Animal Print Nails! Featuring Carpe Noctem Cosmetics

Animal Print Nails! Featuring Carpe Noctem Cosmetics

*Purchased by Me*

Happy Friday! Tonight, I'm going to be showing you a mani that I did with a color from Carpe Noctem Cosmetics that I've had in my to-try pile for a bit. 

One of the colors that I've picked up recently from Carpe Noctem is another color from Emily's Inspiration Collection, in which each polish was inspired by a person in the nail polish community who is very important to her. This polish is named Classy As Fuck, and it was inspired by An of The Polished Hippy. Now, I have had the pleasure of interacting with An as well, and I can attest to her classiness and kindness; I 100% respect and value her as a fellow member of the nail community, and always look to her for advice! Please, please, please be sure to go check out her blog! 

Classy As Fuck is described on Emily's site as a metallic red linear holo with platinum and multichrome flakies. I was able to get it fully opaque in two easy coats, which applied smoothly and dried quickly and shiny! 

For my mani, I applied Classy As Fuck on my thumbs, ring fingers, and pinkies. Then, I applied two coats of Sally Hansen's Tag, Ur It! on my index and middle fingers. Once that was dry, I stamped a zebra print image (in black) on top of the white base; for this, I used a plate that I had picked up in an "As Seen on TV" kit, long, long ago (it was actually the beginning of my ventures into stamping!). Once everything dried, I sealed it all in with another layer of topcoat. Here is the final result! 

If you are interested in picking up a bottle of Classy As Fuck, you can find the listing for it on Emily's site, right here! The cost is $12.00 for a 15 mL full size bottle, or $6.00 for a 6 mL mini bottle.

 

Please be sure to check out Carpe Noctem Cosmetics on social media! 

Shop       Instagram       Facebook       Facebook Fan Group

Thank you so much for stopping by, and I'll see you next time! 

♥ Megan

Pretty & Polished Jawbreaker: Swatch and Review

Pretty & Polished Jawbreaker: Swatch and Review

*Purchased by Me*

Hello, Sunday! You know what that means--Monday is here tomorrow! Ew. 

Tonight, I'm sharing a polish from Pretty & Polished with you! This polish is named Jawbreaker. For the remainder of this month (until June 30th, 2016), Chelsea of Pretty & Polished is donating the proceeds of Jawbreaker sales to those families who were affected by the Pulse shooting in Orlando. (And of course, I couldn't let my bottle travel alone, so I will have some more P&P colors coming up soon ;) )

Collection: Core Collection
Color/Finish: Described on the Pretty & Polished site as a white base splattered with the best original jawbreaker colors! This polish has a white base that can become opaque with just two nice layers. Packed with blue, green, yellow, red, and purple glitters in all different shapes and sizes.
Formula/Application: Jawbreaker had the smoothest and easiest formula! I applied two layers over one layer of a white creme polish, and it was a dream to work with. I did not have to fish for any glitter whatsoever, and the layers dried quickly, about 2 minutes in between each. Because of the glitters, it dried a bit bumpy, but smoothed right out with a thick layer of topcoat! Even though I layered it, Jawbreaker is more than capable of being opaque on its own, in 2-3 coats.
Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ 5 hearts! This polish is so smooth and easy to apply, and the final effect is absolutely adorable. I think that I'm going to find myself reaching for this baby on a frequent basis!
Availability: Jawbreaker is currently available on the Pretty & Polished website, and it is available in a 6 mL mini ($4.50) or a 15 mL full size ($8.50) bottle. You can find the listing for it right here! And don't forget, until June 30, 2016, proceeds from this polish go towards the families affected in the Orlando Pulse shooting. 

 

Please be sure to check out Pretty & Polished on social media! 

Shop        Instagram          Facebook          Facebook Fan Group

 

Thank you so much for stopping by, and I'll see you next time! 

♥ Megan

Substance Abuse Awareness Box: Swatches and Review

Substance Abuse Awareness Box: Swatches and Review

*Provided by makers for review*

Did you know that over 20 million Americans suffer from addiction of some kind? Your age, race, gender, social status, and income are irrelevant; addiction can affect ANYONE. Addiction to substances is one of the most common and well-known addictions; yet, we are afraid to speak about it. But it is an important topic, and more attention needs to be brought to it. More attention means that more individuals will receive the help and support that they need, in order to begin healing. 

In order to help raise some awareness of substance abuse, four indie nail polish makers have come together to create a box of polishes related to the topic. I am sharing this box with you today! 

The Substance Awareness Box consists of four full-size polishes, a cuticle oil, and awareness ribbons, and awareness ribbon nail vinyls. The blue ribbon represents awareness of opiate addiction; the red ribbon represents awareness of Substance Abuse, and the purple ribbon represents awareness of drug abuse. 

Lifestyle Lacquer 'Break Free'

The first polish in the box was contributed by Lifestyle Lacquer, and it is named Break Free. Break Free is a white crelly with red, blue, and purple metallic flakes, as well as some microshimmer. 

The formula on Break Free was typical of a crelly polish. The first coat was pretty sheer, but I was able to get it built up in one thin coat and two subsequent medium coats. I didn't need to fish for the flakes, but I did wait a bit longer between coats, as I used medium layers, rather than thin. Shown in my swatch are three coats plus glossy top coat, under a daylight bulb. 

 

Hillary of Lifestyle Lacquer, who began her business as Nail Jewelry Bling, also contributed the nail vinyls that are involved in this box. The vinyls include small and large ribbon shapes.

Black Lace Cosmetics 'Through the Darkness Comes Light'

The second polish in the Substance Abuse Awareness Box is the contribution of Black Lace Cosmetics. Black Lace Cosmetics is a new brand to me, and I am always happy to spread the news about new indie polish brands! 

Through the Darkness Comes Light is an intense violet shimmer creme. My pictures may appear to be more on the blue side, but it is definitely purple in person! 

On the first coat, Through the Darkness Comes Light appeared a bit thin; it was not runny, though! However, with a second thicker coat, I was able to reach full opacity. Dry time was about 5 minutes, as I did use a second thicker coat. Shown in my swatches are two coats plus glossy top coat, and they are taken under a daylight bulb. 

 Pink Hibiscus Beauty 'We Are Not Broken'

This next polish is from Pink Hibiscus Beauty, another new-to-me indie brand! We Are Not Broken is a pink-toned red base packed with holographic shimmer and flakes; it is also a duochrome! This was one of the first colors that caught my eye when I opened the box, because of all of the properties that it has going on. 

We Are Not Broken had an impeccable formula! It was not too thick or thin, and I was able to get it opaque in three coats. Dry time was about 2 minutes between coats, and it dried smooth and shiny, but I still added one layer of top coat for my swatches. Shown are under a daylight bulb, and while you can't see the duochrome in my nail swatches, it is evident in the above bottle shots! 

 

Pink Hibiscus Beauty also contributed a small bottle of cuticle oil to the Substance Abuses Awareness Box! 

Heather's Hues 'One Day at a Time'

The final polish in the Substance Abuse Awareness Box is a contribution by Heather's Hues, and it is named One Day at a Time. One Day at a Time is a deep ocean blue jelly packed with glitter and silver flakes. 

The formula on One Day at a Time was not overly thick, and it was easy to control. Because of the large glitters, it did dry down to a bit of a textured finish; dry time between coats was about two minutes. Even though it dried slightly textured, it smoothed right out with top coat. I was able to reach full opacity in two coats; shown are those two coats, plus one layer of topcoat. 

The Substance Abuse Awareness Box will be available at Nail Jewelry Bling's shop. The box contains 4 full-size polishes, a mini cuticle oil, and awareness ribbon nail vinyls; the cost is $50.00 with free US shipping, with $5.00 from each box being donated to www.drugfree.org . The box will be available for pre-order from Sunday, May 15th at 4:00 pm Eastern time through Friday, May 27th, and there will be a maximum of 50 boxes sold. 

Please be sure to check out all of the makers on social media, and check out the group dedicated to this box! 

Lifestyle Lacquer (Nail Jewelry Bling) shop: https://nailjewelrybling.com/

Lifestyle Lacquer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nailjewelrybling/

Lifestyle Lacquer Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nailjewelrybling

Black Lace Cosmetics shop: https://www.blacklacecosmetics.com/

Black Lace Cosmetics Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blacklacecosmetics/

Black Lace Cosmetics Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blacklacecosmetics

Pink Hibiscus Beauty shop: http://pinkhibiscusbeauty.storenvy.com/

Pink Hibiscus Beauty Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pinkhibiscusbeauty/

Pink Hibiscus Beauty Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pinkhibiscusbeauty

Heather's Hues shop: https://www.etsy.com/shop/HeathersHues

Heather's Hues Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathers_hues/

Heather's Hues Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/heathhues/?fref=ts

Thank you so much for stopping by, and I'll see you next time! 

♥ Megan

HPB Presents: Spring Manis!

*Purchased by Me*

*Won in Giveaway*

Hey there! Guess what? It's officially Spring! Well, according to the calendar...it snowed here yesterday. Get out of here, Old Man Winter! 

I have something a bit different today. I've recently joined Hobby Polish Bloggers, and we are posting about Spring manis at the moment! 

I tried something a bit different for this mani, and tested out two techniques that I haven't tried before- Double stamping and decal making. I recently won an Uber Chic Mat from Manna of Manna's Manis, and I wanted to play with it! 

For the base of this design, I started with two coats of Wet n' Wild's A Latte Love, a light brown from last year's spring collection. After that dried, I chose two designs from Cici & Sisi 12, from the pink set of plates: Some swirls, and some daisies! I stamped the swirls first, using Konad white polish, and stamped the daisies second, using Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Presto Pink. My stamping came out a bit patchy and wonky, but I'm still pretty happy with how it came out! After applying topcoat to the decals and having them dry, I peeled them from the mat and stuck them on my nails, on top of a layer of tacky basecoat. I trimmed them and cleaned up the edges, applied another layer of topcoat, and was left with this final result! 

The white isn't too apparent, but I do like the subtlety to it. I can't wait to practice more with double stamping and decal making! 

Thanks for stopping by, and I'll see you next time!

An InLinkz Link-up