Lot of Summer Nails

Happy late summer!  Since it my neck of the world it’s still blisteringly hot, it’s not too late to sport cute summer nails!  I really haven’t done anything lately that seemed earth shattering or tutorial worthy, so I thought I would just highlight a bunch of the looks I’ve IMG_8158worn over the past few months.

These are pretty cute, right?  Every summer I end up doing some sort of neon citrus mani.  This is like a pink limeade look or something. This look is so cute with any combination of neon pink, orange, green, or yellow.  The trickiest part is painting the little white lines on the citrus.  I use my tiniest brush and acrylic paint for that part.  These nails just make me happy.

IMG_7674 I really liked these nails too.  The base is Funky Fingers – Mattely in Luv and the polish I used for stamping was Funky Fingers – Sandy Toes.  Sandy Toes is a really interesting color.  In the bottle it looks like a bright, but not neon red polish that leans a little pink.  When you us it for stamping, however, it turns out to be a neon coral color.  And this polish, even in the bottle glows under my black light, so I guess it is neon, even though it doesn’t actually look neon.  In my head, that’s the test if something is neon or not:  whether it glows under a black light.

These nails are pretty loud, right?   I’m pretty sure that I had some jumpers or scrunchies IMG_8015or something that looked like this in the late ’80s. I used the homemade decal method to do these, which turned out to be an error in judgement, so they look a little  messy.  If I do these again, I would paint my nails white and add a top coat.  Then I would use painters tape to block of the section of the nail that I wanted to be neon.  Next I would stamp the black pattern over the nail and quickly peel the painter’s tape off.  Then I would add the neon polish.

I went through a little spell this summer where I was into reverse stamping.  It’s pretty IMG_7941time- consuming, so I pretty much just stuck to doing accent nails. The effect is pretty cute, though!  This also gave me a chance to use IMG_7966some of my colored glitter polishes that don’t always get enough love. Ooo, I’m looking at that pretty  deep yellow polish and I think I might need to pull that one out again before summer is over.  I’ve got a fair complexion (sounds so much nicer than pale) and it’s hard for me to pull off yellow clothing.  Nail polish is a great way to wear a color that is a little trickier for you to pull off..  IMG_8999

What’s more summery than beach nails?  For these, I started with a coat of white polish and then I did a blue-to-white-to-khaki gradient with a damp makeup sponge.  To get the white swirls,  I used the same technique that I wrote about in detail here.  Really easy and such a cool effect!  These look so much more complicated than they actually are.   IMG_8163

I also wore some cute dry brush nails.  I enjoy dry brushing so much!  It’s seriously the easiest nail art ever.  It can barely be called art, it’s that easy.  Neon colors over a white base.  So cute, so easy, so summery.

IMG_8228And these nails…. I’m not really sure what I was going for here.  I think I saw a picture on pinterest.  They can’t all be winners, am I right?  The neon glitter polish on my middle finger Bitzy – Sweetie Pie.  Bitzy is a new makeup line that is exclusive to Sally Beauty Supply.  They are only $1.59 per bottle, and they have lots of fun polishes.  They are a great way to expand your collection without breaking the bank.  FullSizeRender

These are fun, right?  I have  a neon red polish that is just so darn bright that it actually makes me self-conscious to wear it.  I love it in small doses, though.  This was the perfect way to get just a little pop of neon into an otherwise classy manicure.  It’s a bit tricky to paint the underside of your nails, especially where your nail is connected to your finger, but I loved the effect!  I think there are so many fun combinations that you could do.  In October I might try deep purple nails with a neon orange underside.

These nails are kind of classy, I think.  This is just some gold stamping over purple nails.  Nothing fancy but they’re just pretty.   I’ve IMG_9055been doing a lot of nail stamping lately.  I realize that it’s sort of the lazy person’s nail art, but it’s just so fast and easy!  I still love doing the IMG_9070occasional freehand design, but right now, I’m definitely in a stamping groove.

Here’s another easy look thanks to nail stamping.  This is just a metallic teal polish stamped over a nude polish.  Metalic polishes tend to stamp really well.

IMG_8976And here’s one final mani.  If you’re not into freehand designs, and you don’t have any nail stamping stuff, you can always get a really fun look with a glitter topper.  Bitzy has a lot of really fun glitter toppers and so does Funky Fingers at Five Below.  (Yes, you are allowed to shop in there even if you’re over the age of 14.)  I think polish combinations like this look really fun with a matte top coat.

So those are the nails I’ve been wearing for the past few months.  If you have any questions about any of these, please ask!  Thanks so much for reading!

My Polish Collection

IMG_7212For the past few years I’ve had my polishes arranged by color.  I have some dupes (and near dupes) and it just made sense to me to keep them next to each other on my nail polish rack.  Recently, though, I started to think that it would look nice if the were organized by brand.  Then all of the like bottles would be next to each other.  Of course the first logical step in my reorganization was to dump all of my polishes onto my living room floor.  And that’s what you see here in the above picture.

As I started to sort them, I decided to snap a picture of each brand, and here’s what I found…

IMG_7216

I have a huge pile of Wet n Wild polishes. This was probably the first brand of polish I started to accumulate back in my youth. The bottles in the upper left with the white caps are OLD! I’ve got a good mix of permanent and limited edition polishes. They’re all between $1-$3, so it’s kind of a no-brainer to grab an awesome Wet n Wild polish when I see it.

 

IMG_7226

I have a lot of Sinful Colors. I mean, they’re so readily available and there’s only $1.99. They are always on top of color trends. Really, what’s not to love?

IMG_7214

Here’s my little Revlon pile. My favorite is on the left: Matte Pearl Glaze. It’s an awesome transformative topcoat for pretty much any polish.

IMG_7230

My L’Oreals. Yes, that’s Masked Affair on the left.

IMG_7224

My Orly polishes. I really like Orly a lot! Most of the polishes I have are neons or crazy toppers. I think of them as summer polishes.

IMG_7227

Look at my sad little Essie collection! Three Silk Watercolors and one other one. I just tend not to splurge on Essie because I hear too many bad things about the formulas. If I can get a great formula in a $2 Wet n Wild, I just don’t want to risk getting a bad formula from a $7 Essie.

IMG_7279

And these are my OPI polishes. The only one that I have ever paid full price for was Charmy & Sugar (third polish in the top row). The rest were either given to me or found on clearance. It just pains me to pay $9 for a polish, and they are always exempt from sales and coupons it seems. That makes me grumpy.

IMG_7228

Nicole by OPI: OPI’s less snobby sister. The two Modern Family polishes are really stunners!

IMG_7229

Fresh paint is available exclusively at Five Below. They tend to be thicker in formula and they’re great for water marbling and stamping. They have such awesome colors! The third polish in the top row is Sugar Crush and it’s a dupe for Essie – Shine of the Times. If I ever see this polish again in a five Below, I am buying a BUNCH of bottles.

IMG_7250

Speaking of Five Below, that’s where you also find Funky Fingers. Okay, these polishes are sort of juvenile, but they have such fun bright colors and crazy glitter mixes! Plus, they’re only $2 or 3 for $5!

IMG_7231

LA Colors polishes tend to be disappointing. If you’re going to spend $1 on polish, just get a Wet n Wild or a NYC. The only exception is the one in the upper left which is a lilac crelly with a bunch of glitter. It’s tough to find those in mainstream polishes.

IMG_7232

I picked up these Finger Paints at Sally Beauty Supply. So sparkly!

IMG_7233

The only place that sells Pure Ice that I know of, is Walmart, and I just don’t end up in Walmart that often. If I did, I would probably own more of these.

IMG_7235

Broadway Nails are found in either Dollar General or Family Dollar. I swear I can never remember. My favorites are Space Flight (third polish in the top row), an deep blue jelly, and Hot n Sexy (bottom left), which is a dupe for China Glaze – Ruby Pumps.

IMG_7236

I first discovered Bonita polish in Francesca’s about 5 years ago when I bought the little bottles. I now usually find them in Rite Aid or Kmart. So affordable and so beautiful! (I’ve actually bought 3 more since I took this picture.)

IMG_7237

Yes, I only have two Zoya, both found on clearance at Ulta. They’re both great, though, and I definitely want to add to these!

IMG_7238

I’m not sure why I don’t own more Jordana. They have such vibrant colors, and great formulas, and they’re only $2. I need more of these.

IMG_7242

I’m a sucker for NYC polishes. Good formula, good colors, really good price. The pink on the bottom right is OLD.

IMG_7244

I only own two Milani. The one on the right is a good 10 years old, but I still love it! The one on the left was the first black and white matte glitter polish that I ever saw, and the first time I saw it, my brain almost exploded.

IMG_7245

I picked this Nina polish up at Sally awhile ago. The green is less awesome than I thought it was going to be. I bought the blue while I was on the hunt for the most pure and pigmented blue that I could find.

IMG_7246

I own three Ulta polishes and they are all in different bottles. What’s up with that? The blue is really beautiful, though.

IMG_7247

Spoiled by Wet n Wild used to be available exclusively at CVS. They’ve been discontinued, but most (if not all) of these colors are in the Wet n Wild Megalast bottles and are sold exclusively at Dollar General/Family Dollar. I was sad to see this line of polishes leave CVS, though.

IMG_7248

I have a good pile of China Glaze. Most of these were purchased on clearance or on really good sales at either Sally or Ulta. Man, I love so many of these!

IMG_7251

Does anyone remember Petites? These polishes are a solid 10 years old. I went through a phase where I loved each of these polishes.

IMG_7252

Anyone remember Bon Bons either? Are these still around? Seriously, each bottle has like, four drops of polish in it.

IMG_7253

Speaking of teeny tiny bottles, these are Sally Beauty Supply’s brand called Sally Girl. Pretty nice little polishes, actually.

IMG_7254

We here in ‘Murica can’t get Joe Fresh polishes, so I picked these up a year or so ago when I was in Canada. Great little polishes! I’m definitely picking up more then next time I visit our neighbors to the north, assuming that they don’t build a wall to keep us out if Trump is elected.

IMG_7259

Sally Hansen sure likes their different bottle shapes and various lines, huh? The first three polishes in the top row are OLD. I know for sure I got the teal one in the top left corner when I was in college. I graduated 16 years ago.

IMG_7262

I picked up this little pile of polishes when I was in London last year. The one on the left is Seventeen, the next two are Barry M, and the two on the right are Rimmel. I like them all, but I love the Barry M polishes. If/when I get back over there, I’m nabbing more of these!

IMG_7263

These polishes are from Old Navy. “Why would anyone buy polish at Old Navy,” you ask? I don’t know either. The metallic pink and gold are both pretty good, though.

IMG_7264

These polishes are from Gap. Obviously I’m a sucker for polish, if I bought some from the Gap.

IMG_7265

I got these LA Girl Color Pop polishes at Rite Aid. The neon pink on the right is my favorite neon pick of all time.

IMG_7266

CQ2 polishes? Yeah, I don’t know either. They’re old.

IMG_7267

Mary Kay polish. The one on the left is good as a base for French manicures or negative space manis.

IMG_7268

Playboy Polishes…. How and why? It’s a long weird story.

IMG_7269

I have two Color Club stripers, but only one color club regular polish! I know, that’s sad! I’m gonna fix that.

IMG_7270

This pile of Kiss stuff was given to me. It’s okay, I guess.

IMG_7271

Bath and Body Works polishes. I know, it’s just as weird as Old Navy and Gap. Aren’t the little bottles on the right so cute though? These are actually nice polishes, albeit old.

IMG_7272

My only two Nails Inc polishes are magnetic and were found in a clearance bin at Marshalls/TJ Maxx/Ross. Those stores are all the same to me.

IMG_7283

These Del Sol Polishes change color in the sun, or at least they used to. They are about 5 years old and only about half of them change color anymore. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

IMG_7273

This tiny pile is all the indie polishes that I own! I know, it’s sad! I will definitely be adding to this pile over the next year.

IMG_7274

These are all of my one-of-a-kind or weirdo polishes. I just threw them all into their own pile.

IMG_7276

These are all of my Frankenpolishes. In other words, I mixed up these polish colors on my own…. Mwahahaha!

IMG_7278

Here is my pile of empty bottles waiting for some Frankenpolish to happen to them.

IMG_7277

And here’s my pile of base and top coats.

Here's my whole collection after I got them all organized!  Aren't they so pretty?

Here’s my whole collection after I got them all organized! Aren’t they so pretty?

 

And now all of my friends and family know exactly what I have in case they need to do some borrowing. I really don’t mind, though.  Thanks for reading!  Let me know in the comments about your collection!

My 14 Favorite Polishes of 2014

It seems like pretty much every blogger and YouTuber has listed their 14 favorites from 2014.  I’m totally jumping on that bandwagon.  This was tough, but I did it.  There were a few polishes that it pained me to leave out, but I finally narrowed it down to the 14 polishes that I just couldn’t stop reaching for last year.  Here they are:

IMG_4262Aren’t they so pretty?

Starting in the upper left corner we have Funky Finger – Sand & Stilettos.

IMG_2698IMG_2695IMG_3219

This is just the best sparkly polish ever.  It’s available exclusively at 5 Below.  I’ve seen it at my local 5 Below within the past few weeks, so you can still grab this stunner for yourself for a mere $2.

Next, also available exclusively from 5 Below is Fresh Paint – Guava.  Fabulous color, fabulous formula.  A must-have for summer.  Here it is paired with Sand & Stillettos:

IMG_2727IMG_2681

It’s just the perfect neon peachy color, and a perfect dupe for China Glaze – Flip Flop Fantasy.  I just couldn’t get enough of this color over the summer.

Next, we have one more 5 Below polish: Fresh Paint – Sugar Crush.  This is the first true flaky polish that I’ve ever owned.

IMG_3560

This polish is a show-stopper over any dark color.  It’s mind blowing over black, teal, or dark purple, and I don’t know if I love it better shiny or matte.  You just can’t go wrong with this one.  I’m not sure if you can still find this at 5 Below or not, but if you see it there.  GRAB IT!

Next, I loved China Glaze – Turned Up Turquoise.

IMG_2594IMG_3228

The intense color and the shimmer make me swoon!  I don’t have a picture of it with a shiny top coat, but when you do put a shiny top coat on, the shimmer really pops.  Such a perfect color!

Yes, I’m a sucker for turquoise.  Next is Jordana – Boy Oh Boy.

IMG_3446IMG_3218IMG_2790

It almost looks green in the middle picture, but it’s not.  It’s a deep, beautiful turquoise.  And the formula on this baby is wonderful!  Almost a one coater!

Next we have Ulta – Joined at the Hippo.

IMG_4090IMG_4091IMG_4092

This is one of my more recent favorites.  Actually, I just talked about this polish in my December Favorites.  It’s got a great formula, and while it is a really deep blue, it never looks black.  Just a beautiful polish!

Then there’s Broadway Nails – Space Flight, a really deep blue jelly.

IMG_3335IMG_3321IMG_3262

I’ve actually got this on my nails right now, as you’ll see in a post later this week. This is an amazingly beautiful polish and it only costs $1!  You can find this at Dollar General.

Now we come to the first indie polish that I ever owned: Valley Girl Lacquer – Fantasm.

IMG_21552014-02-03 21.23.44

Even in a really ugly jelly sandwich , I still love this polish:

001

This was my first exposure to the super huge round glitters that are pretty common in indie polishes and they really blew my mind when I first used them. Heck, they still blow my mind!

Next is Wet n Wild – Deception. This was my first really great jelly polish.

IMG_3111IMG_3384

This was in a limited edition collection from the spring, so I’m pretty sure you won’t be able to find this anywhere and I’m very sorry about that.  I’ve used about 1/4 of this bottle already, and I’m going to be heartbroken when it’s gone.This polish takes 5 or 6 coats to get that perfect jelly look, but it’s so worth it!

Next is China Glaze – Peonies & Park Ave from the 2014 spring collection.

IMG_3218IMG_3004

This almost neon pink really doesn’t seem like anything special, but it’s the pink that I reached for repeatedly back in the summer.  I feel like it works well with my fair skin.

Next is a polish that I’ve talked about so many times: Wet n Wild Fergie – Gold Album.

IMG_3149IMG_4023

This is the best gold polish that I’ve ever used!   I love the stuff!  It’s perfect and beautiful every time.

Next is Broadway Nails – Hot & Sexy.  This is a dupe for China Glaze – Ruby Pumps.

IMG_3986IMG_3988

So beautiful and red and sparkly!  I stare at my nails a lot when I’m wearing this! Also available at Dollar General for $1.

Now we have the polish that I loved the most in the fall.  NYC – Royal Chic.  This was from a limited edition collection, but really, there are lots of great browns out there.

IMG_3867IMG_3895

Sadly, these pictures really don’t capture the chocolaty brown goodness that is this polish.  It’s just so pretty and rich looking on the nail.

Last, but certainly not least is Polish me Silly – Tealing no lies.  This is my first indie holographic polish, and wow, it’s amazing.

IMG_4114

I just got this guy for Christmas, so I’ve only worn it once so far, but I pretty much couldn’t stop staring at my nails while it was on.  And I forced my husband to admire my nails so many times while I was wearing this.  It’s really, really amazing, especially in the sun.

So that’s it!  My 14 favorite polishes of the past year!  Thanks for reading!  What were some of your favorite polishes in 2014?  I’d love to know!

Day 12: Stripes (31dc2014)

It’s stripes day!  Originally, I felt completely uninspired.  My ideas were so bad that I contemplated painting my nails like Fruit Stripe gum.  I finally decided I would do something with my striping tape, but it was being unwieldy and getting on my nerves.   I finally just decided I would do some free hand stripes with Funky Fingers – Sand & Stilettos, a pretty thick holographic glitter polish.  Here’s my end result:

IMG_3218IMG_3219

I started by painting the stripes on my right hand, so by the time I painted my left hand, I had gotten the hang of making nice, thin stripes.  It really was not very hard at all.  I’d love to try this look again over black or really dark blue or purple polish sometime.

This is one of those polishes that’s awesomeness just can’t quite be captured in a picture.  The blurry shot shows off the sparkle a little better.  These nails look SO FUN in person !  I’m really digging them and I’m going to be sad when it comes time to take these off.

Thanks for all of the love and support, likes and comments!  See you tomorrow!

 

Day 8: Metallic Nails (31dc2014)

It took me a little while to find some inspiration for these nails.  I was a little tempted just to slather gold polish on my nails and call it a day.  This 31 Day Challenge is definitely fun, but sometimes I feel like all my free time and mental energy is being used to paint my nails.  I’m glad it’s only 31 days and I’m glad that I’m 1/4 of the way there!

Sunday evening the hubby and I were at the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire, which is where we are most weekends from August to October.   On the ride home, I finally got hit with some inspiration to paint some royal nails.  Here they are:

IMG_3145IMG_3149

Yep, my cuticles are stained a lovely purple color. 

The gold polish is from Wet n Wild’s Fergie line and it’s called Gold Album.  Every time I use it I’m amazed and how pretty it is. 

The purple is Orly – Velvet Rope.  I got the mini size of this for $.49 in the clearance section at Ulta this weekend!  I think I’ll be wearing this quite a bit in the colder months.

The “jewels” are just glitters that I fished out of Funky Fingers – Unicorn Farts.  I used a dotting tool to pick them up and place them where I wanted them. 

That’s all for today.  See you again tomorrow!

 

 

Mannequin Hands… And Then I Added Stuff.

I while back, I went on a quest to find my perfect “mannequin hands” polish.  By that I mean a polish that was as close to a perfect match to my skin as I could find.  I had heard that Deborah Lippmann had a polish called Naked that was a good match for a lot of people who are fair like me, so I checked it out at Sephora.  Yep, it’s a great nude shade that was a really close match to my skin, but you know what?  Deborah Lippmann polishes cost $20 and I absolutely refuse to spend $20 on a single polish.  Nope, I’m never going to do it.  I can’t imagine any possible scenario in which I would spend $20 on a single polish.  If I’m spending $20 on polish, you’d better believe that I’m going to be getting like, 10 bottles for that price.  Okay, let me get back on track…

So, this one time I was at Kmart and I spotted a color that I had never noticed before from NCY from the In A New York Minute line called Fashion Safari.  I did that thing that you’re not supposed to do (even though everyone does it) and opened up the bottle in the store.  I had polish on my nails already, so I just brushed a tiny bit of the polish onto the back of my hand and it blended right in!  best of all, it cost under $2!  I feel bad for the suckers who buy Deborah Lippmann Naked when there’s NYC Fashion Safari in the world.  Anyway, here it is with a matte top coat:

IMG_2919IMG_2918

Fun, right?  My hand really almost looks like a mannequin’s, right?  By the way, this is the color I used for the sand colored nails in my Beach Inspired Nail Art. In that tutorial, I actually painted my sister’s nails and her skin is definitely a shade or two darker than mine.  It’s a little hard to tell in the picture, but in person, you could definitely see that Fashion Safari was lighter than my sister’s skin.  I also used it in my Real Seashell Nails with a pearly color shifting polish over top.

Well, my mannequin hands fascinated me for about 24 hours, and then I decided that I needed to add something to them.  I opted for some of the chunky glitter that is Funky Fingers Pep Rally and I ended up with this look:

IMG_2923IMG_2922

I didn’t actually just brush the glitter onto my nails.  I used a little dotting tool to pick the individual pieces of glitter off the brush and placed them where I wanted them.  It’s a little time consuming, but not very hard.  I also opted to top them with Sech Vite, since it’s thick enough to smooth out this really chunky glitter. 

That’s it for today!  As always, thank you for liking, following, and sharing!  Come find me on instagram and facebook!

Splotchy Neon Nails

Splotchy Neon Nails is what I’m calling these, because I can’t think of a better name, although I’m sure there is one:

IMG_2848

Again, these are my sister’s nails.  She felt she needed something cute and beach-appropriate for her trip to Cancun.  Here’s how we got this look…

First, I started with two coats of white polish.  Specifically, I used Sinful Colors – Snow Me White.  Then I put tape around the nails to make clean up easier at the end. 

IMG_2830IMG_2831

I’m hoping you can see the tape that is over the top of the nail, and around the finger at the base of the cuticle. 

I used these four polishes for the colored part:

IMG_2866

L-R: Nina – Blue Blaze, Fresh Paint – Guava, Funky Fingers – Glow Stick, Sinful Colors – Dream On. 

From here on out, the technique was pretty much exactly the same as it was for the white polish for my Beach Inspired Nail Art.  (Check it out for a more detailed description of this technique).  Basically, I took a disposable plastic container, filled it with room-temperature filtered water, dropped nail polish on the surface of the water, and sprayed it with some alcohol-based body spray to get the polish to break up.  Then I had my sister dunk her fingers in the water, which allowed the polish that’s floating on the surface to adhere to her nails.  While her fingers were still in the water, I used a Q-tip to pull the remaining polish off the surface of the water.  It’s hard to do more than about 2 fingers at a time, so you will need to repeat this process quite a few times.  There is a bit of a learning curve, but it’s really not too hard, just a little time-consuming.

We did Guava on the index finger, pinky, and thumb, and Glow Stick on the other two fingers. 

IMG_2832

Then we repeated the steps with Blue Blaze over the Guava nails, and Dream On over the Glow Stick nails.

IMG_2834

Then, one more time we did Guava on the index finger, pinky, and thumb, and Glow Stick on the other two fingers, just to make sure that those lighter colors were showing up well enough on the nail. 

At this point, it was a little hard to appreciate the designs on her nails since there was so much polish all over her fingers.  My sister was an enthusiastic finger dunker so she had polish pretty far up her fingers. 

From here we took off the tape and topped the nails with Seche Vite, a quick dry top coat.  Then using a Q-tip dipped in acetone as well as a little brush dipped in acetone, I cleaned up all of the excess polish.  

Here’s our end result!

IMG_2852

Fun and cute, right?  If you give this look a try, I’d love to see your recreations on either facebook or instagram.  Just make sure you tag Polish Me Snazzy or use the hashtag #polishmesnazzy so that I can see it.  Thanks for reading!

Nails of the Day

I guess this post should actually be called “Nails of Last Week” since that’s more accurate.  I just realized that I never officially posted a pick of this really easy “doticure”.  No artsy skills required, just a few different size dotting tools. 

IMG_2727

These are two of the polished that I picked up in my Five Below Haul a few weeks ago.  These colors just make me so happy!  I loved this manicure so much that I kept it on for 8 days, and even when I took it off, I was tempted to just paint my nails again with these colors.  

Thanks for reading!  I’ll be back with a more substantial post on Monday!

 

July Favorites

Happy August!  I got really excited, probably irrationally excited, when I realized that July was over and I could do my first monthly favorites post.  I’ve always enjoyed checking out other bloggers monthly favorites, and for some reason, I just get a huge kick out of being able to do my own.

IMG_2822

So, here we go…

Wet n Wild  – Tickled Pink

IMG_2816

This is just the most beautiful baby pink.  It looks so pretty with a tan.  It’s the pink I used for this look. This is a polish that I’ve had for a year or so, but I just remembered this month how pretty it is!

Broadway Nails – Sour Apple

IMG_2818

This is such a great neon green!  The formula is a great and it only cost me $1!  The only place I’ve see these sold is at Dollar General / Family Dollar stores.  It’s the green I used here.

NYC – Amazon Green from the City Samba collection

IMG_2819

This polish is actually a little lighter and greener than it looks in this pic.  It’s got a lovely frosty finish and makes me feel like my nails are covered in mint chocolate chip ice cream, which of course is a good thing.  I haven’t seen this in stores for a little while, so it might be tough to find.  Sorry about that.

China Glaze – Turned Up Turquoise

IMG_2820

This color is just do deep and rich!  It’s also got a beautiful shimmer that I feel sometimes reflects blue, sometimes green.  This polish was promoted as being a summer neon, but I think it’s also part of the permanent line, so you shouldn’t have too much trouble finding it.  If you’re a sucker for turquoise polish, do yourself a favor and get this one asap.

NYC – Matte Me Crazy top coat.

IMG_2815

I used this top coat for this aforementioned look and I was really happy with how it held up! I actually bumped one of my nails before it was completely dry, but this top coat sort of plumped back up and fixed itself so that you couldn’t even see where I had bumped it!  Some matte finishes will start to get glossy after a few days, but this just held up really well.

Funky Fingers – Sand & Stilettos

IMG_2821

I already gushed over this polish in my Five Below Haul, but I just can’t get enough of this polish!  It’s just SO sparkly and SO holographic.  I had it on my toes for a while and I just felt like they were covered in little diamonds when I was in the sun.  I used this polish for the little dots on my thumb nail here.

Fresh Paint – Guava

IMG_2817

This is the current color on my fingers.  Pardon my nail growth.  I just love this color so much that I’ve left it on for a whole week, and that’s saying something!  This is the most beautiful neon peach / light coral, and it’s one of those neons that just sort of glows at dusk when you’re outside.  It’s a dupe for China Glaze – Flip Flop Fantasy and way cheaper.  I picked this color up in my Five Below Haul also.  I love this color.  I love it so much.  I need to stop saying that.

So those were my July favorites!  What polishes have you been loving so far this summer?

*To get updates via facebook, please “like” my Polish Me Snazzy page and “share” it!  You can also find Polish Me Snazzy on instagram. Thanks for your support!

 

Five Below Haul

I went into a Five Below store.  That’s a rarity, because well, I’m a solid 20 years older than their target demographic.   I had been in a Five Below a year or so ago, and I had a vague recollection of seeing nail polish there, so when my path crossed a Five Below a few weeks ago, I figured that it might be worth checking out. Was it ever!

Five Below is a chain of stores that specialize in trendy gadgets and accessories and whatnot  that appeal to the teen and tween crowd, so not surprisingly, the nail polish they carry is all very young and trendy.  They carry two lines of nail polish: Funky Fingers and Fresh Paint.  They were all $2 each or 3 for $5, which you could mix and match between the two lines.  I ended up with 6 polishes.  My little sis was kind enough to let me use her nails for swatching.  Here they are:

Fresh Paint: Guava

IMG_2681

This is a beautiful neon peach.  Although the middle and pinky fingers have a white base underneath, you don’t need it for it to be amazingly bright.  The formula is really great and it’s also a dupe for China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy!  I had been itching for Flip Flop Fantasy for a few months, but I didn’t want to spend $7.  I actually went into a Sally Beauty Supply right after I picked this up and did a little comparison, and yep, they’re identical.

Fresh Paint: Sugar Crush

IMG_2686

This is an iridescent topper that pulls primarily orange, but also green, blue and yellow. It’s not really a glitter, but little flakes.  We tried it over Guava, white and black.  It looked great over Guava!  It sort of took Guava from just neon to classy neon.  It was not that amazing over white, but it was really fun over black!  I’m definitely going to be wearing it over black in the cooler months.

Funky Fingers: Glowstick

IMG_2690

This is a neon yellow that leans a little toward the green side of things with a subtle iridescent sheen.  Again, the middle and pinky fingers have a white base, which did make this polish a little brighter.

Funky Fingers: Pep Rally

IMG_2691

This is a really fun neon glitter with matte blue and pink hexes in different sizes, big green iridescent hexes, small metallic purple hexes, and small orange and purple bar glitter.  We swatched this glitter over Glowstick, white and black.  It really looked cool over all of those colors!  There are a few drawbacks with this polish.  The clear base is really thick and a little hard to work with.  I think I will end up using the makeup sponge method to apply this glitter.  Also, the glitters themselves were pretty thick, so it may take 2 or three layers of a thick top coat like Seche Vite to make the nails smooth.

Funky Fingers: Unicorn Farts

IMG_2694

This polish is all medium size metallic hex glitters in pretty much every color.  The glitter gives off light is a linear sort of way that gives the glitter the appearance of being curved, but it actually does lay flat on the nail.  The clear base is similar to that of Pep Rally, so I think I’m going to end up using the makeup sponge method with this one as well.  We tested it over white, black, nude, and green.  Actually, with the green I attempted a jelly sandwich, but it got a little thick and goopy   because of the thick clear base. This polish is just really fun and shiny and versatile, so I know I’ll get a lot of use out of it.

Funky Fingers: Sand & Stilettos

IMG_2695 IMG_2698

This polish should be called The Most Sparkly Polish In The World.  these pictures just aren’t doing it justice.  This is a light purple -almost gray- holographic micro glitter.  In the picture, I believe we have 3 coats on bare nail on the first, two coats over white on the middle finger, and two coats over black on the ring finger.  The glitter is so dense, that it’s opaque in 3 coats, which is pretty amazing.  There are two kinds of holographic glitters: scattered and linear.  Scattered reflect all different colors all over the place.  Linear reflects a more defined rainbow so that you can actually see bands of color.  I really feel this polish is both scattered and linear.  You definitely get different colored sparkles all over the nail, but when sunlight hits the bottle of polish, I can see a rainbow, too.  I have this color on my toes now and I just feel like my toenails are covered in tiny diamonds.   Seriously, it’s the kind of polish that you just can’t stop staring at.

The polishes from this haul are so fun and I feel like they go together really well!  I think I could do a ton of different looks only using these 6 polishes.  If you follow me in instagram, you may have seen my current doticure using Guava and Sand & Stilettos.  They’re so fun together!

Thus concludeth my Five Below haul.  I highly recommend that you check out the polishes at Five Below, and if you do, please let me know what you think and what polishes you get!