Tuesday, August 12, 2014

China Glaze Choo-Choo-Choose You


We have seen so many swatches of Fall colors and collections coming out and we both ran out to snatch up some of these beauties. One of them that Hayley and I both chose was from Chine Glaze's All Aboard collection and is called Choo-Choo-Choose You. It is clear from looking at the bottle that this polish is different.

To me it looks like a dusty purple leaning gray polish with a greenish shimmer to it, but on my nails I felt like the shimmer was more coppery or rose gold than green. It is one of those shades that changes depending on the light source and angle from which you are looking.

 When I stepped outside, I knew that this color was reminding me of! We have a Japanese maple tree that changes from green to a dark burgundy in the fall. What better prop for a fall shade that is also sort of a chameleon, right? Above photo was in the shade of the tree.

In direct sun, the shimmer is very apparent.

Another one in the shade, a bit closer. You can see the deep purple here as well as the coppery shimmer on my ring finger. 

Application for this polish was good. I didn't have any issues with it being too think of thin to manage. I used 3 thinner coats in these pictures plus I used Above the Curve's 5-Free top coat. 

Side note: I apologize for my cleanup being a little less than clean. This was my second mani attempt and the polish I used before this really ticked me off and thus I lost my patience! I'm going to do a post on that polish as well, but I'd like to give it a second chance.

I'm love seeing all these fall shades come out, but that won't stop me from posting a few more bright holos this summer. And fall. And winter too. Who am I kidding!?

Do you have "seasonal colors" in your polish collection? Or do you wear what you feel like? Leave a comment below and tell us! 

Thursday, August 7, 2014

Above the Curve UH Purple

Today I have a beauty from Above the Curve Nail Lacquer called Ultra Holo Purple. I snatched up three of their ultra holos as soon as they came out and I was not disappointed. U.H. Purple is my favorite (so far).


As some may know, I've really been in to the holographic polishes lately, but I feel like it actually dates back to college when I fell head-over-heels in love with Sally Hansen's Fairy Dust Pink. I can't tell you how many comments I got while wearing that color. I still have it too - anyone want to see it? Leave a comment below if you do! Now on to the pictures!

I'll take any opportunity to pose with my posies when they are in full bloom! Shown here is 2 coats of UH Purple with no topcoat and in full sun. I tired to get a few angles to show off those stunning rainbows. Seriously, who can resist a polish that sparkles with rainbows? Not I!



I love holographic polishes in the sun!

So let me talk just a little bit about why I love Above the Curve (ATC) so much and what I think is so special about them. Polish Monster introduced me to this company and I am so very glad she did! ATC is a husband and wife duo which is pretty awesome in itself, but what is even more awesome is that $1 from EVERY bottle of polish sold is donated to Shriner's Hospitals for Children and also used help raise awareness for Scoliosis! Polish for a cause? Yep, I'm on board with that!

I hope you will check out ATC's etsy shop and give them a follow on their facebook page too!

And I was serious, if anyone wants to see swatches of my first holo love, SH Fairy Dust Pink, let me know. I'm happy to take requests.




Sunday, August 3, 2014

Sweet Simplicity: Ciate Angel Wings

Like this polish, I'm going to keep this post simple.  I love how clean a pearl white polish looks, whether alone or as a base for something more special.  The problem is finding one that is flattering and doesn't leave a ton of brush strokes.

Luckily, Jackie gifted me a mini Ciate she had, and it fits those criteria well!  Ciate Angel Wings is  a pearl white polish, that slightly leans to the lightest possible hint of pink imaginable at certain angles (it may be the natural nail underneath doing that).

I think this is a great palette cleanser before the onset of all the gorgeous fall colors and collections that are coming out. What do you think?

I used 3 coats and no topcoat.  After I was done, I remembered I should have used a matte top coat underneath coats to further minimize any brushstrokes.  I decided to leave well enough alone, since I might do a skittlette later and it wasn't too bad.  It's also worth noting that this polish has a great formula...extremely easy to work with. 

pearl white polish
Outside on a rainy desert day :)

Pearl polish
Indoors
ciate paint pots
Outdoors
polished at heart

pearl nail polish

white nail polish

If you want Angel Wings for yourself, it's available online at Nordstrom and Sephora.  
Let me know your polish picks for August and keep me in your thoughts for more rainy days in Arizona...they're wonderful!

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Pretty In Beach Peach: Sally Hansen Floaties

This is a little gem from the limited edition summer Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear collection, Electric Summer.  In Canada the collection is called Sea Bloom and based on the pastel-like shades and adorable beachy names, I think Sea Bloom is a better name.  There are 8 colors total in the collection; I scooped up 3 and am seriously considering tracking down a few more before they're gone!

Today I have Floaties to show you; a light peach cream polish: 


The formula on Floaties was nice, thicker than some of the polishes I've used lately.  This was 2 coats of Floaties and a topcoat.  For the accent I used Essie's Beyond Cozy, which I love, love, love!  Beyond Cozy is a pale, antiqued looking gold micro-glitter.  It is awesome because it's not quite silver and it's not quite gold...and it goes with everything!  Additionally, Beyond Cozy is almost a one coater, but I used two to be sure I had full coverage.  Definitely one of my favorite polishes to date. It has an 'oxidized' quality that will be perfect for fall.


I know I talked up Beyond Cozy a little more than Floaties.  So, if I haven't convinced you enough that you should find this Sally Hansen Electric Summer collection...I'll be posting the other shades I picked up in the near future! 
Also, Kelp Yourself (I bought it for the name!) from the same collection is a near, if not perfect, match for Sally Hansen's Green Tea.


Thanks for stopping by, I hope you liked!

~ Hayley