NOTD: Mono-Chromatic, Multi-Textured Manicure...Gold Finger

I've never really been big on a lot of nail art but I do love a mono-chromatic, multi-textured manicure.  It gives the the look of nail art without having to have the artistic abilities...LOL!  I think this will make for a great holiday manicure.

I was inspired by one of the shades from the China Glaze 2013 Holiglaze Holiday Collection. One of the shades I purchased was China Glaze Mingle with Kringle, a gorgeous cool yellow gold foil.  

Once I decided on using Mingle with Kringle for my next manicure, it was easy to decide on the rest. Today's manicure includes, China Glaze Mingle with Kringle, OPI Honey Ryder, Orly Luxe, and Sally Hansen Glitter Gun. These four shades are all in the same color family but have different finishes.

I also love that it almost gives the mannequin hand look but with that extra bling. 

Glitter Galore: Pure Ice Viva Las Vegas with Pure Ice Playtime (Bare It All)

To me, there's something about today's manicures that just scream elegant! Maybe it's the descriptive I'm using, it a "Champagne Gold".  Today I'm sharing with you two more from Pure Ice. The first is Pure Ice Viva Las Vegas. I have other gold nail polishes but this one is classic and elegant. I could certainly see this on a Red Carpet. 

Pure Ice is a brand sold at Walmart for less than $2.00 a bottle. When I first started purchasing Pure Ice polishes, it was for their layering polishes. Some of their earlier polishes were just gorgeous for layering. They could definitely add to a manicure and Pure Ice is still one of my favorite brands.
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This Champagne Gold shimmer polish has a taupe undertone and is another that gives me with my skintone a mannequin hand effect.  Here I am wearing 2 coats but to avoid visible nail lines, I would suggest 3 coats.  Pure Ice Viva Las Vegas is a great shade to have in any polish collection.

While Pure Ice Viva Las Vegas can stand on its own, I felt the need to add some bling. So to it, I layered another Pure Ice, but this time a glitter, Pure Ice Playtime; which has been re-released as Bare It All.  Bare It All is described as an "ultra-fine, dense gold and copper glitter". While I ready owned Playtime, I received a bottle of Pure It Bare It All for review. Since I already own one, I'll add this to my Giveaway Stash.  

This is another polish that I would describe as "elegant". I've been going through a glitter phase lately and some glitters can be "in your face". However this Pure Ice Bare It All has a stylish and chic look. Again, this manicure just brings visions of a gold formal dress with the matching shoes and gold beaded clutch. If ever I'm presented that opportunity, at least I have the manicure ready.

Pure Ice released several new shades earlier this year.  Have you had the chance to try any and if so, which have been your favorites?  I have several other Pure Ice polishes to share with you.   Again, Pure Ice can be found at your local Walmart.  So the next time you venture out to Walmart, stop by the Pure Ice display.  For a list of the Pure Ice polishes, click HERE.

For more information on Pure Ice:

"Like" Pure Ice on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/OfficialPureIce

Follow Pure Ice on Twitter - https://twitter.com/officialpureice

Follow Pure Ice on Instagram - http://instagram.com/officialpureice

Follow Pure Ice on Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/officialpureice/

Find Pure Ice Online at - http://pureicecosmetics.com/

Available in over 100 stunning and on-trend shades! All Pure Ice Nail Polish are free of formaldehyde, toluene and DBP.

Grace, Peace, & Blessings.

* FTC: These products were bought with my own money, unless otherwise noted. These are my honest opinions. I am not employed by nor was I paid by any of these companies. This is not a sponsored post.

New Years Eve Manicure. Time to Shimmer & Sparkle!!!

WOW! Can you believe that 2013 is just hours away. This year has gone by so fast. I pray each of you have a Very Safe and Happy New Year!

On to my New Year Eve manicure. I had been thinking about my NYE manicure for at least a few weeks.  Just in time, I received my very first Lancôme Nail Polish to review.  Lancôme's 2012 Holiday Collection consists of products for Eyes, Lips, Face, and Nails. 

I was anxious to try the nail polish and the shade I received was just what I was needing for my New Years Eve manicure. I received Lancôme Ginger Swing, which is a gorgeous cool, champange gold shimmer. 

As I mentioned this was my first experience with a Lancôme Nail Polish. So I had no preconceived notion on its application. The brush, is a wider, rounded brush-head, which normally I don't like, but in this instance, the application was impeccable. The flaring of the brush-head allowed me to get close to the cuticles without flooding them.  

Also, the formulation of this polish was close to the beloved "one coater".  In these pictures, I am wearing 2 coats of Lancôme Ginger Swing.

Just to add a little extra bling for the holiday, I added another newly acquired polish for an accent nail-Orly Halo; from the Orly 2012 Holiday Collection.

This collection is available everywhere Lancôme products are sold including, lancome-usa.com. 

What have been your experiences with Lancôme products? I think I need to give some of their other products a try.

Grace, Peace, & Blessings.

 

* At least one of these products was sent to me for review consideration by the PR department of the Manufacturer. These however are my honest opinions. I am not employed by nor was I paid by this company.

NOTD: Zoya Yara with a Golden Accent

I wish all parts of my life fell into place like this polish did. I had a vision of a polish I wanted. I had never seen such a polish but I wanted an olive green polish with gold micro flakes. I posed the question to the nail polish board on Makeup Alley.Com, and shortly thereafter was adding Zoya Yara to my shopping chart.

This manicure is Zoya Yara with an accent of my favorite golds.

Zoya Yara is a beautiful khaki olive green with gold micro flakes. It screams for a gold accent nail so I paired it with Orly Glitz and China Glaze Cleopatra. These are great fall shades.

  

Zoya Yara is from the Zoya Mirrors collection from Fall, 2011.  The Zoya website describes Yara as " a medium smoky olive drab with an illuminating splash of bright gold glitter". I would agree. 

The gold accent is comprised of Orly Glitz, a gorgeous gold metallic layered under China Glaze Cleopatra, a gold holographic glitter.

Orly Glitz is part of the current core collection and is still readily available at Sally Beauty, and Ulta. However, China Glaze Cleopatra is no longer available in stores but can be found on several of the online retailers.

 

The application of all three were smooth. The Zoya Yara is 2 coats and the accent nail is 2 coats of Orly Glitz and 2 coats of China Glaze Cleopatra.

 

What are some of your favorite fall color combinations?

Grace, Peace, & Blessings. 

* FTC: These products were bought with my own money. These are my honest opinions. I am not employed by nor was I paid by any of these companies. This is not a sponsored post.

NOTD: Revisiting Orly Cotton Candy & China Glaze Medallion

For quite a while I have had a color combination in my head, and I'm finally getting around to showcasing it-Pink and gold. For some reason, I have wanted to combine these two polishes in a manicure.  So to participate in Pink Wednesday, here is Orly Cotton Candy (revisited) with a China Glaze Medallion accent.  

Orly Cotton Candy was part of the 2010 Spring Sweet Collection that included other lovelies such as Snowcone, Pixy Stix, Lemonade, Lollipop, and Gumdrop. While China Glaze Medallion as part of 2009 collection in which China Glaze released 50 new glitters.  It is absolutely gorgeous and probably the most glittery glitter I've seen.  It is a mid-tone gold with multi-sized, multi-colored, holographic shimmer suspended in a clear base. While China Glaze has since released several other gold glitters, in my opinion, none are comparable. I need to get a backup of Medallion.

What color combinations do you have stocked away on your "To-Do" list?

Review:

·Color Family: Pink; Gold Glitter
·Finish: Cream; Glitter
·Opacity: Orly-2 coats for bottle color; China Glaze-3 coats for dense coverage
·Price: Reg. $5.99 but can be often found on sale at Sally and other e-tailers.
·Availability: both Orly & China Glaze can be found at Ulta, and Sally Beauty. However, Medallion can only be found through the online retailers now.
·Application: Orly-The first coat was kinda of watery & streaky, but the second coat smooth out the finish. China Glaze-since this has a clear base, it took 3 coats to get a dense coverage.

Grace, Peace, & Blessings.

* FTC: These products were bought with my own money. These are my honest opinions. I am not employed by nor was I paid by any of these companies. This is not a sponsored post.

REVIEW: China Glaze On Safari Swatches

Although the thermometer is reading 100 degrees, the fashion and beauty industries are being bombarded with Fall and Fall colors.  And this can be seen with one of the most recent collections from China Glaze.  The China Glaze On Safari Collection was released in May and includes 12 cremes and glitters.  I was given the opportunity to review 3 of the collection: Exotic Encounter, I'm Not Lion, and Adventure Red-y.  These are 3 great colors to get anyone through the fall and winter months.

The first shade I tried was Exotic Encounters, which is described as lush green crème with blue undertones. I would add that it is a dusty teal with blue undertones.  The application was smooth and I achieved bottle color with two coats.  One thing, I must warn you of is that Exotic Encounters stains so be sure to use a base coat (probably 2-3 coats).

The next shade I reached for was Adventure Red-y.  This is described as a vivid red.  In my entire collection I have less than a half dozen creme red polishes.  I wouldn't call this a Christmas red but more so a deep red with a brown undertone.  The application was a bit watery and this one also stained like crazy. My first wearing, I had it on for less than 10 minutes and it stained.  Adventure Red-y is a great fall color.

Lastly, I received I'm Not Lion, one of the two glitters in the collection.  It is described as a glistening gold and multi-color glitter.  This is not an "in your face" glitter, but a more subtle glitter.  I'm not known for wearing a full glitter manicure, but with this shade I could.  The application was easy and took 3 coats for full opacity.  Removal was easy, unlike most glitters.

There are a few others from this collection that I need to add to my stash.  So if you are stating to prep your collection for the cooler months, give the China Glaze On Safari collection a look.

Have you started getting your collection ready for the Fall, and if so what colors are getting your attention? 

Review:

• Opacity: pictured is 2 coats
• Collection: Fall, 2012  On Safari
• Bottle: 14 mL – 0.5 Fl oz.
• Brush: Standard narrow brush
• Price: China Glaze - Reg. $5.99 but can be often found on sale at Sally and other e-tailers.

Grace, Peace, & Blessings.

* These sample products were sent to me for review consideration by the PR department of the Manufacturer. These however are my honest opinions. I am not employed by nor was I paid by this company. 

A couple OPI Spiderman swatches...

OPI recently released its latest collection inspired by the upcoming The Amazing Spider-Man Movie.  I knew when I first saw the bottle pictures, that at least one of the shades had to be mine.  The collection has 6 new shades: 

• Call Me Gwen-ever:  Girlfriend, be sure to pick up when this urgent coral calls.
• Into The Night: His perfect midnight blue was made for prowling.
• Just Spotted The Lizard:  Be seen in this reptilian yellow-green.
• My Boyfriend Scales Walls: Limb new heights with this cityscape white.
• Number One Nemesis:  Show your metal in this sparkling nickel.
• Your Web Or Mine?:  The perfect pink for sticky situations.

I know that this is a limited edition collection, so I will need to make my decisions quickly. So far I have purchased two of the six. I knew that Just Spotted The Lizard: the yellow-green duochrome would my favorite from the collection.  The formula was runny and very sheer.  In these pictures, I used two coats. Next time, I want to try using an under-coating of a dark opaque polish, maybe black. But nonetheless, I'm loving the duochrome!

The second shade I purchased is, of course, the blue, Into The Night. If you follow my blog or my Twitter page you know that I absolutely love blue polish. 

Into The Night is a dark denim blue metallic shimmer. As with most metallics you need to be careful to avoid brush strokes. I also found the formula of this one to be runny. In these pictures, I used 2 coats, but would suggest 3 coats to have no VNL.

I'm thinking that Call me Gwen-ever will also be added to my collection.  Which of this collection have you tried?

Grace, Peace, & Blessings.

* FTC: These products were bought with my own monies. These are my honest opinions. I am not employed by nor was I paid by and of these companies. This is not a sponsored post.

NOTD: Sephora by OPI-I Only Shop Vintage

While on a recent trip to Sephora, I came across the latest Sephora by OPI collection. Bohemian Brights, it consists of both brights and neutrals. The one shade that caught my eye was I Only Shop Vintage.  It is a medium opaque metallic golden bronze.  It kinda of reminds me of a stronger yet lighter China Glaze Ingrid.

Have you tried any of the new polishes from the Bohemian Brights collection?

Review:

• Available: Sephora, Sephora counters (JC Penneys), & Sephora.com
• Price: Reg Price $9.50
• Bottle Size: 15 ml, 0.5 fluid ounces
• Application: Smooth, two coats for achieve bottle color (opaque)
• Selection: Large Selection, including neons, and glitters
• Brush: I have notice a slightly wider brush but not a OPI Pro-Wide brush

Remember, treat your nails and jewels not tools. Grace , Peace, and Blessings. 

NOTD: 3rd Holiday Manicure-Meet Me Under The Mistletoe

Here is my next Holiday manicure. This one uses a color I love but don't wear that often-green, the color of a beautiful Christmas Pine Tree. 

I used the following polishes:Orly Meet Me Under The Mistletoe, Orly Luxe, and China Glaze Medallion for the accent nails.  As always, I love the application of Orly nail polishes.


So to all my followers: Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy Kwanzaa, and Happy New Year.

Grace, Peace, and Blessings.

NOTD: OPI Rising Star, another gold finger...

A few months ago I blogged about Orly Glitz, since then I have seen several people on MUA ask about different gold polishes. It seems that gold is undergoing a resurgence in popularity. Maybe because of the fast approaching Christmas holidays. But whatever the case, I will admit, and it is probably the same reason I prefer gold jewelry, I love the way it compliments my skin tone.

So today, I am finally sharing a polish that I have had since last holiday season. I'm certain that I am not the first to speak of this polish, but it is always good to see a shade on other skin tones.

For the winter/holiday season of 2010 OPI introduced 12 new polishes which made up the OPI Burlesque Collection.  Today I am reminding you of OPI Rising Star.  Rising Star is a gorgeous warm gold metallic foil. Whereas Orly Glitz is a butter yellow gold, OPI Rising Star is a cross between bronze, gold, and copper.  I must admit that this was a difficult shade for me to photograph. Depending on the lighting it took on several different shades, although it’s not a duochrome.  As you will see in the photos below, there are several different looks, all from the same polish.

NOTE:  I had to help with a move recently and to prevent any major damage, I filed  back my nails. It was successful, only casualty was a chipped thumbnail on my non-swatch hand. LOL!

Have you added any gold to your collection?

Review:

Bottle:         15 mL – 0.5 Fl Oz
Brush:         OPI Exclusive ProWide Brush
Price:           Reg. $8.50 however, I bought it on clearance for $4.99
Availability:  Discontinued. Some of the etailers may still carry it
Application: Normal for OPI, Smooth. In these pictures, I am wearing BC/TC, and 2 coats of NP
Selection:    This was part of a 12 color collection, but has since been discontinued.  OPI has a large ever changing selection.  They come out with several new collections throughout the year.  OPI also maintains a strong core collection readily available.

Remember, treat your nails and jewels not tools. Grace , Peace, and Blessings.

NOTD: Orly Rage - Rose Gold

Rose gold is trending very big right now in the fashion industry, so I guess it stands to reason that nail polish would follow suit.  My post earlier this week talked about the Orly Foil FX collection that Orly introduced a few years ago; and in that first post I presented you with Luxe, a cool yellow gold foil. Today, I am showing you Orly Rage, a beautiful rose gold foil. 

Review:

·Color Family: Gold (rose gold) - Cool tone
·Finish: Foil
·Opacity: 2 coats for bottle color
·Collection: Foil FX 2009
·Bottle:18 mL – 0.6 Fl Oz (20% more than the average polish)
·Brush:Standard narrow brush
·Price:Reg. $5.99 but can be often found on sale at Sally and other e-tailers.
·Availability:Ulta, CVS, and Sally Beauty are some of the major retailers that carry Orly
·Application: Smooth. In these pictures, I am wearing BC, and 2 coats of NP

Remember, treat your nails as jewels, not tools. Grace and Peace.

NOTD: Orly Luxe - Golden Foil

Last month, I had a post on Orly's Glitz.

When I was purchasing Glitz, I saw a few other polishes in a simular color family. Upon further research, I found that a few years earlier, Orly had a line called Foil FX. It consisted of 3 polishes: Luxe (yellow gold), Rage (rose gold), and Shine (white gold/silver). So far, I have purchased 2 of the 3. This post is on Orly Luxe. Whereas, Glitz is a butter yellow gold metallic, Luxe is a gold foil with some silver undertones.  So it is not as warm as Glitz. But it is still a yellow gold, foil. 
I am still really surprised just how much my tastes have changed since I started blogging.

Review:

·Color Family: Gold (yellow gold w/silver undertones) - Cool tone
·Finish: Foil
·Opacity: 2 coats for bottle color
·Collection: Foil FX 2009
· Bottle: 18 mL – 0.6 Fl Oz (20% more than the average polish)
· Brush: Standard narrow brush
· Price: Reg. $5.99 but can be often found on sale at Sally and other e-tailers.
· Availability: Ulta, CVS, and Sally Beauty are some of the major retailers that carry Orly
· Application: Smooth. In these pictures, I am wearing BC, and 2 coats of NP
· Selection: Orly's selection, although not as large as China Glaze or OPI, is significant and current with today's trends.

Remember, treat your nails as jewels, not tools. Grace and Peace.

And the Oscar goes to...

Orly Glitz!  When it comes to purchasing polishes, I am better able to step outside of my comfort zone but to actually wear those unfamiliar polishes, not so much.  Not until I see someone else wearing a similar shade, then I go and shop my stash. For most of my life I only wore yellow gold jewelry because it works so well with my skin tone, and up until now I had not tried gold nail polish.  I own a few that I would use for accent nails but never a full manicure.  Then one Sunday, it happened again.  I really do need to stop letting my eyes wander during prayer, LOL!  Again, when I should have been praying, I noticed a young lady's polish.  She was wearing a beautiful yellow gold polish and it complimented her skin tone very nicely. Similar to nudes and mannequins but with a subtle bling, this gold elongates my fingers.  Orly Glitz, a beautiful metallic foil buttery yellow gold.  It makes me think of an Oscar from the Academy Awards. 

Once again, Orly does not disappoint.  The application is smooth, as smooth as a metallic can be.  In these photos I am wearing 2 coats but I had really wanted to, I could have gotten away with 1 coat.  I see a little shinkage so I think that next time I will need to use some other top coat, not Seche Vite'. I found this shade at my local Sally but I have also seen it on some of the online retailers.  

So if you haven't given Orly a try, you really should and be a little daring and give Glitz a go. 

Grace and Peace.