MCP Christmas comes early!

     Hello everyone! Here is the promised review! As you might know, I am a total Model City Polish fangirl! Nina sure knows how to make some amazing polishes. It can be hard to stand out in the indie polish world, but something about Model City Polish's nail polish just works! I now have six polishes in my collection!

 (Back row: Fall Fest, Strawberry Jam, Seize the Rainbow

Bottom row: Sugar Plum, Jolly Happy Soul, Spearmint)

     So, when I saw a post on the MCP facebook about possibly reviewing and sampling some of the very promising Christmas collection I jumped right on it! I was hoping to get "O Christmas Tree" and "You're a Mean One," but I won't complain! (Because I'm just going to buy them later! Stay tuned for a review :P) I did end of receiving Sugar Plum, Jolly Happy Soul, Spearmint.

     The first one that I tested was the glittery "Jolly Happy Soul."

 (From the left: one coat, two coats, three coats)

     I *adore* this polish!! It is packed with black bars, black squares, and red and white hex glitter suspended in a clear iridescent base. This is a total glitter bomb! You don't need to go about picking glitter to get an even coverage on the nail. Normally, I hate anything to do with bar glitter but it works really well in this polish. I think you can get away with not using undies with "Jolly Happy Soul" because of how busy it is. One or two coats works great if you want to have some great statement nails but don't want too much going on. Two coats is ideal for me!

 (Close up of Jolly Happy Soul)

     Next was "Spearmint."

  (From the left: one coat, two coats, three coats)

     This polish is very sheer and is completely opaque at three coats. It has a beautiful shimmer to it and is very similar to Seize the Rainbow. The color compliments the holographic shine very well. It is beautiful and very Christmas-y. It reminds me of a tinsel or ice covered Christmas tree!

  (Close up of Spearmint)

     Last, but not least, is "Sugar Plum!"

  (From the left: one coat, two coats, three coats)

     This polish is much stronger in color than "Spearmint" and only requires two coats. I added three for good measure. It also has a light and catching holographic shine! It's name is perfect. It reminds me to the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker! This nail polish really captures the magic and beauty of the famous fairy.

 

(Close up of Sugarplum)

     All in all, these polishes were great! I would have to say that Holly Jolly Soul is my favorite out of these three!I love how unique the glitter is! Its iridescence really pops!

      

     After testing, I decided to see what "Holly Jolly Soul" looked like on both "Spearmint" and "Sugar Plum." Not too bad! I think I like it best on "Spearmint," but it doesn't look too bad on "Sugar Plum."

Thanks so much to MCP for giving me the opportunity to review these wonderful nail polishes! Looking forward to see what comes next!

xoxo

Coming Soon to a blog near you...

Hey there everyone! Ugh what a long gap! I have good news though!

*Camera problem = fixed
*Major updates coming soon!

So excited!
Stay tuned!!


xoxo

Update :(

Hello there! I'm having minor camera troubles hence why there have been no posts. I'm working on getting that back up and running! Don't worry...Nail Nerdiness isn't dead :D


xoxo

Finally!

I finally made it home and got my trick or treat nail packages from 365 Days of Color and Julep.  Swatches coming soon! There are so likes and dislikes for each! So stay posted!!

On another note, I went and got my nails done the other day. I didn't want them painted anything crazy since I like the way I do them. So, I got a simple french manicure. The main point of going was to get my nails shaped and trimmed professionally, since I'm terrible at it!

xoxo

Fight like a girl!

Here are my breast cancer awareness nails for the week! <3

xoxo

Trick or Treat! (a few weeks early)

Uh Oh...here is a prime example of my addiction to nail polish! I got this in an email and I couldn't resist :X

 

A beautiful bracelet, skull scarf and two polishes all for the price of $19.99. With a membership to Julep you get $3.99 off! I live in Mass. so I had to pay tax, so it ended up costing $19.99 anyway. But, I'd rather pay $19.99 than $22.99! Pretty great deal for everything you get!

 These polishes are beautiful: a dark, sexy black with purple glitter and a flirty, redish-pink glitter polish.

I can't wait to get it! I will be testing them out and posting about them here, don't you worry! I don't know which to try first, though. I guess I'll have time to decide since I opted for the cheaper 5-7 day delivery.

Edit:
I read the ad wrong! It was a mystery box that *could* include all those items. Check my other post to see what I did end up getting!

xoxo

Oh my gosh!

Wow I've hit 136 views as of the time of writing this post! Oh my goodness, I don't even know what to say! It may not seem like much to some people, but it means a lot to me. I'm so glad that people are reading and enjoying my blog! <3

If you like what I've done so far I really encourage you to follow me! Also, if any reader has a blog they would like me to check out and review for a little boost in readers please let me know! I'm happy to help anyone with a blog, cause, raffle, or review! :D

I also love recommendations of polish to check out and blogs to read!

xoxo

Hello! Sorry for the long gap again. I had been waiting for my mystery bag to come in, but it only just shipped yesterday! So, I figured it was time for a post and a mini review!

As some of you may know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. So many people are showing their support by wearing pink in their hair, on their clothes, and on their nails! Many blogs are even channeling "Mean Girls" and showing their support by doing a "On Wednesdays we wear pink" blog post. I completely agree with this cause and think it is extremely important! To all survivors and families affected by this cancer: God bless you! I send my prayers to you all <3

Here is my pink manicure:

 I used Essie Watermelon and Milani White Out to create a very subtle and sweet gradient from nail to nail. This was my first time attempting a gradient like this and I think it came out great! At the bottom, on my pinky, I used the Watermelon color with no white mix. (Sorry the picture got cropped!) I added drops of white and Watermelon on a piece of paper, mixed, and applied the modified polish with a spare brush.

Once the polish dried I used Model City Polish's Seize the Rainbow as an effect top coat.

OH. MY. GOD.

This top coat is a sparkling wonderland of beauty! I love the rainbow colors that appear in the holographic polish! I can not stop staring at my nails when the light hits it just right! So pretty :) The picture does not do it justice! (Hmm...I think I say that too much! :X)

So to wrap up!
Go pink to support Breast Cancer Awareness! Spread the word! Donate! Every little bit helps <3

xoxo

Halloween comes early!

Hey there!
I was browsing around on Facebook when I found this:

Naturally, I just had to follow the link and get one for myself! I remember getting mystery bags as a kid and being excited to see what I got! What better way is there to celebrate one of my favorite months/holidays!?

I am so excited to see what I get in the mystery bag! The best part is "These grab bags will have a guaranteed 2 FULL SIZE bottles in each bag. Then you get anything between 1-3 random gifts such as balms, oils or minis." All that for only $20! How cool is that!? I hope I get a good one! *finger crossed*

Rest assured...when I get mine I'll post about it!


xoxo

Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) Sugar Skull

Just a little post! These are my Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) Sugar Skull nails! 
I used:
Milani-White on the Spot
Milani- Gems
Essie- Watermelon
Sally Hansen-Sun Kissed
Sinful Colors- Happy Ending
Sinful Colors- Full Over
Finger Paints- Inkblot Blue
Model City Polish- Seize the Rainbow (added on the blue tips after the picture was taken :X)

This took a while to do because of all the small details. The blue tips are not even, but I was kind of rushing by then. Still, they don't look too bad :D

xoxo

Fall is here!

Hello everyone! Sorry for the gap in posting! I had a busy couple days because of homework, work, and all that fun stuff. Real life can be such a drag sometimes -_- Well ok...dramatic time is over! Time for polish! I got my package in the middle of the week, but couldn't open it due to me being away at school. So as you can imagine when I got home I tore into it! I was pleased to see a little black drawstring bag with my two polishes and a cherry blowpop, Model City Polish's little 'thank you' gift.

 

I was not pleased to see that my polish was wrapped up so tight in bubble wrap and foam that it took me a little extra time to get them open. Once that minor frustration passed, I realized it was a good thing because I didn't get smashed bottles and yucky dried nail polish. So thank goodness for that!

The first polish I decided to test out was the one I was most looking forward to...Fall Fest! I was a little nervous about it once I physically had the bottle in my hand because all the glitter had sunk down to one side and I couldn't get it to spread out. It seemed to not have a BB in it to help it mix up. (I realized later that it did.) However, once I opened it I realized that it wasn't much of a problem. The brush was able to pick enough of the glitter up.

This polish is a really sheer, soft brown so there is no way this is a one coat and done polish. I had to do two or three coats with a little bit of picking/placing to get the look I wanted with the small red, orange, yellow, and green hex glitter. This isn't a heavily packed polish compared to many of the other MCP polishes, but it works if you're going for a "falling leaves" look. It manages to capture the idea of Fall in a simple polish.

As far as "jelliness" goes, it doesn't show depth and layering quite as much as other polishes, which is a little bit of a bummer, but not enough to cause me to dislike it. In fact, I love it! I will be wearing it a lot this fall. I can tell already.

Once this mani begins to chip and wear down, I'll be testing out Seize the Rainbow!

xoxo

Strawberry Jam...yum!

Here it is...the review I said I would do a few posts back. Strawberry Jam by Model City Polish is the order of the day!

 This is a jam packed jellylicious glitter polish. The small red and silver glitter is suspended well in the polish. You can really see the layers and depth when it is painted on your nails...the sign of a great jelly! This polish is sheer, but could stand alone with one coat if done carefully to prevent streaks. The coats dry very quickly, so loading up the polish on the brush helps you spread out the glitter on the nail. However, with this polish there is no need for picking and placing.

I tell you the pictures do not do this sparkly polish justice! In sunlight, my nails shine like a disco ball! I swear I never get half as many compliments on my nails as I do when I wear this.

What you see here in the picture is three coats of the polish with a top coat. As with many glittery nail polishes, a bumpy surface is hard to avoid. I used a coat or two of my favorite top coat (usually Sephora UV top coat or Sally Hansen Hardener) to smooth things up! I think ending up with a smooth surface helps jellies show off the layers so much better! The polish is very thick, but not unmanageable at all. I definitely recommend the use of a base coat to make the removal a lot easier. Glitter is tough and likes to stick on everything!

If I had to give one thing that I did not like about this polish, I would have to say that it is how I have trouble making the polish by my cuticles not look weird. I have a hard time getting a nice look to it without having it end up wavy or strange looking. It is sort of hard to explain. However, that could simply be me simply being a perfectionist about my nail polish.

Like I mentioned before, I am currently waiting for two more MCP polishes to come in the mail. One of which is a fall themed jelly! So excited to try them out and review! Stay tuned to that! Shout out to Nina for her awesome work! Can't wait to see what else she comes out with!

xoxo

Attack of the mutant...nails?

Ugh...trimming and shaping nails is HARD.

I attempted to cut and file my nails on my own last night for the first time. They were a mismatch of short and long nails and an ugly sight to behold. So, I decided to face the music...it was time for an adjustment.

In the past, I'd simply head to a salon, get a mani/pedi, and be all set until my nails either broke or I gave in to that deadly sin...nail biting. I wasn't sure if any salons would just trim and shape my nails without polishing them. Now that nail art has become a hobby of mine, I don't see the point in getting a cookie cutter salon manicure with a flower or little gem that I could do myself. Sure, some places do *amazing* work and do create designs that are more "out there" but where is the fun of seeing your own work come together?

So I set out and gathered my meager group of tools, removed the sad remnants of my old polish (OPI Curve-acious for those who might be interested), and froze....what do I do next? Do I cut them then file? Or do I just file and hope for the best? I checked out a couple of resources online and found a couple that were very helpful! Lisa from nail-art-101.com has an awesome tutorial with an accompanying video! Her website is amazing as well so if you haven't been by...you are missing out!!

(nail buffer, nail clipper, Sephora glass nail file, Sally Hansen hardener top/base coat, Sephora polish remover)

The site that I used was called Getting Nails Into Shape an article from nailsmag.com. What I liked about it was the images that helped show how to file nails into different shapes. This site had everything from your basic square to a more exotic pointed nail! I'm more of a squoval girl myself.




(Image from nailsmag.com from left to right: pointed, oval, square, round and squoval)

So, I followed their directions and well...the nails came out ok-ish. Its a little more square than oval in the thumbs and the rest of the fingers could use more work, but all and all it wasn't bad for a first try. My main focus was really making them a similar length.

                                             (blurry picture of non dominant hand is blurry -_-)

On another note, I'd like to talk a little bit about my pictures that I'll be posting and about how...blah they will be for a bit. I do not have Photoshop at the moment and am limited to where I can take pictures. Alas, the life of a dorming college student! I will work on making them better and easier on the eyes, I promise! Also if any one has tips or tricks to share I'd be happy to hear them! I need advice on watermarking images and a few other things. I'll be happy to give you credit or even host a guest blog entry if you'd like to get the word out.

xoxo

Squeeee! New polish!

So excited to announce that I have just purchased two polishes from the wonderful Model City Polish on etsy! I currently own one polish from MCP and I love it to pieces. The way Nina does her jellies is amazing! Just the right amount of glitter so that there is even coverage all over the nail. None of that annoying picking and placing necessary! I also like that the polish I own (Strawberry Jam) isn't extremely sheer. I never have been a big fan of sheer polish. I think they are boring and don't have enough of a POP to them.

The first polish I ordered is called Fall Fest and it has me excited the most! It is a warm cocoa brown with red, orange, yellow, and green hex glitter. At the time of this post, there is only one left. So, I wonder if it'll be a limited edition polish or if more will be made. It looks beautiful in the pictures and makes me think of raking a big pile of crunchy leaves and jumping into it! I foresee myself wearing this a lot this fall!

Seize the Rainbow is the second MCP I ordered. It is a holographic topic coat which is 3 free (like other MCP polishes) and does not contain spectraflair (which is good since it is illegal and not recommended by the FDA.) I'm interested in seeing how this polish looks. I have a few effect topcoats, but nothing that could be really labeled holographic.

So, given my track record with MCP (however short it may be), I have high hopes for Seize the Rainbow and Fall Fest. I highly recommend giving them, and the rest of the MCP collection, a look.

xoxo

Shamless self post

The wonderful people over at Birchbox are currently holding a contest where the winner gets a whopping 100 polishes from Color Club! Now let me just say, that is freaking amazing! So naturally, I gave it a whirl. I'm probably really late in the submission because the contest ends soon (eep!) but hey, no risk no reward! Hm...did I make that up or is it a real quote from somewhere...

Any who, here is my submission.

Here is the link where you can vote for me if you like it :)


Please excuse my messiness and terrible watermark! Advice is always welcome!!

 xoxo

edit:
I did not win, despite having a whopping 3 votes! Aww shucks! :( There's always next time!

Not another nail polish blog...

Hello! I am another nail polish obsessed lacquered loser! I started this blog to document my adventures in seeking out polish perfections! Here's a little about myself:
I am a 21 year old starving college student...starving because I spend all my money on nail polish. My family and friends have begun calling nail polish my drug. Which may or may not be true...>_<
I have recently begun to explore the wonderful world of indie polish. I currently have only one from the very wonderful etsy shop, Model City Polish, which I'm sure I will talk about in another post. I'm hoping to broaden my indie polish collection over the upcoming months.
My current polish collection stands at around 80 or so. Most are old, practically ancient, and a few are from newer collections.
Essie and OPI are some of my favorite brands!
I follow around eight nail art blogs, so a lot of my ideas will come from them. I promise that I will link to them, but on the off chance I forget if someone lets me know I can remedy the situation.
I'm hoping to one day be able to write reviews about different kinds of polishes, from indie to mainstream.
Thanks a ton for taking the time to read my blog! Stick around for more to come! :)

xoxo