Britney and Justin nail decals mani

Hi!

You may not have seen me here for a while, but I have been posting some manis on my Instagram and facebook page so... I wasn't completely away! 

Today I have a super cute mani featuring some more nail decals from one of my faves, Sara M Lyons, that she made for the online shop Emerging Thoughts. She did a 90s themed set of decals which has illustrations of many memorable moments from that decade. Being a 90s kid myself, I had to order these, and combine the Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake ones together for this mani you're about to see... It only makes sense, right? 

I absolutely love how this came out! I decided to try to work on my free-handed nail art skills on my thumb nail, and pull the whole look together. In case you want to order these nail decals, the Britney and Justin ones are part of the "Totally 90s" nail decal set sold on Emerging Thoughts, and the hearts are from the "3 Bad Kitties" pack found on Sara's website.  

So, what do you think about this look? Does it take you down memory lane a bit? It did for me! See ya next time! 

- Tiff 

Sephora Formula X Ugly Holiday Sweater nail appliqués

Hi, everyone!

Today I have some super cute nail polish appliques from Sephora perfect for this time of the year. This is also my first holiday-themed mani (I know...I'm late to the party). During one of my last trips to Sephora, I browsed through the sale section and found this set of two designs of appliqués for only $5... It was too much of a deal to leave the store without. Check out the cute ugly holiday sweater 

-inspired design in the pics below. 

I absolutely love these. They are made from real nail polish, which is always a win with me. These are so festive, and perfect for any holiday party. 

I can't believe thi is my first holiday mani so far... I will have to try to get some more in, for sure! See ya next time :) 

-Tiff 

Sally Hansen "Mint Tint"

Hello, everyone! 

I have a super quick post to show you today. Remember that I recently picked up some nail goodies that are on sale at CVS? Well, here's another one of the products I picked up that day from Sally Hansen. Here's one of their textured polishes in "Mint Tint". 

I wish the camera picked up the shimmer that you can kind of see in the bottle, but not so much on my nails. I used two coats of this polish, that evened out just how you see it above by the second coat. When I grabbed this one, it was marked at 75% off, so I thought it was a good textured polish to add to my collection for the price. Another color from the Sugar Shimmer line that I like is "Sugar Cloud", a light blue that has more obvious shimmer on the nail. 

So what do you think about this one? I love a pretty mint green color any time of the year. 

See ya next time :) 

- Tiff 

Incoco Nail appliqués in "Bonfire Nights"

Hello! 

Today I have a quick post featuring some cute tribal Incoco nail polish strips. I took advantage of their Black Friday sale and picked up some designs that I had been wanting for quite some time. Check out "Bonfire Nights" in the pictures below! 

I know we're in the holiday season now, but I just wanted to pull out one more look that reminded me of lazy Fall nights. And besides, tribal will always win in my book... Anytime of the year :)

So, how do you feel about these? Are you in full holiday mode with your nails yet? See ya with a new post soon! 

- Tiff C 

Sara M Lyons Nail Prints in "Happy Meal"

Hello, everyone! 

I have a super cute nail look to show you today. You all know I recently discovered artist Sara M Lyons and became a huge fan of her nail decals. Today I have some full coverage decals to show you in a super cute burger and fries print. Check out how these nail prints came out on me in the pics below. 

How you use these nail prints is actually quite simple. You cut out the right nail shape you need, place the decal on your nail (there is adhesive on them, so they stay right where you place them), submerge in water, and lift the paper backing away. I tried using full coverage decals before, and I had some trouble keeping them from sliding off after dipping them in water. The fact that Sara's have a sticky side to them really made applying these unbelievably simple. I absolutely love how these came out, and the burger and fries look so cute! It is recommended to wear these over a light colored polish, so I painted on a generous coat of my favorite white polish (Sinful Colors "Snow Me White"), and was ready to go. Finish the mani off with top coat, and you'll be ready to turn heads with these super cute prints! Sara has a handful of prints to choose from, and you're sure to see more of them on me in the future. 

So, what do you think of these? Food-themed nails are very popular right now and make for a fun look. See ya next time :)

- Tiff C  

Sally Hansen Salon Effects in "Disk-O-Queen"

Hello!

I have a really quick post for you today. During one of my latest trips to CVS, I noticed there was a considerable amount of beauty products on sale, and I decided to go for my go-to Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail polish appliqués. I picked up a couple, including "Disk-O-Queen", which you'll see in the pictures below. 

I filtered the pictures a bit so the shine from the glitter could be more visible. As you can probably see, the  glitter is very spread out, making my nail a bit visible underneath. This is probably the most sheer nail appliqué I've used from Sally Hansen, but I think it ended up looking quite nice overall. What do you think? 

I have some really fun looks coming up on the blog soon, and I can't wait to show you all! I'll see you with my next post later this week! 

- Tiff C 

China Glaze Cherry Blossom Appliqués nail art

Hi!

Today I have a mani that I came up with rather spontaneously. I had some left over China Glaze nail appliqués and I decided to put them to use. Using some nail vinyls from Miami Hand Jobs, I decided to make a somewhat rustic look, given the fall season we're in. Take a look at the pics below to see what im talking about! 

I ended up having mixed feelings about this look. One side of me feels it doesn't look bad, and the other half of me wishes I had used a brown underneath the cherry blossom print instead of the reddish orange. This is one of those situations where it looked better in my head than it does in real life! It happens! I've got plenty more nail appliqués from China Glaze (which happen to have a great shelf life) to play with and create better looks like this. Trial and error...

Well, I hope you have a good Thanksgiving, if you celebrate it, and enjoy the rest of the week! See ha next time! 

- Tiff 

Scratch Nail Wraps in"Animal Party"

Hi everyone!

The weather here in Miami has just been the worst. It has been cold, and rainy, which means I haven't been able to go for my long jogs that I love to do every once in a while. I knew I wanted to put some golohraphic nail polish on my nails, but the lack of sun here lately made me worry about not being able to capture the effect of them in photos. Luckily there is a way of getting around lack of sunlight if you're like me, and don't have a light box like many other nail bloggers do. I went into a room, turned off the light, and used the flash on my phone camera to snap the pics you'll see below. I think it captured the hologram effect just fine! Check out the look I used combining holographic polish with Scratch nail wraps in "Animal Party". 

See? No sun, no problem! The grey holo, which photographed more on the blue side, is Jade "Extasy", and the brown holo is Hits "Morfeu". I believe you can still get these from Llarowe; I got ordered mine some time last year. As usual, Scratch's clear nail,wraps are a win for me, because they allow you to layer them over any kind of nail polish you want! 

So, how do you feel about these animal wraps? I think with the exception of the raccoon and frog faces that came in the set (I chose not to use those because I'm terrified of frogs and raccoons!) theyre very cute! See ya next time! 

- Tiff 

Scratch nail wraps in "What Lifts You"

Hi!

I have a really cool look to show you today. I went to a concert with my mom this past weekend, and I decided to put on some nail wraps from Scratch's latest monthly mani box for November, created with artist Kelsey Montague. I was also in the mood for some sparkles, so I added INM's Northern Lights hologram top coat to them, and I love how they looked. Check out the pics below! 

I filtered the pics a bit to try to capture the holographic glitters from the top coat. It's a bit hard to get the glitter to show in pictures, just as you see in person ...

Sara M Lyons Cats & Crosses and Cute & Sleazy nail decals

Hello!

We're half way through the week! 

I am really excited to show you this look I have today. I discovered artist Sara M Lyons on Instagram, and immediately became a fan. I first saw her 90s inspired nail decals (which I'll have here soon) and then decided to check out her Etsy shop and get a couple of nail goodies from her there. I decided to grab some of her faulty nail decal sets (the errors are hardly noticeable) because this was first time trying them out, and they were available at a discounted price. I love cats, so I went with her "Cats and Crosses" and "Cute and Sleazy" design packs. I used them both to create the look you'll see in the pics below, and I love how it came out!

What I love about Sara's decals besides the illustrations themselves, is the fact that they have adhesive on them, so all you have to do is cut out the decal you want to use, place it on your nail, and submerge the nail in water; the paper backing slides off after a few seconds. Sometimes the hardest thing about using nail decals is placing and keeping them in the exact spot you want them, but these make that so much easier. It is suggested, as with most decals, that you wear them over light colors or pastels, so you can see the images clearer. The polishes I used are Zoya "Kristen" (thumb nail), and "Throwing Shade", and "Life is But A Cream" from Jenna Hipp. 

So, what do you think? I love Sara's illustrations so much; she definitely has a new fan over here! She also makes me want to put my drawing skills to work and create my own nail decals. Stay tuned, we'll see how that goes. I think you should support artists like her, and many others out there. Check out Etsy and see what cool things you can find. Thanks for taking a look today!

- Tiff 

Virtuous Polish in "Patience" plus Incoco "High Voltage"

Hi!

Today I have a new bright-colored look to show you, featuring a polish from a brand I first introduced you to in my Blogaversary post a couple of weeks ago.Virtuous Polish is an indie brand that offers highly pigmented matte polishes that are sure to make a bold statement on your nails.I decided to create a look with one of their polishes in "Patience" with some left over nail appliques from Incoco. There's lots of fluorescent and matte action going on in the pics below! ;)

 

"Patience" is insanely pretty isn't it? I mattified the Incoco applique accent ("High Voltage" design) using "Matte Magic" from China Glaze. Unfortunately, highly pigmented matte nail polishes tend to not last for more than a day... I had major chips after about 24-hour wear with both polishes. I cannot explain the science about it, but for some reason, the more pigmented a matte polish is, the more prone it will be to chipping. If you've used matte polishes from Zoya and OPI, they mention that their mattes are not meant to be worn for more than that amount of time. The only matte polishes I know of that last quite long for them being matte are the ones from ManGlaze, but again, those aren't as pigmented as the ones I mentioned before. They're great polishes, I have a good handful of them, but the colors aren't as bold as the ones from Zoya and Virtuous Polish. I guess you have to figure out what you want before you put your mani together: a matte look that will last for more than a day, or a matte look just for a special night out.

Overall, I would absolutely order more from Virtuous Polish in the future because they make matte polishes in colors that I have not seen done yet, including a bright yellow. Also their prices are very reasonable, and their customer service team is the best. I say if you are wanting bright, bold matte polishes for a night out on the town or a party, definitely go for these.

So, what do you think about this look? I know most people feel colors this bright should be saved for the spring and summer, but I like to wear brights all year round; as I live Miami and that seems to be acceptable! ;)See ya next time.

- Tiff

Sally Hansen "Purple Craze" plus Fingrs nail art

Hello!

I have a super cute look to show you today. I must admit, that I'm starting to like purple more and more lately; it was never a favorite color of mine. Maybe it's because so many nail polish brands are coming out with so many great shades of purple that it is making me hard to pass them up. A recent trip to a Walmart tempted me to pick up some nail goodies including "Purple Craze" from Sally Hansen, and some nail tattoos from Fingrs brand. I thought they would look great together, so check out the pics below!

I really love the squishy jelly finish of "Purple Craze"! I used flash to better capture the jelly finish of the polish. The nail tattoo set I picked up will also make a great addition to my nail art stash. What you see on the accent nail went on very easily, just like a temporary tattoo or any nail decal you may have used before  would. I cut out the right size with some scissors and held it in a cup of water for a few seconds, and pressed on the nail. I sealed it with top coat, and I was ready to go!

I'm not a huge fan of the overall Walmart experience, but I do love their super low prices! ;) I want to say I spent about five dollars for both of these items together. The stores can be a bit messy at times, and the employees aren't always the nicest (at least not in Miami), but you really can find some great items there if you're patient enough, and go at a time when the store isn't too busy. They also have brands that I don't see at most places, like Salon Perfect, which I happen to be a fan of. We'll see when I decide to venture out to a Walmart again... lol.

So, what do you think of this look? Are you liking the purple trend? See ya next time!

- Tiff

Orly nail polish in "Starburst"

Hi! 

I'm happy to finally be blogging again! I've been super busy between my two jobs (teaching and working at the ticket office of a sports arena), but I managed to paint my nails! I would never leave the house with bare nails, of course... There's always time to put on a couple coats of polish ;) At one of my last trips to a Sally's beauty supply store, I browsed through the clearance section and grabbed a couple of Orly polishes that caught my eye. I don't happen to have many polishes from Orly in my collection, so I was looking to try something somewhat new. One of the Orly's I picked up is from their Spring 2014 collection, but the color combinations in it remind of Fall, so I decided to put it on just the other day! Check the polish in "Starburst" in the pictures below.

I wondered at first how the formula would work, since most indie polishes (it can be assumed that is where the inspiration came from) with the same idea of glitter mixed in a milky base tend to be a bit clumpy. "Starburst" went on quite easily for me with two coats that dried fairly quickly. I also did not need to "smooth" out the glitters like so many of us do with glittery polishes, using the handy Gelous nail gel (also available at Sally's and CVS); as the glitters spread out very evenly across the nail. Even though this polish is from a spring collection, I feel it would be perfect to wear this time of the year (see the red, yellow, and orange glitters? Can we say Thanksgiving colors, maybe?).

I hope you liked this nail polish as much as I do. It looks like Orly is trying get more creative with their color combinations; that's always a good thing in my opinion. I'll see you with a new post later this week! Thanks for taking a look.

- Tiff

Happy Blogiversary to me! And two Halloween manis

Hello, everyone!

Today marks two years of me being a nail blogger. I can't believe it's been only two years...it really feels like it's been more than that to me. My pictures have definitely come a long way since I first started, and I've become more confident in nail art; I especially love the MJ-themed nails I did this year. 

Unfortunately, I've been way too busy with work (I haven't even one day off this week) to think of something special to do for today, like giveaways and such, so I just decided to show you two looks perfect for Halloween today. Check out the pictures below of these super cute looks! 

These super cute nail wraps from Scratch were designed for Dia de Los Muertos (day of the dead), with Jenni of I Spy DIY blog. I thought it would be a good idea to add some glitter to these so I dabbed on "Comet in the Sky" from OPI's holiday collection with Gwen Stefani. This glitter has some very unique color combinations to it! Check out how cool it looks in the bottle  ;) 

This amazing matte nail polish is "Humilty" from Virtuous Polish. I stumbled upon this brand new indie maker on Instagram, and immediately liked what I saw. I believe they specialize in matte polishes, and they offer really bold colors as in bright orange, yellow, and hot pink (which I also ordered from them). They are also super affordable ($8 for regular size) and offer mini bottles. I am for sure a fan of Virtuous Polish! I added a mattified Sally Hansen Salon Effects strip in "Numbskull" as an accent. This was my first time applying matte top coat to a nail polish strip, and it worked out great. I should probably try to do this more often. I really love how matte looks on the nail. 

So, I just want to say thanks for following my nail blogging journey so far! I might still be in the newbie phase and have just a small following, but I do appreciate it. Thanks so much and have a safe Halloween weekend! 

- Tiff 

Scratch Nail Wraps in "Witchy Woman"

Hello, everyone!

I'm at work trying to get this post up for you, so it looks like this will be a quick one! A few days ago, I wore these awesome Scratch nail wraps to a concert, and decided to take some pics of me wearing them for my blog. The sun was not cooperating that day because it was rainy, so unfortunately you will not see the cool hologram effect of the nude holo polish (Jade "Irresistivel") I layered the wraps over in the pics below. Hopefully you'll still find the design to be as unique and cool as I did! 

I just love the symbols on each nail, and the glitter that is actually built in to the nail wraps. I believe this might be the second set of nail wraps Scratch has created that have the spaced out glitter in them. 

I wish the sun was out the day I took these pics. To me, nothing shows the hologram effect of holographic nail polish light some good 'ol sunlight. I didn't want to wait for the sun to come out any longer, because what you see above is a manicure that is two days old! Yikes! Lol ;) 

So, how do you feel about these? This might be one of my favorite designs from Scratch so far. See ya next time! 

- Tiff 

Incoco nail polish strips in "Bone Rattling"

Hello, everyone!

Today I have a quick post showing some super cute Halloween nail polish strips from Incoco. Their nail polish strips are some of my favorite because they always work so well on me, and the print you'll see in the pics below are perfect for this week. They also glow in the dark! Take a look at "Bone Rattling" :) 

This is my first time putting anything that glows in the dark on my nails, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I was applying these polish strips. I was very pleased to see how strong the glow is, even after topcoat. I "charged" my nail strips with the flashlight on my iPhone to get the glow that you see in the picture above. Now that the sun is back in miami (we had some very rainy and cloudy days last week), it does some very good charging up of these as well. My nails glowed for quite a while after stepping back inside after being exposed to the sunlight. I say this turned out to be quite a successful manicure! ;) 

This particular design might be discontinued, but Incoco releases new Halloween designs every year, and they might include at least one that glows in the dark. That reminds me... The anniversary of my blog is this week! I'll have to see what I should do for that! Stay tuned. 

- Tiff 

SpaRitual "Kindness" with "Wicked Bamboo" accent

Hello, everyone!

The weather in Miami is just fantastic today! There is just the perfect breeze going outside, and it is sunny without it being blazing, like the norm here. I am loving it, and can't wait to go for a long jog this weekend!

To match the amazing mood outside, I have a color to show you that just screams Fall to me, even though it is from a Summer collection. In the bottle (which I picked up at a local Marshall's store), SpaRitual's "Kindness" looks like a bright sparkly orange. That kept me from wanting to use it right away because it definitely looked more sunny to me, and here we are in October, needing more rustic colors than summery. When I painted the polish on a nail wheel, I realized that it actually comes out more pumpkin-colored, and I ended up really loving it against my skin tone after I painted the mani you'll see in the pics below. I added an accent using some leftover nail polish strips from Sally Hansen (in "Wicked Bamboo") to add a nice little touch. I hope you like it as much as I do!

 

Like I said above, I absolutely ended up loving this nail polish! I will consider this SpaRitual polish another great Marshall's find! This brand normally retails for $10 a bottle, but I found mine at Marshalls for $3.99. I would definitely check out a Marshall's or TJ Maxx first if you're wanting to try these.

So, what do you think about this look? I'm glad I was able to put the last of my very old SH nail strips to good use here! See ya next time!

- Tiff

Floral Water Decals Mani #2

Hello, there!

After watching more tutorial videos on how to apply full coverage water decals, I decided to give the look another try. Even though I feel they're much harder to apply than nail polish appliqués, I did learn a little trick this time around to make it easier. I then drew on some linear art with a nail art pen from Sally Hansen, because I love the print on floral idea from Nina (of Nina Nailed It). Check out the pics below! 

The number one thing that gave me trouble the last time I used these were how they kept sliding off before the water dried. I learned from watching the videos I found yesterday that what really helps with that is painting on topcoat right away, so that it melts the decal to your nail. That made a huge difference. 

I found these at Daily Charme, but there's lots of places where you can find something like this, including the Born Pretty Store. I like how these turned out, but I'm honestly not in a hurry to do something like this again. I'm just so used to nail polish strips and how much quicker they are to apply. We'll see... Maybe I'll give them another go in the future. So, what do you think? Have you used water slide decals for a full mani before? See ya next time!

- Tiff 

Ciate Paint Pots Nail Polish in "Pinkalilly"

Hello, everyone! 

Today I have a quick post featuring a Ciate nail polish that I picked up at a Marshall's the other day. "Pinkalilly" is a super cute pink shade with gold shimmer. It looks great in person, but it was a bit hard to capture the shimmer in photos. Hopefully you can see it at least a little in the pics below. I also added some pink ribbon nail art for breast cancer awareness month, using my handy Sally Hansen nail art pens. Enjoy!

I initially painted two coats of "Pinkalilly", then thought about it for a bit and added a third for full effect. Ciate Paint Pots (cute name, right?) is a brand from the UK, which can normally be found here in the states at Sephora stores for about $16. I found the ones that I have from Marshall's for only $4 each, so if I were you, I'd check your nearest Marshall's and TJ Maxx stores first! ;)

- Tiff 

NCLA Nail Wraps in "Caddyshack Cleopatra "

Hello!

I normally don't post on a Sunday, but given that I'm going to a concert today and did my nails for the occasion, I thought it'd be just fine if I did! 

Some of you might know that I like One Direction (no, I'm not ashamed of that) and that I showed their nail polish collection with Office Depot here on my blog last year. I honestly wasn't planning on going to this show, mainly because thousands of little girls screaming their heads off throughout the show can be annoying at times. Since one of my supervisors who works at the stadium where 1D is performing got me access to a great seat, I couldn't resist! I decided to do my nails using my leftover "Caddy Shack Cleopatra" nail wraps from NCLA, and create a look using two 1D polishes and a Ciate white jelly-ish polish I picked up at Marshall's the other day. I hope you like it! 

I absolutely love the design of the wraps, but hate how they don't wrap tightly around the nail. If you look really close, I have some wrinkles on the sides of each nail, despite trying desperately to flatten them out. Putting on some Seche Vite top coat helped a bit, as that top coat smoothes out most mani mistakes, but they're still a bit visible to me. As I mentioned at the top, these wraps were leftovers, so I did use these before, but not as successfully as I did this time. The wraps are just too thick (like stickers), and don't wrap around the nail like ones made from nail laqcuer. Still, they're ok to wear for a day or two, and the beautiful design definitely makes up for the lack of pliability. 

If you want to give these a try, and wear them over nail polish as I did, make sure you wait a few hours before applying the wraps. Unlike nail laqcuer wraps, wraps that are more like stickers can pull nail polish that isn't completely-completely  dry, hence the fail I had when I first used them. I painted my nails before I went to bed, then applied the wraps sometime in the morning the next day this time around; just to be safe! 

So, what do you think? I really like this look overall, and can't wait to see what other people think when I'm at the show, or out and about. I'm planning on wearing these for a couple of days. Let's see how they hold up! See ya next time :)))) 

-Tiff 

Scratch Nail Wraps in "Gilded Serpents"

Hello, everyone!

First off, I'm super sorry for not having posted in what seems to be forever (my last post was on September 22nd). It's been very hectic at work lately, and believe or not, I was actually too tired to even think about doing my nails during that time. I just couldn't dig out the energy or creativity needed for something interesting enough. My nails had something on them, but they just seemed too plain for me. Anyways, I'm glad to be showing you this mani I have up tonight, using some more Scratch nail wraps from their collaboration with Good Girl Jewelry. I hope you like snakes! ;) 

I painted one coat of Essie's "No More Film", followed by the flaky goodness that is SpaRitual "Intuition". I thought the purple would look great with the gold snake print over the mostly clear wraps. 

I like how this look came out overall, but I wish I had more time to get more artsy with it. I should be getting back to posting more regularly in the next few days, and I'll even get on my next mani tomorrow. See ya again next week! Thanks for sticking around! :) 

- Tiff