I Love Nail Polish (ILNP) Music Box: New for Spring 2014!

Hey everyone! I'm going to a craft show today with my friend, who is like a sister to me and my husband. I'm trying to plan what I am allowed to buy. I am such a sucker for homemade candles and bath and body products so I know I will end up with those at least! And maybe some jerky for the hubby :-)

I Love Nail Polish (a.k.a. ILNP) is one of the original indie/boutique brands of polish. If you've ever ordered you know how adorable the packaging is, from the mailing box to the tissue paper to the individual little boxes and polishes. Bad blogger... I didn't think to photograph any of that. I urge you to order for yourself because it's a real treat! ILNP's Spring line has some amazing colors for the season and here is my favorite: Music Box.

I Love Nail Polish
Music Box

ILNP Music Box is a lovely shade of turquoise--not quite pastel but not bright, it has a little dustiness to it. It has a holographic with a slight metallic finish and turquoise sparkle. This is one of those shades that looks simple, but there is an indescribable complexity to it that makes it easy to fall in love with. I wore this to work for five days. FIVE. And this from the girl who usually changes it daily! I didn't even do any nail art to it because it was already so perfect.

I Love Nail Polish
Music Box

I used three thin coats and topped it off with Just Ricarda Glossy Glam. I got great wear for five days and no refreshing of topcoat. Formula is excellent and easy to control. I love when I just have to do a quick acetone sweep for clean-up! Which was especially good because with all the sparkly goodness you don't want to get sparkle herpes ;-)

I Love Nail Polish
Music Box

I plan on wearing a couple more of these to show you in the coming weeks in a Spring green and pinky-coral. I can't wait to get those on my nails!

Products:
ILNP
Glossy Glam

Have you loved your cuticles today?

KBShimmer Laugh Myself Lily

Didn't mean to let the week get away from me. I've been trying to make sure I post at least three times a week... I must work on getting posts set up on my weekends. Yesterday I went shopping with my husband for new linens because we are getting a new bed on Saturday, woo! We got some great deals and I got brand new white sheets and towels--I want to be able to bleach these items back into perfection haha. Our merriment was short-lived though.... later that evening he jacked up his car by side-swiping a lamp post. Then this morning I ripped my rear-view mirror off on the garage while backing out. Sigh. Anyway, at least this polish is cheering me up!

KBShimmer Laugh Myself Lily is a beautiful aqua jelly with pastel, holo, and circle glitters. I see yellow, silver, purple, pink, pale sea foam green, and blue for colors. This was the one most of the nail gals I knew were drooling over when the press release came out, myself included, and it does not disappoint!

KBShimmer
Laugh Myself Lily

For my swatch I used three coats. I started with one thin coat gradually built up the jelly and glitters. I fished and dabbed a few more circles and larger pink hexes where I wanted them. The formula is magical, I didn't add any thinner and I am a big fan of thinner haha! I used two thick coats of KBShimmer Clearly On Top for a smooth, glassy finish.

KBShimmer
Laugh Myself Lily
Accent of OPI Pink Friday and silver studs in a lily design

I had a hard time choosing an accent nail because there were so many ways I could go with it. I didn't have anything matching this exact perfect shade of aqua so I decided to pull the pink from the larger hexes which is also reminiscent of water lilies I have seen. The studs in the graphic lily arrangement were my finishing touch. I did topcoat over these studs in the photo and in my experience top-coated studs wear wonderfully.

KBShimmer
Laugh Myself Lily
Accent of OPI Pink Friday and silver studs in a lily design

I have been dying for a polish such as this. I am planning a giveaway with some other lovely bloggers and I will be providing a bottle of Laugh Myself Lily and Clearly On Top to one lucky reader. Stay tuned, I think we will be set in early April!

Products:
KBShimmer

Have you loved your cuticles today?

KBShimmer Make My Gray

I wanted to take a moment for a few blog updates.
First off, I have been getting a lot of love and new people checking me out, so thank you!
I have just joined twitter and you can follow me here. Full disclosure... I have no idea what I am doing yet.
I also recently switched to commentluv for my comments. This allows you to share your own blog with me so I can check out what's going on with my lovely readers. It's not clear to me if it's mobile friendly, but either way let me know how it's working for you. I have a blog because I want to connect with other polish fiends, so, seriously, talk to me :-)

And now for some amazing polish. It's no secret that KBShimmer is one of my favorite brands. Today I have a look I did using Make My Gray. I know I'm never the first to show a polish swatch so I try to give you a look instead to inspire you and show you more ways of having fun with a polish.

KBShimmer Make My Gray is a light gray crelly with neon coral, teal, pale aqua, and gunmetal glitters in matte, satin, metallic, and holographic finishes. Mostly all hex shapes but I also see a smattering of squares and micro bars!

KBShimmer
Make My Gray

I think one of many reasons KBShimmer is so immensely popular is because of their formula. Easy coats with perfect glitter distribution. I used three thin coats in my look. It was amazing coverage, no VNL in sight.

KBShimmer Make My Gray
Accent of China Glaze Surreal Appeal with studs

My accent nail is China Glaze Surreal Appeal with some studs from I-don't-know-where. I just love this look altogether especially the coral! I love me some coral. This is such a unique polish and a must-have in my opinion.

KBShimmer Make My Gray
Accent of China Glaze Surreal Appeal with studs

I will have some more KBShimmer this week so stay tuned! I am also planning a giveaway with some other amazing bloggers and I will be giving away some KBShimmer products....

Products:
KBShimmer

Have you loved your cuticles today?

Pahlish Spam: January, February, & March Duos

You'll notice I'm back to nubs. Again. The hospital I work in now is drying my nails and cuticles so badly this winter. Ah well, slap on the polish and rock it!

Pahlish is one of my favorite indie brands. I have been getting Pahlish's duos since they started in April 2013 and I can't get enough. I was going to stop after one year so supposedly March was going to be my last duo.... But every month Pahlish's duos are just too perfect so I'm so I will continue to purchase them until the end of time. They are so affordable for indies, too--with shipping the duos cost $18.00 which is a steal for such a unique pairing. I've got the three duos for the first quarter of this year to show you today.

January 2014: One Last Bow

Eleven's Hour Is Now Over--Base

The Clock Is Striking Twelve's--Glitter Topper

Some notes about Pahlish's formula. For the polishes that are opaque I find that they can be thicker than my liking, so I do add some thinner to make doing my preferred thin coats easier. I know they must be thick because of all the goodness inside! And I tend to be thinner happy anyway since I love my thin coats.

February 2014: EXTERMINAAAATE!

a.k.a. "The Doctor Who Duo"

The Primary Order--Base

The Crucible--Glitter Topper

Pahlish's glitters are a different story--I do all of my gradients with the brush only. The glitter formulas are always perfect, nice spread, not too thick or thin, the perfect amount of glitter. You will notice this is the millionth time I've used the word perfect in this post haha! For my gradients I paint the top third of my nails and then I go over the top two-thirds of my nails. A little dabbing and you've got a perfect gradient.

March 2014: Don't Hesitate

Shadows Grow So Long--Base

Fireflies Under Pines--Glitter Topper

Have you tried Pahlish yet? I can't get enough. You have two more chances this month to get the March Duo during their restocks which occur each Friday at 7pm Central. Just a few months ago I used to take my time logging on but now I am refreshing like a crazy person to make sure I get what I want at 8pm (my time). Pahlish is getting big people, make sure you check it out! I will have some amazing holographics to show you soon.

PS: Pahlish, please just take my credit card and sign me up for your monthly duos forever!

Products:
Pahlish

Have you loved your cuticles today?

KBShimmer Maybe Navy

KBShimmer is one of my favorite brands, and not just for polish. I am in love with their Pink Sugar scent which I have in the cuticle oil, lotion, soap, and sugar scrub. With every purchase you earn points, which I use to try a new product or scent. I never thought I could do bar soap, but I got one of the bags they sell and it totally changed my bathing experience haha! Now here are some photos of why their polish is so amazing.

KBShimmer Maybe Navy is a navy jelly with color shifting flakes in magenta, violet, blue, and teal along with a smattering of holographic sparkle.

KBShimmer
Maybe Navy

I used three thin-ish coats and it applies like buttah! Paint carefully though as this one has major stainer potential. I used one coat of KBShimmer Clearly On Top to finish it off. This polish is so badass. The shimmer shift is amazing. Why did it take me so long to wear this? I've had it since November. Fail.

KBShimmer
Maybe Navy

Anyway I felt like it needed some stud action just to make it even more badass. I laid some studs out on my polish table and scooted them around until I liked what I saw. Then I transferred them into place with tweezers. I took the photo without topcoat over the studs so my picture was prettier, but once you topcoat those suckers they are pretty hard to get off. This look might be tough to wear for a week but it lasted me for the weekend just fine.

KBShimmer
Maybe Navy

Products:
KBShimmer

Have you loved your cuticles today?

Mardi Gras: A Box, Indied for March 2014

March's edition of A Box, Indied was EPIC. It included four polishes inspired by Mardi Gras and I love them all to death. There are a lot of swatches so I'll get right to it!

Jindie Nails Rainbow Connection Exclusives: Rainbow White & Midnight Dancer

***Provided for honest review by Jindie Nails

I have some exciting polish today! Jindie sent me two exclusive polishes for Rainbow Connection, an indie brand supplier in the UK. Jindie consistently impresses me with her creativity and formula which keeps her among my top favorite indies.

The first polish I have is Midnight Dancer. She (yes, I made this polish a girl) is a deep blue jelly packed with all sorts of blue, gold, and red holographic glitters and shimmer. Big gold holo circles in here! I feel like there are hidden gold flakies, but this may be the shimmer playing tricks on me. This is a polish you can get lost in.

Jindie Nails

Midnight Dancer

Exclusively for Rainbow Connection

With all the goodness going on in here I was a little worried. Luckily the formula was good--not too thick and easy to work with. Shown is essentially three coats. I started with a thin first coat (paint carefully this can be a stainer!). I didn't want all of my circles to be dabbed on top, so in between the second and third coats I started placing a few. There were some red dots which were a little shy but I diligently fished to get some! I used two thick coats of KBShimmer Clearly On Top for a smooth finish.

Jindie Nails

Midnight Dancer

Exclusively for Rainbow Connection

If you are a circle glitter fan Midnight Dancer is a polish for you. I love the color combination and how much shimmer is packed inside. Plus, when my husband saw this he went, "That is cool." I always feel like polish approved by men gets extra points ;-)

Jindie Nails

Midnight Dancer

Exclusively for Rainbow Connection

The second polish is Rainbow White. She is a white jelly with satin, matte, and metallic glitters in white, red, orange, melon, aqua, teal, and blue. Shapes include circles, squares, hexes, and stars! Really lovely colors and glitter mix.

Jindie Nails
Rainbow White
Exclusively for Rainbow Connection

The formula is excellent, exactly what I expect from Jindie! She really knows what she's doing with her jellies. Overall nice glitter spread. I used three thin coats and then a little fishing and dabbing for the stars and wherever I wanted to fill in. I used two thick coats of KBShimmer Clearly On Top for a smooth finish.

Jindie Nails
Rainbow White
Exclusively for Rainbow Connection

Thoughts: I LOVE this white jelly and all the accent nail color possibilities. Midnight Dancer might be my husband's pick, but this one is mine. White jelly heaven, yes please!

Jindie Nails
Rainbow White
Exclusively for Rainbow Connection

I decided to do a look with China Glaze Too Yacht To Handle and a white bow a la The Lacquered Owl (love her, go check her out!). *Sigh* this mani makes me want summer.

Jindie Nails Rainbow White, made exclusively for Rainbow Connection
Accent of China Glaze Too Yacht To Handle with bow from Born Pretty Store

You can purchase these polishes exclusively at Rainbow Connection. Please note, Rainbow Connection does not ship outside Europe due to Royal Mail restrictions.
For other great Jindie polishes check out Jindie Nails!

Have you loved your cuticles today?

Jindie Nails: Vixen & O Holo Night

Ugghhh. I have been so sick. This has been such a brutal winter in Buffalo and it finally caught up to me. First my Losson was sick, he had oral antibiotics for 10 days. Then Fiona was sick. Well, still is sick. She is getting eye ointment three times a day plus oral antibiotics every third day now. Now I'm trying to stave off an ear infection. Ah well, at least I've got some pretty polish to cheer me up :-)

The polishes I have today are from Jindie Nails' Holiday/Winter collection. Both colors have amazing formula and coverage--what you see is only two coats. Paint carefully and double up on base though, these do have major stain potential.

Vixen is a burgundy linear holographic polish with a smattering of color-changing flakies. Oh. My. Gawd. It is so beautiful I can't even take it. The flakies just take it to the next level. You gaze upon Vixen and know you have something special on your nails. Man, I love that feeling!

Jindie Nails
Vixen

Jindie Nails
Vixen

O Holo Night is a beautiful blackened navy linear holographic polish. I lemmed this so hard when it came out and it finally became mine in February! The little star stud just felt like the perfect touch.

Jindie Nails
O Holo Night

Jindie Nails
O Holo Night

If you haven't checked out Jindie Nails yet, what are you waiting for? Not only does she make incredible and unique polishes, she is a total sweetheart!

Products:
Jindie Nails

Have you loved your cuticles today?

Jindie Nails Olive You with Vivid Lacquer Stamping

I have a swatch with a lil stamping today for y'all! Olive You is a beautiful silvery sage-y olive green linear holo with metallic green/gold glitter. This is one of those polishes I waited way too long to get. Even though this came out for Fall I love it for Spring, too. This is a must-have shade for any green lover. Conversely if you want to get your feet wet with greens this is a nice way to do it since it's such a light shade with the silver feel to it. The duochrome glitter really makes this special and unique!

Jindie Nails
Olive You

Jindie Nails
Olive You

 Olive You was begging for some white vine-y stamping--can you tell I am dying for Spring? I used an image from Vivid Lacquer VL19 stamped with Konad Special White. I have yet to find a better stamping white and I already need another bottle. I like to place my stamp patterns randomly because I know I would drive myself bonkers trying to get all the nails perfectly centered. Contrary to popular belief nails should be fun, not anxiety-provoking.

Jindie Nails Olive You
With Vivid Lacquer VL19

Something about these nails makes me think about The Sound Of Music, you kno when she makes the curtains for all the kids, no? The version with Julie Andrews (and really, is there any other version worth watching?) used to be a favorite sick-day movie of mine :-)

Products:
Jindie Nails
Vivid Lacquer

Have you loved your cuticles today?

Renaissance Cosmetics Flirt

Hi all! I promise I am trying to get better at blogging. And Instagramming for that matter. If you follow me on IG you will have seen I purchased my first Alex And Ani bangles today! Total impulse buy but oh well. I had some overtime in my paycheck ;-)

Today I have Renaissance Cosmetics Flirt. I have had this in my folder waiting for... I don't know what. It is amazing! Renaissance Cosmetics is made by Meghan, the lovely blogger behind Will Paint Nails For Food. She is someone who made me feel like I could do this whole blog thing. If you check out this post you can see that she was so nice as to share a very amateur photo of one of my skittle manis from last year. Hey, it was a start!

Flirt is described by the maker as, "A red-toned purple linear holo with a vibrant gold shimmer and flecks of gold, pink and charcoal blue." There is a lot going on in here! The formula is easy to work with. I should have used another coat of topcoat for a smoother finish... the holo/glitter combination confused me as to whether I should use my holo or glitter topcoat (I have preferences). First pictures are without flash to show you the color and glitters.

Renaissance Cosmetics
Flirt
Without flash

Renaissance Cosmetics
Flirt
Without flash

And now for the best part. Holoooo! I'm not even a big purple fan, but wow, Flirt is easily my favorite Renaissance Cosmetics polish.

Renaissance Cosmetics
Flirt
With flash

Renaissance Cosmetics
Flirt
With flash

Meghan has such a lovely array of polishes and as a blogger I think she has a really good feel for formula. Make sure you check them out!

Products:
Renaissance Cosmetics

 Have you loved your cuticles today?