Words of Wisdom Wednesday

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Valentine's Day Nails #5

Welcome to Valentine's Day inspired manicure week!

I will showcase my favorite valentine's day polishes, nail art, etc.

Valentine's Day Nails #5

Valentine's Day manicure #5's inspiration is...

Lace

Today we have a delicate manicure inspired by a beautiful, girlie, and sexy material.  Lace has the ability to take on a variety of persona, depending on the context;)

I created this beautiful manicure using a white polish with an fine brush for the design.  Then, I topped this manicure with one coat of Zoya Jane to make it more subtle, any french manicure shade will do this.  

You can purchase Zoya Nail polish from their website for $8 each.

See the tutorial for a hand-painted lace manicure here.

Valentine's Day Nails #4

Welcome to Valentine's Day inspired manicure week!

I will showcase my favorite valentine's day polishes, nail art, etc.

Valentine's Day Nails #4

Valentine's Day manicure #4's inspiration is...

Art Deco

Today we have a manicure inspired by a vintage design.  Art deco inspired EVERYTHING can be found everywhere.  This re-popularized style which consists of brights, metallics, and geometrics ranges from simple to opulent.  It's beautiful & fun!

I created this beautiful manicure using Barielle Pink Quartz as a base.  For the design I used Barielle Gold Digger and Sinful Colors Ruby Ruby.  

You can purchase Barielle Nail polish from their website for $8 each. And Sinful Colors Nail Polishes can be found at many drug stores/pharmacies, including Walgreens and Rite Aid.

Words of Wisdom Wednesday

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Take an unexpected chance today:)

Valentine's Day Nails #3

Welcome to Valentine's Day inspired manicure week!

I will showcase my favorite valentine's day polishes, nail art, etc.

Valentine's Day Nails #3

Valentine's Day manicure #3's inspiration is...

Purple

Today we have a beautiful alternative to pinks & reds...PURPLE!  I know that purple is still kind of Valentine's Day-esque, but if you're someone who stays away from red & pinks this can easily bring the theme without those themes.  Now, I know that right now you're thinking, "Seriously, Kate a purple cream polish for Valentine's Day?!?!"  Well, I say YES, because although your manicure is important, you don't want it to distract from everything else you've done to prepare for your day.  And if need be, you can always glam it up with sparkles, flakies, etc.

PritiNYC Geisha Girl is a beautiful medium purple cream polish.  The above picture was taken BEFORE the topcoat, but was the best representation of her color.  Geisha Girl does shift to a deeper sultry purple indoors and in the shade, but will never be mistaken for black.  It is clearly a medium purple:)

You can purchase PritiNYC Nail polish from their website for $12.50 each.

Valentine's Day Nails #2

Welcome to Valentine's Day inspired manicure week!

I will showcase my favorite valentine's day polishes, nail art, etc.

Valentine's Day Nails #2

Valentine's Day manicure #2's inspiration is...

Vintage

Today we have a trendsetting v-gap manicure!  Yes, this is the 3rd one I have posted on my blog. My first attempt was a fail, my second was admirable, but I feel as though I have finally figured this beauty out!  The half-moon manicure was on-trend last year and this year is has turned more triangular.  The v-gap leaves a stripe down the center of your nails which is apparently more slimming.  

I picked this vintage-inspired manicure for my Valentine's Day themed week because of the obvious association V-Gap and V-Day;)  But also because there is something sexy about that exposed stripe down the middle...not sure if it reminds me of an open-backed dress or a deep v cut gown.  What do you think?

I created this beautiful manicure using Zoya Jules and Zoya Vanessa.  As if I wasn't already in love with these beauties enough!  This was 2 coats of golden hued Jules and Vanessa was one coat of rich berry goodness.  

You can purchase Zoya Nail polish from their website for $8 each.

Let me know if you'd like me to do a tutorial on this one, I think I may have taken those pictures anyway:)

Valentine's Day Nails #1

Press Samples

Welcome to Valentine's Day inspired manicure week!

I will showcase my favorite valentine's day polishes, nail art, etc.

Valentine's Day Nails #1

Valentine's Day manicure #1's inspiration is...

FLAKIES

Today we have a beautiful, on-trend, stylish polish full of FLAKIES!  I used Barielle Elle's Spell to create this beautiful manicure.  Elle's Spell is best described as a "jelly red with multicolored foil flakes."  This red jelly polish goes on so incredibly smoothly and is absolutely stunning.  This picture is the best shot I could get of the flakie goodness in this polish.  The jelly finish makes it SO shiny that you can't capture the flakies without a glare!  I love it!  I also noticed that the flakies are the most stunning in indirect sunlight as they flash everywhere from gold and green to purple (as you can see in the bottle).  This is 3 coats, but if you prefer to reduce the visible nail lines (VNL) from this jelly polish, you can layer it over a creamy opaque polish.  

The Verdict:

This is a must-have polish for anyone who loves either jelly finishes or flakies.  It is a beautiful twist on the traditional red nail polish.  AND this makes a beautiful manicure for Valentine's Day:)

You can also purchase this polish from the Barielle website for $8.00.

Disclosure: The product(s) in this post were provided to me by the manufacturer or their PR company for consideration.  For more information please visit the tabs below the header.

Barielle Gem Stone Earth Collection

Press Samples

The latest collection by Barielle is the Gem Stone Earth collection.  It is made up of 5 beautiful earthy hues.  This collection features creams, metallics, and even a touch of sparkle.  They are perfect for any season and overall are very versatile, neutral colors.

Let's take a look at these beauties...

Pink Quartz is described as "opaque baby pink." This cream finish polish is my perfect pink.  I have been searching for a creamy pink just like this.  Pink Quartz is not milky, streaky, or orangy which makes it that girly pink perfection.  This Barbie-esque pink was opaque in 2 thin coats.  Pink Quartz was the easiest of the bunch to apply.

Granite Glitter is said to be a "metallic silver marble." Although the name contains the word glitter, there is no noticeable glitter or flecks in this polish.  This smooth metallic polish was opaque in 2 thin coats.  The formula of this polish was thinner, but not runny.  Granite Glitter is the perfect cool grey with minimal brush stroke visibility.  It is smoky yet it has a glowing quality at the same time.

Amber Sparkler is called a "metallic bronze w/ silver swirl."  This frosty metallic is rightly called amber.  This color is beautiful and takes on an almost rose gold tone.  Initially I was worried that this would not be flattering against my skintone, and was I wrong or what!  Although this is my favorite color of the bunch, I do wish that it was not as frosted (with visible brush strokes).  I would LOVE to have this color as a foil or a glitter!  This was 2 coats.

Back to Nature is deliciously named a "creamy cappuccino."  It actually seems like a light terracotta nude to me. It looks a tad orangey against my uber pale skintone.  It was opaque in 2 coats and was not milky or streaky.

Green Opal is best defined as a "metallic olive marble."  This golden olive metallic is not as smooth (not as in texture, this one has somewhat larger metallic particles) or frosty as Granite Glitter or Amber Sparkler.  Green Opal actually contains extremely fine flecks which flash a multitude of colors from gold and green to blue and red.  This is the most stunning polish of this collection.  It's gorgeous & I could not get a picture that does this beauty justice.

The Verdict:
Although these aren't the most unique polishes in the wide world of polish, they are all great staples to have in your collection.  I love how wearable these shades are.  My favorites in this collection are Pink Quartz and Green Opal because I do not have any other colors like them.  Granite Glitter & Amber Sparkler were tricky for me to apply, but were still beautiful.  And Back to Nature was a touch too warm for my complexion.  I think it will be more flattering on me in the summer.

This collection can be found at the Barielle website and retails for $25.00.  You can also purchase the polishes individually for $8.00.

Disclosure: The product(s) in this post were provided to me by the manufacturer or their PR company for consideration.  For more information please visit the tabs below the header.

Words of Wisdom Wednesday

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Birthday Month Giveaway

Hello, lovelies!

As you may have gathered from the title of this post, my birthday is this month!  In lieu of this momentous occasion, I am hosting a lovely giveaway.

By now many of you know how much I love your comments and your emails.  You guys are the reason that I continue to write posts and share my love for beautiful things.  Because will be on its way, I wanted to give away some beautiful springy colors for you to dress up your tips and toes.  Colors that epitomize spring for me are greens and purples.  SO...

The winner will get Zoya Gemma and Zoya Adina, two beautiful duo-chrome polishes that exude spring.  If you would like to enter please read the rules below and fill out the attached form:)  Thank you!