NOTD: Gradient with shatter!

This nail of the day is a gradient from OPI's Swimsuit...Nailed it! to Towel Boy Toy by China Glaze. I love the way it turned out, very pretty but subtle, with just a slight lightening at the tips. I am likely going to try something more dramatic next time. The shatter seems to really cover the transition from one color to another. I literally just painted the top half of the nail one color, the bottom half the other color and then put a coat of black shatter on top with a clear coat to seal it all in. Hope you like it as much as I do :)

Left to Right: Towel Boy Toy by China Glaze, Swimsuit...Nailed it! by OPI, Black Shatter by OPI, and Clear by Rimmel (all I have for a top coat right now).

The blue to teal gradient.

The blue to teal gradient.

Hope everyone had a fabulous reading week!! I am back in college, so still waiting for March break to come :/

Christina <3

Silver Shatter: Polish Swap!

This is another nail polish that I got to try out from the polish swap that I did with my friend about a month ago. I also swatched her Nicole by OPI collection HERE, if you're interested in checking it out?

The Silver Shatter was released with the Pirates of the Caribbean Collection earlier in the spring. If you want to know more about the collection I talk about and swatch some of the collection HERE. If you are interested in more shatter polishes I swatch and talk about some of them in my Crackle Madness blogpost HERE.

I don't know why but I just didn't grab the Silver Shatter by OPI. I didn't think it looked like it shattered properly whenever I would see it on other people. However, I really liked my experience with it. I think the thinner the coat the better the shatter, which is pretty much always true with everyone I have tried, but with the Silver Shatter I feel this is especially true. I love the way it looks over really dark colors.

Believe It, Do It by Nicole from OPI with Silver Shatter by OPI

Emerald Fitzgerald with Silver Shatter

Have you guys had a chance to check out the Silver Shatter?

<3 Christina

Wonderful Women: Ella Fitzgerald

Despite being completely overwhelmed with getting ready to move, I just can't stay away from blogging :) Ahhhh lol. I have been thinking about starting this series for a while now. It is hard to think of something new or creative in the blogging world, especially when it comes to nail polish, as it has almost all been done before. I hope you guys enjoy reading it :)

This is my first entry in a series of blogposts that I would like to start on inspirational women. Each post will focus on one inspirational woman and a nail polish that I feel would most likely represent their style or has been associated with them in some way through the name of the polish or collection. Hopefully, it is not too cheesy? Us ladies have to stick together, ya know?!

First up! Ella Fitzgerald and the nail polish Emerald Fitzgerald from China Glaze.

I am sure everyone knows, but just in case you don't Ella Fitzgerald is one of the most popular female jazz singers ever. Nicknamed "The First Lady of Song", she won 13 Grammy's and sold over 40 million albums in her lifetime. Born in Virginia in 1917, Ella had a series of rough patches in her life starting when her parents separated shortly after her birth, leaving her mother Temperance to take care of her on her own. Ella and her mother moved to Yonkers, NY where they ended up living with Temperance's longtime boyfriend. When Ella was 15 her mother died as a result of a car accident, and her stepfather died of a heart attack shortly afterwards. Ella and her younger sister went to live with her mothers sister. All of this seemed to impact Ella as her grades dropped and she started skipping school. After being taken into custody by the police she was sent to a reform school, which she was eventually released from.

In 1934 when Ella was 17 she won the chance to preform in a Amateur Night at the Apollo. Ella went prepared to dance but after watching the opening act of dancing sisters she felt she would never compare with, she changed her mind. On stage she made a last minute decision to sing a song written by Connee Boswell that she knew well. Overwhelmed with her performance the crowd demanded an encore and from that moment on Ella's career took off.

As Ella once said... "It isn't where you came from, it's where you're going that counts."

And the swatches of Emerald Fitzgerald by China Glaze...

Two coats of Emerald Fitzgerald

Two coats of Emerald Fitzgerald

Two coats of Emerald Fitzgerald

I love this polish. Such a gorgeous color!!

I feel like the emerald green color really suits her and I could see her wearing it! What do you think?

Hope you all have a nice day :)

Christina <3

Favorite Nail Polish of the Week: Shocking Pink by China Glaze

I am in the middle of a big move right now and I have sooooo much to do before we go and after we get there... so I might be slightly absent in the next couple of weeks?!

This weeks favorite has definitely been Shocking Pink from the China Glaze Neon Collection '2008, which is exactly as it says shocking pink. I LOVE this polish because it is such a bright, neon bubblegum pink color. It demands attention:) A very fun summery color that is perfect for August. I looooveeee bright pinks and reds - the brighter, the better!! :)

Four coats of Shocking Pink (with a basecoat and topcoat)

Four coats of Shocking Pink (with a basecoat and topcoat)

The formula is similar to the Celtic Sun Neon by China Glaze that I review HERE. It takes about three to four coats to be opaque and dries matte. I don't really like the matte look, so I go over it after with a nice glossy topcoat. It seems to chip fast, but I have also been messing around with boxes so who knows? :/

What are your favorite polishes for the week??

Oh and I was thinking... Maybe I should do a monthly favorites blogpost? with/instead of my favorite polish of the week? What do you guys think?

Christina <3

CRACKLE MADNESS!!

I loved my first bottle of 'Black Shatter' by OPI. It was hard to get a hold of and somehow more special? Now I feel the crackle thing is out of control. There is every color you can imagine in every brand you can think of (well, maybe not entirely, but you get the point :/ )! It is kinda overwhelming?!?

I have been hanging onto my crackle collection for awhile now, thinking I should post something but never actually doing it. I have somehow managed to collect five different shatter or crackle polishes over time... and have been seriously tempted to buy more :S  I generally paint my nails with shatter when they start to chip and I don't feel like  completely repainting them; it covers chips and makes them look freshly painted again!! I have taken some pics of different color combinations that I will share below.

My shatter and crackle collection, so far...

From left to right: 'Crushed Candy' by China Glaze, 'Fault Line' by China Glaze, 'Navy Shatter' by OPI, 'Black Shatter' by OPI, and 'Blue Shatter' by OPI.

And so many different combinations...

'Do you Think I'm Tex-y?' from OPI Texas with 'Blue Shatter' by OPI

'like me' or 'geranium' by Essie with 'Black Shatter' by OPI

'Passion in the Pacific' by China Glaze with 'Black Shatter' by OPI

'Grey Matter' by Rimmel with 'Fault Line' by China Glaze

'Climax' by Rimmel with 'Black Shatter' by OPI

'Celtic Sun' by China Glaze with 'Blue Shatter' by OPI

'Skull & Glossbones' from OPI Pirates of the Caribbean with 'Black Shatter' by OPI

'Too Hot Pink to Hold 'Em' from OPI Texas with 'Fault Line' by China Glaze

'Planks a Lot' from OPI Pirates of the Caribbean with 'Crushed Candy' by China Glaze

'Grey Matter' by Rimmel with 'Navy Shatter' by OPI and 'Stranger Tides' from OPI Pirates of the Caribbean with 'Black Shatter' by OPI on the ring finger

'Sparrow Me the Drama' from OPI Pirates of the Caribbean with 'Crushed Candy' by China Glaze

'Sparrow Me the Drama' from OPI Pirates of the Caribbean with 'Black Shatter' by OPI

'Sparrow Me the Drama' from OPI Pirates of the Caribbean with 'Crushed Candy' by China Glaze and 'Black Shatter' by OPI

On "The Claw" :D : 'Houston We Have a Purple' from OPI Texas with 'Black Shatter' by OPI and 'Blue Shatter' by OPI.

'I Vant to be A-Lone Star' from OPI Texas with 'Blue Shatter' by OPI

'Take The Stage' from OPI Burlesque with 'Black Shatter' by OPI

'The Show Must Go On' from OPI Burlesque with 'Black Shatter' by OPI

'Rising Star' from OPI Burlesque with 'Black Shatter' by OPI

On the top three fingers: 'Austin-tatious Turquoise' from OPI Texas with 'Crushed Candy' by China Glaze, 'Blue Shatter' by OPI and 'Black Shatter' by OPI.

On the bottom finger: 'Pure Silver' by Rimmel with 'Fault Line' by China Glaze.

What are your favorite color combinations? 

Christina :)

Favorite Nail Polish of the Week: 'Passion in the Pacific' by China Glaze with 'Blue Iguana' by China Glaze, with swatches!!!

My favorite nail polish this week is 'Passion in the Pacific' from China Glaze's Fiji Fling '2009 Collection. It's a bright, shimmery turquoise color that is the perfect summer statement color! It has a very nice, streak-free formula that goes on shear, but builds to full coverage. Opaque with three coats.

I like to put 'Blue Iguana' from this summers '2011 Island Escape Collection by China Glaze, on the ring finger or the pinkie finger, just to add some extra color. Even better, pair with other bright accessories, like pink lips or a bright colored sundress to make your nail color pop :D The swatches are below.

I am posting this blog entry a couple of days early this week because I will have a nail tutorial (first EVER! Yay!), featured on Fleur De Force's blog this Sunday, as a part of her *Guest Blog* takeover week (eek... Thanks Fleur!!).

All China glaze nail polishes are cruelty free and 3-free (without DBP, Toluene, and Formaldehyde).

Indoors: 'Passion in the Pacific' by China Glaze

Outdoors: 'Passion in the Pacific' by China Glaze

'Passion in the Pacific' by China Glaze with 'Blue Iguana' by China Glaze on the ring finger (I love this combination!!!)

What are you guys loving? What are your, new or old, favorites for this week? 

Christina :)

China Glaze 'Island Escape' Summer '2011 Collection: 'Blue Iguana' swatches

China Glaze's 'Island Escape' Collection was released in May '2011. I really like this collection, it is bright, fun and perfect for summer!

From left to right: 'Papaya Punch', '108 Degrees', 'Senorita Bonita', 'Blue Iguana', 'Cha Cha Cha', and 'Electric Pineapple'.

I ended up getting 'Blue Iguana' because I have been wanting to grab a bright blue nail polish for a while and this one looked perfect. Unfortunately, I didn't like it as much as I wanted to, mainly because it goes on so shear that I had to apply four coats to get it opaque. There are also pretty purple sparkles that appear in the bottle, but not on your nails. So that was a little disappointing, but overall it is still a really nice bright blue. 

All China Glaze nail polishes are cruelty free and manufactured 3-free (without DBP, Toluene and Formaldehyde).

Below are my swatches. I have also added a couple pics to show some different color combos for the ring finger... just to make things a little different?!?

Outdoor light. 'Blue Iguana' by China Glaze with 'Rising Star' by OPI on the ring finger.

Outdoor light. 'Blue Iguana' by China Glaze with 'Take The Stage' by OPI on the ring finger.

Indoor light. Makes the blue look a little turquoise. 'Blue Iguana' by China Glaze with 'Pure Silver' by Rimmel on the ring finger.

I think I like the 'Blue Iguana' with 'Pure Silver' the best. Which color combo is your favorite??

Christina :)

China Glaze Celtic Sun (Neon) swatches

So the other day my boyfriend came home with this bottle of China Glaze Celtic Sun (Neon), which is this bright yellow highlighter color. I am pretty sure this bottle is from a collection that was released in summer '2010? But I can't really find anything about it on the usual blog sites that I follow. BAA I found it and it is from the INK collection, summer '2008 :/ Eek, that was a while ago? It is a pretty vibrant, cool color if you can get it almost opaque. I didn't try putting a base coat of white under to see if that would make it more opaque- I think that would probably help?!

Celtic Sun is a perfect summer color. I love bright colors for the summer. Sometimes I find yellow polish makes my finger nails look dirty or sickly, but I feel it is easier to pull off when it is this bright. If you can't find Celtic Sun, you could probably find China Glaze's yellow polka dot bikini (cute name)! Unfortunately, it also lives up to being a shear, streaky formula that requires many coats to  get it to appear opaque, similar to the actual color you see in the bottle. As you can see the finish of Celtic Sun is matte.

All China Glaze nail polishes are cruelty free and manufactured 3-free (without DBP, Toluene, and Formaldehyde).

I honestly really love this color and would definitely wear it again! It goes perfectly with the bright pink on my toes...which is totally going to be my first 'featured favorite of the week' this coming Sunday, so you will hear all about it then!! :)

Christina :)