Polish Royalty Meets the King of The Lizards

Hello, Fireflies!

When I started developing this rabid addiction to nail polish, there were some brands I was desperate to try.  KOH was one of them, even though I had to have it shipped internationally to get it.

This lovely brown is KOH Chocolate Brown. I love the subtle shimmer, which is apparently due to the addition of topaz.  It's such a rich polish.

But it's not just the color or shimmer that makes this 'Polish Royalty'.  Check out the packaging:

I've never seen polish come with a leather (or faux leather, I'm not sure) and lined snap case, with a little fan for drying your nails.  LUX.

Yep, I can't wait until the end of the post for the bottle shots.  The fan is too cute, and the embossed polish case is such a nice touch.  I even love the shape of the bottle.

So, when I was thinking about nail art, I immediately thought of T-Rex, the King of the Lizards, for this royal-treatment of a polish.

Little, tiny t-rexes.

These gold foil t-rexes are small, but sharp! they're made of gold-colored foil.  I bought them from The Sparkly Shop. I think they're totes adorbz.  Totes T-rex Adorbz, y'all.

 What would you pair a T-rex nail charm with?

(not my picture; not sure who to credit, though.  Just a funny picture from the Interwebz.)

From Orange Holo To Orange Flakie

Hello, Fireflies!

You may remember last week's GOT challenge, where I resurrected an old holo from the Old Forgotten Holos Home - Enchanted Polish Dragon Spit.

Well, after I was done admiring it, I covered it up with another forgotten polish, but a flakie, this time - Nfu-Oh 44, a gorgeous orange base with golden orange flakies.

Look at that glow. And, isn't the bottle super cute?

I thought these Maybelline Colorshow Nail Tattoos I picked up from the Dollar Tree looked cute with this mani.  Hello, Lucky Cat!

Now that Fall is approaching, are you going looking for some fave fall color nail polishes?

How Can You Ignore A Dragon?

Hello, Fireflies!

Today's Golden Oldie challenge is to wear a polish that's been ignored for too long.

Enchanted Polish Dragon Spit was probably the first EP I bought.  I had no idea how popular the brand would become, or that this polish would appreciate in value so much. 

I'm sure there are other polishes out there now that can approximate this one, but I'd forgotten how gorgeous this particular polish was.  Such a fiery reddish-orange.  And, I admit, I love the name.

Is there a polish or a makeup item in your kit that's been ignored for too long?  What are you thinking about digging out of your stash?  If you take a pix, I'd love for you to share it on my Facebook wall!

An InLinkz Link-up

Fairy Ring Around the Rosy, Mani Full Of Posies

Hello, Fireflies!

Today's Golden Oldie challenge is to rustle up an old, forgotten Indie.  Time to bring out this lovely holo again:  Pretty Jelly Fairy Ring.

I do have a soft spot for dark green holos.  I love how the yellow in the rainbow plays with the green.  Such an unusual effect in nail polish.

In keeping with the theme of things I hadn't gotten out in a while, I decided to pair Fairy Ring with some Fimo flowers.

I love this - simple, but pretty.

Is there some Indie polish or makeup in your stash ready to be rediscovered?

An InLinkz Link-up

Two Old Purples A New Way

Hello, Fireflies!

I took one look at this horizonal gradient framed nailart by @nadeekim and I knew I had to try something like it, too.  I've never tried a horizontal gradient, and I loved the two-toned frame, too.

I started with a purple I knew needed some love - Catrice Dirty Berry.  I lusted after this scattered holo, and scoured the internet for it! Pretty sure I got it from a Bulgarian web site.  I was a little cray-cray, but it was totally worth it.

I put some A-England Lady Of The Lake on the right side of the nails.  Trust me, it looked darker in person.

Framing half the nail with white and the other half in black also made the two sides look lighter and darker because of the optical illusion.  So cool.  I'm a freakin' nail magician, that's what.

Lots of transitions here, so don't forget the topcoat to smooth everything out!

 You can maybe see the transitions clearer in this picture. Or, is it an illusion? A trick of the light?

Bottle shot:  Catrice Dirty Berry, A-England Lady Of The Lake, and stripers in white and black.

Does this make you see these two old polishes in a new light?

An InLinkz Link-up

GOT Black Shine?

Hello, Fireflies!

For today's Golden Oldie challenge, I take an older black and pair it with an older flakie.  And they are better together than they ever were apart.

When I first started getting back into nail polish, I thought OPI was the be-all, best polish.  Surely, they must have the best black polish, right?  OPI Black Onyx is probably the worst black polish I own.  Thin, streaky, and takes more coats than any other polish to get that nice, shiny, black finish.

Even Wet 'n Wild Black Creme is better.  Mind.Blown.

Essie Shine Of The Times is one of a dozen polishes that has this multi-chrome flakie finish.  Pretty on its own, but it takes a dark base to really ply all her secrets. 

Red, orange, gold, and green..

Oh, how it glows.  Lit-from-within, you might say.  Love these types of polishes.  They were my first polish loves, and helped inspire the name of this blog.

Bottle shot:  OPI Black Onyx, and Essie Shine Of The Times.

What's your favorite thing to pair with black?

An InLinkz Link-up

GOT white base

Hello, Fireflies!

For today's Golden Oldie challenge, I was supposed to do something over a white base.  I use white all the time.  I have lots of whites.  I didn't feel like any of my whites were unloved enough to choose for this, so I picked an off-white that has been sitting on my desk - unable to put it away, but still doesn't get used all that often;  OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls.

When I saw the nail art that Nik@Nails did for Geniabeme, I knew I had to try it - it's so cool.  I did my best, but I picked slightly different colors, and all 'golden oldies' from my stash.

For the tape manicure, I started it with PeriPera P027, a metallic golden-bluish-green.  For the glitter accent, I chose Literary Lacquers An Honest Puck, for the matching green glitters.

On my index and pinky fingers, I did a gradient with the Peripera and Wet 'n Wild Black Creme.  I love how that turned out!

I finished the striping tape nails with a stripe of Literary Lacquers An Honest Puck, and some of the Wet 'n Wild Black.

I never would have come up with this pattern on my own, but I felt compelled to do a version of it.  It's such a cool melange of colors and patterns.

Bottle shot:  OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls, PeriPera P027, Literary Lacquers An Honest Puck, and Wet 'n Wild Black Creme.  

Isn't that Peripera bottle with the cat topper the coolest? I love interesting polish bottles.

Have you ever seen another's art or makeup or fashion look and felt compelled to do your own take on it as an homage?

An InLinkz Link-up

GOT pink stripes

Hello, Fireflies!

Today's GOT challenge is all about stripes.  And pink.  And flakies.  And holo.  I started with a gorgeous rosy pink holo, Girly Bits Crantini.  Impeccable formula, as always.

I freehanded a diagonal French tip with Sheswai Totally, a rose cream. I remember when Sheswai burst on the scene with a polish that dropped the F-bomb.  I never was able to get a bottle of that...

Flakies and holo in ONE mani?  This may rip a hole in the time-space continuum.  Hope everyone has their towels.

Darling Diva Polish Rose Opal is a similar color pink as the other two, and just adds a subtle flash of flakie.

Black stripes provide contrast, and make it so that I complete the objective of the challenge.  Win-Win!

Holo, creme, and flakie pinks.  It's getting dainty up in here!

Bottle shot:  Girly Bits Crantini, Sheswai Totally, Darling Diva Polish Rose Opal, and a black nail art striper.

Do you like looks that are all in similar colors, but change up the texture like this one, or do you like more contrast with your stripes?

An InLinkz Link-up

GOT Some Pixie Peacock Polish

Hello, Fireflies!

It's glitter time! When Pixie Polish shut her doors, I nabbed a last few bottles of some of my faves, and I want to share one of the glitters with you today.

First, I started with a beautiful bright blue that I got in my Blue Memebox - Hope Girl BL03.  It dried rather quickly to a satin finish.

Pixie Polish Disco Peacock is a holo glitter topper with rainbow flecks in it.  I saw a lot of blue sparks shining in this polish!  If you own this, you know that the glitter settles really quickly.  I don't think it's formulated with a glitter suspension base.  No matter, it distributes really well with a few shakes into glittery goodness.

Because I like to stick random things on my nails.

I ordered a Ciate dried flower kit from Hautelook, and decided to try the purple flowers with this mani.  I actually liked how it looked, but I couldn't get the stems to lie flat, so I ended up picking it off.

What a surprise.

Bottle shot:  Hope Girl BL03, and Pixie Polish Disco Peacock (and some dried flowers.)

Sticking dried flowers to my nails sounds pretty strange.  Somehow, when you pay a prestige company some money for the tools to do it, it seems somehow more normal... Any strange trends you've tried because you bought a kit?