Polished Lifting

Gradient Stripes feat. Born Pretty Store | 31dc2018 Challenge - Press sample

Hi everyone! Sorry this is running a day late. I spend a long weekend celebrating my husband's birthday so I put these challenge prompts on hold. I should be back on track shortly! Today is going to be a double post (once now, once later this afternoon) if all goes well so that things are back on track.

The 31dc2018 prompt for yesterday called for a gradient so I thought I would do some gradient stamping. I love doing gradients but they're so messy. My favorite alternative is a stamped gradient since they're so easy to clean up.

Products used

To follow along with this challenge you can find me on all of the social media sites linked in the header (top right side of website) or in the sidebar. To view all people playing along be sure to check out the #31dc2018 hashtag on Instagram.

If you enjoyed this post you might like 31dc2017 - Rainbow Stripes feat. Bliss Polish & Zoya and 31dc2017 - Negative Space Stripes feat. Polished Vino & Scofflaw Nail Varnish.

Rainbow Smoosh Nail Art feat. Bliss Polish | 31dc2018 Challenge

Hello all! I hope your weekend is going well. Today's post is a neon rainbow smoosh look for the 31 Day Nail Art Challenge "rainbow" prompt. This look features an assortment of colors from the many Bliss Polish neons I've purchased over the years.


For this look I started with a base of Morgan Taylor All White Now. Once that had time to dry I applied Edge Perfection (a latex nail art barrier) to protect my hands from the mess I was about to create.


As soon as Edge Perfection dried I used a stamper head and dotted a random assortment of the Bliss Polish neons over the stamper head. Once I had enough polish on the stamper, I transferred that over to my nail of choice. Larger groupings of color are where I had larger dots of a single color of polish. Smaller bits of color came from smaller dots of each color. I liked experimenting with both techniques and I encourage you to do the same if you try this.

Products used

Pink Holo Flakies feat. Born Pretty Store | 31dc2018 Challenge - Press sample

It's day eight of the 31 Day Challenge and I'm still hanging in there! This one is kind of simple/kind of not. The prompt called for "metallic" so I thought I would try out some new flakies I got from Born Pretty Store.


For this look I started with a base of Morgan Taylor Little Black Dress. On the second coat I carefully sprinkled flakies over the top of the tacky polish and hand patted them in. This wasn't necessarily the best idea but it worked? All I know is that I made a huge mess.


These flakies are fairly sharp and do not sit flat so I recommend only using them either sparingly or in gel polish looks. I wasn't able to smooth them out enough with regular top coat for my liking. This isn't necessarily an issue with the flakies, rather user error.

Products used

Bohemian Polish Sweet Kitty Woman - Press sample

I hope you are all having a wonderful Friday. Today's post is a bit difficult to write due to the subject matter. Jen & Jeremy of Bohemian Polish recently lost their dear Cat and decided to make a memorial polish named Sweet Kitty Woman in her honor. If you are friends with Jen or happen to be in the Bohemian Polish fan group you know Cat as the sweet, pizza thieving family member who brought a lot of joy to their family. This polish was made in her loving memory to benefit the Helping Hands Veterinarian of Richmond VA.

Products used

Baroness X New Products + Violet Owls | 31dc2018 Challenge - Press sample

Hi there! I'm still working through the #31dc2018 challenge but first I wanted to share some new Baroness X items with you all! Over the last few months she's been releasing a ton of wonderful new nail, wax, and body products. I have a large assortment of new things to share with you today, so I hope you all are ready.

Fixer Elixir

Dry Oil

Dry Oil is one of those products I never knew existed until I tried the Baroness X version and then did a little research. Let me tell you, this is my new favorite moisturizer for when I need quick hydration. The dry oil absorbs quickly and delivers the same amount of hydration as your average lotion.

New Wax Scent Shots

Break-Away Ice Bar Wax

Riveted Base Coat & Liquid Crystal Top Coat

Baroness X just launched her Riveted Base Coat and Liquid Crystal Top Coat. The base coat is a color correcting sticky base coat. I found that my wear time was slightly better with this base coat versus a non-sticky base. This is my preferred alternative to Orly Bonder. I was a huge Bonder fan but this one takes the cake.