Spring into spring

Spring.... what's that like? Eeeesh we're supposed to be getting snow today so I'm posting these to maybe convince mother nature that we really don't need anymore snow. Maybe it will work.... -_-

LOL But anyways I was itching to do some more gradients and I thought some nice light colors would look spring appropriate, though they came out a bit more "easter egg-ish" then I would have liked I still think they work ;)

I started with a base of Essie Blanc on all of my nails. When that was dry I created the gradient using Lime Crime Crema de Limon, Maybelline Color Show Green With Envy, and Essie Rock the Boat. I stamped over the gradient using Polish Me To Go White Undies and Bundle Monster plate BM-408. I top coated everything with Poshe and I was feeling super springy!

I was really happy with the way PMTG White Undies stamped, I've been looking for a white that worked and I think this may just be the one! 

What are you guys doing to try to coax the warm weather out?
Thanks loves :) 

Never let anyone dull your sparkle!

Sparkles.

Does anything else really need to be said? I mean who doesn't love sparkly things?! I was really excited about this prompt because sparkle should literally be my middle name. I add sparkle whenever I can, why? Because sparkles make me smile and smiling is my favorite! ;)

So moving on with the prompt, I was surprised at how much I actually struggled with this one. It's not that I didn't have any ideas, I just didn't know which direction I wanted to go in. I actually had a different mani in mind but once I got half way through and messed it all up I decided that I should go for a simpler route. I really enjoy sparkly gradients so let's do that shall we?! 

I started off with a base of Orly Gumdrops. When that was dry I taped off around my nails and did a glitter gradient using Orly Sparkling Garbage and Orly Bubbly Bombshell. I added a rhinestone on top and finished up with two generous coats of Poshe top coat to give it a great shine. 

My favorite color is definitely SPARKLES! I stared at these nails for so long but unfortunately had to take them off shortly after they were finished... I didn't want to but there was so much glitter on there I knew if I let it dry I'd NEVER get it off lol! 

Take another look at the challenge picture to see what's coming up soon on the blog! 

Thanks lovelies :) 

Christmas skittles

I think I've finally gotten a hold of that whole Christmas spirit thing. 

Well sort of anyways ;) I just finished decorating the tree and it smells like Christmas in my house so that must mean that it's Christmastime right?! 

These nails are... okay. They aren't the best but I quite like the concept of them so hey, if the concept is good I must show them to you guys! I should have left the Christmas trees alone before I put the "star" on top but oh well, you live and learn.

I started off with a base of Maybelline Color Show Bold Gold on my thumb and ring finger and layered two coats of China Glaze Angel Wings over that. For my index and pinky I used a base of Maybelline Color Show Candy Apple and Blackheart Beauty Jealous Type on my middle. All of the designs were painted on with acrylic paints. A bit of top coat to finish and the design was done! 

Yeah that's right I'm getting all Christmassy with my photos! BAM Christmastime :) And I mean if anyone gives me a present with that gold bow on it, I don't even care what it is as long as I can keep the bow I'll be the happiest EVAR!! ;)

What's your favorite Christmas nail design? Mine has got to be Grinch nails! 

Thanks loves :) 

Let's put this in the spotlight!

Can I just take a second here and talk about something important... NAIL POLISH! ;) My work had our Christmas dinner the other week and every year we do a secret santa swap. It's no secret there that I'm obsessed with nail polish so who would have thought that my secret santa would get me polish?!? Not I! ;) 

Among other polish pretties that I was given, there is a real gem in here. OPI Fresh Frog of Bel Air, while not a new polish but new to me, is a gorgeous mix of green micro glitters and silver large hex glitters and it is just everything I wanted is a green glitter! I knew I wanted to layer it over a white to red gradient... but I forgot to take in to account that the white and red would turn pink... Christmas FAIL -_- 

But I persevere, I still very much liked this combination so Christmassy or not you still get to see it :) 

I started with a base of Azature White and sponged using that white and Dior Marilyn. I dabbed one coat of OPI Fresh Frog of Bel Air and top coated with Poshe and it was finished! 

Ooooooh sparkly!!! The photographs really don't show how gorgeous this polish really is but it's a small glimpse into the green sparkly abyss!

Until next time lovelies! 

Black and white and blue all over

Hi dolls!

I hope you liked those glitter tips last time because I couldn't resist doing some more! I used to be so afraid to do anything that showed my natural nail because my nails are stained from all the polish I wear all the time. But ever since I found that unnamed sheer pink polish I'm afraid no more!! ;) This polish does such a great job making my nails look like they aren't stained. I could actually go almost all nakey nail here and I would be ok! 

I started this manicure with two coats of the unnamed sheer pink polish. Once that was dry I used a make up sponger ripped in half and Color Club Over the Moon to create the faded tip. Then I used Hard Candy Black Tie Optional for the glitter. I love a good black and white glitter and this one is no exception! I finished with some Poshe top coat and I was good to go :) 

I really love how the black and white glitter stands out against Color Club Over the Moon. This was really stunning in the sun too! I wish I got some sun pictures -_- But I suppose you'll have to use your imagination! 

I love how clean a french mani can look and it's fun to try different color combos! What's your favorite color for a glitter tip manicure? 

Inspiration Nation: Glitter Tips

Hey chickies!

Ready for another Inspiration Nation post? My inspiration this time comes from another blogger that I follow like... religiously lol! She's super sweet and her nails are always flawless! Not to mention she's so talented!! I'm talking about the lovely Marta from Chit Chat nails :) Marta is pretty well known for her skittlette manis but she does something else that I really love.. faded glitter tips! She's done a bunch of them and every time I see one I drool all over my keyboard! She's actally written up a tutorial for how she does them too. 

To start this mani I did two coats of an unnamed sheer pink polish... It was just one of those weird ones I got in a package at some store. But it works great to make my nails look unstained so I'll take it! ;) Then I took a make up sponge and ripped it in half so I had a little bit of a jagged edge. I do this so the color gradient part isn't such a straight, cut off line. Then I did the gradient tip with Zoya Zuza, a beautiful shimmery teal. When that was dry it took Orly Mermaid Tale and placed the glitter from the tip of my nail all the way to the middle. Finish off with some top coat and you're good to go!

Not only is the final result super pretty but it's actually really easy and not time consuming. Tips like these will definitely be making a repeat appearance on Pink & Polished so I hope you like them! ;) 

Thanks loves!

Born Pretty Store Diamond 'Glequin' Glitters

Hello lovelies!

I've got something pretty cool for you guys today :) The wonderful Daisy from the Born Pretty Store was kind enough to send me some diamond 'glequin' glitters for review. If you haven't heard of the Born Pretty Store it's an online store that sells quite a lot of different nail art supplies for really great prices. I actually have regular hexagon glequins from them from a while ago but I was really excited to try the diamond ones. There's so many possibilities! So let's check them out shall we? ;) 

The glitters are super small: 3X3.3cm and come in a pot filled to the top! Seriously I don't think I'm ever going to run out of these even if I used them in every manicure I do for 20 years! The ones I received are a pretty red that look kind of orange in some light. The way I use them is I use a toothpick to pick up the individual glitters and place them on my nail with clear nail polish... it takes quite a while but your nails are super sparkly when you're finished!! B)

Loved this! I'm actually way too embarrassed to tell you how many layers of top coat I have on here.... somewhere around 6ish O.O lol! Not that it needs that many for these glitters to be smooth because they lay really flat on your nail, it's just every time I finished a nail I'd top coat them all... not really sure why guess I just wasn't thinking ;) The only issue I had with these glitters was that a bunch of them get stuck together in the pot so it gets to be kind of a mess trying to get the little glitters to separate. Just means that they take a little longer to use. :) 

The Diamond Nail Art Glitter Glequins come in 10 really pretty colors and can be purchased HERE for only $2.38!

If you want to buy this or any of the Born Pretty Store's awesome nail art supplies don't go yet! I have a coupon for you so use it!! ;) 

What do you think of all these different kinds of 'glequins'? Fun for nail art or too much work? 

Thanks cupcakes :)  

Nina Pro glitter gradient accent

Hello cupcakes!

Sorry about the lull in posting!! I never meant for it to happen but you know, life gets in the way sometimes -_- Sorry!! 

I realized that my collection was lacking in the bright blue area so I set out to pick one up and decided to try out a new-to-me brand: Nina Ultra Pro. This brand is sold at Sally's Beauty Supply and they've really got a great variety of colors. Anyways I picked up this blue and couldn't wait to try it out. 

Let me tell you this baby is BRIGHT! The pictures make it seem a little dustier then it is in real life. I loved this color so much I almost didn't even add anything to it... but I'm sure you guys know I can't leave well enough alone ;) 

Below is two coats of Nina Ultra Pro Blue Blaze with a glitter gradient accent of Pure Ice Beware on my ring and thumb.

Only down side to this polish? It chipped in less then 24 hours :( I mean it's not really a problem for me because I change my polish so frequently but it was kind of disappointing. 

What do you think? Have you tried Nina Ultra Pro polishes before?

Mint Manis for Talia Joy

Good morning guys!

Or morning for me anyways.  

If you missed my post the other day I'll just recap a bit. Today is a special day in the nail community, on Tuesday, July 16th, we all lost a beautiful girl named Talia. Talia was an inspiration to the beauty community. She was a very special 13 year old girl who was battling two forms of cancer: neuroblastoma and preleukemia. Despite her challenges she put a smile on her face every day and brought beautiful makeup and nail tutorials to us all. She was truly the strongest girl I've ever had the honor to know and so very amazing at everything she did. 

Today, July 19th, the nail community has banded together to bring mint manis to honor miss Talia Joy. The last photo she posted on instagram was of a mint mani and the wonderful Nicole from Nail Polish Wars thought it would be great for all of us to show our mint manis for Talia. I think that's and absolutely amazing idea. So here's my mint mani for the beautiful little girl who was stronger then anyone. 

I started with a base of ORLY Gumdrop and did a glitter gradient using ORLY Sparkling Garbage on my thumb, pointer, middle, and pinky nails. I also put a little rhinestone at the base of each of those nails. On my ring I did two full coats of ORLY Sparkling Garbage and stamped over it with a little bow from BM-317 with L.A Colors striping polish in black. 

I really love how these came out, soft and sweet. 

For anyone wanting to participate today the hashtag is #mintmanisfortaliajoy. This is for Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, etc. 

If anyone want to link their blogs up you can pick up the inlinkz code right HERE. But don't forget to add your name in the actual inlinkz! 

I can't wait to see everyone's love for Talia Joy and her friends and family. Rest in peace beautiful angel and make sure you show all those angels up there how to do their makeup and nails!

Thanks so much for reading guys. :) 

Give me some Sparkling Garbage stripes

Hey guys!

For once you guys are actually getting to see my current nails! I just did these and love them so much that I just couldn't wait to show you all. A few days ago I headed to my local Sally's to pick of some more nail files... you know I couldn't resist perusing the polish area though and I came upon an absolutely stunning polish from Orly. So I grabbed it to find out what it was a literally laughed out loud at the name... Sparkling Garbage. I mean could it get any more perfect then that? LOVE it! Seriously thinking about heading back and grabbing a few back up bottles because I see myself using this one a lot ;) 

Anyways I finally got a chance to try it out today and boy, it didn't disappoint! I only used it as an accent here but I see a full Sparkling Garbage mani in the very near future! I started with a base of OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls on my pointer, middle, and pinky nails, seriously my favorite greyish white! Then I used some striping tape and painted Orly Gumdrop on top of MBSW. On my ring and thumb I had a base of Orly Gumdrop and did two coats of Orly Sparkling Garbage over that. Check these babies out! 

Look at that bottle shot! Yummy!

And here's a super blurred shot to show you all the gorgeousness that is Sparkling Garbage.

This. Is. Perfection. Haha you all must think I'm way crazy by now but I just can't get enough of this polish! Beautiful with an awesome name to boot!

What do you guys think? Do you love the sparkle?!

Glitter gradient take two!

Good morning guys!

I hope everyone's Saturday went well! I was running around like a crazy person... not exactly sure why but it happens far too often -_- lol! But the good news is I did end up getting most of the stuff I needed for my 1,000 GFC follower giveaway which I should be posting within the next couple of days I just need a few more things!

So you want to know about the nails now don't you?! I decided to try doing a glitter gradient again because I got some new glitter polish ;) LOL I used the amazing Lucy from Lucy's Stash's tutorial to do it and I think it turned out even better then last time! Take a look :) 

Colors used:
- Lime Crime Milky Ways 
- Orly Bubbly Bombshell

I still need to work on the whole getting sparse-er as the glitter goes down the nail but I would venture to say that this was pretty successful! 

So what do you think?

Thanks for reading :)