SPLAT

I helped my little cousins get their nails did for back to school, and we decided to attempt the splatter mani! They were stoked to try out the technique, but it ended up being a lot harder than we anticipated. I don't know if there was something wrong with our execution, or if our polishes were incompatible somehow... but my cousins couldn't get the paint to transfer onto their nails. I ended up having to do all of their designs for them (which left me very out of breath!) so I only did an accent mani for myself. Here's the colorway I ended up doing!










American Apparel Summer Peach + Nails Inc Baker St. + Wet n Wild French White Creme

The design turned out pretty awesome, but I don't know if I'll be trying it out again after such a tiring first try!
Have you tried the splatter mani before? How did yours turn out?

Flossed & Glossed like a Boss

Hello, hello! Today I'll be introducing my latest Floss Gloss lacquers, Wavepool and Dimepiece. I discovered Floss Gloss on Twitter, and I was immediately drawn to the antique twist on the bottles. Aren't they cute?!

Wavepool is a super bright, pastel blue. It dries to a semi-matte/semi-gloss/satin finish, resembling the finish that was marketed for the Orly Plastix Collection that released a couple years back. I'm personally not too big on that finish, so I topped it off with Seche Vite to bring out the glossy shine.

Dimepiece is marketed as a one-coat silver holographic glitter, but I think that claim really depends on how you apply your polish. I typically use thin coats, so I needed 2 coats to get an opaque finish, and a third coat to fill in any sparse patches. I coated it with a layer of Seche Vite, but I'd suggest adding another coat (or two?) to get a completely smooth, non-gritty finish.









Floss Gloss Wavepool + Floss Gloss Dimepiece

I picked these up on Floss Gloss for $8 each. The price ain't bad, but you might want to keep in mind that they're really small! I was actually kind of shocked when they arrived because they're so tiny lol. Floss Gloss polishes contain 5.5 mL of product, compared to OPI polishes that contain 15 mL.

Despite the price to quantity ratio, I'm already looking forward to my next order!
I think their bottles make great collectibles for any polish stash, and they're definitely worth splurging on if you're into the aesthetics of pretty packaging.
I'd also like to add that they are really on top of their customer service! There are so many indie polish brands out there that I can't even emphasize the importance of customer service. The girls behind Floss Gloss do a great job of interacting with and responding to their customers. I think it's dope that I can identify with their brand, and that's what makes them stand out to me (:

P.S. If this mani looks familiar, it's because I wore it to The Infamous meet a couple weeks back!

Spacing Out

Last up from Tough As Nails is Spacing Out*. It's my personal favorite, which is why I saved it for last. Instant space nails? Yes, please!

Spacing Out* is a mix of holographic turquoise glitters in a black jelly base. I used three coats with Seche Vite in the pictures below, but extra top coat is recommended for a completely smooth finish. I love how the base builds up to a really deep black despite its jelly consistency, because it adds great depth to this polish and really completes the whole galaxy look!










Tough As Nails Lacquer Spacing Out*

The name of this polish brings me back to middle school because I had the tendency to space out a lot during class. One of my friends always noticed when I was zoning out and would always wave his hand in front of my face to see if I was still there haha. Do you ever space out or daydream during school or work?

If you're just as mesmerized by this polish as I am, be sure to cop your bottle here. You can also keep up with Tough As Nails on their blog as well as their Facebook page.

Did you enjoy this series by Tough As Nails? Which ones are your favorite? (:

*Product provided for review

Speckles

Alright so for today, we're back on track with another Tough As Nails Lacquer swatch and review. The polish I have for you today is Teal Me About It*. This one is different from the rest of the bunch because the holographic turquoise, multi-shaped glitters come in a clear base, so you can layer this one to your heart's content! This is also the only one that is perfectly smooth with just one coat of top coat, so it's great for those of you who don't like dealing with gritty glitters. I used two layers of the glitter here, topped with Seche Vite.








China Glaze Electric Pineapple + Tough As Nails Lacquer Teal Me About It*

If you've missed my other posts, you can purchase Tough As Nails Lacquer here, find their Facebook page here, and check out their blog here!

Thanks for looking!

*Product provided for review

Hello Love

It's been a while since I've done a sneaker related post, so let's switch it up for today! I recently came across Rae (a fellow female sneaker fiend) of Villain Luxuries, who runs a dope blog featuring all the ways she rocks her kicks. I've been meaning to do more outfit posts with my sneakers, so her blog gave me a push of encouragement and inspiration that I needed to put together today's post.

Mighty Fine Hello Kitty tee - Sidecca | Glitter denim shorts - American Eagle Outfitters

Hello Kitty watch - McDonald's Happy Meal | Sneakers: New Balance 996 Valentine's Day

It's been unbearably hot in SoCal, so here's a casual outfit I put together last week for a day of back-to-school erranding with my little cousins. My sister actually got me the t-shirt, because I'm a huge Hello Kitty fan!

Rebel

One thing I noticed about the Tough As Nails Lacquer line is that all of their polish names are really on point! I think that's awesome because the names really characterize the polishes for me, and it can show off the style/creativity of a brand. This brings me to today's polish swatch and review, because Rebellious Bridesmaid* is no exception! The chunky silver holographic glitters contribute to the punky nature of this polish, and the name couldn't be more fitting. The black pigment in this polish is on the sheer side so I used three coats to build up the opacity. The finish was also a bit gritty with one layer of Seche Vite, so I'd recommend using extra coats for a completely smooth mani.










Tough As Nails Lacquer Rebellious Bridemaid*

Tough As Nails Lacquer can be found on Etsy here. They offer all of their polishes in full sized bottles, as well as mini versions for those of you who just want to try them out. Will you be picking this one up?

To keep up with Tough As Nails, hit the links below!

Blog // Facebook

*Product sent for review

Gotta Have Brains

I'll be starting my series of swatches and reviews for Tough As Nails Lacquer today, and first up is It's All Over Now*!

It's All Over Now* contains a mix of lavender, purple, and blue hex glitters in addition to iridescent ones. This one's insanely pretty in the bottle, and it delivers on the nails as well! For the results shown below, I used three coats with a layer of Seche Vite. As you can see, the grey base is opaque enough to go without undies, but I'd recommend adding another layer of top coat to get a completely smooth finish!





Tough As Nails Lacquer It's All Over Now*

The grey base reminded me of brains, which brought this song to mind:

Has anyone heard it before? My bestie introduced it to me a couple years back... it's not exactly one of Trey Songz best hits, but the chorus about brains always gets stuck in my head whenever I think about the song. Oh, before I get distracted by the chorus again, you can keep up with Tough as Nails Lacquer on their blog here, Facebook page here, and pick up some of their polishes here. Yuuuup!

*Product provided for review

Bon Voyage

Happy Friday everyone! I have a swatch for you today, and it's of Essence Blue Addicted--the dupe for Deborah Lippmann Across the Universe! This awesome polish was sent to me in a swap from Estivalia since this very shade isn't available in the States.

I'm usually hesitant about purchasing high-end polishes because I don't know if I'll like the color enough to warrant the purchase, but I'd totally make the splurge on the Deborah Lippmann version if it's just as good as this Essence one! This jelly sandwich in a bottle looks awesome on my tips, and I only needed one layer of top coat to obtain a super smooth finish. I definitely recommend this polish if you have access to it!






Essence Blue Addicted

On a side note, I'll be leaving for my trip tomorrow! I'm gonna be flying to Seattle, and then taking a round-trip cruise to Alaska and back. I've prepped a bunch of scheduled posts so my blog will be up to date, but I won't be able to check my blogroll, comment, or tweet until I get back. Catch you guys in a week or so!

Bottle Shots Shots Shots Shots Shots

Hey everyone! I recently received several polishes from Elizabeth of Tough As Nails Lacquer to review, so I figured I'd show you bottle shots first to get a feel for which ones you're most interested in! Elizabeth has an insane stash of indie polishes, so I'm not surprised that she finally decided to come out with her own line (:


Spacing Out*


It's All Over Now*


Teal Me About It*


Rebellious Bridesmaid*

In the meantime, you can check out her blog and follow her Facebook page for updates.

Which one of these are calling out to you?

*Products provided for review

The Infamous Long Beach

Hey everyone! I'll be taking a break from my usual posts today to show you some pictures from the Infamous meet presented by Canibeat and Hellaflush that took place this past weekend on August 11th. I haven't been to a car meet since Motion Auto Show (damn, that's like forever ago!) so I was really excited to see from fresh rides at this event!

Rainbow Fishtail

What's new with my favorite lacquer fiends!

I recently found this sweet necklace at H&M and it caught my eye immediately. I love its bright colors, and the gunmetal chain gives it a bit of an edge and adds a nice weight. The style of the necklace reminded me of braids, which led me to create this rainbow fishtail nail design that I'll be showing you today!








For reference, the colors I used were:
Nails Inc. Maddox St.
China Glaze Hang-Ten Toes
China Glaze Pink Plumeria
China Glaze Papaya Punch
China Glaze Sun-Kissed
American Apparel Neon Green
China Glaze Sky-High Top
Sinful Colors Savage
China Glaze Senorita Bonita

P.S. If you'd like to see more of this necklace in action, check out L'Iconoclaste here and here! She's one of my biggest inspirations for photography... not to mention, she also has a killer sense of style!

Green Ocean

I finally obtained one of my biggest lemmings, and it never felt so good! Today's lacquer layering combo is comprised of two coats of Essence Viva La Green, one coat of Sinful Colors Green Ocean, a coat of Gelous and a final layer of Seche Vite top coat.

I was so stoked to receive Green Ocean in a swap because I had searched everywhere for it and wasn't able to find it anywhere! I wanted it so bad because it's got the prettiest glitters and flakies in a tinted green base. It's like the sister of OPI I Lily Love You, and that's one of my favorite layering polishes of all time! I layered it over Viva La Green, an Essence polish kindly sent to me by the awesome Estivalia over at This Girl's Nails. If you haven't checked out her blog yet, you need to do so because her photography is on point! Anyway, Viva La Green fits in with my other mint/aqua polishes, even though it leans more green than the rest of the bunch. I totally love it, though!










Essence Viva La Green + Sinful Colors Green Ocean