Friday, May 3, 2013

Zoya Lovely Spring 2013 Collection Swatches & Review


Left to right: Julie, Gie Gie, Piaf, Blu, Jacqueline, Neely

The Shimmers

Julie is a light purple with silver shimmer, two coats. 


Julie
Gie Gie is a light pink with silver shimmer, two coats. 


Gie Gie

Piaf is a unusual golden yellow with silver shimmer, three coats. 


Piaf
The Cremes

Blu is a whitened pastel blue creme, two coats. 


Blu
Jacqueline is a whitened yellow creme, some lighting make it look more nude. Three coats. 


Jacqueline
Neely is a pale sea green creme, three coats. 


Neely
All swatches are without topcoat. The shimmers have the same silver shimmer and has an thin formula, easy to work with. If you were careful enough you may be able to get away with two coats, but three coats will cover any streaks and visible nail line showing. Blu had a thick formula while Jacqueline and Neely had formulas similar to the shimmers. Blu wasn't too hard to apply but adding some nail polish thinner might help.

This collection is perfect for Spring and Easter; Jacqueline, Piaf, and Blu are my favorites. You can purchase the Lovely collection for $8.00 a bottle at Zoya.com

/Ash

Monday, April 29, 2013

Orly Elation Generation

Hello! Today I have a color from Orly's Spring 2013 Hope and Freedom collection. 

Elation Generation is a bright pink jelly that leans toward coral and packed with holographic glitter. I used two coats in the photo below (plus topcoat), but could have used a third to eliminate some visible nail line that was more obvious in different lighting. The formula and removal was easy to work with and I very pleased with this polish!



/Ash

Saturday, April 27, 2013

Old Manicures III: A Little Nail Art

Hello again! Here are some older manicures with a little bit of nail art! This way I can explain some of the steps better. :) 

This is one of my favorites, and my inspiration was the Bath & Body Works scent Bali Mango. For my base I used two coats of Sinful Colors Gogo Girl (bright red cream) and a coat of China Glaze Pink Plumeria (pink coral shimmer, Summer Neons collection). I used Essie as Gold as it Gets and Shine of the Time, either both of them or one, I don't really remember. Then I just used a thin nail art brush in black, purple, and yellow. I think I did my non-dominant hand much better, my opposite hand has much thicker lines. 




For my candy cane nails I used two coats from Color Club Berry and Bright (red foily shimmer, Winter Affairs collection). To create the stripes I used my Kiss Nail Art Paint in silver and white, I varied the sizes of my stripes. 


Christmas tree nails! For my base color I used three coats of OPI GoldenEye (perfect molten gold, Skyfall collection), you can choose to do this on all of your fingers or just as an accent. I used a small nail art brush to create the tree shape, first the outline then fill it in. For the ornaments I used a small dotting tool in random polish colors, and for the star on the top of the tree I used Konad plate m3. 


This design may look hard, but fairly simple! For my base color I used China Glaze Splish Splash (bright medium blue shimmer, Summer Neons collection) and sponged random spots with China Glaze Ride the Waves (Summer Neons collection) and Orly Royal Navy. On my index, middle, and pinky nails I did the plastic wrap technique with white polish, shown here. On my ring and thumb nails I created a snowflake and placed a glitter in the center. Around the snowflakes I did some more of the plastic wrap technique. 


This one reminds me of a milkshake although I don't really like milkshakes. :P I sponged using China Glaze Swanky Silk (pink to gold duochrome, Bohemian collection), China Glaze Mahogany Magic (medium brown creme, Hunger Games collection), and I believe the last color is Revlon Iced Cocoa but I can't confirm that. 



I think I like these colors a little too much, because for my base color I used two coats of China Glaze Swanky Silk and covered half the nail with China Glaze Mahogany Magic layered underneath Orly So Go-Diva (brown glitter, Flash Glam Fall FX collection). On the other half of the nail I stamped using Konad plate m57. 


Last but not least, elegant and  very fake looking. For some reason manicures like these I get the most compliments on! I used two coats of a french base, probably by Sally Hansen. Once that completely dried I used french tip guides (straight across, but tape would work just as well) about halfway up the nail. I covered the top half in China Glaze Ride the Waves (Summer Neons collections) and stamped with Konad plate m57. 



Finally done with the old, and time to get on with the new! I love having a blog about my nails not only to share with my viewers but so I can look back at them and remember them for myself! I'm tired and I literally forced myself to finish this post, but it's always worth it in the end. :) 

Click here for the first part of my old manicures and here for my second!

/Ash

Friday, April 26, 2013

Old Manicures Part II: January to March 2013

Happy Earth Day everyone! Or maybe a few days late...? I planned on posting much sooner, but life tends to get in the way a little too much. :( On to the second set of manicures of 2013!

Milani Twinkle is supposedly a one coat glitter that contains small and medium sized blue and purple glitter. It is not a one coater, so I layered two coats over Sinful Colors Midnight Blue. The color is just so amazing that I would forgive it any day!


Orly Royal Navy from the In the Navy collection is a deep vibrant blue with a teal hidden shimmer and a crelly (creme/jelly) formula. Over the top is Zoya Gilty, an 18K gold topcoat. I love the combination of blue and gold, it's amazing isn't it? 



China Glaze Dress Me Up from the Hunger Games collection is a dusty rose pink creme. On my ring finger is Zoya Raven, a basic black with a bit of silver shimmer. Stamped over Dress Me Up is Konad plate m64. 



China Glaze Deviantly Darling from the Bohemian collection is a teal color with a metallic like finish. Over the top is Urban Outfitters Lollipop which is made of multi-sized hexagonal and round silver, teal, and red glitter in a sheer pink base. I heard this was close to Deborah Lippmann Candy Shop, but I don't have it to compare.



Revlon Plum Seduction is a purple toned fuchsia creme. Layered over my ring finger is one of my favorites: Sally Hansen Razzle Dazzler from the Gem Crush collection is a light rose pink and silver glitter. 


Sinful Colors Rise and Shine is a teal with a semi matte finish, I think it is meant to be a neon. It looks like a creme, but has a hidden shimmer. On my ring finger is Essence Chic Reloaded which is a dark gray with a green to purple duochrome. Over the top is Finger Paints Sparkle Topcoat which is small round and bar glitter with a blue to green duochrome effect, all in a clear base.


Finger Paints Midnight Sleigh Ride from the Holiday of Wonders collection is a medium blue with blue/silver micro-shimmer. This color is absolutely gorgeous!


Orly Rage has a golden base with a pink to purple duochrome. I don't have a good picture of this by itself, but I do have another beauty over it: China Glaze Bling It On from the Glitz Bitz 'N Pieces collection is a purple and black multi-sized round and hexagonal glitter and black bar glitter, all suspended in a clear base.


China Glaze Angel Wings from the Holiday Joy collection is a golden scattered holographic microglitter, opaque in three coats.



China Glaze Graffiti Green from the Glitz Bitz 'N Pieces collection is a green and black multi-sized round and hexagonal glitter and black bar glitter, all suspended in a clear base. This is layered over China Glaze Rare & Radiant, which was included in my previous post. 


Click here to read the first part of my old manicures! 

/Ash

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Old Manicures Part I: August to December 2012

So I haven't had my camera with me for a few days now and I won't have it for about another week! But as I said in a previous post, I will be sharing my previous manicures before I started blogging. I started doing my nails around January-February of last year, and all my pictures to about July were deleted, so this is my nails after about six months of growing them!

I guess we'll start with this water marble using Sinful Colors Midnight Blue and Wet N' Wild Caribbean Frost. Midnight Blue is your average sapphire blue with some shimmer, and one of my all time favorite colors. Caribbean frost is a teal frost which reminds me a lot of China Glaze Deviantly Daring (Bohemian collection), although they are not dupes.


I did some nail art with a Kiss nail stripper in silver, and created a flower with Brucci Blue Moon and a dotting tool. 



China Glaze Mahogany Magic is a brown creme from the Hunger Games collection, one of my first browns that helped me discover my love of brown polish. This is one of those colors you have to wear for yourself to see the beauty of the color.



Layered over Mahogany Magic is Essie As Gold As It Gets from the Luxeffects collection, another one of my favorite layering glitters. It's a fine glitter that leans towards a yellow gold.




Claire's Flirty/Shy is one of their mood changing polishes. It changes from a bright medium blue to a darker blue leaning toward purple. I stamped a Konad image over with Claire's Lonely/Loved, which made it seem more of a finer glitter than if you were to paint it on with the brush. 




Wet N' Wild Gray's Anatomy is a gray with a strong purple to green duochrome. About three to four coats for opacity. (Oh no, my pinky nail broke in during this manicure! D;)



China Glaze Attraction from the Magnetix collection is a gunmetal gray with silver shimmer. I used the chevron pattern from China Glazes 3-in-1 magnet, it didn't show up very well on the nail. :( 



Kleancolor Americano is a metallic gold that leans silver. It reminds me of China Glaze Swanky Silk (Bohemian collection), but are not dupes.



China Glaze Rare & Radiant from the Bohemian collection is a gold to green duochrome. It is a dupe of Channel Peridot, OPI Just Spotted the Lizard, Jessica Iridescent Eye, and about a dozen other polishes. 


China Glaze Ride the Waves from the Summer Neons 2012 collection is a a very bright blue jelly, good for layering and is opaque in three coats. Over Ride the Waves is China Glaze Fairy Dust which is a fine silver holographic glitter.



China Glaze You Move Me from the Magnetix collection is a brown shimmer. I used a random fridge magnet to create the design and I like this quite a lot! 


China Glaze Pink Plumeria from the Summer Neons 2012 collection is a pink toned coral. It looks like a creme, but it does have some silver shimmer in it. I used Konad plate m57 to achieve the zebra print. 


Butter London Gobsmacked from the Autumn/Winter 2012 collection is a dark gray base with charcoal and silver glitter. This polish was goopy as applying, it helped a lot to add some polish thinner. Over the top of Gobsmacked is China Glaze Fairy Dust which made it look even more beautiful!


China Glaze Unpredictable from the Bohemian collection is a blue to green duochrome. On top of that is Pure Ice Don' t You Wish which is a holographic blue and green glitter, it has a very mermaid look to it!



Pure Ice Spitfire is a pink holographic glitter. I believe I layered two coats of this over a basic black, Milani Black Magic. 


Orly Mysterious Curse from the Dark Shadows collection is a blue to purple duochrome with a strong shimmer, this color is also a re-release of Royal Velvet. I stamped Konad plate m64 over with China Glaze Unpredictable. 



China Glaze Cracked Medallion from the Crackle Medals collection is a metallic bronze crackle with a strong shimmer. I used a basic white as my base color, Pure Ice Superstar. 


Finger Paints Plum Startled from the Fall of Surprises collection is a dark purple jelly with a strong shimmer. It takes three coats for full opacity, and is one of my all time favorite purples!



OPI Pros and Bronze from the Serena Williams Glam Slam collection is a golden bronze shimmer/foil. This color reminds me a lot of Thanksgiving, which is what day I wore this manicure on! Over the top on my ring finger, I used a coat of Orly So Go-Diva from the Flash Glam Fall FX collection. I feel like the glitter gives off a different shade of brown over different bases, so over Pros and Bronze it was more of a chocolate brown color with smaller and larger hexagonal glitter. 


Spoiled The Parking Meteor Expired is a blackened teal shimmer. I've seen some rave about this color, but it wasn't all that much to me. I was honestly a little disappointed in this color, mainly because I can stare at the at the bottle all day but I couldn't see it on my nails. :( In the bottle it has a teal to purple duochrome shimmer in a blackened base. On the nail, no purple.


China Glaze Glistening Snow from the Holiday Joy collection is a silver scattered holographic microglitter. It is pretty much a more dense version of Fairy dust, and is opaque in three coats. 


China Glaze Con-fused? from the Magnetix II collection is a green magnetic color. I used my Nails Inc magnet to create the chevron design. I really like this color, the bright grass green really pops against the black. 


OPI Every Month is Oktoberfest from the Germany collection is a blackened purple base with red and gold shimmer, it's a very unique color. Over my ring finger is Essie As Gold As It Gets. (Sorry this photo is really bad!)


Color Club Berry and Bright from the Winter Affairs collect is a red foily shimmer. I don't own many reds nor do I like the color red on my nails, but this is definitely one of my favorites! If you purchased this color at Sally's, then you got the scented version like me. It smells like fruit punch, and you could still smell it after about two days with a coat of top coat!


OPI Love Is A Racket from the Serena Williams Glam Slam collection is a red jelly with flakes of glitter. In the bottle it looks more pink, but on the nail is more red toned. Over the top is Color Club Snow-flakes from the Winter Affairs collection which is a orange duochrome flakie with a million an one dupes (or almost dupes) including Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure and Essie Shine of the Times. 


Whew! This took a little bit of work to write, but I'm happy I got it done! I have skipped a few manicures that I think will require a mini tutorial, and another post on old manicures from January to March. Stay tuned!

/Ash