Seche Vive Instant Gel Effect Top Coat: The New Seche Top Coat

Hi Friends,
Have I missed the boat here? Or is this really new? I came across this product by Seche Vive, maker of my beloved Seche Vite top coat (I swear by this stuff and buy in bulk!). The ad caught my eye because of the brilliant blue bottle, which I thought was a blue color polish. Upon closer review, I realized that this is a gel top coat. Is everyone jumping on the get top coat bandwagon?

This gel top coat is described as a "specially formulated fast drying top coat" that has the plumping effect of a "gel in a glossy, high shine finish without the use of a UV/LED light!" It removes easily with acetone or non acetone nail polish remover.  Yeah, I'd like to see that.


It promises...

 NO UV/LED lamp required
- Durable gel-like finish
- Fast drying
- Prolonged, intense shine
- Easy removal


On the beautyfactorynails.com website I saw it sold for 8.25 in British Pounds. The equivalent in dollars is $11.44.  The regular Seche Vite quick dry top coat sells for under $10 in most places.


It even comes in minis

I might have to give this one a try. Hmm, I wonder if I can get it in bulk too...


If you try out this top coat, please tell me what you think.  If you've already tried it, I'd love to hear your full review.
Ciao for now!

Sneak Peak: Morgan Taylors Botanical Awakenings - Spring 2016 Collection

Hi fashionably taloned friends,
Morgan Taylors new 2016 Spring Collection is here. The collection contains 6 all new floral inspired colors including six creme polishes.


Rose-Y-Cheeks, a dusty rose creme.
Warm Up The Car-nation, a hot magenta pearlescent creme.
What's Your Poinsettia?, a deep red shimmer creme.
Don't Pansy Around, a medium pink creme.
Prim-rose And Proper,  a pale neutral pink creme.
I Or-chid You Not,  a steely purple creme.


A mini set accompanies the spring collection.


Botanical Awakenings Minis is a collection of 4 minis including Rose-Y-Cheeks, Don't Pansy Around, Warm Up the Car-nation, and What's Your Poinsettia?

There are also 3 duo packs. Rose-Y-Cheeks/Warm Up The Car-nation, What's Your Poinsettia/I Or-chid You Not, and Prim-rose and Proper/Don't Pansy Around. Sorry, I could only find pics of 2 of the duo sets.

Like most new Morgan Taylor polishes, a collection of gellish doubles are also available.

The colors seem appealing. One in particular, I Or-chid You Not, seems a little unique. I'm surprised there were no green colors included in the collection, but nonetheless, the colors are well suited to the botanical theme.


Will you rush out to buy any? Which ones?
Ciao for now!

Sneak Peak: The Latest In China Glaze: Summer 2016 Lite Brites Collection

Hi lacqured lovelies,

Today I have the latest China Glaze collection that's scheduled for this summer.  This collection consists of 12 bright 80's inspired polishes. You guys know I'm a sucker for cutesy names and this collection doesn't disappoint. Most of the polishes were named after 80's songs.

Papa Don't Peach, described as "a Summer Splendor of neon orange coral" was obviously named after Madonna's hit Papa Don't Preach. 

Whip It Good, "a glistering Summer bright yellow Nail tone" was named after a super popular song by Devo of the same name. 

 

Lime After Lime, "a Summer splendor atomic light green" was named after Cyndi Laupers 1983 hit Time After Time.  I'm so loving this. 

My fave, I think, is We Got The Beet, "a Summer splendor strong vibrant shining awe purple" This name came from the Go Go's song We Got The Beat.

Let's Jam, I think, came from a song by the same name, by MC Fostee. I'm not so sure about that, I had to look it up. But it's the only song during that period that popped up with that name. Let's Jam is described as "a Summer splendor Light pop bubble purple". 

I Got A Blue Attitude came from Patty LaBelles 1984 song I Got A New Attitude.

Last for music, there's What I Like About Blue, which is probably from the 1980 song What I Like About You by the Romantics. This one is described as " a Summer splendor Turquoise sky blue". 

Ok, we covered the music, let's move on to movies. I think there was only one. None Of Your Risky Business came from the 1983 hit movie Risky Business starring the oh so famous Tom Cruise.  Remember the dance scene where Cruise lip sings to Old Time Rock And Roll and dances around in his undies? A memorable scene to say the least.  None Of Your Risky Business is described as "a Summer splendor satsuma dry orange tone". 

Names for the other colors didn't seem to recognizably relate to the 80's, but were nice just the same. 

Hot Flash (Maybe from Flash Dance?), is "a Summer Splendor of Luminous classic red".

Bite Me is "a Summer Splendor of tint of Orange and light Pink".

I'll Pink To That is described as "a Summer Splendor of classic barbie summer pink" Did they say Barbie? Gotta love all things Barbie.

Last, Lip Smackin' Good is "a Summer Splendor of faded pop Pink". 

So, the entire collection is rounded out with 3 pinks, 3 purples, a red, a peach, orange, yellow, green and blue. They've covered the entire rainbow. That's so 80's.

Wait, the Lite Brites collection doesn't stop there. In true China Glaze fashion, there are a number of sets and minis in the Lite Brites line up. 

The Love Shack Duo, named after the B-52's song of the same name has Lip Smackin' Good and Hot Flash.

The Silver Stripe Flash Dance Trio (ah, there's Flash Dance, I knew that movie had to be in there somewhere) contains  None of your risky Business, I Got A Blue Attitude, and a silver chrome Nail art.

Another trio, White Stripe Material Girl Trio, contains I’ll Pink To That & What I Like about Blue with a White Stripe Nail art. Completely Madonna. 

There's also a mini collection called Whip It Good 6 Piece Mini set. This set contains Whip It Good, Papa Don't Peach, Ill Pink To That, We Got The Beat, We Got The Beat,  What I Like About Blue, and I Got A Blue Attitude.

Lastly, there is the Lite Brites Kit, which is another 6 piece set containing: Lip Smackin good, Bite Me, Ill pink to that, We got the beat, Let's Jam, and what I Like about Blue.

I might not rush out and buy these because I'm sure I have dupes of most of them, but I am intrigued by the whole 80's theme thing they have going on there. Another winner for China Glaze, I think.

Will you pick up one or more of these? Which ones?

Ciao for now!



A Superhero Neon Manicure

Hi friends,
This bright superhero neon yellow polish called for some superhero action. So, I added a glitter lightening bolt, and stamped on a comic book "BAM!" I'm ready to hit the streets and rustle up the bad guys. On second thought, I don't want to break a nail, so I'll leave the bad guys for the real superheros.

Ciao Bellas!

Caviar Dreams...Or Rather Nightmares

Hi friends,
This is my first (and quite possibly my last) attempt at the caviar bead manicure. When I started out, I thought "This is kinda fun", then I thought "Ok, I guess this isn't so bad" later I thought "This is sooo tedious" and by the third finger I thought "Who the heck has time for this?!" I guess, I'm not the patient type. Maybe I should pack away the little microscopic nightmares and move on to something that I can handle. Like a simple gradient or my beloved glitters.  Next time, I'll stick to something I know.

As you can see, I'm having camera/lighting issues, but even in the best of situations, this baby is a big fat fail.  Now I can X off the cellophane broken glass fad from my list of manicures to try. After this caviar disaster, the cellophane deal isn't gonna happen. Not even on a good day.

If you're patient enough for caviar bead manicures, please send me some pointers and pics of your work. I could use some inspiration.

Ciao for now.

Gold/Silver or Yellow/White?

Hi friends,

I've had quite a bit on my plate lately, so I've been posting rather sporadically. I apologize for that. I hope to get back to a regular schedule as work/life/stuff gets back to a more normal pace. I need to reorganize some things, get inspired, and blah blah blah. Yeah, you know.

I had no particular inspiration for today's manicure. It just sort of happened. When I finished, I realized that I couldn't really determine whether it's more gold/silver or yellow/white. In any case, I thought the simple design was cute, so I went with it.

Ciao for now!

Spoiled Pampered Princess Kitty

Hi friends, today I chose to do a manicure for Coco Kitty. She's a special little girl who I adopted so that I wouldn't be the only female in my house (no, really, that's why). We balance out the testosterone driven boys in our house with our feminine girliness. We're two peas in a pod. She watches me put on my makeup in the morning, I let her play with my hair, and yes, she has her own space to sleep at the foot of my bed. I've learned not to accidentally kick her off...ever. Don't go 'eeewww', you know your furry fuzzy friends have the run of the house too. Coco Kitty takes advantage of her status. So, this morning when I had to make my bed 'around' her, I had to take a picture. I don't put my princess on the floor, nor do I shoo her away. I don't want to inconvenience her. Instead, I work around her. When she's bored of my blogging and lays across my, keyboard, I stop and let her stretch out on it. And when it's dinner time, she gets her meal before everybody.

See, no collar, it annoys her.

Are you ridiculous with your pets. What lengths do you go to for your precious friends. I need to know that I'm not alone in this. How do you spoil your pets?
Ciao Bellas!

My Funny Valentine

Kiss kiss, mmmmwaaaahhh!  Can't have Valentines Day without the kisses. On the cheek, in a card, on those horrid little heart candies, or right on the smackeroo. So pucker up.  But, if you aren't into that (yes, there are people who hate kissing), then you can wave away the smooches with this manicure. They'll have all the kisses they need, and a hug too.
I'm surprised that the red on red showed up on camera, but I'm glad it did (I really didn't want to do it over).

I have no plans, no date, and nobody to kiss, for Valentines Day (boo hoo), but I've got something better. I get to spend quality time with my little guy...while his brother takes his girl on an expensive date...THAT I'M PAYING FOR!

What are your plans? Once again, I want to live vicariously through you.  Flowers, heart-shaped boxes of chocolate, cards, balloons, dinner and dancing, or even those little nasty heart candies. I want to hear all about it all.

Ciao Bellas!  Have a fantastic Valentines Day. Mwwahhh.

I just realized that you can see the reflection of me taking the picture in the photo above. How's that for shiny?

Inspired by a Gold And Black Floral Fabric

Hello friends,
My mani for today was inspired by a beautiful embroidered floral fabric. If I'm not mistaken, this is a Chinese design.  I used a dark greenish polish as the base instead of black, but the resemblance is there.

Ciao for now.

No Sweetheart, I Don't Want To Watch You Play Video Games

I have nothing against video games. Just because I'm not game savvy and my kids think I'm pc ilitereate (see, I said pc, that"s tech speak right?) doesn't mean that I'm a gamer hater. But when my kids ask me to watch them play video games I cringe inside and grit my teeth while I say , "Sure sweetie". Parents really do have to sacrifice. They never say "play with me, Mom", no, they just want me to watch THEM play. I don't get it. What do they get out of it? I rarely understand what's going on, their explanations are lost on me, and they want me to choose which opponent they should fight next.  "I don't know! Just choose somebody already!"

Sooo...what am I really doing here? If they're not asking me to watch them play, then they want me to watch someone else play on YouTube. Even less exciting. Are there classes to help parents learn the basics of gaming? Gaming 101 or something. I really do want to find interest in it. Even maybe enjoy it. But I can't seem to break that barrier. Hypnosis! That's what I need

How Did I Miss This One? A Blue and Silver Manicure

Hello friends,
How did I miss this one? I was flipping though old pictures and came across this manicure I did several months ago. Why didn't I post it then?  I planned to do a few more Valentine's Day manis, but I had to post this one so that I don't let it slip by again.

For this manicure I stamped silver MdU over my favorite blue holo polish. There's a bit of a raised 3D effect from reverse stamping and dotting.  Next mani, a V-Day design!
Ciao for now.

Pink Hearts for Valentine's Day

Hello Lovelies.
Today, I'm getting a head start on Valentines Day. Maybe it's just me, but Valentine's Day doesn't seem to be what it used to be. Maybe that's because I have sons and they don't care much about it. I asked my middle schooler if he was handing out cards or candy and he looked at me like I was speaking a foreign language.  I asked if he wanted chocolate hearts or something like that and he responded with "I'm not that into chocolate, Mom." So, I dropped the subject. I asked my high schooler what his plans were, and he very nonchalantly said that he was giving his sweetheart candy, "...of course, Mom, same as last year." So original, isn't he?  Again, that was the end of that conversation.

What happened to cute stuffed teddy bears and boxes of chocolate candy? What happened to those awful tasting heart candies that say "I love you" and "Be mine" on them? And the cute little cards? What happened to those? Tell me it's just me missing out. Tell me that Valentines Day isn't just another day to get consumers to spend money. Ok, I know that it is a consumer oriented occasion, but does anybody really truly celebrate Valentine's Day?

What are your plans for the day of love? Dinner and movies? Giant heart-shaped boxes of candy and roses? Can I celebrate vicariously through you?

Ciao for now.

Bottles And Bottles of Polish

Hello friends,
Do you ever feel compelled to use something just because you have it and don't want it to go to waste? You paid your hard earned money and now you're obligated to use it even though you don't really want it anymore? Sometimes I give away those unwanted purchases, but other times, I grudgingly use them. For this manicure, I decided to use a stamping plate that I bought months ago, maybe even a year ago, and I never used it. When I found it among my stash of plates, the guilt got to me so I had to use it. Even if it's just this one time (and believe me, it will be). I had already applied a beautiful glittery tangerine polish (the glitter doesn't show up so great here, unfortunately). And out of guilt, I completely ruined a perfectly good manicure. Of course it came off the second after I took the pics. As a matter of fact, I ddn't even give it a chance to dry.

Next time, I won't be guilted!
Ciao bellas.