I moved!

So, I decided to change my blog to polishedintentions.blogspot.com. Huge difference, right? I thought I could change this blog's address and keep my content, but it is disabled (at the moment...forever? I don't know, I'm impatient), so I just made a new blog using the same email address.

 I will be posting over there from now on. Bye!

Polished Intentions

Cloudy Disposition

Today I have some swatches of my polish named Cloudy Disposition. I apologize for the stained fingers, I had a pigment accident last night. 

Two coats of Cloudy Disposition. My pictures aren't color accurate when it comes to the base - the base is a bit darker and more gray-blue than blue. 

Like I said, the base is more gray-blue than blue, but I just couldn't capture it or edit the photos to get the color just right. There is aqua shimmer and aqua shreds in the sheer but buildable base (opaque in about 3 coats). Fairly simple polish, but I think it's my favorite one so far, probably because of the base color. 

Handmixed polish... by me

Here are some macro shots of some polishes I have made (the black one is by my boyfriend :P). 

No name

Nightmares and Gemscapes

Underwater Refuge

Swatches coming soon!

Elevation Polish Ama Dablam

I attempted to do a gradient effect with Ama Dablam, but since it is a technique I'm new to, it didn't workout as well as I'd hoped! It was still quite pretty to look at though. This is one Ama Dablam over two coats China Glaze Man Hunt. 

The first time I used Ama Dablam it applied llike a dream. I layered it over China Glaze Fast Track and it ended up as the manicure I stared at all day. The manicure I have for you today is a different story. Ama Dablam was a little thick, which is to be expected of nail polish, especially glitter nail polish, and a tad tricky to use for a gradient (I'm mostly to blame since it was my first attempted gradient). However, thinner fixes everything :) 

Elevation Polish Ama Dablam

Ama Dablam contains teal holographic hex glitter, copper circles (don't they look like pennies?!), micro copper glitter, teal squares, and some more micro glitter. 

Ama Dablam is the only Elevation Polish I own (I'm working on changing that) and I have to say, all the positive reviews about this brand are true. Great customer service and beautiful product. Ama Dablam is LE and no longer available. You can purchase Elevation Polish on EP's wesbsite and Etsy. There are restocks the 7th of every month at 9:00CST on the website and 9:10CST on Etsy. Prices vary. 

Cover Band Sticks 'n Stones

Black and white glitter? I want to go to there.

Cover Band Sticks 'n' Stones over China Glaze Deviantly Darling

Deviantly Darling applies fairly smoothly, with minor streaking. Some of the streaking can probably be contributed to the fact that I don't use a base coat (my nails are prone to stains no matter what I use and polish tends to chip faster when I use a base coat - I can't explain it!). Back to the polish. I love the shift from teal to blue, paired with gold shimmer. Deviantly Darling was opaque in one coat, but I applied two, followed by one coat of Cover Band Sticks 'n' Stones. Sticks 'n' Stones was really thick when I first bought it, but after using some polish thinner it has been extremely easy to apply. 

You can buy China Glaze at Sally Beauty Supply, Ulta, and various online retailers. Sticks 'n' Stones is sold on Ninja Polish. 

Finger Paints Flakies

Here's an example of a very simple (really, it doesn't get easier than this) yet effectively interesting manicure.

I used one coat Finger Paints Twisted (flakies!) over Wet n Wild Black Creme and topped it off with China Glaze top coat, Matte Magic. Twisted is a dream to apply - it's thin but not lacking in flakies. 

If I recall correctly, Finger Paints flakies are no longer available, but you might find one in a blog sale or eBay. However, there is another source of flaky goodness. Nfu Oh is a wonderful brand that sells beautiful flaky nail polish as well as a variety of other kinds of polish. They're a bit pricey at $12.50, but completely worth it, in my opinion. 

Best looking bottles I've ever seen

Nfu 60, 51, 54, 39, and 38

I don't believe Nfu Oh has a flaky exactly like Finger Paints Twisted, but a little mixing and matching can give a similar effect.

China Glaze Watercolor Nails

I love watercolor nails. It makes for an interesting manicure and is relatively simple to accomplish. For this manicure, I chose to go for a harsher ring effect.

In order to do the watercolor effect on your nails, you are going to need a few things:

- Acetone

- Nail art brush (I bought mine from Sally Beauty Supply)

- Base color (I used China Glaze White on White)

- A few colors you want to have as your "rings" (I used China Glaze in Beach Cruise-r, Hang Ten-toes, Pink Plumeria, and Sun-Kissed)

I applied 2 coats of China Glaze White on White, then one coat of Seche Vite top coat (you can use 2 coats) and let it dry. I took one of my "ring" colors and placed a few dots on my nails. I dipped my brush in acetone, then dabbed my brush on the dots. Now, repeat the dotting and dabbing with acetone with the rest of your colors and finish with a top coat!

Really cute manicure and nearly foolproof! Have fun!

HARE Polish

A month or two ago I purchased a couple of beauties from HARE Polish on Etsy. It was a pre-order arrangement that went surprisingly fast considering Nikole, the mastermind behind HARE Polish, sold 100-150 bottles of 12 available shades. Impressive, I know.

L to R: why so igneous? and the sky was pink

the sky was pink

The Sky Was Pink. Can I just say how glad I am I took a chance and purchased a color outside of my comfort zone? I love the periwinkle hexes, blue squares, and (pink?) microglitter. Application was relatively easy and 2-3 coats were used to reach this level of opacity. I'm not sure why, but there is a noticeable amount of blue glitter stuck at the bottom/lower side of my bottle. I'm not sure if the blue glitter is just heavy, and/or while in transit the bottle was stuck in a certain position and the glitter just congregated in that spot (storing the polish upside down can usually help to "fix" this). It is not a problem, it is just something I noticed. 

why so igneous? over wet n wild black creme

Why So Igneous? This is one coat of Why So Igneous? over one coat of Wet n Wild Black Creme. There is red-based purple glitter and emerald green glitter, both in square and hex shape, in a sheer (but buildable) smoky purple base. Personally, I prefer to layer this color because 2-3 coats doesn't provide preferred opacity to wear alone. The color choices, both base and glitter, are very reminiscent of Barney.

Overall, I really like these colors and ease of application. My favorite of the two is definitely The Sky Was Pink, I think it is the dark horse of the collection. 

HARE polish can be purchased on Llarowe and Etsy. Availability varies, so check out HARE polish on Facebook for restock updates. 

No, I'm just a worm

A little preview of what's to come...

Underwater Refuge