Fall Jelly Sandwich: Zoya Katherine + Spoiled Jewelry Heist

Hey Lacqueristas!

I've got a quick post for you today.  I wanted to do a jelly sandwich featuring fall colors and what better polish to use than Zoya Katherine?!?  When I got the Zoya Gloss trio, I thought that this would be my least favorite of the three, but I'm pleasantly surprised with how this turned out. 

This sandwich started with 2 coats of Katherine, followed by Jewelry Heist, and a final coat of Katherine.

What do you think?  Have you tried out any of the Zoya Gloss' for jelly sandwiches?

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

Go Tigers!!!

Hey Lacqueristas!

Since it's World Series time, being a Detroiter, I have to show some love for the home team.  So far we have won 4 World Series championships and it's time for another!  

On to the nails...

No flash

With flash

I really love how the accent nail turned out.  I was kinda skeptical about how my freehand would turn out, especially since I had too much coffee this morning and my hands were kinda shaky O_o 

The Tiger stripes are Jiffy Orange from Milani (two coats) stamped with Kleancolor Black. The image comes from MASH-38. The white is two coats of SHID Whirlwind White.  For the "D", I used Revlon Royal and SHID Rapid Red for the baseball stitching.

There was a bit of smearage when I added the topcoat, but it's not as noticeable on the pics as it is in real life.  I went to Sally's today just to get some Seche Vite, but I picked up the Seche Clear by mistake.  I did not realize this until I started applying it and saw the streaks.  Hopefully they will let me exchange it.

Thanks for stopping by! Happy Polishing!!       GO TIGERS!

AIS Challenge: Spiders

Hey Lacquer Lovers!

I know I have not been posting regularly, but life has been keeping me pretty busy lately.

So the nails that I have for you today were done for the AIS Sunday Stamping Challenge.  This week's theme was Spooky and Scary.  First, I attempted a haunted graveyard design for this challenge but it was not coming together how I wanted, so I scrapped that idea, and I'll try it again another time. 

What I ended up with was a cute but not too scary spider mani.  For the base color, I used 2 coats of China Glaze Gothic Lolita.  The stamping was done with SHID Silver Sweep and Kleancolor Black.  The images I used come from BM-13, MASH-38, SH09 and SH01

So sorry for the extra rough looking cuticles on the last pic.  I moisturized before taking the pic, but obviously not enough :)

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

Breast Cancer Awareness

Today, I have a manicure to share with you in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month.  Breast cancer is the second most diagnosed cancer among American women, and it is estimated that it will affect 1 in 8 women over their lifetime.  Early detection of breast cancer is key to helping save more lives.  Get to know your body, do self breast exams every month.  At the end of this post, I will have links to resources if you would like more information. 

Now on to the nails...



I finally got around to doing the saran-wrap marble method...and I love it! It's so easy and I will definitely be doing this again.  I started with a two coats of Zoya Shelby, when that was dry, I added a coat of Zoya Reagan and sponged it off using a small piece of balled up saran-wrap.  It's best to work one nail at a time because the polish must be wet to adhere to the saran-wrap, and use a new piece of saran-wrap for each nail. 

I added a coat of Fairy Dust by China Glaze and the a coat of Seche Vite.  For the words and the ribbon, I used acrylic paints and a small detail brush from MASH.

I wish my words were a bit neater, but I think it's good for my first attempt. 

If you would like more information on Breast Cancer, check out the links below.


Save the TaTa's
Susan G. Komen
Breast Self Exam


Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

Sally Hansen Lustre Shine Lava

Hey Lacqueristas!

I've got one of my new pretties to share with you today. Last week I picked up most of the shades from the new Sally Hansen Lustre Shine collection. The only shade from the collection that I did not grab was Plume because it seemed to be another Chanel Peridot dupe.  I already have two and don't need another. 

Today I'm wearing Lava, which is a gorgeous metallic multichrome.  This one flashes from pink(mostly) to copper to gold, and it has a foil-like finish.  In these pics I'm wearing two coats of Lava.  The polish itself was on the thick side, but needed at least two coats for opacity.

 

This is the predominant color

 

Here, you can see the copper flash

This color reminds me so much of changing leaves. It's so pretty and I just keep staring at my nails and moving them around to see the pretty colors shifting :)

And here's where it all just goes bad... So after one day of wear, you know I wanted to add something extra.  I mean, it's very rare that I wear just polish without some kind of art.  I took me a while to decide what to do and the I remembered some nail art supplies that I ordered from Dollar Nail Art a while back.  I saw the laser lace and thought the it would look cool over this.

 

 

Application of the laser lace was fairly easy.  I added a layer of clear polish (no name), cut a piece of the lace to fit my nail,and applied the lace while the polish was still tacky.  Then I cut the little extra pieces off with my cuticle nipper.  I added a thick coat of Seche Vite to smooth it all out. 

 

I started with and accent nail, and should have stopped there.  But...I decided to try a french design on the rest of the nails.  Then I added some loose hex glitter at the bottom of the lace. 

 

Hated it!  First of all, the lace blends into the base color too much, and then my attempt at french was all crooked.  So I stopped with these three nails and decided to take it all off.  I will definitely be using the laser lace again but over a darker color.

 

Have you ladies been able to get you hands on the polishes from this collection?

 

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

 

 

Teal Tuesday: Mani Swap

Hey Lacquer Lovers!

Today's Teal Tuesday challenge has been my favorite yet.  This week all the girls in the group were matched up with another member, and you had to re-create their masterpiece, using teal of course.  I was matched up with Amanda over at Mandy's Polish.  She's got some really cute nail art and it was hard to pick just one.  I ended up choosing to re-create her back to school plaid mani.  I wanted to do something that was not stamping, so this was something that I had to try. 

 

I'm pleased with how this turned out, although I wish that my stripes were thinner. 

 

I used 2 coats of Milani Mint Candy for the base color.  Next, I made an off center stripe with China Glaze Snow Globe.  This is such a pretty iridescent glitter polish that would work well with many colors.  Then I used a black striper polish by LA Colors Art Deco. 

 

Head on over to Mandy's Polish and check out the original.  And while you're at it check out the rest of the ladies participating  in this challenge.

Teal Tuesday: 3 Color Mani

Hello Ladies!

Today's Teal Tuesday mani is pretty straightforward.  Three colors, at least one of the teal.  So I tried a tape technique that I've seen around the nail community.  The look was very easy to achieve and I see more of these mani's with different colors in my crystal ball.

I started off with Sinful Colors Black On Black for the base color.  Then I brought out my beloved China Glaze Bohemian's.  I used Deviantly Daring and No Plain Jane, one coat of each.

 

I included this last pic to hopefully show off the duochrome finish.  You can see that Deviantly Daring shows up more blue on the index and middle fingers, and more green on the other two. 

 

Thanks for stopping by.  Happy Polishing!

 

Nouveau Vintage + BM 314

Hey Lacquer Lovers!

Fall is in the air and I cant wait to dive into all of the rich, deep colors of the season!

The nails that I have for you today were originally done for the AIS Stamping Sunday challenge, but I did not have time to post them.

I used a beautiful metallic color from Studio M called Nouveau Vintage.  As some of you may know,  Studio M is made by the same folks that do Color Club and the polish names and colors are identical.  I get my Studio M polishes from Meijer and the cost less than the Color Club versions.

These pics show two coats of Nouveau Vintage.  This is such a unique color, like pewter, bronze, olive, and brick all wrapped up into one.   I wanted to see what it would look like matified, so I use Hard Candy Matt-ly In Love on the ring finger. 

For the stamping, I used Silver Sweep (SHID) and BM 314.

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

Orange and Gold Ruffian

Hey Lacqueristas!

Got a quick post today for you today. I just wanted to share with you some nails that I did for a wedding that I attended last weekend. I did this mani to match my dress which was a burnt orange color with a gold belt, and the colors matched the dress perfectly.

 

The colors the I used were Maybelline Color Show in Bold Gold and Zoya Myrta.  The second picture is the most color accurate.

 

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

Teal Tuesday: Something Sweet

Hello my Lacquered Lovelies!

It took me a while to figure out what to do for this theme because in my mind teal and sweets just don't mesh. So I decided to try my hand at the spun sugar technique.

 

 

It actually looks pretty good IRL, but with the macro settings the pics look like a lumpy, bumpy mess.  I know that this kind of nail art is supposed to be textured, and that's what I like about it, but I could really do without the big globs.   Also, this method is very time consuming.  With the waiting for the polish to get stringy, it took about 10 minutes to do one nail.

Now on to the polishes.  For the base, I used 2 coats of Zoya Wednesday.  For the lines, I was going for a gradient look. I used (in order from the cuticle up) Zoya Zuza, Sally Hansen Insta Dry Blue Streak and Sinful Colors See You Soon.

Have you tried this technique before? 

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

Check out the other ladies participating in Teal Tuesday.

AIS Stamping Sunday Challenge: Falling Leaves

Hello All!

I think I'm just gonna get this post done before it is no longer Sunday.  This week in Adventures in Stamping our theme is Falling Leaves.  I'm so ready for this time of the year.  In the evenings the temperature feels fall-ish here, but it's warm and sunny during the day. The leaves haven't started to change yet, but I can make definitely make that happen on my nails!

 

For the stamping, there were several plates and polishes that went into making this mani happen.  So I'll give you a rundown of the image plates first.  We have:

 

BM 19 & BM 04 - index finger

RA-118, RA-121 & BM 03 - middle finger

BM 04 & BM 03 - ring finger

BM 19 &  RA-115 - pinky finger

 

Now on to the polishes:

China Glaze Agro

China Glaze Unplugged

Avon Bronze

Avon Copper

Kleancolor Metallic Orange

For the base of this mani, I used 2 coats of China Glaze Heaven. I'm kinda on the fence about this polish.  I like the color, but it seems kinda patchy on my nails, and as you can see there is a bit of VNL.  One more coat would be needed if I were to wear this polish on its own.

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

Dupe or No Dupe: China Glaze No Plain Jane -vs- Nicole by OPI Iris My Case

Hi Ladies!

As I was going thru my stash a while back, I was amazed by how many polishes that I have that are possible dupes.  Well, I guess I shouldn't be that amazed, I mean I do have over 400 polishes. And I just keep adding more. 

So today, I'm gonna compare two of my newer pretties China Glaze No Plane Jane and Nicole by OPI Iris My Case. 

 

They look just about identical in the bottle, and it also carries over to the nail. In the pictures below, I have on three coats of each with no topcoat.

 

 

Iris My Case has a slightly thicker formula than No Plane Jane.  Both polishes have decent dry times. I do prefer IMC only because I like the wider brush. I feel like I have more control over the polish and it's easier to get a nice line down near the cuticle (which makes for less cleanup).

Verdict: Dupes!!

Which one do you have in you collection, or do you have both?

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

Teal Tuesday: Geometric

Hey Lacquer Lovers!

Today I have a Teal Tuesday mani for you. It has been a while since I participated, but I'm trying to get back in the swing of things. This week the theme was to do a mani based on a geometric design or pattern.  So let me show you what I came up with. 

First, I did a gradient with China Glaze Exotic Encounters and Zoya Wednesday.  For the stamping, I tried to find a design that would cover the full nail, but let a good amount of the base polish show through.  This image comes from the Bundle Monster plate 322.  The stamping polish is Sally Hansen Lickety Split Lime.  Usually I like the Sally Hansen Insta Dry polishes for stamping,  but this time it did not come out as opaque as I would have liked. 

So I also have a picture of the gradient before the stamping.

Check out the other ladies participating in Teal Tuesday!

My First Guest Post!

Hey Lacqueristas!

Today my first guest post is up over at Mandy's Polish.  I am so excited to be featured on her blog.  She does some great mani's. So if you haven't already head on over and check out my guest post and shoe her blog some love.

http://mandyspolish.blogspot.com/2012/09/guest-blogger-friday-lacquered-libra.html

China Glaze Bohemian Collection Water Marble

Hey Ladies!

Lately, I had been trying to think of a way that I could use all of the China Glaze Bohemian colors in one mani.  So water marble it is. You can see swatches of all the colors here .  I'm somewhat pleased with how this turned out.  Not because of the polishes, but because of my technique.  I was rushing because I was sleepy, but I know if I had taken my time, the design would have been better.

I used Kleancolor Black as the base for the water marble.  Each of the Bohemian colors was used (dropped in the water) once.  I think these may be the easiest colors I have water marbled with so far.  I had no problems with the colors spreading, although you have to work quickly, because they dry fast.  The end result reminds me of an oil slick.



Left hand with China Glaze Unpredictable



Right hand with China Glaze Swanky Silk



 

For some reason, my thumbs always seem to have the best designs when I do a watermarble.

 

Thanks for stopping by.  Happy Polishing!

 



Layered Stamping: BM 208 + BM 312

Hey Lacqueristas!

The mani that I have for you today was done for Adventures in Stamping.  This Sunday's theme was something that you have learned from the group.  I have seen some of the ladies layer full nail images over one another and I loved the effect, so that's what I'm gonna show you today.  I have done layering before, usually with a full nail image for the base with one or two of the smaller images on top, but never two full nail images together.

So for this mani, I started with Kleancolor Pearl Jungle over basecoat.  Pearl Jungle is a gorgeous seafoam green with a glass fleck finish. Then I stamped the first image, BM 312, with Zoya Tracie.

 

I really like the effect of this image.  I kinda looks like brushstrokes.  Next, I stamped BM 208 with Kleancolor Black. 

 

 

 

All together I think I looks like shattered sea glass.  What do you think? 

 

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

Classic French + One Stroke Flower

Hey Lacquerheads!

Today, I could not decide what I wanted to do with my nails, so I decided to keep it simple and do a classic french manicure.  This is the first time that I did a pink and white french without the tip guides and I think that this was much easier.  I never cared for the way the my french mani's turned out using the tip guides, because there was always some polish that managed to seep under the guide even though I would press it on the nail as thoroughly as I could.  Then when I took the guide off, the base polish would come off with it.  I guess that could be due to rushing, and of course this was before I discovered the one and only Seche Vite.

So let me get on with it and show you how I did it. 

First, I painted my nails with basecoat.  Lately, I have been using Sally Hansen Triple Strong Nail Fortifier. I used it before many years ago,  but let me tell you, I'm loving this stuff right now. I haven't had any breaks since I started using it (and I did yardwork today, so that's saying alot!).

Next, I used Sally Hansen Insta Dry in Whirlwind White to pain the tips.  I wasn't being all careful like and trying to pain perfect smile lines. I simply painted the tips the same way that I would paint the rest of my nails. 

 

I know it looks messy, but here's where the acetone comes in. I used the same brush that I use for cleanup, dipped in acetone to "erase" the polish and make the smile line.  Then I used Orly Beverly Hills Manicure in Beverly Hills Plum from the cuticle up to the smile line.  Topped it all off with Seche Vite.

 

 

 

And you know me...Gotta add something extra. This was too "Plane Jane" for my taste. So I tried my hand at a one stroke flower.  I'm happy with how the flower came out for my first time, but the squigglies left a lil something to be desired.

 



 

I used acrylic paints by Americana, Lavender and Snow White for the flower, and Lamp Black and Snow White for the squigglies. 

 

 

Thanks for stopping by, glad to have ya!  Happy Polishing!



Finger Paints Iconic Orange

Hey Ladies!

Today I have a superbright mani for you. If you have been keeping up with my posts, you know that I am LOVIN' the bright colors. Orange is a color that is close to my heart, but hasn't been getting much love on my blog. But, I'm trying to change that...So here we go.

 

This mani features 3 coats of Finger Paints Iconic Orange with topcoat. It has your typical neon matte finish. Even though I used 3 coats there is still a bit of VNL. This polish is so bright that my camera could not capture all of it's neon loveliness. This color is more red toned IRL than the picture shows.

For the accent nail, I did a dot gradient, with the dots getting smaller from the tip to the cuticle.  I didn't quite accomplish what I was going for, as you can see with the middle stripe.  But this is a learning process, right?  And please forgive the smudge on the index finger,  I had to potty before it was "polish safe".

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

 

Dotticure: A Monkey See Monkey Do Mani

Hey Lacqueristas!

I know I haven't been posting regularly lately.  I've been feeling kinda uninspired lately, and what better to get the creative juices flowing than Monkey See Monkey Do Monday?

So my nailspiration for todays mani comes from Lucy's Stash.

I switched it up just a bit and used a slightly different color.  Actually this polish is the same color as my scrubs, so my nails will match my outfit (uniform) at work tonight.  And it reflects the weather here today.  It's overcast and rainy out today, perfect sleeping weather (which is what I plan to do when I finish this post).

Now on to the nails...

 

For this mani I used Color Club Hydrangea, which is a dusty periwinkle blue shade.  The dots were made with Sinful Colors Black on Black and various sized dotting tools from MASH.

 

Thanks for checkin' me out.  Happy Polishing!

 

China Glaze Rare & Radiant + RA-112

Hey Lacquer Lovers.  Today I have my first mani from China Glaze's Bohemian Luster Chrome Collection.  I used Rare & Radiant, which is one of my favorites because it has the most multichromatic finish.  This is really a beautiful color on it's own (you can see the swatch here) but of course I've gotta add a lil sumthin extra.





For the stamping I used Red Angel image plate RA-112 with Kleancolor Black.  Everytime I looked at this image, I thought that it was kinda odd, but now that it's on my nails I'm kinda diggin it.  It reminds me of the jungle.


So thanks for stoppping by.  Happy Polishing!