Weekend Mani

This warm, sunny weather has got 

me on a blue kick lately.

Combine that with some crackle, and you've got a 

great weekend many that reminds me of the blue Summer sky.

Revlon's Top Speed Nail Enamel in  Royal

layered with

China Glaze's Crackle Glaze in Lightning Bolt

80's inspired Color Block

Hey everyone!

I hope you are having a great week so far and you are 

surviving this

horrendous heat wave!

I've been busy, busy house hunting, 

but I'm still managing to squeeze in some new nails looks,

because I feel naked if I don't have my nails done!

Here is an fun 80's inspired wave/color blocking

design that is super simple!

PRODUCTS USED:

Sinful Colors Base Coat

Color Club polishes in:

Yum Gum

Disco Dress

Twiggie

Peace Out Purple

Sally Hansen's Xtreme Wear in - Blue Me Away

L.A. Colors Art Deco in - Black

inm "Looks Wet" Top Coat

To see the full tutorial on this look,

please visit me on Youtube

www.youtube.com/dollface22772

Born Pretty Store

By now, I'm sure you've seen a million & one other

blog posts about Born Pretty.

I'm not one for accepting products for review, 

but I agreed to this one because I am a longtime shopper

of Born Pretty. 

I normally buy through their E-bay shop,

but I've bought from their direct site as well.

They have a good selection of various nail art supplies,

and some of the cheapest prices available online.

I don't know how they do it, but frankly,

I don't care, as long as they keep doing it!!

I think one of the most popular items from Born Pretty

is their faux Konad plates. 

I've got several, including the elusive 

Hello Kitty plate.

Their plates are just as good as other brands, 

for a third of the price.

How can you beat that?

Here is my weekend many using plates

m49

&

m71

Ignoring the fact that my current black polish sucks 

for stamping, this mani is pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself!
Some of my favorite and most flawless

plates are from Born Pretty.

In case you are one of the few who hasn't heard of them before,

I highly recommend you check them out.

They never disappoint! 

Summer Leopard

Now that the warm weather is here, 

I'm dusting off all my favorite bright & bold colors

to work on some great Summer designs.

This look was inspired by Michelle from 

The Lacquer Files, who did a design similar ages ago, 

that I always loved.

Here's the look

PRODUCTS USED:

PRO Nail Systems Base Coat

Sally Hansen's Xtreme Wear in - Mellow Yellow

Orly in - Lemonade

China Glaze in - Peachy Keen

Hurricane Nail Art Striper in - Bright Red

So Easy Stripe Rite in - Silver Holographic

INM Looks Wet Top Coat

Check out Michelle's original look here:

http://www.thelacquerfiles.com/2010/10/blue-leopard.html

Check out the full tutorial on my YouTube channel

www.youtube.com/dollface22772

I Love My.....Orgnx Color Care Shampoo & Conidtioner

For anyone who dyes and/or highlights your hair,

you know it can be a real issue when it comes to

finding a really good shampoo and conditioner that won't strip your color.

I have a pink/purple streak in my hair that I love, but let's be honest,

it's a royal pain in the ass to maintain.

I had resorted to separating my streak, from the rest of my hair,

and washing it separately with the gentlest shampoo I could find. 

so needless to say, I had been on the hunt for quite a while

to find something that was both nourishing to my hair, as well as gentle 

on my dyed hair.

I had heard of the brand Lacoupe before,

but not only had I never tried them, but I also

was unaware of their Orgnx line.

So I decided to give them a shot, and I am so glad I did. 

They are now my go-to products.

The shampoo and conditioner is exclusively 

for color-treated hair and duo comes 

in two different formulas: ENHANCE, 

a formula made for normal to oily, 

color-treated hair in need of volume, and REHYDRATE, 

intended for dry, coloured hair. 

Plus, both duos contain certified organic botanical's to fortify 

hair and protect it from environmental stress factors.

and #1 on my list? It's Sulfate-Free which 

anyone who dyes their hair knows that Sulfate will strip and dull your hair color.

I actually alternate between the two formulas, using ENHANCE

for my shampoo or conditioner and vice-versa with the REHYDRATE

My hair has never been happier.  
The color still fades, as it always does, but it is a much 
slower and gradual process and I can go up to 6-8 weeks 
before I need to do a re-dye job on my streak.

Lacoupe's Orgnx  is found in beauty salons, beauty supply shops, and some higher end drug stores.

Shampoo & conditioner retail for $9.99 each.

My Top Polish Picks for Spring & Summer

I apologize for being MIA the past several days, 

I am working through my house and packing up and 

unnecessary items for storage because I am currently in the market 

to buy a house and sell my existing place.

I will try to be as consistent as possible,

but if I miss a beat here and there, at least you will know why!

So here's a quick vid showing my top picks for 

Spring & Summer

MAC - Surf Baby Inspired

The moment MAC released press photos of their latest collection,

Surf Baby, I was immediately inspired.

Pulling out some of the colors and of course the Hibiscus flower, 

this is the design I came up with.

PRODUCTS USED:

PRO Nail Art Systems Base Coat

Petites Color Fever in - Creme Blue

L.A. Colors Art Deco in White & Yellow

KISS Brush On Nail Art in - Bikini Coral

Hurricane Nail Art Paint in - Magenta

Sally Hansen's Insta - Dri Top Coat

To see how I achieved this look,

please visit my YouTube page

www.youtube.com/dollface22772

I Love My......Sally Hansen Insta-Dri top coat

 I think that Sally Hansen's 

Insta-Dri top coat is one of the best, yet one of the most over-looked top coats available on the market today.

I, myself am guilty  for walking by this little gem on several occasions.

But, a few months back, fellow YouTuber Mary, aka Getting Nailed

did a test of several different top coats.

She tested the speed of dryness 

durability, and most importantly, the smudge proof test.

Don't know what I' referring to?

Let me give you an example.

Have you ever painted a nail design, 

and then wanting to seal in your hard work, you applied a top coat only to have it smear your work?

Oh yes, we've all been there.

With Mary's testing, she proved that Sally Hansen's Insta-Dri not only dried just as fast as some other main top coats such as Seche Ultra V & OPI Top Coat, but each and every application was smear-free.

And ever since then, it has become a staple in my daily nail life!

I still have a few other top coats lingering around, and if I'm applying just a single wash of color, but for all the designs I do, THIS

is the only top coat I'll ever use!

What's your favorite top coat?

Have you tried Sally Hansen's Insta-Dri top coat before?

Weekend Mani

I've really been itching to do some 

designs playing with variations of Green,

and while playing around I did this gradient

look, which is the same as my design that I did ages ago on YouTube, 

in Orange & Yellow. 

It is also available on my shop.

I liked it so much, I decided it had to be my next weekend mani!

I'll definitely be playing around more with these colors,

I'm really loving them!

I Love My.......a new weekly series

I hope you will enjoy the new weekly series that I am starting!

It's called, 

I Love My...

Every Monday a new post will go up about a product

that I am loving for the week.

Generally, you can expect it to be beauty related,

but I will certainly not limit myself to just that,

so you can expect it can be anything!

I think this is a great way to get some really 

good products introduced to you, that you may 

not have heard of, or perhaps have, but have yet to try

while also letting me rave about the things that

are my holy grail goodies & absolutely love!!

So today, for the 1st edition of 

I Love My......

Z-Palette

This palette was created by a 

makeup artist and has been on the market for a couple of years.

If you are a makeup junky like myself, 

then I am sure you have heard of this palette, 

either through countless YouTube reviews 
or from many beauty bloggers.

I personally have a very eclectic array of makeup,

which I think is a pretty common thing.

I don't like to have individual shadows, 
blushes, just floating around.

I like to keep everything in palettes, and I've got several.

What makes this particular palette unique is two things

#1 - It has a magnetic base with no fillers.

What do I mean when I say no fillers? 
Let me give you an example...

On the upper left is a standard MAC palette, 
notice that it has the empty slots for the shadows to go? 
The Z-Palette does not (bottom right) 

It has an empty space allowing you to put small round shadows,
large, square, you name it. 
Can you remove the filler out of the MAC palette 
to give you more room? Absolutely!
But let me tell you the 2nd unique feature to this palette.

#2 - It has a clear plastic top.

For me, this is what sold me on the palette.

No more guessing what colors are in each palette, 

you can simply see for yourself.

Z-Palettes come in 2 sizes, large and small.

This is the large palette which retails for $20.oo
the small $14.00.
They also come in a couple of different colors and patterns.

It can hold 28 standard MAC shadows, 
or 14 larger shadows, such as Makeup For Ever

Of course, you can place a wide assortment of shadows, 
large and small, like my palette here.
The palette is made of a very strong and sturdy 
cardboard with a magnet base for all your 
shadows to adhere to as well as a magnetic 
cover to securely close the palette.

Labeling is pretty simple as well.
Normally I'd just mark the bottom of the shadows themselves,
but since the magnet is so strong in the palette,
rather then trying to pull the color out, I've 
simply made a print out of the shades & brands
for any future reference.

This is currently the only palette I have, 

but I plan to buy more and convert 

most of my collection into Z-Palettes!

Have you heard of the Z-Palette before?
Do you own any?
Do you love them as much as I do?

Weekend mani

OPI's Blue Moon Lagoon layered over a single coat of

Essie's Turquoise & Caicos

Pure seafoamy holo goodness!

Wisteria

Friend and fellow YouTuber,

Andreea aka Pinkangell3

had asked me to do a design especially for long nails,

so this is what I came up with,

perfect for Spring!

PRODUCTS USED:

PRO Nail Systems Base Coat

Essie in - St. Lucia Lilac

LA Colors Art Deco in White

KISS Nail Art in - Soft Purple

LA Colors Art Deco in - Vibrant Purple

Art Club in - Marine Dream

Dotting Tool

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat

For the full tutorial on this look, 

please visit my YouTube channel

www.youtube.com/dollface22772