Lazy Days of Summer-Summer Ombre

This will be short and sweet.  I hate ombres.  Not my thing.  I am doing it because I can't skip a challenge item.  The perfectionist in me just can't do it.  So here it is.....

This is Orly Snowcone mixed with white and black to make the variation in color.  I wore this long enough to take the pictures and then took it off.  Didn't even top coat it. Yuck. 

 I do want to share one thing though.....when I find a good tutorial I like to share the wealth and as far as ombres go....this one is stellar.  Some people prefer to pick different colors and vary creams and shimmers but if you want a straight up ombre in the same exact family.....check out this tutorial by Emily at The Lacquerologist.

The rest of the challengers....

Alyson

http://beadsnailsfood.blogspot.com/
Amanda
http://mandyspolish.blogspot.com/
Hannah
http://polished-prisms.blogspot.com
Katee
http://www.agirlandherpolish.com
Charlotte-Louise
http://charlottes-nails.blogspot.co.uk/
Jessica
http://nearlynaturalnails.blogspot.com
Karine
http://karinea0a.blogspot.com
Jen
http://thepolishedzombie.blogspot.com
Jessica
http://jessicasnailtales.blogspot.com/
Ashley
http://onenailtoanother.blogspot.ca
Pryanka
http://nailsparks.blogspot.com/
Anna
http://www.polishedcousins.com
Maribeth
http://obsessivecosmetichoardersunite.blogspot.com/
Victoria
http://www.manicurator.com/

F4 Polish Rainforest Swatches

So far, I have reviewed F4 Polish's Iceburg which you can find here.  It is....to date....my favorite nail polish of all time.  Rainforest is probably in my top 20.  This is just such a pretty combination of glitters.  I used China Glaze Turned Up Turquoise for the base. 

I used two coats of Rainforest in these pictures.

I am in love with the combination of glitters in this polish.  Goes on smoothly, no placing of glitters necessary.  There are dozens of layering combos....

There are medium teal green flat hex glitters, smaller blue green textured glitters and tiny gold glitters.  Here is a closer look at the glittery goodness. 

My recommendation....buy it!!!!  You can get F4 Polish from their Etsy store.

Summer Fun Challenge-Hot, Hot, Hot

Here is the next post in the Summer Fun Challenge hosted by Lindsey of Neverland Nail Blog.  it is called hot, hot, hot.  I used KB Shimmer's Lilac Dreams as the base.  Gorgeous polish, I will show it to you in a minute.  The first thing I think of when I hear hot is the sun.  So many great ways to show the sun, I included several that I found online....

This was amazingly bright on my nails.  I really liked wearing it.  Here is a closer look at Lilac Dreams....

Gorgeous tiny glitters in lilac and blue.  I am in love with this polish.  It was super sparkly...

You can buy KB Shimmer's Lilac and other great polishes here.

And for the rest of the challenges to come.....

Summer Fun Challenge-Pool Party

When I got Layla's Holo Ocean Rush, I fell in love with it.  Now I have read and heard their are better holo polishes out there but this one is currently the best I've got.  For this challenge item, I wanted to try out some cool iridescent glitters.  This is two coats of Layla with a dip of glitter and I used acrylics for the bathing suits with the tiniest brush I own.

Isn't this color amazing????  Here it is pre-swimsuits so you can get a better look...



Giveaway and Survey Results

Let me start out first by announcing that the winner of the Orly Flash Glam FX Collection is Samantha de Klerk.  Congrats!!!

Now on to some interesting results from the questions I tormented you with.  I am listing the top three highest votes in each category.

Best Blog Design:
Sarah at Chalkboard Nails
Jen at The PolishAholic
Traci at The Trace Face Philes

Best Manicured Nails:
Scrangie
Sammy at The Nailasaurus
The Polished Perfectionist

Best Educator:
Sarah at Chalkboard Nails
Sammy at The Nailasaurus
Lab Muffin

Best Photographs:
Sarah at Chalkboard Nails
Scrangie
Fashion Polish

Best Swatches:
Scrangie
Traci at The Trace Face Philes
Jen at The PolishAholic

Positive Blogger Energy:
Traci at The Trace Face Philes
Amanda at Amandalandish
Sarah at The Giveaway Lifestyle (I believe she has taken leave from her blog at this point)

Best Nail Art:
Sarah at Chalkboard Nails
Sammy at Nailasaurus
Robin at Nail-Art by Robin Moses

Favorite Indie Polish: (This is beyond sad what has taken place in the last week or so but I am posting the results as they are)
NailVenturous Lacquers (just announced she would not be selling anymore)
Lynderella (can't even post a link because she no longer has a site to sell on...except eBay?????)
Pretty & Polished (soon to be sold on Llarowe)

Favorite Base Coat:
Essie Grow Faster
OPI Nail Envy
Seche (various)

Favorite Top Coat:
Seche Vite (by about 80%)
Posche
Essence Better Than Gel

The one color you would wear if stuck forever on a deserted island......(this is the whole list for those who answered the question)
China Glaze Marry a Millionaire
OPI Teal the Cows Come Home
Essie Topless and Barefoot
Pretty and Polished Valentino
Barry M Blueberry Ice Cream
Zoya Charla
LA Girl Groupie
Nails Inc. Warwick Way
OPI Aphrodite Pink Nightie
OPI Skull and Gloss Bones
Rimmel Tequila Sunrise
No7 Betty Blues
OPI DS Sapphire
Sinful Colors Hazard
China Glaze Atlantis
Flormar Neon No05
OPI We'll Always Have Paris Suede
OPI DS Extravagance
Layla Mercury twilight
Essie Navigate Her
Essie Turquoise and Caicos
Revlon Whimsical
Nubar Knight's Armor
Essie Exotic Liras
China Glaze Full Spectrum
OPI DS Original
Models Own Hedonist
OPI Mad as a Hatter
OPI My Private Jet
Essie Miss Matched
Bourjois Paris Rainbow Apparition
Koh Platinum Silver
Butter London Victoriana
Chanel Rouge Noir
OPI Lincoln After Dark
Chanel Peridot
Nerd lacquer All Space and Time
AquaDaisy Shazzam
Ozatic 532
Zoya Charla
Floam
OPI DS Diamond
Catrice Meet Me at Coral Island
China Glaze Atlantis
Wet and Wild Party of Five
OPI Nail Envy
China Glaze Fairy Dust

Then a few less specifics...
Blue
OPI in a nude color
Light orange to make the days bright
Something blue and sparkly
OPI
A holo polish to stare at all day long

And for those problem solving nail enthusiasts....
A super bright linear holo that I could use to signal for help
China Glazed Sunkissed to try and hail airplanes for help.

That's it folks....thanks for participating.

Whimsical Ideas by Pam-Seuss

Before you say anything.....I know it has been done before.  probably more times than I will mention here so I am sorry if I miss giving credit to anyone else but these are two nail artists that I LOVE and follow closely.  I saw Jacki from Adventures in Acetone do this combination with Whimsical's Seuss and I saw Sammy at The Nailasaurus do this combination for a nail art competition.  I decided to join the two together. 

Pam from "Whimsical Ideas by Pam" is an amazing polish designer.  She also has great customer service and a laid back attitude that makes the polish buying process a great one.  You e-mail her your order, she puts you in the que after she receives your e-mail and fills them in that order.  You know when your order is up because you get invoiced, you know when it's filled because you get a shipping notice.  And the bottle is just so darn cute. This is how it comes......

Now, for all the nail art enthusiasts out there who feel that they are not good at nail art.  I am not either.  Sometimes I come up with unique ideas but a lot of times I get inspired by people who are so much better than I will ever be at nail art.  This was incredibly simple....take a closer look.

There is actually very little to it.  Just takes patience.  Let's take a closer look at this amazingly cool nail polish....

Now, I first attempted to just apply it with no base color but I felt the color needed to pop because I wanted the end result to be more cartoonish so I used one coat of Avon's Vintage Blue.  This is a great tip...I buy cheaper polish like Avon and frequently will use it as underwear or in nail art.  That way you can use extra on a little palette (or a plate like I use) and you won't be worried about using up something you really love.  Also, Avon applies fantastic, most of the creams in only one coat. Here is a close up...

Lots of medium hex glitters and smaller red hex glitters and tiny silver glitters mixed in.  Applied smoothly with no need to place the glitters individually or fish for them out of the bottle.  This was two coats.

Lazy Days of Summer-Beach Theme

This challenge group I totally love.  Great group of nail addicts.  This is the second challenge for some of us and we are joined by a bunch of new additions who seem like they will make an excellent addition.  The challenge is relaxed.  No scheduled posts.  You go at your own pace.  The first challenge item was a beach themed mani.  I decided to paint some things that I would bring to the beach surrounding the sun (in shades of course).

Don't ask what colors I have used because I have no  idea.  I did it in Cape Cod on vacation.  Here is a look at the items on this challenge.

Take the time to check out what these other ladies are doing.....

Victoria at Manicurator

Amanda at Mandy's Polish

Hannah at Polished Prisms

Alyson at Beads.Nails.Food

Katee at A Girl And Her Polish

Charlotte-Louise at Charlottes Nails

Jessica at Nearly Natural Nails

Karine at Karinea0a

Jen at The Polished Zombie

Jessica at Jessica's Nail Tales

Ashley at One Nail to Another

Pryanka at Nail Sparks

Anna at Polished Cousins

Maribeth at Obsessive Cosmetic Hoarders Unite

Johanna at Kayonolan

Sharra at The Blagh

if I missed someone, mispelled or screwed up a link....just give me a yell...

Summer Fun Challenge-Summer Lovin'

Before I introduce today's challenge, I want to remind everyone one more time that my giveaway for the ORLY Flash Glam FX Collection is going to be over on Saturday.  If you have not checked it out, it isn't your average giveaway.  I am asking everyone to vote for your favorite blogger in various categories.  It is really fun, the results I am getting are interesting and I plan on posting everything along with the winner of the giveaway sometime this weekend.

Now......this challenge item was inspired by two things.  First was the polish I recently got from Dandy Nails called Come Out and Play.  Second was a you tube tutorial that I had seen and loved.  Soooooo simple and soooooo cute.  It is by Luvable nails and I think she calls it Dancing Hearts.  I painted two coats of Come Out and Play on all nails accept the accent.  For that I used Color Club Pink Satin and Finger Paints Pretty as a Portrait.

Awesome summer color.  This polish by Dandy Nails is so pretty. Couldn't resist taking a picture outside in this gorgeous weather.

F4 Polish Iceburg

OMG, I have reached polish nirvana in the form of F4 Polish's Iceburg.  I am in awe.  It is amazing stuff.  I can't say enough about it.  I am sooooooo grateful I put it in my cart.  Now my biggest problem is needing a backup because this is my official new favorite nail polish of all time.  I put it over....believe it or not...... Avon's Midnight Plum which is a very dark plum color.  This is one coat of Midnight Plum with two coats of Iceburg.  I easily could have done one coat and had it look fantastic but I could not resist the glittery goodness.  Amazing.....I cant stop saying that.....have a look see...

I wasn't kidding....

Tons of varying size glitters in teals and blues and purples.....

It's like all my favorite things wrapped up into one polish.  Yummy!!!

You can purchase this amazing polish from F4 Polish in their Etsy shop.  Just save some Iceburg for me. :)  I need a backup bottle.

Summer Fun Challenge-Grill Master

Today starts my challenge marathon....three of them for the summer.  I am super excited about all of them.  Great challenge items, great groups of talents.  I am hoping to find new talented bloggers and to raise the bar for my own nail art.  The Summer Fun Challenge was started by Lindsey from the Neverland Nail Blog.  I am sure you know her.....ultra talented, great tutorials.  Love her blog design!!!  The first challenge item was grill master.  I had this great vision of what I would do.  I wanted to recreate the view you get looking down into a charcoal grill.  Makes me a little sad because I live in a condo and the rules are....NO GRILLS. (insert sad face).  I miss it terribly.  Here is how it turned out....

I added in a shrimp and veggie kabob to give it a little something extra and because that is what I would grill if I was allowed to have one.

Too many colors to list here so ask if you have a burning desire to know what I used, I would be glad to let you know.  Here is a peek at the rest of the challenge items that Lindsey has planned for us....

KKCenterHk zipper water decals and indie haul

I showed you my first water decals from KKCenterHk over the weekend.  Loved them.  Made me think of chocolate all day.  The reason I ever visited the store in the first place was because I saw this design done by Copy That, Copy Cat.  I just loved it.  I wanted to recreate it.  it was a lot tougher than I thought it would be, lining up the polish with the decals.  The result was just sooooo cool.

As you can see, they give you several different variations and sizes to play around with.

The polish is Sail Away by Milani.  It is a little shiny but the denim color is really dead on.

Now, onto other exciting things,,,,,,second indie nail haul exibited below....

From F4-Bubble Yum, S'mores, Glamorous, Hawaiian Punch, Pink Penguin, Iceburg, Piper, Strawberry Shortcake, Rainforest, Pink Salmon.

From Whimsical Ideas by Pam-Seuss, Kismet's Pajamas

From Utopia's Polish-Gum Drops, USA, Purple Pop, Mermaid's Tail.

I can't wait to try them all on!!!!!!  However, I will be busy.  Starting tomorrow, I am participating in THREE summer challenges.  Very excited.

Lastly, only 5 more days to enter in my giveaway and vote for your favorite blogger.  Check it out here.



Amy's Nail Boutique Nautical Nonsense

I bought a bunch of polishes from Amy's Nail Boutique's last restock on Etsy.  I am slowly making my way through the polishes.  The first I have today is called Nautical Nonsense.  It is a clear base polish with tiny matte blue and white glitters.  I wanted to put it over white which I regretted because the majority of the glitter doesn't show up, especially on camera.  I just really love the colors together and the name really suits it well.  So, I added a red anchor with a stamp. 

This was just one coat so over a different base, it would have pretty good coverage with two.  Next time......putting it over red, or maybe a really dark blue.  I have plenty more to show you from Amy's.  Hope everyone had a great Father's Day.  Tomorrow, its back to the daily grind.

KKCenterHk M&M nails

I recently came across this online beauty supplier that has a ton of different nail supplies.  I bought a bunch of water decals that I will be showing you throughout the summer.  This was the one I loved the most.....could not resist them!!!!!

This is Essie Glamour Purse as a base with M&M water decals.  Don't you just love the green one?  They were pretty easy to aaply.  Just soak in water and slide it on to the nail.  Once they dry, they lie perfectly flat.  Finshed off with a top coat to protect them.  They almost looked 3D the way the color just popped off the nail.  This made me crave chocolate all day.  If you are interested in them, you can buy them online at KKCenterHk's website.

Once again, reminder about my Orly Flash Glam FX giveaway here.  I included a survey for bloggers to nominate other bloggers in certain areas.  I will be posting all the nominees in each category as well as the giveaway winner after it closes on the 30th.

Utopia's Polish USA swatch

I went a bit nuts with Indie polishes recently.  I never knew they existed.  Now that I do......my credit card has been burnin' up.  I am super in love with the designs of Virginia at Utopia's Polish.  Such cute polishes, I had a hard time picking.  She was very, very nice to do business with and shipped quickly.  This is the first of several polishes I will be showing you.  It is called USA.  I love all the patriotic glitter polishes in the indie shops but this one just stood out to me and was a bit different.  I layered it over Zoya Tallulah.  The blue glitters don't show up on camera well but they are slightly off the blue base and shined so you could pick them up better in person.

Now, here is the amazing part, it is only one coat.  Seriously???  No fishing for glitters???  No placing them on the nail strategically????  NOPE!!!  Perfect coverage, one coat.  I got tons of compliments and couldn't stop staring at my nails.  You can find Virginia's gorgeous creations at her Etsy shop.

I really need to get cracking if I am going to show these indie polishes before my summer challenges begin.  I am committed to possibly 3....

Oh, and before I forget, enter my giveaway here.  You can win the Orly flash glam fx collection.  the responses I am getting are fantastic.  Some will be expected but some will be surprises.  Looking forward to posting all of the results.  

Survey/giveaway reminder and indie haul

Firstly, dont forget about registering for my giveaway here.  It is a unique opportunity to vote for one of your fellow bloggers for an aspect that you admire.  Check it out and do it!!!!!  it will be fun to see the outcome.

Secondly, I have lost my mind I think.  When I started to look at some of these indie polish stores, I was amazed.  Some of the polishes are just incredibly unique.  I have, however, gone completely over the edge.  This is the first of two deliveries that I have ordered within the last two weeks.  Help!!!!!

Color Club Fashion Addict

First, if you have not already, register for my giveaway of the Orly Flash Glam FX Collection.  OK, now that that's out of the way.  Here is a quick post of Color Club Fasion Addict.

I saw a swatch of this a month ago and dropped it on my wishlist.  I am glad I got it.  i am always happy with the application of Color Club polishes and this one was no different.  Also, the polish stayed on with NO chipping for nearly three days.  That has to be a record for me and a holo.  Here is another pic in the sun a little blurry.

So pretty.  I am in love.....

Sadly, vacation is over and I am back to work tomorrow.  Thanks for all the positive feedback on my guest post from yesterday.  I was happy to share with everyone my other strange hobby and was glad to see it was appreciated.  I am also back to the gym tomorrow.  Some of you already know that I teach group fitness but have not been able to because I had a recent back injury.  Have to work my way back into shape.  Hope eveyone has a great week.  

If you love dogs then check this out

I have done a guest post for Rachael over at Island Girl Insights today.  Her blog is the only non-nail blog I follow mainly because she has some creative ideas and I am super jealous because she is in Tortola on an extanded trip.  I agreed to guest post because it gave me a chance to something other than nails......get ready to see my "other weird hobby".  Click here.

Orly Flash Glam FX Collection Giveaway

As I mentioned last week, I planned on giving away the new Orly Flash Glam FX Collection (minus black-who doesn't already have black??) once I reached 200 followers.  Well.....here we are.  I also thought it would be fun to collect some information from my followers on what bloggers in the community they feel have made the biggest impact in one way or another.  I think it is a nice opportunity to acknowledge those bloggers who inspire you to have started or to continue an existing blog.  I have found one common thread amongst the bloggers that I love the most.  Everyone tends to be hard on themselves and they don't always understand how amazing they can be and what an inspiration they are to others.  So, with that being said, when you enter, you will be asked a series of questions and will be required to respond.  I am listing the questions here so you can think over your answers before entering.......

Who do you think has the blog with the best layout/design?

What blogger do you think has the best manicured nails?

Which blogger do you feel is the best educator (ex, providing tutorials, industry updates, tips)

Which blogger do you feel has the best photographs?

Which blogger is your "go to" for swatches of the latest polishes?

What blogger contributes the most positive energy to the blogging community (ex, supportive of other bloggers)

What blogger do you feel has the most amazing and creative nail art?

And lastly.....just for curiosity sake:

Favorite Top Coat?
Favorite Base Coat?
Favorite Indie Polish Brand?
The one polish you would take to a deserted island to wear forever????

A few last minute things:

This contest will run through June 23rd.
It is open to all GFC followers, including those internationally.
I will post the winner as well as the top responses in each category (or the top few if the votes are close).  No winners here, just bragging rights.
Good luck!!!








a Rafflecopter giveaway

Neon Spun Sugar

Here is another spun sugar design.  This time I was inspired by all the neon polishes I am seeing.  Love them all.  I debated whether to use black or white as the base color.  White would make the color pop more but I love the look of neons over black.  Here we have OPI Onyx as a base color.  It is topped with thin fibers of Color Club Jackie Oh, Mrs. Robinson, Twiggie and China Glaze SunWorshipper.

Loved the outcome of this.  It does take time but the effect is really cool.  Tomorrow I am heading back home to reality.  I will miss Cape Cod but I miss my lightbox and my desktop computer.  A few pics from the vacation..........



This was our rental on Martha's Vineyard.  Sooooo cute!!!

These are the gorgeous cliffs on Martha's Vineyard.

This was our view at lunch.  Bee-u-ti-ful!!!!

Amazing view on 9th hole at Blue Rock in Yarmouth

Snapping turtle sunning himself on the golf course.



Color Club Take Wing Peacock Nails

Can't stop using colors from this collection.  I just love them all. Color Club Take Wing Collection.  I bought a few and then went back and bought the rest and never once regretted it.  The colors are just so pretty. I did this around the time I was really getting into dry needle marbling so I decided to give it a try with two colors, Metamorphosis and Sky High.  Here is what they look like swirled together (the result is subtle but gorgeous).

Reminds of a world map or globe.  I am thinking it would make a great foundation for earth day nails.  So, next I stamped using Konad silver and Cheeky 11.  Lastly, I dotted using Wet n Wild Buffy the Violet Slayer.

I like this last pic the best but no watermark.  The other two I did before vacation and the netbook doesn't welcome any online editing programs. :(

Today's vacation update, we played golf.  At least, one of us played golf.  My back is still not good enough but this course is so beautiful, I couldn't pass up the chance to ride around and take pictures.  We saw two gigantic snapping turtles.  Got great pics but they will have to wait until I get home.  And....best news...we actually saw THE SUN!!!!!!