Review: Orly "After Party".

Hey to all my lovely people!

Today I'm going to be showing and going through my crazy tribal look and the base polish used to create the look. You can see the results below.

I used Orly "After Party" as the base coat for this look, it is a gorgeous and sultry deep blue with pink, purple and blue shimmers. I loved the look of this polish from the first time I saw it, it kind of reminds me of a nightclub on my nails, dark yet with the constant presence of coloured light.

After Party is absolutely amazing to work with. It applies really smoothly and only took me 2 coats to get it completely opaque. It has an impressive drying time, it didn't take long at all for each coat to completely dry which allowed me to complete this manicure in just under an hour from base coat to top coat. I don't recommend using this polish if you have your aircon/fan on in the same room, it will dry out too quickly and produce an uneven look, I did this when I first bought it and thought that it was the way it applied and shoved it to the back of one of my Helmer drawers. I'm really glad I revisited this one as it is such a gorgeous colour and is unique.

The removal of the polish is awesome, it comes off with nail polish remover and doesn't need to be soaked off using the foil method like a glitter would (BONUS! Sparkly polish without the drama!).

If you are looking for a sultry polish with a little bit of extra drama, then this polish is for you. You can pick up Orly at selected pharmacists and department stores. Just head over to their website to find your nearest stockist or to order online.

See all of you beautiful people later...

xoxo
Queen Bee.

Review: Emily de Molly "Speckled Pig".

Hey Lovely People!

Today I am reviewing "Speckled Pig" by the amazing Emily de Molly.

**(Please excuse the terrible aspect ratio of this picture, I cropped it for Instagram before I remembered to save a copy for the blog!)**

Emily de Molly: Speckled Pig.

Emily de Molly is an Australian Indie nail polish brand that sells her creations through Etsy (Australia Only) and Llarowe (International Sales). She is absolutely amazing to buy from and it is really hard to pick between all the polishes she creates, they are all so incredibly gorgeous (not to mention affordable too!)

This unique polish comprises of a creamy pink base with tiny matte black circular glitter. The pink is a gorgeous rosy pink and is opaque in two coats. The black glitter provides a refreshing change from all the sparkly glitter bombs that are popular with indie brands (not that this girl doesn't mind a good glitter bomb). 

The formula is a dream to work with, going on smoothly without any fuss or fishing around the bottle to get enough glitter out to make it look amazing. There isn't a strong odour to it so it is perfect for those that tend to get overwhelmed by some of the stronger smelling indie formulas. It is "3-free" meaning that the polish does not contain the harmful chemicals Touline, Formaldehyde and DBP (Dibutyl Phthalate). 

I am definitely glad that I picked this baby up, pretty much, I drool over anything that Emily de Molly makes but I love this polish because it's a fun and unique colour and glitter combination and has endless possibilities for straight manicures and nail art. I strongly suggest that you pick up a bottle for yourself as it is an amazing addition to any polish fanatic's collection.

xoxo
Queen Bee

Midnight Manicure Madness!

Hello Lovely People!

As you would have seen in a previous post, I am currently on doctor-enforced bed rest. Now, you would think that being stuck in a bed would be awesome! Staying in your PJ's until mid-afternoon, being able to nap whenever you want, having people wait on you hand and foot... I'm here to burst your bubble... It SUCKS! Yeah, those things are entertaining for a few days but this has been forced on me for a 5th time in 2 years, I would give anything to go for a walk!

Anyway, back to the subject, bed rest also means that your body clock is all upside down... so I found myself painting my nails while deliriously tired at 3am a few weeks ago. This is the outcome:

The main thing I see when I look back at this manicure is "who needs to have matching hands anyway?" in fact, I believe that was the caption written under this image when I posted to my personal Instagram (@princesslea89).

The main thoughts that I had when coming up with the design was that I wanted something bright, which I got from Ulta3: "Fruit Tingle" an incredibly bright and gorgeous hot pink. I was also wanting to mess around with various geometric designs that I had seen on other polish blog pages. I am the first to admit that when it comes to the intricate, detailed nail art that I have absolutely no hopes or skills to speak of, so I tend to stick to the abstract, geometric and simple designs.

The left hand (top hand) in the image was created by using the tape manicure method, where you paint your base colour, wait for it to dry completely, tape up the areas you wish to keep that colour and then paint over the exposed areas with the alternate colour you want in your design. After you have done this, peel off the tape covering the base colour and 'hey presto!" you have a tape manicure! 

I also used a black striper polish by Jordana called "Black Mark" to clean up the edges between the colours and to make the pink stand out brighter.

The right hand (bottom hand in the image) was made by simply painting the whole of the nail in white (Sally Hansen: "Whirlwind White"), waiting for it to dry, painting the fruit tingle over the top (the white gives the neon a stronger 'POP!") and then painting a diagonal white stripe across each nail using another Jordana striper polish called "Contemporary White" and lining along each side of the white with the Jordana black striper.

I then topped everything off with a coat of Essence Quick Dry Topcoat to seal in the colour and prevent chipping and I was done!

I really like this manicure and I was complemented on it quite a few times during the time that I wore it, many people found it comical that my hands didn't match. So I say, if you have something completely weird that you want to give a go, DO IT! you never know how the results will come out, you may love it, you may hate it and want to take it off immediately, but that is the great thing about polish. A cotton ball, some polish remover and you are ready for your next design!

I would love to see some of your designs out there so link me on Instagram with both @princesslea89 and @queenbeepolishes and I will take a look, who knows, you may just inspire one of my new projects!

xoxo
Queen Bee

Springtime Pastels Manicure.

Hey lovely people!

As I promised, here is the outcome of all those polishes that I posted last night...

 

Ta Da!

Okay the list of polishes I used were the following:

- Sally Hansen "Whirlwind White"
- Sinful Colours "Be Happy"
- OPI "You're Such A Budapest"
- Essie "Cascade Cool" (pictured)
- Essie "Navigate Her"
- Essie "Bikini So Teeny"
- Essence "Via Airmail!"
- Essence "Destination Sunshine"

You will also need the following tools:

- Acetone polish remover (for washing out the stippling brush between colours)
- A stippling brush (these can be found at any arts and crafts store that sells painting brushes)
- A cleanup brush (for cleaning around the cuticles)
- A painting palette or a plastic lid (for depositing drops of the polishes onto)

I wanted a look that would match the amazing, sunny spring weather we are getting in Australia and I wanted to try a different method other than the colour blocking, alternating white and pastel stripes.
I use this technique to give a distressed, patchy look on the collectable models that my husband and I create and paint (I'm a geek and proud of it). So I decided to give it a go with polishes instead of acrylics.

Firstly, I applied the clear base coat to protect my nails and give the polish something strong to adhere to. I followed this up by painting two coats of the fast drying "Whirlwind White: as my undies

After the base white was completely dry (this is REALLY important because if the polish is still even slightly wet it will move around and may come off the nail when you start stippling the coloured polishes over the top) I started with my first colour, depositing a small amount of the polish onto my palette and dipped my stippling brush into it and then dabbed it a few times to make sure that there isn't too much of the polish of the brush (if there is too much the polish will turn out as a big blob rather than the watery and textured look that is needed to achieve this manicure).

Next, I gently started stippling the polish in small sections on to each nail until I was happy with the look. I repeated steps one and  two for each colour, sometimes twice in the same spot to crate a stronger pigmentation on some areas, ensuring that there were no white gaps and I was happy with the look I waited for it to dry completely (to prevent any streaking between colours) and then applied a gel-look top coat and quick dry topcoat (both by Essence) and ta da! the manicure was complete!

If you have any questions about this post, please post a comment below and I will do my best to answer it.

Goodnight my lovely ones!

xoxo
Queen Bee

Review: Revlon "Blue Lagoon"

Hey lovely people!

I recently created some basic level nail art using Revlon's "Blue Lagoon".

I thought I would mix things up a bit and review this polish out of order as a part of Swatchfest 2013, so here goes!

Revlon: Blue Lagoon.

This polish is incredibly creamy and a dream to apply, I have used it countless times as a plain manicure or as a base for more elaborate nail art. It is a baby blue creme with a slight silver sheen that is still visible when applied on the nail. It has an amazing coverage with no patchiness and/or streaking, it goes opaque in as little as two coats.

I have absolutely fallen in love with this colour since the first time I saw it on the shelf. It was very appealing to me as I love good strong creme polishes and I have always been a sucker for a good pastel.

The formula goes on incredibly smoothly and has an amazing consistency (not too thick and gluggy but not so watery it goes everywhere). The drying time varies from incredibly quick (if you normally apply multiple thin coats) to moderate (if you tend to apply your polish thinker with fewer coats).

I have used this polish as a base for stamping, it was really helpful as it dries evenly and doesn't 'smoosh' (aren't you loving my serious terminology lol!) when the rubber stamper is rolling over the polish to apply the stamp. It is also awesome for things such as dotted manicures because it doesn't tend to go stringy as the polish dries out and you continue stamping.

So overall, I would have to give this polish a (perfectly manicured) thumbs up and recommend you all to go out and buy it and give it a try. It should be available anywhere Revlon is sold such as, department stores and you local pharmacy.

See you later lovely people!

xoxo
Queen Bee

Sincerest Apologies!

Hey Everyone!

I know I have been AWOL for a few weeks and I sincerely apologise and ask for you to bear with me!

I am having a few complications with my health and between running from specialist to specialist, getting scans and now being on doctor ordered bed rest (ugh!) I haven't had many opportunities to jump on here to create full posts.

Me, Stuck in bed...

All this being said, I have managed to take a few hours over the past day or two to cook up some good posts for you to all enjoy which will be posted over the next few days. I am also getting my husband to create an area that is completely dedicated to polish but allows me to stay on bed rest as per doctors orders.

I hope that you all can bear with me for a little while longer but I promise that I haven't forgotten you all!

xoxo
Queen Bee

Awesome stuff to come!

Hey lovely people!

I am very excited about the next nailart creation that is coming up on both here and on my instagram account (personal: @princesslea89 and blog: @queenbeepolishes). 

All the polishes required to complete the manicure.

I have come up with an idea of using a technique I use in my hobby model building and painting (I'm a geek and proud of it).

This idea could either look really really cool or fail exponentially... either way I'm going to post the results here first!

Keep your eyes peeled for the outcome!

xoxo
Queen Bee