Chaotic Glitz Spring 2015 Collection

Hello Lovelies!  Earlier this week I swatched some pretty pale pastel polishes for you, so I thought I would liven things up and show you some bright pastel swatches perfect for spring or summer.  I recently won some codes to purchase from some very lovely indie brands in an Instagram giveaway, and one of them was for Chaotic Glitz who is easily one of my top five favorite indie makers.  I'm a sucker for crème polishes, and with spring here and summer not to far behind I just knew I had to make this collection my own, and the code I won gave me just the excuse I needed to make the purchase.  I also purchased a lemon scented cuticle pen, which smells divine and she threw in a mani soak for me too.

I decided to do these swatches slightly different than I normally do, as you will see in the pictures below.  I swatched each polish on only two finger (mid and pointer) and created a dry drag accent (this was done as a decal) on my ring finger and a glitter accent on my pinky.  All swatches are done with 2 coats, though all of them were mostly opaque with 1 coat.  All photographs are taken indoors under daylight lamps.  Also all swatches are topped with a glossy topcoat too.

What Do You Pink

This is a super bright bubble gum pink, though a friend of mine mentioned it reminded her of Pepto-Bismol.  Either way I think it is a fun color.  The application of this polish was very smooth and easy, though slightly on the thick side.

Peaches Be Like

This is a very unique orange crème, that is a great addition to my collection which currently lacks in orange shades.  The application of this was delightfully smooth and creamy.

Mint for Me

I often say this but I feel green shades are so underappreciated in the nail polish world.  This is a really pretty bright mint green.  The application of this was very easy, just like the others.

Here's Lookin at Blue

My favorite shade, blue!  This is a gorgeous bright sky blue that I find irresistible!  The formula of this one was a bit thicker than the rest, so the application wasn't as smooth as I prefer.  However, I would rather have a thicker formula than a thinner one, because you can always use polish thinner to obtain the consistency you prefer.

Purple On

Much like pink, I don't give purple polishes much thought.  However, this bright pastel purple is incredibly pretty and surprisingly easy to wear.  The application of this polish was absolutely perfect.

Peeps Gettin' Better

This complimenting glitter is a super loaded bright matte pastel glitter bomb.  Its full of bright colored large square and hexes pieces, medium grey hexes, and teeny tiny white hexes.  I applied this in three brushed on layers (unfortunately I am currently out of makeup sponges).  This glitter would go perfectly over any shade in the collection.

I am so glad I purchased this collection, it is so bright and colorful, and the application was very easy on all the polishes.  This is the first time I've attempted to create a dry drag decal and because the polishes are thick and creamy it didn't take me very many tries before I had created one I was satisfied with.  I did attempt to do some stamping with these polishes but was unsuccessful in getting my stamper to pick them up. 

Either way, I am absolutely in love with this collection and have many plans for them in the future.  Currently, the full sized full set of this collection is sold out, but it is available as a mini set and as individuals (link to store above).  I hope you found this review useful and enjoyed these swatches.  Thanks for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,

    

Sweet & Sour Lacquer Frozen Yogurt Collection

Hello Lovelies!  I apologize for the lack of posts last week, but I had some unexpected family situations arise.  Not to mention I am only a few weeks away from D-Day (expected delivery date) and I'm just having a hard time keeping up with life.  However,  while I was away last week I received a couple packages of nail mail and I'm in the process of swatching and reviewing them to share with you.

First up, I have the Frozen Yogurt Collection that I purchased from Sweet & Sour Lacquer.  When she announced the release of this collection, I thought it was time to add some pastels to my stash, being that I didn't own any.  This collection consists of 7 crellies and a glitter bomb.

All the swatches you are about to see are swatched over a DIY peel off base coat, swatched in 2-3 coats, and topped with Sweet & Sour Lacquer's 'Gloss Sauce.'  They are also all photographed indoors, under daylight lamps, even the macros.

Dubble Bubble Trubble

As the name suggests this is a bubble gum-esque pink, and is very sweet.  This is one of the more opaque colors in the collection and definitely one of the brighter colors.

Mango Tango 

This is a very pale orange sherbet like color.  I don't have many orange shades so this is a great addition to my collection.

Hawaiian Pineapple

This is the yellow shade in the collection.  However, either my eyes or the lighting made me keep seeing a bit of green in this color.  It is definitely yellow but just a touch on the yellow green side in my opinion.  Still a very pretty color!

Shamrock Mint

This is clearly the green shade of the collection, not merely by the name of it but obviously by its appearance.  This is a really delicious color.

Blueberry Dream

As you can probably guess, this is my favorite of the entire collection.  This is perfectly named, blueberry shade, that leans just a little to the burple realm.  This is slightly more opaque than some of the other shades too.

"Poison" Berry Tart

This shade surprised me the most, because I didn't give it much thought in the bottle.  However, once I applied it I discovered it is one of my favorites in the collection.  This is a very pretty purple-pink shade, that is totally drool worthy.  This too is slightly more opaque than some of the other colors.

Don't Forget Your Spoon

Of course, if you are going to enjoy some delicious frozen yogurt, you don't want to forget your spoon.  This is a really pretty pale silvery grey shade that compliments the collection, but really is unique from the rest.  I wore this shade over the weekend and its very easy to wear.

Froyo Drop

This glitter bomb is absolutely perfect for this collection and goes with each and every shade.  It's packed full of small and large pastel hexes and holo glitter.

This collection is absolutely perfect for spring!  They truly are delicious!  I have many nail art design ideas that I hope I'll be able to create for you all soon (or as soon as I can).

I purchased this as a full sized complete collection.  Sadly, when I checked on this today, the complete set is sold out as well as many of the individuals.  There are a few shades left, and you can always follow Sweet & Sour Lacquer on Facebook and Instagram for restocking updates.  I hope you enjoyed these pretty swatches, stay tuned for more swatches.  Thank you for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,

HeHe Stamping Plate 006 - Lady Queen Beauty Review

Hello Lovelies!  Since, I have been getting better at nail art stamping I have been trying to increase my stamping plate collection.  I was sent a this gorgeous stamping plate from Ladyqueen.com to review.

This plate, is item #NA0538.  As you can see has four primary or larger images, and four smaller circular floral type images.  This plate has unlimited potential for creating beautiful and unique nail art designs. (Do not forget to remove the blue film from the plate before use.)

For this review, I created a simple spring color scheme design.  I started with a base of minty green polish, Native War Paints 'Bird's Nest in the Mailbox'.

I stamped the image in Mundo de Unas 'Pastel Pink.'  I did use a clear stamper to help with image placement (I'll review that in a later post).  The image picked up with ease, and transferred very easily to my nail.

I love this nail art design!  Stamping is one of the quickest ways to really dress up your nails.  With a little practice, and the proper supplies its actually quit easy to do.

Ladyqueen.com has all you need to create an awesome stamped manicure, all at very reasonable prices.  This image plate #NA0538 is currently on sale for $1.99!  They have an incredible selection of image plates, stampers, scrapers, stamping polishes, and plate holders, you really should check them out (http://www.ladyqueen.com/nail-art-templates1.html).

In addition, to their already excellent prices they offer free shipping world wide, and you can use my code: QJXS15 for an addition 15% off.  Tell me that's not an amazing deal!  While you are visiting their site be sure to checkout their Daily Deals, Hot Sellers, New Arrivals, and Top Trends for the latest and greatest in nail art design supplies and accessories.

I hope you enjoyed this nail art design and found the review useful.  You can be sure that you will be seeing more images from this plate.  I have future plans to do some reverse stamping with some of these images, so be on the lookout for them in future posts.  Thanks for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,

Ciate London Flower Mani with a Vintage Twist

Hello Lovelies!  Happy Wednesday, I hope all of you are having a good week so far.  Today, I wanted to share with you a manicure kit from Ciate London, their flower manicure kit.  I originally found this kit at Sephora but passed it up because the price was too steep for my taste.  However, I was recently shopping at a local department store (Burlington Coat Factory) and found the same kit for a fifth of the price so I had to get it.

The kit includes a mini polish, a full size quick dry top coat, two pots of dried flowers, a pair of tweezers (out of place in the picture), and a nail file.  From the browsing I've done on the internet, it appears this kit comes in two color combination 'Bada Bloom' and 'Strike a Posy'.  This kit is the 'Bada Bloom' kit which consists of a pale blue polish 'Ferris Wheel' along with purple, blue, and reddish dried flowers.  The 'Strike a Posy' kit consists of a pink polish and yellow, blue, and white dried flowers.  I, of course, picked the blue kit because it is my favorite color. 

In addition to the kit I used a couple other items for this mani:
Base coat - Yellow Stopper
Secondary polish - purple polish, Ciate London 'Poppet'
Small dotting tool
Striping tape

I started out with three thin coats of the pale blue polish, and applied the quick drying top coat to my thumb and ring fingers.

Using a small dotting tool and the purple polish I dotted my pointer, mid, and pinky fingers.

When my thumb and ring fingers were dry I applied striping tape vertically along the nail and applied the purple polish over top, then immediately removed the tapes.

With the background design complete, I applied a layer of top coat and then placed dried flowers over top in random patterns.  I did pre-trim some of the flower pieces with a small pair of scissors.  Once, I was mostly satisfied with the placement of the flowers I applied two final layers of top coat.

Before, I tried this nail art design I was very keen of the idea of dried flowers on my nails.  However, now that I have tried them I find that I don't care for them as much as I though I would.  I like how they look but the one thing that makes me dislike them is that I could not get them to lay flat on my nails.  My nails are very curved both horizontally and vertically, I spent a great deal of time trying to press the flowers down.  I applied two layers of top coat hoping that it would weigh the flowers down but I still ended up having issues with the flowers sticking up, especially the purple ones.  I dislike this because the flowers will snag on things and the manicure will be ruined quicker because of it.

I really like the look of this manicure, but I'm sad about the finished product.  Sometimes, I really dislike having curved nails.  I am glad that I found this kit for a fraction of the originally price, I think I would have been even more unhappy with this if I had paid full price for the kit.  Considering I purchased the entire kit for far less than I would have spent on the top coat alone makes me more than okay with this purchase.  The kit itself is actually a great product because it includes everything you need for a basic dried flower manicure, it just didn't work out for me in the way I'd like.  I hope you found this review/tutorial useful, thank you for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,



April Nail Art Challenges

April is in full swing, the weather is getting warmer, plant and animals are coming alive, and manicures are getting lighter and brighter.  Well, for those of use that stick with seasonal colors anyways.  But what designs and patterns should we paint?  If you need some inspiration or a little challenge, join with me in these two Instagram nail art challenges.

First up is the #nailthattechnique challenge.  I have participated in this challenge for the last couple of months and I love it.  Each week's theme is a different nail art technique, the design and colors are entirely up to you.  I really like this challenge because it helps me explore new techniques as well as work on others that I could use some practice.  For April, the glitter tint challenge will be something I have never done so that should be interesting.  The double stamping challenge will allow me to practice my stamping technique which we all know I am not very good at.

The other challenge that I'll be participating in this month is completely new, and I am very excited about it.  It is a #freehandchallenge, each week is a different theme and the only rule that applies is that the design has to be free hand drawn or painted.  This means no stamping, stickers, vinyls, or decals.  So, dust of your brushes and dotting tools because this is all done by hand.  I actually already completed and posted the first week's Flower challenge, it was the Garden Easter Egg Hunt I created.  I'm quit proud of it, and I've already got most of my other themes for this challenge planned out.  I just have to find the time to get them done, that allusive little thing always seems to be the problem, doesn't it?

What is a Nail Art Challenge?

For my fellow plebes out there who have never heard of or participated in a challenge, here is the low down.  A nail art challenge is created by a person or groups of persons, to inspire creativity and challenge a nail artists skills.  Rules are usually very simple and easy to follow and are typically not very restrictive.  For instance, with the challenges above the restriction lies in the technique or theme but otherwise you are free to do what you want.  I have seen some challenges that are color specific or polish type, such as holo, specific but leave other details open for the creator to decide on. 

 

The deadlines provided are also not set in stone, but are there as a guideline.  I find the deadlines very helpful in planning out my manicures and blog posts.  You also don't have to complete every weekly theme, or you can do multiple designs for one theme.  I personally try to complete one design for each week's theme.  When I am restricted by time I might combine two challenges into one nail art design to keep on schedule (or as close to on schedule as I can get).

 

The big question I've been asked, is what do you get in return for completing one of these challenges?  The answer is the simple, joy and the satisfaction of completing (mostly) beautiful nail art designs.  There are no awards or prizes for completing one of these challenges, at least not in any challenge I've found.  These challenges are simply for personal self-fulfillment, to challenge your skills, and inspire your creativity.

 

These challenges really help keep me going and help me when I get a mental block on what to create next.  In addition, to the monthly challenges I often do (but not always) the Nail Polish Queen's weekly challenges.  The NPQ is a group of like minded individuals that share nail art and nail related things in a Google+ community.

 

I hope you will join me in these fun and interesting challenges.  Stay tuned to see what I come up with.  Thanks for stopping by see you next time.

 

Your Fellow Plebe,