Purr-fect Sunset - Halloween Challenge #11: Recreate your favourite!

Haha, both Jme and I picked one of Cathy's Halloween manicures to try out for the last theme: Recreating your favourite from another blogger! At least we picked different ones! =p

[Meow meow...]

The one I picked was for the gradient theme! For two reasons: 1) I've terrible at gradients so I wanted to try out this sponge gradient. I've only done dabbing-style sponge gradients so I wanted to try this one out! You can check out Cathy's How-To here!... and 2) Cats! Who can say no to cats....

[Gradient (Top-bottom): LA Girl Alkaline Blue, Kleancolor Metallic Purple,
China Glaze Orange Marmalade, Kleancolor Metallic Yellow]

I was super impressed by the colour combo used so I followed it pretty closely. The shades I used were LA Girl Metal in Alkaline Blue, Kleancolor Metallic Purple, China Glaze Orange Marmalade and Kleancolor Metallic Yellow! Apologies for the shoddy cleanup... I was rushing this again because I didn't realise how close together the last few challenges were...

[Gradient (Top-bottom): LA Girl Alkaline Blue, Kleancolor Metallic Purple,
China Glaze Orange Marmalade, Kleancolor Metallic Yellow]

This method of sponge gradient is really quick and easy, I was really happy except for the mess I made around my nails. I never EVER do cleanup with my usual manis because I just colour "in the lines", so I didn't have anything handy to do proper cleanup with. =(

[Halloween Challenge #10: Inspired by... Gradient with cats!]

Then I added some cats with Sally Hansen Nail Art Pen in Black, and did a fine crescent tip with LA Girl Blackout. =) It's definitely a bit more cartoon-y then Cathy's version, but it was fun to try out this technique!

PHEW! With this, we've made it through all the Halloween themes! =D YAY!

Completely Batty - Halloween Challenge #11: Recreate your favourite!

Time to recreate my favourite! More Nail Polish's take on the Bats challenge was amazing! It looked so bright and perfectly fitting for Halloween.

[Base: LA Colors Gold Nugget
Tips: Ulta3 Black Satin
Tiny speckles: LA Girl Glitter Addict Uninhibited
Bats: Sally Hansen Nail Art Pen Black/Noir]

I used LA Colors Gold Nugget for the base, which is an orange-gold foil.Then, I sponged on Ulta3 Black Satin at the tips before adding a little of LA Girl Glitter Addict Uninhibited. I drew in the bats using Sally Hansen Black/Noir since I didn't have the same stamping plates. Tada!

I think Cathy's Bats challenge was definitely a lot nicer. But I gave it a shot anyway!

[Base: LA Colors Gold Nugget
Tips: Ulta3 Black Satin
Tiny speckles: LA Girl Glitter Addict Uninhibited
Bats: Sally Hansen Nail Art Pen Black/Noir]

The blurry picture is just to show you how shiny LA Colors Gold Nugget is. I honestly did not remember it being this pretty.

Halloween Loot - Halloween Challenge #10: Trick or Treat

Unfortunately, I was rather uninspired for this challenge and to be honest...I was rather keen to try on my new polishes rather than do nail art, haha! Anyway, here's my weak attempt at Trick or Treat.

So it's treats all the way! I do apologise for inflicting this terrible nail art on your eyes. :(  I'm much better at eating sweets than drawing them. This was done freehand, but I do wish I had used something else instead of Sally Hansen Black/Noir to draw them because the lines are so thick!

The colours used for the sweets are: Revlon Modern Grace (lavender), Mode Hook Me Up (blue), Mode Glamazon (purple), Mode Sweet Harmony (pink), Orly Heartbreaker (red), Essence Viva La Green (green), and Revlon LilyChrome (silver). I put on a coat of unnamed Borghese polish that consists of multi-coloured glitter for a sprinkling of sweet shininess. The star on my pinky finger was an attempt at another glitter which didn't quite work out...

As for the base:

[Base: Orly Orange Punch
Glitter: Amy's Nail Boutique Pink Lemonade]

I actually wanted to post just the base for Trick or Treat, because I think the base actually looks like delicious hard candy. It's a combo of Orly Orange Punch, which is a bright, bright orange, and two coats of Amy's Nail Boutique Pink Lemonade on top. Pink Lemonade consists of yellow and pink matte glitter. The result looks delicious to me!

Snowy Sorrow - Halloween Challenge #9: Graveyards

Today's Halloween Challenge theme is Graveyards....!!

[Brrrrr....~!!]

This seems a bit uninspired but I was running out of ideas! =( My other idea was stone angels with black on grey but I was in a rush (again!) and ditched it...

[Bottle to nail: NYX Girls Complex Purple (2 coats)]

I started with a base of NYX Girls in Complex Purple, which is a rich purple shimmer. This is two coats and not completely opaque because I was going to paint over it anyway.

[2 coats: NYX Girls Complex Purple]

Two coats might be okay if you're careful, but probably three is best with this one?? I don't quite remember, but I think that was the case.

[Base: NYX Girls Complex Purple;
Nail art: Nail Pattern Boldness I Believe I Can Fly, LA Girl Blackout]

I then used the blue jelly base from Nail Pattern Boldness I Believe I Can Fly, wiping off the glitter and dabbing the deep blue base on to make the cloudy night sky. Over that, I used my usual black creme LA Girl Blackout to paint in the ground, headstones and bats.

[Base: NYX Girls Complex Purple; Glitter: Femme Fatale Shimmering Snowcap;
Nail art: Nail Pattern Boldness I Believe I Can Fly, LA Girl Blackout]

I thought it might be interesting to have a snowy effect on so I carefully dabbed a thin layer of Femme Fatale Cosmetics in Shimmering Snowcap over the top. I don't think it quite worked like I expected but maybe I'll try out this white-glitter-as-snow idea again sometime!

Shopping in Sydney - New Essence Colour & Go in Boho Chic, Gorgeous Bling Bling, Gold Fever

Looky what I picked up just today! Essence has revamped their polish line, getting rid of A LOT of their old range (unfortunately)... but there's also a whole bunch of new colours available! I randomly dropped by a Priceline today and saw the new bottles on display so I picked up some of the more interesting (read: shiny) shades~ =)

[New bottles: Essence Colour n Go in Boho Chic, Gold Fever, Gorgeous Bling Bling (L-R)]

The old bottles were pretty cute, but the new ones are a really nice shape. They're a bit larger (sorry should have taken a comparison photo), but still hold 8mls of polish. They also have increased in price to AUD2.75 a bottle though....

[Clockwise from left: Essence Colour n Go in Gold Fever, Gorgeous Bling Bling, Boho Chic]

The essence "e" is stamped on the top, which I thought was pretty cute. I also liked that you could tell from the bottle caps whether the finish was sparkly or creme (although that was already a feature in the old range).

[New brush: Essence Colour n Go in Gorgeous Bling Bling]

They have changed the brush! It's now wider, and feels like it holds more polish. I'm a bit concerned that they seem short though? Because the bottle neck is fairly long... it feels like when you get down to halfway, you won't be able to pick much up unless you tilt the bottle or screw the lid back all the way in. =(

[In the bottle: Essence Colour n Go in Gold Fever]

I picked up Gold Fever - fine gold glitter with very slightly larger red glitter scattered throughout in a clear base. Nothing tooo spectacular (also I already own the much blingier China Glaze Electrifying...)...

[In the bottle: Essence Colour n Go in Gorgeous Bling Bling]

This is Gorgeous Bling Bling... =p It's a dusty rose jelly/creme with gold flakes. Sorry, this image isn't too accurate colour-wise, but the first two bottle pics are much closer. Reminds me a bit of NYX Advanced Salon Formula in Forever Young (swatched here) but more of a terracotta shade.

[In the bottle: Essence Colour n Go in Boho Chic]

Boho Chic is a salmon pink with the same gold flakes in it as Gorgeous Bling Bling. =)

I can't wait to try them out... but my untrieds pile is really getting horrendous so I'm not sure how long it'll be.... Has anyone else seen these in store or picked some up? =D

Froggy Ferny Cabbage - Halloween Challenge #8: Witches

Halloween Challenge #8 is witches! Well, mine is witch, singular. I love love love the iconic image from Wicked with Elphaba and Glinda.... but trying to do positive/negative space with nail polish was a bit beyond my patience and I was in a rush... =(

[... the mani is unnaturally.... GREEN!]

I'd somehow skipped over witches and prepared my mani for the graveyard challenge instead, ending up a bit short on time for this... so Elphaba is all I've got!

[Bottle to nail: China Glaze Starboard (2 coats)]

I started with a base of China Glaze Starboard from the Anchors Away collection. This one is a bit of an odd one! It photographs beautifully vibrant as a rich grassy green, but in actual life, it's a fairly dusty shade.

[2 coats: China Glaze Starboard]

Despite that, it's rich and buttery and is fully opaque in two coats. If you do one careful thick coat, you can get it opaque in one too!

[Base: China Glaze Starboard; Glitter: Femme Fatale Ghoulish Glee;
Nail art: Sally Hansen Black, LA Girl Blackout, Kleancolor Passion Flame]

Sorry, I was rushing it, so no process pics! Briefly, for the ring finger, I blocked in the black with a Sally Hansen nail art pen in Black before colouring in the large black spaces with LA Girl Blackout, a plain black creme. The other fingers, I layered with the gorgeously sparkly Ghoulish Glee from Femme Fatale cosmetics (so gorgeous, it definitely needs a post of its own soon!) before blocking in the black for her hair/hat/cape after. The red was done with Kleancolor Nail to Toe nail art polish in Passion Flame.

Hope you like my Wicked-inspired witchy manicure!

Do the Dalmatian - Aphrodite Lacquer Don't Copy Me

Short little swatch post! Here's Aphrodite Lacquer Don't Copy Me that was part of my birthday haul from Jme this year. I couldn't resist wearing this right away and got lots of compliments on this mani~ =)

[Bottle to nail: Aphrodite Lacquer Don't Copy Me (2 coats)]

Don't Copy Me is a combination of black square and small hex glitter in a smooth white jelly with a pearl/shimmer finish. The glitter does settle a little, but it's packed chockful of glitter so you're guaranteed to pick some up anyway.

[2 coats: Aphrodite Lacquer Don't Copy Me]

These pics are all of two coats. It's not completely opaque (less obvious in real life) and could probably do with three if you prefer, but I liked how it looked at two coats and left it that way.The glitter lays perfectly flat and smooth - could almost do without a topcoat, but I did slap a layer on anyway!

[2 coats: Aphrodite Lacquer Don't Copy Me]

The jelly base consistency and opacity is just right! You get excellent depth with each layer. A bit of dabbing is required to get the squares where you want them, but it's nothing particularly difficult or time-consuming. All in all, a very classic combination! =)

Bright Seas - Nail Pattern Boldness Flipping Out Hard, Nail-Venturous Floam

I did this as the Halloween gradient challenge as well, but I thought yesterday's green and orange manicure was more fitting, so I'm posting this one today instead.

[Base: Essence Viva La Green
Base green glitter: Nail Pattern Boldness Flipping Out Hard
Top orange glitter: Nail-Venturous Floam]

As mentioned yesterday, Nail Pattern Boldness provides full coverage in two coats, so I didn't actually need to use Essence Viva La Green as a base coat. I used Nail-Venturous Floam to build up a darker green gradient towards the tips. As it was rather dense in glitter as well, it was difficult to make the gradient as gradual, but I tried by using very thin coats.

[Base: Essence Viva La Green
Base green glitter: Nail Pattern Boldness Flipping Out Hard
Top orange glitter: Nail-Venturous Floam]

The last two photos are indoor pictures. Taking photos of my nails with thumb included feels awkward to me, so you don't see my thumb often. Relish this rare moment! :P

Flipping Out Hard and Floam actually consist of the same colours. Flipping Out Hard has more yellow glitter, so it looks like a bright neon green, while Floam has more mid-blue glitter, so it looks like a sea-foam green. They are both incredibly dense, and can provide full coverage in two to three coats on their own. I think Floam is more top coat thirsty than Flipping Out Hard.

If you have one and are wondering if you should get the other, I recommend that you do. They're both very pretty and different enough that there's definitely room for both. :)

An October Sprinkle - Halloween Challenge #7: Gradient

Gradient! My favourite and easiest manicure style to attempt, so this challenge was a good one for me.

[Base: Essence Viva La Green
Base green glitter: Nail Pattern Boldness Flipping Out Hard
Top orange glitter: Amy's Nail Boutique Pink Lemonade]

I used Essence Viva La Green as my base coat, but I don't think it was actually needed. Nail Pattern Boldness Flipping Out Hard is so dense that it provided almost full coverage with the first coat. After two coats of Flipping Out Hard, I used very thin coats of Amy's Nail Boutique Pink Lemonade to build up the gradient towards the tips. Pink Lemonade is far less dense in glitter, so it took a lot of coats to get the above look, but it also makes the gradual change in colour easier to achieve.

I went for a green and orange theme because I thought those were rather Halloween-like colours.

[Base: Essence Viva La Green
Base green glitter: Nail Pattern Boldness Flipping Out Hard
Top orange glitter: Amy's Nail Boutique Pink Lemonade]

The last picture is an indoors photo taken under lamp light. It was actually the first picture I took, so I hadn't cleaned up around the edges yet.

What do you think about the manicure? Anyway, a little more on the polishes...

Pink Lemonade is a matte glitter polish consisting of yellow and pink glitter.

Flipping Out Hard is a neon matte glitter polish, consisting of yellow and blue glitter. It has more yellow than blue glitter when compared against the polish that started it all, Nail-Venturous Floam. Check out tomorrow's post to see a semi-comparison. :)

Silly Bats - Halloween Challenge #6: Bats

Here's my entry for Halloween challenge #6 - Bats!

[Drivin' ya batty!]

Inspiration from Nail Craze with Dayze! I added fangs because my silly bats didn't quite look batty enough to me.... and GOOGLY EYES, hehehe~ Mine are definitely are on the sillier side, but do check out her blog for her awesome tute!

[Bottle to nail: China Glaze Riveting (2 coats)]

I started with a nice contrasting base of China Glaze Riveting. If you didn't catch my post from yesterday, I had a much longer babble about this gorgeous polish which you can check out here!

[Base: China Glaze Riveting (2 coats); Nail art: LA Girl Blackout + Tropez White Hot]

I then painted the bats on using LA Girl Blackout, a plain black creme. The eyes were done with a dotting tool, using both Blackout and Tropez White Hot, a plain white creme. I added tiny swipes with Tropez White Hot for the fangs!

[Base: China Glaze Riveting (2 coats); Nail art: LA Girl Blackout + Tropez White Hot]

The fun part was dotting on the eyes, so hilarious! =p Also, couldn't resist putting a bat hanging upside down on the accent  finger...

[Base: China Glaze Riveting (2 coats); Nail art: LA Girl Blackout + Tropez White Hot]

Not just that... it works both ways! Who's being batty now? =D

Ash and Embers - China Glaze Riveting, LA Girl Glitter Addict Flamboyant + Uninhibited

I wanted to get a quick post up before the next Halloween challenge entry on Friday because it's related and I didn't want to have an overly lengthy post for the challenge.

[Full of glowy goodness!]

I couldn't figure out what to name this post at first but Ash and Embers really quite fits the look of this manicure! I guess this would be a ... glitter gradient french manicure?

[Bottle to nail: China Glaze Riveting (2 coats)]

I started with a base of China Glaze Riveting from the Hunger Games collection. This is seriously... one of the best polishes I've ever used. Creamy, rich pigment with a sparkly glossy finish. My skintone looks a bit wonky here but the colour is as true as I could get it. SO amazing.

[2 coats: China Glaze Riveting]

This was two coats, but you can get away with one if you needed to.

[2 coats: China Glaze Riveting]

The photo just above is under diffuse lighting whereas the one above it is less diffuse. Sorry for the photo spam but I was so super duper impressed. I'm a big fan of orange and I have wayyy more orange polishes than any one person needs, but this one is such a gem!

[Base: China Glaze Riveting (2 coats); Glitter: LA Girl Flamboyant, Uninhibited]

I then swiped on a layer of LA Girl Glitter Addict in Flamboyant from about midway to the end of each nail. Flamboyant is a combination of small and large orange hex glitter. The glitter is just deeper in shade than CG Riveting so it still stands out withou being toooo different.

[Base: China Glaze Riveting (2 coats); Glitter: LA Girl Flamboyant, Uninhibited]

I dabbed on LA Girl Uninhibited over the last 1/3 of the nail towards the tip, then tipped them all with a plain black creme (LA Girl Blackout). Simple! Black and orange make such a beautiful contrast. =)  

Annnddd, that's it!