Model City Polish - Pink Diamonds

Here I am again, with another Model City Polish creation! Yesterday I showed you More Than Words, and today's color is just as lovely as yesterday's. Here it is, Pink Diamonds...

Pink Diamonds is a glitter topper that has pink and silver holographic micro glitter in a clear base. In these pictures I have one coat of Essie's "Pink Works",  three coats of "Pink Diamonds" and one coat of Seche Vite.

Check out that SPARKLE!

The thing about glitter toppers is that it always takes more than one or two coats to get that super sparkly effect. To get the look I have today, I put on two regular coats of pink diamonds and for the third coat I did more of the dabbing method. I feel like I got pretty good coverage!

Look for this and MANY other beautiful things at Nina's online shop:

shop.modelcitypolish.com

Thanks for stopping in! 'Til next time!

Model City Polish - More Than Words

In case you're taking a look at my blog for the first time, you should know that I am a HUGE Model City Polish fan. I have a vast array of pretties from this maker and I could stand to add a few more! You can imagine how CRAZY excited I was when Nina approached me to review a couple new MCP shades. 

Along with some new shades, Model City Polish is sporting a new look! Nina just unveiled a new label for her bottles, a new look on her blog and a brand spankin' new online store!

Today's installment is featuring one of MCP's new shades, "More Than Words".

(Come on, sing it. I know you know all the words.)

You need this polish in your life. Seriously. My pictures don't even deliver the beauty that is this polish. More than words is a raspberry jelly that has a lovely holo effect too! Along with the holo, there is a subtle red glitter in there as well. I used three coats for my pictures

 and one coat of Seche Vite.

It's gorgeous, isn't it?

If pink polish is your thing, hell even if it isn't, you need this polish.

Thanks for checking in! 

You can hook yourself up with some goodies over at Nina's shop at:

shop.modelcitypolish.com

I'm back!! Did you miss me??

Hello everyone! I just got back from vacation and I must apologize for taking an un-announced blog break! I didn't bring my laptop, or a light or anything! So, here I am! I'm back home, and I have something really cool for you today. As you may or may not have noticed, I've been workin on my stamping and I have been having a blast! I ordered a MoYou London stamping plate, and let me tell you...it was extremely difficult to only choose one. I chose one of the Artist series, where the design covers the entire plate. 

(This image is from the MoYou website)

THINK ABOUT ALL THE POSSIBILITIES!!!

I will be using this plate over and over again, I just know it. Alright...on to the good stuff!

Wheeeeeeeee! I am so proud of myself right now! I've still gotta work on tidiness, but I feel like this might be the best yet! I wanted this to have a mixed media sort of look. The colors I used are (Thumb) Revlon Spirit and Maybelline Color Show Blue Beats, (pointer, middle, ring) Zoya Blu and (pinky) OPI Liquid Sand Tiffany Case. Aside from the white polish and the black stamping polish these are all colors that I hadn't used yet!!

I can't wait to try some other designs, and get some more MoYou plates!

You can purchase MoYou plates, stamps and scrapers and all of your stamping needs from their website, on Amazon and on Etsy!

Emerald and Ash: Black Ice

Today's polish is one that really surprised me! It is my first Emerald and Ash polish, and it was gifted to me by my secret Santa, Erin! Upon first glance it looks like it's just a good old pewter silver. Wrong-o! It is, in fact, a silver polish but it also has a gorgeous holo to it as well. Today's color is Black Ice, and it is part of Emerald and Ash's Winter Nights collection. 

I had to throw in a shot of my seldom photographed right hand! The texture of this polish is great, I achieved full coverage with two thin coats. 

  

The above picture really shows that fabulous holo effect. Sorry about the dry cuticles...yikes!

Speaking of dry cuticles...Emerald and Ash also offers a FANTASTIC array of oils to calm your dry and cracking cuticles. I ordered the Pumpkin Apple Butter scent after being advised to do so by many people.

I just love this cuticle oil. I feel like it hydrates my nails and cuticles better than ALL of the others that I have tried. The winters here in MN are so cold and dry, I need all the help I can get. 

The square glass bottles are very unique and the cuticle oil has a user friendly metal roller for easy application. If you plan on ordering, CHOOSE THIS SCENT, it is absolutely delicious. 

Of course I had to throw in a little stamping...'cuz I'm still practicing! 

Emerald and Ash has their very own Online Store, and also a more limited selection on Etsy.

Practice Makes Perfect!

I've had some success with stamping lately, so I hope you don't mind me showing you my practice! I have an aztec type pattern that I thought would look awesome over this mint green that I have. I tried SO MANY times, and I just couldn't get it right. I wonder if maybe the stamping polish was drying too fast...

Anyway, I decided on a floral stamp, and I really like the way it turned out!

My colors are China Glaze "Highlight of my summer" and Maybelline Color Show "Clearly Spotted". I used my Konad stamping polish to do the stamping, obviously.

My thumbnail is too big to get covered by a full nail image, so I opted to used the black and white matte glitter topper by Maybelline instead.

It's not perfect, but I like it a lot. I've been enjoying stamping, for once! I did have some issues with my color choices for this mani. I absolutely love this bright mint green, but it takes 3 solid coats to get good coverage without bald spots. I'm also a bit too quick to apply topcoat at times, so the black stamping polish streaked. It's not real bad on my left hand, but you should see my right!! 

Practice makes perfect, right?

Always save dessert for last!

Today I have for you my final swatch from the 4 Mentality polishes that I ordered. Today's feature is Panna Cotta, and it is part of their "frosty mattes" collection. I'm going to start by saying that the texture and finish of this polish really is lovely. If you're looking for a very neutral and subdued color, this one is for you. 

My daughter even commented, "Mom, that polish looks just like your skin!". While this color may not be a first choice for me if I'm selecting a color to wear, it certainly is pretty. It's a very light peach with red/copper glass fleck in it. It has a pearly, matte finish. It also looks nice with a topcoat over it!

When I want a color that is delicate, and neutral with a little twist, I will choose Panna Cotta!

Mentality is available on Big Cartel and Etsy.

I've got some "Moe" Mentality for you!

I'm back with part #3 of my Mentality swatchfest! This time I am here to show you "Moe" which is one of Mentality's Stampers! Moe is a duochrome holo, that is purple with flashes of blue. 

I just love the consistency of  Mentality's polishes. The reason the go on so well is because a lot of them are considered stamping polishes. For a polish to be good for stamping, it should be fairly opaque and also shouldn't dry too fast. I used Moe alone and did a little stamping for this mani!

This color looks way more blue over the black doesn't it? I just love this color, and I love the holographic part of it too!

The stamp plate is Bundle Monster 315. I think that this Aztec type pattern is pretty cool! I've got lots of ways I can think of that would look great!

I'd be willing to bet you'll be seeing more stamping from me very soon!

GORGEOUS!!

Check out Mentality on Big Cartel and Etsy!

A Mentality Memento...

I'm pretty sure I've made it common knowledge that stamping isn't my strong suit. For some reason, I can't seem to get the images just right. Maybe it's been the scraper... Maybe it's been the polish...I've never been able to crack the code, until today. Today, my friends, I had a successful stamping experience! To create the look of this mani, I used Mentality's Memento. 

Memento is a metallic blackened red creme nail polish. It is gorgeous all on its own, but I wanted to try my hand at stamping with it. I'd been told my a few different people that Mentality's formula is great for stamping. I also read on the Mentality Big Cartel site that the metallic cremes are good for beginner stampers, like me! I felt like there was still a chance for me.

When I get a little better at stamping I'll give you a little more info, but for now it's just show and tell!

For my ring finger I used Memento as my base and Konad stamping polish for the black. For all of my other nails, I used a quick drying black polish and then stamped Memento over that. I have a set of Bundle Monster plates for stamping. 

Thanks for taking a look!

You can find Mentality on Etsy and Big Cartel!

What a Brute!

This is part one of my Mentality swatchfest!! I used a Christmas gift card to purchase some beautiful colors from Mentality on Etsy. This shop has such a vast variety of polish, it was very hard to select just a few of them! The first one I was drawn to was Brute. 

Brute is one of Mentality's matte shades. This is the second matte polish that I've purchased and it was much easier to work with than the first one I tried (it was not by Mentality).

Take a look, aint she purrrrdy???

One thing that caused me some problems is the drying time. I am an avid Seche Vite user...it dries lightning fast and that's why I love it. Obviously, you don't use a topcoat for a matte polish so it felt like it took FOREVER to dry. I fudged em up quite a few times. That is the reason they don't look impeccable!

Regardless of dry time, I LOVE this polish. I am a huge fan of blue nails, and this one is really beautiful. Great texture made for a super easy application. 

I touched it up a little for the second pic....it looks better, don't you think?

Look for Mentality on Etsy and Big Cartel. 

Bonus: Mentality offers FREE SHIPPING, and great prices!