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Saturday, December 22, 2012

Incoco Nail Polish Applique Review

Have you ever wanted to look cute but just didn't have the time? I mean I love taking the time to do my nails, along with my hair and make up, but there isn't always time for a full mani. I've been loving all the different designs that have been coming out with these nail polish appliqués. I've even tried a few and had fun with them. Well with all the things a busy mother and wife has to do during the holidays I've found myself with less and less time to do a mani, much less keep a cute one fresh.


The perfect opportunity arose when I was sent some Incoco Nail Polish Appliques for review. I mean these are perfect for the season and ridiculously cute! I really loved the snow flake designs, I mean they're simple and pretty as well as all holiday celebration appropriate! 



While reading about the brand I found out that they've been in research and development of non-liquid nail polish for over 20 years. WOW!! It makes sense because I have to say this nail applique was the best I've used yet! The colors are vibrant, clear and on trend! 



Application was a breeze, I just followed the directions that were included. They applied easily and cleanly. The only down side for me is that my nails are unusually shaped and wide so the applique doesn't quite cover my entire nail, leaving a bit uncovered on the side. While that was an issue for me it was the only issue and a very minor one. The nail appliques cover enough of my nail that a little bit of nail showing on the side wasn't problematic or embarrassing. 



Beyond the cute design and easy-breezy application, my other favorite part about the Incoco nail polish appliques is that included in the set is a way to securely reseal the bag! That way you can save any unused appliques! Hello money saver!!


Besides the obvious things that I loved the really amazing BONUS to this kit is that the polish remover pad is a felt like material! I mean wow easy on and easy off!! They really thought of everything and I have to say for this mother and wife on the go during this especially busy holiday time this was the best and most relaxing mani yet! You can't really go wrong with a product that such amazing and fashion forward celebs like Katy Perry, Jennifer Lopez & Vera Wang wear! At $31.99 a set, these can easily become part of that special night out with that special someone and hey it's easier, faster and cheaper than getting your nails done at a shop!

Stay tuned for your chance to win a set of the amazing Incoco Nail Polish Appliques!







This is a free sample given to me by TRIB3 Chic. Reviewing this sample in no way impacts my review of the product. My views are my own and are expressed accurately and fairly to best of my ability.

Monday, December 10, 2012

Short Break!

Hey all! We wanted to give you a quick update on our lives and explain the lack of posts as of late! With it being Christmas time and with the kids and husbands and all that fun stuff our hobbies have been shoved to the wayside! Not good, we know, but life. We also had some life changes that have kept us both busy and away. Dom is currently looking for gainful employment and E is preparing and handling another deployment. Unfortunately, those are major and have taken up so much of our time!!!

We promise that we have not forgotten about all of you and we plan on resuming posting ASAP. We have continued to acquire some amazing polish would love to get them on the blog! Stick with us, we  know that you will not be disappointed!






P.S. A bit of positive news... E's family is multiplying! SHE IS PREGNANT! So, let's all take a moment and congratulate Chris & E on the amazing news!

Monday, November 12, 2012

Above the Curve ... Yes it is!

Hey ladies! Today I am excited to bring you a bit of indie love for Above the Curve nail polish. In my fashion, I really wanted to know more about the husband and wife team that created Above the Curve  and I was excite to get a chance to chat with one half of the duo, Angel Erwin!

Dom:  What made you start making polish?
Angel:  Well, I have always been passionate about raising awareness for Scoliosis and Shriner's Hospitals for the Children. We usually donate to Shriner's once a year but we really wanted to do more. So with my love of polish and frankening we thought it would be great if we made our own polish to help raise awareness and money for our cause! And viola, Above the Curve was born!

Dom:  What inspires you?
Angel:  About four years ago I read an article that said Shriner's Hospitals for Children would have to start charging families for the surgeries and care that they desperately needed. We felt like we needed to do something. We also felt the need to pay it forward for the help that I received from Shriner's many years ago!

Dom:  Are you a collector and if so what is your prized polish and what is your biggest lemming?
Angel:  Oh LORD!!! Yes, I am a "collector"! Hahaha! :) Hmm ... this is a hard one! I guess my most prized polish would have to be my China Glaze OMG collection (well, the ones that I have!). I have them up in my closet so my daughter doesn't break them. LOL! Also, China Glaze Sexagon!!! That is also put up.

Biggest lemming? Geez, that one is even harder!!! Ummm ... it was Dollish Polish Toxic Avenger but I  got lucky and found someone to make me a dupe. So, I guess I would have to say Cult Nails Clairvoyant aka Unicorn Puke.

Dom:  Anything fun coming down the pipeline for ATC?
Angel:  I dunno! You'll have to wait and see ;) wink! wink!

Dom:  Upcoming collections?
Angel:  We are working on a Dr. Seuss Collection right now that we hope to have release in the next month or two! But that is all I can tell you for now!  You already know too much! Hehehe!

Angel was so fun to chat with and I cannot wait to see the Dr. Seuss collection!!! I was lucky enough to get my hands on Above the Curve Fallen Angel and couldn't wait to get it on my nails. Above the Curve describes Fallen Angel as

A holographic polish with blue, pink and purple color shifting shimmer in a black base. 

I love this polish and had NO issues with it at all! I used Beauty Secrets Base Coat with two coats of Fallen Angel and Orly Glosser as a top coat.

I love this polish under inside lights as much as I do in the sun!!
Full Sunlight
I took so may pics of this polish and wanted to show a couple different angles! 
Full Sunlight

I have nothing but good things to say about this polish! It painted well and looked amazing. I had no issues with clean up and wore the polish for several days with no chipping! Take a minute and check out this polish ladies, you will not be disappointed!

You can purchase Above the Curve nail polish at:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/AboveTheCurve?ref=shop_sugg
http://abovethecurve.bigcartel.com

You can also like Above the Curve on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/AboveTheCurveNailPolish?fref=ts

Tell me what you think. If you have any Above the Curves nail polish, let me know. What are your favorites or which ones are must haves on your list?






This is a free sample given to me by Above the Curve. Reviewing this sample in no way impacts my review of the product. My views are my own and are expressed accurately and fairly to best of my ability.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Santa's Secret Stash Holiday Giveaway!

Tis' the season to be jolly and give some stuff away! We have joined a group of awesome bloggers in our first group giveaway and are excited to share it with you! All you need to do is take a few moments and fill out the entry form and hope that you win! LOL :)

This is a special giveaway because most of the prizes are a secret! Super secret and super awesome!  I can share a teaser with you...

Different Dimension 2012 Santa Baby Mini Set
China Glaze Holiday Charms Mini Set

Additional prizes provided by:






a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Different Dimension Santa Baby Christmas Collection ... AMAZEBALLS!!!!

Get ready ladies, this is gonna be a good one! Missi Barry is the creator of Different Dimension nail polish and her latest collection for the Holiday Season is amazing. I had a chance to chat with Missi and find out a bit about what makes her tick.

Dom: What made you start making polish?
Missi: I am a licensed nail tech and I had to have joint replacement surgery late this past spring, I ordered a bunch of stuff beforehand and started playing around with it, just for personal use. After years of doing nails you start to notice how similar all of the polishes tend to look. I just wanted something different to wear! I posted some pics online and things just took off! I now do this full-time and work two days a week as a nail tech!  I love it and I hope it shows!

Dom: Are you a polish collector and if so what are some of your prized colors or lemmings?
Missi: OMG!!! Yes!!! I'm a huge Whimsical Ideas by Pam fan as well as Contrary Polish. I am dying to get my hands on some Nerd Lacquer!!! As far as lemmings - I would have to say Nancy's Birthday and My Friend Carol by Whimsical Ideas and then I have a whole list of Nerd Lacquers I want - Don't Blink, Entirely Unlike Tea, Don't Panic, Outed by A Probot, All of Time and Space, Holy Grail, Smoke Dragon...

Dom: Santa Baby ... why was that song the inspiration for this collection?
Missi: It was between Santa Baby and My Grown-Up Christmas List. I always try to have a theme and Santa Baby is just so fun and girly and I LOVE it! I'm hoping everyone gets it. I didn't want to make polishes that were only specific to Christmas though. I think most of this collection can be worn year round. Like Santa Baby can definitely be worn on Valentines Day.




Dom: I have several of your lacquers and I love each and every one! What do you think makes your polish so special?
Missi: Honestly I make polishes that I would (and do) wear personally. I don't just throw glitter into some base and shake it up and pray it looks nice. Every polish is thought out well beforehand, colors that I want to use, what I want it to look like, if there is a cause behind it or a theme. I am obsessed with color and glitter so I'm sure that helps! I probably fail more than I succeed but sometimes I will go back after a month or two and look and add something that makes it a final product. I also measure everything and write it down! I think consistency throughout is such an important thing so many do not follow in this small community of ours.

Dom: What are inspirations? What keeps you doing what you do?
Missi: Personally my boys are my inspiration - everything I do in my life I do to better their lives. I was working 50+ hours a week in a nail shop unable to spend any time with them, I now am down to two days a week and I am able to be a mommy again! That is what keeps me going. I don't think that there is a greater gift than our children, so I try to do as much as I can to stay as involved as possible with them. I am so thankful this is allowing me to do that now! Other inspiration - I am a HUGE Andy Warhol fan, love love love him and any type of art in general. Hell, I even sat in the Christmas aisles (you know back in August, lol!) at Hobby Lobby for hours just gazing at all the wonderful colors and collections of ornament and decorations!

I really enjoyed getting to know Missi almost as much as I enjoy her polish! ; ) When I received my package of polish from Missi, I just about died! I had ordered several for my own collection and was also looking forward to reviewing the Santa Baby Line. It is safe to say that this is one of the best packages I have received in a while!  When I began to open the little bundles of joy, I loved each one just a bit more than the last. This collection is full of amazing color and texture combinations!  Let's get started shall we?

There are eight polishes in this collection with one bonus polish that will make you wanna smack yo mama! Santa Baby, Hurry Down the Chimney Tonight, I'll Wait Up For You Dear, Sign Your 'X' on the Line, I've Been An Angel All Year, I've Been an Awful Good Girl, Think of All the Fellas That I Haven't Kissed and Out of Space Convertible make up the Santa Baby Collection with a stunner called Chrsitmahanakwanzika as a bonus!

For all of these swatches I used Beauty Secrets Base Coat. I only used Orly Glosser Top Coat on two of the polishes, I will note those later in the post. All the polish descriptions are taken from the Different Dimensions Etsy Shop site. I am going to take a moment and make a blanket statement about all of these lacquers ... ALL OF THEM paint like a dream and even out nicely!

Santa Baby has a clear base with red, pink and white glitters in different sizes mixed with silver holographic micro-glitter. 



Sinful Colors Snow Me White & Rimmel London Black Satin
Hurry Down The Chimney Tonight is a jumble of asymmetrical red and white glitters. Looks amazing over any color! 


Sinful Colors Snow Me White & Rimmel London Black Satin
I'll Wait Up For You Dear is my vision of what Christmas in a bottle would look like. Green and red glitters in a clear base - so simple, yet so Christmassy!


Look at that light!!!
Sign Your 'X' On The Line is a silver shred and gold flakie top coat. It is neither really gold nor really silver but it is really amazing on!


Sinful Colors Snow Me White, W&W Red Red, Rimmel London Black Satin, China Glaze Holly-Day
With all of the wonderful holidays this time of year Missi decided it was important to try and make something fun for everyone to wear! Christmahanakwanzika has all of the amazing colors of all 3 holidays mixed into one polish! Definately a fun topper!


Sinful Colors Snow Me White, W&W Red Red, Rimmel London Black Satin, China Glaze Holly-Day
I've Been An Angel All Year has white, blue and silver glitters in a white base with slight blue shimmer added. Full coverage in 2 coats.


w/Orly Glosser top coat

I've Been An Awful Good Girl has a white base with pink(ish) shimmer and different sized pink and purple glitters throughout in different sizes.


2 Coats and look how smooth it is!  w/Orly Glosser top coat
Think Of All The Fellas That I Haven't Kissed - The colors in this were inspired in part by Missi's own Christmas tree trimmings. Rich purples, blues and teals in a clear base. Buildable in 3 coats, but looks amazing as a topper! (I only used 2 coats for these images with no undies)




Out Of Space Convertible is a black jelly polish with pink, purple and blue micro holographic glitters, looks best over black, but can be built in 3 coats. (again, I only used 2 coats for these images with no undies)



Well there ya have it!  I am going to give Different Dimensions Santa Baby Collection an A+!  All of colors were amazing to work with and I will definitely be wearing these again and again during this holiday season and beyond! I highly recommend this line to all of you and while you are shopping for these beauties pick up a few of Missi's other polishes. You will not be disappointed!  

Missi has been kind enough to issue a special discount for the month of November for Mani Curiously readers.  So head over to her shop grab some awesome polish!


Don't forget your special 20% off reader discount code when you checkout! 
manicuriously20

Like Different Dimensions on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/DIFdimension?fref=ts

Tell me what you think. Do you see any must haves in this collection? 


This is a free sample given to me by Different Dimension. Reviewing this sample in no way impacts my review of the product. My views are my own and are expressed accurately and fairly to best of my ability.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Go Pink Wednesday and a Celebration!


As October comes to a close so does our weekly Go Pink Wednesdays manicure. We have really enjoyed finding information to help you and those you love be more aware of Breast Cancer and how you can help yourself and those around you.
Image Credit: Paule Attar Salon & Spa
We wanted to end the month with a celebration of sorts. Every year there is a celebration of sorts in the form of Breast Cancer Walks. The number of walks done in the United States every year is immeasurable. There are several large groups that do yearly walks across the nation in major cities, namely The American Cancer Society is celebrating 20 years of walks and estimates they've had over 8 million walkers in those 20 years, with over 1 million in 2011 alone according to their FAQ page.
These Breast Cancer Awareness walks are inspiration as well as awe inspiring. Many survivors as well as their loved ones, co-workers, kids, pets and strangers come out to walk alongside each other in solidarity. The walk symbolizes many things to many individuals but the bottom line is hope.
Image Credit: expressnightout.com & Lea Pool

 Hope for a future without the disease, hope for a future with their loved ones, but truly and simply hope for more tomorrows.

A close friend of Dom's, Tiffany Kyees, had the chance to participate in the Team In Training Nike Womens Marathon event to run/walk for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society a couple weeks ago. While we have been focusing on Breast Cancer Awareness, cancer in general deserves to be known and fought against. Her personal journey to raise money, awareness and personal triumph is amazing and just as important. She celebrated her participation by wearing a purple tutu along with asorted purple gear. Tiffany shared some personal thoughts about her journey that you can read HERE. When asked about her experience she had this to say,
Tiffany running during the event!
Image Credit: Tiffany Kyees
"Such a beautiful and amazing experience. I highly recommend people doing a team in training event at some point in their lives. There was a woman there who ran and pushed her cancer fighting son in a wheelchair and a woman that spoke at our inspiration dinner who spoke of her bone marrow donor and how she got to meet him. They are like family now and he even flew out to San Francisco to run the race next to her! Such special stories!"
Jessica Mojica of Bakersfield pushes her son Nathan Garcia,
who is suffering from stage 4 brain cancer

Image Credit: Tiffany Kyees

We wanted to show this hope for tomorrow as well as the celebration and inspiration that the walks symbolize in our last manicures for October. Many walkers dress up in silly pink costumes, pink wigs, tutus and other outlandish and fun pink inspired outfits. These manis are our outlandish pink outfits... We hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoyed creating the crazy, over the top manis.


Dom created her everything but the kitchen sink mani with a base of Sinful Colors Snow Me White, Orly Artificial Sweetner and Rimmel London Posh Pink. She used a bit of flocking powder, some fimo hearts and flowers as well as some rhinestones and what you have is one heck of a celebration mani!

Sinful Colors - Snow Me White, Orly - Artificial Sweetner &
Rimmel London - Posh Pink
Sinful Colors - Snow Me White, Orly - Artificial Sweetner &
Rimmel London - Posh Pink

E created her outlandish mani on a bed of OPI - Kiss Me On My Tulips and an accent nail to include Dollish Polish - I'll Have What She's Having. The rest includes: loose glitter, rhinestones, nail decals, and star glitter.


OPI - Kiss Me On My Tulips (indirect sunlight)
OPI - Kiss Me On My Tulips (direct sunlight)

Hopefully you've enjoyed our participation in the Go Pink Wednesdays... Please don't let the Breast Cancer Awareness end with October. Continue to check yourself and remind loved ones as well. It really could save a life... one that you might cherish as much or more than your own.

with love and hope for a cancer free future,

and



Drip Mani Tutorial with Cult Nails!

Hey there :) Happy Halloween Eve!

Dom & I have been participants in the Go Pink Wednesdays campaign to bring awareness to Breast Cancer through pink manicures on wednesdays during the month of October. It's been a great experience and I've loved coming up with pink themed manicures; however, it's also my favorite time of year! Once I started thinking about how I could incorporate the two, pink BCA & Halloween, I knew I had something I could really enjoy! Well my favorite pink/halloween-ish manicure was my Pink Drip Mani. It seemed several of you really loved it as well so here we are... a tutorial!


Let me preface this tutorial with a few things though...

What you DON'T need:

  • Doubt
  • Nail art abilities
  • Skill/talent
  • any special tools


Never doubt yourself... I am no more talented than you and if I can do it, so can you! Nail art is just that, art. Art is subjective and in the eye of the beholder. Never feel like it is an achieveable skill, it is always within you, just believe. Again, no special skills or talent is necessary for this look and many others, just a little patience would help! Lastly, in my opinion there is no real need for any special nail art tools. Do they make life easier? Yes! But truly they are not necessary as long as you look around and get inventive with the tools available to you. 

What you DO need:
  • Two polish colors- preferrably two that are very different
  • General items like acetone/polish remover, cotton balls, paper towel
  • A round tipped item to make dots
    • ball point pen
    • toothpick 
    • pencil eraser 
    • bobby pin
    • or if you have a set- Dotting Tool
  • A thin brush or item to draw a line with
    • toothpick
    • orange stick/cuticle pusher
    • pencil
    • or if you have one- a brush or nail art striper
  • A picture or some sort of visual idea of what you'd like your drips to look like
  • Base/Top Coat


I tried to include as many pictures as possible to cover how you, our lovely reader, might learn best from the tutorial. Below are singular photos. As a side note I had some technical difficulties like my camera battery was acting up, the daylight was fading fast and a demanding toddler LOL... so some of these photos aren't the best quality and some clean up in the final shot was a little lacking, so please forgive me :)


STEP 1

Start with a base color, fully base/top coated and dry. I chose my favorite green, Cult Nails - Deal With It from the summer release, CoCo's Collection. This green is slightly sheer and I am a crazy person with VNL (visible nail line) so I did 3 thin coats in this photo. This polish is a dream to work with, builds nicely and clean up is a breeze. As a side note... this is the perfect Halloween type green. I just love it! Plus the beautiful shimmer is just too much!!


STEP 2

On your base place anywhere from 1 to 3 dots on each nail at varying levels with your contrasting other color. For this mani I chose Cult Nails - Nevermore. I like to refer to Nevermore as the best black ever. It is seriously shiny, beautiful in ONE coat and quick drying. If you never buy another Cult Nails polish- buy Nevermore... I promise you won't be disappointed!!

This step takes a smidge of consideration. The part that makes the drip look so interesting is how different each one looks. I also try to be aware of where my previous dots were so I don't accidentally repeat a dot pattern.


STEP 3

This step is pretty simple in the fact that all you need to do is draw a line from your dot to the edge of your nail. The line does not need to be thick and works better if it isn't as thick as the dot. Don't worry about how thick or clumpy the paint looks... it'll smooth out with top coat.


STEP 4

Ok... first I apologize I did not take a separate step 4 photograph as I got distracted and before I knew it was almost done and onto step 5 before I remembered! SO SORRY! :(

So this step is the one that looks the hardest but is really the easiest in my opinion. What you're ultimately doing is connecting the lines. I do this by drawing a curved line from one line to the next. Almost curved lines like a spider web? Don't go too far down since you'll want room to do the final detail work. That way if you decide to make the tip of your nail look like it has been dipped more then it's just adding.... ****REMEMBER**** less is more in this particular look... the artistry is in the details so work in small amounts. You'll want to keep those lines as curved as possible to achieve that true drip look.


STEP 5

In this step you are simply finishing up the edges, filling in the empty spots where you have curved lines and putting on your final touches. This is the part where you want to really look at your drips and consider how you want them to look and what sort of nuances do you want to show. In the steps 3/4/5 I added partial drip lumps on my middle finger and a couple of separate drips on the pinky & middle fingers. You'll want to go on the sides of your nails lightly with your tool so the drips have the appearance of continuing off your nails. This is the messy and unfortunate part. You'll get paint on your fingers and into the edge/crack of your nail. This is where a good clean up regimen will be needed. The black looks lumpy and clumpy but I promise it all levels out with a good top coat. (side note: the clean up brush I use is a concealer brush made by e.l.f.  and $1, available at Target)


FINISHED!

Clean up the edges of your nails and top coat!

3 thin coats of Cult Nails - Deal With It, drips in Cult Nails - Nevermore
base coat Duri - Rejuvacote & top coat of Seche Vite
I hope you've enjoyed this tutorial and it helps you achieve your desired drip mani :) Let me know if you need any assistance or if there is a step that isn't clear :) Be sure to post your drip manis to the fan page on facebook!

xo & Happy Halloween,


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