Bringing My Skin Back To Life with Kleem Intensive Rejuvinating Vitamin C Serum

Product provided for review.  All opinions are my own.

Hello, Fireflies!

With all this cold weather, even here in Florida, even my oily skin is feeling a little drab and dull.  Rich moisturizers just tend to make me break out, so I look for serums to get extra nutrients into my skin.  My favorite skin-brightening ingredient is Vitamin C, which is a big part of this Intensive Rejuvenating Serum by Kleem Organics.

I'm Thankful For..

Hello, Fireflies!

Today's challenge is "I'm Thankful For" Thanksgiving nails!  I needed a base polish that just reminds me of the season, so I picked this unusual matte brown glitter polish from SpaRitual with an even more unusual name - Starry Night.  You would think that would be a black or blue polish, not brown.  It's super pretty, though, and dries down to a matte finish.

I didn't want to do traditional turkey stamping today, so I thought about what I'm really thankful for, and top of my list is the love of my husband.  We met online in what constituted social media in the early 90's, but we started falling in love when he sent me some mix tapes, and a lot of handwritten letters.

So when I saw this stamp on Cici & Sisi 11, I thought it had a lot of the elements that made me think of those early days of our relationship - hearts, envelopes, and music notes!

It should have some $$ too, though, because back in the day, making a long-distance phone call cost a lot of money, and my monthly phone bills would be in the $300 range.  In the 90's.  Turns out it was a good investment, though, since we've been married 19 years.  He doesn't write me letters anymore, but he still finds me music that he thinks I'll like.

I'm thankful also, if you read this far! What are you thankful for this year?

Feelin' Groovy Green

Hello, Fireflies!

This week's challenge was either a 60's theme, or using a matte/texture.  Mine has a little of both, but doesn't do either particularly well.

This is my fave part:  I picked up this sweet green polish at Ulta the other day on clearance - One In A Chameleon.  I don't know if it's a green/gold duochrome, or green with a gold shimmer.  It's a little thin, and needed 3 coats to cover VNL, but I love this effect.

I used this stamp from Dashica Big-B plate, and Cult Nails Nevermore for the pattern.

I thought this stamp looked all groovy and psychedelic.  But it actually read more 'wood-grain' on my nails.  Fail #1.

This bottle of SpaRitual Citrine Luminary Matte Top Effect looks like fireflies in a jar to me.  It just glows!

On this mani, though, it was neither terribly matte nor luminous, though.  Fail #2.

It actually reminded me a lot of the Orly matte flakie polishes.  I think this one would look better over a dark polish, though.

Bottle shot:  Ulta One In A Chameleon, SpaRitual Citrine Luminary Matte Top Effect, and Cult Nails Nevermore.

I was trying for 60's groovy and matte, and ended up with something that reminded me of my mom's 70's avocado green kitchen.  Hey, when's the 70's kitchen mani challenge?

Global Tiger Day

Hello, Fireflies!

Today's stamping challenge was to pay homage to Global Tiger Day.  Who doesn't love a tiger? Besides the tigers' food, I guess.

I started with Wet 'n Wild Black Creme and accents of Cult Nails Ignite, a black jelly with silver sparkles.

Over the black, I layered SpaRitual Invention, a shimmer infused with recyled glass.  I had hoped it would look more bronze, but instead it took on a green cast.  Still cool.

I used Maybelline Bold Gold and Anna's Nail Art plate W219 for the tigers.

I got these tiger water decals from KKCenterHK.  I also used them in this look HERE.

My camera had a hard time with the sparklies.  I really loved the combination of the water decals with the stamps.  The stamps look like tiger constellations over the sparkly background!

I used a black striper on my pinky to make the tiger stripes.  That green/gold shimmer is very jungle cat!

Bottle shot:  Cult Nails Ignite, Wet 'n Wild Black, SpaRitual Invention, Maybelline Bold Gold, and a black nail art striper.

Are you celebrating Global Tiger Day?

Nail Challenge Collaborative - Holo Oxfords

Hello, Fireflies!

Today, I have a nail art that just sorta evolved, which doesn't usually happen for me.  Usually, I look at a picture or get some inspiration.  Today, I just kept picking up colors and deciding how to use them.  In the end, the design reminded me a little of the old-style Oxford shoes.  See what you think!

I started with a gorgeous grey holo, Girly Bits Dash Away All.

I painted about 2/3 of the nail with SpaRitual Peace & Harmony.  At the time, I didn't know it would dry as a satin white.  I also didn't know that it was fairly sheer.  It took me a few coats to get it opaque over the holo.  Remember, I was totally experimenting.  Like in the 60s. Ask your parents.

I did a wide French tip with Milani Rapid Orchid.  WTH kind of name is that, really?  This is the season of Radiant Orchid, and this color is faaaarrrrr from that.  It's past eggplant purple into almost black territory.  And, who ever heard of a fast orchid?  Is this like that movie, Turbo, with the racing snail? Nail polish namers are weird, yo.

Afterwards, I thought it would look cool with another thin stripe of Rapid Orchid (!?!) between the white and the grey holo.   Yes, you could technically just do 2/3 of the nail with the dark color and then apply a thin stripe of white.  I might have done that if I actually knew where I was going with this, but you always run the risk of the white not covering the darker color.

So maybe I did do it right. Maybe. Just sayin.

So, why not add another dot of Rapid Orchid?  I clearly have no self-control.  I like living on the edge, baby.

Doesn't it look a little like those Oxford shoes?  Is my 80's childhood showing?

Bottle shot:  Girly Bits Dash Away All, SpaRitual Peace & Harmony, and Milani Rapid Orchid

Have you ever done a mani that reminded you of shoes?  Is that weird?

An InLinkz Link-up

Sweetcheeks I - Satin and Glitter

Hello, Fireflies!

Today and tomorrow, I'd like to show you some looks I created with a new-to-me Indie from Canada, Sweetcheeks Polish.  She offered a blogger discount that I found irrestistible!

I started with Sweetcheeks Polish Red Rainbow and Midas Rose.  Red Rainbow is a jelly packed with holo glitters.  It applied a little thick, but manageable.  Midas Rose is a satin gold with a hint of pink.  I was hoping for a little more pink shimmer.  It's there, but super subtle.

Have you seen the nail art by Kimiko7878 on Instagram?  She does some amazing stuff that I can't hope to copy, but I am inspired by her talent.  I really loved this floral accent nail she did.  I started my version by using a black striper for the branches.

I used SpaRitual Peace and Harmony, a satin/matte finish white to make the flower petals and some dots. It's pretty sheer, so I laid on a thick drop and spread it out a little.

I used a little more Red Rainbow in the centers of the flowers, and finished off with a few tiny dots of black.

Who needs long nails and painting skillz?  I got nubbins and a crayon, homies.

Bottle shot:  Sweetcheeks Polish Red Rainbow and Midas Rose, SpaRitual Peace and Harmony, and a black striper.

I was hoping the Red Rainbow would bring out some of the pink in Midas Rose, but it didn't really.  But, I still liked the effect.  If you did, too, stay tuned - tomorrow I have 3 more Sweetcheeks polishes to show you.

If you'd like more information about Sweetcheeks Polish, you can find them on Facebook and Etsy.

This post contains products that were purchased by me, at a discount, for the purpose of review.  Nonetheless, my opinions are my own, and as honest as possible.

Shamrocks in Untried Greens

Hello, Fireflies!

Time to get out some untried green polishes, because it's almost St. Paddy's Day! And, because:

I saw this cute shamrock nail art from QTPlace and decided to do a little twist on it for today.  I started with alternating greens in Finger Paints Go Van Gogh! and Pop Jade Metal.

Shamrocks galore!

I probably could have used some judicious editing here.  All kinds of greens, topped with glitter and holo?  Well, it's not like this holiday is known for subtlety, y'all.

Bottle shot:  Finger Paints Go Van Gogh!, Pop Jade Metal, SpaRitual Introspective, Julep Adrianna, LynBDesigns The Credible Hulk, and China Glaze This is Tree-Mendous.

Ever have a moment where you couldn't decide which shade to use, so you just used them all? Yeah.

An InLinkz Link-up

An InLinkz Link-up

SpaRitual Layers

Hello, Fireflies!

The other day, I picked up a couple of SpaRitual polishes on clearance at Ulta.  The collection featured layering polishes - they look gorgeous in the bottle, but it would take forever to build up to opacity, if they ever did.

Most casual polish users aren't educated on layering topcoats, so there was a lot of frustration with these.  But, you and I know better, right?  Or if you didn't, then let me show you some of the magic.

I started with a color that has some magic of its own - Cult Nails Wack Slacks.  It's one of my very fave colors from Cult Nails, and its particular magic is that it turns my camera into a blithering idiot.

Looks blue, doesn't it?  It's actually got a purply-blurple color to it, which my camera stubbornly ignores.  SpaRitual Intellect also has that purple quality, which means it also shows up as blue.  But, it has a sweet purple and blue shimmer, too.  I did a gradient glitter tip with SpaRitual Intellect.

Bottle shot:  Cult Nails Wack Slacks, and SpaRitual Intellect

I know, you kinda had to be there.  So lame of me posting a pix and saying, well, this isn't what it *really* looked like, but it's close, and you'll just have to use your imagination.  So bitchy, really.

Well, here's one that translates better! Cliche Chic is a rose color - which normally I find kind of boring and granny-like.  What I liked about Chic is the texture - it's a crelly, which really makes it more lively and youthful!  I really liked it.

Or, I'm just getting old, which is another possibility.

This time, I did a gradient with SpaRitual Improvisation, a pinkish base with fuchsia and blue shimmer.

This is almost a palette-cleanser mani for me - a soft, sweet color with a subtle touch.  No crazy swirls or flowers or anything!

Bottle shot:  Cliche Chic and SpaRitual Improvisation

Are you a fan of layering polishes?  Sometimes I am, because it can be fun to take a color I already have and see how it looks with a shimmer.  Sometimes, I want the polish to be an all-in-one, because I'm lazy!

Shimmery, Pointy Midnight Blue

Hello, Fireflies!

I'm continuing with this month's challenge - my favorite color - with some more midnight blue goodness.

But first, I start with a light blue - SpaRitual Energy - a smooth, light robin's egg blue.  I love SpaRitual polishes. I love the cap, too.  Nice, soft, rubbery, and easy to use.

I saw this cool nail art in an ad for Jin Soon polish.  I wanted to try to recreate it.. kinda.  I wish I had better (and more) pictures, but my memory card got corrupted. 

I used tape and Sally Hansens Salon Nightwatch, a gorgeous midnight blue creme. This probably would have been easier if I'd done the dark blue first and then taped that off and put the light blue on top... but I wasn't sure the light blue was opaque enough.  Live and learn.

I just got some of these cool CND effects toppers, and wanted to try this look with CND Ice Blue Shimmer.  I love Nightwatch on its own, too, but it totally changes with the shimmer!

Blue, blue, blue bottle shot:  SpaRitual Energy, Sally Hansens Salon Nightwatch, and CND Ice Blue Shimmer.

Do you like adding effects like a shimmer?