Sally Hansen Hard Extreme Wear 'Hot Magenta'

I feel kind of weird showing you two Sally Hansen polishes in a row, especially since they're the only two I have of the brand, but I was curious how the second one would look on my skin (no nail wheels at hand), so I put on Hot Magenta, from the Hard Extreme Wear line, which has thinner, longer bottles. Unfortunately I misplaced the bottle when I wanted to take pictures, so it's not shown in the swatch photos.

Sally Hansen Hot Magenta (2 coats), indirect sunlight

Sally Hansen Hot Magenta (2 coats), indirect sunlight

The camera wouldn't really pick up Hot Magenta's true hue: in reality it is much more like the hot pink you see in the reflection in the second picture. It applied like a dream, I have to say: I could've gotten away with just one (!) coat, but I chose to add another to cover a few small bald spots.
I was really amazed by the consistency; usually pigmented polishes (aka one-coaters) are too thick to spread evenly on the nail, but this one practically applied itself. Good job, Sally Hansen!

Pieces 'Lavender Haze'

A beautiful light purple pastel. Though the weather may say otherwise, it's still summer and because of that I'm not in the mood for dark colors and that's why I grab light, pastel and bright colors these days.
One of my favorite light colors is this polish from Pieces.

Pieces Lavender Haze (3 coats), indirect sunlight

Close-up, indirect sunlight

It has a creamy texture and it doesn't leave streaks behind after you put it on. But it's a thick polish so you have to apply it quickly, because otherwise it will dry too soon and your latest streak will not mix well with the older streaks so it'll look like a thick mess.
And to be honest, I don't like the rectangular shape of the bottle so if you are a person (like me) who turns the brush while you apply your nail polish it doesn't go very easy and fast, so there will be more time between your streaks which lead up to the thick mess-thing.
But in the end, I love the color and because it's opaque in 3 coats it's worth all the applying-'drama'.

XOXO
Blossom

Friday Favorites: SYOSS Repair 1-Minute Intensive Mask

Welcome to another new section of our blog: Friday Favorites. Every Friday we will give you an exclusive look into our absolutely favorite things. These things can vary from a mascara to a recipe and a body lotion to a book.
Random stuff we like to use/see/taste/hear/read. Here we go!

SYOSS Repair 1-Minute Intensive Mask

I really love using the SYOSS-line. At the moment I use the shampoo, conditioner, mask and heat-protector (from different lines).
And today I want to talk about the mask. The 1-minute Intensive Mask to be precisely. It makes my hair less frizzy and extra smooth after I washed my locks. I dry my hair with a hair dryer, so using a repairing mask (at least once a week) is very important.
I really like using this mask, but I have also tried the SYOSS Repair 2-Minute mask about a year ago, and that one also made a big positive difference between the times I used it and didn't use it. In fact, I have also tried some masks from other brands (for example L'Oréal) and I don't remember noticing a big difference. So from my experience, SYOSS have very nice masks which smoothes and repair your locks, just like the label promises -- but the good thing is that you get a huge jar for just €5.95, which'll last you quite some time.
What are your experiences with hair masks? Which one(s) do you recommend? Please let us know.

XOXO
Blossom

Celebrity Look: Britney Spears 'I Wanna Go'

Girl looks flawless.

It's Britney Bitch! I, as a super-duper Britney fan had to try this look when the video of her new single I Wanna Go was released. This is one of the rare occasions that La Spears wears something on her nails, and if I can link Britney to nail polish in any kind of way, I will. Britney is the first celeb to be featured in our new section: Celebrity Look.

This is the oh-so-easy-to-recreate look on my tips:

The IWG-look (further description below), direct sunlight

Close-up, direct sunlight

To recreate this look I used these colors (of course any red, white or black polish from other brands will also do):
Thumb + ring: Barry M Matt White (2 coats)
Index + pinky: Catrice Back To Black old version (2 coats)
Middle: Catrice Bloody Mary To Go (3 coats, you still can see my nail line, aargggh :( )

I'm not very fond of this look (shame on me, lol). I think if you don't wear red-white-black clothes or hair extensions, this look isn't much fun and pretty random. Everyone can forget the hair extensions, but if you want a good tip on the clothing, I made something up very cleverly: wear this look with a 'I ♥ (city name)'-shirt.
Yesterday, I wore the London version accidentally while I was thinking which manicure I was going to put on next. And I reminded myself I could wear the I Wanna Go-look, since I've been wanting to try it for a while and I was wearing a shirt which features the exact three colors of the look!
But in the end, I don't think I will ever polish my nails in this way, just because I don't really like to wear the colors red and black and I'm not going to wear my London-shirt for three or four days in a row just to make the look happen. But Britney wore it, so I'm glad I tried it anyway. Have fun yourself, though! ;)

XOXO
Blossom

P.S.: I Wanna Go video link

If 'Oh, Tiff!' and 'Take Me To Your Chateau' had a baby...

I really love baby blue and turquoise colors. It stands out and looks very cute and young in some way. So last weekend, when I bought Essence You Belong To Me I noticed it was a mixture (in my eyes) between two other blue colors I already have: Color Club Take Me To Your Chateau and Diamond Cosmetics Oh, Tiff!. So here is the formula:

Oh, Tiff ! + Take Me To Your Chateau = You Belong To Me (each 2 coats), indirect sunlight

O, T!, TMTYC, YBTM, indirect sunlight

 Take Me To Your Chateau is definitely one of my absolute faves. It's opaque in just one coat and it's very easy to put on.

Of course I love the other blue colors too, but TMTYC is a very bright baby blue which totally stole my heart. In fact, because of this polish baby blue has become my favorite color in general (besides pink, duh).
So here you go, with this comparison you can decide yourself what color you like most.

XOXO
Blossom

Sally Hansen Ultra HD 'Laser'

Today I get to show you one of my newest conquests: my aunt brought me two Sally Hansen's from the US, and I was mesmerized by this baby below:

Sally Hansen Ultra HD Laser (3 coats), indirect sunlight

Close up of Laser under indirect sunlight

Close up of Laser under indoor lighting to show the purple glow

This is Laser, part of Sally Hansen's Ultra HD line, which basically means that it's jam-packed with really fine glitter, giving the polish its depth (unfortunately, this is not translated onto camera well...). While I'm typing this, I'm constantly watching my nails change color from dark blue to shiny purple. It's not what I would call a duochrome at all; rather it's the glitter that gives Laser its fantastic appearance.

Because it seems a bit like a glass fleck polish, I should note that it does not become opaque quickly; in the pictures above I am wearing 3 thin coats, but in the wrong lighting I can still spot some VNL (visible nail line).

Although I am not a fan of this kind of blue generally (prefer lighter/darker hues), I think the 'HD' in this polish does make it special :) I think this line is not on sale in The Netherlands, but it should be around $5,50 in the USA -- or on eBay ;)

Pastel Shatter Mani

Last week, I decided to try a pastel rainbow manicure, using various summery budget polishes. After about four days, I became tired with the look (and the small chip that had appeared on my right index finger), and then this happened:

Pastel Black Shatter Mani (further description below), indirect sunlight

Close Up of the Shatter effect

This is what was on my nails (on both hands):
Thumb: Catrice Sweets For My Sweets (3 coats)
Index: Essence Makes Me Weak (2 coats)
Middle: Catrice Bye, Bye Birdy (2 coats)
Ring: Essence LE You Rock Speed Of Light Blue (2 coats)
Pinky: Essence Dress For A Moment (2 coats)


Blossom and I have some issues with Sweets For My Sweets, as ours seem to have a slightly different color -- hers is darker than mine, and mine (which is an old purchase) seems more Barbie pink. Nevertheless, I'm crazy about these budget pastels (which range from €1,29 to €2,49).


We decided a couple of months ago to invest in OPI Black Shatter, priced at €13,95 here in The Netherlands, and although I am still not 100% sure on my feelings about the look, I can't help but smile about all the comments I get from people thinking that my nails are either stickers or drawn on. However, as I'm a perfectionist, the fact that the crackle isn't identical on each nail still bothers me (which is why I'm currently sporting a different mani). The image above shows the difference in applying Black Shatter thickly (thumb -- middle) or thinly (ring -- pinky). This wasn't on purpose at all... I just always have to get used to applying thick coats!


XOXO
Sapphyre

Essence 'Movin' On' + 'Hello Holo'

Hi!

So this is Sparkly Tips' first swatch: Essence's Movin' On and Hello Holo.
I bought Movin' On because I was looking for a dupe of Deborah Lippmann's Waking Up In Vegas and the other day I saw a swatch of MO and I thought it looked pretty close.
And with that price (€1,79), who wouldn't give it a try?

Essence Movin' On (3 coats), indirect sunlight

Essence MO (2 coats) + Hello Holo (2 coats), indirect sunlight

I really like this color, whether it's a perfect WUIV dupe or not.
It's opaque in just two coats and the formula is very nice: it's not streaky.
And because I was in the mood for a Blackberry Manicure (which means adding a twist to your mani by making your thumbs more fun to look at while texting), I topped my thumbs' manicure off with Hello Holo, a very va-va-voom rainbow glitter. Don't we all love that?
Actually I don't know how holographic this nail polish really is, but it does have a lot of colors in it, I can tell you -- I would call it a holo glitter rather than a true 'full' holo.
I didn't try the Hello Holo on its own, without a color beneath it, but I think this is one of the rare glitter top coats that would cover the nail completely with three or four coats. It costs €1,79 as well -- great price :D.

XOXO
Blossom

Welcome!

Hi everyone!


We would like to welcome you to our brand new blog, so introductions are in order! We are two Dutch girls, aged 16 and 18, who share an obsession for nail polish, cats (especially kittens), sushi, general unhealthy foods (such as cupcakes), sparkly stuff (hence the name) and pretty much anything cute.
We've mainly started our blog to spread our love of nail polish, but the other things mentioned earlier will surely make cameos as well. :)


For now, we'll say see you soon, using our cleverly thought up (or NOT) aliases!


XOXO
Blossom & Sapphyre