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.

Model City Polish 1 Year Holobration! Swatches + Giveaway!

Hello all! I'm SO excited it is finally the day I can share the news with you! Today marks the 1 year anniversary of the Model City Polish Etsy shop, and I have got a wonderful surprise for you. In honor of this milestone Nina is celebrating, several bloggers and I are "Holobrating" in a very special way. Nina has created a custom, limited edition polish to honor her supporters, and it is called Holobration! Bottles of this polish are numbered, and very limited.
First, I want to say that I have had nothing but positive experiences with Model City Polish, and I am thrilled to be celebrating this milestone with her. Her polishes are wonderfully creative, beautiful, and reasonably priced - plus she's just a super sweet person who makes each customer feel special. :)

Oh, forgot to mention before - there will also be a restock today. Here are the times, for all the different timezones:
8:00 PM EST
7:00 PM CST 
6:00 PM MST
5:00 PM PST

Don't miss it, there are some absolutely fabulous summer colors coming out, 3 of which I will be showing you this week! If you miss out on the polish you want, don't worry too much - Nina plans to work her butt off to restock what sells out, by next weekend!!
Now, I've got some swatches of Holobration for you, over two different bases to show the versatility of this polish. So without further ado, check out the photos of the amazing Holobration - but don't stop there...be sure to read all the way to the bottom for a chance to WIN your very own bottle!!

Everyone, meet Holobration. It's a clear base packed full of large blue dots, orange hexes, pink and purple squares, and tiny silver holo micro bars.

Here's Holobration intentionally blurred to show the holographic rainbows in it!

First, I knew I had to layer this polish over black. I knew all the different colors and the large blue dots would really pop over a dark color! This is 2 coats of Holobration over Milani Black Swift. 2 coats of Seche Vite for topcoat. Let me save time here by saying the formula is great, especially for how packed it is with glitter. The large blue dots come out all on their own without a problem, but I found I preferred to drag them around and place them where I wanted them instead of leaving it random. The teeny little bars were NO problem at all, no sticking up, no curling whatsoever. Get ready for a lot of pics - this polish deserves them all!

 Then I wanted to try something brighter, more reminiscent of a celebration! I chose Milani La Vie En Rose for the base this time! Same deal, 2 coats of Holobration followed by 2 coats of SV. I think I actually prefer the pink base! So summery and fun. :)

And now for the part you've been waiting for - what you could win!! Nina was generous enough to send me an extra package to share with my lovely readers!

Here's a peek at the goodies inside! The package the winner will receive is the unopened one in the left top corner, so everything you get will be brand new and unused. These following pictures are of my items.

The winner will receive: 1 full size Model City Polish Holobration (very LE), an amazing hand made hair tie, and a mini glass file (perfectly purse size)!

The Rafflecopter form is below, but first, the rules:

• You must be 18 or over to enter, or have a parent's permission.
• All entries will be verified - NO CHEATING, or you will be immediately disqualified!!
• Sorry international ladies, this one is US only! Unless you have someone in the US who can receive your package, international entries will not be accepted. 
• Good luck! :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway