April 2013 Ipsy bag!

Ok so I know this is SUPER late but I wanted to share my thoughts on my April Ipsy bag because I absolutely LOVED it! You can watch me open it in my video HERE.

 April 2013 Ipsy bag

Ok so you might be thinking " this isn't the bag for April!"  I thought the same thing but then I noticed a note in my bag saying that my April bag didn't meet "quality" standards so they sent me this one instead.  It's cute...I guess but did have a horrific smell going on inside the bag.

Here are the items that I got in my bag:

Healthy Sexy Hair soy renewal:  This is an oil treatment that helps nourish your hair and eliminate frizz.  It also claims to help speed up the drying time on your hair if you use it right after you wash it.  I wasn't really sure if I would like this product but since I'm really into hair oils at the moment (I mean seriously about half of my hair care products are some type of oil) I thought it wouldn't hurt to try it.  I mainly used it after I washed my hair and it did help the drying time and left my hair nice and shiny but not greasy.  One thing I wish it did was make my hair softer.  My favorite hair oil at the moment, Proclaim Argan Oil Hair Treatment, makes my hair extremely soft and moisturized unlike the HSH soy renewal.  Overall, I wouldn't purchased this but if you like hair oils and the HSH line then you might want to try this out.

Mica Beauty Cosmetics shimmer powder in Earth:  I. LOVE. THIS. POWDAAA!  I wasn't sure how the color would look on my skin because it's lighter then what I would typically wear on my eyes but boy did this surprise me!  The powder was easy to work with and gave me just the right amount of shimmer on my eyes without being over the top.  I would recommend applying an eyeshadow base to help the pigment stick to the lids for better wear.

Be a Bombshell blush in Beach Please:  First, let me just say I love the name!  I personally don't use profanity but I see what they did there Be a Bombshell. ; )  Anyways, Beach Please is a bright fuchsia blush and I am soooo happy that I got this color because I've been looking for pink blush for some time now.  The blush is extremely pigmented and looks great against my skin.  If you're looking for a vibrant pink blush then this is it!

 Here's a quick swatch of Beach Please.

Sation nail polish in Of Corset I'll call You (OCICY):  This was another product that I was excited to try.  OCICY is a light bubblegum pink jelly polish.  If you want to achieve full opacity you'll probably have to use about 3-4 coats.  What I did in the swatch is apply two coats of OCICY, one coat of Essie Stroke Of Brilliance,  and then one more coat of OCICY on top.  I absolutely love these two together and can't wait to do more "jelly sandwiches" with this polish!

So that is all that I got in my April Ipsy bag!  I definitely think that Ipsy did an amazing job picking the products.  If you want to learn more about Ipsy then you can do so HERE (referral link).  

What was your favorite product from April's Ipsy bag?

Thanks for reading!

Crystal ❤

Spring Nail Trends! (2013)

Hey guys!  Spring has sprung and the sun is finally coming out!  Spring is probably my favorite time of the year because of all of the fun nail trends and collections that start to pop up during this season.  Today I wanted to share some of my favorite nail trends for Spring 2013!

 Click HERE to watch my Spring 2013 trends + polish picks video!

Pastel Shimmers
Pastels are always on trend during the Spring, but I have noticed that a lot of nail companies have come out with pastel colors with subtle shimmer or some sort of iridescence in them!  Here are some of my favorite collections that include some pastels with a "kick":

 China Glaze Avant Garden Collection

Image Source: Facebook

 OPI Euro Centrale Collection

Image Source: Facebook

Julep Playful Collection

Image Source: Facebook

More Spring collections with pastel shimmers:

Sinful Colors Sugar Rush collection

L'Oreal Versailles Romance Collection

Cobalt Blue
I LOVE BLUE!!!  I don't now why I'm just discovering cobalt blues, but let me tell you they are awesome!  If you love vibrant colors, especially blues, you definitely need grab a few ( yes more than one) cobalt blue polishes.  Here are some beautiful cobalt blue polishes:

L to R: Essie Butler Please, OPI Eurso Euro, Sally Hansen Pacific Blue

Image Source: Essie, OPI, Sally Hansen

More Cobalt Blues polishes:

Sinful Colors Endless Blue

Nails Inc Baker Street

Nina Ultra Pro Cobalt

Indie-esque Glitters
I've been a fan of indie polishes ever since I was introduced to them when I started blogging.  Indie polishes can vary as far as type and finish, but majority of indie polish makers make awesome glitter bombs! I know some people aren't too comfortable buying polishes from indie makers, but there's a solution!  Nowadays I've noticed a lot of mainstream nail polish companies coming out with some awesome glitter bombs!  Here are a few of my favorites:

 China Glaze Glitz Bitz 'N Pieces collection

Image Source: Facebook

Hard Candy Glitters

Image Source: Facebook

Other companies/collections with fun glitter polishes:

China Glaze Cirque Du Soleil collection

Orly (Hope & Freedom Fest and Flash Glam FX)

OPI Oz the Great and Powerful

Milani (Jewel FX and One Coat Glitter)

Textured Polishes
Textured polishes is the newest trend of the year and is kind of a love/hate thing amongst polish enthusiast.  They dry to a matte finish and leave a bumpy texture, almost like sandpaper, on your nails.  Personally I think textured polishes are okay; they look really pretty but I think I would just rub my fingers until all of the polish rubs off.  Here are some examples of textured polishes:

Zoya Pixie Dust Spring/Summer collections and Milani Textured Creams

Image Source: Milani (Facebook), Zoya (Zoya.com)

Others companies with textured polishes:

Julie G Frosted Gumdrops collection

Orly Megapixel FX collection

OPI Liquid Sands (Mariah Carey, Wizard of Oz, and Bond Girls)

China Glaze Texture collection

Nail Art Stickers/ Strips
Nail art strips and stickers are another thing that is gaining more popularity these days.  Sally Hansen was the first mainstream brand to come out with them (don't quote me on that) and many other companies have as well.  They're a quick and easy way to do your nails with no dry time and they come in a ton of different designs!  I'm not a big fan of them but I am curious about the Essie Sleek Sticks.

 Essie Sleek Sticks

Image Source: Essie.com

More companies that make Nail Art strips/stickers:

L'Oreal Paris Colour Riche Nail Lingerie 

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Real Nail Polish Strips

Maybelline Color Show Fashion Print Nail Stickers

Holographic Polishes
Holographic polishes have been around for a while but have recently become a "trend" again!  Holos are so much fun to look at and when you get them in the sun your eyes might explode (not literally) from all of the holo beautifulness (<--- is that even a word? Lol)  Here are some holographic collections that I'm loving:

 China Glaze Hologlam collection

Image Source: Facebook

Color Club Halo Hues

Image Source: Facebook

Some more holo goodness:

Ozotic

Glitter Gal

FUNG

Layla Hologram polishes

So there you have it!  I'm so excited to see all of the bright colors and fun nail art for this season.  If you guys ever want to share your nail art (or just the polish on your nails) you can post a picture on my Facebook page. 

What's your favorite nail trend this Spring? 

Thanks for reading; follow and share if you like!

Crystal ❤

** Tomorrow I'll be posting my top 13 polishes for Spring 2013!**

Nail Polish Spotlight (Combo): Sinful Colors Endless Blue & Essie Shine of the Times

Hello hello everyone!  Today I have probably the most AMAZING combo on the planet, or at least I think it is!  I was swatching some new polishes that I had bought a while ago and I decided to try Essie's Shine Of the Times (SOTT) on top of Sinful Colors Endless Blue; I was stunned at how great they look together!  I couldn't stop moving and staring at my nails because all of the colors were just so captivating!  I'll just let y'all look at the pictures. 

Fact:  I actually took over 300 pictures of this mani (I'm NOT joking), but I'm sure you guys wouldn't of wanted to scroll through THAT many pictures (LOL) so I cut that amount down drastically! ; )

From L to R:  Sinful Colors Endless Blue and Essie Shine Of the Times

I applied one coat of Essie SOTT over two coats of Sinful Colors Endless Blue.  I must say that Endless Blue is probably my favorite blue polish in my collection.  The application was great (almost a one-coater) and it didn't stain my nails after wearing this mani for over a week.  Oh and did I mention that I had NO chipping what's so ever when I took this off!  This is definitely one blue polish that everyone should get!

 Click "Read More" to see pics! : )

New Sinful Colors polishes!

Hello hello everyone!  I hope you all have had a Superb Sunday!  Tonight I wanted to share the rest of the Sinful Colors polishes that I picked up during Walgreen's recent $0.99 sale!  You can see the Sugar Rush polishes that I bought during the sale HERE.

Sinful Colors goodness! From L to R:  Endless Blue, Lush Life, and Star Dust.

 Click "Read More" to see swatches!

I did a little experiment!

Hey guys!  Sorry for the lack of post.  These past few days were "interesting."  Last week I got some shocking news about a friend (nothing too bad) that's kind of complicated to explain so I'll just leave it at that.  Yesterday I was searching internet for new job openings in my area and my mom called me and told me that her friend knew some guy that was looking to hire someone and left an application for me!!!  Not only did he leave an application, he also set up an interview for me that same afternoon!  My mom's friend dropped off the application and I had about 4 hours to fill it out and get dressed for my interview!  I haven't heard anything yet but I sure do hope I get this job! So yea, that's how the past week or so has been for me.

Enough with my excuses explanation, let's get to the "experiment" that I did!

When I first started following blogs I saw a post from Lizzy (The D.I.Y. Lady) about her first frakens.  I wasn't really sure what a fraken was, but when I saw her post I immediately wanted to make my own!  For those of you that might not know, a fraken is a polish that is made with polishes that you have in your collection (I think). Lol  I've been mixing my first fraken for a while now and I'm finally satisfied with it and wanted to show it to y'all! : )

 

 My first fraken!

Click "Read More"  to see swatches! ^_^

December Favorites! (2012)

Hey guys!  I usually share my favorites on my YouTube channel, but since I'm going to do a 2012 favorites video (which might be a bit long) I though that I would share my December favorites on my blog!  I'm going to show you guys my favorite things in 4 different categories: Makeup, nail polish, music, and apps.  You can check out my November Favorites video HERE.

Click "Read More" to see my December favorites!

Nail Polish Spotlight (Combo): China Glaze Electric Pineapple & Essie Stroke of Brilliance

Hey guys today I have a quick NPS post to share!  I've been a bit obsessed with glitter lately so when Essie introduced a new glitter polish in their Luxe Effects line I just knew that I had to have it!!!  Essie Stroke of Brilliance is a periwinkle blue glitter polish suspended in a clear base.  When I wore this polish I wanted to use a base color that was bright to add a little pop against the base color.

 For this mani I applied two coats of China Glaze Electric Pineapple and applied one coat of Essie Stroke of Brilliance on top.

 

  Can we just take a moment to drool over the multi-sized glittery goodness!!!  I absolutely love this glitter polish and combo so much.  The glitter distributed very nicely on the nail and the formula is fabulous.

 

If you have Essie Stroke of Brilliance I would love to hear some of your favorite polishes that you love pairing with this glitter.

 

Thanks for reading!

Crystal <3 

Tutorial: Rebecca Minkoff Inspired Nail Art

Hey guys I today I'm going to show y'all a nail design that I did a while ago that was inspired by a Rebecca Minkoff handbag that I saw on Hautelook a few months ago.

 Rebecca Minkoff inspired nails

 

Here is the purse that inspired the nail design

(Source: Hautelook)

Click "Read More" to see the tutorial

Nail Polish Spotlight: Essie Braziliant

Hey guys!  Today the Nail Polish Spotlight is going to shine over the beautiful Essie Braziliant!

Braziliant, from 2011 summer collection, is a bright medium orange with subtle pink and gold shimmer.

 



 This has to be one of my favorite polishes in my entire collection.  It's very opaque and I only used two coats for my mani.  For some reason my camera hates orange and made the color darker than it is in real life.

 

There you have it!  What are some of your favorite polishes?

Thanks for reading.  Follow and share if you like!
Crystal <3

June Nail Polish Haul + Swatches! (Picture Heavy post)

Hey y'all today I have a LOT of polish to show y'all!!!  Last month I went on a nail polish no-buy and "tried" to not buy any polish for the whole month!  Let's just say that lasted about three days, sad I know, but after my little fall to temptation I got right back on track and didn't buy anymore polish the rest of the month!

Let's get onto the polish shall we!!!!

Here are the polishes!!!

Click the "Read More" button to see all of these polishes up close and personal!