Color Club Halo Hues ~ Cherubic

This is another gorgeous holographic polish from Color Club. This one is a neutral light peach colour. Cherubic is great for when you want a subtle look but still a pop of holographic rainbow. 

I love the polishes in the Halo Hues collection because they have a very strong holographic effect. They also dry quickly and only 2 coats were necessary for full opacity. They also have a glossier finish than polishes like Nfu Oh and Make Up Store, although not as glossy as the OPI DSs. Overall I love them! 

PS - As always you can click on photos to enlarge them! Here's a close up of Color Club Cherubic! I took it with my new phone courtesy of my bf. What a wonderful Christmas gift! 

Look at this close up!!

 Blurry so you can see the holo!!

I think I need to get my hands on the 2nd set of Color Club holographics!!

It was 99 cents! ~ Gold Chrome Nail Stickers Preview

Here's a preview of my gold chrome nail sticker attempt!

Look my nails match my shoes!

I was looking through my pictures and found a set I took last summer. My friend Anisha made all these polishes for fun! Here's a quick preview of one of them, "BAD" from her Michael Jackson collection. It matches my blue suede heels! I don't know how she did it. It's pretty amazing! 

Stay tuned for more!

Miss Universe ~ OPI ~ This Gown Needs A Crown

Hi everyone! Hope you're all doing well. I finally finished my first term of grad school! Now I'll have plenty of time to catch up, write and share over winter break =)

Today I have for you: 
OPI ~ This Gown Needs A Crown

It's from the new OPI Miss Universe Collection 2013

This polish is special because it's also a new finish type. They call it a satin finish and you are not supposed to use a top coat. I find it's a cross between a suede finish and a matte glitter/foil finish, but it dries extremely smooth! The finish is very unique.

I also like that this polish dries super quickly, which is nice considering you can't use a top coat with it or you'll lose the satin finish. The application is also smooth and easy. I used 2 coats here. I also saw swatches in the store where they used 1 thin coat over a different coloured polish and it looked really neat.

The bottle also comes with a pretty jewelled crown on a plastic band. I suppose you could use it as a ring?


I have a ton of glitter and silver polishes, but This Gown Needs A Crown is unlike any polish I own! Overall it has a unique finish that is nice to feel after wearing all these "sand" textured polishes that are out now. It is build-able in that you can wear it sheer or opaque. It's also super sparkly in the light! Really great for when you want sparkle without it being too in your face =)

   

   
Have you tried this polish? Do you like the finish??

Cuccio Colour ~ Longing For London

Cuccio Colour
              ~ Longing for London

"Cuccio Colour™ Professional Nail Lacquer is formulated with Triple Pigmentation Technology for rich coverage in one coat and true coverage in two coats. Contains no DBP or toluene. 13 mL (0.43 fl. oz.)"

I got this in one of my Topboxes when I was still subscribing to that monthly beauty box. 

Cuccio Colour ~ Longing for London, two coats

I really liked the formula. It dried quickly and I could have gotten away with one coat, I used two. I don't usually wear cremes because they can be a pain to apply (splotchy, thick, gooey, too sheer...), but this polish applied like a dream. 

Longing for London is not the most excitingly vibrant colour, but I tend to be drawn to these sorts of tinted neutrals. 

One thing that disappointed me was how difficult it seems to get a hold of these polishes. I think I got this polish in my Topbox around May 2013. Looking now, I don't see Cuccio Colour nail polish available for purchase on the Topbox online store. 



I then checked out Cuccio Colour's website and you need to create an account before you can see prices of their products, so I can't comment much on whether or not you can buy from their site.

During my brief search, I did stumble upon this beautiful swatch Vique's Varnish did of Cuccio Colour ~ Iron Clad from their Precious Metals collection. It looks like it'd fit in with the like of the OPI Suedes! I think I need the Precious Metals collection!



Go check it out! AND if anyone knows of a good place to buy these, let me know! =) 

Baby Please Come Home ~ OPI Liquid Sand

Have you tried any of the OPI Liquid Sands? I have 3. Alcatraz Rocks, Tiffany Case, and Baby Please Come Home. 

For anyone that hasn't heard of Liquid Sand or textured polish, essentially they are polishes that don't dried smooth or glassy. They have a textured finished kind of like a fine sand paper, or if you've ever worn a glitter polish without using top coat. 

I think they are an interesting concept and some of them are quite gorgeous, but they can be hit and miss. I wasn't a huge fan of the first few ones that OPI released, but I'm finding more that I like. 




Here are some swatches of OPI ~ Baby Please Come Home, a Liquid Sand nail polish from the OPI Mariah Carey Holiday 2013 collection. Baby Please Come Home is a dusty purple/pink/silver glitter polish. 

OPI Liquid Sand ~ Baby Please Come Home

OPI Liquid Sand ~ Baby Please Come Home

OPI Liquid Sand ~ Baby Please Come Home

For those that are always busy and on the go, they are a great product:

- They dry very quickly

- If you dent or nick your nails before they dry it's super easy to fix 

- The textured finish hides imperfections

- Since they're glitters, they wear well and you can just add another coat of polish to refresh a worn our manicure. 

Any Liquid Sand/textured polishes I should try out??

Deborah Lippmann ~ Starlight Box Set Swatches

I absolutely love this set! I'm a huge fan of Deborah Lippmann and her glitters. It's one of my favourite designer brands. The bottles are so elegant and unique and the polishes are so fabulous. I do find it hard to justify buying her polishes at their high price point though ($20-22), so I only own 2 other Lippmann's:  Across the Universe which was a lovely gift from my boyfriend, and a Happy Birthday mini from Sephora points. 

When I saw this set it just jumped out at me, especially Cosmic Love and Fantastic Voyage. What is it with me and pink glitter?? I don't tend to like pink polishes, but Cosmic Love is jaw dropping gorgeous! The packaging of the box is sturdy and up scale. The polishes are very opaque for glitters. Each swatch below is 2 coats, but you could get away with 1 if you're layering or if you want a less extravagant look. I am very happy to add the Deborah Lippmann Starlight set to my collection. 

Deborah Lippmann Starlight Swatches

Deborah Lippmann Starlight Swatches

There are 6 mini 8ml polishes in this set, all glitters, and all unique:

- Twilight Zone - a black fine glitter with multi-sized silver/holographic glitter
- Blinded By The Light - Multi-sized silver holographic glitter and small white glitter
- Cosmic Love - Multi-sized silver, pink and purple holographic glitter in a pink jelly base
- Fantastic Voyage - Multi-sized silver and purple holographic glitter in a purplejelly base
- Champagne Supernova - Multi-sized silver holographic glitter and small white glitter in a champagne/peach jelly base
- Lost in Space - a navy blue fine glitter with multi-sized silver and holographic glitter

        

        TWILIGHT TONE

BLINDED BY THE LIGHT

        

        COSMIC LOVE

FANTASTIC VOYAGE

        

        CHAMPAGNE SUPERNOVA

LOST IN SPACE

The set was $50 and I bought it at Murale. They had a 20x the points event for Shoppers Optimum points, so I was able to get ~$15 worth in points back on this purchase. That also helped me justify it (not like I need help justifying polish spending though).

Will you be getting this set??

Nabi Hologram ~ Lavender

    

Here we have:

Nabi Hologram Lavender

I found this great find in a local clothing store. The best part is that they were 3 for $5! Such a great deal, especially for holographic polishes. I ended up picking a whole bunch for myself and also for swaps and gifts.

Although the Nabi Holograms aren't super linear holographic, they come in quite a range of colours and remind me of the China Glaze Kaleidoscopes a bit.

Look for these in Stitches, Sirens, and Urban Planet! They're perfect for gifts and stocking stuffers. Yes, xmas is coming... =)

Anna Sui Minnie Mouse Nail Polish

Check out these amazing Anna Sui Minnie Mouse nail polishes! They are part of a limited edition Anna Sui collection. Aren't these Minnie Mouse bottles beautiful? As always, you can click photos to enlarge =)

Anna Sui Minnie Mouse Nail Polishes

A few things you need to know about Anna Sui polishes: 
- The bottles are amazing! Aren't they cute? I didn't think it could get better than the regular line's dress mannequin bottles!
- The packaging is also gorgeous. You won't be throwing out these boxes.
- The polishes smell amazing! They are lightly rose scented. 
- On top of all that, they are great quality, only 2 coats were needed, the dry time is quick and the brushes are nice and full. 

Anna Sui Minnie Mouse ~ Snow White

Snow White 002
A gorgeous white with pink shimmer, and subtle silver glitter. Surprisingly opaque and smooth!

Anna Sui Minnie Mouse ~ Midnight Purple

Midnight Purple 200
A deep shimmery purple with subtle pink and blue shimmer.

Anna Sui Minnie Mouse ~ Neon Pink

Neon Pink 300

A bright shimmery pink with a subtle blue shimmer!

Swatches of Anna Sui Minnie Mouse Nail Polishes - 2 coats

My favourite colour is Snow White. I feel like it's the most unique. I'm not a huge fan of pink and I'm on the fence with the purple, but I think everyone needs these polishes just for the Minnie Mouse bottles!

Where to buy? There are 5 polishes in this collection, (click here to see the rest) but these three were the only ones available at my Murale. I've heard these are also available at some Shoppers Drug Marts as well. For you US girls, you can get Anna Sui online at Beautylish. They also had the lip balm and mascara, but not the full make up collection (click here for photos of the full collection). 

These were $15 each, but everywhere else they are listed as $16. YAY for Canada being cheaper for once =)

Are you planning on getting any of these??

Grad Nails!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here are my graduation ceremony nails!

First picture is bright light to show off the holographic effect! Next two pictures are in soft light to show off the gradient =)

I used all my favourite nail polishes in this look. I wanted it to be glamourous but not too over the top or tacky for this special occasion. 

I started off with a base of OPI ~ Designer De Better. Then I used 2 China Glaze polishes from the old Kaleidescope collection (still my favourite collection), Octa-Gone Wild and How About a Tumble.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tuxedo Nails!

So I've kinda been obsessed with rings lately... so I'm going to try and integrate them into my nail looks? every now and then! (Seriosly, there must me another word for mani...) 

I just love how cute this bow ring is!




Anyways...I started painting my nails one night at around midnight. I was using this Sexy Bomb polish that's a dark brown-green duochrome. It seemed too dark alone, so I added gold tips and little dots as an accent. 

I'm not totally sold on this look, but I did get a lot of compliments at work. I may try it again with a different colour palette. 

ps. I must share these shoes I just got that I absolutely adore! They're black flats with gold mirror toes! So much fun! ANDDDD they were only $8! 

Also, be sure to check out this article I did on affordable fashion for the fashion site: What She Wears



That's all for now, thanks for visiting my little spec of dust in the interwebs =)

Nail-Venturous Lacquers ~ Man-Maid Dreams

   Now this polish is one of my ALL TIME ABSOLUTE FAVOURITES!!! My very talented friend Amy made it over at I'm Feeling Nail-Venturous. (Also the creator of FLOAM!) This polish is truly magnificent. It may in fact be my FAVOURITE polish! That's saying a lot considering how many I have...

So WHY is it so amazing?? Well its a gorgeous seafoam-teal colour with gold/copper flakes. It shines and reflects light like a foil and it has a hint of shimmer. I have no idea how she made it, but she is a genius! It also applies like a dream!

        

I'm scared of using it up! I've already used like 1/3rd of the bottle... I also love how the lid is a bit different and the label is handwritten. I love this colour so much! It kind of reminds me of mermaids and copper roofs... lol

Isn't it lovely??

<3 Kim

Ombre Suede Swatchsicles and Duochrome Pants!!!

So this is my first official post of the year... Just haven't felt that inspired lately. I've also been super busy with school, applying to schools, work, etc., etc. Well here we go! 

Over winter break I worked on some swatchsicles. Here's a pretty ombre/gradient of some mattes/suedes:

I believe the bottom 4 are Nubars I picked up from Winners, and the top 3 are Pure Ice from the velvet collection that came out in US Walmarts. Suedes are fun because adding top coat to them completely changes the look! They also dry ridiculously fast.

I'm never actually done an Ombre... I should try one one day! Random ramble but I love it when you write a sentence and the same word comes up twice in a row...

Next up: 

I promised you Duochrome pants...

BAM! Found these babies over at H&M! Later that day I also saw someone walking down the street in em.

I love finding interesting clothing items in stores...it's very entertaining =D


Till next time, 
<3 Kim