NOTD: Sinful Colors Coral Riff

My nail of the day is a recent purchase of mine. I made a trip last week to Ye Olde Drugstore in search of some newly released polishes, but sadly couldn't get my hands on them. I asked the salesclerk if she'd seen them in yet, and she led me around the beauty section trying to pretend she was helpful. Amateur. I had to walk away with something, so fortunately I laid my eyes on this pretty and took it home with me!

Coral Riff is a deep coral creme/jelly with multi-colored glass flecks. I used two coats here.

The glass fleck isn't in-your-face obvious, but I've always been a fan of a subtle shimmer.

Sinful Color polishes can be found at most drug stores. I purchased this at Rite Aid for $1.99.

Moral of the story: Even when you can't find the polish that brought you to the store in the first place, there is always a plethora of other options for you to buy! I want to know, how often does that happen to you?

These Are But Wild And Whirling Nails

I think about my nails and my blog A LOT. When someone catches me lost in thought and ask what's on my mind, more often that not I have to admit, "Umm... my blog". It's a little embarrassing that I seem so obsessed, but honestly I'm grateful to have a "safe place" for my mind to wander back to. In that last few months when life has gotten rough, I have had something positive to focus on, and help push out negative thoughts.

My point in this brief exposé will eventually get to this mani. As a result of nails being constantly on my mind, I often come up with ideas right as I'm falling asleep. I love getting those creative surges, but sometimes when I wake up in the morning, I can't remember my brilliant revelation! I used to have an excellent memory, which my kids have sneakily stolen from me. So when I actually remember something, it's a moment of pure joy! And when that memory actually ends up being something cool, and not a sleep-filled idea that turns out to be pure crap, it's even better. As promised, my point: this spiraling dotted swirl was one such idea I had the other night. It's pretty cool, don't you think?!

As happy as I was to remember this idea, and that it turned out so neat, I was really annoyed that it took soooo long. I'm talking hours here. I usually enjoy the zen-ful peace I get from the tedium of nail art, but this was a stretch for me. I've been wearing this for three days now to balance the time-creating/time-worn ratio. Plus, when I am feeling stressed out, I can just look at the swirl and hypnotize myself into a calm trance.

So as usual, it was worth it in the end. But I can't say that I have a desire to ever do it again. Then again, I can't promise I won't... ;).

For my index and middle fingers, I started with a white base color of OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls. Then I used my DRK-A Large stamping plate with Sephora by OPI I'm Wired to add the coral swirls.

On my thumb and pinky, I have a base color of Zoya Caitlin, and stamped with Konad Special Polish in white. I tried doing the white swirls with MBSW, but it didn't show up as well.

For my accent nail I used a rhinestone picker-upper to add dots of MBSW, Caitlin, and I'm Wired. I alternated the colors starting in the middle, then overlapping them in an outward swirl. This took me a few hours because I had to wait a little in between each dot so the colors didn't all smush together.

I finished off each nail with a Seche Vite top coat. 

What I used:
OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls- white
Zoya Caitlin- gray purple
Sephora by OPI I'm Wired- coral
Konad Special Polish White
Seche Vite top coat
DRK-A Large stamping plate


Do you like it? At what point does a manicure take so long that it's just not worth it anymore? Don't want to miss any of my future half-unconscious inspired posts? Please follow me on facebook, bloglovin', or twitter!

xx Emiline xx

Spring Polishes Part 2: Stamping

I've mentioned that I want to work on my stamping skills, as I've found that it really takes practice. When I was swatching polishes for My Favorite Polishes Right Now For Spring post, I took the opportunity to get some of that practice in. I originally was going to include these photos in that post until I realized that would make it realllly long. So this post is part deux. 

Base: Nail Tek Hydration Therapy Color Morning Dew

Stamped: Konad Special Polish White

Plate: Cisi & Sisi 04

Sunlight photo to show off the golden glow.

Base: Ulta Salon Formula Peach Parfait
Stamped: Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Peachy Breeze
Plate: Cisi & Sisi 06
Middle and ring finger: Formula X for Sephora Magma

Base: Sinful Colors Cinderella
Stamped: Konad Special Polish White
Plate: Cisi & Sisi 06, 02, and 03
I also did some dry-brush strokes of Clinique Strappy Sandals, and glitter

Base: Sally Hansen Nailgrowth Miracle Loyal Lavendar
Stamped: Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Pronto Purple and Pink Blink
Plate: Cisi & Sisi 03

Base: Deborah Lippmann La Vie en Rose
Stamped: Konad Special Polish Black
Plate: Cisi & Sisi 05

All of the stamping plates I used are from the Cici & Sisi Jumbo Series #1 collection.

Which combination do you like the best? I'm torn between the first and the last. Can you tell I'm getting better (I think)? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Giveaway Winner, Future Blog Posts, and Who Else Do You Follow?

Hello all! I wanted to share some of the results of the Nail Polish Society Giveaway: Jenna Hipp What's Hot Now Collection. First things first, Joy I. was the winner chosen by Rafflecopter! Congratulations!! I wanted to thank each of you for entering my giveaway, and I hope you continue to follow my blog because I have great things in store!

What kind of greatness you ask? Well one entry option was to leave a comment on what kinds of posts you would like to see from me in the future. I appreciate your suggestions and I'm formulating ideas based on them! I put all your input together in a nifty little pie chart to make it more succinct. The largest request, at 38 %, was tutorials. After getting so many requests for them, I made a tutorial for my Distressed Water Marble nails. I hope you enjoyed it! You can expect to see more in the future for sure. I can't say how frequent they'll be (because they are seriously time consuming), but keep your eyes out!

Another of the entry options asked you to name another blog that you follow. My purpose was to find new blogs, and I was delighted by the variety of your suggestions. Many of the blogs you named I know, love, and follow. Some were completely new to me, and now I've discovered some really great ones! I wanted to share some of these with you, too. There was a long, long list that I spent forever whittling down. I was trying to get the list even smaller than this, but just couldn't. I hope you discover something new too, or at least find satisfaction that you already know all these blogs ;).

In no particular order:

• More Nail Polish
• Nail Lacquer UK
• ChitChatNails
• Polish Hound
• Nails Anna Gorelova
• Seize the Nail
• Swatch and Learn
• Passionate About Polish
• Oooh, Shinies!
• A Little Polish
• pshiiit
• Will Paint Nails For Food
• Break rules, not nails
• The Mercurial Magpie
• The Nail Network
• Refined and Polished
• Wondrously Polished
• Vampy Varnish
• Accio Lacquer
• Craftynail
• Gnarly Gnails
• Set in Lacquer

Not exclusively polish:

• The Happy Sloths (beauty)
• Moda and the Mar (fashion)
• Hello My Name is Heather (sewing,etc.)

I plan on having more giveaways in the future, so don't despair if you didn't win. ;) Thank you for reading!

xx Emiline xx

My Favorite Polishes Right Now For Spring

Since starting Nail Polish Society, I've gravitated toward more opaque nail polish formulas. An opaque creme polish is usually quick to apply, and fantastic for nail art. Sadly, for that reason, many of my other polishes have been neglected in the past few months.
Although lately, I've been yearning for the light, fresh, shades of Spring. It's been nice to revisit some sheerer formulas, I didn't want them to feel forgotten! :)
I had so many pretties to choose from, it took some time to narrow down my choices so that this post wasn't a mile long. Here are five of the polishes that I'm enjoying this season.


Nail Tek Hydration Therapy Morning Dew is a lemongrass green with yellow-gold microshimmer. I don't think it could get any more "Spring" than this. I love how fresh and cheerful this shade is. I used two coats, and the formula was easy to work with.

This photo best shows how the microshimmer makes the polish glow.

I purchased Morning Dew at Marshall's for about $5 I think. It's the first Nail Tek polish I've bought, so I didn't even know where they were available ( their color ones). I'm still not really clear on that, but I'm so glad I randomly came across this one!

Ulta Salon Formula Peach Parfait is a subdued melon in a creme/jelly formula. I like how mellow and squishy this polish is. The formula is on the sheer side but still easy to work with. I used three coats.

I purchased this at Ulta for $2.00. The full retail price is $6.00, but they are frequently on sale.

Sinful Colors Cinderella is a medium toned baby blue in another creme/jelly base with pink and orange glass flecks. This is a cute and girly shade, and the name Cinderella is very fitting. The shimmer from the glass flecks isn't overwhelmingly obvious, but still visible and adds a nice dimension. It was a little more sheer than I had hoped, I needed three coats.

I purchased Cinderella at Kmart for $1.99. Sinful Colors are sold at most drugstores and mass retailers like Walmart, but I never see all the shades in one place. My local Kmart seemed to have the best selection available out of most the stores I've shopped at.

Sally Hansen Nailgrowth Miracle Loyal Lavender is a dusty lavender with prominent pink microshimmer. I LOVE this color. I am always on the lookout for a nice greyish purple, but one that is not too grey. This pink shimmer adds another interesting layer to this unique polish. The formula was more sheer than I hoped, but I still got a decent application with three coats.

I purchased Loyal Lavendar at Walgreens last Fall. It was on sale so I don't remember the price and I'm not sure if this shade is still available :(

Deborah Lippmann La Vie en Rose is a gorgeous white-ish pink, with pink and gold shimmer. The formula is very sheer, making the shimmer stand out from the base. This is a very work appropriate polish, but it's not at all boring! I used three coats here.

The shimmer is most visible in this photo, but it's still more obvious in person.

La Vie en Rose is now officially the most expensive nail polish I own. I purchased it at Nordstrom for $18. I really didn't want to spend that much, but after I swatched a little on my nail at the store, I couldn't stop thinking about it. It's limited edition and I just knew I'd regret it if I didn't have it.


What do you think of the shades? What polishes are you wearing that are Spring-worthy? Let me know in the comments!

Tutorial: Distressed Water Marble

Hello all my wonderful Society ladies! I asked for some feedback on what you would like to see more of on Nail Polish Society, and the majority of you said you want more tutorials. So guess what.. I listened! I got a really good response when I debuted my amazing Distressed Water Marble nails recently, and wanted to share this technique with everyone. Now I have a tutorial so you can try it for yourselves!

What you'll need:

• cup (not styrofoam!) full of filtered, room-temperature water
• tape to prep skin for easy cleanup, or vaseline
• perfume, body spray, hairspray- something with a pump spray and high alcohol content
• toothpicks, orange stick, or dotting tool to create design in polish and cleanup
• polishes that you've tested and know spread out well in the water

What to do:

1. Get all your tools, and water ready. Have your polishes prepared with all the lids unscrewed. 
2. Apply base color that will contrast against one or all shades in your water marble.
3. Prep around nail by taping over the skin for easy cleanup. You could also use Vaseline on your skin to help the polish easily wipe off. It works really well, but I personally end up getting Vaseline all over my bottles, etc.
4. Start your water marble by adding a drop of polish in the water. Do this close to the water surface. You can even touch it to the water if you struggle to get the drop off the brush. Don't drop it from too high or it will sink to the bottom. Repeat this process until multiple rings are formed.
5. Create design by dragging an instrument through the polish. Do this quickly as the polish will start drying.
6. Spray perfume/hairspray/alcohol at about a distance of four to six inches (10 to 15 centimeters). You can experiment with the distance to create different effects. After you spray the polish once or twice, give it a few seconds to break apart. 
7. Choose a section of the design you like and place a nail over it, then dip it in. Keep your nail under the surface of the water until you have removed the excess polish off the surface of the water with instrument. You can do more than one nail at a time if there is more than one section you want to use, and if your fingers can reach it. Remove finger from the water.
8. Carefully remove tape.
9. Cleanup excess polish off skin and cuticle with q-tip and acetone, or for a more precise and lint-free solution, use a short and stiff bristled cleanup brush.
10. Apply a generous amount of topcoat (I prefer fast-drying formulas) to avoid smearing the polish, as it will be delicate. Start with one big dollop and lightly spread it to cover the nail. Let it dry. You're finished! Sit back and enjoy your beautiful nails :)

Polishes I used:
Sinful Colors Endless Blue- royal blue
Sinful Colors Cinderella- light blue with pink microglitter
Sinful Colors Snow Me White- white
Seche Vite top coat


I would love to see your interpretation! If you try it, show off your creation on my facebook page, or by hashtagging #hellonailpolishsociety on twitter,

I hope this tutorial is helpful. Feel free to share it! Let me know in the comments what you think, and if you have any questions!

Easter Chevrons

Happy Friday everyone! Are you all ready for Easter? I'm not at all! I haven't gotten a thing for my kids. I'm taking advantage of the fact that they're still young enough to not have expectations. Thank goodness for grandparents, because I'm basically depending on them to do all the work for me :). My mom and her husband are hosting the egg hunt and dinner. I'm just going to try to relax and focus on singing well in the choir at church. My allergies are still giving me grief, so I'm all little anxious about it. At least my nails are ready and looking good!

For this mani I started with two coats of Sinful Colors Snow Me White and then top coat. It was late at night when I started, so I just left it at that until the morning. Unfortunately, I got a little bit of shrinkage from the Seche Vite top coat. Grr. Anyway... next I used some craft scissors and Scotch tape to make the chevron shapes, and tape off different areas of my nails. Then I painted on four different shades on a makeup sponge, and dabbed the sponge on each nail a couple of times before removing the tape. For the chick (isn't he tweet? ;)) I used a dotting tool for the eyes and a tiny nail art brush for the beak. I finished everything off with another coat of Seche Vite. Let's hope it doesn't shrink it too much this time :/

What I used:
Sinful Colors Snow Me White
Sephora by OPI Yellow My Name is Betsey
China Glaze At Vase Value- blue
China Glaze In a Lily Bit- lilac
Jenna Hipp Hashtag- peach
Jenna Hipp Damage Control- pink
Seche Vite top coat

Happy Easter everyone! I hope you all have a great Sunday! I am looking forward to spending time with family and eating yummy deviled eggs. :)

Chaotic Chiaroscuro

When I wrote my Formula X swatches post yesterday, I looked at Chaotic and remembered how I've been meaning to wear it again. I loved how it looked on top of my gradient for my Blue Medley nails. Ever since, I've had this mani in mind, waiting for the right time to try it. In between all the soft, flowery, pastels of Spring, it's nice to have something stark and dramatic. I just love how the glitter seems to change in contrast over the black and white.

I started off with a white base, two coats of Sinful Colors Snow Me White. I let that dry for a few minutes while I prepped my skin around the nail with Elmer's glue. When the glue was all dry I got a makeup sponge and painted it with Snow Me White and Wet N Wild Fast Dry Ebony Hates Chris. I dabbed the sponge on a few times until I achieved the effect I wanted. Then I applied a coat of Formula X Chaotic over the gradient. I finished it off with a coat of China Glaze Matte Magic. Then it was cleanup time! I removed the dry glue off my skin and used my cleanup brush and acetone to remove the remaining polish around the cuticles. I'm so glad it came out how I imagined it!

I always forget about the aftermath of a gradient mani. They take soooooo long to clean up. The polish sticks to my cuticles and doesn't want to let go. I thought this would take little time, easy peasy. It took just as much time to clean up as it did to apply it! Oh well, always worth it in the end.

What I used:
Sinful Colors Snow Me White
Wet N Wild Fast Dry Ebony Hates Chris
Formula X for Sephora Chaotic
China Glaze Matte Magic top coat

Do you like the dramatics of this mani? It's definitely one that demands everyone to "Look at me!".

Formula X for Sephora Beacon and Magma Swatches and Review

I'm so excited to share with you two more Formula X for Sephora polishes, because they're gorgeous! My Formula X stash so far has consisted of polishes from their X-plosive Topcoats, Shifters, and New Classics collections. These new additions are from their Liquid Crystals collection, which is amazing! Sephora's describes the Liquid Crystals as, "A brilliant, light-reflecting nail lacquer made from crushed micro-crystalline and pigmented mica that captivates the eye with vivid color." I would also add that the finish is a combination of dense glass fleck and foil, with some having a subtle duochrome flash of color.

Both of these polishes have great pigmentation and applied smoothly and evenly. The Formula X bottles are topped with a bulky outer cap, but when removed it shows the smaller, easy-to-handle cap. The brushes are thin and flexible, and capture a balanced amount of polish on them for application.

Magma is a stunning, very wearable orange shade with brilliant gold flecks. It is so glow-y and fiery, I think Magma was the perfect name for this shade. I used two coats, plus top coat.

Direct sunlight

Artificial lighting

Artificial lighting

Beacon is a rich, shimmering, royal blue with a slight duochrome shift of violet color. This polish has so much depth, and is such a flattering shade. It's an eye-catcher for sure. I used two coats, plus top coat.

Direct sunlight

Artificial lighting

Here you can see the duochrome flash of violet.

Artificial lighting

An outdoor photo, out of focus, to show the duochrome shift.

Outdoors, shade

These are available at Sephora, in store and online. They are a little more pricey at $12.50, but fortunately I had my Sephora VIB 15% off coupon. It was hard to narrow my purchase down to just two, I want all the Liquid Crystals! I know I got two special winners, but the whole collection is so beautiful. Next on my wish list is Solar Flare.
Do you own any from the collection? Do you plan on picking up any?

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