A few weeks back now I met up with Carmela from Polished Indulgence.  This gorgeous, and much raved about OPI DS Extravagance is a gift that Carmela got for me.

* I got the idea of pairing this bow with the stripes from this post on Nailed It! (hers turned out much lovelier, but I hope you like my interpretation as well) *

I wore this manicure a week (or so) ago and am only now getting around to posting it here, and sharing it with you:

DS Extravagance is a medium-toned berry polish (with a smooth formula that is fully opaque in two coats)… oh, and did I mention this beauty is packed full of scattered holographic glitter?

For the accent nail I applied two coats of Sally Hansen Green Tea and and used a white striping polish to draw on the lines (please don’t judge how uneven they are) .  I then stamped using BornPretty Store fauxnad plate m59; finally, I dabbed on – using a dotting tool- some DS Extravagance over the black portions of the bow to make the less ‘stark’ looking.

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Thank you Carmela for giving me this gorgeous polish!  It now holds an honorable spot in my Helmer and will always remind me of our wonderful get together

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Do you own any of the OPI Designer Series shades?

Do you remember how/when you acquired your nail polish? Any special nail polish story you’d like to share with me?

THANK YOU FOR READING!

I hope all of you had a wonderful weekend!?

My weekend started off with a Friday night movie date with my hubby; we don’t get those very often because of our little ones, so this was a really nice treat (my younger sister Karolina babysat for us)

I was also able to tally up the votes in the “Dots of Fun Contest”.  Before I announce the winners, I just wanted to once again thank everyone who entered! Twenty-two incredible manicures is definitely a ROCKIN’ turn out!!!  You are ALL winners in my books; such creative dotticures, such great color choices, and such funny and witty props.  (I will once again apologize for the glitch in the voting process at the beginning.  I relied on technology to make things easier for myself … and only managed to muck things up.  I’m so sorry about the rocky start; I have learned my lesson and I hope that no one feels cheated or slighted).  That being said, two BornPrettyStore $25.00 shopping sprees (generously sponsored by the Born Pretty Store) are up for grabs.

So without further ado:

The winner of the BEST DOTTICURE is Carita with her intricate and mesmerizing dotticure in lovely retro shades:

The winner of the BEST PROP is Carmela!!!! She took a leap of faith with her ‘sanitary napkins’ (which by the way have really lovely packaging if I may say so), many of you responded positively, and this witty move paid off:

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

I hope you ladies are ready to buy some awesome nail art supplies at BornPretyStore.com!!! (I’d be excited to hear what you pick out)

Thank you again to everyone who entered AND voted!!! I once again had a chance to reflect on how extremely talented, friendly and supportive this group of nail-polish-enthusiasts really is!!!!   Thank you all for making this Contest such a success, and thank you BornPretty Store for such a generous sponsorship!!!!

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I have honestly had dots on my mind lately

Here is a little dotticure that I enjoyed wearing a few days back

This is two coats of Sally Hansen Lavender Cloud.  Lavender Cloud is an ever-so-slighly-leaning-lilac off-white shade.  I used BornPrettyStore plate m79 and MASH Nail Art Black to set the guidelines for the dots; I then used a dotting tool and covered all the dots with Cult Nails I Got Distracted.  The Accent nail is two coats of Essie Bikini so Teeny

Second to OPI MBSW, Lavender Cloud is my runner-up for lovely off-white-shades

Congratulations again to both winners of the “Dots of Fun” contest!

Have you had DOTS on your mind lately too?

THANK YOU FOR READING!

TGIF!!!!! I am just as excited about the weekend coming up as I am about sharing today’s post with you!!!

You know when you spot a manicure, like it, and ponder up ways on how to recreate it… but epically fail time after time?

Such was my story of woe with the Gradient Manicure… many-a failed attempt… until Sam from The Nailasaurus shared  THIS TUTORIAL.  Sam is a master at all things NAILS: freehand, stamping, gems and studs, and now SPONGED GRADIENTS!!!!

Thanks to Sam I am well on my way to mastering this sponged gradient manicure, and I hereby would like to dedicate this post to Sam!

(get it? NailaSAURUS… and my prop… a Dino-SAURUS )

Following Sam’s tutorial, I started out with one nearly-opaque coat of Sally Hansen Green Tea.

I then dipped my sponge in the ‘advised mixture’ of the lighter Green Tea and the darker shade, SOPI Ocean Love Potion.

I really was quite happy with the creamy gradient… and then, Cult Nails Hypnotize Me kept purring at me from my Helmer, then actually whimpering to be part of this gradient; now you tell me, how could I deny it the pleasure? (Plus, many of you Lovely Ladies encouraged me to try it via Twitter and Instagram)

ROAR!!!! Thank you Sam for sharing the tutorial that has enabled me to try this style of manicure! This is part of the reason I really like the blogging community- because we share our ideas and offer support and advice.

I’m one happy camper right now!!!

Was/is there a manicure style that you really like but struggle(d) to achieve? Was there something/someone who helped you out?

THANK YOU FOR READING!

Yup, it’s that time again… today is Wednesday and as you know, on Wednesdays We Wear Pink and show our stuff on Twitter!

It just so happens that I have a pink-ish manicure to contribute to the Wednesday Pinkness (I pulled this one from the ‘vault’ as it is a look I sported almost a month ago).

This is O’boy by Nail Glam.  I threw this into my shopping cart the last time I placed an online order with Harlow&Co.  This shade is a bit of a challenge for me to describe.  It is a soft peachy-pink that sometimes takes on faint dusty rose qualities; it really chameleons between soft and subdued to lively, fun, and bright.  This was two coats of creamy goodness.

In the bottle you can see some silver shimmer throughout the cream base, but that isn’t all that evident once on the nail… I am more than happy with this being a cream polish though.

For the accent nail I did one coat of Sally Hansen Celeb City and one coat of the new OPI Pirouette my Whistle from the recent Ballet Collection.

I really like dusty, pale chamelon-ish shades like this one.

I am not certain if Harlow&Co will continue carrying this shade as it is in the “Sale” section of their online store.  I purchased this bottle for $7.00 and you can grab yours (while it is still in stock) HERE.

Are you wearing pink today?

What do you think of the accent nail look?  I find myself playing with the accent nail more and more and would love to hear your thoughts

THANK YOU FOR READING!

Does it feel like eons since I have posted a Konadicure???  I truly love me some stamping, but I also go through phases (especially when I am around gorgeous nail polish) where I just want to enjoy the polish unstamped.

I won’t keep you waiting much longer, as today I have a stamped design to show you:

There have been a LOT of black and white manicures floating about because of the awesome Black&White challenges that fellow bloggers have been participating in.  I guess I got bitten by the bug because I really really wanted to sport some stark black and white on my nails too!!!

I applied two coats of OPI Alpine Snow (I have a mini bottle of it).  I was quite pleased that Alpine Snow wore quite well on me… it wasn’t until day three that I spotted tipwear   I will have to pick up a bigger bottle of this polish, to replace my Sally Hansen Whirlwind White (I’ll continue to use Whilwind White for stamping, but as a full manicure it chips so quickly on me). But I’ve digressed…

I then used Bundle Monster plate BM-224 and Sally Hansen Black Creme for stamping.  As an afterthought I fished for some glitter from SOPI Traffic Stopper Copper and added one large glitter to each nail.  Furthermore, I used China Glaze Harvest Moon and filled in the rest of the flower centers.  I have yet to wear Harvest Moon as a full on manicure, but I truly enjoyed the way it accented this design.  It shimmered and played nicely with the light.

You may have also noticed that I rotated the stamp image between each nail.  I’m quite a fan of doing this because it gives the nails a little bit more versatility (rather than the perfect-match look).

The black and white combo was SO fun to wear!!!! And the bronze accents added a bit more of an “earthy” feel to this manicure IMO.

Do you like the Black and White combo? Do you like stark contrast or subtle ones?

Any plans for the weekend?

THANK YOU FOR READING!

Happy Easter Everyone!

I hope you are having a great long weekend.  Today I will be off Easter egg hunting with the kids at Peter’s Parents’ house.  I keep saying this, but seeing the holidays through the innocent eyes of the little ones is quite charming

(never mind that the Easter bunny gets all the credit for my Easter-egg stuffing efforts from last night ).

Onto today’s post.  A while back I announced that ChitChat Nails turned one, and asked all of you if you had any special requests/suggestions. Tera from Nails in Nippon requested that I do more freehand art.  Tera, your wish is my command (though I know that I’m not even close to being in the same freehand league as you ).

I thought I would do a little Easter inspired manicure, and decided to draw Pussy Willow branches on my nails.  Though I’m not a fan of the name -Pussy Willow- of the tree, I have ALWAYS loved the fuzzy branches.  Even as a kid, I remember touching the little soft buds with admiration.  Whenever I see these branches I immediately think of spring and Easter.  In fact, we have two Pussy Willow trees in our backyard, and I have at least three vases with these branches as decorative touches in our home.

I started with two coats of Sally Hansen Green Tea.  Not only do I like the wide brush in this polish, but the creamy formula is quite lovely to work with.  I then drew branches and the white buds (first in white, and then in grey).  All of the additions were done with Acrylic paints.  One coat of Seche Vite tops it all off.

Here is a swatch of Green Tea on its own:

Tomorrow, I am back to showing you more super awesome Cult Nails shades

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I hope you are having a nice Easter! I’d love to hear if you have been up to anything special this weekend!

What manicure did you sport this Easter?

THANK YOU FOR READING!

I hope you all had a nice weekend!? I wonder how many of you saw the Hunger Games.  Though I didn’t have a chance to hop out to the theaters, I did enjoy spending some stress-free time with my family… just doing regular ‘stuff’.  We took a leisurely stroll through Costco (I know, many of you might be lifting a brow as to what kind of life I lead where a Costco trip would be a highlight worth mentioning); however, Peter, the kids and I really enjoyed perusing the aisles, sampling the yummy food and just relaxing (it was a bit cold on Saturday to spend time outside).  Sometimes doing the mundane can be so much fun, and it really was one of those weekends where we indulged in the mundane

Onto today’s post:

As you can see, my nails are at the stubbiest that they have been in a long time.  I have been going through major nail breaking and chipping   I follow and abide by the rule of “if one breaks, cut ‘em all down”…

I know that many bloggers take a break when their nails are nubbins, but because I tend to show you the manicures that I sport throughout the week, I don’t have much of an “archive” to fall back on… so nubbins as canvases it is

This is the first time I played with an American Apparel polish; this one is called Summer Peach and my friend Carolina from Colores de Carol sent it to me.  I love how milky this peach shade is… all I keep thinking about is peach sorbet! yuuum!

I took advantage of the fact that my nails were super short, and played with a smaller image from the Red Angel set: plate RA-120 (rotating the image 180 degrees before stamping the next finger).  I used Sally Hansen Coco A Go-Go to stamp with.  I also layered one coat of Essie As Gold As it Gets before applying the stamp.

(necklace from local antique shop)

I also want to share with you a photo (I tweeted it this weekend), that my husband Peter took (he took a collection of photos and did some photoshop on them).  A friend quickly (and appropriately) labelled it “Kitchen Chaos”… however, I can confidently say that this photo depicts the ‘average’ mealtime at our house

(even our cat, Lilly, made an appearance… can you spot her?)

There is always some mischief going on in our house, so it is quite nice for us to a) be able to laugh about it and b) slow down and enjoy the ‘simple’ things in life.

I wish you an awesome start to your week!

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Do you often wear pastel shades? I am just itching to sport light, cream, pastel shades these days… maybe it is the weather?

Did you watch the Hunger Games movie? (I read the books and would love to see how the two compare)

THANK YOU FOR READING!

This week I was a little short on inspiration and didn’t quite know what to do next with my nails. I tweeted out for any ‘request’ or ‘suggestions’ and @waitupforJLSxo suggested that I do a “Funky French”…

(check out this gorgeous polish in the bottle!)

If I am allowed to pat my own back… I really was quite pleased with this look

Base: One coat of OPI Bubble Bath

Tips: Sponged with Barbra Colour Alike #205 Chlorofile. I then applied one coat each of FingerPaints Flecked and China Glaze Fairy Dust

Stamp: Shany plate SH18 and Sally Hansen Whirlwind White

(I’m addicted to all thinks flakie… what can I say!)

I have to say a quick thank you to Sabbatha from Spooky Nails who swatched this shade HERE, and encouraged me to pick this colour up when in Poland. I don’t often wear greens, but I am SO glad I listened to her!

And finally, this is how I wore this look

We’ve had some lovely weather lately… It literally smells like Spring; I hope you enjoyed these outdoor photos.

I was recently contacted by Nail Polish Canada who offered to send me one of the newest KONAD stamping plates to review: Konad plate m84!

(the note that came with the plate was SO cute; it read “I hope you really, really… enjoy the plate”)

NailPolishCanada carries a lot of awesome nail polish brands such as Zoya, Essie, Butter London, Deborah Lippman, OPI, ChinaGlaze, etc.  Recently, however, they started to carrying authentic Konad products as well!!!  What I like the most is that they ship Konad plates for FREE!!! (check out the Konad selection HERE)

I LOVE stamping, and have had the privilege of playing with a number of stamping plate brands.  I will say though, that Konad will always hold a special place in my heart.  I don’t often indulge in a splurge, but when it comes to Konad plates I think it is worth to pay the extra few dollars for the quality.

Some of the things I love about Konad plates:

* The images are ALWAYS crisp and very detailed

* The smooth protective plate backing (protects not only the plate but your fingers )

* The large variety of small images and full nail images

(take a look at the incredible detailing in the images! )

Stamped with Sally Hansen Whirlwind White

NailPolishCanada is also the mastermind behind Adopt-A-Polish which is where I was lucky enough to adopt this lovely chocolate brown Zoya Angelina!!! I thought it was quite fitting to showcase this colour here and to spread the word about this super unique idea!!! Way to go NailPolishCanada!

I really enjoy this particular plate because it has a nice assortment of images:

* individual floral images

* full nail star image

* the very feminine bow image (who doesn’t love bows?!)

* and those super super cute little lips

If you would like to check out the Konad plate selection at NailPolishCanada you can click HERE!

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Do you have a favourite stamp Brand? A favourite plate #?

THANK YOU FOR READING!

I’ve mentioned a few times recently how I have the urge to ‘bedazzle’ every manicure and spruce it up with gemstones.  Thus far I have been working with round gemstones, but the BornPrettyStore recently announced their release of SQUARE gemstones and I knew I NEEDED them!

I was sent one of these gemstone wheels for review.  I will try to give you as much information about this product as well as TWO (yes 2) manicures I created using these gemstones.

The gemstones and nail wheel came in a regular envelope with a BronPrettyStore businesscard:

FACTS:

* This BornPrettyStore square rhinestone nail wheel retails for only $3.49!!!

* The BornPretty Store has International FREE shipping.  Depending on where you live shipping could take up to 30 days (but I have also received some orders within a week).

* the gems are 2mm in size and come in 12 assorted colours packed in a nail wheel

* The gems are sold by weight, and you are guaranteed to get 49g … which is a LOT of tiny gems

* The rhinestones are packed in a larger nailwheel which makes it easier to access them and turn the window in the nail wheel to get the desired colour.

(I hope this photo gives you a general idea of the size of the nail wheel)

COLOURS: Orange, Purple, Light Green, Dark Blue, Dark Pink, Light blue, Dark Green, Red, Yellow, Light Pink, Light Blue/Aqua, Silver/Clear

HOW TO:

These gems are intended to be placed onto your painted nail.  They can be attached with glue (not included) or a droplet of topcoat.  I prefer using the topcoat and find that that is enough to keep the gems attached for the duration of the manicure.

1. Place a little bit of topcoat onto dotting tool/toothpick

2. Dot directly onto the nail where you wish to place the rhinestone

3. Move the open window over the colour of gemstone you wish to use

4. Use the dottingtool (still wet with topcaot) to fish the rhinestone directly out of the nailwheel

5. Place and press gemstone, with the dotting tool, onto your nail

6. Cover entire nail, including gemstone with one layer of topcoat

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This first manicure shows how I used these gemstones to accent a stamped design:

RA-103 and the Orange Square Rhinestones

The Second Manicure I’d like to share with you shows just how edgy (IMO) these gems can look… I love this square shape!!!!

A few last thoughts:

* I was quite impressed that without losing the square shape, these gems are NOT sharp around the edges and therefore will not get caught onto clothing etc. (at least not any more than the regular round gemstones would)

* Because of the larger wheel, the gems are very easy to ‘fish’ for with either a toothpick or a dotting-tool.

* And I’ve already mentioned this, but I really think the SQUARE shape is so edgy looking

If you would like to get your hands on these gemstones you can do so online at BornPrettystore.com or by clicking HERE.  Please note that if you use CouponCode: MARTAK31 at checkout you will get an additional 10% off of your entire purchase

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Phew, long post

Do you enjoy playing with gemstones? Do you have a favourite way of using rhinestones? Maybe a favourite colour?

THANK YOU FOR READING