Vibrant Gradient and Geometric Nails

Hey everyone, sorry I haven't been as present in the social media world blogosphere this week. I have multiple night meetings for work and a last-minute visit from my dad – so I've been quite busy.

Today I have some awesomely vibrant nails I wore for a bit last week, they are just so lovely and I can't wait to show you!



This was made using my Creative Stamper, which I'm still trying to get the hang of. But I just love the look of the gradient, it turned out soooo pretty.



So for the gradient I started out with a base of Kiko Melon, which is a yellowish creme I got when visit Europe last summer. Then using a makeup sponge I added a gradient using OPI Aloha From OPI (coral) and Lost My Bikini in Molokini (purple). I really loved how this turned out.

I wanted to add something extra, and normally I add a bit of China Glaze Fairy Dust here but I had a linear holographic top coat mini polish that I had been meaning to break out so I did. This awesome holo top coat is Spectraflair 35 Top Coat by Spectraflair4U (which I got in my Santa's Secret Sack in December) and it gave this gradient and an awesome holographic effect without really taking too much away from the gradient. I am in love with this now as a gradient topper!







Then I added stamping using my Bundle Monster BM-604 stamping plate using my creative stamper. I think I am still getting the hang of properly using the stamper. I see it's benefits, but I find it is hard to pick up full images from the plate, though it is easier to stamp on images to the nail.

It seems like maybe it is good for bigger images and getting straight lines, but fine detailed stamps do not work well with the stamper I find. I plan on discussing this more online today to see if there are tricks I need to use when trying to play around with the Creative Stamper. So far, it's not my favorite.

Have you tried the Creative Stamper yet? How do you like it? Got any tips for me, please share them in the comments!!!

Indie Metallic Holo Comparison Showdown

Happy Monday everyone! When I got back from my girls weekends in San Luis Obispo earlier today, I had a nail mail package courtesy of Fair Maiden Polish. Recently I purchased a few newer polishes they had released when they restocked their Garden Party collection just last weekend.

Included in this order was another golden holo polish, and while I wanted to compare it immediately to the LE Fair Maiden Polish I had that was similar, I realized I probably had a whole slew of golden holo indie polishes I could compare.

So off to my shelf I went in search of some comparable golden holos. It's definitely been one of those colors I have purchased a lot of lately. And who doesn't love gold?! It is the perfect accent for any look.

While in search on comparable golden holos, I realized I had some other metallic holo polishes I wished to compare. So since I was super busy last week and left you with nothing on Friday, I thought I'd include two comparisons in one post – an Indie Metallic Holo Comparison Showdown!!!



Now I'll start with the golds, since that was my original mission. None of these are exact dupes, but they are similar.



The cast of characters in this comparison are, from thumb to pinkie, Different Dimension Armstrong, F.U.N. Lacquer TGIF, Fair Maiden Polish Gilded Garden, Fair Maiden Polish Secret Garden and ILNP Iconic.







 

Application on all of these were very easy to manage. Armstrong, TGIF and Iconic all were opaque in two coats. The Fair Maidens had a thicker consistency and took three coats for perfect opacity.

The differences in these polish is varied. I would say Armstrong leans more champagne with copper gold chrome flakies and has the strongest linear holo finish. TGIF has a more true gold finish with matching chrome flakies and a more scattered less strong linear holo finish. Gilded Garden is also a golden holo with pink iridescent flakies which create a lovely pink flash. Secret Garden has those same flakies but a more coppery gold finish. Both the Fair Maiden Polishes had a softer scattered holo finish. I would describe Iconic as a rosy, lavender-leaning gold holo polish with brighter golden flakies throughout (which I never noticed before comparing all these polishes side by side) and a strong linear holo finish.

Now let's take a look at the chrome flakie holos I had that I had been itching to compare for quite some time now!



This case of characters contains only two brands – ILNP and Indigo Bananas. The Indigo Bananas polishes here were released well before the INLP flakie craze that has been flooding the interwebs lately – so they definitely hold a special place in my heart. The colors, from index to pinkie are, Indigo Bananas Taffeta, Darling?, ILNP Happily Ever After, Indigo Bananas Bridal Veil and ILNP Fame.







All of these polishes had the same great coverage and application. Opaque in two coats, smooth application and no difficulty with the flakies sticking up or creating texture here.

I think the biggest differences in these polishes lie in their content and holo finishes. The Indigo Bananas seem to have a more scattered less dense holo finish with heavier emphasis on the flakies. While the ILNP has a strong linear holo finish with much more holo content per polish, balancing the holo with the flakies. Also Happily Ever After and Taffeta, Darling? are clearly different shades of purple and Fame has some golden flakies as well, making it the slightest bit more golden that the straight silver flakies in Bridal Veil.

While all these colors are definitely similar, I am sure glad that I have them all and can definitely see a purpose for all of them!

Do you have any of these polishes? What do you think? Which of these do you like the most?!

Indigo Bananas Color of the Fire

Hey guys, today I have another amazing polish to share with you from Indigo Bananas Holo Mega Chrome Flakies Collection!

*Press Sample*

This is Indigo Bananas Color of the Fire Holo and it is a gorgeous multichrome stunner that has a different look to it every time you look at it.



Indigo Bananas Color of the Fire shifts from fushcia to gold to green to blue and is stunning in all different lights! The flakies provide really great coverage and the holo pigment is strong and packs a punch. This polish is opaque in three coats and applies like a breeze with the flakies laying flat on the nail. I've been very impressed with the coverage of these Holo Mega Chrome Flakies, I feel like these polishes have the perfect balance of holo and flakies! Let's see some more swatches!





So I added some fun stamping from UberChic Beauty 1-03 plate, that really reminded me of water for some reason. Then when looking for another stamp to compliment it, I came across the cutest whale stamp from my Winstonia W108 plate and just had to add it.



Then because I'm wacky and can't leave well enough alone, I tried to add a smile to the whale and clearly failed. Whomp, whomp. You can't win them all. But I like the addition of blue to this look!



Let's take one more look at this stunning polish close up shall we?!



Mmmm, shifty holo amazing!

Indigo Banana's Holo Mega Chrome Flakies are available now on the Indigo Bananas website and retail for $12 for full size (15ml) and $7.25 for a mini (8ml). 

You can look for Indigo Bananas news on their Facebook page and Instagram account, and if you are an Indigo Bananas lover, you should totally join us in the We're Bananas for Indigo Bananas Facebook fan group, the more the merrier!

Let me know what you think about these fabulous holo flakies in the comments! Have you snagged any of the Indigo Bananas beauties yet?!

Smitten Polish Opalescent Elements Collection

Hey you guys, today I have some super exciting swatches of a brand new collection from Smitten Polish! Now it's summer and all over the place I am seeing either neon cremes or holos, it's a neon parade out there but today I am honored to share with you something different! Neon jelly flakies!

*Press Sample*

This four piece collection is the Smitten Polish Opalescent Elements collection and it consists of four jelly flakie polishes, unlike anything I've seen out on the market. These polishes will be available on the Smitten Polish website April 25 2 p.m. CT!



First off let's talk formula. All of these were very similar in formula so I'll group it all together. These polishes each applied very easily in three coats. The first coat is rather sheer since the polish is a jelly base. It builds up quite well in the second coat, and many might stop there, but I have some wicked stains growing out on my nails and I felt like you could see that still, so I added a third coat.

The polish applies quite easily, with the flakies (which vary in size) laying flat on the nail. The polishes dry a tad matte (not totally though, somewhere between that and shiny), and each swatch has a top coat. So let's get to those wonderful swatches shall we?!





This is Ignis Opal. This is a bright in your face coral leaning pink with golden orange iridescent flakies. I like this take on the bright coral pink, it reminds me of a fire-y sunset!







This is Aqua Opal, and guys, I have been dreaming of a polish like this for a long time. This is a bright neon blue with green iridescent flakies. As you can tell in the above photo, I have this pendant on my necklace (which I never take off) of Lake Tahoe and I've always wanted to layer polishes to match this pendant. Now I don't have to layer a thing, I have it all in one bottle. I looooove this polish so so much!





This is Terra Opal, which is a bright in your face neon green with lime green flakies, similar to Aqua Opal. This polish is so bright and reminds me of the green slime from Nickelodeon's Double Dare, that takes you back doesn't it?! Either that or it totally ages me. ;-p





Rounding out the collection we have Aer Opal, which is a lovely neon purple (more on the warm magenta side, than the royal cooler side) with golden iridescent flakies similar to Ignis Opal.

And because I love to combine polishes to create a cohesive look, I of course had to nail art these amazing polishes! I wore this look for four days and I can say with confidence these polishes wear quite well and do not stain one bit!









This look was photographed in direct and indirect light, and outside in the sun and in the shade, which gives you a better idea of what the polishes look like in all lighting situations! Also now you can see them all side by side, which gives you an idea of their differences and similarities all in one look.

I used nail vinyls to create the Vs and then used a dotting tool to dot all four colors on my thumb nail. I just looooved how this turned out. I think the thumb reminds me of party lights, you know the kind that are in a dome and move all about the room to create a party atmosphere? Like at cheesy eighth grade dances and such!?!

Honestly I couldn't pick a favorite out of this collection, I seriously loved each one of these equally and I do believe I will be wearing these again and again over the summer! I definitely want to slap a few of these in a pedicure too because they are bright and vibrant and unique!

Now as a reminder, these polishes hit the Smitten Polish site April 25 at 2 p.m. CT and you don't want to miss out on them!

So let me know what you think?! Do you love neons?! Are you over them already and it isn't even summer yet? What about this take on flakies? Share with me your thoughts in the comments!

Easy But Elegant Nail Art: Double Side Dot

So the first time I saw the double side dot look, I kept the idea in the back of my head of something I must do! I believe the first place I saw it was from McPolish on Instagram, so this is definitely not my own idea but one I wanted to share with the masses regardless!

Also I had seen ILNP Poetry and ILNP Happily Ever After paired before, and knew they would make the perfect combination for this look!







The formula for Poetry and Happily Ever After were great, wonderful two coaters both of them.

Happily Ever After, which is on the thumb and ring accents, is a lilac colored mega holographic which has gorgeous silver flakies throughout. The flakies make the polish glow in the shade and the holo finish makes it blinding in the sun! Awesome polish through and through.

Poetry is a magenta, warm leaning purple. Almost the color of a delicious sangria. But look close, there are magenta microflakies, giving the polish even more depth.

To make the side dot look, just use a dotting tool and add two dots to the side of your nail. Throw in an accent for an even more cute, coordinated look. Pretty simple to do, but a fun way to pair polishes!

Sorry this post is on the shorter side, I've had a busy week and it was my husband's birthday yesterday! But I've got some fun polishes to show you next week courtesy of Smitten Polish! I'll just leave a shot of the bottles right here as a little sneak peek! You won't want to miss these neon flakies!!!

Digital Nails Review

Hello everyone and Happy Hump Day!!! Today I've got another mini review of a new-to-me indie Digital Nails! Now this brand has been on my radar for some time, but I just never purchased from them for some reason. Fast forward to a few weeks ago when I had had a Moscow Mule or two and was on Instagram wanting to be enabled. Thanks to my friend Nichole over at Pretty Girl Science, she showed me the light!



I had an Etsy Gift Certificate from my birthday burning a hole in my pocket and Nichole mentioned Digital Nails and specifically The Dude Abides, and boy am I glad she told me about this polish!







You guys, this polish is OUT OF THIS WORLD. This polish seriously is topping my list of favorites for this year so far. I have not seen anything like it and I can't tell you how much I've been searching for the perfect crelly-flakie-holo combo and you guys this is IT!

This polish is a nude crelly finish packed with multi colored chrome flakies and holo microglitters with a lovely pink shimmer also. The depth and complexity of this polish just does not end. I got so distracted staring at my nails with this polish on – it brought me such utter delight!

This polish was on the sheerer side, as it is a crelly, but built up nicely in three thin coats. The formula was quite easy to work with actually, making me even more impressed!

And while I was wearing this I received my Fair Maiden Polish purchases, which included a limited edition polish – Gilded Garden. Gilded Garden is a lovely golden holographic polish with a pink shimmer that is hard to capture in a photo. I thought it would pair well with The Dude Abides, so I added a quick accent with a single chevron nail vinyl!





Ok so final word is you NEEEEED The Dude Abides. I cannot stop gushing about how much I love this beautiful polish! On to the next polish, but a quick warning first, please excuse my nubs in these next swatches. I had an unfortunate break over the weekend and now my nails are terribly short. Too short in my opinion!










This unique beauty is Digital Nails Natural Zesty Enterprise. This polish is an olive green crelly polish with cooler toned multichrome flakies interspersed throughout! The flakie load in this polish is more than in The Dude Abides, but the crelly formula seems a tad thinner. I used four coats for this swatch, but you could probably get by with three just fine.

Both Natural Zesty Enterprise and The Dude Abides retail for $12 in the Digital Nails Esty shop. 

This was my first experience with Digital Nails and it definitely did not disappoint. They have so many wonderful colors I'd be interested in trying out in their store, but these two were an amazing first shot!

Have you tried Digital Nails before? Have a color to recommend to me?! I'd love to hear about it! Which of these two polishes were your favorites?