All About Nail Polish Tag

Hello there! Today I wanted to do a tag that was started by a few of my favorite YouTube ladies, Lindsay, Holly, Zenorah, Jess, and Amy. I haven't done one of these in forever and my friend Paola did it on her blog & youtube and tagged me, so I decided it would be fun to do finally! Plus, I've had almost zero sun lately so it's been hard for me to swatch new polish :P

Press Sample | Purchased by Me

1. What is your favorite nail polish finish (eg. Crème, crelly, glitter, etc.)?
This is a hard question for me because while I like them all, my affection for them usually comes in phases haha. Like for a while I'll be into holographics exclusively, then I only want to wear jellies, then it's all about the glitters. It seems like I'm wearing crème shades more often than the other finishes lately though, so I'll go with that haha. But it seriously varies all the time.

2. What is your favorite “ugly pretty” shade?
I have a great fondness for polish colors that people say are "ugly pretty". I love things that are not typically beautiful. Hands down, my favorite of these has to be China Glaze Zombie Zest. It came out in the China Glaze Awakening collection for Halloween in 2010 (best Halloween trio ever?) and I've loved and worn it every year since. I even managed to score a back-up bottle from my friend who went to IMATS this year, yay! It's a swampy olivey green jelly with gallons of golden shimmer/glass flecks that shift to a turquoise blue in certain lights. Insane. (I'm pretty sure this made it on a few of the original tag creators' lists too!)

sunlight

shade

3. Which polish in your collection is the most sentimental to you?
It has to be Rescue Beauty Lounge Kellie Gonzo. This is the polish I created with the, now retired, Rescue Beauty brand. It was such an exciting event and milestone in my blogging career to create a polish, especially with such a prestige brand. This is a bright sunny coral with orange and silver glitter bits. It's also the polish I've gone through the most of, luckily I have a back-up bottle or three!

4. If you could go back in time to buy any collection, what would it be?
If we're going for a full collection, hands down has to be China Glaze OMG. These were kind of the first ultra linear holographic collection seen from a mainstream brand and boy do they impress! I have managed to track down a lot of them, but I don't have the full collection (or full bottles of the ones I do have!). But my all time biggest polish lemming has to be Urban Decay ID. It's a sheer jelly polish that shifts from orange to pink fire. I don't know if I'll ever get a hold of it, but if I do I would cherish it forever! Also, Chanel Jade because I can't pick just one thing.

image via china glaze

Image via Scrangie.com

Image via Lextard @ Flickr.com

5. What is your go-to “all occasion” polish?
Sally Hansen Pacific Blue original. This polish is a bright but slightly dusty cobalt blue crème with a perfect one-coat formula. I love this color and think it's very wearable, but the biggest reason it's my all occasion polish is because it's so damn easy and fast to put on! I will never understand why Sally Hansen chose to reformulate this polish and completely change it. I know some might think a blue isn't appropriate for "all occasions", but since I'm a simple kind of girl, there aren't many times I would feel inappropriate wearing a blue nail polish.

6. What items are essential to your nail care routine?
The most important part of my nail care routine is cuticle oil. I am NEVER without it. I've spoken at length about my cuticle woes before, if you're interested you can read some of the posts here, here, and here. Next is a great base coat, I basically always have a base coat on. Keeping my nails "sealed" with some kind of polish, especially when my hands are in water, has just about 95% fixed my peeling edges. Top coat is also a necessity, I don't remember the last time I wore a full manicure without it.

7. What is your favorite “newly discovered” brand (indie or mainstream)?
This was also a tough question because I have found so many great ones recently, but I have to choose Nine Zero Lacquer. This is the brand created by Jess of JessFACE90 (one of the collaborators of this tag too). I have been lucky enough to be able to swatch for her and I haven't disliked one of her shades yet! Being a nail vlogger/swatcher herself, she knows what's good so she uses that experience to create beautiful shades with great formulas.

8. What is your go-to “bad ass” color (the color that makes you feel sexiest or most badass)?
I love a mega bright, in your face, unapologetic neon shade. It makes me feel like I'm a tough betch who can wear whatever I want, damn all who might be offended haha. Maybe that seems silly, but it's seriously how I feel when I wear neons. An example is Formula X Danger Zone. How hot is that??

9. Indie or mainstream?
Usually I have a good mix of both that I pick to wear from, but these days I've been wearing (and blogging about) waaay more indies. I just find their selection to be so much more varied and unique than mainstream, which is kind of understandable, but still. And with the sheer number of indie brands out there that are producing such good products, it's hard not to want to buy everything in sight!

10. Which brand’s collections do you look forward to the most?
It has always been China Glaze for me. Out of the mainstream world, they have always been the ones to take chances instead of playing it safe when it comes to color and finish. They don't always get it 100% perfect, but who does? I've loved them since I started blogging and I don't see that changing any time soon.

Please please do this tag if you want, it's so fun! And if you don't have a blog or YouTube channel, let me know your answers in the comments! See ya again soon!

❤ Kellie

Some of the products mentioned were provided for an honest review.

Guest Post by Nail Polish Pursuit: Christmas Nail Art + Video Tutorial

Please enjoy this guest post by my friend Paola from Nail Polish Pursuit!

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Hi Pretty Polishers and Kellie Gonzo fans! I'm Paola (Pa-OH-La) aka Nail Polish Pursuit. I am SO honored that Kellie asked me come back and do another fun and cute guest post for her amazing blog! Kellie has been a wonderful mentor and inspiration to me throughout my nail polish blogging journey. Isn't she the best? I know we can all agree Kellie ROCKS! So for my guest post today, I've got 4 Christmas nail designs to show you. These are pretty simple and quick in case you need any last minute Christmas nail art ideas.

To create these designs you will need the following:

That's a lot of polish right? If you don't have all of these colors you can use what you have, or you can create only 1 of these 4 designs and paint the rest of your nails red or green for the holiday season. You also don't have to use these exact colors I used, but in case you're interested, here is the list:

Gold polish - Ziv by ZOYA
Red polish - Sooki by ZOYA
Green glitter polish - Logan by ZOYA
Nude polish - Rue by ZOYA
Pink polish - Lo by ZOYA
Blue polish - Sia by ZOYA
Silver polish - I'd Melt For You by China Glaze
Orange polish - Lady & the Vamp by China Glaze
Black polish - Never Have Too Mani Friends! by OPI (Hello Kitty Collection)
White polish - French Tip by Color Club

You're also going to need a dotting tool or toothpick, a fast drying top coat (I used HK Girl by Glisten & Glow), straight nail vinyls or tape, and a thin nail art brush.

Now let's take a look at how to create each one:

CANDY CANE
Yummy, simple, and festive!

1. Start with a white base. I love using French Tip by Color Club because it's a one coater and super opaque!
2. Apply a fast drying top coat and let it completely dry for about 15 minutes.
3. Apply your nail vinyls at an angle to give the appearance of the candy cane swirls. If you don't have nail vinyls you can cut tape into different sizes.
4. Apply 1 coat of your red nail polish and remove the vinyls or tape immediately while the red polish is still wet.
5. Once that is dry, apply your fast drying top coat to seal the design. TIP: Apply the top coat sideways so you don't smear the design.

SANTA CLAUS
So jolly and bright!

1. Start with your red polish and apply only a small amount to the top 1/3 of your nail closest to your cuticle.
2. Then apply your nude polish to the middle portion of your nail. Don't worry about making the division of colors perfect because you will be covering it up.
3. Next take your white polish and create a "french tip" line at the bottom of your nail to create Santa's beard.
4. Once that is all dry, take your dotting tool dipped in white polish and create a line of dots side by side in between the red and nude polish to create Santa's hat.
5. Now take your dotting tool dipped in black polish and make two small dots in the nude polish section of your nail to create Santa's eyes.
6. Then use your thin nail art brush dipped in black polish and create a half moon shape under the eyes to create Santa's smile.
7. Last you're going to take your dotting tool dipped in your pink polish and make two dots at each end of Santa's smile to create his jolly and bright cheeks!
8. Once everything is dry, apply your fast drying top coat to seal the design.

CHRISTMAS TREE
This isn't a Charlie Brown Christmas Tree!

1. Start with a white base. Apply fast drying top coat and let it fully dry for about 15 minutes.
2. Next take two pieces of vinyl or tape and make an X across your nail to create the outlining of the tree.
3. Then add your green nail polish in between the "X" outline. While the polish is still dry, remove the vinyls or tape.
4. Let that completely dry and you can leave it as is or you can add ornaments to you tree like I did.
5. Using your dotting tool dipped in gold and silver polish, make dots inside your tree to create the ornaments.
6. I added a star on top of my tree using a tiny nail art star that came in a wheel I bought at my local beauty supply store. You can also find these on amazon.
7. Once everything is dry, apply your fast drying top coat to seal the design.

SNOWMAN
With a carrot nose!

1. Start with a blue base. Apply fast drying top coat and let it fully dry for about 5 minutes.
2. Then take your white polish and create a circular mound shape at the bottom of your nail.
3. Next take your dotting tool dipped in white polish and make dots at the top portion of your nail to create snowflakes.
4. Now take your dotting tool again but this time dipped in black polish and make two dots at the top of the white mound to make the snowman's eyes.
5. Last take your thin nail art brush dipped in orange polish and make a sideways triangle to create the snowman's carrot nose.
6. Once everything is dry, apply your fast drying top coat to seal the design.

You're all done! Hope you enjoyed these cute and fun Christmas nails! Remember you don't have to make these look perfect, even the best nail artists make mistakes. Your designs will be unique and beautiful.

I also have a step by step video tutorial for these nails on my YouTube channel here:

I wish everyone a very Happy Holidays and a huge thank you to Kellie for giving me this opportunity to be a part of her awesome blog!

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Thanks so much for guest posting again Paola! I love nail art oh so much and I fail so hard at it, so thanks for bringing some creativity to my blog! Let me know what you think! What are you wearing on your nails for the holidays? Be sure to stop by the Nail Polish Pursuit blog and subscribe if you want, or follow her on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube!

❤ Kellie

Guest Post by Nail Polish Pursuit: Halloween Nail Art + Video Tutorial

Please enjoy this guest post by my friend, blogger, youtuber and fellow Halloween enthusiast, Paola!

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Hi pretty polishers and Kellie Gonzo fans! I'm Paola (Pa-OH-La) aka Nail Polish Pursuit. I am SO honored to be guest writing for my lovely friend Kellie today! She's been a wonderful mentor and inspiration to me throughout my nail polish blogging journey. Kellie and I both love all things Halloween so I felt it oh-so appropriate to create these fun and simple Halloween Nails.

You will need the following:

• white polish {I used French Tip by Color Club}
• yellow polish {I used Pippa by ZOYA}
• orange polish {I used Lady and the Vamp by China Glaze}
• purple polish {I used Looking Bootiful by China Glaze}
• green polish {I used Drink Up Witches by China Glaze}
• black polish {I used Black Pumpkin by Sally's Girl - How adorable is that little witch hat bottle top!?}
• fast drying top coat {I used HK Girl by Glisten & Glow}
• thin nail art brush {mine are from a local beauty supply store}
• medium and small dotting tool {mine are from Amazon}
• striped nail vinyls (mine are from Nailvinyls.com}

These are pretty simple for nail art beginners, but remember practice will make perfect! Here is how to create each one:

CREEPY GOOGLY EYES

1. Start with 1-2 coats of your black polish. The polish I used is opaque in one coat so it was perfect.
2. Apply a coat of fast drying top coat and let it completely dry for about 10 minutes.
3. Using your medium dotting tool dipped in white nail polish, apply three set of eyes on your nail in different directions. You can do more or less set of eyes depending on how big or small your nail is.
4. When those dots are completely dry after about 5 mins, take your small dotting tool dipped in black nail polish to make the center dot of the eye.
5. Once that is dry, apply a fast drying top coat.

CANDY CORN - this one is my favorite and SO easy!

1. Start with 1-2 coats of white nail polish. The polish I used is opaque in one coat so it was perfect.
2. Apply a coat of fast drying top coat and let it completely dry for about 10 minutes.
3. Once your nail is completely dry, use your stripe nail vinyls to create the middle color of the candy corn.
4. Apply one coat of orange polish to the middle of the nail.
5. While your polish is still wet, remove the nail vinyl stripes.
6. Apply one coat of yellow polish to the bottom of the nail. I did this one freehand and just swooped the brush across the bottom of my nail sort of like a french mani.
7. Once the polish is dry, apply a fast drying glossy top coat.

PUMPKIN

1. Start with 1-2 coats of orange polish.
2. Once that is completely dry, take your thin nail art brush dipped in black polish and create 2 triangles at the top of your nail to create the pumpkin's eyes.
3. Then create an upside down triangle underneath the two triangles in the middle to create the nose.
4. Then create a sideways half moon to create the pumpkin's smile.
5. Once that is dry, apply a fast drying glossy top coat.

WITCH STOCKINGS

1. Start with 1-2 coats of green polish.
2. Apply a coat of fast drying top coat and let it completely dry for about 10 minutes.
3. Once that is completely dry, apply your nail vinyl stripes in different positions to create the stripes of the witch's stockings.
4. Apply purple and black polish interchanging the colors with each line.
5. While the polish is still wet, remove the nail vinyls.
6. Once the polish is dry, apply a fast drying glossy top coat. TIP: Apply the top coat sideways so you don't smear any polish downward that may still be wet.

And that's it! You have created adorable Halloween Nails :) I painted the rest of my nails black but you can do more designs or paint them any other fun color you would like.

I also have a step by step video that shows this process on my YouTube channel here:


Hope you all enjoyed this tutorial and I hope you re-create your own Halloween Nails! A huge thank you to Kellie for letting me be a part of this amazing blog!

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Thanks so much Paola! I love that these fabulous Halloween nails are so easy and fun to create! Please show some love in the comments for her because you know I can't bring you nail art like this! See ya again soon!

❤ Kellie

Glisten & Glow Young Wild and Polished Duo Swatches & Review

Hellooooo! Today I am happy to show you two polishes from Glisten & Glow! I literally saw them and then immediately purchased them. That doesn't usually happen for me, I am pretty good at thinking through my purchases. The reason I was so excited to get my hands on these is because they are a collaboration with one of my favorite people to watch on YouTube, Nicole from Young Wild and Polished. I regaled of my love for Nicole in a blog post about My 9 Favorite YouTube Nail Vloggers a few months ago, and the adoration has only grown since then.

First is Good Day, named for the little saying Nicole frequently busts out, usually in her chipmunk-voiced bloopers, "It's a good day to have a good day!" This is a bluey purpley holographic jelly shade. I don't love this color usually, but it didn't really matter because I had to have it, we gotta support our sisters right? This was really sheer unfortunately, this is three coats and it still seemed kinda patchy in some spots.

And second we have Topaz, which is what Nicole calls her reflection in the viewfinder when she is filming her videos. She's hilarious, I can't even explain it you just have to watch her! This has a clear base filled with tiny roundish glitters in medium pink, medium blue, dark pink, silver and black with holo glitter bits. This one is probably meant to be used as a topper but you can get it opaque in three coats as I've done here. It was a little runny but dense with glitter, if that makes any sense. Be careful not to put too thick of a coat on or it will ooze off your nail.

So are these the best polishes ever? Hmm, maybe not in terms of formula, but they are very fun and I like them both. The glitter is my fav. You can purchase these on the Glisten & Glow website for $20 for both like I did, or individually for $10.50 for the glitter and $11.50 for the holo. And while you're there, you should pick up a bottle of their HK Girl top coat! It's the beeessstttt. Let me know what you think of these two polishes! Do you watch Young Wild and Polished on YouTube? You can check her out on instagram too :)

Bye friends!

❤ Kellie

My 9 Favorite YouTube Nail Vloggers

Hi friends! I have been really busy lately and even though I have lots of swatches done, I haven't had time to edit them and post anything lately :( But I thought I'd pop in and put up a fun little post on something different today while I had a minute. I used to be a YouTube junkie, like watched at least five videos a day if not more. I love YouTube for teaching me how to apply makeup, get great product recommendations, for helping me tame my crazy curly hair, and for just lots of entertainment! I stopped watching almost altogether for a few years but this past year I have gotten back into it in a big way. Nail vloggers have become more prevalent on YT lately and I've discovered some awesome ladies that I love to watch. I wanted to share a few of my favorite channels with you in case you are interested in watching videos about nails too!

The first name that comes to mind is Young Wild and Polished. This girl is HILARIOUS and has seriously fabulous nails. I don't usually do nail art, but her tutorials are simple, beautiful and straight forward enough for me to follow easily. She has a crazy awesome sense of humor and at the end of all her videos she has a "bloopers" section with her voice high like a chipmunk and I die laughing every time at them! She does a lot of makeup videos and hauls in addition to her nail vids too if you're into that. One of my favorite videos of hers is her April Polish Favorites!!, I feel like it's a fun video and a great introduction to her style :)

Image via Young Wild and Polished on YouTube

Next my brain goes automatically to MissHollyBerries. This is a girl that I have come to watch so much and interact so much with on social media that I really consider her a friend. She's very genuine and beautiful and she loves nail polish! I just adore her. I find her really easy to watch, like I'm sitting down to chat with a girlfriend. A great video of hers that I really like is her Favorite Yellow Nail Polishes of ALL TIME!!, it is part of a series she does of all her favorite polishes in color categories, rainbow order (ROY G BIV). She's so great!

Image via MissHollyBerries on YouTube

A gal I learned about from Holly is JessFACE90. She has been making beauty videos for a long time even though I just discovered her. She has some really awesome live swatch videos that I like a lot, it is so helpful to see how a polish acts when applied before you buy it! Blogs are great for seeing how they turn out and telling you how they applied, but it's a great concept to really see it put on for yourself. A great example is her Zoya Magical Pixie Dust Summer 2014 Swatch and Review video.

Image via JessFACE90 on YouTube

Total Polish Junkie is a gal that I just barely found on YT and have really enjoyed watching her videos. She has a great point of view and I love hearing what she has to say about polish. I find her very thorough in her reviews/opinions. An example of a great review video she has done is the Nicole by OPI Roughles Collection Review & Swatches. I can't wait to see more from her!

Image via Total Polish Junkie on YouTube

Another channel I discovered from Holly is Lindsay Does Nails. She's a Canadian gal so it's interesting to hear the differences they have with availability and such up there. She's doing a series right now where she's showing her entire collection and I love watching those videos, to see what colors we have in common or what ones I need to get. She actually introduced me to a new indie brand that I have come to love, Loaded Lacquer; here is the video link to her Loaded Lacquer collection video.

Image via Lindsay Does Nails on YouTube

Next is Zenorah. This chick is so awesome. She is from Trinidad & Tobago and her accent is seriously so beautiful (she lives in Canada now). Plus she's just a knockout stunner. I first heard of her when she put out a gutsy video on the controversy regarding a well known nail "guru" (I hate that word haha) that is notorious for copying other people's nail art designs and claiming they are her own. I don't really want to go into that because I'll just get mad, but if you're interested I'm sure you could find out more easily. She is just so sweet and nice and I love her nails. One of her recent videos that I really like is her Top 15 Essie Nail Polishes video.

Image via Zenorah on YouTube

Phoebe Moon is the most recent person I've discovered on YouTube that I really like. She posts a ton of videos, like multiple uploads per week, and she usually includes live swatches, which I find so helpful. I found her by chance one day looking for videos about the OPI Coca-Cola collection and proceeded to immediately watch all her videos one right after the other haha! Check out her China Glaze The Giver Live Application and Review video on the new CG collection for the movie The Giver. I saw her video on them before I even heard about this collection! She also does awesome piano versions of popular songs for the background of her videos.

Image via Phoebe Moon on YouTube

LifeinPolish is run by Dani who is a New Jersey/New York singer and actress who just happens to love polish too! She is a legit star, she played Tracy Turnblad in the national tour of Hairspray in 2010. She is fun to watch because she's so excited about polish, I love her energy. You should watch her Essie Summer Polish Favorites video.

Image via LifeinPolish on YouTube

And I have to mention my pal and Nail Blogger Queen, Michelle of All Lacquered Up. She has just started making videos again and they're so good! I love her live swatches. She did a great video on the Essie Summer Neons that you definitely need to check out. I bow to her, she is seriously the top of the top.

Image via All Lacquered Up

Back in the day I made a few YT videos, mostly just of slideshows of my collection swatches set to music. One day maybe I might venture into face-to-face vlogs or reviews but no plans for that right now. I'm content to sit back and watch these awesome ladies do their thing :) Do you watch any of these gals? Are there any other awesome nail video creators that you love to watch that I didn't mention? I'm always looking for more content! Take care, and I swear I'll be back soon with more swatches!

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Mint Manis for Talia Joy

Hi everyone! Today I have an extra special post for you. The world lost an bit of sunshine this week when 13 year old YouTube beauty blogger Talia Joy Castellano lost her battle with childhood cancer. I personally was/am inspired by Talia, her smile was so bright and watching her live her life with such passion would've touched anyone, and did--her videos have been watched by so many people around the world.

Talia's last Instagram photo was a picture of her and her mom and sister wearing a mint creme polish, so as a sign of support for her life and legacy, the blogging community is posting mint manicures for her today.

I chose Mint Original Mint with an accent nail of Zoya Vespa. Original Mint is described as "part Tiffany's blue, part spearmint candy" which I feel is quite accurate. It's a great cream polish that applies like butter. Two coats. Vespa is a matte sparkle textured polish described as "a mint kiss with a sugared sparkle". I love this mani and I am wearing it with a heart full of admiration for the undeniable spirit of Talia Joy.

Press Sample

You can get Mint polish on www.mintpolish.com for $12 each and Zoya nail polish on www.zoya.com for $9 each. For anyone interested in participating by posting your mint manis on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr or anything else, you can use the hashtags: #MintManisForTaliaJoy and #TaliasLegacy.

Remember, just keep swimming!

Product samples were provided for consideration.