Essence Color & Go Oh My Glitter! With KBShimmer Toastess With The Mostest

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I've been itching to wear this gorgeous purple shimmer ever since I did some nail art with it, and I'm so glad I finally got around to wearing it.  This is Essence Color & Go Oh My Glitter!, a perfect lavender with tons of sparkling pink shimmer.  The formula was smooth and excellent and applied with no streaks.  Two coats may have sufficed for shorter nails but I used three here for good measure.  This is without topcoat.

Essence Color & Go Oh My Glitter

Essence Color & Go Oh My Glitter

Essence Color & Go Oh My Glitter

Essence Color & Go Oh My Glitter

Essence Color & Go Oh My Glitter

Essence Color & Go Oh My Glitter

I was inspired by the pink shimmer to add a pink glitter topcoat.  The closest I could find in my collection was KBShimmer Toastess With The Mostest.  I wish there was a bit more pink, but then again, this glitter topcoat is pretty amazing with all the fabulous circle glitters in pink, silver, and gold.  I finished this with a layer of topcoat.

KBShimmer Toastess With The Mostest

KBShimmer Toastess With The Mostest

KBShimmer Toastess With The Mostest

KBShimmer Toastess With The Mostest

What a perfect spring combination!  I love how the silver and gold circle glitters highlight the pastel pink and purple.  If a mani could be effervescent, this would be it!  I guess that's why Toastess With The Mostest is such a fitting name for a circle glitter topcoat.  Are you a fan of spring pastels or do you run the other direction? 

Purchased

Essence Color & Go Off To Miami Swatch And Review With Nail Art

Purchased

Happy Saturday!  I hope you have something fun planned that involves spending as much time outdoors.  It's too pretty outside to not enjoy it!

I've been reading that coral has been a popular color choice for this spring, and I'm excited to try it myself.  I use to despise this color, but after wearing it a few times, I understand it's draw.  It's bright, it's fun, and it makes the skintone take on a tan appearance.  I recently picked up Essence Color & Go Off To Miami, a salmon coral that is surprisingly a crelly.  I used three coats here to achieve enough opacity, mostly because it was too sheer after two coats and there were still some visible streaks until the third coat.  It also dries down an orange shade darker than what's seen in the bottle, which for me is a bit disappointing because I prefer pinker corals.  I used a layer of topcoat to add gloss and hasten drying.

Essence Color & Go Off To Miami 

Essence Color & Go Off To Miami 

Essence Color & Go Off To Miami 

Essence Color & Go Off To Miami 

Essence Color & Go Off To Miami 

I really love the name of it, Off To Miami because next week is the Winter Music Conference in Miami, a yearly pilgrimage that I use to make for almost a decade up until a couple years ago when we found out we were having LO.  I really miss those days, and still hope that I can make it back sometime soon.  I guess you consider this mani an ode to that event.

Next, because I had some other pastels sitting nearby, I thought I give a dot gradient a try.  I haven't done one it a while and thought the colors may work well together.  The purple is Essence Color & Go Oh My Glitter!, the green is SH Chartreuse Chase, and the light blue is Rimmel 60 Second Mintilicious.  It didn't work out as well as I wanted to, but it's been a while since my last one so I'm out of practice.

Pastel Dot Gradiant Nail Art

Pastel Dot Gradiant Nail Art

Pastel Dot Gradiant Nail Art

 This reminds me Easter Eggs in a basket, with the purple being my favorite of the colors.  Oh My Glitter! has a lot of shimmer in it and deserves to be worn on its own some point soon.  What color are you looking forward to wearing this spring?

Purchased

Feenix Polish Ashes Swatch And Review With Halloween Nail Art

Happy happy Saturday loves!  I'm so freaking glad the week is finally over and that I can enjoy a full two day weekend.  Ah, the little things in life.  I was so fraught yesterday that I left my brand new handbag at the yogurt shop and didn't realize it for three full hours.  When I did, I totally freaked and had to retrace my steps.  Luckily the owner of the shop was sitting next to us while we were there and realized it was my bag after we left.  Oy vey.  My brain must be addled.

Today's swatch is Feenix Lacquer Ashes, a gunmetal microglitter polish with black and silver hex glitter accents.  Although the base is clear, the glitter is dense enough that two coats give fair opacity.  I used three layers here, and had a little trouble with the formula in that it was thick and not wanting to flow easily up to the edges of my nail beds.  Regretfully, there's a bit of a larger gap than I'm use to.  It also wanted to pool towards the tips if I didn't use thin coats.  I suppose if I thinned it down a little these issues wouldn't happen.  Dry time was a little on the slow side too, and I was more prone to dents than normal for me.  I didn't use any topcoat in these pics.

Feenix Polish Ashes

Feenix Polish Ashes

Feenix Polish Ashes

Feenix Polish Ashes

Feenix Polish Ashes

Feenix Polish Ashes

For Halloween's sake, I decided to try my hand at some pumpkin nail art on my ring finger.  I used Essence Gorgeous Bling Bling for the pumpkin and Sinful Colors Exotic Green for the top.  Say hi to my little grumpy pumpkin!

Feenix Polish Ashes with Pumpkin Nail Art

I think the Ashes functions well as a night sky glittering backdrop for the pumpkin.  Unfortunately at the time of this post, and my sincere apologies in advance, this brand is no longer creating polishes for the general public.  I wish I hadn't discovered it so late!  Ashes is one of those simple appearing polishes that get more complex as you get closer, which I love.  Hopefully one day Feenix will make a comeback.  It goes to show, if you don't jump on a nail polish color that you like, you risk the high chance of never seeing it again.  I should probably go take a look at my lemming list! 

Speaking of catching lemmings before they get away, make sure you enter the Hobby Polish Blogger's giveaway that I'm participating before it ends!  That's $320 that could be yours to spend at any nail polish e-tailer of your choice.  Good luck!

#31DC2013 Inspired By A Pattern - Fall Camouflage

PurchasedPress Sample

Today's last minute submission for the pattern challenge is my take on a a fall colored camouflage print.  I love mixing camouflage prints with my regular wardrobe, and I've always wanted to try a camouflage mani.  I didn't use a tutorial, instead I randomly painted thin squiggly lines across my nails.  I used Revlon Emerald City and Ruby Ribbon, Essence Color And GobGorgeous Bling Bling, and Barielle I Got A Headache over a base of Skin Food Cappucino.  To help enhance the camouflage print, I used Essie Matte About You.

#31DC2013 Inspired By A Pattern - Fall Camouflage

#31DC2013 Inspired By A Pattern - Fall Camouflage

#31DC2013 Inspired By A Pattern - Fall Camouflage

#31DC2013 Inspired By A Pattern - Fall Camouflage

I really like how the colors scream fall together.  It helps me feel like fall is finally here, despite the hot weather outside here in SoCal.

Let's pop on over and see what the other ladies are cooking up!

PurchasedPress Sample

Essence Fruity One Kiwi A Day Swatch And Review

I hope all you ladies had a wonderful Mother's Day yesterday, as a daughter or as a mother.  I myself had an interesting day - LO woke me up super early so I was tired, but DH tried his best to make me happy by getting me my favorite foods and taking me out for a nail haul.  LO also kept me up late because she had trouble sleeping - I guess she didn't want this day to end!

I have another prize polish that I received from Pollia Polish's giveaway by the lovely Ceitie, and that is Essence One Kiwi A Day from the Fruity collection.  I'd been lemming this polish forever and couldn't find a way of getting it here in the states.  I was so excited to see that she included this in my package and tonight(this morning) I've got swatches of it for you.  I used the coats and had no trouble with clumping of the glitter, however there was some patchy spots in the cream hence three coats instead of two.  It's a lime green cream with dark green mini glitters to mimic kiwi fruit.  Love!  No topcoat in these pics.

Essence Fruity One Kiwi A Day

Essence Fruity One Kiwi A Day

Essence Fruity One Kiwi A Day

Essence Fruity One Kiwi A Day

Essence Fruity One Kiwi A Day

I really love the way this looks... I can't help but love myself an ugly green polish and the tiny green glitter makes it more awesome than I thought possible.  Now I need to figure out how to get the rest of the Fruity collection, LOL.

And finally, the mani as I'll be wearing it, and that's with a semi-successful water marble with China Glaze Lemon Fizz and For Audrey.  Not bad for my bazillionth try!  Maybe it's because I had the windows open this time.

Essence Fruity One Kiwi A Day

Essence Fruity One Kiwi A Day

Essence Fruity One Kiwi A Day

Sorry for the crappy cleanup - I used tape but it's really late and my eyes are ready to cross from being up so long today.  Overall, I'm happy with the way it turned out!  Hi five myself!  Have you watermarbled before?  If so, please feel free to drop me suggestions, thanks!!

Pahlish Stroke Of Luck over Essence Walk On The Wild Side

A quick one for tonight, I have to wake up at dawn again tomorrow morning and then it'll be run, run, run, all day long.

I adore greens and I couldn't resist picking this Essence up when I was at Ulta last.  It's caled Walk On The Wild Side and it's a gorgeous dark shimmering olive green.  The formula was perfect and really well pigmented.  I only needed two thin coats to get full opacity and it had a pretty great shine on it's own.  I didn't like the brush however - I've complained about it before I'm sure - it has a really wide brush and it makes it difficult to maneuver it on my narrower nail beds.

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 Essence Walk On The Wild Side

 Essence Walk On The Wild Side

 Essence Walk On The Wild Side

 Essence Walk On The Wild Side

 Essence Walk On The Wild Side

I decided to try another untried and use Pahlish's Stroke Of Luck over it.  Stroke of Luck is a stunning multi sized green glitter mixed with gold microglitter in a sheer green base.  I had no trouble with application and used two coats followed with topcoat.

Pahlish Stroke Of Luck over Essence Walk On The Wild Side

Pahlish Stroke Of Luck over Essence Walk On The Wild Side

Pahlish Stroke Of Luck over Essence Walk On The Wild Side

Pahlish Stroke Of Luck over Essence Walk On The Wild Side

Pahlish Stroke Of Luck over Essence Walk On The Wild Side

I don't think Stroke Of Luck could be worn with its own because the base is too sheer.  Instead of using green as a base next time, I might try gold and see how it turns out. 

Butter London Sloane Ranger Swatch and Review

I've been addicted to overnight no cook refrigerator oatmeal recipes that I found online, because they make a yummy healthy oatmeal to eat in the morning that I can just grab and go.  The recipe is fairly easy - in a sealable container, mix steel cut oatmeal, greek yogurt, milk, and then your choice of sweetener and filling like honey and berries, or cocoa, sugar, and bananas.  The mixture should be a little runny so the oatmeal will absorb the liquird.  Let it sit in the fridge overnight and voila, the next morning you've got breakfast ready to go.  Healthy, fast, and delicious, just the way I like it!

I recently noticed a new color on Butter London's website called Sloane Ranger, and it's described as a "Olive, khaki crème nail lacquer infused with silver shimmer."  I was sold at the word Olive.  I don't know how many polishes I have that are in this color range but I'll never have enough as far as I'm concerned.  The bottles appears to be grey in person, but once on the nail the true dusty olive green comes out.  I was really impressed with the smooth self leveling formula and it took only one coat for opacity, and that's what I have in these pics for you.  Did you hear that? One coat!!  The only disappointment I had is that the silver shimmer is very subtle, and only visible in bright light.  This seems to be a common phenomenon with Butter London.  Below are pics without topcoat.

Butter London Sloane Ranger

Butter London Sloane Ranger

Butter London Sloane Ranger

Butter London Sloane Ranger

Butter London Sloane Ranger

 And below are Sloane Ranger with one layer of Poshe.

Butter London Sloane Ranger

Butter London Sloane Ranger

Butter London Sloane Ranger

BTW, I used a new cleanup brush for this mani - it's the Essence gel liner brush which is an angled flat brush.  I'd been looking for a back up and for $1.99, it's a bargain!  My current go to brush is an Ulta angled flat brush and I never was able to get a hang of the elf concealer brush that is so popular.  The Essence brush gave me no issues so far, and it was easy to maneuver and it was fairly precise with clean up.  I definitely recommend it if you're looking for a brush.  It's part of the regular Essence display which can be found at Ulta.  Don't forget your coupon!