Thanksgiving Turkey Nails

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! A while back on Pinterest I found this cute manicure by Jen at Polish and Pearls. It's been sitting in my "To Try" board just waiting for Thanksgiving to roll around. It is so cute that I didn't bother to try doing my own version, I just copied it straight up. She even has a helpful tutorial with the post too!

I noticed (have you?) that my last three posts featured nails with nude base colors. Not that it's a bad thing, I just hadn't planned it that way. My next mani will be very colorful, just you wait!

What I used:
OPI My Vampire is Buff-base color
(all the other colors were mixed, except the black and white for the eyes)

I hope everyone who is celebrating has a wonderful holiday with family, friends and yummy food. And to all my veggie friends, I hope your tofurkey is equally delicious!

Pumpkin Polka Dot

Thanksgiving Day is tomorrow! I never used to get excited about this particular holiday. This year I have been anticipating it more than usual. I think it's the fact that I do most of the cooking now, that I appreciate good food much more. I have been slowly expanding my stomach in preparation of the holiday. I'm ready now to stuff my face.. bring it on!

In celebration, I have a fun pumpkin (or punkin, depending on where you're from) polka dot mani. I was originally planning on doing a tutorial for this one. Unfortunately I had a senior moment and forgot to take the necessary photos to make said tutorial. Whoops. Will you take a rain check?

Here's what I did:
1. I began with two coats of OPI My Vampire is Buff.
2. Then with my large dotting tool I made a polka dot pattern using Sephora by OPI Paisley Attention to Me.
3.With my pointed dotting tool I added the stems to the dots on my accent nail, magically transforming them into pumpkins.
4.I topped it all off with a coat of Seche Vite top coat.

What I used:
OPI My Vampire is Buff
Sephora by OPI Paisley Attention to Me
Sephora by OPI I Come in Peas

What is your favorite pumpkin flavored food/beverage? I do like pumpkin pie in small portions.
Hope you enjoy the nails! Ciao!

Nude Nail With Two Toned Tips

Today I have a subtle and elegant mani for you. I've had this is mind for a long time. I think now was a good time for something simple, because I have some crazy stuff in mind for December. I don't know how many of my ideas will be realized and make it to the blog. I hope at least a few of them do! (They always seem super awesome in my head, but don't always turn out that way!) 

In this mani I really wanted to show off the base color, Barry M Lychee. I love this shade and the formula is pretty good too! When I bought this polish I also got PiCture POlish Splendour in the same order, along with some others. I tried the two together and was pleasantly surprised by the results. I loved the subtlety of the pair.  

I started with two coats of Barry M Lychee. When it was completely dry, I taped off a small section at the tip of each nail with striping tape. I applied one coat of Ulta Twilight to the taped off section and removed all the tape. Then I repeated the process with one coat of Zoya Pepper, this time with the tape going the other direction, overlapping the section already painted. Then over the entire nail I applied one coat of PiCture POlish Splendour. Splendour adds just a little bit of extra specialness with those beautiful flakies. It was all finished off with a coat of Seche Vite.

What I used:
Barry M Lychee
Ulta Twilight
Zoya Pepper
PiCture POlish Splendour
Seche Vite top coat

I think this could be pulled off in a more conservative office work environment. I've never had that kind of job before, so I couldn't say for sure. But I have a pretty good feeling about it :).
Thanks for reading (or just looking if you didn't read any of the other text)! Leave a comment and let me know what you think!

If You Were a Nail Polish, Which One Would You Be?

Thank you everyone for entering my giveaway, and for your loyal support for my blog! You guys are the best :). In case you missed the facebook post, Colleen B. was the lucky giveaway winner! I thought I'd give an update to say I got the package in the mail today.
Second, I wanted to share some of the answers to the giveaway entry question, "If you were a nail polish, which one would you be? Why?" Here's a little sampling:

• Glow in the dark, cause they're cool!
• I would be a holo because I love sparkle!
• Vampy dark berry shade.
• Loreal Burgundy Diva- the perfect colour, elegant and classy :)
• I would be any glitter polish because glitter is just so sassy!
• Top coat. (: It's clear and it's basically a necessity 
• Zoya Paz, because it's bright and punchy, like me!
• A jelly! Cuz I don't think they're ready for this jelly!
• Any liquid sand glittery polish, because I'm rough on the edges, but there's a sparkle within me.

There were some great answers, am I right? I find myself agreeing with so many of them! So what's my answer? Hmm, good question. I could (and just did) come up with twenty different answers for just as many reasons. Well if I have to be decisive, and specific, I would choose... OPI I Don't Do Dishes. It's classically beautiful, the sparkle makes it fun, and.. I don't do dishes. :)

xx Emiline xx

Birthday Haul and Formula X for Sephora Swatches

Yay for birthdays and presents!! Here's a shout out to my friends and family who gave me nail polish or cash/gift cards, that obviously went to buying nail polish. So let's see what I got!

 Formula X for Sephora left to right: Heroic, Dusk, Chaotic 

Left to right: OPI Liquid Sand Honey Ryder, OPI Underneath the Mistletoe, Essie Carry On

Zoya left to right: Zuza, Arizona, Opal, Sailor, Seraphina, Hunter

Left to right: Contrary Polish Sand, PiCture POlish Freya's Cats, PiCture POlish Ocean, 

A England Saint George (these four purchase through Llarowe.)

It would have been a little insane to swatch all of these for you guys, so I just went with three. I decided on the Formula X for Sephora polishes because it's a recently launched brand and you might  not be as familiar with those yet. On a similar note, this whole time I have been referring to them as "Sephora X". There was originally a Sephora X brand, and this Formula X has replaced it. I mislabeled it in my Formula X for Sephora Legend post (it's fixed now). I apologize for the confusion!! Next time if you notice something questionable, just give my head a good whack.

Formula X for Sephora Heroic: 2 coats, with topcoat

Described as lilac and gold metallic, Heroic is from Formula X's "Shifters" category. Another from the category is Legend that I swatched last month. Unlike Legend which only has the glitters that shift, Heroic has more of a duochrome quality.
I like that it has a silvery appearance, but actually contains gold flecks. The coverage looked great in person with only two coats. For the photos you can tell that I probably should have used three, but they looked fine to the naked eye. Retails for $12.50.

Formula X for Sephora Dusk: 2 coats, with topcoat

Dusk is part of the "New Classics" category. It's described as "sunset red pearl", which I guess isn't necessarily misleading, depending on your interpretation of "sunset". I would describe it as a pearly brick color, or even burnt red with pearl finish.
Whatever it is, it fills a gap in my stash, because I don't have another color like this. The application was really smooth, with good coverage in even just one coat. Retails for $10.50.

Formula X by Sephora Chaotic: 1 coat, with topcoat.

Shown over 1 coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Rose Rum. Chaotic is part of the "Xplosives Top Coats" catergory. It is packed with multi-sized black and white glitters in a clear base. I believe there are five sizes of hex glitter in both black and white, as well as black bar glitter.
I was really surprised how much glitter stuck to the brush! As you can see, quite a big glitter payout. Retails for $12.50

What do you think of the Formula X polishes so far? Are there any other polishes from my haul you would like to see swatched?

33 Day Challenge Day 26: Something From Pinterest

I saw this "fall mosaic" mani on Pinterest and fell in love! It was done by Whitney from Dressed Up Nails. Her blog is just awesome. I am amazed by her nail art! Sadly, the most recent post is from June. I really hope she comes back and gives us more!

I loved this mani so much I wore it for two whole days! I got a lot of compliments on it too. (Making an effort to talk with your hands more helps people notice your nails.)

And now for something totally unrelated..
So I got my (expired) driver's license renewed today! Woot! Now I don't have to worry about it again for ten years, I think. All the employees at the DMV were super nice and helpful. When did that happen? Not that I was disappointed that I didn't deal with a Selma or Patty. It just felt a little Twilight Zone-ish.
The lady who processed my application asked me how my birthday was, and I told her about my party. She even complimented my hair. I remarked that we had the same hair color (I was going to say something about hers, but she beat me to it) and she said yes, we have same birthday too! It was a special moment.

I really liked it from far away too.

What I used:
Ulta Salon Formula High Roller- base color
A whole lot of other colors- just ask me if you'd like to know about them!
Seche Vite top coat

What do you think? I wish I had the polish that Whitney used (China Glaze I'm Not Lion), but I think mine turned out pretty good!

33 Day Challenge Day 25: A New Technique For You

This was a technique that I'd been wanting to try for awhile, the water spotted marble nail (or whatever you want to call it). I was so excited to finally give it a go! I followed (or attempted to) ChelseaQueen's video tutorial. She made it look so easy! With the messy, distressed aesthetic, I figured every nail would be a masterpiece. Well, just like water marbling, I ran into a ton of problems. Buuuut... you can still tell this was the technique I was going for, right? I still think it looks cool.

I love the coppery colors that are peaking through.

For my base colors I used three different polishes and painted them on with the bottle brush in a haphazard way. The easy part was now over. Next was the marbling part. Let's say through a LOT of trial and error, I learned a few things.

#1-DON'T use a foam cup! The polish eats through the foam (if you happen to have drops that fall to the bottom as I tend to). I'm sure everyone knows that already. Well now I know it too.

#2- If you choose to use hairspray, make sure it actually has alcohol in it. I had a proof of purchase label covering the ingredients on my bottle so I wasn't able to check beforehand. I assumed it did. Well, since nothing happened to my polish when I sprayed the hairspray on, I am now assuming it does not.

#3- It's okay if it didn't turn out as you had visualized. Pretend that was your original intention and no one will know!

My thumb nail is my favorite in this mani. It looks pretty rad. My index finger is my second favorite.

What I used:
OPI Warm and Fozzie
OPI Cozu-Melted in the Sun
Wet n' Wild Chrome Penny For Your Thoughts
Sephora by OPI What's a Tire Jack?
body spray

Have you tried this technique? Any pointers? I love the coppery colors that are peaking through. I'm trying this again for sure, just so I can show it who's boss!

I suggest watching Chelsea's tutorial for-in depth instructions. Be ready for some trial and error.

33 Day Challenge Day 24: Art With the Color You Own the Most Of

The color I own the most of is.. purple? Really? I mean, I do like purple. I just didn't expect to have so much of it. It's certainly not my favorite color. I don't even own any purple clothing except one solitary "Poison" tshirt. Pretty sure the deciding factor for buying the shirt was that I needed at least one item in that color. So, Yay! for this prompt for getting me utilize the greatest percentage of my stash.

To solved the mystery of How I Acquired So Many Purple Polishes, I took a look at them. Out of the 40 plus purple polishes, 36 of them have been acquired since I since I started my blog. That is, I bought 36 purple polishes in the last four months.
Funny story- a similar thing happened to me a few years ago with my wardrobe. I don't know where it came from, but one day I realized I didn't own any brown clothing or shoes. I had ALOT of black. I decided I needed to branch out. I didn't go crazy or anything, but for a while I only bought brown, and ended up with a good amount.
So this is clearly what happened with my polishes. I looked at my stash, realized it was seriously lacking in shades of purple, and then this time went a little nuts. I wish I could say I don't need any more, but that wouldn't be the truth.

This was my first attempt at a fishtail braid and it ended up a little lopsided. I still like it, it's such a cool look! I love that there are still so many techniques for me to try out. And even with the ones I've tried, there's a lot of perfecting to do!

I hope there are some little girls (older ones too) that will just LOVE this mani. Sometimes it's fun to get extra girly!

What I used:
Thumb (darkest to lightest): Sephora by OPI Seriously it's a Naan-Issue,  OPI Dutch 'Ya Just Love OPI? Sally Hansen Nail Growth Miracle Loyal Lavendar
Index: Wet n' Wild Chrome Hog-Quartz School- metallic purple, Sephora by OPI Domestic Goddess- plum, Sally Hansen Nail Growth Miracle Loyal Lavendar
Middle and Ring: Essie Lilacism- base color, Barielle Hidden Hideaway- stamped butterflies
Pinky: Ulta Salon Formula Tutu Cute-light violet, Sephora by OPI Sugar Plum Fairies Gone Wild-glitter


So, what color do you own the most of?

33 Day Challenge Day 22: Three Color Gradient + Pattern

I had taken a little break from the 33DC, so I have some catching up to do. I'm not sure what my method will be in making up for all the late posts. Today I decided to do Day 22, and we'll see where it goes from there! 

This is a three color gradient, it's just a little hard to tell, I know. I have a thing for very subtle gradients ;).  

This gray/silver gradient reminds me of something by H.R. Giger. Maybe I should have done some kind of alien pattern with it.

I started with a dark gray base color. Then I made the gradient with three colors of loose pigment eye shadows. I used the same brand of eye shadows and method as this post and this other post.

What I used:
Sephora by OPI Break a Leg-Warmer- dark gray base color
OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls- white
DRK-A Large Stamping plate 
NS Minerals Eyeshadow

33 Day Challenge Day 23: Geometric

You may or may have not noticed that I've been shirking my 33 Day Challenge posts. I assure you that I haven't abandoned it completely. I just needed a break and wanted to do my giveaway, Halloween nails, birthday, etc. I would like to complete the ones I missed, but I'm not guaranteeing it. So to get back in the game I am joining in on today's current prompt- geometric.

You can see the diamonds sparkle a little better when it's slightly out of focus.

They say diamonds are a girl's best friend, but I don't know about that. I mean, I couldn't say because I don't have any. Chocolate, on the other, I'm sure about. Sorry to my human best friend, but chocolate is always by my side.

What I used:
Wet n' Wild Fergie Blue Eyed Soul- blue
OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls- white
Sephora by OPI Meet Me at the Disco- holo glitter
Seche Vite top coat