Layla Hologram Mercury Twilight

Good morning Nail Divas! Today I have the lovely Layla Hologram to share with you. The name of it is Mercury Twilight and it's an AMAZING silver holographic polish. I missed out on China Glaze OMG so I couldn't let this one slip through my fingers. I do have GOSH Holographic and I must say that this one right here is some stiff competition!

In Layla's promotional video they used a buffer to buff the nails before applying. I would assume so that the polish would grip tightly to the nail. I honestly can't say if it would be beneficial or not. I didn't' use a basecoat or a buffer, but I've heard that other holo bases have worked successfully. The polish was slightly lumpy out of the bottle, but it applied smoothly in 3 thin coats.

Guess what? As part of my Anniversary I'm giving away Mercury Twilight with some other great Layla polishes! How cool is that? Enter my Nail Art Contest for a chance to win this awesome Layla!

The Layla Holograms can be purchased at Aveyou.com or Laylacosmetics.it. Aveyou only has 3 colors currently but they plan to get the rest sometime in March. They currently have Ultra Violet (light purple) and Retro Pink (light pink). The holographic lover in me couldn't let these pass. I'm really looking forward to the charcoal black as well. If you can't wait, you can purchase them now at Laylacosmetics.it but shipping is a beast to the US, approximately 30 euros or 15 euros with a purchase over 80 euros I believe. The Layla Holograms retail for $15.50 per bottle.

Reverse Gradient Nails

I love new nail trends and when I saw this mani for the second time I knew I had to try it out. I first saw the design on a lovely nailboader and then again last night on the T.I & Tiny show. Tiny sported a dark pink mani with a white glitter gradient which was absolutely gorgeous.

I wanted to turn things up a notch so I tried it out over a darker base. The polishes I used were Nubar White Polka Dot and China Glaze Smoke & Ashes.

Excuse the awkward angles of the photos. I had to shoot my right hand because my left hand is under construction right now. Too many nail wraps at the moment :)

These are fun and super easy to do. I love the effect but I'll have to keep practicing to perfect the gradient.

If you know the nailboarder who first performed this design, please let me know so that I can give her credit for her work.

I'm also hosting a Spring Nail Art Contest. I would love to award you with some cool prizes. Click here to enter!



Thanks for stopping by! Have a happy polishing day ;D

Color Club Blossoming Spring 2012 Collection - Swatches and Review

Today I have the Blossoming Collection to share with you. The set consists of 5 cremes inspired by Spring flowers and 1 Diamond Drops top coat.

Blue-Ming. Minty blue creme. This is one is very bright but not at all neon. I used one thin coat followed by a thicker coat. You may need three if you like them thin. Blue-ming dried at a high gloss without a topcoat. Really pretty but I didn't expect it in the collection. I thought it would be more of a powder blue. That doesn't take away from its beauty though. It reminds me of Aquadelic from the Electropop collection but its definitely more minty.

Sweetpea. Soft and feminine rosy purple/pink. I really like the application on this one. It also has a high gloss and reminds me of Splash of Grenadine.

Hydrangea Kiss. Dusty blue-purple creme. It reads more blue on me for some reason but I like it. It reminds of Lapis of Luxury but much prettier. I used 2 coats.

Lavendarling. Dusty purple creme. I used 2 coats here.

Blushing Rose. A lovely soft pink shade. This was the only one from the set that needed three coats but it was worth it.

Diamond Drops. Color Club described this as a silver ice flake polish. They're definitely flakies, but more of a holographic foil-like flake. The flakies reflect different colors when they are hit by light but my favorite effect was in the shade. I may try to matte them to see what happens.

I tried one coat of Diamond Drops over each color.

Spring is my favorite Season, so I always look forward to new collections this time of year. Color Club based their collection on flowers of the Season. To be honest, I'm not a flower expert, so I had to Google what a hydrangea is, then I realized they were flowers my childhood neighbor had in their backyard. I can say that they captured the pinks, purples and blues of the hydrangea, sweetpea and lavender flowers. I'm not sure of the inspiration for Blue-Ming, it seems to be the outlier in the group. Diamonds Drops is a pretty foil-like flakie which I preferred over the lighter colors in the set.

A few of the polishes dry at a high gloss, as if they are a few drops of clear away from being jellies. My favorites from the collection are Hydrangea Kiss and the Blue-Ming and Blushing Rose combinations with Diamond Drops. Since they are cremes, there are likely some duplicates out there. The only one I can think of for now is Sweetpea's similarity to Splash of Grenadine. Overall they have a good formula and applied well. Definitely worth considering if you don't have anything similar or if you love Spring colors.

The Blossoming Collection will be available in February 2012 at shopcolorclub.com. All Color Club products are made in the USA and are not tested in animals.

~Sent for review by PR~

Nail Art Stamping Contest Spring 2012

It's My Blog Anniversary! To celebrate I'll be hosting my first ever Nail Art Stamping Contest. The theme for the contest is "Anything Spring" and your mission is to create a nail design inspired by the spring season.

There will be a total of 5 prizes. Yes 5 prizes! There will be a 1st place winner and 4 randomly drawn winners. This is to encourage those who are new to stamping to participate! I really want to encourage stampers at all levels to join in on the fun =D

You can select which random drawing you would like to enter from the list of 4 prizes below. One winner will be drawn for each random prize. For example, if there are 5 entries for the Holland polishes, you will have a 1 in 5 chance of winning the set! I will use Random.org to select the random winners.

Rules

1. You must submit your entry using the Inlinkz tool (super easy - click button below).
2. You must use some type of nail stamping in your design.
3. The design must be on your own nails. Please show at least 4 nails.
4. The design must be your own, created by you, and not previously published (Facebook, Blog, etc..).
5. Water decals, nail stickers, nail wraps and nail foils are not allowed. Feel free to use any other embellishments you like outside of these items.
6. One entry per person please.
7. This design contest is for my readers so you must subscribe to enter.
8. The 1st prize winner will not be eligible for random drawings. You can only win 1 prize.
9. Open Internationally except Italy, Llarowe does not ship there. Please be aware of shipping restrictions prior to entering. Julep only ships to the US and Canada.
10. The deadline for submission is March 21, 2012 (7pm US Central time). My blog anniversary! This should give you plenty of time to come up with cute Spring ideas.

Judging

1. The designs will be judged by me and a panel of nail stampers and bloggers.
2. The designs will be judged based on theme, creativity and originality.
3. If you do not win 1st place it does not mean we don't love your design. There can only be 1 winner and 1st place goes to the person with the most votes.
4. The judging decision is final.
5. Judging will be for 1st place prize only. All other prize winners will be randomly chosen using random.org, according to which random pool you would like to be added to.

What Can You Win?

First Place Prize
-Layla Hologram Mercury Twilighth (yes the new amazing holo!)
-Layla Magnetic Goldent Nugget
-Layla Magnetic Purple Galaxy
-$25 Llarowe gift certificate (get your Lynnderellas, Ozotics, HITS, etc...)

4 Random Draw Prizes
-Cheeky Image Plates Bundle (26 plates, 160 designs)
-Essie Spring 2012 Collection
-$75 Julep Gift Certificate (online use only, excludes Spa services)
-4 of my favorite OPI Holland Shimmers (DutchYa, Rotterdam, Herring Problem, Pedal Faster)


All of the prizes are new and were purchased by me with the exception of the Llarowe gift certificate which is graciously provided by Inlinkz. Thank you!

How do I enter?

1. You will need to "host" you photo using one of the free sites: Flickr, Picasa, ImageShack, Phot0bucket, etc. They will give you a URL for your photo.

2. Upload your design by clicking the button below, the blue frog that says "add your link". Input the URL from the host and fill out the required fields so that I can contact you if you win. If you have a blog, you can make a post, then use the URL of that post instead. A link back to this contest would be appreciated but not required.

3. Add a message in the comments section on my blog to let me know which random drawing you would like to enter. Please ensure your username matches your picture so that I can enter you in the correct drawing, or clarify which entry belongs to you in the comments. I cannot be responsible for non-matching entries or confusion due to mislabeling.

4. Bam you're done! Feel free to link your picture back to your Blog! More traffic for you ;) Just make sure you link it back to the actual post. If you don't have a blog don't feel discouraged, you can still enter.

Please let me know if you have any questions. I tried to make this as easy as possible! Any questions? Add a comment below and I will try to clarify.

Icing Magnetix Blue Swatches and Review

When I first saw swatches of the Icing Magnetix I knew I had to have the green and blue from the set. Of course when I got there, the shimmering pink was calling my name, so I left the store with all four :D

My current NOTD is the blue magnetix from the collection. As far as I know it does not have a name, or at least my bottle doesn't. It comes with a wavy magnet design and I must say it's smokin' hot! The polish color is a cobalt blue with ice blue highlights created by using the magnet.

There is also a hint of pink shimmer that can be seen in the dark blue of the design. It gives the cobalt blue a slight pink flash under artificial light. I haven't worn this out in the Sun yet but I doubt it would be very obvious. For a topcoat I used 1 layer of Wet N' Wild clear followed by 1 layer of Poshe.

Here's a close up of the wavy magnet. I revealed the design by accident. I actually purchased the magnetixs a few weeks ago but I got frustrated with them and let polish dry on the magnet by mistake. When I removed it with straight acetone it revealed the design. This mistake actually turned out to be quite helpful because I could accurately see which way the lines were going and didn't make any in the wrong direction.

The down side of the polish is the horrific brush. It tends to bend in all kinds of strange directions and picks up way too much polish. To help with application I flattened it with a plastic bag for the first coat. I left it as is for the second coat so I didn't waste too much polish. The extra also helps to intensify the design.

All things considered, it's a a great buy because the magnet is very strong and can be used for other magnetic polishes. The wavy designs is also one of my favorites from the other options available.

The Icing Magnetixs retail for $9 per bottle but Icing usually runs a buy one get one 50% promotion. So two magnetic polishes are a pretty sweet deal for less than 15 bucks.

Nicole by OPI Kardashian Kolors Spring 2012 - Swatches and Review

Kardashian Kolors for Spring 2012 are exclusive to CVS stores. The collection consists of 4 cremes and 3 shimmers in a broad range of colors from neutrals to brights.

“Nicole by OPI is very excited to bring new Kardashian Kolor lacquers exclusively to CVS for 2012. In collaborating with the Kardashian/Jenner family on the CVS exclusive shades, we came up with lacquers to represent each of their vibrant personalities and individual styles. The seven resulting colors offer the perfect accessory for spring’s bright colors, feminine frocks and reinvented neutrals.”

Paparazzi Don't Preach - super shiny ceramic doll pink. It's actually a lot darker than ceramic pink, more salmon, but the color reminds me of baby dolls. It's a very pretty neutral that you can wear anywhere. I used 3 coats to make it opaque.

Ladies In The Limelight - yellow creme with a hint of green. I saw this about a week ago in CVS and the green wasn't apparent in the bottle but it's obvious on the nail. I'm really feeling the lime here. It has a thin formula as most yellows do but it built up nicely. To my surprise I only needed 4 coats.

One Big Happy Fame-ily. Lilac base with light pink and baby blue shimmer that looks more silver on the nail. This is so pretty and great for Spring. I used 3 coats.

Back To Reality...TV. Periwinkle with pink/fuchsia shimmer. I used 3 coats here.

Strike A Pose. Dark coral that leans more red. It's a very bright creme but not neon at all. I had a difficult time capturing the true color. It looks more coral in the bottle and more red on. I used 2 coats but a third wouldn't hurt. I thought I saw streaks in person but they weren't obvious on camera.

Our Fuchsia's Lookin' Bright. Like the name says it's a bright fuschia creme. I really like the formula on this one because I only needed 1 coat. I used 2 to intensify the look. Very pretty.

Smile For The Glam-era. Dark plum with dark pink shimmer. This will probably sound strange but it's much prettier than I expected. I don't wear vamps as often but I love the look of this one. The formula was thicker than I expected so I only used 2 coats. I took several pictures to highlight the shimmer.

Outdoors

Indoor Light
Shade

The Kardashian Kollection

All of the polishes were photographed without a topcoat except Strike A Pose. Overall the formula was good and application was easy. Most of the colors needed 2-3 coats except the yellow which is pretty common. My favorites from the collection are Smile For The Glam-era, One Big Happy Fame-ily and Paparazzi Don't Preach. I also really like Ladies In The Limelight but I may have a similar color already. Overall, I believe the collection has a good variety and offers a little something for everyone.

~Sent for Review~

Color Club Spring 2012 Blossoming Collection - Press Release

Introducing The New Blossoming Collection from Color Club

Rich Color Has Bloomed & Everything is Coming up Couture

October 2011 - New York, New York - Color Club, the New York based nail color company announced today the debut of Blossoming a new nail polish collection for Spring. With the beautiful budding flowers of the season as an inspiration, rich color has bloomed! Add Diamond Drops topcoat for a "morning rain-kissed" effect. Blossoming features six nail polishes - from Hydrangea Kiss, Sweetpea and Blue-ming to Blushing Rose and Lavendarling. This new vegan, formaldehyde, toluene and DBP-free collection is sure to signal spring is in the air...or blossoming.

The Blooming Collection includes:

Hydrangea Kiss: Dusty blue-purple creme

Sweetpea: Rosy Pink creme

Blue-ming: Bright blue-green creme

Blushing Rose: Baby pink creme

Lavendarling: Dusty purple creme

Diamond Drops: Silver ice flake polish

Color Club’s Blossoming Collection will be available in February 2012. All Color Club products are made in the USA and are not tested on animals. Products are available at shopcolorclub.com.

About Color Club

A favorite of celebrity manicurists and nail color fans worldwide, Color Club is renowned for its high performance rich shades and exceptionally safe products. From the brightest neons, to glitter and French, all nail colors are vegan, formaldehyde, toluene, and DBP -free – and made in New York, NY with the best raw materials. Products are available at shopcolorclub.com.

Nicole by OPI New 2012 Lacquers - Swatches and Review

Today I have the New Nicole by OPI's to share with you. The set consists of two glitters and two shimmers and are available now at local stores. I wasn't sure what to expect when I saw the press release but I knew I was curious about the glitter. So here they are.


Shoot For The Maroon. Dark burgundy base with dark pink shimmer. I thought this was very gorgeous on. A great Vamp, especially for the current Season. I used 2 coats.


Vio-let's Talk About Red. Dark berry magenta base with matching shimmer. I may have a similar color in my collection already but it's still beautiful nonetheless. I used 2 coats to make it opaque.
A Lit-Teal Bit Of Love. I thought this was a foil when I looked at the bottle, but when I applied it, I noticed it's a micro blue glitter in a matching blue base. It was a lot thinner than I expected and didn't act like a foil at all. I still only needed 2 coats which is always nice.

A Million Sparkles. This was the show stopper in the collection for me. It has a clear base with micro blue glitter, medium hex gold glitter, tiny blue bar glitter and medium fuchsia bar glitter. The fuchsia glitter is a lot larger than other bar glitters so that it's more obvious within the sea of blue. I like that it doesn't look messy which can happen with bar glitters sometimes. This is a must have for the glitter fanatic, lol. I used 1 coat over A Lit-Teal Bit of Love.


So there you are. All of the polishes are pretty but my favorites from the collection are Shoot For The Maroon and A Million Sparkles. I may have dupes for A Lit-Teal Bit of Love and Vio-let's Talk About Red but they are still nice and worth checking out if you don't own similar colors.


The new line will be available starting January 2012 in the US at CVS, Harmon, HEB, Rite Aid, Sears, Stage Stores, Target, ULTA and Walmart as wel as Amazon.com, Drugstore.com, Target.com and Walmart.com. In Canada, lacquers will be retailed at $10.99 at Jean Coutu, Loblaw, Shoppers Drug Mart and Walmart Canada.

~Sent for Review~

China Glaze Electropop Swatches, Spring 2012

Good morning beautiful! Today I have a few of the Electropop colors to share with you. The collection consists of 12 bright cremes, shimmers, and one holographic glitter. I have 3 of the 12 to share with you, starting with my favorite:

Aquadelic - bright aqua/blue creme with a hint of green. It's so vibrant and pretty that it announces Spring! It was opaque in 2 coats.
Gaga for Green - bright green creme, almost jelly formula. Love the look outcome. It reminds me of candy apples. It was thinner than I expected but I only needed 3 coats.

Gothic Lolita - bright red toned purple with blue/purple shimmer. The shimmer is not very noticeable but its still pretty on the nail. I only needed to coats.

These are fun, cheery brights that get you in the mood for Spring. Aquadelic and Gaga for Green are from the Brights half of the Collection. While Gothic Lolita is from the Lights portion of the Collection.

The China Glaze Electropop Collections is available now online and in retailers that carry China Glaze.

~Sent for Review~

Valentine's Day Nails

Hello lovelies! Today I'm sharing my Valentine's Day nails. For this look I used Zoya Sooki and topped it off with CoverGirl Gold Front. I stamped using Daschica's Beauty image plates SdP-A14 (cupid - the number is slightly missing but I believe it's A14) and SdP-B09 for the hearts.

A swatch two coats of Sooki. I love saying that name, lol.

Sooki topped with old school Cover Girl FrostSlicks in Gold Front. I'm so happy I ran across this at the Dollar Store. It gives the nail a touch of glam.

Do you have anything fun planned for Valentine's Day? Hubby and I went out already over the weekend so I'll probably spend the day with my girls and finish making our Valentines tree house :)

Birthday Nails

My birthday was this weekend and hubby took me out for a surprise night on the town. I would have been happy staying at home, but he forces me to have a good time. We went out for Japanese and had plenty of champagne, so needless to say, I had a great day!

My nails from yesterday were Julep's peacock stickers. I'm always running late so I didn't have time to polish. I thought the stickers were neutral enough to match my outfit and extravagant enough for a Birthday mani.

I heated them before putting them on to help with staying power. The application was pretty easy and I think they held up pretty good. The photo is from day 2. If I had to guess I would say the stickers would last about 2-3 days. They also peel right off afterwards which is great.

I also wanted to share my daughter's digital birthday card. Isn't it adorable =D

That's all for today. Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend! Thanks for stopping by :)

OPI Holland Collection Swatches and Review - Part 2

Hello lovelies! Today I have the second half of the OPI Holland collection to share with you. The second half of the set are all cremes with the exception of one which also has a hint of shimmer.


A Roll In The Hague. Bright orange with a hint of red. I don't know what it is about this color but I love it! My favorite from the second half of the collection.

Kiss Me On My Tulips. Bright fucshia pink with a great formula. I started out with 2 coats but added a 3rd for extra coverage since I thought I missed a spot or two.

Red Lights Ahead...Where? Bright tomato red-orange. Two coats.

Did You 'Ear About Van Gogh? Neutral taupe creme. I used two coats here.
Thanks A Windmillion. Dusty olive green and not as blue as it appear in the photo. I really like this one. Sorry my camera couldn't capture it's true beauty. I used two coats.

Vampsterdam - purple creme with slight shimmer effect. It looks like a darkened grape but still noticeably purple indoors. This one was a lot thinner than I expected but still pretty. I used 3 coats.


If you like brights then you'll like the second half of the collection. The brights represents luminous colors of the Holland tulips. I'm not sure of the inspiration for the dark grape but it's a gorgeous addition to the set. My favorites are from the second half of the collection are Vampsterdam and A Roll In The Hague. I don't think I have a orange quite as vivid my collection.

So there you have it. If you missed the first half of the collection you can check it out here.

The OPI Holland Collection is currently available at Ulta, JCPenney's and other fine retailers that carry OPI.

~Sent for review.~