I'm Done

Just a quick post to say I won't be adding anything else to this blog.  Not anytime in the near future anyway.  I just don't have the time or energy I used to and it seems no one is reading it anyway.  So thank you to anyone who has read it and/or commented but this now just seems to add to my stress.  I am still doing my nails,  when I have time and will still be posting to Instagram,  but not often.  Maybe once a week. It's all I can do.  I will leave all my post up so maybe someone will read them and get some use out of them. Thanks. 

OPI 2014 Coca-Cola Collection

Today I have for you the nine piece Coca-Cola Collection from OPI. These have been out for several months now but I just now had the chance to purchase them and wanted to share them with you. These polishes were perfection. The formulas were great and dry time was even pretty fantastic. I love this collection so much because of the range of "not-so-common" colors, and they did a great job at matching colors to the products they represent. On to the swatches....

You're So Vain-illa

Two coats (but should have used three)

Represents Vanilla Coke

Sorry I'm Fizzy Today

Two coats

Represents Vanilla Coke

Coca-Cola

Two coats

Inspired by Coca-Cola (of course..lol)

Green On The Runway

Three coats

Represents Sprite

My Signature Is "DC"

Two coats

Represents Diet Coke

Orange You Fantastic

Two coats, no undies

Represents Fanta Orange

Today I Accomplished Zero

Three coats

Represents Coke Zero

A Grape Affair

Two coats

Represents Fanta Grape

Get Cherried Away

Two coats

Represents Cherry Coke

My favorites of this collection are A Grape Affair, Green On The Runway and Today I Accomplished Zero. I love these three the most because of their uniqueness. I also was very impressed with You're So Vain-illa. You could probably get away with two coats but I have very white tips so Its usually three coats of anything for me. I hope these help you in your decision on whether or not to buy them. Im very happy I decided to get the whole collection, I think you will be too.

Thanks for reading and Happy Polishing!

Sephora X Polishes

A couple of weeks ago I went to a BIg Lots store that I hadn't been to in a while to check out their polishes. I was kinda disappointed in the amount they had until I saw these little gems. Not to be confused with the Sephora Formula X polishes, but I think these are fantastic! The formula was perfect, dry time was normal, and these pics all show two coats.

Privileged

Deranged

Cold Hearted

Ice Princess

Psycho

I love the names on these, so funny! I normally don't find anything at my Big Lots but this time I lucked out. Not sure if these can be found anywhere else, I'm sure they are all older polishes but, I love them all!

Thanks for reading and Happy Polishing!

October 2014 Favorites

October has been a very busy month for me! I haven't been doing my nails as much as I'd like but I'm hoping things are calming down now. These are my four favorites from the month. I'm finally getting the hang of water marbling so I have practiced that quite a bit lately. Also figured out how to make water marble decals. If anyone would like to see a tutorial on that, let me know in the comments below.

Thanks for reading!

Wet N Wild 2014 Fall Mattes Collection Polishes

I finally got my hands on the 2014 Fall Matte polishes from Wet N Wild! These babies have been soo hard to collect! I found the display in a Walgreens 45 minutes from my house but it only had three of the colors left on it, so the search was on. I bought two more of the colors from Heather (@heathernking) on Instagram, who actually helped me complete another collection of Wet n Wild Megalasts. Thanks girl! Then I was down to one, the purple. Everyone I knew was on the lookout for me. Then my sister, Addrienne, sent me a text saying she found it. I literally squealed! They were finally all mine! Let me take just a minute to say that Wet N Wild Megalast polishes are my favorite out of all 600 I own. The formulas are consistently perfect, they have the wide brushes which work great on my nails and they only cost $1.99!Okay, enough said. On to the polishes.....

 Rouge 66

Two coats, no topcoat

 Distressed To Impress

Two coats, no topcoat

 Careful, It's Vine-tage

Two coats, no topcoat

 LAC-My Mani?

Three coats, no topcoat

 So Berry On Trend

Two coats, no topcoat

Echo Dark

Two coats, no topcoat

I don't think I need to say it but.....I am so in love with these polishes. Aside from the cream one, all these were easily opaque with two coats. Drying time was great. Although not really true matte finishes, they are more of a satin finish. This didn't really bother me as they more than make up for it in beauty. If you are lucky enough to find this collection, or any of it at all, you won't regret buying it. I also want to add, I wore these for at least a day each and had no staining at all when I removed them.

Thank you so much for reading this all the way through! Be sure to sign up to get email notifications for new posts. I am really going to try to do at least two posts a week.

I'm Still Here....

This has been a crazy two weeks for me.  I'm sorry I haven't posted in a while.  I started a new job two weeks ago and in still in training.  It takes alot out of me mentally and physically so I haven't been doing my nails nearly as much as I'd like to. That's probably not gonna change anytime soon so I will be limiting my posts to two a week.  I do still posts my manis on my Instagram page so be sure to check out my creations and nonsense there as well.  I also have not had WiFi at home for a few months and it's almost impossible to do blog posts on a phone but,  we are getting Internet back by this weekend so it'll be alot easier to get online and upload pics,  etc.  Thank you to those that are still around.  I just finished doing swatches of the new Wet n Wild Mattes collection so that will be my very next post. Alot of gorgeousness going on so stay tuned!

31 Day Challenge - Final Week

Okay, so Im running just a little behind. Been a busy two weeks. But on the bright side....I did it!! I finished all 31 days of the challenge, go me!!

Day 22: Inspired By A Song

I did Meatloaf: Bat Out Of Hell

Colors Used: Colors Used: Broadway Nails-Mystery Pumpkin, Spoiled-Jail Bait, Banana Republic-Autumn and Orly-Liquid Vinyl

Day 23: Inspired By A Movie

I did WALL-E

Colors Used: Broadway Nails-Ugly Duckling and assorted stripers

Day 24: Inspired By A Book

I did Harold And The Purple Crayon

Day 25: Inspired By Fashion

I did 

Colors Used: Orly-Liquid Vinyl, Wet n Wild Megalast-I Red A Good Book

Day 26: Inspired By A Pattern

I did a recreation of a nail pattern I love

Day 27: Inspired By Artwork

I did the melted crayon look

Day 28: Inspired By A Flag

I did the SC flag, my birthplace

Day 29: Inspired By the Supernatural

I did Halloween patterns

Day 30: A Tutorial

I did Nail tattoos

Day 31: Honor nails you love

I did these neon nails originally done by @runningwithlacquer

Biotin Review

I have seen alot on the Internet about taking biotin for hair and nails.  My nails have always been really healthy but my hair was beginning to get thinner and thinner.  I decided to give it a try.  I bought mine at Walmart for $7.96 for 120 capsules.  I went with the strongest ones,  10,000 mcg. The directions said to take one a day so that's where I started with it.  Within just a couple days,  my face started breaking out,  mainly my chin.  But I must add that I have struggled with adult acne off and on as long as I can remember on my chin. I'm not gonna sugar coat it,  it got bad for a few days.  I knew it must be the biotin so I backed off the dose and changed to taking it every other day.  I diligently cleaned my face with astringent several times a day and within a few days it was all gone.  My skin has never looked clearer! I am so happy with it now! I figure it was just bringing up all that buried oil and dirt.  I haven't noticed a big difference in my nails but let's talk about my hair.  I have dark brown hair so the thinning was pretty noticeable.  It was depressing.  After starting the biotin,  I noticed alot less hair on my comb and in the drain. My hair isn't growing any faster but it most definitely is thicker and stronger,  yay! I have been taking biotin every other day now for almost a month and  I am very very happy with my results.  I do want to add that I did talk to my doctor before taking biotin and he recommended I try it.  So please,  before starting this,  or any new vitamin regimen,  talk to your doctor.  Let me know if you've tried biotin or are going to try it.  I'm curious to hear others results.  Thanks for taking the time to read this!

Interview With An Indie Polish Maker

I want to say Thank You so much to Victoria for doing this interview with me. I really appreciate her taking the time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions for me. Please take a few minutes to check out her Instagram page here and shop all of her gorgeous unique polishes here.

1-What is your name?

- Victoria Tataw

2-Are you married or have kids?

- Haha no and I’m not expecting either any time soon. I’m only 18 and my greatest commitment is to my business and school work right now.

3-What is your brand name?

-Nails By Tataw

4-When did you start making your own polish?

--March of 2014

5-What made you decide to start making nail polish?

- Late February 2014

6-Is it hard to get started?

- "I felt like too often I'd go to the store to buy nail polish and see the same colors from multiple brands. And I got to this point where I felt rather disappointed by the lack of variety. I was a senior in high school getting closer and closer to making my decision for where I will go to college and thought, I should start my own nail polish making business! From that moment I was determined to do it and so I made it happen using some money I had saved from my job. Starting my own company seemed like a good way to feed my passion while avoiding a "ramen noodle diet" in college haha. I didn't know I'd become so wholeheartedly passionate about it."

7-Is there a story behind the name of your brand?

- Besides that I incorporated my last name (Tataw) into my brand because I love how unique my last name is no.

8-Is this a hobby or a career?

- It is a hobby and a passion turned into a part-time career and learning experience.

9-How many different polishes and/or collections have you made so far?

- Collections 2 with the 3rd releasing throughout the upcoming fall season. Different polishes...on the record (website) 19 with 10 more on the way for fall. But I can not count how many colors I’ve created but not liked enough to sell.

10-Are your polishes 3 or 5 free?

- My polishes are 5-free, cruelty-free, and vegan.

11-When is your next collection coming out?

- The dates are dispersed throughout the fall but the first 2 of the 10 that’ll be released come out on Sep. 30th and the last 2 will come out November 25th. I might surprise people with a few holiday specials though so stay tuned!

12-What is the inspiration behind your polish colors and names?

- I always set out to create a unique color, something vibrant and edgy. I’ve gotten name inspiration from friends, movies, random whims of cleverness, and more recently for this upcoming collection my Instagram followers. My first collection had a hot pink nail polish called “Venom” and I actually named it that based of the movie “Holes” when the warden made her own pink nail polish using snake venom. Life can give you so much inspiration of your willing to appreciate it.

13-How long have you been painting your own nails?

- I actually started my freshman year of high school, so 4 years ago. A was never a girl girl so I didn’t do my nails but one day a friend of mine noticed how long my nails were and insisted upon painting my nails. I fell in love with it!

14-How big is your own polish stash?

- I haven’t done a bottle count in ages but from what I remember I was in the 60s. I had to always buy my nail polishes myself, and I had a job but didn’t want to spend all of my money on polishes. I tried to limit myself to color that I really really really wanted.

15-How do you deal with rude or negative comments?

- In terms of customer feedback I’ve never had any negative situations to deal with... and on my social networking platforms I receive positivity as well, especially Instagram. I didn’t know how big and kind the nail community was until I made the Nails By Tataw Instagram.


Thanks again Victoria for being patient with me. I can't wait to check out your new fall line!

31 Day Challenge_Week 3

Wow! Already on week three, unbelievable! Whats even more unreal is that I've actually been able to keep up! I did start a new job a couple weeks ago so I know my posts have slacked off. But I'm getting settled in now so I will be posting more often again. Thanks for sticking around! On to the manis!!

Day 15: Delicate

Colors Used: Wet n Wild Split Pea Soup, Sally Hansen Gleaming, 

Wet n Wild Buffy The Violet Slayer, Sinful Colors Cotton Candy and Sweet Tooth

Day 16: Geometric

Colors Used: Spoiled Only In Creams and LA Colors Cactus

Day 17: Glitter

Color Used: Polish Pets Stellar Constellations

Day 18: Half Moons

Colors Used: Wet n Wild Creative Control, Orly Its not Me Its You, 

China Glaze Caribbean Temptation

Day 19: Galaxy

Color Used: Sinful Colors Starry Night

Day 20: Watermarble

Colors Used: Wet n Wild Club Havana, Sinful Colors Skylark

China Glaze Mocha Madness

Day 21: Inspired By A Color

Color Used: Wet n Wild Limelight

Stay Tuned for the final week's manis coming up! 

"Pinkie"...My PolishPet's Photo Shoot

Meet the newest member of my polish family. This is my PolishPet Thumper and her name is Pinkie. I always thought these were adorable and final got the chance to order one. I am sooo glad I did!! She is just so adorable!! I actually combed her fur today and decided to take some cute pics of her. Enjoy!

This is her permanent bed on the corner of my polish table now. Love her!!

31 Day Challenge-Week 2

Heres my manis for the second week of the 31 day challenge (31dc2014)

I have been struggling to keep up with this but I am determined. I have recently gone back to work and forgot how tiring it can be. But thats why its called a challenge right?

On to the manis...

Day 8: Metallic

Colors Used: OPI Push and Shove & Broadway Nails Black Out

I was not at all happy with how these turned out but...here they are. I was going for aged metal...

Day 9: Rainbow

Colors Used: SinfulShine Devious, LA Colors Spat!, Wet n Wild Lemon Drop,

Wet n Wild Lean and Green, Borghese Marino and SinfulColors Candy Coated

First time doing the splatter method and it was so much fun, although very messy! If you try it, be sure to tape your fingers!

Day 10: Gradient

Colors Used: Jessica Surfer Boyz n' Berry &

SinfulColors Skylark

Didn't turn out quite how I had it in my head but I still love it. I think gradients are so pretty, no matter the colors.

Day 11: Polka Dots

Colors Used: Maybelline Colorshow Dotty & 

Wet n Wild Club Havana

I mean, how could I NOT use Dotty for polka dots? lol

Day 12: Stripes

Colors Used: Spoiled Green To Be Heard &

Show Me The Money

This one is my favorite. I love plaid on nails. Its just so detailed and pretty.

Day 13: Animal Print...(polar bear) loll

Colors Used: Wet n Wild Whipped Topping

I know, theres technically no print but polar bears have fur too! lol

Day 14: Flowers

Colors used: Wet n Wild Split Pea Soup, Sally Hansen Gleaming,

Wet n Wild Buffy The Violet Slayer & SinfulColors Cotton Candy

I like doing roses on my nails. So very simple but such a big effect. Hope y'all like them too. (FYI: this is also going to be my Day 15 mani, Delicate)

I am still amazed at how many nail ladies are participating in this challenge. I love the nail community. You can see so many other ladies' interpretations of the challenge themes by searching #31dc2014 on Instagram. You won't be disappointed. Thanks for reading and happy polishing!