henna tattoo

here's one of my favorite manicures, from over a month ago (sheepish face).

base color: 2 coats nyc fashion safari

brown stamping: sinful mercury rising

image plate: born pretty store plate qa59

i stinkin' love this image. it's right up there on my top 10 list (which i think i'll post about sometime soon). i always seem to have better luck with images that have thin lines instead of thick ones. somehow it just transfers better. plus i think they're more aesthetically appealing, so that's a win. i wore this manicure for a week straight, that's how much i loved it :).

another awesome manicure for cheap- the nyc polish for $1.72, the sinful for $1.99, and the plate for $1.99. i call that a victory for us cheapskates :P.

fashion safari

i really love the name of this polish. fashion safari, how cute is that?? and i love the shade too. and the price (dirt cheap). there's absolutely nothing to complain about with this one!

2 coats nyc fashion safari

i really love classy, nude cremes and have quite a few of them. but this is the first "mannequin hands" shade i've ever tried. i'm not sure why i waited so long, because i love it! i think this is a great shade for my skin tone. 

this shade is creamy, shiny perfection. it's a mere $1.72 at walmart and target and $1.99 at drugstores. and psssst, nyc often goes on sale for 40% off at rite aid and cvs, which is when i stock up on my favorite top coat- nyc grand central station. i really love nyc polishes, and this one is a must in anyone's stash.

amusing glitter

when i was 12, my whole room was decorated in lime burn-your-eyes-out green and turquoise. green has been (and always will be) my favorite color, but i was super into the green & turquoise combo back then. this manicure took me back to my crazy room from thirteen years ago. . . .

2 coats unnamed summer brights polish + 1 coat amuse midnight star + 1 coat wet 'n wild wild shine kaleidoscope

the turquoise glitter top coat had some silver holographic glitter in it, but it wasn't as dense as i wanted. i wanted bright green, turquoise, and in-your-face holo, dangit! so i added my favorite glittery top coat ever, kaleidoscope. now that's more like it.

phew, that was one intense mani. and a total beast to remove. my next manicure is much more subtle and elegant :P.

neon pastel green

so. . . . in the interest of time and laziness, i skipped base coat for this mani. what a bad, bad idea.

2 coats unnamed summer brights polish

as you can see, without a base coat, there are ridges and bumps visible on my nails. lovely, huh? also, this manicure didn't last very long (because of the lack of base coat). consider the lesson learned. from now on, base coat always!

regardless of my unforgivable nail-painting sin, i still really liked wearing this bright, happy creme. in some lights, it was super neon (see the first pic). in others, it looked like a perky pastel. i really love chameleon shades, don't you? it makes looking at your hands so much more fun :P.

clouds

this manicure was from a couple of weeks ago. . . . sorry! but maybe it's still worth sharing?

base color: 2 coats revlon cloud

darker blue stamping: petites periwinkle

silver dots: wet 'n wild fastdry silvivor

image plate: pueen 32

so. . . . petites periwinkle wasn't the best for stamping. it got a little smudgy in places. but i guess it worked. sorry i only have one picture, but this was the only one that didn't turn out horrible, 

i really like this stamp from pueen. it makes cloud nails super easy for those of us who suck at freehanded anything :P. next time i use it though, i'll choose a polish that stamps a lot more neatly.

polish purchases: september edition

well hi. i'm still here, i promise! i've been pretty busy these days- mostly baking for a couple of family birthdays and a friend's baby shower. wanna see what i made?

close to 100 baby shower macarons- cheesecake, white chocolate vanilla, and strawberry cheesecake!

a caramel cheesecake macaron cake for my mom- in her favorite color!

fun, right? aside from all the baking, i also managed to buy a few polishes-

l.a. colors enchanting, la splash embellished, sparkling torpedo, and tailscales

maybelline color show vintage leather lasting lilac and antique teal, hard candy emerald's eve

maybelline color show vintage leather lasting lilac and antique teal ($2.97 each)- i've been looking for this purple one ever since i saw swatches at nouveau cheap. it's a gorgeous red-toned purple with clear flakies! so unique. when i saw it at target, i caved and bought the teal one too. just because :P.

hard candy emerald's eve ($4)- so this is a new glitter from hand candy and i had to have it. i'm such a sucker for holographic gold glitter, and i can't wait to try this over mint green!

l.a. colors enchanting ($4.18)- this has been a long-time lemming of mine. it's supposed to be a dupe of orly fantasea, which is a beautiful purple/red/gold duochrome. when everything at cherry culture was 20% off, i knew it was finally time to snap it up.

la splash embellished, sparkling torpedo, and tailscales ($4.18 each)- la splash is a brand that i've really liked so far (i only have 1 polish- golden seahorse), and was curious about their other glitters. after a quick google images search, i settled on three amazing ones i needed. they all three contain holo glitter, and i can't wait to wear them! plus, i mean, the bottles. i love the shape and the gold cap! so cute.

GRAND TOTAL FOR SEPTEMBER: $26.66

i'm quite pleased with everything i bought this month. no regrets here. sorry i haven't been very regular with postings, but i now have a bunch of saved manicures to show you. to be posted soon!

dream on

the name of this polish always makes me think of the aerosmith song and makes me want to start singing (more like screaming, actually). . . .

2 coats sinful dream on

i feel like i've had dream on for forever and a day. it's been a couple of years at least, and i've worn it 3 or 4 times (which for me, is pretty unheard of). this is definitely a neon, although it's hard to tell from the pictures. it's a little hard to work with (hey, it's a neon) and dries super matte, which i really hate, so top coat is a must. i really dig the color, but it doesn't wear well at all on me, and it stains like you wouldn't believe. look at my poor cuticles!

wear time and staining aside, it's a very fun and eye-catching color. it fit my end-of-summer mood perfectly!