Ulta Lilac Chrome and After Party

I decided to kill two Ulta birds with one stone by layering. I started out with two coats of Ulta Lilac Chrome and topped it off with two coats of of Ulta After Party. After Party consists of small mauve, red and silver glitter in a clear base. It would take too many coats to wear After Party alone (at least for me), but I love how it looks layered over a light color as this. I will have to try other layering combos in the future, but for now I'm enjoying this manicure...

On it's own Lilac Chrome is a sweet pink with a subtle pearly shimmer. I was impressed with how well it covered for being such a light color. No VNL after just two coats. Photos here with a top coat...

I think I didn't realize how long it has been since I've worn pink until I put this polish on. My taste in polish has changed so much from these sweet shimmery polishes to the dark vampy ones and everything in between. However, I do think that they all have their place. This was like a breath of fresh air. Such a sweet color!

Swatch Details
	Brand: Ulta Line: Salon Formula Color Name/Number: Lilac Chrome Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: Yes Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP)

How do you feel about colors like this?

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Warped Red Angel Plates...

I need your help! I have been trying unsuccessfully to stamp using my new Red Angel plates. Some images more or less come out OK and some won't transfer at all :(

I have a feeling this may partly be due to the fact that the plates are warped, but here is where I need your help... those of you who have the Red Angel plates... do yours look like this???

Here are the side shots from different angles... (sorry for the cotton fuzzies on the edges... :()

Just for comparison here is what my Bundle Monster plates look like... no gaps... (again sorry for the fuzzies)

And here are some cheap plates from E-bay... even these have no gaps...

I would like to know if all Red Angel plates are like this or I got a bad batch. I don't want to go thru the hassle of a return if they are all like this... please help!

Thanks in advance!!!
Anutka :)

Sally Hansen Salon Effects - Snow Bunny

My only prior experience with nail strips was that with the nail foils from The Born Pretty store here. They looked nice, but I couldn't stop picking at them and they came off in less than an hour. After that I have been mostly ignoring anything that resembled those nail strips and assuming they were all the same. As luck would have it, I won two packages of Sally Hansen Salon Effects as part of Carolina's amazing giveaway. One of them is this one, named Snow Bunny. Since I needed a break from the dark colors I have been wearing lately and these have such a cute holiday design, I decided to give them a try.

Upon careful inspection of the package, I was surprised to see that these are made with real nail polish and are removed with polish remover. The package came with everything needed to apply them and application itself was really easy. Just peel, stick, and file off the excess. So simple! Although I did manage to end up with a bubble at the tip of the ring finger :(

I did choose to add a topcoat over these which is not part of official directions. It didn't affect the look of the nail strips, but I feel that it made them adhere better and I could wrap the topcoat over the tips as I do with nail polish. These photos are pre-topcoat...

Overall, they were easy to apply, contoured to the nail well and didn't lift or peel as the nail foils. I was not at all tempted to pick at them and more than 24 hours later they still looked great. It was actually kind of sad when I removed them. I would definitely wear these again, especially for a trip where I don't plan on changing my manicure on an almost daily basis.

The package contained 2 blister packs with nail polish strips, a nail file, cuticle stick and detailed instructions. I didn't bother looking at the detailed instructions and the simple ones on the box were enough.

Inside each blister pack are 8 nail polish strips in varying sizes to accommodate different nail sizes. My nails are short enough that theoretically I could have cut these in half and used them for two manicures, but I didn't actually do that. After doing a full manicure, I'm left with 6 nail polish strips... accent nail anyone? :)

Have you tried nail polish strips before? Love them or leave them?

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Ulta - Chocolate Kiss

Ulta's Chocolate Kiss from the Salon Formula line is a rich chocolate brown with a coppery brown shimmer. As with the other polishes in this line, the slightly flattened brush and formula are great. Two coats for full coverage. Such a yummy color! :)

I did try to stamp over it with gold, but that was a disaster that I will not be showing you today. I have been playing with some of the new Red Angel stamping plates that I got and I'm convinced that they hate me. Not a single attempt transferred the full image. Has anyone else had this problem? So sad :(

This is two coats plus a top coat...

Swatch Details
	Brand: Ulta Line: Salon Formula Color Name/Number: Chocolate Kiss Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: Yes Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP)

What do you think of brown polishes?

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Ulta Wild Night with Sally Hansen Celeb City

I wanted to show you my fun Chanukah manicure that I have been wearing over the weekend. I just love the combination of dark blue with silver. I do wish the blue was a bit lighter, but on the other hand it did make quite a pop.

For the manicure I started out with two coats of Ulta Wild Night. Another polish from Ulta's Salon Formula line which I have been really impressed with so far. Then using scotch and striping tape I blocked off most of the nail and painted the tips with Sally Hansen Celeb City, which is a dense silver polish. For an accent, I used Celeb City to add a free-hand Menorah on the ring finger. Isn't it cute? :D

UPDATE: Tutorial for this manicure available here!

Below are swatches of Wild Night on its own. I used two coats plus a top coat in these photos. The formula is a bit on the thicker side, but I didn't have any problems with application. Two coats for full coverage. A gorgeous navy blue with a blue shimmer. The shimmer does hide with no direct light and after a few days of wear the polish seemed to get darker. Maybe that was just my imagination, but after 3 days of wear I could barely see the shimmer and it looked almost black.

Swatch Details
	Brand: Ulta Line: Salon Formula Color Name/Number: Wild Night Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: Yes Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP)

I hope you enjoyed my Chanukah manicure. I'd love to know your thoughts about it! :)

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Ulta - High Roller Stamped

This manicure reminds me of wrapping paper, although traditionally I think it would more likely be red paper with gold print. I do like how it looks in reverse with gold as a base. For this, I started out with two coats of High Roller, followed by stamping using Bundle Monster plate BM-206 and Ulta Ruby Slipper.

Here is what it looks like on its own, a beautiful champagne gold foil. The polish is made up of tiny gold and silver particles (just in case you like to analyze polishes as much as I do). It reminds me of Nicole by OPI - The Next CEO. I don't have the polish to do a direct comparison, but I'm sure they are close.

Swatch Details
	Brand: Ulta Collection: Salon Formula Main Line Color Name/Number: High Roller Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: Yes Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP)

What do you think of this color or the foil trend in general?
I love how well they work for stamping!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

The Nail Polish Tag...

Leslie of Polish Art Addiction tagged me with The Nail Polish Tag which I cannot pass up!

The rules are:

1. Answer the 10 questions.

2. Pass this tag to 5 other bloggers.

3. Make sure the bloggers that you tagged, knows that you tagged them, by sending them a comment on their blog.

1. How many nail polishes do you have?  My handy dandy spread sheet says I have 377 polishes. Add to that the 22 I just got in my swap with Fran and that brings me up to 399. I'm sure I have more hiding though... Anyone else think I have a problem? :P
2. What is your favorite brand of nail polish? I don't think I have a favorite. As long as they have a good formula, brush, and a color that I like, the brand doesn't matter much. Although I have to say that Zoya was the brand that turned me into a polish addict, so I do love them :D
3. Do you like crackle polish, or do you hate it? I like it, but I never seem to find the time wear it. Not sure why :)
4. What is your first nail polish brand? 1st nail polish ever didn't have a brand name. It was one my mom gave to me that she brought from Russia. I still have the almost empty bottle! The 1st brands I actually remember buying were Wet 'n Wild and Revlon back in high school years...
5. If you're going to have a nail polish line, what are you gonna name it? Wacky Laki... just kidding. I don't plan on producing nail polish so thinking up a name just seems silly.
6. What nail polish color does not compliment you? Yellows and oranges are very hard colors for me to wear.
7. And what color does compliment you? I think dark purples look good on me (or at least I love them so I choose to believe they look good on me :))
8. Name two of your best nail art friends? This is a tough one because I think of a friend as someone I interact with outside of just post comments. I think I miss out on that because I don't Twitter... maybe some day that will change. Anyone want to be my friend? :D

For now I would say my nail art friend is Fran from Francirocks. We developed a friendship while doing the swap.
9. What was the best nail polish gift you have ever received? Every time I have won a giveaway has been like a gift. I'm amazed by people's generosity and am always so greatful! Of course I'm also thankful for fun unexpected gifts like the one my cousin gave me here.
10. Make a speech about thanking the blogger who gave you this tag. I would like to thank Leslie of Polish Art Addiction for tagging me with this. Her art is such an inspiration to me. Make sure to check her blog out! Thank you so much Leslie! 

In no particular order, I would like to tag...

Antallex of Notes on Nails

Bregje of Oooh, Shinies!

Ritterbraten of Das Experiment

Rebecca of Rebecca Likes Nails

Traci of The TraceFace Philes

Thanks for looking!

Anutka :)

Ulta - Ruby Slipper Dressed Up

I have been slacking on posting (or doing) any nail art lately, so I thought I would do some today. I started out with Ulta Ruby Slipper and added freehand swirls plus a border using black acrylic paint. The gold accents were done using Sinful Colors Nail Art in Flower Girl.

This makes me think of those 18th century (correct me if I'm off in my time period) corset dresses that had an inset of pattern either in the bodice or down the entire length in the front. The whole things looks like velvet...

Here is Ruby Slipper by itself. A shimmery red with just a hint of maroon. Application was great with two coats for full coverage. Swatch photos taken with a top coat. It is slightly darker in real life than the photos show. Closer to the color on the index finger or the bottle.

Swatch Details
	Brand: Collection: Color Name/Number: Number of coats: Top Coat: Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP) Enriched with:

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Nail Art Friendly Blog Award!

I got this award from two very talented ladies: Theodora of Red Hair and Black Nail Polish and Kim of KimsKie's Nails. I'm am so touched! Thank you so much to both of you. Please check out their blogs if you have not done so before :)

I would like to pass this on to some bloggers whose art I admire very much!

Here they are in no particular order...

Leslie of Polish Art Addiction

Marta of ChitChat Nails

Carolina of Colors de Carol

Tera of Nails in Nippon

Koryna of Kory Nails

Sammy of Nailasaurus

Christina of Let them Have Polish

Amy of The Polished Perfectionist

Deniz of Emerald Sparkled

Rin of Simply Rins

Linda of Copy That, Copy Cat
Jane of Nailside

I'm sure I'm forgetting lots... forgive me :)

Thanks for looking!

Anutka :)

Avon - Gleaming Gold

Last week I used Avon Gleaming Gold for stamping and said that I would swatch it by itself. Needing a break from the Ulta marathon, I figured there is no better time than the present...

In the bottle, Gleaming Gold appears as a foil with very fine particles so I was surprised when it didn't apply like one. The formula is somewhat prone to streaks and requires a very light application. This was not too much of a problem since the slightly widened brush is very easy to work with.  It was fully opaque in two coats, although I can see a bit of the nail line in these photos.

This is two coats with a top coat...

Swatch Details
	Brand: Avon Collection: Main Line Color Name/Number: Gleaming Gold Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: Yes Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP)

Here is a quick peek at what it looked like stamped over Avon Violetta Sparkle. I think I will be reserving it for this use :)

What do you think... save it for stamping or wear on by itself?

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Ulta - Army of 1 with Prestige

I have been wearing a lot of purples lately and even though I love them, it was time for a change so out came an army green. This one is called Army of 1 from Ulta's Salon Formula line. I have had an obsession with this color for quite a while now and have accumulated a few polishes from different brands that at least in the bottles all look like this one. I will try to compare them at some point.

The formula on the polish was a little thick, but manageable. Nothing a little polish thinner couldn't fix. The brush is slightly widened and very easy to work with. This is two coats for full coverage...

Swatch Details
	Brand: Ulta Collection: Main Salon Formula line Color Name/Number: Army of 1 Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: yes Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP)

I like the color, but once I had it on as a full manicure it just seemed to be missing something... a little spark. Maybe that is because I have been wearing a lot of shimmery polishes lately and the cream finish of this seemed boring, but I decided to spice it up.

I chose to use a polish I have had in my collection for a long, long time, but have not used recently because is so sheer (and I have only recently discovered the magic of layering polishes). Sadly I have no name for this polish. The brand is Prestige about which I also have no information. I'm assuming it either came in some sort of set or dollar store maybe. If anyone has info on this brand please let me know. Trying to google "prestige nail lacquer" is useless since I come up with all the brands that are "prestigious".

The polish is a milky sheer base with a gold shimmer. It is sadly not B3F, which is a big negative in my book. This is one coat of prestige polish over two coats of Ulta's Army of 1...

Some different angles...

It reminds me of the "effect" polishes that are so popular right now. Are you a fan on the layering trend?

P.S. I'm trying to swatch all my Ulta polishes right now because of the requests in the haul post, but I would like to know if you get tired of seeing the same brand day after day and want variety, or if this is good. Your comments are greatly appreciated!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)