!

Zoya Yummy outdoors

In direct sunlight, Yummy is a little darker. I think it looks like blue raspberry candy - which is fitting because Yummy is from Zoya's "Candy" collection.

Yummy was on the runny side, but was easier to control with a little practice. I had to make sure I started each brush stroke a little farther from the cuticle than I usually would, or the polish would pool up and flood my cuticles. Even though it was runny, Yummy was perfectly opaque in two coats.

Looking to get your hands on your own bottle of Yummy? From now until August 29th, Zoya has a BOGO (buy one, get one free) promo for all accounts that were opened before August 22nd. If you don't have an account with Zoya get, you can still get a bottle of Yummy for free (just pay shipping) here.

Got any requests for swatches while the BOGO promo is going on? Let me know!

Stay happy!

Effervescence Dragon Dance

Hey, guys!

So you know how everyone's always saying to support your local businesses? Well, I must admit I haven't really been too into local businesses...I mean, I LIKE my Starbucks and McDonalds! But I've finally found a "local business" that I can TOTALLY get behind - Effervescence Nail Lacquer.

Effervescence is literally a BRAND SPANKIN' NEW company, started earlier this summer by two college freshmen-to-be as a way to earn a little extra pocket money. I'm going to say that in the future, this business could be making a lot more than just pocket money...

Today I have Dragon Dance, "a red jelly base with fine, square, and gold glitters". That description is pretty much spot on:

Effervescence Dragon Dance

While I'm talking about the  Effervescence website's description, I feel compelled to mention that these girls are hilarious. Their commentary-like nail polish descriptions are definitely entertaining just to read, and they've got little things all over the place that are sure to make you smile. ("I solemnly swear that I have read the delivery and pickup info." And then if you don't actually click the link, there's an angry pop-up that will make you both laugh and feel guilty simultaneously.)

Anyway, here are my swatches of Dragon Dance:

Dragon Dance, 3 coats

Having a jelly base, Dragon Dance was fairly sheer and buildable. Below, the index and ring fingers are 1 coat and the middle and pinky fingers are 2 coats:

As with all glitter polishes, Dragon Dance didn't finish completely smooth because of the glitter pieces. (However, it was significantly smoother than I expected, and I was impressed.) I remedied the chunkiness with a coat of Gelous and then one of Poshe to dry it faster. Can you see how glassy it is in the pictures below??

No? Well, the difference is a lot more noticeable in person. I keep staring at my nails - Dragon Dance is like a gorgeous jelly sandwich, but without the work of layering glitters between a jelly polish! (It also looks like the perfect Holiday color - Christmas OR Chinese New Year! :P)

If you can't tell, I LOVED Dragon Dance. The smaller brush (if you haven't noticed, the bottles are mini - 6 ml versus the regular 15 ml) made the polish a little harder to control, but the formula was good enough to make up for it. I'm excited to try out the other Effervescence colors!

Stay happy!

nails inc. Brompton Place

I'm not particularly good at research, but I thought I'd try and get in practice for school (WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT STARTS IN ONE WEEK?!) today. I have for all of you today nails inc. Brompton Place, and knowing absolutely nothing about England like I do, I thought I'd try to find out something about this polish's namesake.

Brompton Place fun facts:
1. None.

Maybe all the fun facts were hiding from me, but all I gathered from a few minutes Google-surfing was that there are a couple apartments on sale in Brompton Place.

It's a good thing the nail polish is a lot more interesting.

nails inc. Brompton Place

Brompton Place is a pretty pink creme, halfway between Barbie-pink and pastel pink. I'd say it's a little closer to pastel. Because it's so light, Brompton Place isn't the summeriest of colors, but I like it anyway as a nice change from all the neons and glitters.

The Brompton Place formula was wonderful, as are the formulas of all the nails inc. polishes I've ever tried. It was somehow both thick and runny at the same time, but in a way that actually made the polish easier to spread around the way I wanted it. For now, I think I'll shelve it until spring.

Does anybody out there know anything fun about Brompton Place? Let me know!

Stay happy!

IT'S MAGIC! Del Sol "Ruby Slipper"

I kid you not. Today, I've got magical nail polish for you.

Okay, so maybe not EXACTLY magic. But it's close enough! If you've heard of the Del Sol company, you've probably seen their amazing line of clothes that change color in the sun's UV (I think?) rays. Well, not only do they have stunning shirts that change color...THEY HAVE NAIL POLISH!

If I could have, I would have bought them all. I kid you not. But, unfortunately, I couldn't, so I settled on the one that I thought had the most impressive change: Ruby Slipper. 

Del Sol Ruby Slipper - indoors

Granted, it doesn't look like much more than your average silver glitter nail polish in this shot. It looks like something you'd only use every once in awhile as a topcoat over something, right? In fact, it's pretty transparent on the nail:

Ruby Slipper, 2 coats

It WOULD look very nice over a lot of different colors though, right? Anyway, I decided to play around with it and see how many coats I'd need for opacity. 

Ruby Slipper, 4 coats

Ruby Slipper, 6 coats

Ruby Slipper, 12 coats

Yes...that does say 12 coats. Twelve! By that time, the layer of polish over my nails was so thick it looked like fake or gel nails, which I found pretty amusing:

DO YOU SEE HOW THICK THAT IS? :D

So far, just a boring silver glitter that will probably take AGES to remove because it's so many layers. But, fear not! This is Del Sol, which is synonymous with not boring, and it must be called Ruby Slipper for some reason, right?

I walked outside this morning to get the mail, and I literally almost tripped over something when I saw my nails. It was THAT exciting.

BAM! Amazing.

See how much the color changed in the bottle too?! I was literally flipping out in front of my house. And then I thought, Hmm...I wonder if the color change is this mind-blowing even without twelve coats! Because, you know, not everyone will have the time or patience or will of mind to paint each nail twelve times...

Ruby Slipper, 3 coats, indoors

Ruby Slipper, 3 coats, outside

IT'S JUST AS MAGICAL! I think I even like the way 3 coats looks outside better than 12! It's got a really pretty pink jelly quality that's a lot more playful than 12 coats...but hey, if I'm going to do 12 coats of nail polish anyway, I don't want playful. I mean serious BUSINESS.

Once I got over how trippy the color change was, I really went to town taking pictures of Ruby Slipper. I was that excited. Of course, anybody who knows me knows that it's not incredibly difficult to excite me. But I was EXTRA excited by this insane nail polish.

IT TOTALLY LOOKS LIKE GEL!

Obviously, Ruby Slipper made me immensely happy. But the great thing was that I can see myself using Ruby Slipper again, now that I know I DON'T actually need to do 12 coats to make them look good. The formula was pretty good, too, which surprised me, and the finish was smooth and didn't eat topcoat.

Next time I'm at a Del Sol store, I'm definitely going to stock up on more colors. What do you think of Ruby Slipper? Is the effect incredibly, insanely, awesomely, amazingly, wonderstrikingly cool? (YES...) Or does it feel "little-kid" to you?

Stay happy!