Hot Blush Stamped

I haven’t done any stamping in a while, and since the golden shimmer in Linda Johansen Hot Blush was practically invisible on the nail, I thought that it needed a little gold on top.

I’ve used China Glaze 2030 and SdP-A for the stamping.

See how different Hot Blush looks from the outdoor pic? Such a chameleon.

The ABCs: X for Xtravagance

I guess I didn’t think this ABC thing all the way through, because these last letters are proving really difficult to write about! Well, at least I get to use my imagination and creativity, and that’s not all bad.

Last week, my husband and I went to see “The Hunger Games”. I don’t think any nail polish enthusiasts could have missed hearing about this movie, China Glaze even made a collection based on it! (I have to admit I hadn’t even heard about either the movie or the books it’s based on before China Glaze released their collection, so for I kinda got the information the other way around.)

Anyway, I couldn’t help but notice the gorgeous manicure worn by Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket during The Reaping.

I’m positive I’m not the first and probably not the last who was inspired by the colorful citizens of Capitol, but I just loved this mani so much and I couldn’t wait to make my own version of it.

I decided to take it even more over the top, in true Capitol spirit, so I used Milani Purple Gleam as a base and Lynnderella Change sponged on the tips. A truly xtravagant and Effie-worthy manicure!

Purple Gleam was easy to apply, albeit very thick and glittery. But it’s a One Coat Glitter, so that’s expected. I had to use two coats to get it truly opaque, though. I’ve also used a buttload of topcoat, because these are thirsty glitters!

Are you often inspired by movies, books or other art when doing your nails?

The ABCs: V for Variety Pack

I’m sorry that this post is so late, but when I got to V in the alphabet, I was faced with the same dilemma as earlier, I didn’t have an untried polish starting with V. So instead of doing a rerun of Zoya Valerie, I decided to do a random spam post, or a “Variety Pack” as it were. Since I had to wear and swatch a bunch of stuff for this post, it took a little while longer, but I hope it’s worth waiting for!

I won’t say much about these polishes, I’ll just let the pictures do most of the talking. Enjoy!

Essie Mademoiselle, 2 coats.

Essie Mademoiselle sponged with Orly Rock-It and Petites Pink Diamond. Heart strass from Claudia Cosmetics.

Essie Lapiz of Luxury, 2 coats.

H&M Lady Luck, 2-3 coats.

Sinful Colors Zeus, 2 coats.

Lynnderella The Telltale Heart, 1 coat over OPI Don’t Touch My Tutu!, 3 coats.

Thanks for looking!

Neon Striped Zebra

I know Christmas is right around the corner and it’s time for wintery colors and finishes, but this is the darkest time of the year up here, and I had a craving for something really bright, loud and summery. I was inspired by this tutorial, so I picked out my most obnoxious colors and went to it!

I’ve used Color Club Pucci-Licious, IsaDora Miami Blue, China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy, Illamasqua Rare and OPI Who The Shrek Are You? for the “rainbow” background, and Konad image plate m57 with GOSH Nero for the stamp.

I hope this colorful mani brightened your day, and remember, there’s only one more week until winter solstice!

Falling Leaves

Finally I have time to play with nails (well, not that there’s much to play with these days), so I wanted to make a fall-inspired mani. I used Orly Enchanted Forest, Orly Space Cadet and China Glaze 2030 to create this mani with golden leaves blowing in the wind.

Enchanted Forest is the green base, then I used Space Cadet and a sponge to make a little gradient from the base of the nail up. The leaves are made with BM04 and 2030.

Space Cadet is perfect for fall, it has all the colors of the autumn leaves.

What’s your favorite polish for fall?