Contest Entry for Harlow & Co.

After posting my valentine's hearts manicure on instagram, @polishmad kindly suggested I enter it in the Harlow & Co. Valentine's nail art contest on facebook :)

Unfortunately, one of the requirements for the contest was to use a polish that Harlow & Co. sells on their website and that manicure didn't include one... so I just had to recreate the look with different polishes!

For this look I used Jordana Hypnotizing and Barry M Lilac Foil (sold at Harlow & Co.)
I used two stamps from BM-317 for the index and middle nail and two stamps from BM-311 for the ring and pinky nails. The thumb was a complete disaster so I decided not to include it.

The contest is open internationally and you can submit entries until January 31st (tomorrow, sorry for the late notice)

Then voting will happen from the 1st until the 13th, the winner will be announced on Valentine's Day! :D

So I ask you, my lovely readers, if you like my design to please check out the Harlow & Co. facebook page and "like" my entry starting on Friday (Feb.1st)!   And if you feel so inclined, let some friends know too!

So So So Scandalous

Oh how I love Cult Nails... I've had Scandalous for a while now and I've only worn it once since I got it (what is wrong with me?). This shade is Gorgeous! So I finally decided to share it with all of you :)

2 coats of Cult Nails Scandalous on my thumb, index and middle finger. One coat of Scandalous on my pinky with Captivated layered on top (a stunning glitter from Cult Nails). One coat of Sally Hansen Salon Manicure Midnight in NY and BM-317 stamped with Konad special white polish on my ring finger.

As color-acurate as I could get, indoor photo with flash - you can see the shimmer in the black too. 

If you haven't already, check out my Nail Art Contest going on right now... a $40 shopping spree to cult nails is on the line! :D

My Nail Art Tools

Last week I received a request on my facebook page for a post showing which tools I use and where to get them.... so I put together a quick post for anyone who's interested...

Aside from the materials I use for rhinestones/studs and taping manicures, this is all of my nail art supplies. Keep reading to see a breakdown of each set...
(the combo brush/dotting tool pictured by itself is from Sally Beauty... it was my first nail art brush purchased about a year ago, I paid $7 for it - expensive!)

The hair-pin seemed like the most "universal" thing I could compare the size of the brushes to. 

On the left you can see 3 nail art brushes I purchased from Born Pretty Store you can get the set of 3 for $2.29 with free shipping. I use the middle one most often for majority of my detailed freehand designs.

On the right are 3 nail art brushes I got from amazon (not the exact link I got them from)... before I realized you can purchase them from Born Pretty Store for $2.57. As you might be able to tell, I use the blue one most often and have had these brushes much longer.  I clean my brushes using 100% acetone.

I'm not sure where I got these dotting tools from, but I know you can get this exact set from Born Pretty Store for $4.74. As you can see, on one end they are all the same size (medium). On the other they vary from needle-point (yellow) to large (green). I love this set, they are a must-have.

All of the brushes/dotting tools seen above fit into my cute little brush holder I got from Born Pretty Store. It retails for $8.54. 

None of these supplies were sent to me for review, I purchased them all myself. But as you can see I am quite the fan of Born Pretty Store which is why I have been collaborating with them lately on various other reviews. If you choose to purchase any of the above tools from their site, feel free to use my 10% discount code - RTL91

And.. last but not least these three brushes I use to clean up my manicures... the top two are from wal mart, they came in a large pack in the craft section. They work just fine for clean up and hold up well against the acetone. The bottom brush was just from a few old brushes my mom had and wasn't using any more, no idea where it originally came from. 

I hope this was helpful.... if you have any questions don't hesitate to leave a comment below. 

Go for Gold

Gold. Now there's a color I rarely reach for.

I had my nails painted with OPI Germanicure for a day to match a new shirt of mine, but I got bored of the color by itself so by the time I got out of class I had come up with a skittlette I wanted to try.

Another rarity for me, skittle manicures. I really like them, especially the one's often seen on Chit Chat Nails, they are practically Marta's specialty, but I rarely try them myself. Often times I'm afraid that each nail, while different, won't "flow" with the rest.... yet I often do accent nails. I just seem to have an odd "block" when it comes to them.

Regardless, I stepped out of my usual comfort zone and decided to give this a try. I got a new gold stamping polish and decided to give it a go.

The stamp is MASH-48. The Rhinestones are from Born Pretty Store... and the gorgeous gold glitter is Elemental Styles Fool's Gold.

What do you think? Should I stick with what I know... or give skittles another go? (cool, rhyming)

Review: Mont-Bleu Glass Nail Files

I stumbled upon glass nail files about 8 years ago in a craft store... the small card that came with the file claimed that it was good for brittle and peeling nails. I have always had issues with my nails being dry and brittle so I decided to give it a try. Metal files drive me crazy and I'm not entirely fond of emery files, so the glass file was perfect.

Some people (especially with strong, thick nails) dislike the glass file because it's not as efficient as an emery file. And often times people don't realize that a glass file is meant to seal the nail and smooth the edge to prevent chipping and peeling. The best thing to do is cut your nails to shorten them (you should never file a lot of length off). If you use an emery or metal file you can use that to shape your nails, and use the glass file to smooth the edge of the nail. I swear by glass files...

So, when Mont-Bleu contacted me to review their custom made glassware I knew exactly what product I wanted to review... their beautiful glass files.

Mont-Bleu is a middle size company based in Prague, Czech Republic that produces beautiful design glassware. They have a range of cosmetic tools and jewelry and other odds and ends custom designed and decorated with Swarovski crystals. They are also "one of the world leading suppliers of glass nail files. Our glass nail files are made of high quality Czech glass; they are decorated by patterns, or by Swarovski crystals"

And let me just say that they are GORGEOUS!

I chose to review the mini nail file... and to my surprise, they also included the regular size file! :)

Both files are excellent quality, the glass is quite thick and they work wonderfully to shape and smooth out the edge of my nails.

The large file retails for 10,00 € and the mini file (which is so adorable!) retails for 8,00 €

How cute is this mini file?? I chose to review this file because I've actually been looking for a smaller one to travel with and keep in my purse... this one is perfect! :) 

And just look at those Swarovski crystals! I loved the design on the larger file so much I used it as inspiration for my manicure :) I had some medium and small size rhinestones I could use, although they aren't quite a shiny as the crystals on the nail file.

Some people really don't like glass files but I am a huge fan, if you don't own one I really do suggest you give one a try, especially if you have issues with peeling or splitting nails. 

Mont-Bleu has two shops, one for the general public: www.design-glassware.comAnd a web-page for wholesalers: www.czech-glass-nail-files.com 

AND: Right now you can get 20% off any products on their site with the code BLOG! :D 

I'd like to thank Mont-Bleu for the opportunity to review these files and for offering the discount on my blog. If any of you purchase or try these files please don't hesitate to let me know what you think in the comments below. 

Lion Around

... I love the bow! :)

I have a very uncharacteristically girly manicure for you today. After using the bow from my lightinthebox stamping plate for my cousin's nails, I just had to incorporate it into a manicure for myself.

Essie I'm not Lion (My mistake, it's Lion Around) came in the mail just the other day as part of a boxing day sale on Nail Polish Canada so I've been eager to try it out. Although I have a significant number of pink polishes in my collection, I don't tend to wear the color often... This one is gorgeous! :)

It made me think of a sort-of vintage look so I decided to stamp the white polka dots to go with the bow. Along with my haul from Nail Polish Canada I picked up black and white konad special polishes, and I have to say they make a world of difference when stamping.

It's hard to tell but I actually stamped a white bow first, but it wasn't showing up as much as I'd hoped so I decided to stamp it with black after.

That's all for today! Don't forget to check out my giveaway and nail art contest that are running right now :)

Slumber Party take 2!

It's been too long since my cousins last slept over, so last saturday myself and my sister invited them over! :)

As insanely talented as my 13-year-old cousin is at doing her own nails, she still wanted me to do hers when she came over.... and I was happy to do them! Phoebe's actually been collecting Bundle Monster Plates over the last year and getting quite good at stamping and freehand art, I'm so proud! :P

Anyways, she absolutely loved the french gradient design as seen on Chalkboard Nails, and asked if I could recreate that with some stamping. After much deliberation we settled on a simple, but very cute look...

The bows are from my lightinthebox stamping plate. The base is Sally Hansen Salon Manicure Cafe Au Lait and the tips were sponged using China Glaze White on White.

I always rave about her nails because all she does is clip them (she has an aversion to nail files :P) and they are stronger than any natural nail I've seen. I'm so jealous of them!

This isn't the first you've seen of Phoebe's nails, and I'm sure it won't be the last :)

1 Year Blogiversary Nail Art Contest!!

In addition to my giveaway, I have decided to host a Nail Art Contest for all of you talented ladies that I know are out there! :D

It is open INTERNATIONALLY (As long as there are no shipping restrictions)!

And it is open from now until February 10th at 11:59PM (The winner will be announced on February 13th (the one year mark!)

Contest Rules/Guidelines:

1. Create a manicure inspired by something on my "Nail Inspiration" pinterest board. Be as creative as you wish!  

2. No decals, rhinestones, studs (or any 3D art for that matter)

3. Please list all polishes you use (acrylic paint is fine, I know a lot of bloggers use it for freehand art)

4. Stamping is allowed, however, I want to see tons of CREATIVITY :)

*Edit: I forgot to include that it's just one entry per person and you can submit an old design if you like.

If you have any questions just leave a comment below :)

Prize:  I will be offering a $40 shopping spree to CULT NAILS! (Paid for by me)
*EDIT: Maria from Cult Nails has VERY generously offered to sponsor the contest!

Copyright 2013. Cult Nails. All rights reserved.

Cult Nails is one of my favourite brands and I think that every girl should have at least one of their gorgeous shades. So the contest winner will get to add to their collection or join the cult for the first time!

Please enter your link in the inlinkz tool below...



If you have any trouble with the inlinkz tool don't hesitate to comment below or email me at kelsiesnailfiles@gmail.com

Giveaway!! My 1 Year Blogiversary is coming up...

As I mentioned a few times already, big things are happening this month! My One Year Blogiversary is fast approaching (Feb.13) and as part of the celebration I am hosting a giveaway!!

The Prize? Beauty Stop Online has graciously offered me a $35 Orly shopping spree on their website for the winner!! :D

The giveaway is open from now until February 10th at 11:59PM and it's open INTERNATIONALLY! woohoo! As long as Beauty Stop Online can ship to you (which they say it's worldwide shipping).

The winner will be announced on February 13th (the 1 year mark!)

Mandatory entries for the giveaway include giving me a contact email and liking Beauty Stop Online on facebook. However, I do ask that you follow me through GFC,  OR Facebook, OR Twitter... and obviously the more ways you follow the more entries you get.

Please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below.

AND: Last time I hosted a giveaway I was told that my bonus question was too easy so this time I made it a little harder. It is also geared towards my current followers, but if a new follower can guess correctly, kudos! :)


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blue Bedazzled

This is one of the first times since starting my blog that I've had multiple draft posts done up and ready to go... this week is a busy one which is good because I feel like I neglected my blog for a while during November/December...  but I'm back to regular posting now and I've got a lot of things planned for the next month.

So for today's manicure... My aunt gave me a set of "bedazzle" nail decals for christmas. There are a bunch of super cute designs and these blue rhinestones were one of them...

The base is Barry M Cyan Blue... gorgeous blue polish, I should wear more often :)

Big plans will be unveiled soon... stay tuned! :D

Born Pretty Store: Happy Valentine's Day

Those of you who are familiar with Born Pretty Store may have already noticed they are having a few promotional deals on for valentine's day... for those of you who didn't you will now :)

Starting tomorrow (January 20th) through to thursday (January 24) if you place an order you will receive the bling crystal ring for free! And if your order is over $15 you will receive one surprise piece of fashion jewellery (a lot of their jewelry is cute, I got my sister a treble necklace there to go with her gift for christmas).

Born Pretty Store is a really inexpensive place to get good quality nail art supplies... I get all of my rhinestones and studs there along with a few other odds and ends. They also sell nail art brushes and dotting tools for those who are interested. (Unfortunately I had most of mine before I discovered that born pretty store sells them for way cheaper!)

Click on the poster below to be directed straight to their website.

And don't forget you still get 10% off with my promotional code: RTL91

Review: Born Pretty Store Luminous Polish

I've got a couple of great polishes for you today...
CH Nail Luminous Polish #12 & #5 from Born Pretty Store!

These two polishes were sent to me for review, and I have to say I'm very impressed with them...

For starters the brush is awesome, it's shorter than most polish brushes and wider which made it very easy for application. Both polishes also dry VERY quickly which made it easy to apply multiple coats (which is often needed for glow polishes).

I decided to do a comparison with China Glaze Ghoulish Glow:
For the record, #05 is the pale orange and #12 is the pink

As expected the polishes glow much better over a white base. I forgot to add that Ghoulish Glow is two coats over a white base as well. When I paint with Ghoulish Glow I usually do 3 or 4 coats to get that streaky-ness to go away, I was impressed that two coats of the other two was plenty. The BPS polishes also dried much faster so painting multiple coats was easier than with Ghoulish Glow.

Charging the two polishes before photographing took longer than GG and they weren't quite as bright at first. However, they held the charge much longer. Typically when photographing Ghoulish Glow I have to recharge the polish between each photo, but after a few minutes the CH polishes were still glowing strong...

My favourite of the two is #12 (pink) I love how it actually glows pink instead of green or blue :)

So I did a full pink manicure...

In regular light it is a gorgeous hot pink, and it glows pink in the dark... you can't beat it :) This is two coats over white, and I stamped with a fauxnad plate and Finger Paints Black Expressionism. 

Each glow polish retails for $4.99 and you can find them at the following links...
CH Nail #05 (pale orange)
CH Nail #12 (pink)

And don't forget if you use my coupon code you can receive %10 off...