ProcrastiNails

Nail Tech Diaries // My First Hard Gel Enhancements with CND Brisa Gels

2018-01-15T10:30:00.000-05:00

Good friends support you in your nail journey, but awesome friends let you practice doing full hard gel enhancements on them!

I recently took a course to be certified as a CND Master Sculptor (which means I did a special course offered by them to learn to expertly use their CND Brisa sculpting gels which registers me as a pro on their website) so of course one of the first things I wanted to do was practice on a friend! My lovely friend Ashley kindly let me work on her, and I wanted to share that process with you today. :)

So ((nail tech hat on)) when I say "hard gel" I mean a sculpting gel that cannot be soaked off - to get CND Brisa products off you are going to have to file/drill them off. They are intended to be a longer wearing product, and one that you would generally just get a fill for (which means every so often getting them filed down and re-balanced where the enhancement has grown out and your natural nail is exposed).

CND Brisa gels will not cure until you have cured them in the lamp, so you can shape the gel on the nail as long as you need before curing.

If something is a "soft gel" it means you can soak it off. Gel means it's a gel (aka has a goopy consistency) which is different from acrylic which is where you combine a liquid and powder to make you sculpting product.

There are two ways you can use the CND Brisa Gel system to create enhancements: with tips, and with forms. I prefer using tips because I find that gel enhancements can be a little weak otherwise (compared to acrylics).

This is the CND Brisa Gel kit that I got in the class, which is similar to the products we learned with in nail school at George Brown College. There's a product to cleanse the nail plate (CND ScrubFresh), a bond for your base (CND Brisa Bond) your gel pots (for this mani I used White and Neutral Pink), your gel brush and your top coat (CND Brisa Gloss Gel Top Coat).

So here's a look at Ashley's nails at the beginning of all of this. I started with a dry mani, pushing and nipping her cuticles a little bit, and filing her nails down and leaving just a little free edge.

Next I dehydrated the nail and glued on the correct sized tips, and then carefully filed down where the tip met the natural nail on the nail plate to make sure it was flush against it without a ridge. I think I may have done one thin coat of Brisa Gel Clear over the whole thing.

And four hours later we had nails! Hahah. Apparently your first full set always takes a long time, but with practice you can get it down to an hour. Ashley was super patient with me and we drank a lot of tea and watched a lot of Netflix in the meantime. :)

To do the actual sculpting I started with lining out the smile line with the white gel, cured it, filled in the rest with the pink gel, cured it, repeated until satisfied, and then shaped it all to make it smooth and to square off the tip.

I'm pretty pleased with how this first set came out, though of course I can see ten million little things I could have done better. Still it was a good start! And it was really fun!

So that's my first real nail tech post for you! I have lots more planned including a look at what was involved in my CND Master Sculptor Course, a recap of the rest of my Nail Tech program, and some other fun little surprises. So make sure to check back again later this week for more!

Let me know what you think of my first attempt at enhancements, and thanks for visiting! xx

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Does All That Glitters: Glitter Nail Fail

2018-01-12T21:27:00.002-05:00

I was originally going for a sort of pastel, seaweed-y, glittery kind of look... I gotta say though, it didn't turn out how I had hoped! :/

Originally I had planned on re-doing my mani for today but time ran out and then on top of that one of my nails broke. So we get what we get! It's not a challenge without at least one nail fail, right?

I started off with Salon Perfect Razzle Dazzle which is a fun purple jelly with holo glitter. Then I sponged on a gold glitter tip with China Glaze De-Light. This is where I should have stopped, but I didn't! Instead I added some waves with white acrylic, and then tried to hide them with some microbeads haha. Ahhh, man! I should've listened to my gut and stopped. Ah well.

I mean, the end result isn't terrible, but it's also not what I would call great. OHHH well. Like I said, every good nail are challenge has a nail fail or two. :) Guess this time it came from me!

Check out all the other (non-fail) looks from the DD ladies below! Thanks for visiting! xx

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Does All That Glitters: Glitter Color Blocking

2018-01-11T20:00:00.002-05:00

This challenge is letting me use some polishes that I've had forever but haven't ever used, which is exciting for me! The main one I'm talking about here is this beautiful multichrome flakie polish from Finger Paints that I bought ages ago. Look how gorgeous!

Today I decided to go with a colour blocking look, with the glitter polishes being the segments of colour with a neutral base. I think this is a look that would have been way easier with gel polish, but since when do I make things easy for myself, right? :)

I started out with a layer of UNT Peel Off Base Coat and then outlined some squares with some white polish and a liner brush. I sponged on my glittery flakies roughly within those squares (as much as I could control the placement with the sponge) using Finger Paints Daubigny's Garden and OPI Gaining Mole-Mentum.

Application was a bit tricky as if the space I was applying flakes to was too wet the flakes would just slide around, but if it was too dry they wouldn't adhere. So it was a bit of a process!

When I was satisfied with my flakie application I took Essie Blanc and a liner brush and carefully outlined the squares I wanted to show through, painting over some of the flakes on occasion. I then filled in the rest of the space with white and layered with top coat and voila!

This mani was a bit thick and a little bumpy when it was all done, which is why I think it may have been better to do it with gel which would have let me really smooth things down. Maybe that's a challenge for me for another day! :)

Let me know what you think! Thanks for visiting! xx

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Does All That Glitters: Rainbow Starburst Nails

2018-01-10T22:27:00.002-05:00

Day three of the Digit-al Dozen Does All That Glitters, and this is my favourite mani so far this week! :)

I've been wanting to use this stamping image for ages but couldn't figure out exactly how I was going to do that, and then *angels singing* it came to me today EXACTLY how to do it! And it turned out pretty fabulously, in my humble opinion!

For my glittery base I started with two layers of Julep Mary (a metallic silver) and then added some silver scattered holo glitter with Julep Amira. When that was dry I stamped on my image with plate STZ-07 and then carefully coloured in segments of the stars with the OPI Color Paints Collection. :)

Unfortunately when I added the colour it subdued some of the glitter in the base, but I still think it glitters enough to fit the theme!

And that's my star-tastic mani for All That Glitters! I'm excited to share tomorrow's look with you to, so make sure you come back to see that one too!

Thanks for visiting! xx

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Does All That Glitters: Blooming Florals

2018-01-09T20:33:00.000-05:00

Day two! I'm really pleased with how this look turned out, though I'll admit I messed up the stamping on my pinky finger which lead to me deciding to make it an accent nail. (Haha!)

I started this look without much of a plan beyond wanting to use this fun sheer orange glitter from My Indie Polish, but it really all came together in the end. Love it when that happens!

I started with three coats of My Indie Polish Cherry Beach, and then stamped over it with black and Moyra No. 108. When that was good and dry I took some sheer orange polish (OPI Chromatic Orange) and painted it around the center of the flowers to create a sort of gradient look. And finally I painted in the background segments of the design with black to really make my flowers pop!

Glittery flowers! I love them! :)

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Does All That Glitters: Gold & Stars

2018-01-08T17:34:00.002-05:00

Guess who's back! :D

I have so much to share with you guys - so much has changed since I decided to take a little break from blogging... I started my own private therapy practice, I got a job as a nail artist at a salon, and I finished my nail tech program! Updates will come over the next few posts, but in the meantime I'm pleased to be able to share with you my first post back: the first of five DD looks for this month!

Our theme this month was 'All That Glitters' and I decided to start out with a look featuring two 'glittery' things - stars and gold foil! But I combined them in a different way than you might expect. :)

My base is Tonic Polish Taking on Toronto which is a gorgeous rich brown packed with holo and flakies. On top of that I placed some gold holo flakes and then stamped on my stars with MoYou London Maroon and plate STZ-07.

It feels good and a bit weird to be back... I hope you'll be gentle with me when it comes to the quality of my pictures for the next little bit - it's going to take me some time to get back into the swing of things! :)

Until tomorrow, thanks for visiting!! xx

An InLinkz Link-up

Swatch // Sally Hansen Diamond Strength in Tender Teal

2017-11-01T21:41:00.002-04:00

I'm not dead! Just crazy busy with class, my manicure exam, quitting my job and sorting out the next exciting steps in my life!

More details on all of that coming soon, but for now let's look at some swatches to get us back in the groove. :)

Our swatch today is a polish I have had for literal ages - Sally Hansen Tender Teal from their Diamond Strength line. In the bottle this is a gorgeous deep blue shimmer with a hint of purple duochrome in the bottle, but like a lot of mainstream multichrome polishes that colour shift didn't come through on the nail. :( Lame.

Pictured is three coats plus top coat. It's a lovely blue, but I really do wish that duochrome came through... Oh well!

You can see a wee hint of the purple on the left side in the shimmer particles... Not enough for my taste, though. :(

The verdict? Pretty polish, would be prettier with more of a bold colour shift. Humph!

What do you think - do you like it with the basic blue shimmer, or would you like to see something a bit more interesting?

Thanks for visiting! xx

Shopping // My First Nail Tech Haul from Nails R Us

2017-10-20T10:00:00.000-04:00

I got to go shoppingggggg! At my first pro stooooore! And it was AWESOME!

One of the things I have been looking forward to the most around nail school is that when I'm done I'll be able to get pro discounts and go to pro warehouses to get my stuff! So imagine my joy when a few classmates said we should make a trek out before we even graduated... Lemme tell you, I was SO EXCITED!

When I get my certification I can get a permanent account set up, but until then as long as I have my student ID (and a ride way out to Mississauga) I can go whenever I want! There are of course other beauty supply places in the GTA I could visit, but for whatever reason this is the one I've decided will be my base of operations. :)

So here's a look at my first haul! I'm not going to tell you how much I spent, because... I spent a fair amount of cash. Haha. It's an investment!

CND Brisa Gel System

The first thing I got was the same gel system we use in class for enhancements (aka extensions). I've also signed up for a Master Sculptor course with CND to learn more about enhancements which uses this kit as well.

Nail Care Equipment

Next up I got some basic nail care equipment. I got two different grits of files (240 for natural nail shaping and 100/180 for enhancement reduction). I also got another set of the tools we use in class - we had two sets in our kit but because I practice on friends outside of class and don't always have time to sterilize before class I thought it was a good idea to get a third set. I got cuticle nippers, an excavator and a cuticle pusher.

Sterilization Equipment

Speaking of sterilizing tools, I no longer have to wait to get to class to get my tools ready! I got a bottle of CS20 (a high level disinfectant and sterilent - the one we use in class), a metal cleaning tray and a large pack of sterilization pouches to put the clean tools in.

20 OPI GelColor Polishes

Next up I got 20 OPI GelColor polishes, which was quite an investment but was totally worth it because 1) I didn't own any gel polishes, and 2) it was a promo that let me get a free OPI LED light at the same time. :) So it was a saving, ultimately! I got 17 different colours, plus a top coat, base coat, and matte top coat. And of course, I already want more!

OPI Dual Core LED Lamp

As mentioned above, this beauty was FREE! :) And it retails for $490, so I'm super pleased with my purchase! I've already used it a few times and I love it as well as the OPI GelColor polishes.

And for those who are concerned: yes I am also getting a CND Brisa Lamp to work with my Brisa Gels as well - but I'm getting it for a really sweet price second hand from another tech. :)

So, on a scale of 1 to 10 how happy am I? 50 MILLION. The store was so big and amazing and overwhelming and I want to buy all the things! Ahhhhh!! Next round I definitely want to get some gel pots, and I want to get some tips and forms for enhancements as well.

I have an update on my nail school journey coming up for you next week. I have finished the manicure class, and just started on pedicures! :) So I have lots to tell you about fo sho!

Thanks for reading, and thank you for visiting! xx

Swatch // Zoya Faye

2017-10-18T19:25:00.002-04:00

A quick and lovely swatch for you today! We're looking at Zoya Faye which was originally released as part of the Sunshine Collection in Summer 2011. :) This is one I picked up pretty recently and I'm so glad I did - look at that gold shimmer! Drool!

Faye is a polish unlike any others I have in my collection, which is really nice! It's a soft pink-leaning plum shade with a gorgeous bold gold shimmer when the light hits it at the right angle.

It took three coats to build this one up to full opacity, but I really don't mind since it's really really lovely when it's got full coverage.

Zoya is one of those brands I own a lot of but don't swatch or feature that often on the blog... That's something I think I want to change, because I have some amazing Zoya shades! Some of my favourite matte polishes are from Zoya. :)

Is Faye a shade you own or would pick up? Looking at it now I think it's definitely one I'll have to pull out again in the spring when the flowers are starting to peek out! It just gives me that vibe!

Let me know what you think, and thanks for visiting! xx

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Does Throwback Week: Recreating a 2015 Mani

2017-10-13T20:40:00.002-04:00

Hello! It is final exam time at nail school right now so I'm a day behind, but don't worry - I will definitely finish the DD challenge this month! :)

Today I'm sharing a recreation of a look I really loved but that never got a full feature on my blog. That's because it was a guest post I did for another blogger. So now that I got a chance to recreate it I can finally fully share it with you over here, too.

My original look was a guest post for Workaday Beauty and it was for a Splurge Worth It type linkup we both participated in with the Canadian Beauty Bloggers group. :) You can check out the full post I did for her here!

The focus of this mani is supposed to be the OPI Man With the Golden Gun real gold topper, but I think the negative space is pretty spiffy looking too. :)

I started off with naked nails, used vinyls to section off my nails, and then painted them in with Ceramic Glaze Pure and Little Black Dress. When they were dry I applied my gold top coat and then sealed everything with some regular top coat.

I haven't used this topper in ages, and because of that most of the gold had sunk to the bottom of the bottle. If I had been thinking I would have rested it upside down for a bit to shift the flakes to the brush, but I wasn't so instead I had to go fishing to get the flakes I did use.

I also feel like the flakes are a lot smaller than they were last time I used them... I wonder if that is the product changing, or just bad luck from my fishing? Hmm...

Anyway, that's it for today! :) Let me know what you think, and thanks for visiting! xx

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Does Throwback Week: Recreating a 2014 Mani

2017-10-11T21:09:00.002-04:00

How about another seasonal mani for this month's next DD look? :) This time I'm recreating an artsy leaf pattern that I originally did in 2014!

This look was one I originally did for the 31 Day Challenge in 2014, and if you want to check out the full post you can see it here.

The first time I did this I used richer shades of acrylic, whereas for the recreation I went with brighter colours. I think it looks neat in both palettes! Do you have a preference? :)

My base is OPI A-Taupe the Space Needle and my leaves are all freehanded with acrylic paint. :) It can be tricky doing thin lines but the nice thing with acrylic paint is that if you mess up you can let it dry and then just wipe it off with a brush and some water!

If you've been following along all week you know the drill, and you'll know that tomorrow I'll be back with a recreation from 2015! I'm excited to share it with you, as the next look is from a past guest post I did for another blogger!

Thanks for visiting! xx

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Does Throwback Week: Recreating a 2013 Mani

2017-10-10T22:27:00.003-04:00

Day 2 of our DD Throwback week! Today we're recreating a fun Fall look that I did back in 2013 using one of the lesser-loved polish types... Crackle!

When I first did this manicure I spoke about how under-appreciated crackle polishes are and how there are actually really creative ways to make use of them. I still feel that way! Which is why from all of the looks I had to choose from in 2013, I went with these pumpkins.

I really feel this design compliments how the polish breaks and crackles and it gives me hella cute little pumpkins! And it was super easy to recreate today, too!

I started off with naked nails since a big part of this look is the negative space. I painted on some half circles on each nail with Julep Cheyenne and when that was good and dry I quickly added some orange crackle with Julep Sabrina. Let the crackles come through and let the polish dry, add some glossy top coat and stick on your gems and you're good to go!

I think this might have also been cute with some little faces painted on the pumpkins... Hmm... Maybe something to come back to later this month. :)

Super seasonally appropriate, and super cute! Win-win! ;)

Make sure to come back tomorrow to see what I do from my 2014 looks!

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Does Throwback Week: Recreating a 2012 Mani

2017-10-09T10:00:00.000-04:00

This month the Digit-al Dozen is doing a Throwback Week! I've decided to do recreations of manicures I did during my first 5 years of blogging, one for each year. :) I'm starting in 2012 and this is actually a recreation of the VERY FIRST nail art look I shared on this blog! Whaaaat!

Check below for a look at the original mani from 2012, and then take a better look at my 2017 recreation!

So above is a look at my original mani. Though the photography could use some work, the design itself is nice! Simple, but the lines are crisp and the colours are really bold. :) You can check out the original post from December 2012 here if you'd like!

I tried to use the same polishes for this mani but since I actually couldn't find the original blue base I used another similar polish that I had in my collection from the same brand.

My base is Sally Hansen Tender Teal (which isn't teal at all!) and when that was dry I used some vinyls to section of my blocks and painted them in with the gloriously thick and glittery Sally Hansen Gem Crush Showgirl Chic.

Tomorrow we're heading on to a look from 2013. You can check out my posts from back then here if you want to try to guess which one I'm going to recreate! :)

Thanks for visiting! xx

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art + Tutorial // Sunny Day Accent Nail

2017-10-06T20:18:00.002-04:00

Hello loves! Today I'm sharing a nail art look and tutorial that I actually shared over on my instagram a while ago. :) It was my first attempt at doing a video tutorial on IG and I'm really pleased with how it turned out. So take some looks at the mani I put together, and then watch the vid to see how I did it!

I started off with a base of my much-loved Ceramic Glaze Pure on my accent nail, and then stamped on my sunny outline with Mundo de Unas Spring Green and Cheeky Plate CH36. When it was dry I coloured in the images with CND Vinylux Honey Darlin' and Julep Somthing Blue. :) I then coloured my other nails with those same accent shades!

Cover it all with a layer of top coat and you're good to go!

I think they kind of remind me of children's PJ's or blankets... You know those really soft felt ones that everyone seems to have from their childhood? Cozy and comforting and cheery. :) That's what these nails are!

Here's a look at the video tutorial:

My first attempt at a video tutorial! Be gentle, I am still learning. 😊 This is the accent nail for a sunny day mani - full pics and post coming up later tonight! - 💛 Base: @ceramicglaze Pure - 💛 Stamping: @mundodeunas Spring Green and Cheeky Plate CH36 - 💛 Polish: @cndworld Honey Darlin' and Julep Something Blue
A post shared by Katherine (@procrastinailart) on Sep 13, 2017 at 2:11pm PDT

And that's that! Let me know what you think, and let me know if vid tutorials are something you would like to see more of? :)

Thanks for visiting! xx

Shopping Roundup // Unboxing My Indie Expo Canada 2017 VIP Bag

2017-10-04T10:00:00.000-04:00

Oh my gosh this post has been a long time coming. I'm sorry, guys! There were so many posts to write up after Indie Expo Canada this year that this one completely slipped my mind. But we're here now, so let's take a look at all the goodies I got in my VIP Bag at Indie Expo Canada.

The VIP ticket itself was about $88 CAD after tax and it included this goodie bag, early entry to the event, and some coupons! Definitely worth it, in my opinion.

Let's start with the polish!

Alter Ego Generous Beauty

Generous Beauty is a gorgeous teal with scattered holo glitter. I've actually already swatched this one so you can check that out if you want!

Bliss Polish VIP@IEC

There were two different shades you could get from Bliss Polish this year - a blue and a pink. I got this lovely pink creme with a healthy dose of gold shimmer named VIP@IEC!

Colors by Llarowe Oh Canada

This is one of my favourites from the bag, though I still haven't used it yet! This is Oh Canada by Colors by Llarowe and as you can see it's a gorgeous red linear holo.

Ever After Diamonds Are Forever

Another favourite! Diamonds Are Forever is the offering from Ever After and it's a stunning blue packed with holo glitter of different sizes. It definitely sparkles like a diamond. :)

Fair Maiden Polish Toronto Sunrise

One of my favourite brands, Fair Maiden Polish contributed the beauty that is Toronto Sunrise - a bubblegum pink with a hint of electric violet shimmer.

Fiendish Fancies The Fool

Fiendish Fancies was another brand that had a whole bunch of options that you could get in your VIP bag. There were different amounts of each polish available in 7 different horror movie archetypes: The Harlot (14 bottles), The Athlete (28 bottles), The Fool (21 bottles), The Scholar (14 bottles), Final Girl (28 bottles), Red Herring (55 bottles) and The Killer (1 bottle).

As you can see I got The Fool which is a metallic purple shimmer with just a hint of flakes throughout.

Girly Bits V.I.Polish

Next up we have Girly Bits V.I.Polish! This is an icy blue with blue and silver flecks and a hint of pink shimmer in the right light! There is also the tiniest bit of holo visible in the right light, too.

Great Lakes Lacquer Love at Hyatt Regency

Love at Hyatt Regency is a bright and bold blue with a flash of lighter blue shimmer. :)

Hit the Bottle On the Loose With Chartreuse

I've never tried products from Hit the Bottle before, but I do love stamping! This lovely is On the Loose With Chartreuse and it was kindly donated to the VIP bags by Beautometry. It's a frosty yellow-green chartreuse stamping polish. Excited to try this one!

Native War Paints Sunbathing on Lake Ontario

Next up is the offering from Native War Paints - this one is Sunbathing on Lake Ontario and it's a teal blue creme with a flash of pink shimmer.

Superficially Colorful Stealing Your Thunder

Next up is another new brand for me - Stealing Your Thunder is the polish from Superficially Colorful and it's a lovely soft grape purple creme with a soft holo!

Tonic Polish Taking on Toronto

And last up we have this gorgeous deep chocolate brown polish with linear holo, holo glitter, and a hint of shimmer! This is Taking on Toronto. :)

In addition to all the polish there were some other amazing goodies included in our bags as well!

So what all did I get in this pile of goodies? Well, let me tell you!

An amazing scented cupcake bathbomb from SoGa Artisan Soaperie
A sample slice of natural cold press soap in the scent White Flowers from Superficially Colorful
A nail file from Beautomety
Moyra Stamping Plate No 108 Sounds of Your World from Beautometry
Fantasy vinyl nail decals from Beyond the Nail
A sample of the Skin & Hair Serum from Lovacado
A full sized pan of Cermait eye shadow from Clionadh Cosmetics

MAN! That's a lot of amazing swag! :)

I can tell you right now that the bathbomb did not last long once I got it home, and that is smelled AMAZING.

Here's a closer look at that stamping plate! It's got a nice variety of images, and pairs well with the Hit the Bottle stamping polish that Beautometry also gave us. :)

So that's what I got! Definitely worth it for the price, the makers were all so generous with their contributions and they made some amazing creations.

I think this is my last IEC 2017 post, the rest were all shared closer to the actual event (lol oops). If you haven't already remember to check out my other IEC posts but looking at my Event Recap tag!

Thanks for visiting! xx

Swatch // My Indie Polish Goodnight Puppy from the July 2017 Polish Pickup

2017-10-02T22:07:00.000-04:00

Hello lovelies! It feels like a pink kinda day, so a pink polish is what we are going to look at! :) You know those days when it just feels like you need to wear a certain colour to match your mood and your activities for the day? No? It's just me? Haha. WELL THEN.

So Goodnight Puppy was one of the LE shades available in the July 2017 PPU where the theme was 'Cocktails and Mocktails.' It's a lovely bubblegum pink creme with both scattered microglitter and lightly scattered holo glitter. I like how there is just enough glitter to notice but not so much that the holo and glitter overpower the base. :)

Pictured in my swatches are three thin coats plus top coat, and application was lovely with zero issues.

This is one of the polishes I got in my mystery box from My Indie Polish a few months ago. Be sure to check out the full unboxing post to see all the other pretties I got!

Thanks for visiting! Let me know what you think! xx

Press Release // China Glaze Halloween 2017 Happily Never After Collection

2017-09-29T19:26:00.002-04:00

* Press Release

The Halloween collection from China Glaze is out and it is FAB! Six deep, shimmery and vampy shades (including a matte!) that will help you ease into fall perfectly. :)

Shades

QUEEN, PLEASE!: When you need the best and nothing less, set your sights on this iridescent pearl shimmer.

SIN-DERELLA: Clock striking midnight? You're just getting started with this iridescent pink-grey shimmer.

LOOKIN' GORE-GEOUS: Vamp up the volume with a dark burgundy creme that summons the spirit of the season.

CROWN FOR WHATEVER: Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the chillest of them all? You are in this royally relaxed matte purple.

LIFE'S GRIMM: Consider this gold-black shimmer your night in shining armor.

DO YOU, BOO!: Make a splash during cocktail hour and beyond in this refreshing gold-flecked glitter.

All six Happily Never After shades are available at Sally Beauty and ULTA now!

Unboxing // My Indie Polish 10 pc Mystery Box!

2017-09-27T10:00:00.000-04:00

Hello lovelies, another exciting unboxing post to share with you today! My Indie Polish had a Labour Day sale a while ago where you could get a mystery box with 10 polishes for $50 plus shipping... If you know me you know I LOVE a good mystery box, so of course I had to pick it up!

One of the things I love about Tanya and her brand are that they always try to do what they can to make the customer happy. When it comes to mystery boxes, did you know that when they can they try to look at your past orders to make sure you don't get duplicates you already have? That's amazing! I've never heard of a brand going that above-and-beyond for their customers, and it is definitely appreciated. :)

On top of that the polishes are always fab, and I already have a few new favourites from this box! Check out what I got below, and let me know your favourites!

My Indie Polish Cargo

Cargo is a beautiful rusted red-brown shimmer that has a hint of blue and pink at the right angle - you can see a bit of it in the bottle shot above! Pictured below is three coats plus top coat.

My Indie Polish Cherry Beach

Cherry Beach was part of the Hello Toronto Collection that MIP released earlier this year - it's a lovely sheer orange that is packed with orange and iridescent glitter. Pictured below is three coats over white plus top coat.

My Indie Polish Goodnight Puppy

This is one I was really excited about! Goodnight Puppy was a Polish Pickup exclusive few months ago when the theme was 'Cocktails and Mocktails.' It's a bubblegum pink creme with iridescent glitter and some larger scattered holo hex glitter. Pictured below is three coats plus top coat.

My Indie Polish Liquid Chrome

Liquid Chrome is exactly what it sounds like - a metallic silver polish! It has amazing coverage, and I feel like this one will probably stamp really well too. :) Pictured below is two coats plus top coat.

My Indie Polish Nathan Phillips Skate

Nathan Phillips Skate is another polish from the Hello Toronto Collection, and it's an icy blue shimmer with different shapes and sizes of glitter. It definitely brings to mind skating on a cool, snowy night in downtown Toronto! Pictured below is three coats plus top coat.

My Indie Polish PRT523

So I also got a bunch of prototypes in my box and I am THRILLED with that! I love prototypes!! This lovely is named PRT523 and it's a pink shimmer with holo glitter, iridescent glitter and red glitter! LOVE! Pictured below is three coats plus top coat.

My Indie Polish PRT545

My second prototype is PRT545 which is a violet creme with just a hint of (linear?) holo glitter. The glitter is really subtle but still lovely. :) Pictured below is three coats plus top coat.

My Indie Polish PRT Thermal

THERMALS! PRT Thermal is the one I was most excited to see in my box. This is an awesomely lovely pale mint green when warm and light blue when cool. It transitions really easily and you can definitely expect to see this one used in nail art in the future! Pictured below is three coats plus top coat.

My Indie Polish The Beaches

The Beaches is another Hello Toronto Collection polish and it's so delicate! It's a baby blue creme with just enough scattered holo glitter to catch your eye. Pictured below is three coats plus top coat.

My Indie Polish The Matrix

The Matrix was a Magic 8 Box Exclusive (which was a past monthly LE box) and it's a black polish that has so much awesomeness going on. It has a strong green shimmer and green/gold/blue hex glitter! Fab! Pictured below is three coats plus top coat.

Tanya also kindly included some samples of their scented home and body care products which was a lovely addition!

I think there was great selection in this box and I would DEFINITELY pick another one up in the future! :)

You can check out all the lovely polishes from My Indie Polish in their shop, but keep in mind a lot of the polishes I got in my box are discontinued or prototypes so you might not be able to pick them up! That being said there are still lots of other gorgeous polishes to check out from $7 to $14. They also have some mystery boxes available!

Let me know what you think! Thanks for visiting! xx

Swatch // Alter Ego Generous Beauty (An IEC 2017 Exclusive)

2017-09-26T14:28:00.000-04:00

Sorry for not getting anything out for you yesterday - it turns out my internet was down, so even though I could edit these pics I couldn't upload them. :( But better late than never, and I have the post ready to share with you today. Tomorrow we should get back on track with the usual Mon-Wed-Fri schedule!

So today I have swatches of one of the gorgeous polishes I got at Indie Expo Canada this year (check out my review of the event here!). This was one of the polishes in my VIP Bag and it's my first polish from Alter Ego!

This lovely is called Generous Beauty, and it's an amazingly lovely teal that is PACKED with scattered holo glitter! It applied really really well and was fully opaque with three thin coats. Once you add the top coat the glitter really comes out in this one!

Gorgeous! I know I say this a lot but I can't believe I waited so long to pull this polish out! It's amazing and definitely has me looking forward to trying out more colours from Alter Ego in the future!

Since this polish was an event exclusive I'm pretty sure you would only be able to find it in destashes from attendees that picked up a VIP bag, and I have to say if you come across it? PICK IT UP. Definitely worth it. :)

Let me know what you think! Thanks for visiting! xx

Nail School // Recap of My First Two Weeks at George Brown College's Nail Tech Program

2017-09-24T10:32:00.001-04:00

When I sat down to write this post I knew I wanted to share with you that nail school has been going great and I am so so happy I'm doing it! The people are amazing, the instructor is really supportive, and I'm both learning new skills and brushing up on ones I knew already.

We have spent a lot of time working on a few general things so far: theory, sanitation and practical nail skills. We've been practicing on classmates for all but one mani so far, and my lovely classmates/models have been kind enough to let me document my work in photos to share with you. :)

Above is a shot of my first full and (mostly) successful manicure! The shade my lovely model is wearing is OPI You Don't Know Jacques.

Don't get on me about cleanup because when I did this mani I wasn't yet allowed to do any cleanup! Haha. We were just practicing our brush strokes and the amount of polish to have on the brush (along with all the nail shaping, cuticle cleanup and skin moisturizing).

When we were finally allowed to do cleanup, it was because we were taught to do a French Manicure by painting the rough shape of a white tip with polish and then doing all the shaping via cleanup before applying our pink. Unexpected for me, but it's REALLY easy to get the look you're going for that way! Essie Blanc is our white of choice in class, and we use Essie Mademoiselle for the pink.

Here's a look at the first French I did in class:

Pretty good if I do say so myself!! :)

Now, looking at the above picture you may be thinking: "Katherine what in the WORLD are you doing?"

Well, the day we did these nails we were practicing for our final exam where we will have to do a full manicure - first as a French and then (after removing the polish) we have to paint the same nails AGAIN with a solid colour. And we have to do it all in 45 minutes!

Considering most of us started out taking 2 hours to do a full mani, getting down to under 45 minutes is going to be a challenge! So for this look we had an hour to do a full manicure with one look on each hand. I finished at about 50 minutes so I was cutting it close! But I got it done, and I'm fairly happy with it.

The biggest challenge I've had so far has been doing cuticles... I am so scared of cutting people with the cuticle nippers! So that is taking me too much time currently, and it's cutting into my overall manicure time. Thankfully I have lots of friends who have volunteered to let me practice on them. ;)

Believe it or not, we've also already had our theory midterm! I spent my weekend studying, and I hope it paid off. We won't know until next week how we did, so I'll be sure you let you know in the next update!

One question I personally always wonder when I hear about bloggers working to become nail techs is: do you let classmates work on your nails?! Well, here's the answer from me...

YES I DO! It wouldn't be fair to expect my classmates to let me work on them without giving the same in return. We also have exactly enough people in the class (12) so that we can all work with one other person each day and have no one left out. :) Above is a shot of the French a classmate did on me in class for practice.

So I'm currently rocking nubs - the first day we did manis my nails were filed into their normal soft squares, but the second day to give my partner something to do I let her file them into rounds. I don't love it but it will grow out, so that's okay.

Next week we are starting our clinic days (aka working on the public!) and I think we might be doing gel? That or nail art - I can't remember what the schedule said and I am too lazy to go check haha. So I'll tell you all about that in the next update!

Overall I'm having a blast, and it's really helped to take my mind off of other stresses going on in my life currently. Who would have thought I would say something like that about school?!

Thanks for reading my update, and let me know what you think of my work so far! xx

Unboxing // My July 2017 Dollar Tea Club Box

2017-09-20T10:00:00.000-04:00

Two things I like a lot: subscription boxes, and tea. The Dollar Tea Club gives me both of those things, with the bonus of having a price tag of $1 for 3 different tea samples and 5 filters! Okay, okay. With shipping it comes out to $4. But that is still an amazing price!

Enough about the price though, let's get on to the tea! I got three very different samples and I'm curious to know what you think of them. :)

Raspberry Lemonade

Raspberry Lemonade

Fruit Tea - Apple pieces, white apple pieces, lemon peel, sugar butterflies, pineapple pieces, beetroot, hibiscus, raspberry pieces, flavoring, pink cornflower petals, natural flavoring.

First up is the tea I am most looking forward to trying. This smells SOOOO good! Sweet and tart and exactly like raspberry lemonade. I'm not usually a fan of warm tea with raspberry in it, but I think brewing this over ice will help with that. It will be a yummy treat to carry on my way to class in the morning! And how CUTE are those little sugar butterflies?!

Winter Punch

Winter Punch

Fruit Tea - Hibiscus, apple pieces, grapes, elderberries, figs, dates, almond pieces, cinnamon, citrus peel, flavoring, lemon granulate.

This tea smells like fall, like apple cider. It smells heavy and rich and I'm not sure if I will like it but I will enjoy trying it out!

Periodically Pain-less

Periodically Pain-less

Herbal Tea - Anise seed, cinnamon pieces, limetree petals, melissa, green mate, liquorice root, heather petals, ginger pieces, cloves, cardamon, natural flavoring.

This one smells more like a tea that is good for you than a tea that is yummy. I'm okay with that, though. Apparently this blend is supposed to help "decrease and eliminate symptoms of heartburn, indigestion, other gastro intestinal distresses, provide relief for constipation, relieve nausea, boost the immune system, act as an antiseptic and an anti inflammatory aid." That's a big list of uses! I'll definitely pull this on out next time I have a tummy ache or feel sick, and I'll let you know what I think.

Overall I think this box is definitely worth it, but I'm curious to see if the company can keep it up. Generally I would expect to get different teas every month, and if they start to repeat (especially if they repeat with teas I end up disliking) I'll probably cancel my subscription. But let's not think about that right now! Haha.

I'm excited to try these teas out, and I'll let you know on my twitter how I like them! (So if you aren't following me on twitter yet, get on that!)

So what do you think of this box - worth it? :) If you want to give it a try yourself The Dollar Tea Club is available in Canada and the US currently, and they have a few different levels of "memberships" you can get every month, from the $1 option I got to a $9 option.

Thanks for visiting! xx

Swatches // Color Club Mood Changing Nail Lacquers

2017-09-18T10:00:00.000-04:00

* Press Samples

I have an amazing (and huge) post to share with you today - swatches of all 12 shades in the Color Club Mood Changing Nail Lacquer series! These were graciously sent to me by Trade Secrets to share with you, and I have to say for never having swatched thermals before I think I did a pretty good job!

There is definitely a polish in here for everyone: bold and bright, soft and subtle, cool and calm... A combo for every mood. :)

To make these polishes transition to their cool states I had to dip my fingers into cold water, so just so you know that's why a bunch of the pictures have water drops all over them. I hope no one minds!

Color Club Blue Skies Ahead

Blue Skies Ahead is a sunny sky blue when it's warm, and when it's cool it transitions to a deeper navy blue that is almost a purple. Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Happy Go Lucky

Happy Go Lucky is one of my favourites - it's a bright and sunny yellow when warm, and a lovely orangey-peach when cool. This one reminds me of a sunset! Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Shine Theory

Shine Theory is another favourite of mine. It starts as an almost neon lime green when it's warm, and then turns into a more minty green when cool. Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Extra-Vert

Extra-Vert is a muted mint green when warm, and shifts into a deeper bright blue when cool. Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Serene Green

Serene Green is a bold turquoise when warm, and a deeper navy blue when cool. :) Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Head in the Clouds

Head in the Clouds is one of the harder ones to capture the transition of, so instead of having a transition shot I spliced together the cool and warm swatches so you could see the difference. This one is slightly lighter when warm, and slightly darker when cool. Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Everything's Peachy

This one makes me think of cotton candy and unicorns! Everything's Peachy is a cool violet when warm, and a dusky rose pink when cool. Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Old Soul

Old Soul is a more subtle polish, but the transition is still lovely. This one is a neutral beige when warm, and gets a slightly rosy tone when cool. Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Go With the Flow

Go With the Flow is a lilac pink when warm that shifts into a deeper lilac violet when it's cool. Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Easy Breezy

Easy Breezy is purple-leaning periwinkle blue when warm that shifts into a purple when cool. Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Enlightened

Enlightened is a bright pink - softer when warm and more vibrant when cool! Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

Color Club Feelin' Myself

Feelin' Myself is another absolute favourite of mine - it's a bubblegum pink when warm that shifts into an almost electric purple when cool. Pictured is three coats plus top coat.

So there we go! Phew! Lots of swatches - I can tell you this is a post I didn't put together in just one day haha.

There are a lot of amazing options in this series, and if you're interested in picking some of them up you can head over to Trade Secrets if you're in Canada to grab them for about $12 each!

I'd love to hear what you think, and also what your favourite polish is out of the bunch! I'll have a bunch of nail art over the next few weeks featuring some of these shades because they're just so fun to play with, so make sure to keep an eye out for that. :)

Thanks for visiting! xx

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Turns Five: Bouquets of Fimo Flowers

2017-09-15T23:08:00.003-04:00

My last look for this month's DD week is my favourite! Fimo shapes are one of those things I have literally had for years and never used. Seriously: 5 years. I have had these for FIVE YEARS. And finally, I have found a way to use them that really works! :)

This lovely bouquet of flowers is the last way I am celebrating our birthday - check it out and let me know what you think!

I started off with an Indie Expo Canada 2017 exclusive polish - Alter Ego Generous Beauty. It's a LOVELY turquoise with sparkle and holo and it applied like a dream.

On top of that I freehanded some simple stems for my flowers to sit on, and then applied a layer of topcoat and randomly placed all my flowers. Super cute!!

I think that blue and white flower on my ring finger is one of my favourites from all of these. I was shocked how many variations of flowers I had in my collection, and made sure I used at least one of each of them to make lots of variety. Which bouquet do you like best?

Thanks for visiting!! Be sure to come back next week for some exciting posts, including swatches of some thermals from Color Club and an update on my nail school adventure!

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Turns Five: Sharpie Confetti Party!

2017-09-14T19:52:00.000-04:00

I have to say, these are my least favourite nails this week. It was one of those times when the image in my head just didn't translate onto my nails. :/

It was supposed to be a pond mani (the confetti was done over three separate layers) with confetti falling all over, and a freehanded party hat on the accent nail. I think part of my problem was making the confetti too big, and a few times I didn't let the layers dry long enough so when I used the sharpie it would dig into the polish a little bit. Bah!

Because I'm not a fan of this mani you get limited pictures of it. Haha. Sorry!

I started off with a base of Ceramic Glaze Heavenly which is a sheer white with pink shimmer (swatches here). When it was dry I drew on a few pieces of confetti, waited for them to dry, applied another layer of polish, and repeated. In totally there are three separate layers of confetti. For the party hat I used the same sharpie colours and went for a minimalist look.

Since I didn't love this I went with the idea of "throw glitter at it and it'll be better!" so I added some loose hex glitter and put on a layer of China Glaze Fairy Dust to add a little extra something to try to save it. It definitely helps, but I still think overall this is a nail fail for me. Ah well.

Check out all the (actually amazing) looks from the other DD ladies below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Nail Art // The Digit-al Dozen Turns Five: Celebrate with Balloons!

2017-09-13T18:34:00.004-04:00

My next look for DD's 5th Birthday is some freehanded balloons - originally I thought about doing a bunch of different colours but when it came time to do it I decided to go with a more elegant gold and silver theme!

My base is Julep Something Blue (a one-coater!) and then I freehanded my balloons with gold and silver acrylic paint, and then added my outlines and the shine in the balloons with some black and white and a detail brush. :)

I thought about making this look matte (as I always find freehand looks better when I mattify it) but I decided to leave it glossy to add some extra shine to my balloons. Not sure if that was the right call though, hmm... What do you think?

An InLinkz Link-up