A Little Polish: January 2014

1.31.2014

Twinsie Tuesday (on Friday): Special Anniversary Post

Happy Friday! Today I have something different to share with you, a Twinsie post of a FRIDAY! This marks the Twinsie's Anniversary and so we are each re-creating another girl's FIRST Twinsie mani.

I will be re-creating ChiChi's first mani, which you can see HERE. She joined the group in February 2012, and her first theme was FRANKEN!

I wasn't sure exactly what sort of Franken polish I would create but I decided to go for a polish similar to what ChiChi created; now onto the look!

For this Franken, I mixed up Essie - Need A Vacation, Milani - Twinkle, and Venique - Twinkling Glitter. I really like the shade that this came out as! The pink was the perfect amount to make it look like a nice jelly sandwich and I felt like it was a cute mix of glitters. Maybe I should go into polish making (Just Kidding!).

What do you think of this polish?
Make sure to check out the other Twinsies as they re-create someone's first TT mani!

Alaina at The Little Canvas

Amanda at Amandalandish

Amber at Nails Like Lace
Anna at Going to the Showing

Casey at CaseyLane Loves Polish

Chelsea at Nailed Blog

ChiChi at I'm Just Me...ChiChi

Elizabeth at Did My Nails

Erin at Paint Those Piggies

Heather at Peace, Love, & Polish

Kelly at Tuxarina

Lakeisha at Refined and Polished

Maribeth at Obsessive Cosmetic Hoarders Unite

Marisa at Polish Obsession

Rachel at Top Coat It

Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les

Stephanie at A Little Polish

Tiffany at Polished To Precision

Traci at DrinkCitra

1.30.2014

Golden Oldie Thursday: Dots

Another Golden Oldie Thursday! I am liking this challenge because it's forcing me to go through my stash and find new polishes that either need more love or need a new home. Today's oldie, Petites - Aubergine, just needs some more love.

Today's theme is DOTS; and I have to admit that I have been loving polka dotted mani's lately so this was perfect.

Polishes Used:
-Petites - Aubergine
-OPI - My Vampire is Buff
-Out The Door

I may have cheated a bit with this look since my bottle of My Vampire is Buff isn't a year old, but I think it's OK because I have made up for it with the pretty base of Aubergine. I have owned Aubergine since I was in college, so definitely fits all the rules. This mani has a different source of look because I am mixing finishes, I think generally speaking, I prefer and enjoy to create mani's in colors of the same finishes. This also sort of reminds me of Minny Mouse's dress!

Don't forget to see how the other ladies incorporated their oldie polishes into pretty dotted manis!

1.29.2014

The Nail Challenge Collaborative Presents - Inspired By A Tutorial - Week 4

Today I am back with my last January Nail Challenge Collaborative mani! I really liked this theme because I finally was able to try some looks that I had been meaning to try out when I saw some of my favorite bloggers creating them :)

This look is inspired by Paulina's Passions Roses Nail Art Tutorial. You can see her tutorial post HERE. In my opinion, Paulina's roses are famous! She loves creating them and they are always absolutely gorgeous!

Here is my look:

Polishes Used:
-Nailtiques - Formula 2 Plus
-KB Shimmer - I'd Rather Be With Blue
-Sinful Colors - Orange Cream
-Sinful Colors - Hazard
-Essie - Plumberry
-Revlon - Emerald
-Out The Door

Although my roses aren't perfect, these are the best that I have ever done so I am so happy with them! Paulina's tutorial was really easy to follow and I also recently got a tiny striper brush in the hopes of improving my nail art skills and I think it may be working; lol. I decided to use oranges and reds against the blue background to change up Paulina's look and create this as my own.

Have you seen Paulina's tutorial? Have you tried it out yourself?

1.28.2014

PRESS RELEASE: Salon Perfect® Love, Lashes and Lacquer

THE LOOK OF LOVE

Valentine’s-Inspired Lashes and Polish from Salon Perfect®

They say that true love comes from within, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make that special someone fall in love at first sight. When it comes to making others swoon, it’s all in the wink of an eye and a kiss blown from a perfectly polished hand. This February, add a little spice to your sugar with the new Salon Perfect® Love, Lashes and Lacquer collection, available at select Walmart stores nationwide.

Complete your look of love with lust worthy lashes embellished with black crystals, or natural lashes to highlight your eyes – top it all off with a pretty polish. Choose from metallic and matte glitter lacquers, rich crème, and special effects top coats. Whether you’re a sweetheart or a saucy tart, Salon Perfect® has enough Love, Lashes and Lacquer to help warm even the coldest heart.

Salon Perfect® Love, Lashes and Lacquer collection features:

Lashes

Demi Wispies – Softly feathered lashes create an eye-catching gaze
602 Black Diamonds Diva Strip Lash – A full lash with a black jewel band for a touch of glamour
105 Glamorous Strip Lash – Long, lush lashes that are undeniably glamorous
53 Natural Strip Lash– A petite and graduated lash for subtle length and volume
110 Natural Strip Lash – A light full lash creates a soft natural look

Lacquers

He’s With Me! – Metallic red micro-glitter

In Love – Bright pink crème

Cosmic Black – Black and silver multi-dimensional glitters

Loves Me, Loves Me Not – Pale pink and black matte micro-glitters

Touchy Feely – Black and white matte micro-glitters

Hearts-a-Flutter – Fuchsia micro-glitter and gold heart glitter top coat

One Love – Iridescent holo-effect hex glitter and micro-glitter top coat

Salon Perfect® Love, Lashes and Lacquer collection will launch in February at select Walmart stores nationwide as part of a limited edition promotional display. Individual polish will retail for $3.98, lashes will retail for $2.98.

From lashes and brow products, to nail color and beauty tools, Salon Perfect® has the products needed to look effortlessly beautiful at an affordable price. View the complete Salon Perfect® collection at www.SalonPerfect.com. Follow Salon Perfect on Facebook (@SalonPerfectLashes), Twitter (@Salon_Perfect), Instagram (@SalonPerfect), Pinterest (pinterest.com/salonperfect) or YouTube (youtube.com/salonperfect).

PRESS RELEASE: Seche Nail Lacquer Introduces New Spring 2014 Collection - Perfectly Poised

BRING ON SPRING WITH SECHE®

Seche Nail Lacquer Introduces New Spring 2014 Collection: Perfectly Poised

The Seche® woman can Conquer the World, one perfectly polished nail at a time. She is dressed Head to Toe in confidence as she steps out to take on the day. Buttoned Up in her best, this Effortlessly Styled woman is smart, sassy, ambitious and quick-witted. She is Perfectly Poised – always looking for the longest-lasting, fastest-drying seasonal shades that remind her to “Keep It You.” To stay true to who she is, she turns to Seche®.

The collection includes:

Keep It You: Deep rose pink with purple shimmer

Head to Toe: Creamy nude

Effortlessly Styled: Melon sherbet cream

Perfectly Poised: Soft marigold cream

Conquer the World: Light teal with gold shimmer

Buttoned Up: Lavender cream with purple shimmer

Seche® is the leading global brand most trusted by professional nail technicians and the women who desire and demand superior quality, exceptional technology, unparalleled performance, and beautiful results for the care of natural nails. Seche® Perfectly Poised will be available February 2014 nationwide. For more information, visit www.seche.com.

PRESS RELEASE: CHINA GLAZE® SEA GODDESS

HEAR THE SIREN’S SONG WITH CHINA GLAZE® SEA GODDESS

Swim into Spring with Six Sparkling Shades

Discover the hidden treasures of the ocean this spring with China Glaze® Sea Goddess. Six vibrant matte and glistening glitters take you from the sandy, sunny shore to the depths of the sea where the mermaids play.

The shades in the collection include:

v Shell We Dance – Flip those fins across the sea floor in this bright rose pink with silver and pink glitter

v Sand Dolla Make You Holla – The tide meets the sand in this white polish filled with fine multi-colored glitter

v Wish On a Starfish – Make dreams come true with a light pink and gold shimmer polish

v Tail Me Something – Listen carefully to the whisper of the secretive sea in this glistening light lavender

v Seahorsin’ Around – Splash around in this mermaid-tail turquoise with soft gold shimmer

v Teal the Tide Turns – Swim through a seaweed maze of light teal with green glitter

China Glaze® Sea Goddess will be available in February 2014 at fine salons and beauty supply stores.

China Glaze® is free of DBP, toluene, and added formaldehyde.

China Glaze® nail lacquers are available through salons and professional beauty supply stores nationwide. For more information, please visit www.chinaglaze.com or follow China Glaze on Facebook (@ChinaGlaze), Twitter (@ChinaGlaze), Pinterest (pinterest.com/chinaglaze) and Instagram (@ChinaGlazeOfficial).

China Glaze® is a division of American International Industries.

Twinsie Tuesday: Nail Care Routine

Nail Care Routine.... This was/is a tough one for me. First, let my start off by saying I really have bad nail care, so feel free to take any "recommendations" with a grain of salt. :-P

I recently did a guest post for my high school friend, Victoria, over at Minding Minnesota on caring for your nails and I am shamelessly going to cut and paste from that post here. (I know, I'm bad)

Here are my top 3 steps for nail care:

1. Good cuticles are the basis for good nails! Make sure to keep your cuticles moisturized during the winter months (and the summer if you have dry skin). I am lucky that I have fairly nice cuticles on my own without using cuticle oil on a regular basis (or at least that’s what my friends tell me lol) but cuticle oil / moisturizer is a good way to keep them hydrated. You can purchase cuticle oil anywhere, from the drugstore, to Walmart, to higher end stores like Ulta and Sephora. Additionally, a lot of indie polish makers make and sell cuticle oil / moisturizer as well! Bonus Tip: Don’t cut your cuticles! If they are getting long, gently push them back with an orange stick.

2. Protect your nails and you manis by wearing base and top coats! Have you ever had a mani that has completely stained your nails? Richly saturated colors can be notorious for never wanting to leave your nails, especially greens and blues, and one way to help protect your nails is with base coat. Base coat can also help if you have weak or brittle nails and are trying to grow them. My go-to base coat is OPI Nail Envy. Top coats can help to protect a mani, make it last longer, smooth out rough glitter looks and even improve drying time. I wear topcoat over ALL my manis; my go-to top coat is IMN Out The Door, similar quick drying top coats can be found at drugstores, beauty stores and online. Bonus Tip: If your quick drying topcoat is getting “stringy” try adding a thinning agent, such as Seche Restore to restore the consistency.

3. Choose your nail polish remover wisely! In my mind, there are two main types of nail polish remover, acetone and non-acetone. Each of those has “sub-categories” for example, 100% acetone or strengthening non-acetone remover. While acetone remover gets the polish off quickly it also can dry out your nails, cuticles and skin super-fast, and we know that this leads to cracked skin and brittle nails. My recommendation for removing your standard polish would be any non-acetone remover. You can purchase these pretty much anywhere. I personally, use a strengthening non-acetone remover on a regular basis and stick to acetone or 100% acetone to remove manis under certain circumstances, such as hard to get off polish like glitter, or even removal of gel/shellac manis. Bonus Tip: Try the “Foil Method” to remove particularly stubborn manis.

Basically, the above 3 steps are my "routine". Cuticle Care, Base/Top Coats and Strengthening Remover and just because I might as well, here are my naked nails!!!

Not exactly "healthy" nails, but I am really trying to improve my nail health and I can't wait to see what the other Twinsies have up their sleeves with regards to their own Nail Care Routines so I can get some tips!