Versatile Blogger Award

I was awarded the versatile blogger award by I'm All Polished Off!, Naked Without Polish, Polished Paradise, Kimpelling Beauty and Narcissistic Nails! A big thank you to all of you for passing this award on to me :)

The rules for 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.

7 Facts About Myself:

1. I love sci-fi series!!!
2. Blue and purple are the biggest colour groups in my collection
3. I have are 4 lovebirds - 2 mated pairs
4. I love travelling!
5. All my nails have to be the same length. It drives me crazy if they're uneven O.o
6. I'm a huge night owl
7. I love grapefruit :)

15 Nominated Blogs:

1. A Rhyming Dictionary
2. AbbieNail 
3. All The Pretty Polish
4. Did My Nails 
5. Doing My Nails
6. Finger Painting Fingers 
7. Less Than A Queen
8. Lovely Lady's Nails
9. Nails Never Fails
10. Nibbler Files: A Nail Biter's Blog
11. No Holos! Frankens and Nail Art Blog
12. Plisherrific
13. Polished Genius
14. Polished Peripherals 
15. World of Polish 

Please do check out the above blogs!

Red and Black Nails

Yay it's my birthday tomorrow!!! Ok random :)

I have been wanting to try vertical studs down the nail since I saw this post by Aly Loves Lacquer. Therefore I decided to use black rhinestones (2mm) down my ring fingers on both hands. I had originally planned on doing all nails but quickly realised I wouldn't have enough rhinestone. I wanted to add a bit of glitter so I applied a layer of Spoiled Shuffle The Deck onto my thumbs. I topped these nails off with Ulta3 Non Chip top coat. Note to self: don't ever use this top coat just before bed! Even with drying drops it indented so badly >.<

I actually wore my nails like this for Mothers Day which may sounds horrible but it matched my dress perfectly :)

Red and Black Nails in Artificial Light

Red and Black Nails in Artificial Light

I had been dying to try out the gradient techique by The Nailasaurus and with Diablo 3 newly released what other colours could I choose but red and black :) So I used China Glaze Poinsettia and BYS Black Satin and applied them to a piece of paper and then mixed the two where they joined. I then sponged this onto my other nails.

Again I only have photos in artificial light because of the terrible weather :(

Diablo Nails in Artificial Light

Diablo Nails in Artificial Light

I love this gradient technique! I honestly can't wait to do this again with the red/black gradient on all my nails I loved it that much :)

Weekly Giveaway Round Up

Some gorgeous prizes up for grabs!

Irsada's Beauty-full World is having a Spring and Summer Giveaway!

The prizes are:

• Urban Decay "beauty with an edge" nail polish set
• O.P.I. Spring Minis

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 16th June at midnight EST. To enter click HERE.

Osiris and Loki Paint Their Nails are having A Giveaway For All!

 The prizes are:

• max factor fantasy fire
• the Hungry asian sea creature
• a ring
•  no name franken.

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 12th June 2012. To enter click HERE.

A Polish Addict is having a 650 Follower Giveaway!

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 7th June 2012. To enter click HERE.

Plisherrific is having their First Giveaway!

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 11th June 2012. To enter click HERE.

Glam Polish is having a 1500 Follower Giveaway!

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open to Australia and Mainland US residents only and ends 30th June 2012. To enter click HERE.

The Trace Face Philes is having a Candeo Colors Prototype Giveaway!

 The prizes are:

• 4 prototype polishes from Candeo Colors

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 1st June 2012. To enter click HERE.

Josie's Nails is having a Summer Polish Giveaway!

 The prizes are:

• OPI: Flashbulb Fuchsia
• China Glaze: Full Spectrum
• OPI: Pirouette My Whistle
• China Glaze: Optical Illusion
• OPI: Clubbing Til Sunrise 
• a print from here Etsy shop

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 4th July 2012. To enter click HERE.

Captivating Claws and Confessions of a Sarcastic Mom are having a Super Awesome Fantastic Giveaway!

Prize Pack 1:

• one set of OPI Spider-Man Minis, including Into the Night, Number One Nemesis, Just Spotted the Lizard and Your Web or Mine?

Prize Pack 2:

•  one set of Orly Feel the Vibe Collection minis, including Beach Cruiser, Melt Your Popscicle, Glowstick, and Skinny Dip

Prize Pack 3:

•  one set of OPI Barefoot Beauties, including Coconut Melon mini Avojuice lotion, Expert Touch Lacquer Remover, Toe Separators and full sized bottles of Natural Nail Base Coat and OPI Top Coat

Prize Pack 4:

•  one set of five polishes from the Color Club Take Wing collection

Prize Pack 5:

•  one Wet n Wild summer bucket, featuring six Fast Dry polishes, top coat and nail art supplies

Prize Pack 6:

•  one bottle of Floam

There will be six winners, each of whom will win one prize pack. This giveaway is open internationally and ends 4th June 2012. To enter click HERE or HERE.

China Glaze Poinsettia

I haven't worn a red for some time so I chose China Glaze Poinsettia from the Let It Snow collection. Poinsettia is a gorgeous bright red jelly that fits in very well with the Christmas collection it's from.

I used Sally Hansen Tripe Strong for my base coat. Then I applied two coats of Poinsettia which applied like butter! Since it's a jelly after two coats there was still VNL but it actually didn't seem to bother me which is strange since I usually hate it. I finished off with a coat of Sally Hansen Mega Shine top coat.

Now for the photos. As I said there is definite VNL that you can see in the photos.

China Glaze Poinsettia in Artificial Light

China Glaze Poinsettia in Natural Light

China Glaze Poinsettia in the Shade

I can't believe it took me this long to try Poinsettia! Since I had almost forgot about it the jelly formula was a pleasant surprise! I actually can't wait to use this with one of the new Spoiled glitters that I received from Sarah :) Jelly sandwich here I come!

Nail Mail from Bethany!

Yay another early birthday present! Lol not really but that's how it feels to me :) I won a giveaway over at A Plethora Of Nails and was over the moon happy! You'll see why...

First up these amazing Revlons! I had been looking at getting some of these as soon as Priceline had some kind of deal on but they're really expensive here. Hence, why I was SO happy to win these in Bethany's giveaway :)

Revlon Whimsical, Popular, Facets Of Fuchsia and Radiant

My first Claire's polish!! I have been dying to get these three polishes since they've been popping up on many nail blogs taunting me with their gorgeous photos >.<

Claire's Candy Shop, Sinful Colors Cinderella and Essence Choose Me!

Every single polish that Bethany sent me was on my wishlist, not to mention mostly dupes of more expensive brands, so I couldn't have been more happy! I can't thank Bethany enough for sending me these gorgeous polishes and my package arrived so quickly. I swear looking at these goodies I'm like a kid in a candy shop unable to make up my mind of what to try first lol :)

Face of Australia Barbados Collection Swatches

As you may remember when Big W had AUD$3 off Face of Australia products I purchased 7 polishes from the new Barbados collection.

Each of these swatches is without base and top coat. Two coats were used in each swatch. All photos taken in artificial light.


Calypso Gold

Calypso Gold is a gorgeous champagne colour with a gold shimmer. The gold shimmer didn't turn up well in my photos but you can see it in the bottle :) This is such a gorgeous light happy colour that I love!


Orange You Glad You Came

Orange You Glad You Came is a bright orange with a gold shimmer. First off please excuse my pinkie, I was trying to manoeuvre the bottle and manage to mash the nail polish on my pinkie :( Anyway this is a fantastic Summer colour in my opinion. Again the shimmer didn't photograph well but can be seem in the bottle. I was surprised at just how bright an orange this is! A definite happy colour :)


Bright Lights, Pink City

Bright Lights, Pink City is a pink jelly with gold shimmer. Yay, this time the gold shimmer actually showed up in my photos :) This one is sheerer than the others and after two coats still has VNL so you might want to use a third coat. I really loved this colour :)


Another Daiquiri Please

Another Daiquiri Please is a dark pink jelly leaning towards red with a delicate pink shimmer.  Like Bright Lights, Pink City this one is also very sheer and again could use three coats as there is still VNL. Another Daiquiri Please looks so juicy on the nail :)


I Like To Mauve It

I Like To Mauve It is a pink mauve with a silver shimmer. This was another one of my favourites, surprising since it's such a girly colour. Another pretty squishy pink :)



You Blue Me Away

You Blue Me Away is a light blue with a silver shimmer. It has more of a foil finish than the jellies in the rest of this collection. This was another one of my favourite and immediately went on my toes since my nails were already painted!


Let's Go Scuba Diving

Let's Go Scuba Diving is a bright teal with a blue/green shimmer. Another gorgeous polish but this one reminds me of mermaids lol. Definitely a vacation celebration shade. Can't wait to wear this as a full manicure.



Overall

I love the colours in this collection! I have nothing like these shades already in my collection so I was so happy to pick thee up. The one shade I didn't pick up was Party At The Gap because I was after bright colours and I think I have similar colours to PATG already. Anyone else pick up any from this collection?

Ulta3 Haul!

I mentioned in an earlier post that Coles had Ulta3 polishes on sale for AUD$1 and I of course took advantage and picked several colours up :) So what did  I grab?..

First of all I needed a white that wasn't like water since my Revlon White On White is terrible to use for any nail art :( The other colours were just so pretty I had to grab them!

Ulta3 Lily White, Honolulu, Watermelon and Party Shoes

I was hoping to get other glitters but my local Coles only had the blue glitter :( Again I got most of these to use for nail art.

Ulta3 Eighties Fuchsia, Hollywood, Blue Glitter and Mermaid Green

There were a few other colours I had been hoping to get but they weren't available at my local Coles and I haven't yet gone visiting other ones to see what they have. Did anyone else pick up any of the Ulta3 polishes from their Coles?

Weekly Giveaway Round Up

I've got my fingers crossed for these giveaways!!

The TraceFace Philes is having a 4000 Follower Giveaway!

The prizes are:

• 2 $25 Llarowe Gift Certificate
• 2 $25 Harlow & Co Gift Certificate

There will be four very lucky winners!! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 23rd June 2012. To enter click HERE.

Polished Criminails is having a 1000 Follower Giveaway!

 Prize 1 is:

• GOSH - Rainbow
• Max Factor - Fantasy Fire

 

 Prize 2 is:

• Models Own  Ibiza Mix
• Models Own Disco Heaven

  

Prize 3 is:

• Barry M Teal
• Barry M Silvery Lilac
• Barry M Denim

There will be three lucky winners! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 18th June 2012. To enter click HERE.

Piece of Pie is having a Giveaway!

The prize is:

• Charming Nails Q1 Image Plate

There will be one lucky winners! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 13th June 2012. To enter click HERE.

Nail & Polish is having a 200 Follower Giveaway!

 The prizes are:

• Ozotic Pro - 512 
• Ozotic Pro - 79

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 29th May 2012. To enter click HERE.

Glitter Obsession is celebrating Giveaway Time!

Prize 1 is:

• Revlon Whimsical 
• Sinful Colors Cinderella

Prize 2 is:

• Orly Fowl Play, 
• Revlon Scandalous
• Milani Totally Cool
• Julep Anne

Prize 3 is:

• Essie Luxeffects Collection

 Prize 4 is:

•  Sally Hansen GEM crush Collection

 There will be four lucky winners! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 8th June 2012. To enter click HERE.

Blushing Noir is having a Twice The Fun Giveaway!

 Prize 1 is:

• Stila Delicate Nail Polish Set & Victoria's Secret Plumping Gloss Duo in Pink

Prize 2 is:

•  Stila Daring Nail Polish Set & Victoria's Secret Plumping Gloss Duo in Nude

There will be two lucky winners! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 28th May 2012. To enter click HERE.

I'm Still Thinking is having a 800+ Follower Giveaway!

 The prize is:

• 3 BB Couture Polishes of your choice

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 8th June 2012. To enter click HERE.

Nailed to the T is having a Follower Appreciation Giveaway!

 The prize is:

• NailVenturous Flying Blue Jay

 There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 31st May 2012. To enter click HERE.

Polished Indulgence is having a First Ever Birthday Month giveaway!

 The prizes are:

• Nubar Prize
• Finger Paints Twisted
• Julep Emma
• Layla Magneffect Turquoise Wave

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 8th June 2012 at 12.01am EST. To enter click HERE.

Gnarly Gnails is having a 300 Follower Giveaway!

 The prizes are:

• OPI Spiderman Minis Collection
• OPI Avoplex Cuticle Oil
• OPI Nail Envy Original
• Nail Art Surprise!

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 15th June 2012. To enter click HERE.

The Nail Junkie is having a Hole Hearted giveaway!

 The prize is:

• All That Glitters Hole Hearted!

There will be one lucky winner! This giveaway is open internationally and ends 23rd May 2012. To enter click HERE.

Nail Mail from Sarah!

I was one of the winners of the 1000 Follower Giveaway over at The Giveaway Lifestyle. There were 4 winners and I was drawn 3rd so I didn't think I would get my first choice but I did! It's taken me awhile to get this post up but my package arrived from Sarah just over a week after she sent it - how crazy quick is that from the US to Aus!

Everything was perfectly packaged and opening the box was like opening a present on Christmas morning!

Everything was perfectly wrapped!

 Everything unwrapped! I left it like this for awhile just looking at the pretties :)

Look at these beauties!

I was so happy to get these since I don't own any Spoiled polishes! Also Ants In My Pants and Shuffle The Deck were on my wish list from seeing gorgeous swatches floating about the nail polish community :)

Spoiled Shuffle The Deck, Paying With Platinum and Ants In My Pants

My first Sinful Colors polishes! Also on my wishlist was Green Ocean which I was so happy to receive!! Bikini looks to be a gorgeous bright neon pink and I can't wait to try it out since I have almost no neon polishes.

Sinful Colors Bikini and Green Ocean

Yay my first Nubar too :) Nubar Indigo Illusion was the very reason I chose this prize pack! I was jumping for joy when I unwrapped this beauty :) IMO Fairy Dust should be a staple in every nail polish lovers collection!

Nubar Indigo Illusion and China Glaze Fairy Dust

Always good to have nail files for on the go! And you can never have enough cuticle cream! I LOVE Burt's Bees Lemon Butter and always use it after painting my nails :)

Ms Manicure Mini Salon Boards and Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream

 The lovely note from Sarah :)

Very sweet card from Sarah :)

I have to give a HUGE thank you Sarah for sending me these wonderful prizes. Because of Sarah I have my first Sinful Colors, Nubar and Spoiled polishes! Not to mention all the polishes Sarah crossed off my wishlist :) I was so happy to be one of the winners of this giveaway especially since May is my birthday month so it was like receiving an early birthday present!!

Sparkly Butterfly Nails (Pic Heavy)

I'm finally getting around to posting the end design I did with my two toned nails decked out in glitter. I have seen butterfly nails floating around on many nail blogs and have been dying to try them myself. So this was my attempt :)

Nail Art 101 has a great tutorial on how to do butterfly nails but I did mine the long way but drawing each individual segment. I used BYS Black Satin and a nail art brush to draw the outline to my butterfly wings. Then I used the BYS brush to apply more of the black polish as well as using the nail art brush to fill in any gaps. Finally I used a white Konad Nail Art Pen to draw dots on the top section of black and slightly down in to the sections. Originally I wanted to use my dotting tools to make different sized dots but my Revlon White On White was too thin to use :( Finally I topped my nails with a coat of Sally Hansen Mega Shine.

First up in artificial light!

Butterfly Nails in Artificial Light - Right Hand

Butterfly Nails in Artificial Light - Right Hand

Butterfly Nails in Artificial Light - Left Hand

Butterfly Nails in Artificial Light - Left Hand

Ooh and the picture in natural light too! There wasn't much sun out so these are kind of between sun and shade.

Butterfly Nails in Natural Light - Right Hand

Butterfly Nails in Natural Light - Right Hand

Butterfly Nails in Natural Light - Left Hand

Butterfly Nails in Natural Light - Left Hand

Can I just say I LOVE this manicure! My nails looks so pretty and girly lol :) I was surprised at how easy these nails are to do.