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Revel Nails Acrylic Dip Powder System (with Instruction Video)

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Revel Nail Acrylic Dip Powder System

I have something new and exciting to share with you today… Revel Nail’s acrylic dip system! With this system you can achieve beautiful acrylic overlays on natural nails or tips, and you can also achieve a perfect acrylic French manicure in just a few easy steps.

Revel Nail’s acrylic dip powders come in 2 oz jars, and are available in 65 different colors.  The powder is ultra fine and silky to the touch.  The dip system includes the dip powders, Prep Gel (step #1), Pro Base (step #2), Activator (step #3), and Finish Gel (step #4).  There is also a brush softener available in case you accidentally let one of your brushes harden. These items are sold separately or you can purchase them all in the French Manicure kit, which includes white and pink powder.  My photo below also shows the cuticle oil, which can be purchased separately.

Revel Nail Acrylic Dip Powder SystemPrior to receiving this sample kit from Revel, I had never used an acrylic dip system. I watched the video demonstration (shown at the bottom of this post along with instructions), jotted down some notes, and then quickly went to work trying them out.  I received a few different colored powders and the first one that I tried was D32 Isadora, which is a silver holographic glitter.

Below is a picture of my very first attempt at the acrylic dip system.  It was super easy to use, and my nails felt amazingly strong!  My nails felt a little tight and my c-curve was flattened out quite a bit, which made my nails look wider than normal.  I actually like it when my nails are a little flatter because my natural curve is very deep.  I applied three coats of Isadora to get this look.  My nails were gorgeous and sparkly!

Revel Nail Acrylic Dip Powder - IsadoraI wore this manicure to school the next day and had to use acetone on a client.  I quickly learned that the finish gel doesn’t stand up to acetone.  My nails started melting away and the finish went dull.  I went home that night and filed off the top layer to even them back out and then I tried using a gel polish top coat over them to see if that would hold.  Unfortunately that didn’t hold up to acetone either.  I reached out to my rep at Revel and asked for advice and she told me to try using the Revel Tack-Free Gel Topcoat instead of the finish gel that comes with the dip system.  That finally did the trick!  Yay!

One quick thing to note is that the Tack-Free Top Coat is meant for use over nail enhancements (acrylic or gel) and NOT for soak-off gel polish.  This is the only product I used that need to be cured in a lamp.  The dip system products do not need curing.

Revel Nail Acrylic Dip Powder - IsadoraThe next acrylic dip manicure that I tried was this gorgeous sparkly blue, D31 Ingrid.  OMG, drool…

I finished this manicure off with the Tack-Free Top Coat instead of the finish gel, and you can see that it has a nice glossy finish.

Revel Nail Acrylic Dip Powder - IngridHere’s another shot with the dip powder.  The only thing I notice when looking at the pics is that my nails appear to be a little on the thick side.  But that’s because they are – they have three coats of acrylic powder on them!  They could be filed down a little more on the sides to reduce the appearance of thickness if desired.

Revel Nail Acrylic Dip Powder - IngridAnd the last acrylic dip manicure that I attempted was a pink and white French manicure.  Not too shabby for my first try!  The video demonstration at the bottom of this post shows how to achieve this look.  To quickly summarize, you apply the pro base and then dip just the tip of your nail into the white, tap off the excess, and then dip your whole nail into the pink.  The two dip powders that I used for this manicure were D74 Veronica (white) and D71 Scarlett (pink).

I think the base color is a little too pink for my skin tone, and a nude color might work better for me.  Also, the pink looked a little grainy.  That is my fault though because I didn’t have the right ratio of liquid to powder, which I’ll explain more below.

Revel Nail Acrylic Dip Powder - Pink & White French ManicureHere’s another quick shot of my French dip manicure.

Revel Nail Acrylic Dip Powder - Pink & White French Manicure

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS:

Below is the video by Revel Nail that demonstrates how to do a pink and white French acrylic dip. I watched the video and jotted down some notes.  Below are my shortened version of the instructions.  Please watch the video at least once before attempting to use the dip system in case my notes are unclear.

  1. Sanitize hands.
  2. Remove shine from the nails using a fine grit nail file (e-file only if you are experienced).
  3. Apply the Prep solution (#1) to the nails.
  4. Apply the Pro Base (#2).
  5. Dip the nail into the pink powder.
  6. Apply Pro Base (#2).
  7. Dip just the tip of the nail into the white powder to create the smile line, and tap off any excess.
  8. Dip the whole nail into the pink powder, and tap off the excess.
  9. Repeat steps 7 & 8.
  10. Apply another coat of Pro Base (#2).
  11. Apply the Activator (#3) generously, capping the tips.
  12. Once dry to the touch, shape the nails with a file.
  13. Buff the nail and remove powder from the cuticle area.
  14. Rinse hands in water (no soap), and dry.
  15. Apply the Activator (#3) again, and wipe off with a paper towel.
  16. Apply the Finish Gel (#4).  Don’t pause, and wipe the brush onto a piece of paper to reduce stiffness.
  17. Apply another coat of Finish Gel (#4).
  18. Allow to dry.
  19. Apply cuticle oil.

Application Tips & Tricks:

These are a few things I learned the hard way in my trials.  :)

You’ll notice in the video that she applies a coat of pink before doing the pink & white.  On this initial coat, she doesn’t cover the full nail with the Pro Base.  She applies somewhere between 1/2 and 3/4 up the nail, avoiding the cuticle area.  I’m told that this helps build strength.  I also found that it makes the edges smoother and less bulky.

I had issues with powder getting onto my Pro Base (#2) brush, and now have powder in my bottle. :(  I learned that this happened because I didn’t use enough Pro Base.  If you apply the Pro Base generously enough, the powder should have a wet appearance after dipping.  If the powder stays chalky/dry looking, you didn’t use enough Pro Base and are likely to pick up some powder on your next layer application.  If you do get powder on your brush, wipe it off with a dry paper towel before putting it back in the bottle.  This is also the reason that my pink and white mani had a slightly grainy appearance.

As I mentioned previously, if you use acetone frequently you might consider using the Revel Tack-Free Gel Topcoat instead of the Finish Gel (#4) to protect your manicure.  Don’t apply it over the finish gel or it will peel off.

If you are doing nails for clients, I have a feeling that dipping into the same container would be considered unsanitary. I would put some powder into a dappen dish or other small container for one-time use and discard any remaining powder after the mani is done. You could also do the sprinkle method, and sprinkle the powder over the nail rather than dipping into the container.

And lastly, my brushes did get hard a few times.  I put them into the brush softener bottle and left them sit for a little while and they softened back up.  Just be sure to wipe off the softener before placing the brush back into the proper bottle.

Removal

If you’re wondering about removal… it wasn’t difficult, but I did find it to be a little messy. To remove the acrylic dip, soak your nails in acetone or you can use the Steam Off system, which is what I used. The acrylic softens and becomes very gummy, and you scrape it off with an orangewood stick or instrument. I did it little by little until it all came off. I think it took about 20-25 minutes total.

Fills

You can do fills with these instead of soaking-off and reapplying!  I have not attempted this yet, so I can’t provide any advice.  I believe you would focus on applying just on the new growth and blending it into the existing acrylic.

Acrygel

I also want to mention quickly that these powders are awesome for using with the acrygel technique!  They are super fine and hardly require much buffing/filing, and there are tons of color options.  You don’t even need to apply polish over them.  :)

Whew!  That was a long post, but there’s a lot of info to be known!

Revel’s acrylic dip products can be purchased here:  http://www.revelnail.com/dip-powder/


Neutral Gel Polish Shades for Spring

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Many of the new gel polish collections that were released this Spring contained a neutral shade, and I thought I’d highlight a few of my favorites.  I’ve always worn bright, bold colors but lately I’ve found myself completely swooning over neutrals!  What has gotten into me?!

Nude Beige is a new color that was just released a few weeks ago as part of Pink Gellac’s Spring Collection (now available at the Boutique). It’s a pink-leaning nude cream.  It’s similar in tone to Blush Orange, but is a little darker and is opaque in two coats.  I think the pink hues in this color make it work with just about any skin tone.  I just love the warmness of this color!

154-nude-beigeDo You Take Lei Away? is a light tan cream that was released in the OPI Hawaii Collection.  This color would probably look great with a white tip for an American Manicure look.  This color is a bit on the cool side.

opi-gelcolor-do-you-take-lei-awayBare Bear is a brown-leaning tan cream that was released with the Gel II Carousel Collection.  When I first saw this color in the bottle I didn’t think I was going to like it, but I quickly changed my mind after applying it!  It looks amazing on darker skin tones too.

gelii-bare-bear

Field Fox is a mauve-leaning neutral cream that was released in CND Shellac’s Flora & Fauna Collection.  Swoon!  This is another warmer shade that quickly jumped to the top of my list.

CND Field Fox

Ibd Dockside Diva is another cool-toned, tan cream that is similar to OPI Do You Take Lei Away. This isn’t a new release, but it’s one of my favorite neutrals and was the very first nude that I really liked, so I had to mention it!  This was my go-to neutral shade for a long time, but with all of the new releases mentioned above, it now has some serious competition.  :)

ibd Dockside Diva

What are your favorite neutral colors?

Mother’s Day Specials on Gel Polish, Nail Lamps & More!

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Happy Sunday! Mother’s Day is less than a week away! Most women love gifts that involve a little pampering, myself included. I’ve pulled together some special deals on gel polish and other related products in celebration of Mother’s Day.   Treat mom or grandma, or yourself!

Over at Chickettes Boutique you can save $5, $10 or $15 on Pink Gellac gel polish with the coupon codes below!  The more you buy, the more you save! This sale lasts through next Sunday, May 10th at midnight.

You can also purchase gift certificates in any dollar amount of $10 or more.  The gift certificates are delivered instantly via email, so they make great last minute gifts!  And if you don’t want mom to get it right away, email it to yourself and print it or forward it to her.  :)

mothers-day-square


The special on the Melody Susie 24-Watt LED lamp is back!  Take an additional $10 off the price of this lamp when you purchase it on Amazon.com by Sunday, May 10th at midnight.  Use coupon code:  7T5FJFXN to claim this deal.

melody-susie-24-watt-led-lamp


DIY Hard Nails is offering a 15% discount when you purchase products from www.DIYHardNails.com for the next 2 weeks! Use coupon code MOMLOVE15 at checkout to take advantage of this offer.

DIY Hard Nails has some amazing color changing gel polishes like the one below.

Pink Frost


Esther’s Nail Center has some hot deals going on right now. Check out their current sale page… it has a wide range of products including the Gelish 18G lamp, the OPI lamp, Gelish colors (for just $9.95), a Robart shaker and much more!

Use the code PrettyMom at checkout to save $3 on any order of $15 or more. This offer is valid until May 10th, 2015.

esthers-nc

Messy Mansion Paisley Stamped Nails

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Messy Mansion Stamping using MM48 Paisley Plate - Chickettes.com

I finally have some nail art to show you today! I’ve hardly had time for nail art lately and I really miss doing it. I’m going to make an effort to do it more often instead of only posting swatches all the time. Although I have more than 50 polishes sitting on my desk right now to swatch… it never ends. LOL

I received a few new stamping plates from Messy Mansion, and this paisley plate called to me. I’ve always loved paisley designs, and this plate has some unique etchings. The Messy Mansion stamping plates have nice large images that work well for long and/or wide nails.  They are etched really well too and always provide a perfect image.  Below is a picture of the Messy Mansion MM48 stamping plate.  I still haven’t figured out how to photograph stamping plates well, so ignore the reflection of my iPhone.  LOL

Messy Mansion Stamping using MM48 Paisley Plate - Chickettes.comI’m not sure that it’s super noticeable, but the base underneath my stamp is actually the result of playing with some alcohol inks.  I first applied a coat of white gel polish using Pink Gellac Soft White, and then dabbed some alcohol inks and alcohol onto my nails using a small brush.  I repeated this process until I had a look that I was satisfied with.  (Learn more about using alcohol inks at Ten Little Canvases).  Unfortunately, I completely forgot to take a picture of the base before adding the stamp.  Doh!

Playing with alcohol inks is a little messy, so I was sure to use Liquid Palisade on the skin surrounding my nails for easy clean up.  The three alcohol ink colors that I used are available in a pack on Amazon.com.  The colors are Pebble, Clover and Raspberry.

Messy Mansion Stamping using MM48 Paisley Plate - Chickettes.com

I promise to post more nail art soon! I have three more MM plates to try out. :)

DIY Hard Nails: New Gel Polish Colors & a GIVEAWAY!

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DIY Hard Nails - New Gel Polish Colors & GIVEAWAY
DIY Hard Nails just released eight new gel polish colors, four creams and four color changers.  Below are swatches of all of the new colors, and at the bottom of the post you’ll find information about a GIVEAWAY!  Enter for a chance to win some of these awesome polishes.

DIY Hard Nails gels can be purchased at www.DIYHardNails.com OR Amazon.com.

  • Get FREE shipping when you order 3 or more gel polishes (USA Only)
  • International shipping is available
  • DIY Hard Nails gel polishes are free of formaldehyde, DBP, toluene, mercury, and lead

The swatches below show three coats of each color.

Pink Lily is a light pastel pink cream.
DIY Hard Nails - Pink LilyMinty Fresh is a light minty green cream.

DIY Hard Nails - Minty FreshNudist is a sheer neutral cream that builds up to opacity.  This color would work well as a base for French manicures.

DIY Hard Nails - NudistSmoky Air is a green-leaning grey cream.

DIY Hard Nails - Smoky AirBlue Bombay is a color changing gel that shifts from dark blue when warm, to a brown-leaning purple when cold.

DIY Hard Nails - Blue BombayMidnight Rose is a color changing gel polish that shifts from red when warm, to a dark blue-ish purple when cold.

DIY Hard Nails - Midnight RoseSand Stone is a color changing gel polish that shifts from light brown when warm, to burgundy red when cold.

DIY Hard Nails - Sand StonePurple Rain is a color changing gel polish that shifts from magenta when warm, to a vibrant blue-leaning purple when cold.  This is my personal favorite of the bunch!

DIY Hard Nails - Purple Rain


GIVEAWAY DETAILS!

The Prizes:

1st Place: DIY Hard Nails top coat, base coat, and 2 colors of your choice!
2nd Place: DIY Hard Nails top coat, base coat, and 2 colors of your choice!

The Rules:

  • The giveaway will run through May 20, 2015.
  • Entries will be collected via Rafflecopter only.
  • The winners will be selected randomly via Rafflecopter and announced on May 21st.
  • The winners will be notified via email, and will have 48 hours to claim the prizes or new winners will be selected.
  • This giveaway is only open internationally.
  • Entries will be verified.

GOOD LUCK!

Enter the Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Nail School Update: Beta/Gamma Phase Complete

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I’ve completed the second phase of nail school and am now starting the Management program.  During the Beta/Gamma phase we were mostly on the floor working with clients, and only in the classroom one evening a week.  I’ve gotten much more comfortable performing services on clients and my confidence is definitely gaining.  I have a few regular clients that rebook with me each time they come in, yay!  It’s pedicure season so we’re doing lots and lots of pedis.

We covered all of the remaining chapters in our book and I aced most of the tests… except one.  I bombed what should have been the easiest test because I didn’t study.  I read the chapter and thought it was pretty common sense stuff so I didn’t bother to do the homework.  Silly me!  I had to retake that test and could only get an 80% on it.  Even with that failure, I still made the Dean’s List with 96%!

I think what I enjoyed most in this phase was learning to do acrylic sculpting.  We don’t get much time to practice in the classroom and we don’t do enhancements on clients, so I have to practice on my own time.  So far I’ve still only applied acrylics to my fake hand and haven’t tried doing it on a live person yet.  My daughter is going to be my guinea pig this summer.  Below are a few pics of some of the acrylic nails I’ve sculpted.  They’re not great, but not horrible for a beginner I suppose.

acrylics-4 acrylics-1 acrylics-3

We also learned about the Ohio State Board requirements and procedures that have to be performed. Our final exam for this phase was a mock State Board exam with 100 written questions and we had to perform a manicure, blend a nail tip, apply a silk wrap and sculpt an acrylic nail. The first run of the State Board exam was extremely stressful! You have to pack your kit meticulously with bags containing all of the products and tools to perform each of the services. During the exam you have 15 minutes to setup which includes getting everything out of your kit, and sanitizing and setting up for the manicure. Once you put your kit away you can’t go back into it. If you forgot something, you’re out of luck.

Then they give you 20 minutes to perform each service.  The manicure is done using a creepy rice hand.  This hand is made by filling two plastic gloves with rice and tying off the end, and then you glue nail tips onto the glove.  It looks like a corpse hand.  Wanna see?

state-board-handDuring the manicure portion of the exam you have to file the nails, soak the fingertips, simulate pushing and trimming cuticles, buff the nails, massage the hand, and polish the nails without getting any polish on the glove.  There’s obviously a little more to it than that since you have to apply products and follow all sanitation guidelines, etc, but that’s the short and dirty version.  By the time I got to polishing the nails there was less than 5 minutes left and my hand was shaking like a leaf… the time clock made me so nervous!  I made a huge mess and didn’t complete in time.  It didn’t look nearly as nice as the pic above, trust me.  But I only got a couple points taken off and still passed.

The other three services were performed on our mannequin hands (seen above in the sculpting pics).  We had 20 minutes for each of these as well, but that included the cleanup/setup time, so it went fast. When I blended the tip I was still shaking and nervous from the manicure, and I filed so hard that the tip broke off. Thank god I brought a backup tip with me.  I started over with only 5 minutes to go and passed with full points somehow.

Next was the silk wrap, which I find to be super easy so my nerves started to finally calm down on this service.  Twenty minutes was ample time and I got full points on the wrap.

And finally we had to sculpt one acrylic nail using a form and odorless acrylic.  We hadn’t even used our odorless acrylic before this day so I was a little nervous about pulling this one off because I heard that it takes longer to dry/cure than regular acrylic.  I actually loved working with the odorless stuff and sculpted my best nail ever!  I got a point off for blowing on the nail to help the drying process… apparently that’s equivalent to spitting on your client.  LOL  Note to self, don’t blow on clients’ nails!

Our project during the Beta/Gamma phase was related to finding a job.  We had to create our resumes with a cover letter and thank you letter, complete a job application, answer 10 interview questions, and write questions that we would ask a potential employer on a job interview.  It took some time and thought, but wasn’t complicated.  I discovered that I hadn’t updated my resume since 1999 prior to this, so it was much needed!

I only have 7 weeks left to go!  During the management phase we’ll be in the classroom two nights a week and on the floor on Saturdays.  We have to do a mock State Board exam again towards the end, and we also have to take the management test.  Our project during this phase involves doing volunteer work, shadowing a tech, and going on an actual job interview.  We’re also going to take a field trip and tour some local salons/spas, which I’m looking forward to.

Gelish Hello Pretty! Summer 2015 Collection Swatches

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Gelish Hello Pretty! Collecton - swatches by Chickettes.comHello Pretties!  😉  Today I have swatches and comparisons of the new Gelish Hello Pretty Collection.  This collection has six very bright, fun colors inspired by Japanese style pop art.  These shades are all available for purchase individually or in duos with matching Morgan Taylor nail lacquer shades.

Each swatch is shown with three coats of color.  I found the formula of these to be on the thin side and they applied a bit patchy, so I used three coats for full coverage.  Some of these colors caused my camera to freak out a little, so please be sure to read the corresponding notes.

Gelish Do You Harajuku? is a minty pastel green with a subtle shimmer.

Gelish Do You Harajuku? - Chickettes.comHere is a comparison picture that shows Do You Harajuku? next to some other pale greens and teals.  Do You Harajuku? is lighter than Gelish Kiss Me I’m a Prince and is more of a pure green than teal.  I added some yellow-leaning greens on the left side to show that it’s not yellow either.  It’s a nice unique shade.

From left to right: Gelish You’re Such a Sweet-Tart, Gelish Lime All the Time, Gelish Do you Harajuku?, DIY Minty Fresh, Gelish Kiss Me I’m a Prince, OPI That’s Hula-rious, and Gelish Seafoam.

comp-harajukuGelish Look at You, Pink-achu! is a bubble gum pink cream.  My camera may have made this one appear slightly brighter than it is.

Gelish Look at You Pink-achu! - Chickettes.comI would consider this color to be a medium pink that’s on the bright and cheery side, but isn’t so bright it’s neon.  Below is a picture of Look at You Pink-achu mixed in with some other medium pinks.  I have a really hard time comparing my pink swatch sticks because many of them have faded over time.  Many of the Gelish pinks are faders, but I haven’t had time to test any of these colors for fading yet since I just got them and rushed to get swatches done.  I will report back if I find any issues.

From left to right: Gelish Ella of a Girl, LeChat Cotton Candy, OPI Suzy Shops & Island Hops, ibd Funny Bone, Gelish Look at You Pink-achu!, LeChat Paradise (from the new Oasis collection), Gelish Make You Blink Pink, and Gelish Sugar ‘n Spice.

comp-pinkachuGelish Anime-zing Color! is a gorgeous blurple cream. My camera really freaks out when I try to photograph blue-leaning purples and it always makes them look more blue than they are.  I tried color correcting this photo so that it has more purple tones, but I can’t guarantee the accuracy at all.  It’s not quite that glow-y.  The comp photo below may be a closer match.

Gelish Anime-zing Color! - Chickettes.comI put this color next to some blues and purples to try to show how it compares.  You can see that it’s somewhere right in the middle… a perfect blurple.  I love these shades, I just wish my camera did too.  Gelish doesn’t have any other shades that are quite like this one.  LeChat Sweet Iris is probably the closest match that I own.

From left to right: LeChat Frozen Cold Spell (mood), Gelish You Glare I Glow, LeChat Sweet Iris, Gelish Anime-zing Color, LeChat Into the Deep (new Oasis collection), Gelish Mali-Blu Me Away, Shellac Purple Purple.

comp-animezingGelish Tokyo a Go Go is a pink-leaning purple cream… another awesome shade.

Gelish Tokyo a Go Go - Chickettes.comTokyo a Go Go is nice and bright compared to other similar colors in my stash.  I was hoping to compare it to Carnival Hangover, but I can’t find my swatch stick or my bottle.  TruGel just launched a color called Hypnotic that’s pretty similar in shade in their Neon Daze collection (swatches coming soon).

From left to right: Gelish It’s a Lily, Couture Glam Squad, ibd Cashmere Cutie, Gelish Tokyo a Go Go, TruGel Hypnotic, and Gelish Tahiti Hottie.

comp-tokyoGelish Pop-arazzi Pose is a bright red-leaning neon pink cream.

Gelish Pop-arazzi Pose - Chickettes.comBelow is a comparison photo that shows Gelish Pop-arazzi next to some other red-leaning Gelish pinks.  It’s not obvious from this photo, but Pop-arazzi is a little brighter than most of these other shades.  It’s a great beach-going color.

From left to right: Gelish Gossip Girl, All Dahlia-ed Up, Pop-arazzi Pose, A Petal for Your Thoughts, and Passion.

comp-poparazziGelish Manga-round With Me is a coral-leaning neon pink cream.  My photo may glow a little more than real life, but this color is definitely bright!

Gelish Manga-round With Me - Chickettes.comI put this color side-by-side with some other bright coral-leaning pinks and oranges for comparison.

From left to right: Gelish Rockin’ the Reef, Gelish I’m Brighter Than You, LeChat Sunkissed (from the  new Oasis collection), Gelish Manga-Round With Me, LeChat Rose Glow, TruGel Beach Club Babe (from the new Neon Daze collection), Gelish Brights Have More Fun, and Gelish Shake it Til You Samba.

comp-manga-roundThese colors pop all on their own, but I wonder how they would look when applied over white.   I may have to do some experiments, and I definitely want to try some nail art with these!

I found most of these colors available on Amazon.com in the duo sets (linked to above).  You can also purchase the color individually from Esther’s Nail Center, and if you buy all six from this site you can get a free Gelish travel case.

Which colors are your favorites?

Leadlighting with Messy Mansion Stamping Plate & Revel Gel Polish

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Leadlight stamped nails by Chickettes.com

This is my first time attempting the leadlighting technique, and I love how it turned out. Leadlighting is when you apply a sheer color over a stamp to add color and dimension.  The best part for me is that this was almost all done with gel polish except for the stamped image. Revel Nail recently launched a new Spring 2015 gel polish collection that consists of many sheer-based jelly and crelly (creamy jelly) polishes.  Some are so sheer that it made me want to try them out with this leadlighting technique.

For the two stamped nails, I started out with a white base using two coats of Revel Honor.  I used Mundo de Unas black stamping polish and stamped the floral pattern onto these nails using Messy Mansion stamping plate #MM46.  This is a new plate that they recently launched with nine floral patterns.

Leadlight stamped nails by Chickettes.comAfter stamping the pattern, I allowed the polish to dry for a minute and then used my Wistonia #00 brush to fill in the design with color.  I used four Revel Nail gel polish colors to liven up the design:  Los Angeles, Stockholm, Dubai, and Berlin (seen below).  After curing the painted design, I applied a coat of Revel Nail top coat over top to seal it all in.

Below are swatches of the Revel Nail colors that were used in this design.  All of these swatches have three coats of color.

Revel #49 Los Angeles is a bright pink crelly with a glowing shimmer.  You can still see a bit of VNL with three coats, but it has decent coverage and is a fun color for summer!

Revel Nail #49 Los Angeles - Chickettes.comRevel #53 Stockholm is a sheer neon green jelly.

Revel Nail #53 Stockholm - Chickettes.comRevel #52 Dubai is a sheer neon yellow jelly.  Stockholm and Dubai remind me of highlighter colors!  They’re both super bright and extremely see-through.  These colors work well over a white base if you want to hide some of that VNL and make the color pop a little more.

Revel Nail #52 Dubai - Chickettes.comRevel #55 Berlin is a cobalt blue crelly with small silver glitter flecks.

Revel Nail #55 Berlin - Chickettes.com

Messy Mansion Website:  http://www.messymansion.com.au

Revel Nail Website:  http://www.revelnail.com


Revel Nail Spring 2015 Collection

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revel-nine-new
Revel Nail recently launched their new Spring 2015 gel polish collection consisting of 20 colors named after major cities across the globe! Many of the colors in this collection have a clear base, so they are mostly jellies, crellies, glitters and a few creams. Because it’s such a large collection, my swatches will be posted in batches. This is the second batch since I posted a few swatches in my previous post with some leadlighting nail art.

Let’s take a look at some of the colors.  Each of these swatches has three coats of color for consistency.

Revel #41 Paris is a sheer milky jelly.  This color would probably make a great base for a French manicure.

Revel Nail #41 Paris - swatch by Chickettes.comRevel #42 Shanghai is a clear gel polish with a pinkish-purple iridescent shimmer.  This color can be worn on it’s own or it would work great when layered over other colors.

Revel Nail #42 Shanghai - swatch by Chickettes.comRevel #44 Geneva is a metallic golden bronze with a frosty shimmer finish.  This color is similar to Gelish Oh What a Knight, RCM Mink Coat and Gelaze Swing Baby.

Revel Nail #44 Geneva - swatch by Chickettes.comRevel #45 Rome is a pretty unique color that’s hard to describe.  It has a metallic finish with bronze glitter flecks throughout.  This color reminds me of Fall leaves for some reason.

Revel Nail #45 Rome - swatch by Chickettes.comRevel #54 Sydney is a pale teal-leaning mint.  It’s very similar in shade to Gelish Seafoam, but slightly lighter.  I was expecting this color to be more green because of the color on the bottle, but it actually leans a bit blue.

Revel Nail #54 Sydney - swatch by Chickettes.comRevel #51 Rio de Jeneiro is a coral-leaning pink cream.  This is a great beach/pool color for Summer!  It’s very close to Pink Gellac Tropical.

Revel Nail #51 Rio de Janeiro - swatch by Chickettes.comRevel #48 Buenos Aires is a vibrant frosty pink that glows in the light.  I normally don’t like having visible nail line showing, but I’ll make an exception for this color because it’s simply stunning.

Revel Nail #48 Buenos Aires - swatch by Chickettes.comRevel #47 Moscow is a bright red crelly with a subtle scattered silver shimmer.

Revel Nail #47 Moscow - swatch by Chickettes.comRevel #46 Milan is a deep, rich medium red cream.  This shade of red looks dark next to Milan, but I wouldn’t quite call it a burgundy – it’s still light enough to be wearable in the Spring and Summer months.  :)

Revel Nail #46 Milan - swatch by Chickettes.comRevel Nail gel polish retails for only $7.50 a bottle!  Visit http://www.revelnail.com for more details.

How to Prep Natural Nails for Gel Polish Application

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How to Prep Natural Nails for Gel Polish Application - by Chickettes.com

Let’s talk a little about proper preparation of natural nails prior to gel polish application.  I receive a lot of questions and complaints from readers about premature chipping and peeling, and many times this is caused by improper nail prep.  For proper gel polish adhesion it’s important that the nail plate is dehydrated and free of oils, skin and debris.  Below are some tips regarding proper preparation.  (Most of these tips also apply to nail enhancement prep).

Don’t Use Water!

Conduct a dry manicure before applying gel polish… do NOT use water.  Don’t soak the fingertips in water, and don’t use any products that add moisture or oil to the nails.  Your fingers and nails may look dry and unattractive during the prep process, but that’s OK because your polish is going to last longer and you can work on adding moisture back into your hands AFTER your gel polish application is complete.

Also, don’t do your nails right after prolonged exposure to water such as showering or doing dishes!

cuticle-care

Cuticle Care

I haven’t talked a lot about cuticle care on my blog because I don’t really have cuticles.  I push mine back ALL the time… it’s almost a nervous habit.  I’ve learned from working on clients that proper cuticle care is a really important step for most people.  The cuticle is the dead skin that attaches to the nail plate at the base of the nail, and it needs to be properly pushed back and removed from the nail so that your gel polish can adhere properly.  If you apply polish over the cuticle you will almost definitely have premature lifting around the edges.

I use CND Cuticle Away to soften the cuticle and a Tweezerman cuticle pusher to push the cuticle off of the nail plate.  When pushing the cuticle you want to use a small circular motion.  It’s also important to use a cuticle softener that doesn’t have oils in it since the objective is to keep the nails free of oil and moisture during prep.

After pushing the cuticle you can nip if there is excess dead skin visible, but this needs to be done very carefully.  You only want to nip the dead skin which appears white in color, and not any live tissue (the eponychium).  I use these comfort grip nippers from Mehaz.  When nipping, be sure not to pull on the skin – squeeze and cut in a clean motion.  Watch this video by NaioUK for a demonstration of the proper nipping technique.

Buffing

After caring for the cuticles, buff the nail plate with a fine grit buffer like this EzFlow 240/280 buffer.  This will help loosen any remaining dead skin from the nail plate and also remove the shine.  Be sure to buff the entire nail plate from edge to edge!

cleansers

Cleansing & Priming

After buffing you will need to remove all of the debris from the nails as well as any excess oils using a lint-free wipe and cleanser.  I was previously using alcohol prep pads for this step, but I learned that 70% alcohol isn’t sufficient.  You need to use a 99% isopropyl alcohol-based cleanser to really dehydrate the nail plate and remove the oils for optimal adhesion.  Now I use OPI Expert Touch Nail Wipes or HandsDown Cotton Rounds and a cleanser like CND Scrub Fresh.  We use Scrub Fresh at school, but at home I’ve been using the Pink Gellac cleanser (currently not available in the US).  Most manufacturers sell a cleanser to accompany their polish line.

After cleansing the nail you can also optionally use a prep solution, bonder or primer.  Many prep solutions such as Gelish pH Bond or RCM Prep are alcohol-based and help dehydrate the nail plate further.  Primers like Gelish Pro Bond and Pink Gellac Primer are solutions that help with adhesion and should only be used if you often experience issues with premature lifting or chipping.  I recommend only using primers on the tips or areas where lifting and chipping occur.  If you use a primer on the whole nail, removal could be very difficult.

Allow the cleanser, bonder and/or primer to completely air dry before proceeding with your gel polish application.

Note:  I realize that my personal choice of brands is all over the board.  I tend to mix and match and use whatever works best for me, but it is recommended to stick with products within a brand/line for the best results.  :)

Gelish Hello Pretty Gradient Nails with Uber Chic Stamping

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Stamped Summer gradient with glitter by Chickettes.com

This is what I’ve worn on my nails all week and I’m loving them. I used three of the colors from the new Gelish Hello Pretty collection to create a horizontal gradient on my nails and then added some glitter and a stamped design.

The three Gelish colors that I used are Anime-zing Color!, Tokyo a Go Go, and Pop-arazzi Pose. I forgot to take a photo of the gradient before I added the other elements, but it has a bright tropical feel to it. I used Shannon Underwood’s gradient technique, except I painted my nails from side to side instead of vertially using a #6 gel brush dipped into the colors. I didn’t use a base color. I started with a two-color gradient at the base of my nails using Anime-zing and Tokyo, and then did another two color gradient on the tips using Tokyo and Pop-arazzi. Once each nail was fully covered, I cured and repeated with a second coat.

Stamped Summer gradient with glitter by Chickettes.com

I applied a bit of glitter to the base of my nails with an Elf eyeshadow brush and UberChic Pink You’re Got My Towel glitter dust. I dabbed it into the tacky layer at the base, and then sprinkled a dusting over the rest of the nail by holding the makeup brush over my nail and tapping it lightly. I applied a layer of gel top coat over the glitter so that I had a smooth surface to stamp on.

I applied Liquid Palisade around each nail to protect my skin from the excess stamping polish, and then stamped once it was dry. The flowing water-like pattern is from UberChic stamping plate 1-03, and the white stamping polish is from Mundo de Unas. After stamping, I applied another layer of gel top coat. I like to use my Ultra Shine top coat over stamped patterns so that I don’t have to wipe the tacky layer and risk messing up the edges of my stamped pattern with alcohol or acetone.

What do you think? :)

Characteristics of Authentic Gelish Labels

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I recently received a batch of Gelish bottles that I purchased and my immediate thought was… “Are these authentic?!” My bottles didn’t have the signature Harmony wording down the side that I’m used to seeing. I also received a few questions from readers asking the same thing, so I reached out to my contact at Esther’s Nail Center to inquire about the authenticity since they are a distributor. She confirmed that they are indeed authentic and that the bottle design has changed. All newly released bottles (including older colors) will now have the new label design.

I took some photos of the old and new designs to show you what authentic bottles of Gelish look like. I don’t have any knock-off bottles to photograph, but I’m aware of some of the characteristics.

Authentic Gelish Labels

The front of the bottle no longer says “Patent Pending”, and the “Harmony” signature has been removed.  If your bottle has any other text down the side of it such as Kissgel or CCO, it’s NOT a Gelish product!   Some of the Gelish collections have a slightly different look than the standard bottles.  The ones I can think of that look different are the Trends, Sizzling Summer Nights, Magneto, and Aurora FX.

Authentic Gelish LabelsAbove is a side view of the two bottles, and below is a back view.  You’ll notice that the new labels have a dark green box that says “Gelish Authentic”, and it also has a little arrow on the corner that tells you the label can be peeled back to reveal more info.

Authentic Gelish LabelsThe new bottles now list the patent numbers on the side.

Authentic Gelish LabelsThe labels on the bottoms of the bottles have also changed in various ways.  The batch number is printed on the new labels, whereas the old bottles have the batch number printed in yellow text underneath the label.  You have to peel the label off completely to see it.

Authentic Gelish LabelsBoth labels can be peeled back to reveal even more information including the ingredients.

Authentic Gelish LabelsAnd here’s a quick look at what you will see when you peel the back label on the new bottle – information in French, Spanish and Italian.

Authentic Gelish LabelsCheck your bottles for any discrepancies.  As mentioned, watch for any wording other than “Harmony” down the side of the bottle.  Another telltale sign can be the shape of the cap.  If you look at a Gelish bottle from the top the cap should appear square with rounded corners and have a dimple right in the middle.  Gelish bottles are all clear with a white coating that stops at the bottom of the neck of the bottle, with the exception of the Trends.  The Trends labels don’t have the little window and the bottles are a dark color instead of clear.

This is just an informational post that I hope you find helpful.  I was confused, so I figured some of you may be as well.  If you can think of any other unique characteristics of Gelish bottles, or knock-offs, please leave a comment.  Thanks!

LeChat Perfect Match Oasis Collection Swatches

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LeChat Perfect Match - Oasis Collection - swatches by Chickettes.com
The Oasis Collection from LeChat Perfect Match consists of six bold colors with tropical hues for Summer.  All six shades have a cream finish, and they’re all amazing colors to wear to the beach or pool.  I’m loving the brights and neons this season!

All of the swatches that I prepared show three coats of color, though most only really needed two coats for solid coverage.  I had some shrinking issues with them at first, but giving them a really good shake on my Robart helped with that.

Castaway is the only color in the collection that’s a bit muted and isn’t super bright.  It’s a medium pastel purple.  The only color that I own that’s similar to this shade is Madam Glam Lilac.

LeChat Perfect Match - Castaway - swatch by Chickettes.com

Wanderlust is a medium green cream.  This is a very unique shade and when compared side-by-side with my other greens it seems to lean slightly blue (not yellow).  I probably wouldn’t wear green on my nails, but it would be great as a base for nail art with some other pops of color.

LeChat Perfect Match - Wanderlust - swatch by Chickettes.com

Sunkissed is a neon peachy pink cream.  This was a hard color to capture on camera because it’s so bright.  It’s similar in shade to Gelish Manga-Round, but is a few shades lighter.  It’s also more pink toned than some of the other peachy neons that are out there such as Gelish I’m Brighter Than You and Gelaze Flip Flop Fantasy.

LeChat Perfect Match - Sunkissed - swatch by Chickettes.com

Into the Deep is my absolute favorite color of the season so far.  It’s a bright, bold cobalt blue.  My classmates will tell you that this is my color right now… I just bought a car this color and I have shoes and a purse to match.  LOL  The only color in my stash that’s somewhat similar is Gelish Mali-Blu Me Away, except Into the Deep is a little darker and provides better coverage.

LeChat Perfect Match - Into the Deep - swatch by Chickettes.comParadise is a gorgeous neon pink cream.  This is a really hot color!  I don’t have any other pinks exactly like it, but it’s a few shades darker than Gelish Make You Blink Pink, and rivals it in brightness.

LeChat Perfect Match - Paradise - swatch by Chickettes.com

Heatwave is a bright firery red cream.  It’s hands down the brightest true red in my stash.

LeChat Perfect Match - Heatwave - swatch by Chickettes.comTo find a local distributor of LeChat Perfect Match, please visit the LeChat website.

See all of my LeChat swatches here.  Which colors in this collection are your favorite?

Gelish Ooh La La Collection

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Gelish Ooh La La Limited Edition CollectionI picked up the new Gelish Ooh La La collection a few days ago.  This is a Limited Edition collection that can only be purchased at CosmoProf stores. CosmoProf is running a Paris-themed special boutique with offerings from several brands.  You can read more about it here.

The Gelish collection consists of three unique colors and one Trends glitter topper.  The formula of these polishes was very nice.  They applied evenly and provided full coverage with just two coats.  I did experience some curing issues with the two pinks though – they didn’t cure completely in my Gelish 18G lamp in 30 seconds.  When I applied my top coat some of the color pulled right off, so I reapplied and cure for 60 seconds.

Postcards from Paris is a light minty teal cream.  I love teals, but I do have several others that are very similar.  It’s brighter and more blue-toned than Gelish Seafoam, and it’s lighter and also more blue than Gelish Mint of Spring.

Gelish Postcards from ParisCancan We Dance is a unique peach-leaning pink with an iridescent purple shimmer.  I think my camera pulled out more of the pink tones, but in most lights it appears more peachy.  It’s a very unique shade to the Gelish line.

Gelish Cancan We Dance?Amour Color Please is a purple-leaning pink with the same purple iridescent shimmer.  I also don’t have any other colors quite like this one.  It’s similar in shade to Ink Dilemma, and it also reminds me a little of Gelaze Purple Panic, except not quite as bright.

Gelish Amour Color PleaseEscar-go to France is a Trends glitter topper with multi-colored glitter. There are light pink, dark pink, light blue, and holographic glitters in a clear base.

Gelish Escar-Go to FranceWhat do you think of the colors in this collection?  I love that there are some new unique shades, but I wish they were more readily available.

New Pink Gellac Ibiza Summer Collection & Boutique Specials!

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Pink Gellac Ibiza Summer Collection at Chickettes.com

Pink Gellac just released five new gorgeous shades in the Ibiza Summer Collection.  The collection consists of four unique shimmery shades, and one neon cream.  All of these colors are now available at Chickettes Boutique and on Amazon.com!

At Chickettes Boutique, save $5 on orders of $35 or more with coupon code IBIZA5.  Or save $10 on orders of $50 or more with the code IBIZA10.  And don’t forget that orders over $50 also qualify for FREE SHIPPING in the US! (*coupon codes are valid through June 30th)

For those of you who were waiting, the Pink Gellac Ultra Shine top coat is also back in stock!

#159 Glamorous Peach is a lush peachy coral with a golden shimmer.

Pink Gellac Glamorous Peach#160 Clarity Turquoise is a shimmery light turquoise blue with a subtle duochrome effect.

Pink Gellac Clarity Turquoise#161 Ibiza Pink is a neon pink cream that’s perfect for the beach or pool!

Pink Gellac Ibiza Pink#162 Intergalactic Purple is a regal, shimmery blue-leaning purple.  This color is a bit iridescent when applied and builds up to a nice opacity in three coats.

Pink Gellac Intergalactic Purple#163 Rockstar Red is bright red with a golden shimmer.

Pink Gellac Rockstar RedHere’s another quick shot of Intergalactic Purple to show off some of it’s shimmery goodness.

162-intergalactic-purple-2I personally love shimmer finishes, so this collection is right up my alley.  The colors are unique and bold!  You can read a review and see more swatches of this collection over at Love Life Lacquer.

Which colors are your favorites?


MelodySusie 54 watt UV Nail Dryer Review

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melodysusie-54w-uv-lamp

I received this MelodySusie 54-watt UV Nail Dryer to review.  It’s a large two-hand unit that cures both hands at once.  I conducted a full video review and demonstration of the lamp, which can be seen below.  Here is an overview of some of the highlights of this lamp.

  • It’s spacious and fits two hands at once.
  • It has six 9-watt UV bulbs that are easy to install.
  • There is a built-in fan that can be used alone or in conjunction with the lights.
  • There are four timer settings:  2 minutes, 3 minutes, 5 minutes, or continual use.  The lamp will automatically turn off when the time is up, except when in continual use.
  • The lamp will cure all UV & LED curable nail products including gel polish and builder gels.
  • The base is removable for easy cleaning and bulb installation.
  • There is a six month warranty on the product from the date of purchase.
  • It’s affordable.

Note that this lamp has two power buttons, and the switch on the back must be turned on before the button on the front of the unit can be used.

Personally, I find two-hand lamps to be on the bulky side and I don’t polish both hands at once, so I prefer to use smaller one-hand lamps. If you prefer a two-hand lamp this is a good option because it’s made of sturdy materials, and the company backs the product with a warranty.  You can find my other nail lamp reviews here, including some of the MelodySusie LED lamp options and a smaller one-hand UV lamp.

This UV lamp is currently available for sale on Amazon.com for $49.99.  Use coupon code 2GC454HH through June 11th at midnight to save 10% for a total of $44.99!

VIDEO REVIEW:

Mia Secret Chrome Mirror Nail Liquid Review

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Mia Secret Chrome Mirror Nail Liquid - Review by Chickettes.comI recently saw an advertisement in one of my nail magazines for Mia Secret Chrome Mirror Nail Liquid and it peaked my curiosity.  I’ve seen several images of metallic chrome looking nails on Pinterest and other places over the years and tried to find something other than the chrome press-on nails, wraps or foils that would do the trick.  I’ve personally never been able to achieve a perfect foil nail (maybe that’s something I need to practice more).

I purchased the Chrome Mirror set on Amazon which comes with the chrome liquid and a UV base/top gel.  The directions say to prep your nails as you would for a regular gel polish manicure by buffing, cleansing and applying a primer if desired.  Then you apply the base/top coat, cure it and wipe off the tacky layer.  This step is critical because the chrome liquid won’t appear shiny if you apply it onto the tacky layer (I tried it).  Then you apply the Chrome Mirror liquid and let it air dry before applying the UV base/top coat again, curing and cleansing.

The chrome liquid is a very thin metallic liquid, it’s not a nail polish and won’t cure in a lamp, but you do apply it like a nail polish.  I applied three coats of the chrome liquid and it very quickly dried to a shiny metallic finish right before my eyes.  Note that it will show every flaw in your UV gel base, so the base layer needs to be meticulously applied.  Because the chrome liquid is very thin it pools into the cuticles really easily if you have too much on the brush or touch your skin during application.  This frustrated me at first, but then I realized that I could apply it as messily as I wanted because the excess will wipe right off when the UV top coat is cleansed.

I got really excited when I was applying this liquid because the chrome effect looked really awesome.  However, I noticed that the top coat dramatically reduces the effect and makes it look like a dull metal instead of shiny chrome.  Boo!  The photo below shows the difference.  I took this photo before doing any clean-up.

Mia Secret Chrome Mirror Nail Liquid - Review by Chickettes.comI tried leaving my nails without a top coat.  The Amazon listing says that the chrome effect will only last up to 2 hours without the UV top coat… and yep, the stuff comes right off.  If you get your nails wet or touch anything they get messed up.  I ended up with chrome all over my face and some seriously messed up looking nails!  To my dismay, I re-applied and top coated them all.  The result was still pretty, but just not what I was after.

Mia Secret Chrome Mirror Nail Liquid - Review by Chickettes.comI wondered if a different top coat would work better.  I tested the chrome liquid with every brand of gel base & top coat that I own as well as RNP.  RNP was a total failure.  As far as gel bases go, it does work best with the one that comes in the kit.  For gel top coats, it didn’t matter… they all dulled the effect the same.  I did find that using Gelish Structure Gel over the chrome liquid didn’t dull it as much and the results looked better, but the Structure Gel stayed a bit tacky after cleansing.

Unfortunately no matter what top coat I used, the wear was exactly the same… HORRIBLE!  Within hours every nail was chipping or peeling, even with a gel top coat.  I was very careful to cap the tips also.  The chrome liquid simply isn’t able to adhere to the shiny base layer and ends up peeling off.  This picture was taken less than 12 hours after application.

Mia Secret Chrome Mirror Nail Liquid - Review by Chickettes.comMy recommendation regarding this product is… don’t waste your money!  Unless of course you want beautifully shiny chrome nails for just a few minutes.

If anyone else has tried this product and found a winning combination to make it last, please let us all know in the comments.  :)  Also, if you know of a different product that provides a shiny chrome effect, I’d love to hear about it!

 

Madam Glam Gel Polish Swatches

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Madam Glam Swatches by Chickettes.com
Who’s ready for some more Madam Glam swatches? I have several colors to share with you today, most of which are fairly new. I’m loving the unique shimmer and glitter finishes in the Madam Glam line. The quality of their gel polish is fantastic… most colors are opaque in just two coats and they apply really nicely. They are a bit pricey, but you can save 30% with coupon code CHICKETTES30.  They’re currently running a promotion for 40% off of three or more items also.

California Love is a teal-leaning shimmery green with some gold glitter scattered throughout.

Madam Glam California Love - swatch by Chickettes.comPatrick’s Favorite is a sparkly green polish with gold and green glitter throughout.

Madam Glam Patrick's Favorite - swatch by Chickettes.comBetter Than a Sapphire is similar in finish to Patrick’s Favorite, but it’s a gorgeous, shimmery cobalt blue.  This is one of my favorite colors right now.

Madam Glam Better Than a Sapphire - swatch by Chickettes.comAngel Wings is a light pink cream.  This pink (and also the lavender) cream, had great coverage in just two coats.  It’s hard to find a light pink with full coverage.

Madam Glam Angel Wings - swatch by Chickettes.comThe Only One is a light lavender cream.

Madam Glam The Only One - swatch by Chickettes.comNot Only You and Me is a stunning, shimmery magenta.  This is another favorite of mine and I’ve worn this shade quite a bit recently.

Madam Glam Not Only You and Me - swatch by Chickettes.comShimmer White is pretty self-explanatory.  It’s hard to see in the photo, but the shimmer finish of this polish has a bit of a pearl-like iridescence.

Madam Glam Shimmer White - swatch by Chickettes.comLove at First Sight is loaded with bright red and silver glitter.  This polish applied and spread well, but it left a bit of a rough texture after top coating.  I used a buffer to smooth out the finish and then applied a second layer of top coat for a glassy finish.

Madam Glam Love at First Sight - swatch by Chickettes.comHypnotize Me is a sparkly red glitter polish.  This polish had a thicker consistency than the others, but spread well on the nail.  It also left a slightly lumpy texture and needed to be smoothed out a bit.

Madam Glam Hypnotize Me - swatch by Chickettes.com

ibd Just Gel Polish Dolce Vita Collection

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ibd-dolce-vita-collection

Happy Friday! I have some more fun, bright Summer colors for you today. This is ibd Just Gel Polish’s Summer collection called Dolce Vita. The collection contains six colorful creams and two glitter toppers.

I love the colors, but I found the formulas to be on the thin side and each needed three coats for full coverage.   There also wasn’t much suspension in the glitter bases, and I had to do a lot of shaking to get glitter on the brush.  The ibd gel polishes are very reasonably priced and the end results look great.

Vespas & Siestas is a gorgeous bright pink that leans slightly purple in tone.  It’s similar to CND Shellac Hot Pop Pink.

ibd-vespas-and-siestasRome Around is a peach-leaning pink cream.  It’s similar in tone to Daisy Feisty Flamingo and Pink Gellac Tropical, but is a few shades lighter.

ibd-rome-aroundRiviera Rendezvous is a medium cobalt blue cream.  This color is similar to Gelish Mali-Blu Me Away, but is slightly less vibrant and it’s a few shades lighter than LeChat Into the Deep.  This is a hot color for the Summer and is one I’ve been wearing quite a lot.

ibd-riviera-rendezvousJust Me n’ Capri is a very vibrant green-leaning teal.  I own a gazillion teal shades and this is probably one of the brightest ones in the spectrum and is pretty unique.  The closest shade I have to this is TruGel Tantalizing Trapeze.

ibd-just-me-n-capriHeedless to Say is a bright medium purple cream.  This is another unique color when compared with my stash.  Most purples are a bit grey-toned and not as vibrant as this one.

ibd-heedless-to-sayHead-to-Toe Gelato is a bright coral-leaning, reddish orange crelly.  This color is more sheer than the others and leaves some visible nail line after three coats.  Aloha from OPI is a similar shade, but has better coverage and is slightly darker.

ibd-head-to-toe-gelatoCelfie in Amalfi is a gold glitter topper with irregular-shaped glitter pieces.  It reminds me of the Pink Gellac Gold Foil topper.  I had a really hard time getting the gold foil on my brush and had to shake the heck out of the bottle between each nail.  This swatch is two coats.

ibd-celfi-in-amalfiBellinis & Bikinis is a cute glitter topper with pink and yellow glitter.  I really like the colors in this glitter topper, but again it was extremely difficult to get any glitter on the brush.  This is also two coats.

ibd-bellinis-and-bikinis

Nail Art – Freehand Stripes & Doodles

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Chickettes.com - Freehand gel polish stripes & doodles

I needed a little pick-me-up and decided to do some whimsical nail art with bright summer colors.  I started off with some freehand stripes using four different gel polish colors.  Three of the colors are from the new Gelish Hello Pretty Collection, and one is from the new LeChat Oasis Collection.

After applying (and curing) the stripes, I did some whimsical freehand flower doodles using my white Presto gel pot and a fine-tipped nail art brush.

My ring finger proved to be problematic for some reason.  No matter what color I polished it with, the color wouldn’t cure.  I swear I tried all four of the colors on this nail, and none of them took – they would wipe right off after curing.  I’ve never had that happen before, but it could be the new lamp I’m testing.  That nail was totally gunked up and I decided to just add purple glitter to cover up the mess!  LOL

Chickettes.com - Freehand gel polish stripes & doodlesI haven’t been posting as much as usual lately because things have been a bit hectic.  My dad was here for a couple of weeks to help me work on my house.  We did lots of scraping, painting and repairs.  Thanks, Dad!!  I’ve decided to put my house on the market, so I’m trying to get it all fixed up.  He helped me with a lot of the stuff that I can’t do on my own, but there’s still plenty left to be done.

And this is officially my last week of school!  There are only two days left until graduation, and then my time will be freed up again.  I’ve decided to hold off on finding a job in the industry until the end of summer since I have several weeks of travel planned and house work left to do.  I plan to post my final nail school update after the week is over, so watch for that!  :)

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