Tag: Fingernails

 
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Violet Candy

 

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Zoya “Leslie” looks like candy to me – like a dusty violet conversation heart or maybe even a grape sweet tart. It’s hard to see in the picture, but there’s a subtle blue shimmer.

Zoya describes “Leslie” as a soft spring lavender metallic with an energizing turquoise flash.

I started with Zoya Anchor, then two coats of “Leslie” and topped with Zoya Armor. I got a little bit of crispiness around my cuticles again. Blech.

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The Knockouts of the Double R

Another outstanding polish from Hare Polish  called “The Knockouts of the Double R”. This Twin Peaks inspired polish was created to match Norma and Shelly’s uniforms at the Double R Diner.

I started with Revlon Quick Dry Base Coat and then two coats of “Double R”. I then got to try out my new Glisten & Glow “HK Girl” Top Coat! For the last few months, I have been seeing this top coat over and over again on Instagram. I would see hands rocking the same polishes I had, but they looked so much better. Almost invariably, they would be using “HK Girl” – so I finally ordered it. It’s $6.99 + $2.50 shipping, so not too terribly pricey. I’m going to try it out for a while before giving a full review, but so far – I love it!

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Flakies!

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Look at those flakies! Iridescent flakies AND glitter.

This is Sally Hansen Triple Shine “Scale Up” over 2 days old Julep “Elise”. The flakies seem to take on the color of the polish underneath – I should try it over a red or a pink…

One note about Julep “Elise” – it’s a staining son of a bitch. I used Revlon Quick Dry Base Coat, so my nails were protected for the most part – except the edges and my cuticles. I managed to get most of it off with Julep Vanish, but I’ll be wearing blue and green polishes until it wears off.

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Letter to Elise

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I was excited to try Julep “Elise” – it’s named after one of my very favorite people!

Julep describes “Elise” as indigo with purple microshimmer. It’s yet another dark polish that is difficult to photograph. it was cloudy as hell today and rainy to boot, so this is the best pic I could get – but look at that shine! It’s almost like a comic book.

I started with Revlon Quick Dry Base Coat, then two coats of “Elise” I was gonna let it go without a top coat, but it started to bubble anyway. Well, fuck. I waited 20 minutes and went ahead and used Sally Hansen Diamond Flash. The good news is that I didn’t get any additional bubbles and it somewhat masked the ones that were already there. Maybe that’s the secret to Julep – waiting.

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Go Seahawks!

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It’s not that I give a shit about the Super Bowl. I don’t. I don’t give a shit who wins – the Seahawks just have better team colors! Oh, and Tom Brady is a douche.

I started with Revlon Quick Dry Base Coat (trying to finish the bottle). On my thumb, I did two coats of Julep “Michelle”. Can you see the bubbles? Someday I will find a quick dry top coat that doesn’t make Julep polishes bubble. On my index finger, I did a coat of Zoya “Remy” and a coat of Sally Hansen Crackle “Sage Smash”. On my middle finger, I did two coats of Julep “Serena” – Sapphire for September. On my ring finger, I did a coat of Julep “Michelle” and a coat of Sally Hansen Crackle “Sage Smash”. On my pinky, I did two coats of Butter London “Dosh”. I finished them all with a coat of Sally Hansen Diamond Flash.

Looking forward to eating junk food and watching commercials. Hopefully, Katy Perry will have a wardrobe malfunction and my son will run out of the room screaming. He doesn’t like boobies yet.

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Rubberman

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I bet you thought I forgot about my beautiful “Scream Supreme Collection” now that the 4th season of American Horror Story is over – nope!

This is Delush Polish “Rubberman”, inspired by the first season of American Horror Story. It’s a deep black jelly with holo glitters embedded. Instead of going slick and shiny, I decided to go matte with Zoya Matte Top Coat. I started with Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat, then two coats of “Rubberman” and then one coat of Zoya Matte. It looks amazing, except for the Zoya Matte got a little crusty around my cuticles – blah. The formula is great – the first coat was thin and I was afraid it would be streaky, but the second coat created perfect full coverage.

Only one more Delush to try out…I need buy MORE……

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Déjà vu

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Imagine that – wearing a birthstone polish in the correct month!

With all the polishes I have, I guess I shouldn’t repeat – but I just had to break out Julep “Betty” – Garnet for January again. Here’s what it looked like the first time…

This time, I used Revlon Quick Dry Base Coat – gotta have my nails last longer than 24 hours. I can’t believe how far I’ve come in the last year – base coats, top coats, nail art. I never would have tried that stuff before I started this site!

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Neither Fast, Nor Furious

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So I decided to humor my husband and do the muscle car manicure that he asked me for. He wanted me to do one in green, with matte black racing stripes.

I decided to have little fun with different designs. I started with Revlon Quick Dry Base Coat. On my thumb, I did two coats of Julep “Tatum”, one coat of Sally Hansen Diamond Flash (to make it dry quicker), then two strips of nail striping tape and then a single coat of Zoya “Dovima”. This wasn’t the best idea – it crinkled a little bit. On my other thumb, I did a single coat of “Tatum”, then “Dovima” and it worked a lot better. On my index finger, I just did two coats of “Tatum” and a coat of Diamond Flash. On my middle finger, I did two coats of “Dovima” and a single coat of Sally Hansen Crackle “Sage Smash” – no top coat. On my ring finger, I did two coats of “Dovima”, striping tape and a single coat of “Tatum” – no top coat. On my pinky, I did two coats of “Tatum” and a single coat of Butter London “Dosh” – no top coat.

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This is not my husband’s car – but this is about what it should look like when it’s done. Right now, it’s a sickly shade of piss test yellow.

It’s a 1975 Dodge Dart Swinger. He originally said neon green, but I am pushing him towards this more sparkly Kermit green. There’s no way I’ll get another pink car, but Kermit green is the next best thing!

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Dahlia Dovima

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I found the solution to edge wear – a fancy french mani!

Zoya “Dovima” still looked decent, but since I washed dishes last night, I had some edge wear.

No tape – I crossed my fingers and painted the tips freehand – you seriously do NOT want to see my right hand. I used Zoya Pixie Dust in “Dahlia” – it looks so good!

My husband had a fit when he saw me doing the tips – he wanted me to use the neon green. Whomp whomp.

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Black Dove

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Regardless of what plans I have made regarding my nails, if I get a new polish, I might just drop all those plans and go for the new polish.

I LOVED Zoya “Harlow” and I love Zoya “Dovima” even more. It is a soft matte black, like the wings of a black dove. As my husband said, “It’s fucking badass!” He wants me to do a manicure of the color he is gonna paint his project car – neon green, with matte black racing stripes. Finally – he’s interested in my nails…

I’m a rulebreaker, so again I used a base coat – Zoya Anchor – and then two coats of “Dovima” – application was smooth and almost flawless.

I was curious about the name “Dovima” so I googled her and immediately recognized her…or maybe not her specifically, but her image as the epitome of 50s high fashion – “Dovima” is the perfect name for this polish.