Pink Wednesday: Nail Vinyls

Happy Wednesday, lovely people! I haven't done a Pink Wednesday post in forever, so I thought it was about time to reinstate the tradition! I have a couple of manis for you today with similar themes: obviously they're both pink, but they both utilise Nail Vinyls as well. Nail Vinyls are the genius brainchild of @teismom and they are absolutely brilliant. I'll explain a bit more about them further on, but first, enjoy some pics!

ABC Challenge: C

Well hello again, friends! Welcome to day 3 of my ABC Challenge! As mentioned at the end of yesterday's post, I had no idea what I was gonna do for 'C', and since I'm crazy-indecisive, I decided to jam two (and a half) polishes into this post so I didn't have to choose which one to showcase. I'mma make today's one nice and quick - here's OPI Can't Find My Czechbook and Charged Up Cherry!

Quick n Dirty

Well hello there, strangers. I trust you've all had amazing and relaxing wonderful New Years, Januarys and half Februarys! To crack into the new year of blogging, I've got a couple of quick n' simple silver / grey manis for you. First up: I was feeling musical.

Do you remember how I was in a local production of Hairspray last year? Well the next show is Phantom of the Opera (SO freakin' excited!!!) and yesterday was the presentation for all auditonees to get a snapshot of the new set design / general creative jist of the show. That put me in a super excited musical mood, so I thought I'd share some (poorly) stamped musical nails.

This mani is two coats of China Glaze Pelican Gray, with a coat of OPI Pirouette My Whistle over top. Accent nails are two coats of OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls from the Spiderman Collection, stamped in a generic black using fauxnad (Konad knock off) plate m73. All topped off with a coat of Cult Nails Wicked Fast.

Yeeeeah so my stamping was terrible at best, but it gets the point across, don'tcha think? I'm obviously out of practice... Will make an effort to improve, promise!

Next up is the mani I'm still wearing. This is China Glaze Glistening Snow. Freakin' gorgeous!!!

This baby is tricky to capture with my lighting setup (ie: my bedside lamp...) because whenever it's in direct unfiltered lamplight, it just looks silver, and it's NOT! It's every colour ever, in a beautiful sparkly, shimmery, dancing mosaic of gorgeousness. Can you tell I like it?

For these photos I used three coats, with a coat of Wicked Fast to set it. I've found with this one the more coats you use, the more intense the sparkle becomes. I'm so madly in love with this polish, you don't even know. It's become my go-to 'happy polish'. I mean, I like all my polishes, but this one always makes me smile.

My mum and I have an ongoing in-joke about owls (long terrible pun-filled story), and I got her this silver owl ornament for Christmas last year, and he goes perfectly with this polish, so I had to include him in the shoot!

So there ya go, quick n' dirty! What's your favourite polish that can always lift your mood? Do you have a favourite musical? Thanks for stopping by - hope to see you again soon!

Favourite Fuchsia

Hiya!! Phew, it is stinkin' hot here today - it's sooooo nice...! This Summer is definitely gonna be a good one! Speaking of good ones, I officially have a favourite polish. Yes, you heard me, A favourite polish! I ordered some China Glazes from Head2ToeBeauty in the States, and they arrived on my doorstep exactly seven days later. I love quick delivery! And the best part is, their CGs are (mostly) US$3.25 each! Altogether with postage, it cost me just under NZ$35 for four CGs. Sweet or what?? So first up from my new babies is Fuchsia Fanatic!

A 'glamour shot' of the PINK polish =). A while ago some other bloggers and I were chatting about what cameras we use (one of the lovelies was looking at getting a new one and wanted advice) and I'd said I use a little Canon point n' shoot for my blog pics now (PowerShot A4000), but I used to use my big baby (Canon S5) before I got the little one. One of the girls asked if / when I use my big one (who's name is Billy, by the way), and it made me realise poor Billy hasn't had any playtime since I got Johann (the little one). So for today's post, Billy came out to play in the sunshine! Do you notice any difference in the pics? (Apart from being outside in the sun, obviously...). I'd love your feedback!

Now, onto the polish! *drools* This polish... Oh my goodness, this polish...!! I bought it for the colour, of course, but it was the formula that won me over heart and soul. I'm pretty open with formulas - if it's a crappy formula but a great colour, I'll still show it plenty of love. The formula on this baby could not have been any better. I was a little worried when I first opened the bottle - it looked like it was gonna be a sheer jelly à la OPI Do You Think I'm Tex-y?, and I admittedly sighed a sigh of disappointment, but from the first brush stroke, it was like heaven to apply. Opaque in one coat with a HIGH gloss jelly-finish, this baby took one coat to look like a perfect shellac / gel nail treatment. Okay, so you know me, I had to apply a second coat (I have VNL insecurities, okay??) but honestly, one would've done. As I was rushing out to go to a show, I applied Cult Nails Wicked Fast top coat, but if you're not in a hurry, there's no need for a TC - the finish is perfect. 

I applied the polish last night and took the photos today, and all pics are 2 coats with Wicked Fast over top. Now that I've finished gushing about the formula, sit back and soak in the delicious pure fuchsia colour! Mmmm...

Seriously, SERIOUSLY impressed with this polish. It's gonna be one of those ones I have to talk myself out of wearing all the time. It truly looks like a shellac / gel salon-applied polish, and I'm just so freakin' impressed with it! I don't wanna take it off, but I have three more brand new CGs to play with! (Lemon Fizz, Glittering Garland, and Grape Pop, in case you were wondering!) Ugh, nail polish addict problems... ;-)

What was the last polish you were seriously impressed with, and why? Do you notice a diference between these photos with Billy, and my usual photos with Johann? (Yep, I'm nuts for naming my electronics, but you knew I was crazy anyway =P) Thank you SO much for stopping by, lovelies! Hope the sun is shining, literally or metaphorically, for you wherever you are!! ♥♥ ^_^

Enchanté

Hiya! I wanted to do Pink Wednesday post today since it's Wednesday, and I haven't done a Pink Wednesday post for ages, but since you've just had two pink posts in a row, I thought a third would be pushing my luck! Instead, today I have a 'charming' purple for you! I say 'charming' because, well, it's called Charming, by Cult Nails. This is another one of the beautiful babies my brother sent me for my birthday! Isn't she gooooorgeous??

This smooth buttery polish does best for me in three coats (pictured above), as it starts out pretty darn sheer, but like Deal With It, it builds up nicely with each coat. Again, I could've stopped at two coats, but I still had some VNL (especially on my index finger) so I opted for a third to be sure. All photos are without a topcoat.

In these photos it may look like your same old straight-forward purple polish, but it is soooooo not!! Extra creamy, just shimmery enough and sports a strong pink flash when away from the lamp I use for photo-taking =/. The photo below is much more accurate both in finish and colour - the gorgeous pink glow weirdly decided not to play in the above pics.

This was at two coats, and those streaks you see smoothed out fine when I used a steadier hand for the third coat. I just kinda suck at applying polish is all. I'm great at cleanup, though! That stunning pink glow is present at all times IRL, but like I said, it didn't wanna be caught on camera under my lamp. Humph. This last pic is the only accurate one for the colour, but I wanted to show how this baby builds up. Gorgeous colour, great formula, crap photography ;-).

Do you have a polish that's impossible to photograph accurately? Do you like bold, dark purples or light lilac-y hues? Happy Wednesdays, loves!! ^_^

The Queen's a Charlatan

Hey... Hey you... Yeah, you... Wanna see some magic...? I'm gonna turn a bright red polish into a pink one... Watching...?

Today's quick little post starts with the most delicious creamy true red polish on the planet - Cult Nails Evil Queen.

This is one - yes, ONE - coat with no top coat. Kinda amazing, huh? You ain't seen nothing yet... As amazing and gorgeous as this red is, look what it turns into with one little coat of Cult Nails Charlatan!

See? Magic!! Both these polishes were sent to me for my birthday last month - Evil Queen was sent to me by the amazing Maria of Cult Nails (along with FOUR others! Crazy generous or what??) and Charlatan was sent by my wonderful American-dwelling brother with a collection of other perfect polishes. I am one incredibly spoilt chick, I can tell ya!! I'm gonna shhhh now and let you basque in the beauty of this mani... Yum!

*drools* I just can't get over the magic of Charlatan!! It's one of the Deception Collection toppers from Cult Nails. To see the others in action, check out Marta's swatches. Thanks for popping in, loves! =)

Pretty Pretty Princess

Well hello there! Happy Sunday! Last night while I was trying to decide which of my (many) nail polishes I wanted to play with, I was channel surfing and came across The Princess Diaries. Settled - Princess by Cult Nails it was! I finally felt like my nails had grown out enough to do justice to this beauty-in-a-bottle, so my dream of wearing this special polish finally came true. 

In case you missed this post, my oldest brother who moved to California at the start of the year sent me four absolutely stunning Cult Nails nail polishes for my birthday last month! Princess was in the bunch, and I've been itching to wear it since the day it arrived, but as fate would have it, I'd broken + cut down my nails shortly before their arrival, so I had super-nubbins =(. These polishes are sooo beautiful, they deserve to be worn on healthy, long, loved nails. Now that I (kinda) have them, I'm drowning in CN happiness!! 

This smooth, creamy baby-blue polish has the most subtle golden shimmer which was far too bashful to be caught on camera. The name could not be more appropriate - this is Cinderella in a bottle. Two coats gave full opacity, and I of course used the Cult Nails Wicked Fast fast-dry top coat, though this baby had such a flawless finish that a top coat wasn't necessary - I'm just impatient when it comes to drying time =P. 

Addicted. Totally addicted. Cult Nails has a customer for life. I'm always so impressed with Maria's polishes - there's something really special about them, and you can feel the love that's been put into creating every single one. If you haven't heard the latest, the newest collection Behind Closed Doors is available on pre-sale at the moment - US$40 for the collection of 5 (they usually go for US$10 each). Head over to Chit Chat Nails for Marta's ever-incredible photo review of the collection. Entirely drool worthy, I promise you!

Thank you so much for stopping by! Happy weekends! =D

*Happy Dance*

Hiya! So you know how I have the most awesome and supportive brothers in the world? As if that needed any more proof, today I have just a few snaps of a little parcel my oldest brother sent me for my birthday. Get ready to get jealous.

After my big long ranting rave about how amazing Maria from Cult Nails is, she goes and proves it again by sending me ANOTHER free Wicked Fast top coat!! This birthday just keeps getting better and better! And for those of you who missed my instagram / twitter moment when these arrived, "there ain't no happiness like seeing those Cult Nails burritos"!! Maria's packaging is always so secure and beautiful - it's the little details that I love... Well, aside from the incredibly gorgeous polishes inside!

I had to wait for the sun to shine to get a worthy photo of my most beautiful new babies.

Just look at all that gorgeousness... 

L to R: I Got Distracted, Princess, Charming, and Charlatan.

While I'm still whimpering about my stupid unintentional short stubby nails, I probably won't swatch them because they deserve to be on much more beautiful nails than I have at the moment. It's killing me though, because I just wanna wear them!!! I've tried them all out (Charlatan over an almost-black navy blue, totally delish!) but they're too special to wear on my nubbins at the moment. Silly nubs, grow already! 

Do you have an uber supportive family member that helps your collection grow? What's the most special polish in your stash? Thank you so much for reading, lovelies, and thanks Pete for these mind-blowingly beautiful polishes!!! =D

Deal With It

Ohmahgosh ohmahgosh ohmahgosh ohmahgosh ohmahgosh... I'm still jumping up and down a little bit - the excitement hasn't faded! Today's post has a bit of a story behind it... Read if you're interested, but I totally understand if you just wanna scroll to the pretties ;-).

Well! At the end of September I was hanging out on Twitter with some of the most awesome bloggers in the blogosphere, and a tweet from @CultNails popped up, saying they were going to be doing some giveaways throughout October. I jokingly tweeted back something about sending me a birthday pressie because my birthday's in October, followed by a version of "I'm saving up to get your gorgeous polishes, I wannem all!". Maria (the Queen of Cult Nails) replied to me with a "Yep! Sure! Email me your address and I'll send a little something your way!". After I got back on my chair, I checked with her that it wasn't a joke, sent her my details, screamed for a while, did some ridiculous dancing and caught my breath. A week later, a little box arrived... More dancing and screaming ensued, and while I held my breath hoping for one of her gorgeous polishes, I opened the box to find a handmade birthday card, and FIVE NAIL POLISHES. FIVE!!!!!!!! Get It On - the best base coat I've ever used, their world famous Wicked Fast top coat, Deal With It which is featured today, Evil Queen and In A Trance which I'll showcase soon. And In A Trance is limited edition too. Can you believe it???? I still can't!!!! Eeeeee!!!!! *deep breaths*

The amazing Maria has most definitely gained a customer for life.

Now, if you're still with me, here is the trademark electric lime Cult Nails polish Deal With It.

Isn't that the most intense bright lime green polish you've ever seen??? It's one of those polishes you know is a Cult Nails polish - 'culties' recognise it a mile away, and not just because it shines so insanely bright you CAN see it form a mile away!! This baby is defo not for the faint of heart! This is three coats with the Wicked Fast top coat on top. The first two pics are taken outside in the shade.

And a couple of shots in direct sunlight. There was plenty of sunshine out when I took these photos, so the incredible yellow-gold shimmer was more than happy to come and play for the camera! Something about the green and yellow deliciousness reminds me of the soft drink Mountain Dew. Maybe 'cause it's so bright and glowy and fizzy and bubbly? Whatever it is, I could definitely stare at this polish all day... and I did!

Click for an extra close up =)

The shots below were taken inside by a window. I wanted to show you how it builds up with each layer. I could have happily stopped at two coats, but the OCD polisher in me wanted to ensure I had no VNL, so I added another to be sure. The third layer helped add to the depth and glow of the colour too - more polish = more shimmer!

Eeeeeeeeeeeee!!! Yes, I'm still super blown away by Maria's kindness and generosity. Go and buy lots and lots and lots of things from her!!! I know I will!! Can you believe it?? Just... Wow!!

What's the most special nail polish in your collection? Has anyone ever surprised you with a polish you've been dying to get your hands on? 

Thank you so much for reading!! Now go shop at Cult Nails ;-P