Gabriella + Louise + Space Queen

I've got ALOT of essence on my nails right now.  And I love that!  I received a few of the essence Twins from my swap friend Dulce.  Gabriella and Louise don't go together by couple/name, but they match up really well anyways.   Just for fun I decided to top everything off with Space Queen because, well because I can.  Ha.

Gabriella is the twin to Troy (from High School Musical).  Gabriella is a beautiful violet purple with a purple/blue shimmer.  It really glows.  I used 2 coats of Gabriella and the formula was perfection!  Perfect coverage, beautiful color, uber shiny.  
I used 1 coat of Louise, from the Twin set Thelma and Louise.  Louise is a glitter top coat that consists of micro purple glitter with purple and violet squares in a clear base.  It's a very fun glitter, unlike anything have in my glitter stash.  This was another perfect formula.  I only needed 1 coat of Louise to get full glitter coverage on my nails. 
 For the grand finale, I put 1 coat of Space Queen on top of everything for an extra dose of sparkly bling.  Space Queen is an iridescent glitter top coat that flashes rainbow colors in the light.  The glitter is uniform in size and suspended in a clear base.  I feel it gave a very fun touch to my mani.  

Wonderwall

"I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me.  And after all - you're my wonderwall."  I'm wearing Dandy Nails Wonderwall and it's amazing!!  I have been staring at my nails ALL day long!  
I searched my stash for a blue that I liked and finally found one that was an absolute perfect base coat for Wonderwall.  It's L'Oreal Rebel Blue from the UK.  Rebel Blue is a deep Periwinkle blue (slightly darker than the matte glitter in Wonderwall) with a blue/purple shimmer.   It was fully opaque in 2 coats, not too thick or thin.  The brush reminded me of the one in the Spoiled polishes, wide-wide-wide.  But with some exercised patience and careful painting it shouldn't be a problem.  Rebel Blue is a very pretty color and I look forward to trying it again on it's own!  
Wonderwall is a  beautiful mix of matte white, matte periwinkle blue and a fine sparkling silver glitter.  It's all in a clear base so it makes a perfect finishing touch for anything you want to try it over. I used 1 coat of Wonderwall on top of Rebel Blue to cover each nail.  Wonderwall was thick, but easy to apply.  Because of it's density plenty of glitter came out with each dip, but it wasn't difficult to spread evenly on the nail.  I used 2 coats of topcoat to smooth out Wonderwall.
Do you have any matte glitter polishes?  If not you can start with Wonderwall!  Dandy Nails is on Etsy and Facebook.  

Beach Bunny Swap!

One of my nail polish groups decided to do a summer beach bunny swap….just to keep things fun and to get to know the other girls in the group.  I am soooo super excited!  My bunny sent my package and it arrived today!  I think I'm the first one to get their package so bonus points to Jessica for that (you set a high bar my dear!)  Even more awesome is that she got me 4 (FOUR!!) things off my wish list!  Candeo Colors Sprouse and Jelly Bean, Models Own Beach Party, and Color Club Sky High!  I am over the moon ecstatic with each one.  Jessica also threw in some fun sample sized items from LUSH - which is an all-natural, organic, handmade bath and body products store that I absolutely love. 
Thank you so much Jessica!  You are an awesome bunny!!

FEVERshadow Rue's Wildflowers

The creator of FEVERlacquer recently began making eyeshadow!  Being inspired by The Hunger Games, she made a trio: Effie's Trinket, District 12 Soot and Rue's Wildflowers.  They come in loose powder and cream formulas.  I ordered the cream formula because I like how creams slightly glisten, have less fall-out and more staying power.  I was not disappointed!  I have worn all 3 and can say that they stay bright and vibrant all day long!  On the FEVERlacquer Facebook page you will see a post stating that all "cosmetics are hand made, and most importantly they are ALL toxin free... so I use natural ingredients, especially in the facial cosmetics (eye shadow, primer, liner etc)."  The main ingredients are kaolin and natural oils.  


As I mentioned I have worn all three colors, but in this post I will be spotlighting Rue's Wildflower.  Cas describes the shadow as a violet base with pink highlights.  I found it to be a very beautiful, very bright violet shade.  It did indeed have pink shimmer which I felt made it glow!  The shimmer also gave it an iridescent sheen.  Rue's Wildflower applied easily and smoothly.  I used a makeup brush, but since I generally use my fingertips for cream shadows, promptly ditched the brush for my finger.  I did give it a quick stir with a toothpick before I applied it, just to get the oils mixed well.  I found that the shadow also has a slight minty scent, almost like aromatherapy.  It's very pleasant.   The shadow lasted a very long time, barely fading at all.  That is a huge deal for eye shadow!  
Here are a few pictures of the shadow on, taken both outdoors and indoors to show off the differences in lighting.  Also a few pictures of the product inside the jar.  
I purchased these items and you can too!  Visit the FEVERcosmetics store to purchase the shadows or some amazing nail polish creations!
      OUTDOORS

 INDOORS

 

ACid/DC + Ibiza Mix

Bright neon yellow-green nails, check.  Colorful glitter, check.  That's what is on my nails today and I love it!  It came out exactly as I hoped, better even!  
I received Catrice ACid/DC from my nail pal in Portugal, Dulce.  This is an amazingly vibrant yellow-green with the same shade shimmer.  It's a subtle shimmer so it's a pleasant little surprise when you see it flash on the nail in the sunlight.  I used 2 coats and feel that was great coverage.  The polish itself was a tad thick, but still easy to use.  The brush on the other hand was not so great.  It reminds me of the brush on the Spoiled polishes…flat and wide.  So if you have or are going to get any Catrice, proceed with caution and paint carefully. 
Models Own Ibiza Mix came in a swap package from my other nail pal in the UK, Jo.  I thought it was alright when I looked at it in the bottle, but once it was on my nails wowzers!  Way better in real life!  Ibiza Mix is a mix of small and medium hexs in gold, light copper, purple, teal (maybe it's more green?) and blue.  It's fantastic!!  I sponged 2 coats of Ibiza Mix on my tips over ADid/DC.  It went on perfectly!
LOVE LOVE….that's all I can say.  Here are the pictures.

Myrta + Tart With A Heart

I had an exciting weekend!  I went to my first fashion show!  It was fabulous.  The models were having a blast strutting on the catwalk, the sun was shining, wine was flowing, and women were getting rowdy!  When the male models walked by that is.  The fashion was bright and fun, perfect for the summer.  

I wore a pretty little (I truly mean little.  Probably the shortest dress I have worn ever) shift dress with a nice pattern of what looks like a brushstroke pattern in vibrant purple, orange, pink and beige.  I like that my dress had pockets, functioning well to help me keep my dress down indiscreetly.  Here is a pic of all the fab ladies I went with.

To match my dress I chose Zoya Myrta, from the new Surf collection.  Myrta is a very deep orange, almost red.  Much like Rory and Zuza, it's a unique finish.  Kind of metallic, kind of foily, kind of matte until you put on a topcoat.  Then it has a tiny hint of shimmer in the same color as the base.  I used 2 coats and they went on evenly, covering each nail fully.  Myrta was slightly thick - though I did apply out in the sun, so I wonder if my polish started to cook.  Despite the thickness it was not difficult to maneuver the polish.  To bling it up I used 1 coat of Butter London Tart With A Heart on each index finger.  TWAH is a beige colored glitter topcoat.  It gave a nice yet subtle look of diamonds on my nails.  I felt it was perfect and very classy for the fashion show.

And just for fun…here's what my nails looked like against my dress.

Jubilee!

My nail friends and I are at it again!  For today we have planned another group nail post.  This one is to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.  It marks the 60th year since her accession to the throne!  Isn't that something?  


We are paying homage by wearing nail polish brands that hail from across the pond.  Including but not limited to: A-England, Butter London, Barry M, Ciate, Model's Own, Max Factor, Illamasqua, Nails Inc, etc.
I chose a new polish I had received from a swap - Barry M Denim.  It was an absolutely stunning blue with a metallic foil shimmer.  It covered in ONE coat!!  I'm in love with it!  Much like the Zoyas I wore the other day, this had a matte like finish, but with the topcoat it became a shiny-shimmer gem.  I sponged A-England Merlin at the top half of my nails.  It's my first attempt at sponging, so be gentle if you don't like it.  Merlin is a dense silver glitter.  It's bright, sparkly and covers very well - I'm sure this would be a glitter that would wear well on it's own with 1-2 coats.  I topped it al off with Out The Door topcoat.  I like the way it came out - the blue is a royal color and the silver glitter gives it just the right amount of bling!  
You can get A-England from Adina's website here, or Llarowe.