Valentine's Manicure--Take 4

This one really requires no explanation, it speaks for itself...

Valentine's Manicure #4

Xs and Os liven up this manicure as does the glittery pink heart.  Classy and themed enough without being in-your-face.  This is a very simple look to achieve, just pick your favorite polishes and go!

Nail polishes used to create this manicure: SinfulColors Easy Going, Barielle Gold Digger and Cherry Blossom Sparkler

Barielle Layering

Ok, so this manicure is actually about a month old.  I wore this around the holidays and fell in love with this tone-on-tone glitter.  The moment I saw Barielle Lindsay's Dancin' I knew that Cherry Blossom Sparkler would make a fabulous accent nail.  I dressed up an old manicure by adding a splash of cherry glitter on my ring finger.

I am such a sucker for tone-on-tone glitter.  This probably could have used another coat of glitter, but it was so stunning.  Now I'm dying to have a turquoise glitter to use this spring/summer with my favorite turquoise polish.

What's your favorite tone-on-tone glitter color?

Pink Girly Glitter

Hello, loves!  Many of you are aware of my glitter frustrations which include but are not limited to...

• Makes me feel like a little kid (which can be good)
• Pain in the butt to remove
• Messy removal (aka. glitter EVERYWHERE)

Therefore, this girl usually doesn't include glitter in many of her manicures.  I do own quite a few glitters, despite not using them often.  I also have not gotten on the indie glitter bandwagon (which just seems a bit oxymoronic) because I do not wear it often even if I like to look at it in the bottle:)

However, I do wear glitter, on occasion and I welcome suggestions of classy ways to wear glitter.  I have "mastered" wearing glittery accent nails and decided to get adventurous and do an all over glitter manicure.  I used 2 Barielle beauties to complete this look.  The base color is two coats of Barielle Pink Quartz and is topped with two coats of Barielle Cherry Blossom Sparkler.

My nails looked like they were painted with molten pink metal from afar.  It was pretty cool.  I have gotten more adventurous with nail polish (I used to be a sheer pink & red wearer, boring to most of you, I know).  With the recent discovery of peel-able basecoats (aka. Elmer's School Glue) you might see me wearing more glitter & flakies:)

What is your FAVORITE way to wear glitter?

Barielle Dazzling Diamonds Collection

Press Samples

So, two weeks ago I had an interview which meant I had to leave my beach vacation & waste a day traveling home.  When I arrived home I was tired and kind of bummed that I had wasted such a beautiful day in the car.  That's when I noticed it...a lovely brown box.  I was racking my brain trying to figure out what I was expecting in the mail.  The only thing I was expecting should not have come in a box that large (it wasn't really that big, but you get the gist).  Then I looked at the label and...SURPRISE 2 new Barielle collections to swatch and share with you!

The first collection I pulled out was this glittery bunch called Dazzling Diamonds.

This collection consists of 5 glitter filled polishes.  Here's a peek of each one:

WARNING: a plethora of glitter lies ahead!  Including stray, clingy, & attacking particles.

4, 3, 2, and 1 coat index to pinkie.

Purple Hearts is described by Barielle as simply "purple glitter" which is in fact true, but a very generalized name for such a multifaceted glitter.  This polish, as you can see, is a clear base containing 3 sizes of glitter of 5 different colors.  The largest being purple hexagonal glitter.  The medium sized glitter is hexagonal  fuchsia and holographic pieces.  The finest glitter appear to be teeny squares in indigo and pastel pink.  This polish applied smoothly and quite evenly, although some glitter placement was needed for the large purple pieces.  I'm going to be honest, I was not thrilled with this glitter on its own but as you'll see in an upcoming post I was smitten by it when layered.

4, 3, 2, and 1 coat index to pinkie.

Ebony Rainbow is a "dark multi glitter" which is exactly what this polish is.  Tiny square (I think it's square, I was going cross-eyed trying to figure it out) glitter in packed in a clear (or slightly grey) base.  Ebony Rainbow contains glitter of the following colors: silver, gold, fuchsia, cobalt, emerald, dark orange, and the same pastel pink glitter in Purple Hearts.  It applied smoothly and pretty evenly.  Again, not a fan of it on its own, but is promising as a layering polish.

4, 3, 2, and 1 coat index to pinkie

Cherry Blossom Sparkler is identified as "red glitter." This is actually  deep pink jelly base packed with tiny light pink glitter.  Upon removal the glitter turned silver, so I'm not sure if the glitter is indeed silver and only appears pink in the jelly base.  Regardless, it was smooth to apply and built up easily.  I liked this on it's own but would most likely layer it over a pink or red polish to avoid waiting for the jelly base to dry three times:)

3, 3, 2, and 1 coats index to pinkie

Pink Diamond is said to be "pink glitter." The pink glitter is jam packed into a clear base and offered the most coverage.  Because the glitter is packed so tightly, this polish is the thickest and was the trickiest to apply.  That being said, it was also my favorite:)  I love the elegance of this rose gold glitter.

4, 3, 2, and 1 coat index to pinkie

Star Dust is what Barielle calls "multi glitter." This polish is infact a clear base full of fine iridescent glitter.  The glitter remind me of mylar fleck/flakie polishes.  This was so pretty.  It reminds me of snow glistening as the sun rises or sets...*sigh*...ok enough about winter;)  Next time I wear this polish it will definitely be layered over another polish, but it is lovely, isn't it???

The Verdict:
This collection was tons of fun.  My favorite was Pink Diamond, I just love rosy hued glitters.  Close behind was Star Dust.  I'm not someone who owns many glitter polishes, so I enjoyed all of them and they are quite unique to my collection. However, if you're someone who is REALLY into glitter nail polish, especially indie brands you probably already have similar polishes in your collection.  Regardless, these are great for layering over another polish or creating "jelly sandwiches."

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.