essence Galaxy Flakes Effect Nail Polish in Rock My World

Happy #manimonday. I'll make this quick by saying...YES, YES, YES. I LOVE THIS NAIL POLISH. It's the essence Galaxy Flakes Effect Nail Polish in Rock My World ($3.49, exclusively at Shoppers Drug Mart) and holy cow is it beautiful. As a lover of essence's regular polish line, I was happy to learn that essence has 8 different effect nail polishes including denim, glitter jewels, polka dots, and sugar. So fun! 

It's a textured, lilac topcoat with bits of iridescent flakies and silver sparkles. Above I've paired it with  Essie's "Using My Maiden Name". Match made in heaven, right? The only downside is that it's a b*ch and a half to remove. 

What nail polish have you been loving lately? 

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KISS Salon Secrets Luxe Accents & Nail Art Glue

I never thought I would like 3D nail art until I tried using the KISS Salon Secrets Luxe Accents ($6.99). Exploring Asian malls and seeing lots of nail art salon photos with blingg-ed out Hello Kitty Nails kind of put me off. However, it depends on the accents you use and how you use them. 

KISS Salon Secrets Luxe Accents Kit & Nail Art Glue worn with Ceramic Glaze Strawberries N Milk

What I really appreciate about the KISS Salon Secrets Luxe Accents is that the pieces are fairly subdued individually but can be used in combination to create something a bit more crazy. There are six different charms and stones (marble stones, sugar stones, rainbow triangle charms, mini white pearls, clear stones and flowers). The kit also comes with a silicone stick, which is meant to pick up the charms. I find it useless and prefer to use a pair of pointy tweezers. 

The downside of the kit is that it does not include any sort of glue or sealer. For the smaller charms, you can definitely just use your favourite top coat underneath and overtop. However, the larger charms require something a bit more heavy duty. This is where the KISS Salon Secrets Nail Art Glue ($4.99) comes in handy. It's a jelly texture that smells very similar to super glue and it works similarly with a very strong hold that lasts 4-5 days depending on how much typing I'm doing at work. 

While you can get nail art accents for $1 or less from online stores like Born Pretty Store, KISS Salon Secrets nail art kits are conveniently available at your local drugstore or Walmart for a slight premium (and no waiting for 20 day shipping...). 

What do you think of 3D Nail Art? 

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KISS Salon Secrets Rococo Veil Kit

I BLING-ed out my nails with the KISS Salon Secrets Rococo Veil Kit ($6.99). According to my very reliable friend Wikipedia, Rococo is an 18th Century (late Baroque) artistic style featuring asymmetrical designs, ornate curves and gold. 

Kiss Salon Secrets Rococo Veil Kit worn over Suncoat Peelable Nail Polish in Mulberry

Rococo looks good in Parisian architecture and on my nails. Put simply, the KISS Salon Secrets Rococo Veil Kit is a bunch of very pretty and ornate stickers. The kit includes 1 sheet of silver and 1 sheet of gold motifs, 1 sheet of blue/white/red rhinestones, and a nail art sealer. Using the kit is a serious no-brainer. Dry polished or acrylic nails, just peel the accent from the clear plastic backing, plop it on your nail, and seal in the deal with some top coat. 

Intricate yet easy nail art is finally achievable with this user-friendly kit from KISS. 

What do you think of Rococo nail art? 

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The Glitter Accent Nail

IMO, accent nails are the easiest way to add glitter without going overboard. I love wearing all glitter everything everywhere but it's  not the most business professional. So, I stick with a neutral on 8 of my fingers and wear glitter on my two ring fingers - so I only seem 1/5 as glitter crazy. 

If I'm only going to wear two nails of glitter, it needs to be really glittery. Wet N Wild's Sparkled is perfect for this...two coats and I get a full-fledged disco ball pink nail. 

Products Used: Essie First Base, The Body Shop Nail Polish in Frosting Fancy*, Wet N Wild Wild Shine Nail Color in Sparkled*, Revlon Gel Envy Diamond Top Coat*

How do you wear glitter? 

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New York Fashion Week Nail Art // #NYCBeautyPro // Christian Louboutin x Cushine et Ochs

In an instant, New York Fashion Week has come and gone. I keep up with very few designers but my favourite things to browse for NYFW are the nail and beauty looks. One of my favourite nail looks this year was Christian Louboutin for Cushine et Ochs. It's a modern take on the classic runway nude polish with the addition of a jewel-toned green or blue square at the base of each nail. 

Of course, Christian Louboutin Nail Polishes will run you $50+, so I opted for a more wallet-friendly recreation. In this month's NYC Beauty Pro Challenge I used four products ($1.99 each) to create the Cushine et Ochs look. 

Products Used: NYC Strip Me Off Base Coat, NYC In a Minute Nail Polish in 201 Fashion Safari, NYC In a Minute Nail Polish in 274 Rivington Red, NYC In a Minute Nail Polish in 202 Grand Central Station

Instead of a jewel-toned blue/green, I opted for a striking red. Here's how I did it: 

(1) Apply a base coat 

(2) Apply 2 coats of a nude polish 

(3) With a steady hand, use the corners of the brush tip to create square at the base of the nail 

(4) Apply a fast-drying topcoat to seal in the deal. 

It's a unique yet wearable and chic way to wear colour without going overboard. Super simple and easy to DIY at home without any tools, just your polishes. Will you be trying it out? 

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NAILS: Year of the Sheep // Chinese New Year

A little late but HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR. Chinese New Year was February 19th, the start of the Year of the Sheep (or goat or ram - the Chinese word could mean either). Also referred to as the Lunar New Year, Chinese New Year is traditionally celebrated to honour deities and ancestors. For me, this means big family dinners with a lot of food, multiple dim sum outings, and red pockets of lucky money from aunts, uncles and grandparents. 

This year was a little more quiet so to celebrate the Year of the Sheep, I decided to paint the little pillows of fluff on my nails. The sheep shapes were inspired by Angela of Do Want Makeup. I'm a novice nail artist so I kept things simple and stuck to anything I could do with a dotting tool.  

The red background symbolizes fortune and joy (and also wards off evil spirits) in Chinese culture, while I used a dotting tool and a white polish to create the fluffy sheep, a nude polish for the sheep's face and a black and a dotting tool for the eyes and legs. 

Products Used: CoverGirl Ever Reddy*, Quo Purity*, NYC Black Cream Lace*, Sally Hansen 110 Birthday Suit*, and the Body Shop Dotting Tool*

Do you celebrate Chinese New Year? 

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Cute (ombre) Nails // Valentine's Day 2015

Faded ombre nails are so cute. Pink ombres, even more cute. I can't even handle it. In another life, I probably had ombre pink hair. I'm channeling that with this nail look. I opted for three pink-hued colours from Wet n Wild. I find nail polish ombres work best with three colours, as just two doesn't fade as nicely. 

How to ombre your nails: 

(1) Apply a white or off-white base colour. Since I did a pink ombre, I used a white with a pink tinge. Let it dry for 10-15 minutes. 

(2) Paint a stripe of each of your ombre colours onto a cosmetic sponge (the less porous the sponge, the better) and pat off the excess on a piece of paper.

(3) To transfer the color onto the nail, lightly dab the sponge on the nail bed. You can go over the each nail more than once for a more opaque ombre effect. 

(4) Seal in the deal with a clear top coat. 

Products Used: The Body Shop Nail Polish in Frosting Fancy, Wet N Wild Wild Shine Nail Color in 457E She Sells, 478E Lavender Creme, 450B Clear Nail Protector, cosmetic sponges

Have you ever tried ombre nails? 

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Flirty Nails (Take Two) // Valentine's Day 2015

This is a rendition of last year's Glitter for the Flirty Girl Nail Art, except a bazillion times more user-friendly and less messy. In essence, the look is a half cream polish, half glitter polish nail. 

Last year, I used loose glitter and clear polish. This year, I've just gone with a glitter suspended in a clear base, which is not quite as opaque but a bit easier to achieve and a lot less of a glitter-all-over-the-place mess (though there's not too much wrong with glitter everywhere, it's just annoying when it gets on your face). 

As easy as 1, 2, 3. (1) Bright pink base (2) two coats of a fairly concentrated glitter polish drawn diagonally at the top of the nail (3) top coat to seal in the deal. If you're hand isn't steady enough to draw in a straight line, try using some scotch tape. 

Products Used: Wet N Wild Wild Shine Nail Color in 478E Lavender Creme, 480C Sparkled and 450B Clear Nail Protector

I think I'm preferential to this year's glitter nail art - I love glitter but I'm not a fan of loose anything - glitter, eyeshadow, etc. 

Do you like loose glitter? 

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Sexy (?) Nails // Valentine's Day 2015

Are animal prints associated with being sexy? Because I don't think I've ever looked good in an animal print. So instead of going all out and wearing leopard leggings and a leopard leotard, I thought I'd bring out my wild side on my nails. 

You can easily find a leopard print nail tutorial with the help of a google search. Here's how I made it more Valentine's Day-esque:

(1) Paint your fingernails a base of a medium pink

(2) Use a dotting tool (or similar) to create red blobs on your nails

(3) Outline the red blobs with burgundy c-shapes 

(4) Add burgundy blobs and squiggles 

Products Used: Wet n Wild Wild Shine Nail Color in 457E She Sells, 475C Grasping for Strawberries, 486C Burgundy Frost, 450B Clear Nail Protector, the Body Shop Nail Art Pen (dotting tool) 

In any case, the more random your splotches and c-shapes, the better. I'm quite liking how this animal print nail art turned out. It doesn't make me feel wild but it does look pretty cool! 

How do you wear animal prints? 

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Sweetheart Nails // Valentine's Day 2015

Sweetheart candies. Those ones that look so sweet and almost never taste as good as they look. The make for good blog props though! Ahhh Valentine's Day. It's in a couple weeks and I thought I'd bring back my nail art series. I love doing love and romance and cheesy heart inspired nail ideas. This time around, I'm making my nails as sweet as the candy - pastel pink and sweet little baby hearts at the bottom of the nail.

The "design" (if you can even call it that) is super simple and requires almost no explanation. Baby pink polish and two 45 degree angle lines to form a heart. You can use a dotting tool, pencil point, back of a brush, toothpick, etc. to create the heart. 

Products Used: Wet n Wild Wild Shine Nail Color in 475C Grasping at Strawberries and 455B Tickled Pink, The Body Shop Nail Art Pen (dotting tool), Wet n Wild Wild Shine Nail Color in 450B

Do you like sweetheart candies? 

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Sally Hansen x Stella McCartney Autumn 2015 Nail Art

On the hunt for simple yet work-appropriate nail art, I've turned to the runway for mani ideas that are neutral with a pop of something special. Inspired by the designs of Stella McCartney, Sally Hansen's Global Color Ambassador Madeline Poole created three exclusive nail looks inspired by the New York presentation. 

The original design by Madeline Poole is a three tiered metallic half moon mani with 4 simple steps. (1) a white base (2) gold on 1/3 of the nail (3) black atop 2/3 of the gold (4) silver atop 1/2 the black. I'm too lazy to perfect curves on my nails, so I opted for straight lines across the nail. Obviously, Madeline Poole used Sally Hansen polishes. I stuck with the polishes I had on hand. 

Photo courtesy of Sally Hansen

Products Used by Madeline Poole: Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Let It Snow, Gilty Party, Pat on the Black and Diamond Jubilee

Products Used by Me: Essie First Base, Rimmel 60 Seconds in Hot White Love, CoverGirl Nail Polish in Golden Opportunity* and Show Stopper*, New York Color Nail Polish in Black Cream Lace*, Revlon Gel Envy Diamond Top Coat* 

Overall, I'm loving the simplicity with a touch of neutral, metallic glimmer. If you've got a fave work-appropriate nail art idea, a link/tutorial would be much appreciated! 

Do you wear nail art to work/school? 

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Christmas Tree Nail Art

Likely the last of my super simple Christmas nail art endeavors, here's a little Christmas tree accent nail. I was inspired by my Christmas tree decorating that I did with the boyf. (see on Instagram here). I've finally moved back home. So, there's access to my full polish stash, which means there's a bit more than red, white, and black involved in this one. 

As per usual, I used Essie First Base as a base coat to protect my natural nails. Then I painted all of my nails with Covergirl Golden Opportunity*. I free-handed a triangle shape with the tip of the polish brush using a green, Revlon Posh. Then I dotted on some lights with the back of a makeup brush with OPI Solitaire*, another dot for the top of the tree with Ciate Big Yellow Taxi. Next, I topped the tree with Orly Mermaid Tale*, a green glitter for extra dimension. Lastly, I sealed in the deal with the Revlon Gel Envy Top Coat*. 

This Christmas tree was SUPER easy to create. For something more detailed, check out Jayne's close up Christmas Tree Mani here. 

What do you think? Would you wear a Christmas Tree on your nails? 

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Manicure MOOO-nday

Happy MOOO-nday. Taking a little break from the Christmas-themed manicures, this is yet another attempt to work with capsule collection of  6 nail polishes I have at school (black, white, nude, red, glitter). 

No need for detailed instructions because I created this manicure using the above Bubzbeauty video. It looks like it takes some time to get in all the details, but when it comes down to it, this manicure is actually quite simple - a white base with some black blobs. 

Products Used: Quo by Orly Nail Polish in Purity*, NYC Nail Polish in Black Cream Lace*, Rimmel London Salon Pro Nail Polish in Soul Session*, the Body Shop Nail Art Pen*

Will you be trying out this manicure? Isn't it udderly cute? 

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Santa Holiday Nail Art

Nail art is the best form of final exam procrastination. I've taken all but 7 polishes back to Toronto, so luckily the colours that I've got at school are holiday-ready. My Tim Horton's sweater cup inspired nails used the same colours and tools (check it out here). Today's mani is a simple little Santa on an accent nail of your choosing. 

Products Used: Essie First Base, Essie Plumberry, NYC Black Cream Lace*, Quo by Orly Purity*, the Body Shop Nail Art Pen*, and Revlon Gel Envy Diamond Top Coat*

To create Santa Claus on your nails... 

1. Apply a base coat. 
2. Paint half of your nail white. 
3. Paint the 1/4 of your nail closest to the cuticle in red. 
4. Fill in the sides of the nails with white using a dotting tool. 
5. Make large dots along the red polish to create the rim of Santa's hat. 
6. Add two black dots in the un-polished area for Satna's eyes and one red dot in the centre of the large white area for his nose. 
7. Apply a top coat to seal in the deal. 

... Voila! and there you have it. Santa on your nails with three colours of polish and a dotting tool. So cute and relatively simple. 

What do you think of this nail art design? Will you give this one a shot? 

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Sweater Weather Nail Art Inspired by Tim Horton's Coffee Cups

HAPPY DECEMBER! I don't drink coffee but I purchased one solely for the purpose of pairing the Tim Horton's holiday cup design with my nails. Silly me got a small instead of a regular and ended up with a brown cup instead of a red one ._. whooops. Anyways, behold the sweater-inspired nails! 

There's not much to it. I did my nails like I normally would using a base coat (Essie First Base) and a couple coats of my current favourite winter red (Essie Plumberry). For the sweater pattern, I dipped the finer side of the Body Shop Nail Art Pen into a white polish (Quo by Orly Purity*) and carefully drew a combination of dots and lines onto my nails. It's pretty simple, granted it did take quite a bit of time. For the snowflake-esque nail (ring finger), I used a bit of scotch tape to create clean lines that were not so simple with the Body Shop Nail Pen*. To seal in the deal, I used my favourite gel top coat that's supposed to be paired with the Revlon Gel Envy Base + Color polishes but I use it with everything (Revlon ColorStay Gel Envy Diamond Top Coat*). 

Products Used: Essie First Base, Essie Plumberry, Quo by Orly Purity*, Revlon Gel Envy Diamond Top Coat*, The Body Shop Nail Pen* 

The Body Shop Nail Pen ($6) is truly the star of the show in this little nail art design. Contrary to the name, the Body Shop Nail Pen is actually a dual-ended DOTTING TOOL. I used it to draw fine lines and make polka dots. Although the fine point does not create lines quite as precise as a striping tool or tape but it does the trick if it's the only tool you've got on hand. 

In all honesty, this wasn't the simplest or quickest of nail art designs, but the end result proved to be worth it. I must have received 5+ compliments for each day I wore this out albeit... they were probably only looking at my left hand. 

What do you think of this nail art design? What are you wearing on your nails this holiday season? 

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Back to School Nail Art + Haul #agreatstart

Back to school is only a couple weeks away. Depressing, I know, but at least there's back to school shopping... for supplies... but not school supplies, nail art supplies! Back to school is the perfect time to update your look. Plus, even if you're not in school, why not start the fall off right with some brand new beauty products :) 

The LOOK: A lilac base (Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish in I Lilac You) with accents of "school-related" stuff drawn with the Kiss Nail Art Paint & Stencil Kit, as well as three glitter nails (using Hard Candy Nail Polish in 799 Soda Pop). 

THE HAUL: So... I was gifted a $50 Walmart gift card to shop for items for a "Total Nail Treatment". Given the huge nail art selection, I was really impressed with how much I could buy with $50. At your typical drugstore markups I could probably only get half of what I purchased during my trip to Walmart. I'm pretty basic when it comes to nail treatments. I mostly focus on the nail basics (remover, cotton rounds, and polishes). Here's what I picked up: 

• Pro-Series Latex-Free 30 Premium Wedges // $5 
• PUREDERM Green Tea Essence Mask // $1.88 (not nail related but while you do your nails, you may as well work on your skin too!)
• Hello Kitty Peelable Nail Polish // $3.97
• Swisspers Make-offs Hypoallergenic Cotton // $2.94
• Kiss Nail Artist Paint & Stencil Kit // $10.97
• Rimmel 60 Seconds Polish in I Lilac You  // $2.98
• Rimmel 60 Seconds Polish in Hot White Love // $2.98
• Hard Candy Nail Color in 799 Soda Pop // $3.98
• Equate Non-Acetone Nail Polish Remover // $1.87
• Sally Hansen Color Foil Nail Polish // $6.94

TOTAL (with tax): $49.16

Overall, I could create at least 10 different nail art designs with the stuff I picked up. I'm really happy with my purchases and can't wait to do more with what I picked up. Also, I'll DEFINITELY be reviewing that Hello Kitty polish (spoiler: it smells like blueberries!) 

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Facebook and Google Plus Nails with Born Pretty Store Stamping Set and Plate

PSA on social media - I love my readers and blogging friends (aka you) and the best way to reach out to your audience is social media... so since my beginnings with blogging (November 2012), I've forced myself to figure out what's what and how to use the what. I find social media quite the struggle - as a young'un (yes, that's what I call myself), my "followers" on instagram, twitter, facebook, and google plus consist of close friends, strangers, and everything in between. Managing two accounts for "real life" and "blogging life" would be painstakingly time consuming. So my makeshift solution is to find the perfect balance between life posts and blogging stuff...I'm still working on it.

Anyways, it's Monday, and Monday calls for manicures. I guess that means it's social media Monday this time around, as my manicures feature Facebook and Google Plus. Both of which I know I underutilize as a blogger (I'm a bigger fan of the twittersphere and the instagramz).

Nail art stamping is way easier than it looks. (1) paint a layer of polish over the metal plate (2) scrape off the excess polish (3) press the stamper over the metal plate (4) press the stamper over your nail to transfer over the design.

Products Used: 

• Born Pretty Store Dual Double Sided Stamper and Scraper ($2.99)
• Born Pretty Store Nail Art Stamp Template Most Popular Internet Logo Pattern QA78 ($1.99)
• Essie First Base 
• Bourjois French Manicure Nail Polish in Blanc Glamour 
• Rimmel 60 Seconds Rita Ora Nail Polish in Midnight Rendezvous (Facebook) 
• CoverGirl Outlast Stay Brilliant Nail Gloss in Ever Reddy (Google Plus) 
• Nail HQ Gel Top Coat 

Have you ever tried nail art stamping? 

Get 10% off your purchase at Born Pretty Store with the code UAUT10

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CoverGirl Outlast Stay Brilliant Nail Gloss in Snow Storm

In the beginning of June, I professed my love for white nails, noting my struggle with finding the perfect white polish. The struggle is real but I think it's over. Once upon a time, the CoverGirl Outlast Stay Brilliant Nail Gloss in Snow Storm made its way into my mailbox and I fell in love. 

Consistent with the other colours in the CoverGirl Outlast Stay Brilliant Nail Gloss range (Skylight, Appletini, Orange Oasis) the formula is neither thin nor thick and definitely not gloopy or streaky. Despite being white, Snow Storm is surprisingly opaque in 2 coats (sometimes you'll need three depending on how good you are at applying polish). It stays put without chipping for 3-4 days and is so shiny that it doesn't require a top coat. Something about this polish just works for me and I like it.

Of course, this isn't a perfect white polish. I'd much rather have a one-coat white polish (which I don't think I'll ever find). I'm still open to trying more white polishes but for now this is my go-to for the perfect white nail or a great nail art base. 

Have you tried any polishes from the CoverGirl line? 

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Color Club Nail Polish in Poetic Hues

The Color Club Nail Polish in Poetic Hues is my first venture into the Color Club brand of which I received in the Wantable Limited Edition Holiday Box 2013. 

Poetic Hues is a slightly peachy off-white. The brush makes it a bit hard to work around the cuticles and the formula is quite streaky. It's opaque in three coats and lasts 2 days without chipping. Overall, I like this polish as an alternative to white but the formula kinda turns me off, so it doesn't get a lot of use. 

Do you like Color Club Nail Polishes? Their holo polishes look amazing! 

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Maybelline Color Show Nail Lacquer in Tenacious Teal

I've mentioned the Maybelline Color Show Nail Lacquer in Tenacious Teal* on numerous occasions (see here and here and here) and I thought it was about time that it deserved a swatch on it's own. I'm not going to say too much. For the most part, I'll just let you bask in all it's green glory. 

The Maybelline Color Show Nail Lacquer in Tenacious Teal is, obviously, a deep green teal colour. Lasting power without a topcoat is 2 days, average for most polishes. It's opaque in two coats and there's something about the brush that makes it so easy to paint my nails without the need for cuticle cleanup. 

Dark enough for winter, bright enough for fall. Tenacious teal has got it all. 

Have you tried any Maybelline nail polishes? 

Featured product received for review to feature on the BlushPretty.com blog. 

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