Red Hot Harlot: NailsIT Angelique + Giveaway

Hey polished prisoners (wink),

I've got a hot hussy for you today! Her name is Angelique and she packs a real punch.  Angelique is a red jelly polish filled with black squares small white hexagons, medium gold hexagons and hot pink microglitter.  It's part of six piece collection inspired by the Dark Shadows movie that released earlier this summer, and made by a lady who I feel is a good friend and fellow blogger - NailsIT.  On top of being a real dollface her polishes are stunning, and this one is no exception!  

This is two coats of Angelique over one thin coat of Sally Hansen Red-dy To Mingle.

The minute I saw Angelique I knew she had to be mine.  I am a sucker for jellies, but particularly well done red ones.

Perfect candy apple red - I love this color so much!

The only polish in my stash that's close to this kind of delicious depth and finish currently is Smitten Polish's Fire and Blood.  However, it's still a very different red compared to Angelique and has a venous blood hue while Angelique reminds me of very fresh raspberries or apples. 

Suddenly in the shade you can see those gold hexagons and pink microglitter popping.

 I was so enamored with this swatch I left it alone...for now ;)

I did have to use two layers of Poshe to get a smooth finish because of the square shaped glitters, but it was totally worth it! 

Well, isn't this pretty baby too gorgeous for words? I love it so much I may have to get a backup when her shop reopens.  If you are interested in purchasing Angelique of any of the other yummy mouthwatering shades by NailsIT you can find info on that here on her blog.  While your over there you should enter her giveaway because she's giving out five of her gorgeous polishes along with Nfu-Oh 61!  You should also check out her nail art as well because this lady also has some seriously banging skills.  Thanks so much for reading and see you next post! Toodles...

Jellied and Holo'ed: Sonoma Nail Art Steampunk

Hey polished prisoners,

Happy Saturday! I planned to do a haul post today but the weather fairies conspired against me for the last several days and decided to bring the rain (and with it bad lighting).  So instead I'm doing a easy breezy swatch.  Eh? Say what! I know I know.  I did plan on doing a little "more" but again the lighting situation wasn't good.  In fact, I'm so annoyed that I'm already trying to either build or buy my own lightbox so that I won't be quite so limited in the future.  That said let's talk about a brand that I absolutely freaking love - Sonoma Nail Art!

Sparkles all around.  I really wish I had been able to get a few photos in sunlight to show off the holographic topcoat a bit more.  These were all taken in indirect sunlight/rainy weather.

First, you need to check out her blog - start there because her nail art is SICKENING! Ok have you recovered yet? Now check out her polishes.  I know you almost died of a polish-gasm didn't you? Flawless flawless glitterbombs with formula that makes it totally worth your while.  I want them all! But for today let's settle for Steampunk.  Steampunk is a glitter polish with black diamonds and an assortment of magenta and rust colored glitter in a dusty pink base. Translation - purrty!

Two coats of Care To Danse? + one coat of SNA Steampunk +one coat of CTD?+  one coat of Fairy Dust = yummy jelly.

I decided to wear it as a glitter gradient layered in a jelly sandwich using OPI's Care To Danse? from their NYC Ballet Collection.  I also added a single swipe of China Glaze Fairy Dust to the entire nail.  For accents I painted my nails using OPI's We'll Always Have Paris (Suede).  I found the final effect to be stare inducing.

Gooey looking in the best way - this is why I love jellies!

So what do you think? I love jelly sandwiches like this because they are easy to put together and have that instant pretty factor without spending oodles of time nail-arting it up.  Of course I'm also extremely biased when it comes to anything jelly finish so course I love it.  If you are interested in acquiring Steampunk or any other Sonoma pretties you can get them here on her Etsy shop.  She restocks every two weeks.  Word of fair warning though - the polishes move quickly and the restocks are fairly small.   Thanks for reading and see you next post! Toodles...

CrowsToes, Fanservice Nails, Lights & A Gun - What?!?

Happy Saturday lacquer ladies,

I hope you aren't sizzling like sausages on this 105 weather day like I am today, but at least it's a good day for multi-tasking in the AC with of course you guessed it - polish!  I recently discovered the delectable phenomenon of trigger finger mani's on Nailed IT's blog and knew that I had to recreate a similar look.  Of course I wanted to do leopard, but I've had a lot of feline inspired nail art up lately. But what could be as delicious as a spotted compatriot of the night? Perhaps a finely feathered friend smothered in a decadent jelly sandwich?  I also wanted something that was dark versus bright which led me to one Ianto Jones of Fanservice Nails and the following result.

One hot pistol?

I want to say a few things quickly because there's a lot going on here.  First, I've already raved about Essie's Poppy Razzi collection.  It's sickening - nuff said.

The polishes were calling (left to right): Fanservice Nails Ianto Jones, Essie's Lights, CrowsToes Thing.

Second, Fan Service Nails.  Holy crap ladies - I have struck indie paydirt on this company!  When I first ordered one my polishes arrived damaged in transit - boo :(  I sent along an email and the situation was rectified at lightening speed.  This is my first time taking one of my FSN polishes for a cruise and I am so impressed! Ianto Jones is a glossy finish ONE COATER deep grey polish loaded with holographic microglitter.  I just don't have words ladies - this polish is just so good I am in awe!

Look at the holographic yumminess in Ianto Jones.  This polish is a rockstar especially when seen in direct sunlight!

Third, CrowsToes.  Please y'all know this biatch is fierce!  I don't even have to say a word.  Lauri is so talented every polish I have by her is gold and I have a lot (missing three to complete the collection).  She is being stocked by both Kim at Overall Beauty and Leah Ann at Llarowe but she also has her own store over on BigCartel.  Thing, is without a trace of irony, one of the prettiest things I've ever seen and a gorgeous glistening glitterbomb to boot.

This is indirect sunlight.  You can still see all of the holographic shimmer in Ianto but Thing also really pops into play even in the shade.

Have you recovered from my polish gush yet? I have no self control, but in summation - yay for trigger accent mani's, jelly neons, and indie wonders! There are a lot of indie companies rocking my socks off right now, and I'm pretty pleased these days to have picked up some fine gems. And finally, I'm happy I get to share all my polish passion with you without feeling like a freak.  Albeit, I readily admit my flag is always raised lol! Thanks for reading and see you next post!

KISS: Stars and Hearts Cheeky Plates Mani

Hey lovely ladies,

Today I have some very simple, well for me, nail art.  Occasionally, I burn out on my designs.  This happens when I've been doing super intricate or complicated mani's in repetition.  That's when I take a step back and return to what turned me from a regular lacquer lover into a hardcore polish prisoner.  Shoot these days I'm so into polish might as well call me the warden round these parts lol! But today  I'm returning to simplicity i.e. KISS and my initial love - stamping.

I started with Color Club's Chelsea Girl.  Chelsea Girl IMO is the most dubious jelly polish I've run across to date.  The formula is terrible - gooey, streaky, and a bit of a PITA to apply, but once you get it on you've got color pay off for days!  Actually if the color wasn't so rich I'd have gotten rid of this polish long ago because of the troublesome application.  I'm wearing between 3-4 coats here due to the humpy bumpy finish of this polish.  I stamped these nails using China Glaze Millennium and Konad Special Polish in White and Pastel Blue using Cheeky Plate CH26.  My accent nail was painted with 2 coats of Color Club's Age of Aquarius, a delicious Tiffany's blue that applied like a dream.  I then topped it with All That Glitter's Hole Hearted and Elemental Styles Unuseptium (117).

Speaking again on the formula of Chelsea Girl it split and cracked on one of my nails as I was laying it down. I have to admit this is not an easy polish to work with much to my disappointment given the vibrancy of the color.

I have to admit the first time I used Hole-Hearted in was a real problem getting the stars out but this time many were coming out on the brush each time making the placement easier. My featured drink here is a Green Tea Frappacino - yum!

Up-close I can see all my tiny mistakes how brutal! Lol!

What do you ladies think? Sometimes it's nice to do something easy and straightforward like this.  Of course I still needed a bit of bling to feel "me", but overall I enjoyed this quite a bit.
Song Stuck in My Head: Titanium by David Guetta feat Sia.  It's like punch drunk dancing! I love the message of feeling strong no matter how many shots are taken at you.  Plus Sia is a woman after my own heart.  She's got a voice like a bolt of lightening! Anyway thanks for reading and toodles.

Essie's Action: Summer Skittles Makes Lacquerista's Happy

Hey lacquer lovers,

Friday was quite the productive shopping spree for me.  All drama aside, I got my virtual hands on some lovely HARE polish pre-orders! I'd been lemming these polishes for so long I was so happy to see the shop open again and can't wait to receive my polishes! So now I'm in the mood to celebrate with a fun and funky mani  Recently The Nailsaurus posted a look that has been plaguing me since I saw it - the Sandy Skittle.  To say it was exquisite would be an understatement.  She took one color and put her spin on it in 5 different ways.  I wanted to do the same but not necessarily in the same way so here's my translation using Essie's Action, a bright orange jelly polish released for their Poppy Razzi Neon Collection.

Nail Art Key
Thumb - Tiger print freehanded with Kiss Nail Art Striper in Black.
Index - Microbeads of multicolors.
Middle - Jelly sandwich comprised of two alternating layers of each polish using Lush Lacquer's Lite Brite and topped with Essie's Matte About You.
Ring - Leopard print french tip freehanded with Orly Liquid Vinyl and Kiss Nail Art Gold Glitter. CND Effects Gold Shimmer is also over the base coat.
Pinkie - Gradient using China Glaze Harvest Moon stamped with cG passion using  BM20 (Series 1)

Can you say jelly? Lol! I haven't been this impressed with a neon orange polish since Color Club's Wham Pow!

Isn't the mattified sandwich here so juicy looking? The more I look at Action the more I realize I need absolutely every color from the Poppy Razz Collection. I'm only missing Bazooka so game on!

Close-up's of Lush Lacquer's Lite Brite

The microbeading on this gave me so much trouble. It's my first time using them in this manner but jeez it was quite a bit of work to get them placed properly.

Ultimately, I'm happy with how things turned out.  It's like a small jungle in here :)

This is definitely funky and not for the faint of heart!  My favorite nail is the matte jelly sandwich closely followed by the glitter leopard.  This was fun albeit time consuming. The final result is so upbeat this would be perfect for a night out. What do you ladies think? If you are interested in Lite Brite and other amazing glitterbombs find you can find Lush Lacquer on Etsy.

Song stuck in my head today: Nighttiming by Coconut Records. All about cheating hearts minus the angst - lol.

Anyhoo, thanks for reading and toodles!

Darling Diva Polish Bazinga! Jelly Leopard Manicure

Hey lovely ladies,

Lately the indie polish world has erupted with some serious drama that has left me feeling a bit unhappy and bummed out.  I'm a big supporter of these independent lacqueristas, but I can't stand drama at all.  The first sign of trouble and I'm out! So I was feeling a bit down and wanted to create something playful, lighthearted, and easy to lift my spirits a bit.  Enter leopard print and DDP's Bazinga! Bazinga! is a creamy white jelly polish loaded with multi-colored hexes small round and bar glitter.  It is yummy and reminds me of candy, ice-cream, and all things sweet!  I used Essie's Marshmellow, a squishy white jelly, as the base and then used three layers of Banzinga! to reach opacity.  I probably could have done it in two but I wanted to make sure I didn't have any VNL like I did with my last mani.  I used a more subdued color, Essie's In Stitches, for the base of my leopard print.  It's a very rich deep colored rose creme polish that is opaque in 2 coats.  The leopard pattern was freehanded with China Glaze's Passion and Orly's Liquid Vinyl.  Check out the final results below.

See what I meant about the Banzinga! just being layers and layers of milk and sprinkles? I really love this effect of jelly finish polishes!

Bottle shot of Bazinga! It looks like melted ice-cream with tons of sprinkles.  Yum!

This is a picture I took before I started adding the leopard print - indoor lighting.  You can see how In Stitches adds a bit more somberness to the festive quality of Banzinga!

I think the extra metallic quality of CG Passion that I used for the leopard spots really added a 3rd dimension to this manicure and really made the pattern pop.

Quote on DDP labels: "The Prettiest Girls are the Happiest Girls.  Be Happy! I love that!

I really like how this turned out and can't stop looking through all the layers of Bazinga! to see the glitters underneath all the jelly base!  I think polishes like this are so fun and easy to wear.  You just layer it up and it's instant art by itself.  Also because Banzinga! is so packed full of glitter I didn't have to do any fishing at all just strategic placement of the glitters as I added layers.  While I don't enjoy the drama behind the indie scene these days I will always be a fan of innovative and unique polishes, and I'm so glad I've had the opportunity to buy so many awesome polishes!  If you're interested in Bazinga! or want to see more Darling Diva Polish you can find her shop here on Etsy.  The seller is super sweet, super responsive to emails, and always happy to set up custom listings. 

Theme Song of the Moment: Ruin by Cat Power.  All about traveling, heading home, and complaining when you have lots and others have nothing.  I like this song because a) it's utterly dancible, b) it makes me grateful for what I have and gratitude can keep you balanced when other things are falling apart and c) because it's Cat Power and she hasn't released an album since 2006's The Greatest.

Thanks so much for reading and I'll see you next time.  Toodles!

Lush Lacquer & Elemental Styles Jelly Sandwich

Hey polished prisoners,

I don't know about you but these days I'm starving for jelly! Luckily I have just the right indie polish "fixings" to whip up a very lady-like sandwich. Yum, yum, yum! But to make a good sandwich you need some great glitters and I chose two awesome ones.  The first is Elemental Styles Xenon: Warrior Princess (50), a matte glitter polish consisting of magenta, white and dark pink small sized glitter. It has zero element of sparkle and all my love! Xenon gets a 10 for formula and ease of application - it's a winner all around. I also chose to use one of my newest Lush Lacquer polishes.  Chubby Checker is gorgeous pastel pink glitter with loads of ultrafine holographic shimmer and small black and white squares, hexes and round glitter. Chubby gets a 8 for formula because it's a sinker.  It's nothing that ten minutes upside down and a few shakes of the bottle can't fix, but I disliked how quickly the settling reasserted itself.  Nevertheless the sparkle on this bad boy was fierce so 8/10 all around. Finally for the the main ingredient I chose Essie's Sugar Daddy a very light pink super sheer jelly polish.

My recipe: One layer of Essie's Sugar Daddy followed by one layer of  Xenon. Then another coat of Sugar Daddy followed by a layer of Chubby Checker and finally one last layer of Sugar Daddy.  For my ring finger I just put Xenon at the top and added a layer of CND Effects Copper Shimmer.

This is outdoor lighting unfortunately when haven't had much sun so the light was low, but this is true to color.

You can still see a bit of VNL even with so many layers, but I love how the hexes and matte polish peeps through sugar daddy.

 

This is was shot indoors. Unfortunately I had a very hard time getting the lighting right and the pink here is much darker here than it actually is.

What do you think? It's another first for me. I'm getting rid of an awful lot of firsts these days.  Maybe I should change the name of my blog to Cherry Lockdown, but oh my what would the readers think?!?  The truth is as obsessed with jelly polishes as I am these days I expect to be making many more sandwiches in the future.  I'm on a quest to find lots of great jellies and since I have so many glitters they would come in handy.  Do you ladies have any favorite jelly finish polishes? If you're interested in the glitters I used you can find Lush Lacquer and Elemental Styles on Etsy.  Thanks for reading and for now I'll bid you adieu and bon appetite!