Nail Art. Swatches and Reviews. Honest love of nail polish and all things beauty.
Press Sample
Hello all. As usual, I like to do comparison posts because it helps me to narrow down what I keep as I have minimal space left in my helmers. I know that KBShimmer never directly dupes themselves, but many times the colors are a shade or two different and for me with such a large collection, I don’t need to keep them all. So let’s check out the ones that I decided to compare.
Press Sample
It's time for KB's holiday collection and this time, I am not a month late. LOL. This collection releases next week. As always, KBShimmer puts something for everyone in her collections! So let’s get to it.
Press Sample
Hi y’all! So as I mentioned earlier, I’ve been in a flake mood and right after I did the previous art I showed I actually actually did this one next. I wanted some darker colors to make the flake pops and I actually use three different flake topcoats for this look. I totally loved how this look came out and it was so simple. Could it have been neater? Sure, but I am who I am.
Press Sample
I said to Mr. Ehmkay: plaid with pumpkins or plaid with acorns? And he immediately said acorns because people don’t do enough acorn nail art. I actually have a few acorn manicures on the blog (literally only two), but it’s definitely not something I do every season. But just warning, you plaid with pumpkins is probably coming as well.
Press Sample
Hey everyone. So today I’m sharing a manicure that I actually did in the beginning of October and never got around to posting. I called these my transitional fall nails and that still sticks. Now I’m going to call them that in between November time when I’m not quite ready for holiday manicures. However, my nails look like the leaves that are on the trees right now so I figured I would share it now.
Press Sample
Happy Halloween! 🎃☠️👻🎃🧙♀️🧛🏻♀️🧟♀️🎃 Well, I’m happy to say that I did get five Halloween manicures done this month. For my final Halloween manicure I wanted jack-o’-lanterns on my nails because this past week I went to the great jack-o’-lantern blaze in Sleepy Hollow. I love attending this event, but it is costly and so I don’t go every year. I suddenly realized I hadn’t been for five years so it was time to go again! It was absolutely amazing.
Partial press sample
Since I don’t really purchase nail polish anymore, I try to use older colors that I did purchase. This manicure includes two colors that I absolutely adore. This green was made fun of when it came out and I knew I had to have it because it is so funky. I love nail art that isn’t so obvious. This is a look that was just so fun for me. I did not have high hopes for how it would turn out, but I absolutely loved it in the end.
Press Sample
I cannot believe Polish Pickup is this Friday. I am so behind! I love KB's contribution this month, and there are lots of photos, so let's just get to it!
Press Sample
Of course, I had to do a black and orange look. I think I’ve mentioned a lot that I’ve been pretty tired because I am in the deep, deep throws of my dissertation chapters. Of course I had a lot of deadlines so that I could hit my milestones. Therefore, I wanted to do nail art, but wanted to do something that was a little bit lazy and calming. Hence my Halloween mix and match.
Press Sample
So I am not one for Squishmallows but of course I see them at the store and I do squish them. They are fun and just really soft. Well, I was at the grocery store and of course I happened upon the cutest pair of cat slippers. If you didn’t know, I had a calico cat and I loved her so much. So this calico cat pumpkin slipper set had to come home with me. And if you’re wondering what grocery store sells slippers, it’s Aldi.
Press Sample
I think you already know that I will not be doing 13 Days of Halloween. I wish I could, but I simply won’t have the time. I love looking back at my previous Halloween art. So just search Halloween on my blog to get inspired! But let’s check out some cutie art I did do.
Press Sample
Halloween is coming! Deep down, I wanted Zoya's color of the month for October to be some funky orange. Alas, I understand that is not mass appeal, but I am loving what they have come up with. So let's take a look, because I feel like this will sell out.
Press Sample
Another Polish Pickup to share. KBShimmer is going hard with the magnetics this fall and has a special one coming out for PPU! So let's check it out. Yes, I am very late with their fall collection. It happens.
Press Sample
Oh hello! I cannot believe September is over. And I got to end it with being sick. I swear, I get sick every two months. But I had such a busy weekend last weekend where I was around hundreds of people in close proximity, so it was bound to happen. And everyone at the college seems to be sick! Oh well. At least I am here to share Stella Chroma's October PPU, cause it is gorgeous!
Press Sample
I had nail polishes laid out for one more summer look, and then I went on Pinterest to look at my nail art inspiration board and a look popped up on my feed, and that was it. I was officially done with neon and summer nails. I am loving the color combo and pulling out deep greens and oranges just made me so happy. So let's get to this look!
Press Sample
Since last month's Zoya color of the month sold out before I posted, I wanted to do a better job of getting this one up! Of course, I never get it prior to the month, so it is really the best I can do. Luckily, this one is still available, so I am in the clear!
Press Sample
Oh hello! This is most definitely my final summery nail art, as the nails I am wearing have shifted into fall, despite it being second summer right now. I had a student event today, and I swear, every year it’s like on the hottest day oh September. After sitting in the brutal sun for an hour, in work clothes, I went back to my office haha. So anyway, I did these a few weeks ago so I figured I would share them.
I am down to the wire sharing this. But this polish becomes available Friday, so hey, you have a day! If you love crellies and Halloween, you are going to love this. Let's check it out!
Press Sample
Hi all! Meet me shorties. And this is with TWO weeks of growth! That is how short they were. So yes, it is the last day of August and I am showing you the August color of the month. To be fair, this was only sent around August 17th, so it's not like I delayed THAT long. But I hate to be the bearer of bad news...apparently this sold out last night, so I have comparisons!
Press Sample
Hello all. Here is an art that I did weeks ago and just did not post it for a really no reason lol. I absolutely love this nail art and it was so simple to do and only use this for colors. I told you this orange from the Zoya Beachy Brights was my favorite and I truly meant it. I absolutely love this orange so let’s check it out.
Press Sample
Happy first day of the semester to me! I got a notification that I am entering my tenth year at my institution! WOW. Sorry that I keep disappearing. This blog is apparently become my dissertation journey event lol. As I was writing my first three chapters, I realized I had actually hit the next milestone in my journey. So I hunkered down and made it official and last Thursday, it was approved. Now I can head towards the next mile stone, which is probably the most crucial one as it will allow me to get approval by the university to do research on human subjects (which sounds really creepy, but I am conducting interviews haha).
Press Sample
Well, I stink. I’ve had these scents for a while, and I kept forgetting to do an official post. You know that I am very particular with my scents and that many of them trigger me like no other so when Stella Chroma sent over all of her brand new scents which we were released in May as a temporary selection, I was excited to smell them all and give my honest opinion. Y’all know I don’t sugarcoat on this blog and I will tell you what’s up. I have a Stella Chroma cuticle oil in my purse, in my desk at work, in my side table by my bed. I love her formula. It is oily without being so greasy. It soaks in so nicely! So yea..let's check out the scents!
Press Sample
It's comparison time. Doing these is not only great for you, but it helps me purge! If I kept every sing polish, I would need like 25 helmers. No thanks. Plus helmers have doubled in priced! So let’s take a look!
Press Sample
Soooo hi! I swatched these like six weeks ago, sigh. After I completed my summer courses in mid-July, I went full mode into dissertation writing while also sick. So I have been going full force into my dissertation before I start back up with classes. So today I am sharing the newest collection from Zoya, which is an extension of last year‘s Beachy Brights, which were six mini-sized Zoya nail polishes. Five of those colors appear in this collection, but in full size. One of the colors did not reappear and I have no idea why so let’s take a look. Of course I will have some quick and dirty comparisons. I have been using these so much! I LOVE this collection so let's check it out.
Press Sample
Ok well, I disappeared for a bit...continue reading for life updates. I swear that I get sick every single season now. I was sick again and having coughing fits, but I didn’t want naked nails because sometimes they break so much easier. For details on these nails and my life, continue reading!
Press Sample
Well you knew I was going to gradient this trio and here it is! I love small collections and trios and they are awesome for art. I love seeing how cohesive collections are when I used them for art. If you missed the swatches of this trio, head to my blog post and these release this Friday!
Press Sample
Quick post today! I am here with August's Polish Pickup offering from KBShimmer. This one is super shifty and has lots of colors so let's just get right to it.
Press Sample
If you’re going to call a color, a watermelon red, then of course I have to do some watermelon nail art with it. Somehow I do watermelon art every summer and I never tire of it, so let’s take a look at this year. Version.
Press Sample
I always like to compare collections to polishes from the same brand that I already own. I know KBShimmer would never dupe themselves, but in this day, it is important to look at how we spend our money! As a note, over the past four years, I have been purging polishes and creating a blog post to sell them. That has not gone up yet...yup, four years! Included in that sale will be over 150 KBShimmer polishes. I simply cannot keep them all, and I have given so many away. And nail polish remover and cost money so hopefully I will get the blog sale up soon. All this to say, you may not see certain comparisons because I simply do not have the polish anymore or do not want to pull it out of a sales pile. So let's check them out!
Press Sample
It's time for KBShimmer summer! Next week is the Polish and Beauty Expo hosted by KBShimmer, so if you are going, you can grab these in person! I always wish I could go but the expo happens when I teach a summer class and since I have never been to Chicago, I would prefer to make a trip out of it and simply cannot when I am teaching (it is an in-person class). Oh well! For now, I can share these with you and see the event through everyone's photographs.
Press Sample
Today I have the Zoya color of the month and it is perfect for summer. I am bummed that June did not have a color of the month because I wanted to see what they would create for my birthday haha. But this color is summer awesome for July so let's take a look.
Press Sample
Hello everyone! I only have one Fourth of July manicure because frankly, I went on vacation a manicure for 10 days and then nothing for a while. Then I watched and then chopped all my nails off. So these are my current nails and frankly, I am loving the length. so I have not done stamping in a really long time and I decided to do a super simple Fourth of July manicure with some super simple nail art. So let’s check it out.
Press Sample
More Polish Pickup rewind! These two polishes from KBShimmer are similar base color vibes, but I love this shade of grey/blue. So if you have not grabbed these from their first release, now is your time!
Press Sample
I completely forgot about Polish Pickup Rewind for July! So I am here just to give you the details. Rewind allows makers to bring back fan favorites, so if you missed either of these, check out how to get them!
Press Sample
I didn’t have plans to do my nails because I knew I was going to do them before I went on vacation. But of course one of my nails completely chipped off in the shower and I just couldn’t have one random unpainted nail. Mr. MK suggested hot pink nails, so this is what happened.
Press Sample
Yayyyy for neon season. Although KBShimmer recently shared her new summer collection, I am still all about the Mix It Up Neon collection that came out in May. I finally created art with all of the collection, and so I wanted to share that with you, because this collection is obviously still available!
Press Sample
Oh hello! I’m currently on vacation and had posts ready but never actually scheduled them. Also, I have been publishing comments but cannot reply to them. I have no idea why Blogger does this with Apple products, but I’ll be back soon! This is a look I have had on my Pinterest for a while. I love the striking white and blue pattern and have seen a bunch of versions and combined a bunch. Originally I was going to do this as accent nails then said, let’s do the whole thing!
Press Sample
Press Sample
Happy June! June baby here and I m ready for neons. I actually did this manicure last month but had so many other posts that I held off in these. But I absolutely loveeee them. Is it floral? A pomegranate? Dragonfruit? Who knows. Everyone said something different to me. All I know is I saw pretty colors and fun flakes.
Press Sample
Another Polish Pickup to share as they go on sale next week. If you like a nail polish that has all the colors, then you will want to check out this KBShimmer! I have way too many pictures to share with you so grab a snack or a drink and take a seat.
Press Sample
Hello everyone. I cannot believe May is basically over. I always feel the end of months like what?! And I know it is coming when I am ready to post Polish Pickup colors. Stella Chroma is back with a color that I absolutely love so let’s take a look.
Press Sample
So when I sat down to do these nails, I fully intended to do a neon nail art with the new KBShimmer collection. But then I realized I really was not ready for neon nails just yet and I really was in the mood for another floral. I know there has been a lot of florals on my blog lately, but hey if that is what inspires me when I sit down then that is what I am going to do. I try not to force nail art otherwise it just does not come out great.
Press Sample
Hi all! So I finished my coursework last Thursday and well, I restarted this past Monday LOL. I took a total of three days off, but I am on a strict coursework schedule to fulfill certain milestones. In between that time, I have been doing a lot of leisure reading. I had a goal of reading two books a month and have not kept up with that. But then I read two books this week, so yay! I got around to swatching Zoya's May color which I love, so check it out!
Partial Press Sample
Happy spring! This was another nail art on my to-do list of nail art that I meant to do in March and April. But hey! It is still spring! So I am down with florals still! I love the muted colors of this, although I am so torn on whether I liked it more matte or shiny, so you be the judge!
Press Sample
When I posted the newest Stella Chroma In My Swiftie Era collection, I mentioned that I would share later on layering two of the colors. If you missed that post, make sure you head to it to see the gorgeous colors! I wanted to separate the posts because not everyone reads lol and I did not want someone to think this was one polish if I grouped it together with the swatch post, so let's take a look!
Press Sample
Hi all! I am soooo behind on life. I have finally been getting myself back into nail art! This is the Easter nail art that I wanted to do and then realized I could do it any time! So here it is! A month after Easter LOL. It was inspired by a card that I saw at Paper Source. I love mushroom motif (it is still so trendy! I did mushroom nails last year), so I wanted to get this done.
