Pink-ish Wednesday! Ombre Fun with Inglot Colour Play Nail Polishes

(**Inglot Press Samples**)

Happy Humpday!!

 It's only been about an Eon since I've done a Pink Wednesday... So, here is a Pink Wednesday post ♥. A few weeks back I received the Inglot  Colour Play pastel range. These babies are perfect for ombre manis, they really take the guess work out of picking your shades. For this look, I also went back to my roots by doing some stamping. I used my Pueen Love Elements nail stamping plate set.

 This look features Inglot Shades, from Thumb to Pinkie: 388, 387, 386, 385 and 384. For the stamping I used Konad Black Special polish and Pueen stamping plates Pueen 32 on my Middle and Ring finger and Thumb. For my Pinkie and Index nails I used Pueen 28. To finish my nails off I did a coat of Seche Vite followed by a light coat of IN Northern Lights. 

 Here are my base colors before stamping and top coating. 388 is a clean, light Lilac purple creme. 387 is an aweome Blue toned bubblegum Pink creme. 386 is a muted Violet- Mauve creme. 385 is a light Pink- toned Mauve creme. 384 is a beautiful muted Coral creme. All of these polishes have a slight flash of smooth complimenting shimmer. You can see the Golden shimmer in the bottle photo above. That said, the shimmer does not really translate to the nails, but it does aid in appication. All of these were really easy to apply and all did well in Three, thin and easy coats.  

 I miss stamping so much. But at the same time, I'm pretty excited because I have all of these awesome Pueen plates that I have not really gotten to play with yet. So I have those to look forward to :D. I have been terrible about keeping up with plates honestly, if you guys know of any sets I may have missed out on, or new brands, share them in the comments!! 

 So, I am LOOOVING these Inglot Colour Play range. I love them so much, they have even earned a spot on my wall racks. These are great for nail art of all kinds and I just love the formulas and beautiful shades.

Thanks for stopping by darlings! 

Summer Ready Swatch Spam!

(**Press Sample**)

Hello my loves! 

  Today I have some swatch-y spam for you guys. I've had these pics sitting in my folders for some time now.... So I figured, why not do a spam post?

 These shades are all kinda screaming Summer to me. What are some of your favorite Summer shades? Or do you not really follow seasonal colors? Me, I kinda wear what I want, when I want. But I do tend to gravitate to Spring and Summer shades because they are always so bright and happy. 

 All of these swatches are shown with a top coat. 

LVX Nail Color in Mynt

 Mynt by LVX is a lovely, clean Mint creme. I found the formula on this shade to be AMAZING. Normally, these types of Pastel-ish, minty greens can be a pain in the butt to apply. That was not the case with this beauty. I did Three easy coats of Mynt for my swatch. 

LVX Nail Color in Deco

 Deco is an amazing shade of Melon-y Coral creme. I knew I would love this shade the second I unpacked it! I am a sucker for these types of colors. This shade is insanely flattering and easy to wear. I used Three thin and easy coats of Deco for my swatch. 

Zoya Gaia

 Gaia, Gaia, Gaia... This color.. Ok.. So this color is BEAUTIFUL, stunning really... A Pearly, shimmering White with the most perfect Golden shimmer running though it. Bridal perfection... That said, this color has a horrid formula! I found it to be patchy and uneven.. I needed Four thin coats to get it to look even and opaque. Maybe layering it could remedy that problem, but it could also ruin that squishy effect... I suppose the color payoff is definitely worth the work I put into the application though. 

Essie Tart Deco

 Tart Deco is a vivid, hot Melon-Coral shade. This shade is a more vibrant cousin to LVX Deco. The formula on this color is a little patchy, but not problematic. I used Three thin coats for my swatch. 

Zoya Sari

 Sari is a lovely, nude Pink jelly. Colors like these are great for French manis, or just to add a healthy glow to a nakey-look. I used Three thin coats for my swatch. 

LVX Nail Color in Indigo Bleu

 Indigo Bleu is a deep Violet-Blue creme. This shade is intenesely pigmented and very easy to apply. I could have almost done with one coat. I used Two thin coats for my swatch. 

Zoya Josie and Zoya Destiny

 Zoya Josie is a beautiful Grass Green creme that applies like a dream. I used Two easy coats of Josie. For this look I did an accent in Zoya PixieDust in Destiny. Destiny is a hot Coral texture laced with strong Golden shimmer. I used Three thin coats of Destiny. 

  Any faves in this bunch? I am really in love with Gaia. I hate the formula on that color, but my gosh it is just beautiful! I also really loved Mynt and Deco by LVX. Though I must admit, this Summer has turned into the "Summer of the Textures" for me. I've been wearing Textures non-stop since they all started coming out! 

 What have you been wearing lately?

KBShimmer Totally Tubular Inspired Nail Art

(**Press Samples**)

Hello everyone and happy Thursday! 

  Today I have a crazy busy manicure haha! I'm kind of calling this my "kitchen sink mani". I just couldn't stop doing things to my nails. The whole idea originated from my bottle of KBShimmer's Totally Tubular. I kept swirling it in my hands and being hypnotized by the amazing blend of colors and shapes. And so this mani was born, inspired by the beautiful colors in Totally Tubular. I will be sharing swatches of KBShimmer's full Summer collection very soon! 

 On my middle nail is Totally Tubular by KBShimmer. I will be reviewing the polish itself soon. For now, I really want to focus on this colorful nail art that got me through my days at the Mayo Clinic.

  So, as I mentioned above, the nail art itself was inspired by the colors in Totally Tubular. I loved the mix of Teals, Magentas and Blues. So, on all my nails but my middle nail I did a White base of Cult Nails Tempest. For my water marbled nails I used Bettina Aqua, Pink Bikini and Premium Wash. I then topped off my marbled nails with O.P.I Polka.com.

 For my gradient nails I used Bettina Picnic, Sparkle and Glitter Jean. I topped off my gradient nails in Aphrodite Lacquers V.I.P Room. I finished off the entire manicure by topping all of my nails off with some KBShimmer Clearly on Top and then some INM Northern Lights sparkle top coat.

 I CANNOT believe I forgot to take pics of my thumbs! I really loved how the marble pattern turned out on them. I had never been able to get a full flower design on my nails before! So, I'm so sorry, but here are some crappy cell pics of my thumb marbles. I think they were about Four days old at this point. 

 I loved wearing these nails. My days at the Mayo Clinic were really intensive, exhausting and not entirely successful.. But my nails were looking FIERCE the whole time. I got so many compliments from  people while I was there. It was nice to have the distraction of my colorful nails and hair while I was going through all that stuff. 

  Oh and some cool stuff happened right before the Mayo trip. I got to meet the awesome Kelly of vampyvarnish.com!! It was an awesome lunch meeting with my Florida beauties and Kelly. Thank you Courtney for the lovely photo!! From L to R: Steph of Imperfectly Painted, myself (goodness I need to do my roots soon!!), Maria of Cult Nails, Kelly of Vampy Varnish, Kari of Once Bitten and Courtney of Phyrra. 

Thank you all for stopping by today!! If you have any questions about Mayo, feel free to ask in the comments, I will try my best to answer them. I just didn't want to get into all that in the post itself. 

XO!

Cult Nails Dance all Night Collection Swatches

(**Press Sample**)

Hello everyone! 

  Today I have swatches of the newest collection by my beloved Cult Nails. This is the Dance all Night collection. This release consists of Three lovely creme polishes, and Three fantastic layering glitterbombs. If you are not a part of "The Cult" yet, this is the perfect collection to start off with as it showcases the strengths of Cult Nails so well. There is a little bit of everything for everyone. 

 Even though the collection is made up of "complimenting" pairs, I decided to do some more unexpected layering combinations to really make each color pop.

Cult Nails Center of Attention over Cult Nails Nakizzle's Shizzle

 Center of Attention is a magnificent blend of vivid Pink-Rose sparkling hexes in varying sizes accented by a heavy dose of smaller iridescent sparkles in a clear base. The slightly larger hexes have a very minimal curve to them, but they all lay flat. This polish is like a bouquet of sparkling flowers in a bottle. Formula-wise, it is a little thick, I did not find this to be a problem. I used One coat of Center of Attention over my sky Blue base. I could wear this layering combination for ages.

Cult Nails Nakizzle's Shizzle

 Nakizzle's Shizzle is an amazing shade of vivid, clean Sky Blue creme. This is your quintessential shade of Sky Blue. This shade is beautifully bright, yet flattering and completely wearable. The formula on this color is Cult Nails at their finest; so glossy, even and smooth. This color practically applies itself, I used Two effortless coats for my swatch.

Cult Nails Walk of Shame over Cult Nails Love at First Sight

 Walk of Shame is a glitterbomb of most epic proportions. This glitter mixes bright, vivid Gold hexes in varying sizes and small Prismatic glitter in a clear base. This photo does not do this amazing, blingy topper justice. I tried taking photos in the Sun, and my camera freaked at the amount of bling. The formula on this glitter is also a bit thick, but very manageable. I used One coat of glitter over my Orchid- Violet base.

Cult Nails Love at First Sight

 Love at First Sight is another fantastic representation of what Cult Nails does best, AMAZIIIIIINGG cremes! This shade is a beautiful, feminine tone of light, Pink toned Purple. When I think of Orchid- Violet, this is what comes to mind. This color has an amazing glossy and smooth formula that does great in Two coats.

Cult Nails Dance all Night over Cult Nails Faded

 Dance all Night is the namesake of the collection, and quite a beautiful topper. This glitter topper mixes Blue, Green and Iridescent hexes partnered with smaller iridescent sparkle in a clear base. The larger hexes in this polish also have a slight curve to them, but they do lay flat. The formula on this polish is also a bit thick, but as with the rest, I did not find this to be a problem. How awesome does this look over Faded?!

Cult Nails Faded

  Faded is a very faint, clean shade of Grey creme. This lovely shade of Dove Grey has an impressive formula. I really love this shade and I can see myself reaching for it a lot in the coming months. I used Two uber easy coats for my swatch. 

  These shades are fantastic and I can't even pick favorites. They all so beautifully executed, I really could not pick a favorite. These areso flattering, easy to wear and just plain FUN! Which are you loving?

PS: I want to thank you all for your support on the matter of Muffin. It really means a lot to Daniel and I. 

Dear Muffin

This is a really hard thing for me to do. But I figured, just do it, like ripping off a band-aid....

Dear Muffin,

  You were Two when we met you in 2007. I still remember that day we walked into Petsmart, and as usual I insisted we go say "Hi" to the kitties at the shelter. And there you were, alone in a kennel. Your little information card said you were Two, affectionate and just a little anti-social. I remember thinking , "But this is the sweetest kitty I've ever met"! You were excited to play with Daniel and I from behind kennel bars.
  I remember thinking "This is the coolest kitty I've ever seen". Your fur was beautiful; long, thick and splattered in brown tones. It was the softest fur I had ever felt! We called you our "Bunny- kitty". You shared a birthday with my mom, which I thought was pretty funny. I remember the day I adopted you, Daniel was out of town. I remember it was December and really close to your birthday. What better gift could I have given this kitty, than to give her a loving home on her very birthday? So I did. Everyone at the shelter was so happy that you were going to a home! You had been at the shelter for over Six months! I remember being so sad when I found out. How?! How could this sweet, adorable kitty have spent so long in a lonely cage at a shelter?!
 I remember the day I brought you home, to our first tiny apartment. You were so happy! You fit right in! I remember letting you out of your traveling box and you immediately jumped on our couch and curled up with me. I knew I had made the right choice. You were meant to be with us. A few days later Daniel came home from his work trip and he was so happy to meet you! You were excited to meet him too.
 You always had a big personality, you always wanted to be with Daniel and I. Which I loved! I loved having a kitty that was so friendly and pretty. The vets always commented on how pretty you were. And you were! You were the loveliest kitty! Always so poised and well- behaved. You moved with us through Three different houses, and you made each of them a special place to be in. You were so much more than our kitty, you were our buddy, our furbaby! You kept me company for the many years that Daniel was on the road, and I never felt lonely because I had my Muffin.
 You were a single-kitty for a looong while. Then we brought you home a friend, Truffle. You seemed skeptical at first, but then you two grew to like each other. It was always so cute to hear the Two of you playing, or play fighting. I was happy to see you had a little friend for when we went on trips. I know she will miss you too.
 You may not know it Muffin, but you also had many people who loved you because of mommy's blog. You helped in such a BIG way. To this day I'm sure more people came to this blog on Mondays to see you, than to see my nails. And that was just fine with mommy, because she had the sweetest kitty in all the land who helped her pick her polish. It was our "Monday thing". I know it may sound stupid to some, but it was "our thing". I will miss this greatly. I will miss her chilling with me while I polished.... I will miss her.
 There are so many things I will miss about you, my Muffin. You had such a big personality. You were such a loving kitty. We tried so hard to keep you with us. We really did. It broke my heart to see you struggle with your health so greatly. I didn't want to be selfish though, I knew you were suffering.Even as I sit here typing this I still can't face the reality that you are gone, but I must. We will miss you so very much Muffin. You were a fantastic pet, friend and even a cry pillow when I needed it. Daniel and I will never forget you, you are irreplaceable Muffin! I hope you had a very happy life, we tried so very hard to make sure you were always happy and comfortable. You were a great kitty, the best kitty and I will never forget you.
 I hope your kitty heaven is full of all the things that you loved! I hope you have a lot of space to run and a lot of things to jump on, you always liked being up high. I also hope you never forget us, because we won't forget you. Even though I hugged and kissed you everyday, it still doesn't feel like enough...
 With that, I bring this letter to a close. My heart is heavy, my eyes are sore and I really don't know how to occupy my thoughts at this moment other than with the happy times we all shared together. Muffin, you were SO loved and cared for, I really do hope you knew that. I'm grateful I got to know you and have you in my life. I'm grateful I got to take you away from that crowded shelter and give you the best life possible, but I am so sorry I couldn't save you in the end. You were a fighter kitty, you really were.

We love you Muffin! You left us in good paws, Truffle is a fantastic kitty as well and I hope she knows that for a while, she had the best kitty friend in the whole world!

 Don't forget to hug your furbabies today, and every other day.