Gold Chain Born Pretty Store Review

Remember my chain nail art tutorial? Well that's a 2D look that you can get with any two colors.

But if you want the true chain effect and you really want it to pop off your nail, then you might consider getting an actual chain to attach to your nails!

Born Pretty Store (BPS) offers several varieties of chains, and today I'm reviewing the 1.6mm gold chain for you!

This chain is 100cm long (about 40 inches), and quite small (1.6mm), running at $2.99 (and their always-free shipping). Use my coupon code, C10X31, for 10% off!

The chain comes in a teeny ziplock bag, but it doesn't come out all tangled like necklaces tend to be.

To apply it to your nails, I recommend using a dab of nail glue, at least on the ends of the chain. To place it, apply it to still-wet nails (I prefer to apply it to the top coat layer rather than the polish layer) so you can position it properly. When it has dried, to being almost tacky, carefully lift the each end with tweezers and dab a bit of nail glue. This will keep your chain in its position, but you can always use more glue if you plan on roughing up the design. And let's face it...this kind of look is begging to be roughed up a little. Rawr!

I'm obsessed with letting the chains hang off my nails in different ways like I've done for this look. It's odd, and not necessarily appropriate for all occassions, but damn...it's awesome!

The colors I used for this look included Sun of a Peach (China Glaze) and Stranger Tides (OPI) with lines of Black Onyx (also OPI). I also did some cutouts of my bare nail.

Which finger do you like the most? How would you wear chains? I've seen some fabulous designs, including Sammy's looks, Lexi's take, and Whitney's! I have another review of a silver look coming soon too.

Thanks BPS for the chains!

Pick your's up here, and don't forget to use the coupon code for 10% off.

 

These products were sent to me by Born Pretty Store. The reviews are based entirely on my experience with the products and were in no way influenced by anyone.

Global Gradient pt. 2

Last year around this time, I posted a gradient of the nails I did for the Global Dance festival. This raver's fantasy is all about EDM and lights and good times. The ensembles are always bright and colorful, so my nails had to match.

I chose to do a gradient, which is super subtle in the shot I got, of Lollipop! Goes the Princess (Sation) and Purity (Zoya). The white is near the cuticle, and the pastel lavender is near the tip. Like I said, really really subtle! I think outlined with a triangle cutout of Sun of a Peach (China Glaze). The rhinestone accent is from my Born Pretty Store rhinestone wheel (reviewed here).

It matched my shirt, and as you can see in this blurry pic I snapped, glowed amazingly in black light!

AA Floral

I'm sure you've seen the floral designs by mrcandiipants recreated all over the place. Jumping on that band wagon, and equally as motivated by her love for American Apparel polishes, here's some American (Apparel) Floral nails!

This was an impossibly easy look to create. Simple tools and even shaky hand skills are all you need for the look. (I obviously did roughly outline the flowers with a striping brush and black polish, but even that can be messy.) I love the way you can just dab the leaves petals onto the nail without the perfection of some other designs.

Also check out that color combo! Peach and neon? This combo of nude/neon is really trendy right now, though it's going into pastels as it's technically spring. My neon is Neon Green and my peach is Summer Peach, both from American Apparel.

I'd like to accumulate all the American Apparel colors throughout my lifetime. Is that possible without going broke? Maybe I'll start a Polish Piggy Bank, and save up some money every day until I have enough for them aaaaallllllllll!

Lime Crime Les Desserts d'Antoinette Nail Polish Collection Swatches and Review

The Nailed It cafe is officially open for business. In the heat of the summer, we don't want you melting away, so dip your fingers into our delicious menu.

Tonight's menu features Les Desserts d'Antoinette from Lime Crime.

Click to Expand

As you can see, we've imported some of this season's most scrumptious treats from Miss Antoinette's table straight to our cafe's treat case. We've prepared these tasty teaser shots to incite the salivation flood on your tongue.

 

Now that we have whet your appetite, as your humble maître d', let me guide you through our first dessert selection.

Our first option is Parfait Day. A soothing parfait on a hot day will surely cool you down, but also bring warmth and comfort to hungry tummies on cold, rainy days. Everybody loves parfait!

Don't miss out on the ripe picking of the season, Peaches ♥ Cream. If a juicy peach isn't enough to pucker those lips, then top it with a huge dollop of lightly whipped cream. Resistance is futile.

The summer menu peaks with this next goodie, Crema De Limón. A sour tickle on the tip of your tongue both refreshes and excites, but the cream finish levels each bite perfectly.

Difficult to sell, but impossible to resist is Pastelchio. Subtle flavor, sophisticated taste.

Once In a Blue Mousse look like the sky and feels like the clouds. You'll float through each bite into euphoric exaltation.

Floral scents dance across your palette when you dip into Lavendairy, but the taste is unmistakeably delicious.

All good things must come to an end, but ending in the creamy, sweet Milky Ways won't leave you wanting more, it will leave you needing more.

Do tell your friends to visit us sometime. Our delicacy's our unrivaled!

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Review

Are you drooling yet? I haven't stopped since I opened up the package I received from Lime Crime yesterday. I literally have nothing bad to say about these polishes.

I had personally never heard of Lime Crime before, but I'm thrilled I now know. They specialize in makeup products, but on June 20th of this year, they dipped into the world of nail polish, and I have a feeling that once word gets out, they'll be scrambling to keep up with the demand for these colors. Seriously...grab them while you can!

Every single color from Les Desserts d'Antoinette, the collection featured here, is absolutely stunning. These bright pastels are decidedly easy to apply, and after two effortless coats, you get the opacity you see above. I applied a third coat to Milky Ways, Crema De Limón and Peaches ♥ Cream to ensure the pictures were looking their best. It's damn near impossible to find creme finishes in pastels that make such a bright yet soft impact, but Lime Crime nailed it!

Like I said, you won't here a bad thing from me about these polishes.

I've been wearing a few layers of these colors for a day now, using the sometimes problematic Seche Vite as the top coat, and there's no damage. None. And I lifted weights today.

I also have to rave about the packaging and advertising Lime Crime has for the line. The first picture is lifted straight off of their site (available as a background in several resolutions here) and is what inspired me to give you a menu to drool over rather than some hum-drum swatch info I normally deliver. You can also see that each polish comes in it's own, perfectly sized box, with the color's name on top and the bottle peaking through a punch out in the front. My inner hoarder hates the idea of throwing these away yet. I loved the packaging so much, it inspired the dripping color design seen in the first picture and below.

The application was aided by the brush's design. It's the perfect size for what it is. These cuties are only 0.3 oz (sadly), so they're squatty when sitting next to most of the other bottles in my collection. I prefer that though, as it seems the brush will reach the polish longer. That's a huge relief because I'll cry the day these run out.

You can pick up all seven of these polishes individually for $5.99 each at Lime Crime's website, or as a set for $39.99.

These products were sent to me by Lime Crime. The reviews are based entirely on my experience with the products and were in no way influenced by anyone.

Chevrons for Chloe

I got to do another lady's hands today! Special occasions always call for a special treatment, and my good friend Chloe wanted her treatment for the eve of her birthday to be a manicure done by yours truly. Ever eager to paint on canvases that aren't my own, I gladly accepted!

She wanted something to the tone of Marina's tribal nails, using three of her favorite colors. If you know her, you already know what those three colors are: coral, teal, and gold. As I was sketching up an idea, we both liked the way chevrons sans-tribal print looked that we decided to do that as the trigger pistol accent. Have a look!

The nude base is Did You Ear About Van Gogh? (OPI), the peach is Peachy Keen (China Glaze), the greenish teal is Jade (Avon), the gold for the tips is A Show at the Palladium (Wet n' Wild Chrome), and the gold chunky glitter for the base of the three nails is Set the Stage (Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear). We loved it!

Eyelet Skirt

If you haven't already joined Pinterest, I suggest you get yourself an invite...quick! It's full of some of the best things on the Internet, especially when it comes to beauty. It takes out all of the work of finding the cute outfit, and puts that burden on its users, who happily and readily pin things they find interesting. Find the right board, and you're set! I used a pin I liked for the inspiration of my manicure today.

Pinned from http://www.spool72.com/58417/727604/Dresses/Heirloom-Eyelet-Dress.html

This was a relatively simple manicure to do, though I'm unhappy with how bumpy it wound up being. The layers are composed of mainly China Glaze's, including Below Deck, Life Preserver, and Peachy Keen. I've made a mental note to break out Below Deck more often. It was hiding at the back of my Helmer, but it'll be used more now that it has seen the light of day. The only non-CG I used was Beige Blast (Sally Hansen Insta-Dri).

Pastelized Housewife

Don't these colors remind you of a kitchen in the 50s? The pastel greens and blues that colored the walls, the peach color for the toaster and rotary phone. The gold represents the ever-beautiful housewife, cleaning and cooking in heels and crinoline.

It also reminded me of a bracelet I hardly ever wear.

Both time consuming and difficult, my patience was wearing thin by the end of this manicure. The cleanup was dreadful, as it required more than a few coats to reach opacity, which means goopy taping messes. Honestly, when I started this, the lines were going to be covered by a stamp, but with the goop, I opted for a more complete coverage using Gold Digger (Color Madric). The two China Glazes, Re-Fresh Mint and Peachy Keen do pair well together though.