Review: Nail Pattern Boldness Glitter Food over Vivid Lacquer Harlequin's Adoration

Today I've got a long overdue review for you, and it's kind of a double feature. You get to see one of my all-time favorite manis PLUS a review of a must-have for any indie-loving nail blogger: Glitter Food!!

The mani I'm using to show you how Glitter Food works features China Glaze Elephant Walk topped with Vivid Lacquer Harlequin's Adoration. I absolutely love Harlequin's Adoration. So far, my favorite layering combo has been with grey, so that's what I've used here. 

Check out a macro of this amazing polish in the bottle:

Okay, this first series of photos shows one generous coat of Harlequin's Adoration over two coats of Elephant Walk, with no topcoat.

It's a bit hard to see, but the edges of the hearts and diamonds were sticking up a bit. Enough to be annoying if I wore it out like this. Plus, the little black hexes left a textured feel that's just unpleasant for me. Honestly, I don't know how anyone goes without topcoat ever, but that's besides the point!

After your mani is completed to your liking, then comes the Glitter Food. We've all heard of "topcoat hungry" glitters - when I think of that term, I think microglitters or super dense glitters. Harlequin's Adoration isn't really one of those polishes, but I thought it might be interesting to see how GF works with large shaped glitter, which can be a pain in the butt sometimes!

The following photos are the same mani with just one coat of Glitter Food. Please ignore that stupid cat hair, UGH! Lol, I didn't notice until I was already editing.

You can see, especially in this closeup of my thumb, how it gives the mani an almost matte effect, so you will definitely want to follow up with your favorite topcoat.

I think this next picture shows really clearly how much smoother the GF made the surface of this mani. Look at my ring finger, for example. That heart on the top that was sticking up before is now completely flat. You can see it on my index finger too, since it's at an angle where you could tell if anything was sticking up. When I ran my finger over these nails, it felt completely flat and smooth. Amazing!

BUT, like I mentioned, if you want shine,  you're going to need to go back in with your usual topcoat. I went with Seche Vite. Just one coat will do fine - it's just to add a glossy finish.

Look how shiny! I like it so much better that way. It really shows off the amazing flecks/shimmer in Harlequin's Adoration. Check out my ring and middle finger to see what I mean!

This mani was gorgeous and I think I wore it for an entire work week before I finally took it off. The best part was that even though it's packed full of large shaped glitters, it LASTED on me because I had no urge to pick them off! (I'll admit it - I'm a picker. When I feel the slightest bit of a glitter sticking up, I can't help but pick it off).

Overall, my opinion is that if you are a nail blogger who works with topcoat hungry glitters, shaped glitters, microglitters, or any polish that might be somewhat textured, Glitter Food is a MUST HAVE. I haven't gotten a chance to try it out with its other purpose, which is to bring suspension to glitters that have fallen "flat", but I will soon!

I'd love to hear what you think of this mani!! Do you own Glitter Food? What do you think of it?? It's been a lifesaver for me :)

Review: Born Pretty Store Water Decals

Hey everyone! Today I've got a review post for you showing my first EVER attempt at using water decals! The lovely Daisy from Born Pretty Store contacted me a while back and asked me to review some things, and I thought it was a perfect chance to try something totally new for me. I selected a sheet of gold abstract looking decals. As of right now, they are out of stock, but they have tons more that are really similar! This whole sheet retails for $2.99! It's a really great deal because you can get a ton of manis out of it.

I had to include the instructions because of the humor factor. But I have to be honest - they were no help at all! I really can't even be sure what they were going for with some of these steps lol!! Influenza!? But you can't blame them for trying. Besides, the decals were easy enough to figure out on my own.

I chose to use this design, so I thought it would be easier to just cut out the chunk of the cardboard with the design I was going to use. It was much easier to cut out each individual decal. The sheet even had handy little markings (visible on the top left corner) to show you where to cut to separate each design from each other.

Once you cut one individual decal out, you drop it in a shallow dish of room temperature water. I was at work, so I used a cut off bottle of water. I let it sit for about 30 seconds to a minute and then I picked it out with a set of tweezers.

It was super easy to slide the gold decal off of the paper. Then, because the decal itself was wet, you can slide it around the nail a bit to get it where you want it. Then, to be sure it will hold still, I dabbed a paper towel down until the decal and nail are completely dry. To finish it off, add a layer of your favorite topcoat to seal everything in, and you're done! :)

As a base, I used two coats of Sinful Shine Amazonian, which is a gorgeous polish! I used HK Girl for topcoat.

So what do you think of these decals? For me, I thought these are pretty amazing! They were super easy to use, even for a first-timer like me. And, I think they're really versatile - you can create tons of different looks with them. And don't forget about the fact that Born Pretty Store has free shipping to anywhere in the world, on top of already outrageously low prices! I've had nothing but good experiences with them.

Oh, and if you are going to place an order, don't forget to use my coupon code - it's good for 10% off - can't beat it! :)

Thanks everyone for looking! I'd love to hear your thoughts below! <3

Kelly

Model City Polish - Super Soaker Summer, Orange Sherbet, and Aqua Aura

Hey lovelies! Happy Sunday! I hope you all had a fabulous weekend. I had a ton of fun celebrating one of my best friends' birthdays :) 

Today I've got swatches of some of the new Model City Polishes for Summer. Remember - I've still got a giveaway going on to win a Model City Prize Pack. Be sure to enter by clicking here if you haven't already! Anyway, I figured it was a perfect time to show these polishes, because her shop is restocked RIGHT NOW! Check out these swatches to see three of these gorgeous polishes on the nail - and then of course, go buy stuff!!

First up is Super Soaker Summer. I like to delude myself that I helped name this one lol...Nina mentioned on Facebook that this polish reminded her of Super Soakers and summertime, and a few of us offered up similar names to the one she eventually went with. I think it's the perfect name for this baby - I totally remember summers playing with friends outside, cooling off with Super Soakers and Slip and Slides. Wearing this polish makes me feel all warm and fuzzy and nostalgic haha! Check it out.

This polish is packed full of neon blue and green matte microglitters, giving it a textured feel when you wear it without topcoat. It can be layered over another polish, but I was happy to find that it can also be worn alone, with 3 coats being fully opaque - no VNL! My swatches show 3 coats of SSS with 2 coats of Seche Vite topcoat for a smooth, glassy finish. If you choose to forgo the topcoat though, it's a super cool Liquid Sand-like effect.

Some of you may be thinking this looks a lot like Floam, and I would agree. Unfortunately, I don't have a bottle of Floam to do a comparison for you, but I can tell you that Super Soaker Summer is a lot easier to acquire. I've NEVER seen Floam in stock when I tried to get my hands on it. This one you can get right now, so don't miss out! One more photo for confirmation that you need this polish?

Next up is the yummy crelly appropriately named Orange Sherbet. Seriously, this one also reminds me SO much of summers as a kid eating those Orange Creamsicle popsicles!! It's full of hexes in red, yellow, and white. These swatches are 3 coats with HK Girl Topcoat.

Formula on this one was just perfect. I had no issues with application, everything came out evenly and without any trouble, and with one coat of topcoat, everything was perfectly flat.

Last, but definitely not least - this is my favorite one that I got the chance to review - this is Aqua Aura! I love the inspiration for this beauty: "The gemstone aqua aura is believed to attract success and prosperity. In some cases even possibly wealth."
This polish is a clear base packed with holographic aqua and gold microglitters, and it can be either a glitter topper or worn alone in 3 coats for full opacity. I chose to show you both!

On my index, middle, and pinky, I've shown 2 coats of Aqua Aura over China Glaze for Audrey. My accent nails (thumb and ring) are 3 coats of Aqua Aura alone. I used Seche Vite topcoat, and I used 2 coats on the accent nails to be sure to eliminate any grittiness. After that, all nails felt completely smooth!

I'm not sure if I like it better alone or layered - I can't decide! I think I like the look of it better alone, but I would want to save polish so I would most likely layer it most often. Nina mentioned on the site that this polish might be a bit thick, but I didn't have any problems at all. The glitters spread out easily on their own - in both 2 and 3 coats, I had no problems with bald spots or patchiness. :)

Here's a close up of my ring finger - 3 coats of Aqua Aura with no undies! Check out this gorgeous sparkly holographic goodness - I just couldn't stop staring! This is one mani I did not want to take off. It's just so blingy - it is seriously reminiscent of gemstones, so I can totally see her inspiration for this one.

So what do you guys think of these three? I think they are all beautiful and completely perfect for summertime.
So, now that you've seen some swatches, hurry over to the Model City Polish shop, and pick up some pretties! Oh, and enter my giveaway to win a bottle of the extremely LE polish Holobration! :)

<3
Kelly

Liquid Lacquer - Swatches and Review

**I purchased these polishes myself, at a discounted rate, in exchange for a full and honest review**

Hey guys! Today I have for you a long overdue review of some wonderful polishes! I purchased the Blogger Review Pack from Liquid Lacquer. How it works is, you get to choose two polishes to review and Melissa chooses two. At $20, I thought it was a great deal, so I was super thrilled when she accepted me!

First, here are the two polishes I chose to review. Her site is down for maintenance at the moment so bear with me for polish descriptions - I'll do my best!

A Calm Does Not Suit Me is a white crelly with assorted sized hexes in shades of blue, gray and periwinkle. I layered 2 coats over Milani White on the Spot, but it can be layered on its own in about 3 coats to reach full opacity.

Next up is Collide Into You. This was the one I was MOST excited about trying. I saw Stephanie's swatches on A Little Polish, and I was sold. These colors together seriously pop! This is 3 easy coats of Collide Into You with no undies! Wonderful formula, and no issues with the glitters either. This one is definitely a winner in my book.

This slightly shimmery teal blue base is SO beautifully bright, pictures don't do it justice. It reminds me of ocean water. And we all know I love dots, so...this is a match made in heaven.

Lastly, the two Melissa chose for me to review. These looked pretty in the bottle, but I wasn't sure if I'd be completely sold on them once I got them on. I was so very wrong! Check out The Rain Song. It's a stunning sky blue with a scattered holographic effect. I still had very, very slight VNL at 3 coats, so I did an extra to be safe, but most people can get away with 3 (unless your nails are as stained as mine are). I wasn't sure if topcoat would dull the holographic effect, so these photos are sans topcoat.

And, last but certainly not least, Dancing Days. It's a berry pink holo that seems like more of a linear holo to me. I'll be honest, I'm not sure how to tell exactly which is which. But this one definitely had a much stronger holographic effect. I was seriously stunned when I got this one in the sun. I think I sat there for a minute just staring. Again, this is 4 coats, no topcoat, but unstained nails can get away with 3 no problem.

Simply amazing! The formula on these two holos was lovely, if not a bit sheer. It gave me no problems, though - went on like butter! :) It dried fast too, so even though I did 4 coats, it took no time at all!

Don't forget to check out Liquid Lacquer on Big Cartel as well as Liquid Lacquer on Facebook!

So, what do you think of these polishes from Liquid Lacquer? Which is your favorite? I'd love to hear below!

<3
Kelly
These products purchased by me, at a discounted rate, in exchange for my honest review and opinion. I am not being compensated for this post. Please see my Disclosure Statement for more information.