Parrot Polish Flakie Goodness

***Press Sample***

Y'all, I am super stoked.  SUPER stoked.  Yesterday, something fantastical happened.  Something every mother *loves* to happen after giving birth.

I fit into my pre-pregnancy jeans.

No more maternity pants for this lady!  I am on Cloud 9!  Nothing can stop me now!!

Source

So let's celebrate with some nail polish flakie porn!  Aw yeah!  Parrot Polish released 3 flakie toppers, and guess who got to swatch them?

ME!

Please note, all toppers were swatched over "Pitch Black," a one-coater black creme by Parrot Polish :)

We'll start with "Ice:"

Mattify!!

Full disclosure - this one is thick, and the flakes stick up/curl a bit.  The base seemed to bubble as well (best seen in the matted photo), though that could very well be user error - I've seen polishes bubble on some people and not others.  Otherwise, it's got great coverage, and I just looooove the blue!  

Next up is "Hemisphere:"

The green flakes in Hemisphere are more opalescent to me which really adds to the effect.  This topper is a lot more sparse in application, so if you want more coverage, you'll either want to do 2-3 coats, or sponge them on.  All of my nails above have one coat except the ring finger, which has 2.

And lastly is the most beautiful of the three - "Oz:"

Where are my Ruby slippers - I wanna LIVE in Oz forever!!  This polish had the best coverage with no fishing required, and my nails looked like opals!!  Truly a completely stunning topper, and easily opaque in 2-3 coats.  

You can purchase these flakie toppers at the shop link below:

Shop

Facebook

Facebook Fan Group (US)

Facebook Fan Group (UK & Europe)

Instagram

What do you think of these toppers?  Are you as crazy about Oz as I am?  Let me know in the comments!

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Polishes were sent to me for photography purposes.  All experience with the polishes are my own and my disclosure remains 100% honest.

Gothic Gala Lacquers "Spring Bouquet" Collection

***Press Sample***

Tomorrow at noon Pacific Standard Time, Gothic Gala Lacquers will be releasing her Spring Bouquet Collection!

This is a ridiculously stunning collection that I am very much in love with because it is my two favorite things about spring polishes - holo (duh) and pastels!!  She even managed to squeeze some flakie goodness in these, too, which we all know is another weakness of mine ;)

Let's dive right in to some swatches, shall we?  Warning: it's about to get all picture happy and holographic up in here!

Note:  All are shown in 2 coats with topcoat.

We'll start with "Carnation:"

Carnation is a blue/green holo with a soft shimmer of flakies.

Next up: "Dusty Miller"

Dusty Miller is a silver/grey holo with silver flakies throughout.

Next: "English Daisy"

English Daisy is probably the biggest stunner of the collection.  It is a fuchsia/dark pink holo with gold flakies.

Here we have "Hyacinth:"

Hyacinth is a dusty lilac holo with violet flakies.

This beauty (and my personal fav of the bunch) is "Hydrangea:"

Hydrangea is a peridot-leaning green holo with green flakies throughout.  My accent nail is done with Sounds of Science from her Science is Beautiful collection.

And last but not least, we have "Star Flower:"

Star Flower is a soft powder blue holo with blue flakies throughout.

This whole collection is just perfect for the Spring season!  Makes me wish it were here already so I can start planting some flowers ^_^

The Spring Bouquet collection will be launching tomorrow at 12pm PST - and if you use the code MOMMRSANDME25 you'll get 25% off your order ;)  Here are some links for you:

Website

Facebook

Facebook Fan Group

Instagram

Twitter

Pinterest

I will also be posting macro brush-shot videos of each of these polishes on my Instagram, so make sure you're following me, because you definitely don't wanna miss the holo goodness!! 

Which one of these polishes is your favorite of the bunch?  Let me know in the comments!

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Polish was provided by the maker for photography purposes.  All opinions and experiences with the polish are my own and remain 100% honest.

Smokey Mountain Lacquers Valentine's Duo

***Discount Code***

I cannot believe V-Day is already less than a week away.  Where the heck is 2016 going - is it being sucked into some time vortex??

I suppose I should start rolling in those Valentine's manis and such.  I'll start today with the Smokey Mountain Lacquers Valentine's Duo:

The duo is comprised of a lilac purple holo called "Heartbreaker"...

...and a lovely pink holo glitter bomb with a blue shimmer called "Put A Ring On It."

Heartbreaker went on smoothly, only requiring 2 coats for opacity.  It dried a bit textured, so a good topcoat smoothed everything out nicely.  Put A Ring On It spread out wonderfully for a glitterbomb offering excellent coverage!  Two coats for complete opacity for this one, and it also dried just a bit textured and required topcoat to make it smooth and really make that holo pop!  The hearts on my middle and ring fingers were made using Valentine's day vinyls from Sweet Lacquer.

All in all this duo is adorable!  I like that it is a less conventional duo, meaning it's not strictly pink or red.  I love that the lilac is a color suited for many occasions and holidays (I can definitely see it used in an Easter mani), and that the pink is a softer, more vintage pink than an in-your-face Barbie pink.  Way more versatile (and tolerable for me :P ).

You can pick up a full size or mini size of this duo here - there aren't many sets left!  You can also follow Smokey Mountain Lacquers through these links:

Shop

Facebook

Facebook Fan Group

Instagram

Twitter

What do you think of these colors?  Do they suit V-day to you?  Let me know in the comments! <3

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Duo was purchased by me using a discount code provided as a thank you for working with SML in previous press samples.  All opinions and experiences with the polish are my own and remain 100% honest.

HPB Presents: Gradient

*Contains Press Sample*

Source

Well, not just today, but the entirety of last week.  I had a baby, y'all.  Mama is tired!  I regret nothing.

NOTHING!

So now I bring you a post with some nail art on the longest nails I think I've ever had - so long that I actually trimmed them down this weekend because they were becoming weapons, and I really didn't want to go through the hassle of registering them.

The always-amazing group Hobby Polish Bloggers put together another awesome link-up for the members, and this month's theme is "gradient."  I've been sitting on the beautiful "Make It Merry" Christmas Trio by 77 Nail Lacquer for about a month, wanting to do something awesome with them, but not sure what. 

This gradient theme was the perfect answer :D  So here's what I came up with:

Holooooooo!!!  Hngggggggg so gorgeous...

So for this look, I used "Santa Baby" for the base color.  I then used the "fishnet" vinyl stencil from What's Up Nails and sponged a gradient over Santa Baby using "Under the Mistletoe" and "Winter's Kiss."  The end result is everything I wanted it to be and then some - probably the best and smoothest gradient I have done thus far in my nail art life.  Huzzah!

So whatcha think?  Let me know in the comments, and be sure to check out the other nail designs through the inlinkz below <3

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Christmas Trio purchased with a blogger discount.  All opinions and experience with the polish are my own and remain 100% honest.

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An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Hoot "Love Birds"

***Press Sample***

I've got a super cute polish to show you today from Nail Hoot!  This one is called "Love Birds" and is a Valentine's Day special polish ^_^

Love Birds is a lovely rosy pink holographic polish with beautiful iridescent glitters throughout.  I am wearing two thin coats in the photos above, though this would likely be opaque in 3 coats.  On the accent nail is Octopus Party Nail Lacquer's "Milk & Honey" with some freehanded love birds (awwww).  

I really love this polish!!  It's well known at this point that I'm not a huge fan of pinks (I am SO picky about which ones I will wear), but this pink is that gorgeous Victorian/vintage rose color that I absolutely adore!  And the iridescent glitters really set this polish apart and make it very unique.  The glitters and holographic pigments complement each other so nicely.  All around, a really fantastic polish, especially for Valentine's Day!

Love Birds is limited edition and available for purchase now HERE!  And here are some Nail Hoot social links for you:

Shop

Facebook

Facebook Fan Group

Instagram

What do you think of this polish?  Let me know in the comments below! <3

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Polish was sent to me by the maker for swatches and a review.  All experience with the polish and opinions are my own and remain 100% honest.

I Have Returned!

Helloooooo lovelies!  After a two week hiatus from blogging due to giving birth to a football player (9 pounds, 6 ounces, 22 inches long - big boy!) I am back!!  I decided to come back with something a little fun that incorporates my new mommy pride AND nails ;)

I got an idea to once a week or two, do a nail design based off one of my new son's onesies.  I got the inspiration after receiving a super adorable one from family after he was born - seriously, my first thought was, "That is so cute and soft!" and my almost immediate second thought was, "That would make a cute mani!"  Here's a pic of the onesie:

Awwww look at the sweet boy ^_^

I promise I will not be one to spam you with pics of my new baby - but I will post the occasional one, because damn is he cute ^_^

Anyway!  Here's the nail design I came up with for it:

I used "Raven's Egg" by Chick Polish (retired brand) for the base color because it matched the blue of the onesie so well.  The fox is freehand painted using acrylic paints.

Ugh, I have a huge amount of grow out between my cuticles and the polish.  I had this design on for four days before I was finally able to photograph it, and prenatal vitamins are the shit when it comes to nail growth and strength.  

Anywho, I've got a lot planned for my blog this year!  Gonna do a few new things with it and will be getting back into the swing of things and posting more frequently.  I'll have some press samples for you next week, too!  Boo yah!  It's good to be back ^_^  Thanks for sticking with me!