Quick Friday Swatches with Essence!

Happy Friday!!! 

  Today I have some quick swatches Three new Essence releases. You guys may have noticed that Essence's Colour & Go line just went though a little re-vamping. The bottles were re- designed to hold more product, the brushes were slightly rounded off, but remain flat and quite a few new colors were added to the line. I was a fan before and I am a fan still. I've still not made a trip to my Ulta to see if they have the new line available yet. I'm sure they have them and I can't wait to see some more of the new shades. 

 To see close-ups just continue reading ♥.

LTHP Quickies!! Milani Color Perfect Lipsticks 2012

Hi loves!! 

  This post will be a fairly quick. I am running around like a mad woman today trying to take advantage of the Sunlight, which has been pretty absent for the last few days. Milani released some new lippies to expand their Color Perfect line. I received them around time for Spring and working up the courage to work with them. I am one of those girls who is EXTREMELY intimidated by lipstick. Not lip color, just lipstick lol. Weird right? I can't be the only one right?!

 So, no lip swatches just yet (kinda self-conscious about my mouf). I'm still easing into this whole make-up blogging thing. Which is FUN, but a total learning experience.

From left to right: Nude Creme, Red Velvet, Brown Suede, Barely There, Plum Deluxe, Pink Love, Red Label and Pink Passion. These colors are nice classics, nothing crazy or unusual here. This photo is with flash to show sheen, shimmer and such. Very color accurate (I was a having a hard time capturing them properly).

 I have tried a few of these and they glide on very smoothly and feel nice on the lips. There isn't a drying feeling with these which is my usual problem with lipstick. They do have a very soft scent to them, nothing insulting on the nostrils. The lipstick itself is not a smooth round shape. It is angular and this forms a tip on the stick that provides with great control come application time.

 Some of the shades are creamy in finish and some were a bit frosty. The most frosty and "dated" feeling to me were Plum Deluxe, Pink Love, Pink Passion and Brown Suede. They are not bad shades, just not my thing. I really enjoyed the Nude tones, Nude Creme and Barely There even though neither of them flattered me. They make nice bases for glosses in my case. The Two Red shades Red Velvet and Red Label are absolute WINS. They are rich, sophisticated and sultry. I really love the bright Cherry tone of Red Label.

 Here are some quick arm swatches of all the shades.

 Here is a shot sans- flash. I wish they would do away with the Gold packaging :-S.

 That will do it for this installment of LTHP Quickies :D. Doing these types of posts is really helping me become more confident in my make-up blogging and terminology. I hope you guys like these type os posts too ♥. Doing these little quickies are really helping me build up my confidence when it comes to talking about make-up. I hope with practice I will continue to get better and start doing lip swatches as well!

Thanks for stopping by loves!

(**Milani lippies provided for review**)

Cult Nails Deceptive Collection Photoshoot Party #FlBeautyBloggers

Hi loves!!

  Today I have some photos from Saturdays photo shoot for Cult Nails' Deceptive Collection. Maria hosted a little get together for the ladies of the #FlBeautyBloggers  and quite a few of us were able to make it out to Cult Nails HQ for a day full of polish, fierce photos and A LOT of fun! These photos are courtesy of our photographers for the day; the amazing Mandy Redfearn and Maria's husband John.

 It's not often good pics of me get snapped lol. These are a rarity. The pearls and the dress were Maria's styling. The theme for the photo shoot was the 1920's. So we did a "modern day flapper" thing with my photos. On my nails I wore A England Bridal Veil topped with Cult Nails Charlatan from the Deceptive Collection.

  Here are all the girls that came out on Saturday. From L to R: Miss Ali of Nifty Ba!, Miss Brittany of Clumps of Mascara, Miss Courtney of Phyrra.net, Miss Kimberly of Libby's Pink Vanity, Miss Safia of Lipstick Mixtapes and Miss Alyssa of Pretty Little Bottles. Front and center is the beautiful and fierce Maria of Cult Nails and back there with the Red head is yours truly :D.

 This post is pretty pic heavy so to see more photos of the fun and find out more about the Deceptive Collection continue reading.

O.P.I Black Spotted #RAOK

Good afternoon my loves!! 

  Today I have the very elusive O.P.I Black Spotted. The migratory patterns of the Black Spotted.... Lolol Just kidding! This topped was released in France and some other countries in Europe and us US gals flipped our shiz wondering when it would come to the states. Doesn't look like O.P.I has any intentions of bringing it here :(. So anyways, I pouted and went all "Veruca Salt" and an amazingly lovely girl from France came to my rescue and surprised me with a bottle of Black Spotted. 

  I layered Black Spotted over Nicole by O.P.I Mer-maid for Eachother. Don't these looks like some kinda of gem or stone? Black Spotted is nothing like crackles in application. First off, you have to wait for you base color to be 100% dry. If your base color is not fully dry the spotted will not work properly. It will crack or not spot at all. Second, the instructions say to apply a VERY thin coat. I'm going to elaborate on this.... Apply a VERY VERY VERY thin coat. Like tap the brush to where it seems almost dry before you put it on the nail.
  The effect is immediate, unlike crackle where you kind of have to wait for the cracks to appear. You can't really go over the same spot many times or you might thicken up the spotted and not get the effect at all. It took me quite a few tries before I got the hang of it, but when I finally did the effect was AMAZING.

 I want to take a second to thank the lovely @Didoline for helping me to get this most elusive polish! I wanna do a few more looks with this to really get the hang of it.

Now guys... Seriously.. THIN coats!!

LTHP's First Cling- Wrap Skittle Mani!

Good Afternoon loves!! 

  

  I hope everyone had a great weekend and a good start to their week. I had an absolutely fab weekend. Saturday I got to go to a little photo shoot/ party for the new Cult Nails Deceptive Collection. Maria hosted a little get together for a few of us #FLbeautybloggers at the Cult Nails HQ and we had SO much fun playing with the new colors and posing for photos. I will have about this day post soon :D! 

  Today's post features my first try at the cling-wrap mani. I'm not sure who originated this technique, but it is SO easy and so much fun.

  My base colors from thumb to pinkie were: China Glaze Orange you Hot, Sation Loudest Color, Kiss my A's, Let's make Lemonade and Shock me Twice Pink. This looks features mostly Sation colors. For the cling wrap accents from thumb to pinkie I used: Bettina Pink Bikini, China Glaze Ride the Waves, Sation Tardy Tart, Oh My Oceania and Miss Emo Shun All. To add some contrast I cling- wrapped with O.P.I My Boyfriend Scales Walls over all my nails and then topped it all off with some Finger Paints Twisted. These looked AMAZING in person but the flakes and brightness of the neons were pretty much impossible to capture in my photos.
  There are many different ways to use cling- wrap for nail art. Just do a Google search for "Cling Wrap Manicure Tutorial". It is crazy the many different looks you can achieve with cling-wrap and some polish. I basically sponged, but with cling wrap.

 Everyone should try this technique! It's an easy way to get some really cool nails! I can't wait to try this again with as many different color combos as possible.

  Have you tried this look yet? Thoughts?

(**Some products provided for review**)

Etsy Mania!! JENsations Swatches and Sammi

Happy Friday!! 

  Today I have some swatches of some super cute polishes from Etsy Shop JENsations. This shop is ran by a super sweet gal named, you guessed it, Jen. Her cute little star shaped bottles made her creations a stand-out for me. I love cute little touches like that.

 To see close-ups of Jen's pretties just keep on readin'.

Sation Nailstock Collection Press Release

Hi loves!! 

  Please enjoy the following press release from the lovelies at Miss Pro Nail- Sation. 

Live from Nailstock: Miss presents peace, love & lacquer

 Miss Professional Nail (Miss) announces the launch of its Limited III Collection, “Nailstock,” a colorful tribute to peace, love & artistic diversity. In a world where constant change is rapidly evolving, from economical to technological, spiritual reflection and authentic human connections are more special and sought-after than ever. When Creative Director Staci Dao wanted to celebrate indie expression and universal creativity, she quickly looked to Woodstock as the gold standard of boho-bonding events. Nailstock’s varied collection of misfit souls features twelve rockin’ shades packed with nostalgic cultural references including: “Gimme Jimi,” “3 Free-dom,” “RV There Yet?” and “I Paint in Peace.” Rich, earthy neutrals and vibrant, unconventional hues offer something for everyone. The woodsy environment and rainy, mud-splattered moments represent the offbeat nature of Woodstock’s legendary impact. 

 Let hand-painted harmony take center stage and embrace your grooviest self, with nails to tie dye for. Nailstock will be available at your local beauty supply and online in September. All Miss products are free of DBP (dibutyl phthalate) formaldehyde and toluene. Miss is an MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) certified company.

Ummm HOW CUTE is this? Sation always does the most creative promo shots with their collections.

Here is the full line-up for this collection. I love this brand to bits so they can't do much wrong in my eyes :D. I cannot wait to see these in person!

 I can't with the cuteness!! This is such a creative way to showcase a collection.

 Sation has a TON of fierce collections coming up and I can't wait to share with you guys what this lovely company has up their sleeve! Sation polishes are available from the Miss PN site as well as Transdesign.com (Under Sation, then NEW Sation).

See you guys later!

Cult Nails Spontaneous Studded, Dried and Gradient

Good Morning!! 

  Today I have my Third look in the Cult Nails Untamed Collection series. This manicure features Spontaneous. This color really inspired me to do something sophisticated and just pretty. I really wanted to do a grown up, but girly manicure. Spontaneous is a beautiful, grown up shade with just a little something to make it interesting and unique. 

  For this look I started with a base of Enticing on all my finger nails, except my ring finger. My ring finger was done in Spontaneous. I wanted to do a manicure showcasing a contrast between the soft dried flowers and the edgy studs. On my accent nail I used some of my Cult Nails Studs. For my gradients I used Spontaneous and Enticing. Spontaneous was a little tricky to gradient with, waiting between "dabs" is best to allow the color to build up.
 To apply the dry flowers I did a coat of Seche Vite and then I set the flowers into the wet top coat very carefully with tweezers. I took photos before I top coated the flowers because I didn't know what adding a top coat would do to them.

(**EDIT**) I got the little flowers at a local beauty shop. I think they can also be found at Sally's and/ or Born Pretty Store.

  Spontaneous is a beautiful deep, smokey Amethyst Purple creamy base packed full of glowing Purple micro glitter. It is a beautiful polish, sophisticated and right on trend for Fall.

 Here is a shot of the mani after I top coated over the flowers. It didn't do damage. Just make sure to have A LOT of top coat on the brush to easily cover the flower. I love the finished look of this mani a whole lot. The contrast of soft and edgy is just right and the dried flowers added a lovely touch to the gradients.

 I only have Two more looks to go in this series! One featuring Annalicious and one featuring I got Distracted. They are both colors that are out of this world and I really want to come up with something special for them. While Deal With It and Untamed brought out a younger side of me, Spontaneous brought out the "lady" in me ♥. I can't wait to play with my last Two colors!

Thanks for stopping by!!!!

(**Cult Nails Spontaneous provided for consideration**)

Nicole by O.P.I Fall Target Exclusives- 2012

Happy Humpday!!! 

  Today I have a swatch post for you guys. I had been eagerly awaiting these Nicole by O.P.I Fall Target exclusives from the moment I saw the press release. Nicole by O.P.I has consistently released some of my favorite colors for 2012. This Fall collection might just be the cherry on top of a fantastic year for NOPI.

 To see close-ups just continue reading.

Gettin' Groovy with Pomegranate Lacquers

Hi hello darlings!! 

  Today I have a fun look that features my Three Pomegranate Lacquers. This is a newer brand and I've been seeing all kinds of amazing swatches popping up all over the place. The Three pretties I picked for review were Enchanted Lagoon, Heliotrope and Blue Screen of Death. I LOVE these polishes to bits. In fact, I loved the colors so much together that I couldn't pick just one to wear. So, I meshed them all together in this groovy manicure. 

  For this look I started with a base of Enchanted Lagoon, which is the pretty Green. For the gradient I used all Three colors: Enchanted Lagoon, Heliotrope and Blue Screen of Death. Sponging with Heliotrope is a little tricky because it is practically neon and the polish wants to dry a bit quicker than the other polishes, so you have to work quick but precisely.
 For the cute 'shroom stamps I used Bundle Monster plate BM302 and Konad White SP. I topped my nails off with some Seche Vite.

 Here is a quick shot of my gradient base. And BTW, isn't Blue Screen of Death just spectacular!?

 Here is a swatch of Enchanted Lagoon. I'm pretty much obsessed with this amazing shade of Seafoam Green. I could not stop staring at my nails when I had this on. I also could not believe the formula. For some reason I was expecting this shade to be problematic but it was the complete opposite. The formula on this color is just perfectly smooth, even and glossy. I kinda want to paint something in a similar shade to this one, it's so soothing and easy on the eyes!

You guys definitely should check out Pomegranate Lacquers. They have some ADORABLE colors. I've been rocking a pedi with all Three colors for like, Two and a half weeks now? No idea, it's been a while and my toes still look intact! [HERE] is a shot of my feetsies. Don't worry it's not a close-up :D.

Thanks for stopping by!

(**PL products provided for consideration**)

Sation- Scotch Tape Craziness!

Good morning all! 

  So! As the title says.. I kinda went crazy with my Sations, some striping tape and some scotch tape. I wasn't going for anything in particular. I just wanted to have some fun with some tape and some awesome Sation polishes. 

 Quite a bit going on here lol. I used all Sation polishes. I started with a base of Miss Emo Shun All. The aqua accents were done in Oh my Oceania! and the Lavender accents were done in Tardy Tart. The glittery accents were done with a Stripe Rite Silver glitter striping polish.

This is like nautical flags on LSD or something lol... I love all these colors together!

 Now here is a swatch of Miss Emo Shun All. This shade of vivid, deep and saturated Indigo creme was as instant favorite. I'm actually looking for a reason to put this on again real soon. This color stands alone in my collection, totally dupeless. I don't have any colors that even come close to this shade of Royally Amazing Purple! The formula on this color is very easy to work with. Miss Emo Shun All  does dry to a cool satin-matte finish but I photographed it after top coat to bring out the shine.
 I also have to go on about the name for a minute :D. This polish is from the Class of Sation collection. Back in High School.. I was totally Miss Emo lol!! This polish is my nail color soul-mate!

 So yeah! Good times with Sation! Who, BTW have some AMAZING collections in the works and I cannot wait to share them with you guys! I love Sation's out-of-the-box thinking when it comes to their collection themes, promo shots and color names. I'm excited, I hope you guys are too! Sation polishes are available from misspn.com and they are a total steal at $5!

Thanks for stopping by!!!

(**Sation polishes provided for consideration**)

Closing Zoya Week with a Designer Marble

You didn't think I'd forget did you? 

  Along with my blog's Two Year Birthday today also brings Zoya week to a close. This last look is a watermarble that features Three colors from the Designer Collection for Fall 2012. I hope you guys enjoyed all these looks I've been featuring over the past few days. I had a lot of fun being inspired by these colors. 

  This marble started with a base of Zoya Dove, which might have been a tad too dark. The marble colors feature Zoya Evvie, Monica and Nattie. Since it was so dark and smokey I did some dots in Dove to accent some of the swirls. I really need to do more marbles to get better at the swirls. I like these colors together.

Thanks for stopping by again and I hope you enjoyed this Zoya Week!

(**Zoya products provided for consideration**)

LTHP Turns Two in Yummy Lime Crime Nails!

LTHP is Two years old today!!! 

  I really don't wanna do the sappy speech so I'll just thank you for being so AMAZING and keeping me going when even I didn't think I could. Honestly today really did sneak up on me. I had completely forgotten that my blog b-day was coming up so I didn't even get a chance to do "special" nails. But I did do these nails featuring Lime Crime brand new Nail Polish Collection Les Desserts d' Antoinette and they just seemed so fitting for the occasion. 

  This look features all Seven colors in the collection. I started with a base of Milky Ways. On my Index and Pinkie fingers I did some gradients using Milky Ways, Once in a Blue Mousse and  Lavendairy. On my Middle nail I did a gradient using Milky Ways, Parfait Day and  Peaches♥Creme. On my Ring finger I did a gradient using Milky Ways, Crema de Limon, and Pastelchio. I topped these off with some Seche Vite followed by some INm Northern Lights.
 I wanted to create like a parfait nail kind of effect, or cotton candy, my husband mentioned they reminded him of swirly sorbet. Whatever they look like, it's absolutely yummy! I had actually taken this look further by stamping and adding freehand touches. It was in those touches that I unintentionally ruined my manicure so I opted so just show you my pretty gradients instead.

 I have many more looks planned for these. The formula on these colors is just amazing for all kinds of nail art techniques. I also love that all the colors compliment each other perfectly and deliciously. I mean when I look at these I can't wear just one.

 Here is a swatch of my base color Milky Ways. I was pretty much amazed at how perfect the formula is on this shade. From the first brushstroke it was a dream to work with. It's not a stark White and not chalky.  I only needed Two coats for full, even coverage. I love the brush on these polishes and the cute little frosted bottles that don't show finger prints... Ahhh the little things... I'm pretty much obsessed with this shade. It's a different type of White, slightly creamy, maybe just a drop of Orange? I can't place it but I LOVE it. I have a thing for a clean White nail and I can see myself wearing this one quite a lot.

Thank you all for your support and stopping by to see what I'm up to and read my ramblings sometimes :D! I know I'll be doing this for quite some time to come!

Happy Sunday and again THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!!

(**LC polishes provided for review**)

Zoya Week! Ray Goes to Hogwarts

Happy Caturday! 

  Just one more look to go! This Zoya look features the uniquely fierce Ray. When I first saw this beautiful shade of deep Green I knew immediately that I had to do some Slytherin inspired nails. The shade of Green is just about a perfect match for the Slytherin house colors. I went for a glammed out snakeskin stamped manicure to keep with the theme. 

 For this look I started with a base of Ray. I wanted to give the look some depth so I did a double stamp for this manicure. The first round of stamping was done with Zoya Meg. The second round was done in the Second Slytherin House color with Sally Hansen Silver Sweep. For the snakeskin print I used Bundle Monster plate BM215. I was pretty much amazed at how great the Silver stamp came out!

 Leave it to me to glam-out a Harry Potter themed mani lol... 

Sooooo, I can't hear the word Slytherin without thinking of this... I have Tosh.0 to thank for that one...

Now that that's out of the way...

Have a lovely day darlings ;-)!!

(**Zoya products provided for consideration**)

Zoya Week! Zoya Fall Splatter

Happy Friday! 

  Zoya week is almost over but I'm still going strong! For today's look I have this awesome splatter I did using colors from Zoya's Gloss and Designer Collections. I think this is one of my favorite splatters I have ever done. The effect is very different thanks to the amazing Frida. Could that polish be anymore amazing and versatile?!

  For this look I started with a base of one coat of Zoya Purity. The splatters were done in a particular orders because I wanted to achieve a cool multi-dimensional look. The first color I splattered with was Zoya Evvie then I went back and splattered once again with some Purity. The next color I splattered with was Rekha followed by Carey then followed by Frida. I topped it all off with some Seche Vite. I love how Frida creates this cool stained glass effect.

 I'm all about nails that remind me of modern art and these are right up my alley. It had been a while since I splattered and I had forgotten how cool this technique looks. For my splatters I used little coffee stirrer straws.

Are you guys ready for the weekend? I sure am!

(**Zoya products provided for revieww*)

We Interrupt this Zoya Week to Bring You... #Kidrobot Misko Owl Inspired Nail Art

Whooo... That was a long title...

  So, if you follow me on instagram you may have noticed my budding obsession with the Kidrobot Misko Owl series. [HERE] is a post that is very informative about what these cute little fellas are. Long story short, they are collctable "toys" design by artists that team up with Kidrobot to be relesead in series. They come in blind boxes so you don't know which owl you will get. Kidrobot has all kinds of crazy series and amazing artist collabs but this is the first time that I absolutely HAD TO HAVE every toy released in the series. The artist who designed these series is Nathan Jurevicius.
  Needless to say I had to find a way to get these little guys on my nails somehow...

  This was all done by free hand no tape involved, which is why my lines are not perfect. For the cute little eyes I used the ruffle mani technique but in a circular motion. This was really easy to do but a little time consuming as I had to wait before placing my next row of dots when working on the eyes.

The colors used were: Bettina Sunrise and Aqua, Rimmel Grey Matter, Milani White on the Spot and Black Swift, O.P.I Off with her Red!, PIXI Paradise Pink and China Glaze Fuchsia Fanatic.

Here is a picture of the Four Misko Owls I have so far. Four more to go!

I hope you guys enjoyed this quickie look! I had so much fun working on these nails, mostly because I love the inspiration behind them so much. And to think, my first owl was a total impulse buy during a Books-a-Million checkout lol. Misko owls are just cute little collectibles. I have dubbed my little owls "The Guardians of The Polish Room" since that's where they hang out.

Thanks for stopping by!

Zoya Week! Zoya Elisa Stamped and Studded

Good morning lovelies! 

  Today's Zoya look features Elisa from the Diva Collection, Fall 2012. I wanted to do something very... Extravagant in a sense? I think I got what I was going for lol. When I look at this manicure, many things come to mind. Moulin Rouge costumes, a circus ring leader, a German gymnasts leotard or something else along those lines... IDK, but the diva in me is loving this look. It's not something I would normally do but Zoya Elisa brought "it" out in me.

 For this ornate look I started with Two easy coats of Zoya Elisa. Once my base was dry I did a fish-egg accent nail by mixing my Gold and Black micro beads together and sprinkling them over my wet top coat. For the fishnet design I used Bundle Monster plate BM209, Konad Black SP on my Index and Pinky nails and China Glaze Passion on my middle nail. I accented my fishnets with Golden and Black micro beads.

 Sometimes I really like venturing out of my comfort zone and doing manis that are out of character. Sometimes it goes great and sometimes not so much. I think this is one of those times where I am glad I went for it. I could see this manicure somehow being altered in color scheme to work for the Holidays...

Thanks for stopping by!

(**Zoya Elisa Provided   for consideration**)