Quilted Hearts - Trying my hand at Liquid Jelly's Tutorial

Happy Hump Day everyone!

Today I decided to share with you my attempt at completing a tutorial by written by one of my absolute FAVORITE bloggers Liquid Jelly  She completed this tutorial a few weeks back & I always kept in the back of my head that I wanted to try it.   Although my daughter told me i'm too old to be wearing this mani, I couldn't help but try.

I'm horrible at nail art but I was so proud of myself.  Although it's far from perfect, it just shows me that maybe next time I can do a little bit better.  I video'd myself during the process & it seemed everything in the world went wrong but I hoped to be an inspiration to other newbies who are afraid to jump in & try!  It's not perfect but I still love it.  Thank you Liquid Jelly for sharing your awesome talent!

 

 

Thanks for reading!!

Crystal

No Name Teal Franken--UPDATE

One of my AWESOME readers gave me the perfect name for my Franken...TEAL APPEAL!!!

Thank you One Lpt!!

I've been a bit M.I.A as life has been extremely busy lately.  Last night I had a little bit of down time & wanted to create a dark teal nail polish.  The final product ended up being a beautiful teal sparkled polish with a "hint" of glittered shimmer but I couldn't stop there.  I added a VERY tiny scoop of Spectraflair just for a tad more pop.  I couldn't help myself lol.  Anywho, I ended up loving the final product.  My daughter told me that this color does not suit my skin but I love it just the same.  Any help with a name would be greatly appreciated.  Just drop it in the comments.  I assure you that I read each & every comment.

 I added also added a video.  Please Enjoy

Versatile Blogger Award

I was recently nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award by an amazing blogger named Lace & Lacquers   Please head over to her awesome blog & check her out.  Thank you so much Lacey!!!  It took me a few days to post because to take my time & nominate other "new" blogs.

The rules of this are as follows:

1.  Nominate 15 fellow bloggers that are relatively new to blogging

2. Let them know you have nominated them

3. Share 7 random facts about yourself

4. Thank the blogger(s) who nominated you.

5.  Add the Versatile Blogger Award picture to your post

I nominate the blogs below.  I couldn't quite come up with 15 because i'm pretty new to blogging but this is the best I could do. 

I Nominate 

1.    BridgeNailArt

2.    Nai1chronicles

3.    Truly Polished

4.    Crystal's Crazy Combos

5.    Lush Lookz

6.    Polish Obsession

7.    Marijonails

8.    The Little Canvas 

7 Random Facts About Me

1.  I'm the mother of 3 children ages 25, 21 & 11

2.  I'm the grandmother of 8 month old Jordynn

3.  Besides Nail Polish, I'm addicted to collecting perfume! lol

4.  I make realistic dolls

5.  I love Sci-Fi Movies with a passion!!

6.  I have a hidden love for Reality Shows!!! 

7.  My favorite food are Crabs!!  I can eat a dozen steamed crabs all by myself lol

Chocolate Explosion & Purple Skittles Frankens

Happy Monday guys...

Today I was on instagram & was bombarded by gorgeous swatches of polishes with Spectraflair. They were unbelievable! I purchased 2 grams of the powder a few months back & decided to jump in & try my hand at an actual Franken versus a top coat.

I immediately knew I wanted to try a brown that I could like as browns tend to be washed out against my dark brown skin. Here's what I came up with & I LOVE IT!!  The Spectraflair seemed to EXPLODE in the Sun.  Hence the name Chocolate Explosion.

NOTE:  The video & photos were taken with my iPhone & do not do justice!  The video quality is horrible but I think u get the general idea.

Chocolate Explosion:

NYC in a minute top coat as base

Nicole by OPI Hard Fashionista

Milani Silver Dazzle

Sally Hansen Black Diamond

Kleancolor Black

2 Small Scoops of Spectraflair

(Deliberately Blurred to show Holo better)

Next I knew I wanted to do a purple color because we all know its my FAV color.  I couldn't help myself & I must say this has become my absolute fav polish I have!  It turned out SPECTACULAR!!  OMG when I say it RADIATES in the sun...I mean it!!  

Purple Skittles:

Wet N Wild Extra Shiny Top Coat as base

Nicole by OPI Prized Possession

Nicole by OPI Count on me

Nicole by OPI I'm a belieber

Sinful Colors Purple Diamond

Kleancolor Luscious Lilac

Kleancolor Black 

3  Scoops of Spectraflair

I attached a video to show live but still does not do justice!  I really wish u guys could see in person!!

Zoya Charisma ~ My First Born

Happy Monday everyone!  When Zoya had their B3G3 free promotion a few weeks I just HAD to purchase Charisma My oldest daughter is Named Charisma & I hurried & scooped this baby up.  I had been eyeing this for a while but because Charisma is a Neon, I felt I should wait until it was closer to Spring or Summer.

There are no words to describe Charisma's vivid, beautiful color.  Zoya describes this beauty as an Ultra bright neon fluorescent magenta/red-toned cream.  This neon shade dries matte, but also can be worn with a topcoat for a glossy finish.  I think the description is pretty dead on.

I used 2 coats in the photos below.  The formula was great & I didn't have any application problems.  t think Charisma is a young, fun summer color & whether you wear it matte or glossy, she's sure to attract attention.

So what do you think of Charisma?  Will you be wearing her this summer?  I know this grandma will.

Note:  Charisma was a beast when it came to capturing the correct color so I had to get my Photographer brother to hold his sis down & take the photos for me.  Thanks Brandon once again for taking a day out your busy schedule for me.  Too bad I can see EVERY mistake in my awful polish application.  

NOTD Purple Stamped & Mattified....

Happy hump day everyone.  Today I wanted to share with you a mani I wore this past weekend.  I have been looking for Essie Matte About You for MONTHS & I finally received it i a swap from one of my dear friends on Instagram @nailartfanatic & I couldn't wait to use it!  I squealed when I opened my package because I had no idea she was going to include it.  It was a huge surprise.

Also, I just wanted to share that I am an amateur polishaholic.  I created this blog because I love polishes & nail art and decided to learn from other blogs.  I'm not in any way an expert.  I'm just a grandma enjoying sharing my addiction with other & learning everyday to paint my nails.

I appreciate everyone who takes a glimpse of my blog.

Base:  Nicole by OPI "My Prized Possession"
Stamping Polish:  Kleancolors Metallic Fuchsia
Top Coat:  Essie Matte About You
Image Plate:  Konad M57

I must say's I love My Prized Possession on it own.  It's a gorgeous purple.  As you know, Purple & Pinks are my fav lol but I'm determined to tackle becoming a proficient stamper.

I think it came out awesome!  I'm so proud of myself.  Let me know what you think.

NOTE:  All pics were taken with my good 'ole iphone.  This is for fun right? lol.  I may invest in a good camera soon but I'd rather just buy more nail polish.

Avon Sunshine Stamped...happily surprised!

Hello everyone,

Anyone who knows me, know that i'm a huge fan of purple & pink polishes.  In fact most my collection is comprised of purples & pinks because that's what I gravitate to.  I usually have to force myself to go out my comfort zone to purchase other colors.  Well, today I wanted to go out of my comfort zone & share with you a beautiful YELLOW polish by Avon called Sunshine.

I was very nervous to even try this polish because I have deep dark brown skin & I was afraid I would look ridiculous wearing it, but I saw one of my Instagram buddies post some pictures of her wearing yellow a few days ago & it looks stunning on her brown skin.  I'm so glad I did because I think it looks amazing on me!!

I decided to add some stamping with my Cheekly X-Large plate A for fun

More pictures after the jump:  Warning Pic Heavy

Max Factory Fantasy Fire Stamped plus Tutorial

It's day 2 & I still can't stop looking at Max Factory Fantasy Fire.  Especially when the sun hit it.  But I wanted something different today.  I saw a leopard tutorial on several blogs & decided I would give it a try.  I'm not giving credit to anyone as i'm unsure where this originated from.

I used the video below as a guide but changed a couple of things to make it easier for me; however, if you're unable to view videos, I've posted the picture tutorial as well.  I love the outcome..ESPECIALLY in the sun.  



Max Factor "Purple Leopard" Nail Tutorial from Dionne Loftus on Vimeo.
Instead of using the Max Factor pen, I used Konad image plate M57 & Kleancolor polish in black (this stamps even better than the Konad black & doesn't smudge!!)
Here are my results.  What do you think?  I'd love to see yours as well.

Picture Tutorial after the jump:  Warning Pic Heavy

Max Factor Fantasy Fire-Love at First Sight.....

I have been desperate to try Max Factor Fantasy Fire since the very first day I heard about it but there was one HUGE problem.... It's only sold in the UK!! Ughhhhhh, how could something so beautiful not be sold in the states?!!!

Sending a special shoutout to my brother Brandon whose a photographer who came over this weekend & shot this beauty for FREE for his big sis.  I love u...

Well, thanks to 2 wonderful women Fay from Truly Polished & Cassie aka Cassgooner from Instagram, I managed to get my hands on several bottles!  I am so thankful to these ladies!!  Because of you, I can now use as much as I want.  I am overjoyed!!!!!

Fantasy Fire is a beautiful purplish, bluish, goldish, reddish Holo polish, depending on the angle & if you are using it on it's own or layering it over another polish.   It is said to be a close dupe of the long sold out Clarins 230 aka Unicorn Pee.  I will be doing a comparison of the two soon...  There are no words to describe this gorgeous polish so I leave you with the pictures instead.  The pictures show 3 coats of Fantasy Fire on it's own.  I will swatch it layered over other polishes at a later date as well but until then, enjoy this beauty alone in all it's glory.   Let me know what you think. 

WARNING:  Pic Heavy After the jump

THE WINNER OF MY 50 FOLLOWER GIVEAWAY IS..............

STARRZ N POLISH!!!!!!!!!!!

Your name has been randomly chosen to receive the ENTIRE China Glaze OMG Holographic Polish Set below!!

Thank you so much for following me & supporting my blog!! Please contact me within 3 days (Wednesday Noon EST) with your mailing information or I will randomly choose another winner.

To everyone else who participated, don't fret, I have another AMAZING giveaway coming up VERY soon!!

Special thank you to my daughter Tiara for pulling the name & to everyone who posted my giveaway on their Facebook, blogs, Twitters, Instagrams etc. You know who you are & I truly appreciate you guys.

Thank you for reading,

Crystal