Minnie Mouse Mani & Stamping Plate Review

Hello Lacquer Luvers! Today I have another review and a super cute mani to share with you! For today's mani you will see that I "recycled" part of yesterday's manicure. As I mentioned yesterday, I was sent another item to review from BornPrettyStore, the RuiZ03 stamping plate:

I've always wanted to do a Mickey and Minnie Mouse manicure after seeing Holy Manicures masterpiece a good while ago. Isn't that adorable?! I wanted to do a twist on the normal red/black/white Minnie mani that you normally think of. I was inspired by this picture:

As stated above, I recycled part of yesterday's mani, my ring finger. I removed polish from the rest of my nails and proceeded to begin with a base of Essie Feed Me. I applied two coats of Bettina Vintage to my pinky and middle fingers, 3 coats of Zoya Darcy to my index and 3 coats of L'Oreal Miss Pixie on my thumb. Miss Pixie was a gift from the lovely Keisha of refinedandpolished.com and is part of the Limited Edition Miss Candy collection which includes 8 jellies! Oh, I can't even tell you how excited I was to see that in a very sweet and thoughtful package from her.

The stamping was done with Konad Special Stamping Polish in white along with the images found on stamping plate RuiZ03. I tested these images on paper before applying them to my nails. Each image on the plate is etched perfectly and I had no issues transferring them to my nail art stamper and on to my nails.

I used a makeup sponge and Shimmer Julia on my middle finger. On my thumb I applied one coat of OPI's Pirouette My Whistle followed by another coat of Miss Pixie. I completed my mani with a coat of Essie Good To Go.

This cobalt blue jelly that is Miss Pixie is to die for!

Overall, I really really adore this manicure! It makes me want to start planning a trip to Disney with the kids. I love that it's not your traditional Minnie Mouse colors and the 3D bow went perfectly with my inspiration photo. The RuiZ03 plate from BornPrettyStore is made perfectly and I would definitely recommend it to anybody who isn't great at freehand like myself. Remember that if you do purchase this plate, you can receive 10% off your total order at BornPrettyStore by using the unique code on the right of my blog! As always, I hope you all liked this post my dear Lacquer Luvers and I look forward to sharing my next post with you, xo!

~Jessica    

Goth Mani (Stamping Sunday Challenge Theme)

Hello Lacquer Luvers! Today I will be sharing a mani with you that I never would have thought of doing. Today's theme for the Adventures In Stamping group on Facebook is Goth. I would normally never gravitate to a theme like this just because it isn't a genre I know much about. This is one of the reasons joining a group like this is great. It allows you to push your creative boundaries and come up with ideas you normally wouldn't think of.

Photo credit: http://www.vampirerave.com/profiles/profiles2.php?profile=bbbchick

Like I mentioned above, I know nothing about Goth so I decided to ask my good ol' friend Google! As I was searching images of what Goth looks like I noticed there were a bunch with fairies in them. I decided that the photo above would be my inspiration image for the day.

My manicure began with a base of Milani's Smoothe Base Coat followed by two coats of OPI My Private Jet. This is the not-so-awesomely-holo version of this polish. I still like it very much, though. My Private Jet is a dark brown base with scattered holographic glitter throughout it. Application and formula was very nice and so was the dry time.

Next I used my Sally Hansen Color Quick pen in Purple Chrome along with Red Angel image plate RA-116 on my thumb, index, middle, and pinky fingers to stamp on a large rose image. I chose to only use about half of the rose and stamped it on the right edge of my nails.

Next I stamped on the skull which comes from MASH image plate MASH-29. I used Sally Hansen Color Quick pen in Gold Chrome for the skull. Then I stamped on the fairy which was from RA-113 and I used the SHCQ pen in Pink Chrome. I gave the fairy wings which came from RA-115. The small roses under the skull come from CH14 which is a Cheeky image plate. I used the Purple Chrome for those.

I am very much pleased with how this manicure came out. I think it's Goth with a bit of a girly touch. What do you think, did I nail this one? What kind of manicure would you do for a Goth theme? As always, I hope you all liked this post my dear Lacquer Luvers and I look forward to sharing my next post with you, xo!

~Jessica

Girly-Girl Nail Art Challenge Day 6

Hello Lacquer Luvers! Welcome to Day 6 of the Girly-Girl Nail Art Challenge. This challenge was created by Lindsey of Neverland Nail Blog & has been so much fun! I can't believe next week it will be over but it really has been great getting to come up with these manicures for you all and seeing the awesome creations of the other ladies taking part in this challenge.

The theme for Day 6 of the challenge is - "Who Inspires you? Show some love to your favorite female role model by creating gorgeous nails in their honor." Honestly, I thought of famous role models like Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey and Maria Shriver to name a few who I could honor with a manicure. I thought and thought and felt that there was someone who influenced me personally so much more than any other person, famous or not. That person is my son's teacher, Mrs. Fils-Aime.

For those of you who don't know, my son Tyus, has been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder and we have been so fortunate to be able to get aid through the city and put him in schools that have helped him overcome so many obstacles. My family is ever-so-grateful that there are teachers like Ms. Fils-Aime who are so dedicated to helping children with special needs. It takes someone with a big heart and tons of patience to do what she does and we are sincerely appreciative of her daily efforts to improve the lives of the children in her classroom.

I began my manicure today with a base of Essie Grow Faster. Next I applied two coats of Bettina Matte on my pinky, one coat of OPI Samoan Sand on my ring finger, two coats of Bettina Peppermint on my ring finger, and two coats of ORLY Lucky Duck on my index finger.

Then I took my Kiss Nail Art stripers in blue and  red to create the look of notebook paper on my pinky finger. I used Scotch tape and E.L.F. Chocolate to create a desk and my red nail art striper and plate M66 from BornPrettyStore to put a apple on the desk for my ring finger. I used Scotch tape and Sally Hansen Blue It for the Autism puzzle pieces, which represent the ambiguity and mystery around the causes and understanding of Autism. I used my Kiss Nail Art striper in yellow to create a math problem on a chalkboard, something that Tyus is currently learning at school. My manicure was topped off with a coat of Essie Good To Go topcoat.

L-R Kiss Nail Art Stripers in blue, yellow, red, SHXW Blue It, Bettina Peppermint, OPI Samoan Sand, Bettina Matte, ORLY Lucky Duck, E.L.F. Chocolate

I feel that even though this may not be my "prettiest" manicure, it is most certainly the most meaningful one I have ever created. I would like to say that this manicure is not only a dedication to Ms. Fils-Aime, but it's also in honor of the many teachers who work with special needs children daily. You are so very special and influential to the lives of our children. Thank you for helping them to improve academically and nurturing our children with love. You are our hero's and I hope that this manicure shows how much of a role model and influence you are on us. To see more role model inspired manicures, check out these blog posts of the other girls participating in this challenge:

Lindsey of Neverland Nail Blog

Ashley of Follow The Yellow Polish Road

Stephanie of A Little Polish

Kelly of Polish Enthusiast

Jodi of Captivating Claws

Danielle of Rock N Polish

Elly of Polishable

Olivia of Unprofessional Nails

Kate of This Charming Kate

Bethany of  A Plethora Of Nails

Lizzy of The Do It Yourself Lady

Eugenia of Talon-ted

Johanna of Neues vom Kellerkind

Amanda of Nox Nails

Ashley of Smashley Sparkles

Sarah of See Sarah Swatch

Emily of The Lacquerologist

Tressa of O' Natur Nail

I would love to hear who inspires you all so please let me know in the comments below luvs. As always, I hope you all liked this post my dear Lacquer Luvers and I look forward to sharing my next post with you, xo!

~Jessica

Beach Inspired Water Marble

Hello Lacquer Luvers! How are you all doing on this fine Monday? I am really excited about my post today because it was inspired by my all-time favorite place. Before I get into my manicure, I want to share something with you all. Yesterday we decided to take a trip to the beach. Little did we know, there was a kite festival going on. Tyus (my son) was so excited to see all of the kites in the sky but not as excited as he was to get his feet into the water. We sat out for a bit and as we were enjoying the sights an older gentleman approached us & asked if Tyus would like to fly a kite. It made my heart melt to know that there are genuinely nice people in this world after all the terrible things we see/hear everyday. The gentleman saw how happy Tyus was and told him that he wanted him to have his kite. It really was the sweetest thing ever!

In the midst of our fun, I chipped the sides of my pointer and middle fingers. Any other time I would've been sad about it but how could I be when I'm looking at this:

I absolutely love love love the beach! It's the one place where everyone in my family has a smile on their face for hours on end.

On to my mani! I bet by now you can guess what I was inspired by today (well, besides the title of this post, haha!). The beautiful sand and the gorgeous shades that range from seafoam green to aqua to dark blue is the story behind my nails for the day. After filing my nails down because of the two chips, I began my manicure with a base of Essie Grow Faster followed by two coats of OPI Samoan Sand. Next I used Samoan Sand, Bettina Ocean, Bettina Aqua, and Essie Turquoise & Caicos to create my beach inspired water marble. I topped my manicure with a coat of Essie Good To Go topcoat.

The tip of my pointer finger looks like a wave! How cool is that? =)

L-R OPI Samoan Sand, Bettina Ocean, Bettina Aqua, Essie Turquoise & Caicos

Did you ladies notice that the colors I used to create my mani today are beach related? That's one of my favorite parts of this one! It reminds me of all the fun we had yesterday and the great memories that were made. What do you think luvs? What is your all-time favorite place to visit & what colors would you use to translate it to your nails? As always, I hope you all liked this post my dear Lacquer Luvers and I look forward to sharing my next post with you, xo!

~Jessica

Let's Go GIANTS: My Superbowl Mani

Hello Lacquer Luvers & football fans!! As you all know, or should know, today is Superbowl Sunday & that means I have a kick-ass sports mani to share with you all! Tonight I will be rooting for the NY Giants because, well, my Grandma wouldn't have it any other way. She was born & raised in NY & has never missed a game. So Grammy, this one's for you!

I began my manicure with a base of Essie Grow Faster followed by two coats of OPI DS Magic. DS Magic perfectly matched a jersey that my Uncle got my son for Christmas when he was a baby. It's a beautiful dark blue polish full of glass flecks. In the right lighting & angle, this baby flashes a bit of purple. Application & formula were both flawless. This polish honestly just kind of glides on your nails & dry time was a little faster than average.

Once DS Magic dried it was time for nail art. I was inspired by the gear the players will be wearing; namely the football jerseys (pinky, middle, index, & thumbs) & helmets (ring finger). I wanted to mimic the look of the netting in the jersey & an image from Konad's M79 plate was perfect for what I was going for. I used my Konad Special Stamping Polish in white for the design. The Giants' helmets are blue with a red stripe going down the middle. I used Scotch tape & Kiss Nail Art paint in red to imitate the helmets on my ring finger. This sports mani was finished with Essie's Good To Go topcoat.

See how the jersey has the cross stitching and dots in the middle? Is this not the perfect stamp for that look? =)

Goooo Giants!!

Well Lacquer Luvers, I would love to know what you all think of my NY Giants manicure! What are your plans for the game tonight? Who will you be rooting for? I plan on staying home and ordering pizza & wings. Oh & the new season of The Voice premiers after the Superbowl & I can't wait for that! As always, I hope you all liked this post my dear Lacquer Luvers and I look forward to sharing my next post with you, xo! GOOOOO GIANTS!!!

~Jessica

Oh Baby, I Lily Love You!

Hello Lacquer Luvers! I have a very very special Pink Wednesday post for you all today! I have been waiting a while to share the news but am beyond excited to announce that I am going to bring a beautiful bundle of joy into the world in August!!! We are overjoyed by this news & I wanted to share it with you all, my luvs! =)

Gahhhh!! =D Okay, okay..now that I've got it out of my system, on to my Pink Wednesday manicure. Today's manicure features two polishes by O.P.I. I began today's mani with a base coat of Essie Grow Faster. Next I applied three coats of O.P.I.'s Kinky In Helsinki which is from their 2002 European Collection and was re-released in their 2009 Colorcopia Collection. I won this polish and 5 others in a giveaway O.P.I. had on their facebook page last year. This shade can best be described as a pearly fuchsia with blue duochrome. Formula was great and dry time was average.

Ooooh look at the blue duochromey-ness (yes, I just made this word up)! It kind of looks like it glows, doesn't it? Such a gorgeous shade!

Next I layered one coat of O.P.I. I Lily Love You over Kinky In Helsinki. I Lily Love You is from their Summer 2011 collection, Nice Stems! This baby is a sheer pink base full of fun! It has a variety of glitter and flakes in it: opalescent mylar flakes/shards, opal glitter, and iridescent square, circle, & hexagonal glitter. My only problem with this pretty was that the mylar flakes/shards were a bit difficult to apply. Some of them refused to lay flat but I managed to get them down using the end of a toothpick. I finished this manicure using Essie Good To Go top coat.

This combination looks like a pink party on my nails! And with good reason to celebrate with the announcement of my pregnancy, right? =) Do any of you have these polishes? What's your favorite layering combo using I Lily Love You? As always, I hope you all liked this post my dear Lacquer Luvers and I look forward to sharing my next post with you, xo!

~Jessica

Pink Wednesday

Hello Lacquer Luvers! Today I have my first Pink Wednesday manicure for you all. Three amazing nail bloggers, Colour Coated, Glitta Gloves, & Life and Polish got together and created Pink Wednesdays after their love for the movie Mean Girls. In the movie, "The Plastics" wear pink on Wednesday's and though none of the bloggers are mean, they took this idea and made it their own by wearing pink nails on Wednesdays. I just had to join in on this since pink is one of my favorite nail colors!

Today's manicure began with one coat of OPI Nail Envy. I chose OPI DS Reserve for my first Pink Wednesday manicure. OPI's Designer Series line are 3-free (free of DBP, Toluene, & Formaldehyde) and formulated with diamond dust. DS Reserve is an incredibly gorgeous vintage pink holographic polish that applies very smoothly and is completely opaque in just two coats. I used Seche Vite fast dry top coat to top my pretty pink mani off. The holographic particles in Reserve make me want to call this one My Private Jet's pink little sister.

I really love this polish. I like this shade on my skin tone and as a holographic lover I'm so glad to have this one in my stash. What's your favorite pink polish? As always, I hope you all liked this post my dear Lacquer Luvers and I look forward to sharing tomorrow's post with you, xo!

~Jessica

10 Day Challenge: Day 3

Hello Lacquer Luvers & welcome to Day 3 of the 10 Day Challenge! Today's challenge is Favorite Book or Inspired by a Book. As I mentioned in the 14 Random Questions post, I haven't read in a while so this was really a challenge. I thought long and hard and remembered this children's book that I read over and over as a kid. It was called The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein.

The Giving Tree is a tale of a boy and a tree. The tree always gave the boy what he wanted...shade, a swing, apples...and as the boy got older he needed more and more of the tree. One day the tree allowed the boy to cut him down to make a boat. When the boy returned the tree told him he had no more to give but the boy just wanted somewhere to sit. The tree allowed him to sit on it's stump & that made the tree happy that he could still be of use to the boy.

For my mani, I was inspired by the book's cover. I began with a coat of OPI Nail Envy and two coats of Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Grass Slipper. This is such a great bright green cream. The formula was nice and the brushes are wide and tapered which made for easy application. I used Lucky Duck by Orly to stamp on some leaves from BundleMonster's image plate BM208. The red in the apple is Ali's Big Break by OPI & the stem of the apple is Chocolate by E.L.F.

The Giving Tree book cover:

What is your favorite book? What do you think of my book inspired mani? Don't forget that  Ms. Kelly from Posh For Polish is doing this challenge with me so please go take a look at her book inspired man and let her know what you think! As always, I hope you all liked this post my dear Lacquer Luvers and I look forward to sharing tomorrow's post with you, xo!

~Jessica