Galaxy FX Gradient

Here is the second ORLY Galaxy FX polish I bought - Intergalactic Space.

I wanted to try a glitter gradient with it - I wasn't sure if it would work, since the polishes are all so packed with glitter, but I had to try.

I started with a base of Sally Hansen Firefly, from their Lustre Shine collection - two coats on all nails except my ring finger. This polish is a very pretty bronze to blue/green/grey duochrome. The colour shift isn't very strong on this one, but I still like it. If I was wearing it on it's own, I'd probably go for 3 coats, because it's pretty sheer.

I applied Intergalactic Space to the tips of my nails, then a second coat starting about 2/3 of the way up my nail. On my ring finger, I simply applied two coats.
This is a pretty complex polish - It's a grey jelly base with blue microglitter, small purple and bronze hex glitter, with a light scattering of medium round white glitter.

I love this one, I don't know how to describe it.

As with Gravity Bound, this polish is packed with glitter, so it can be a little bit goopy if you don't work quickly. Some reviews complained that the white circles were difficult to get. I only wanted them on my ring finger, and I had to wipe the circles off the brush while I was doing the gradient. There aren't many, but I probably could have had one per finger if I wanted to. Maybe I lucked out and got a good bottle?

Also, I just realized this manicure is pretty much perfect for ...

Revlon Selects - Polish Box

Alright, so I shared with you last week that I received a surprise box of nail goodies from Revlon as part of the Revlon Selects program. I'm going to be featuring the two polishes I received in today's post.

If you would like the opportunity to take part in the Revlon Selects program, they offer opportunities on their Revlon Canada Facebook page every once in a while, so check it out!
If you're not in Canada, take a look at your local Revlon page on Facebook - they may have similar product sample offers.

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First up, Revlon Colorstay in Nude Beige.
Sheer coverage with one coat, and opaque coverage in two. Easy to apply, smooth and super shiny (photo has no topcoat).
The colour? Definitely nude! I've seen other nail bloggers refer to this look as 'mannequin hands'. It's kinda neat! I think I will have to try this shade again with some black or white stamping over top.
Nude polishes seem to be in for spring, so this is perfect timing for Revlon to release this new shade.

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Next up is from the new limited Chroma Chameleon line. This is a line of duochrome or colour shifting polishes. I couldn't find anything official from Revlon (they aren't on their site yet), so here is a link to Nouveau Cheap's post with some photos of the collection.
I ended up with "Gold" which has a gold-green colour shift. I don't own Chanel's Peridot, but from what I've seen, this will be another dupe.

I was a little afraid when I started applying this one because of just how sheer it was on the first coat, however it built up pretty quickly and I only needed three coats in the end. You will end up with some brushstrokes, but they don't stand out too much.

It was a little difficult to photograph this one in my dark house in cloudy Vancouver (I really need a light box), so I took one photo with the flash and another photo in the dull afternoon sun.
The duochrome is pretty strong on this one in real life. I would recommend it if you missed out on any of the other versions of this shade. It looks like they have some other really nice duochromes in the line as well.

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And finally, (mostly) naked nails!
This one was NOT provided to me by Revlon, but it is their product ...
I quickly swatched the polishes above with no basecoat or topcoat  on Wednesday and then decided to hold off doing a full manicure for a couple of days, because I wanted to do something for a comic convention I was going to over the weekend. The first day, I had nothing on my nails at all and it actually felt weird, so when I got home, I applied my Revlon Calcium Gel Nail Hardener.
I use this once in a while, because it doesn't really work as a basecoat (I always end up with lots of bubbles), but if ever I want bare nails, it is my go-to clear coat.
I figured since my nails were in decent condition, I would share!

I get a tiny amount of discolouration toward the tips of my nails, but using a basecoat every time really helps to prevent staining or yellowing.

In a couple more days, I will share the manicure I wore to Fan Expo Vancouver, and I am going to test out the nail strips that came in my Revlon Selects package in the next few weeks.

**disclamer**

The first two products featured in this post were provided to me free of charge to test and review based on a contest I entered last year. I do not receive any additional compensation for reviewing the products, nor do I allow free product samples to influence my opinions of the product itself.

Reddit Challenge - Splatter Manicure

My last splatter manicure was a feature nail, because I really wasn't sure how I'd like the technique.
I'm still undecided. It's fast, but it's messy. This time, I wanted to go with all my fingers, and it's actually growing on me ...

I started with a base of Essence High Spirits - in the bottle this looks like some sort of gold-ish olive colour, but on the nail, it's a gorgeous sage green with a subtle shimmer
I actually did this as a straight manicure on Friday night, so what you see here is 3 and a bit days wear - almost no tip-wear and no chipping! Oh Essence - for a cheapie polish, you are amazing.

Instead of removing a perfectly good colour to do a splatter manicure that I wasn't sure I'd leave on for any length of time, I just splattered over top of it.

I hunted through my collection and found one I thought would match well and be a good consistency for splattering (my last one was too thick and came out a bit lumpy).
I went with Color Club Port-Folio. I got it in a box set from a friend. At first, I thought it was a brown / green duochrome, but it's actually purple! (the "Port" portion of the name should have given that away, I guess ...). I think this is my third purple/green duochrome? oops! I really don't like having more than one of the same colour. Granted, the other two duo-chrome in opposite directions and are different shades, but still, it's a bit much - haha! I'll have to do a side-by-side comparison to see if they are too similar and then I'll give one or two away.
Anyways, you can *just* see the duochrome effect on my index and ring fingers, and a little bit on my thumb.

I love this colour combo, and will have to try it again sometime.

Later this week, I'll have a review of BOTH nail polishes that I received from Revlon Selects.
Next week, the challenge is "Inspired by Technology"
Finally, I also want to take some photos of my collection, now that it is nicely stored away in my Melmer!