Did you know that yesterday was the Earth Day? Day late is better than never I would say, and it is always a good thing to bring awareness to the problems we are causing to the only planet we can live on.
All of us have to play the part in reducing out carbon footprint, and to think how we are polluting this planet.
My contribution is that I walk to work every day - I don't drive and not planning to start any time soon. I also try to recycle and reuse most of the items I have, find them a new purpose and with that a new life. Sorting out my garbage is something I don't even think about, because I do it for longer than 25 years - it is ingrained in me and my children.
I also donate my unused household items and clothing to charities, and am known to purchase in second hand stores, especially my uniforms...
I could go on and on, but will stop.
For this manicure I also did some texture, as I did not have one posted what seems like a forever!
Textured polish is by Sally Hansen - Mint Tint.
 I paired it with Heroine NYC - Sublime - Love this bright and fresh green. It always put me in a good mood.
Images are on Creative Shop 80 stamping plate. 

Isn't this plate just cutest! it is full of eco-friendly images, and bringing awarness in very cute way.
I made the decal out of the fourth image in the first row. I split the image on two nails. I also used two more images from this plate to create this manicure. 
For stamping I used Mini Mani Moo - Black, and La Femme - Verde.
It is collective effort to keep this planet healthy for living, and for our great grandchildren that we borrowed this planet from.
 It is also the first work day after a four day weekend... yikes!
Good luck everyone.
Cheers!

Happy Monday everyone!
 I really planned to stay off the grid today, giving myself permission to do whatever I want to relax and unwind... 
I also did not have in plan to post this manicure - probably ever, but then I broke down, looked at my Instagram feed, and came across this amazing post from UberChic in which 3 people will win a $500 gift card to UberChic! All you need to do is to post a manicure using an UberChic product during this week for a chance of winning. Pretty sweet if you ask me, and the reason behind this post.
This was the manicure I wore yesterday to church, and color wise it went with my crazy dress - Snakeskin wannabe that was inspiration few weeks ago. I finally gathered enough courage to wear it, but really did not want to wear busy manicure. Print on the dress was enough.
Base is one of my favourite Color Club shades - Je Ne Sais Quoi.

Interesting enough, I would never pick this color on my own, but it came as a part of the gift set I treated myself with few years back.
Surprisingly enough, it wears pretty easy, which says a lot for this type of color. This polish could be responsible for my obsession with unusual and almost ugly polish colors.
Easy application, and two coats to opacity and super glossy finish.
My only wish is that Color Club do away with those skinny brushes...
Image I used for this simple manicure is on UberChic - UC 10-01 stamping plate.

As usual, lovely plate with diverse images, and I went for the one in the centre, third from the top, that stamped reminded me of double stitching... hence the title...
Thing is, I picked this plate to use on Saturday, because it was still with the blue protective film over, which means I never ever used this plate. Secondly, day or two before, I placed another order with UberChic, and I wanted to use some of the plates I already have... good planning.
For stamping, I used Mini Mani Moo - Black stamping polish, and on ring finger and the thumb, I added the same image stamped in gold - Essie - Good as Gold.
All was topped with Wet'n'Wild - Matte top coat. 
It is possible that I love this color even more matted.
I liked this simple look, but it did not photograph well, and I would possibly never post it if haven't seen this giveaway post.
Wish me good luck, as this would be really epic to win - you kind of know that I at least have to give myself a fighting chance...
Cheers!

Today is Easter, we all know that, but did you know that today is a birthday of Queen Elizabeth II?
In that honor, I prepared a Royal kind of birthday manicure.
I will keep this post really short, as we both want to spend some time with our respective families.
As a base, I used Maniology - Ultra Violet.

Isn't this just most beautiful and a pretty royal purple! Ultra Violet is actually stamping polish, but can be used as regular polish too. I purchased it fairly recently, and it stamps amazingly well, I will show you really soon.
You know that I have affiliate code for you: SANJA10 will save you 10% on your purchase.
Once again, my plate of the choice was Clear Jelly Stamper, this time I used the plate that was done in collaboration with @clairestelle8 - CjS-46.
I picked most recognizable silhouette in the world - on of the Queen, and I also did a crown...
Stamped with Essie - Good as Gold, Moyra - SP.02 and Esmaltes da Kelly - Topolino.
I really loved this simple manicure, and for the ending, I will not do my usual - cheers, but something I find appropriate today.
Long lived the Queen.

Happy Easter to all of you that observe. It is another of those days when we have a food galore, and today, diet is out of the window.
My kids loved Easter Egg Hunt, even though for a while we had to improvise... They are big now, but they still love loads of chocolate, that their chocoholic mother supplies them with.
So for this egg hunt, among some colored eggs, I sneaked some chocolate ones, preferably the Lindor kind.
As a base, I used one of my untried polishes. This one waited several years for the opportunity to shine - Lagoon by Pahlish.

Super pretty muted turquoise that is appropriate any time of the year. Loving the scattered micro glitters in this pretty shade. On the swatch above, I am wearing two coats and no top coat.
This totally Easter-y manicure was done using just one stamping plate by Clear Jelly Stamper, CjSH-02. This was my first layering stamping plate  I purchased from Clear Jelly Stamper, and my first layering plate ever.
For stamping, I used following stamping polishes: Esmaltes da Kelly - Dolly + Topolino, Clear Jelly Stamper - 007, Hit the Bottle - Emeralds are forever + Poison Apple + As Black As Night + Lemon Meringue Fizz, Moyra - SP.20 and Essie - Good as Gold.
My prop egg was a gift from the client (each of us got couple) and is real egg shell with what looks like a straw inlay. So classy! Thank you Yaro.
As you can see, I am ready for the Easter Egg Hunt, how about you?

As you can clearly tell by the length of my nails, this was something done just before I had broke several of them in one sweep move. Good going... :(
I thought this is perfect manicure for the spring time, especially around the Easter. I always think of tulips (alongside with daffodils and forsythia) as a Easter flowers.
I done it just because my youngest son came home from work carrying bouquet of sad looking tulips just for me. No reason, just because. My heart just melt. Little bit of water, and those babies recovered enough to last me another week or so. 
They been the inspiration behind this manicure.
I started with MDJ Creations - Fairy's Den.​ 

This pretty and soft crelly would work really good as a topper, as it is really sheer, but I wanted it as a base, so I built it up, and on the swatch above, I am wearing three coats. 
Fairy's Den is full of holographic microglitters, contrasting shimmers and some micro flakies. 
It is really nice that some makers offer an option of mini bottles, as they give you nice way to try out the brand, and not get stuck with the big bottles. Thing is, I will never use up any of my polishes any time soon, so this is actually great for someone like me - person with huge collection.
I have several stamping plates with the tulip images, but I decided on the plate that was new at the time when I did this manicure. I used Born Pretty - A03 - In Blossom (#42503). 

This plate was part of set of 5, and I purchased it as soon as it was available for purchase individually.
 As you can see there is 14 images here, half of which are negative space images, and I am always on the lookout for them.
I used this plate twice in a last week, and I totally forgot that I took the photo of it... now you can see the dandelion and clover images I used in the review last week or so.
Image was picked up using Mini... Mani... Moo - special stamping polish in Black. I picked up set of 5 stamping polishes few years ago, and never used it... Yeah, I might have little problem here. LOL!
I filled image using different stamping polishes and applied on the nail. All was topped with glossy top coat. 
 I truly enjoyed wearing this manicure, and I even used one of the inspiration tulips as a prop.
Have a wonderful day.
Cheers!

Mary had a little lamb, and they played every day... One day, while playing hide and go seek, little lamb hid in the patch of heather...
As a base for this manicure I used Heather's Hues - Ensorcell.

Heather's Hues is new to me Indie, this thermal was Polish Pick Up exclusive.
Pretty polish, and I love the multi colored flakies and contrasting shimmers in jelly base, that goes form almost clear pink, to deep dusty purple.
On the swatches, I am wearing two coats + top coat, as polish itself dries to a satin finish.
Once again I used Dixie Plates - Spring 02 stamping plate, and here it is again. 

I am totally obsessed with this plate. I could not resist that super cute lamb image. You will see much more of the images from this plate in the future.
I am not sure what would that feathery leaf image be, so for me, it transformed into a heather. I kind of played on the polish brand name for the floral add on in this manicure, and I realized this after I done it. Thing is, I just trimmed my heather bushes, and I saved  some of the clippings for the photos, and that was the real inspiration behind it.
I done it by double stamping the feathery image first with Hit the Bottle - Emeralds are forever, then with the Moyra - SP.15. Then using a dotting tool, I added a flowers using Hit the Bottle - Bubblegum Bliss and Maniology - Ultra Violet.
For lamb, I used Hit the Bottle - As Black As Night and Snowed in.
I thought that lamb image is so appropriate for this weekend, as tomorrow is Easter, and lamb is one of the often used symbols for Easter.
I hope your day will be amazing, and yay for four day weekend!
Cheers!

Prompt for this week Creative Shop challenge is rainbow.
This might  be one of my least favourite prompts, right there with unicorns and gore of Halloween...
Don't get me wrong - love seeing the rainbow in the sky, but that does not mean I want to paint it on my nails. I find that would be fantastic idea for 6 year old, but I might be few years older than that... LOL!
I decided - once again - to do a deconstructed rainbow done in the form of the dry brush as a base for some spring blossoms.
Have to admit, whole idea looked way better in my head.
White I used is NCLA + Sini Sabotage - Ahoy, my love. I used 7 different polishes to do a brush stroke in a lieu of rainbow ribbons. 
On thumb an pinky I applied Superchic Lacquer - Swoon, possibly my favourite pink holographic polish I own. I also used it for the stamping, and I made big mistake by double stamping over the decal (or at least attempting it) using a hot pink stamping polish. I regretted it instantly, but considering that was getting late, and I needed something on my nails for the work yesterday, I left it as is. 
 I was not pleased with the result, but I am pretty short on time these days, so I decided against redoing this hot mess.
See, it is not just my nails that are short. ;)
Image I used is on Creative Shop 90 stamping plate. I was going for matching my nails and the fresh geraniums I planted last weekend. 
Maybe this will be my lucky week. 
Cheers!

Throwback Thursday - it was a while since I shared something from the unposted folder. This one is there since October.
This was done when I received my Polish Pickup order, that contained this neutral flakie crelly by Painted Polish by Lexi - Zombie Kill Of The Week. 

I truly love this soft warm grey with red to green color shifting flakies. Lexi's formula is always perfection. Applied smoothly and selfleveled nicely.
On the swatch above, I am wearing two coats and no top coat.
Images I used are on Maniology - BM-Xl223 + Glitterfingersss.

Plate is really interesting mix of images. from that amazing snake, to galaxies, roses, bones crystals...
Pretty cool. There is something for everyone, and this plate is still available and I provided you with the link. While browsing Maniology site, you know that you can use my affiliate code SANJA10 for 10% savings. 
I was drawn to that moth image though. You can see the butterflies everywhere, but moths are not represented in many plates.
For stamping, I used regular polishes - Essie - Good as Gold and A England --Briar Wood.
You know how much I like when a regular polish can stamp like a champ too. 
I imagined the circle by the moth like a moon, and I filled the Moon with the old solar polish by Ruby Wing - Clean Linen that surprized me with the color shift on the outdoor photo. It supposed to be a pumpkin orange, but even this pale version was pretty cool.
I liked it until I added some inverted French manicure and my freehand star flare... that might be the reason why I never really posted this manicure.
It is last work day of this short week, and I am ready for four day weekend. Yay! 
Who else think that every weekend should be a four day one?
Cheers!

Another bright creation in the color of the week - yellow, but in my defence, yellow looks so good on the chicklet. LOL.
As you can see, this might be the first year when I am Easter ready with all of the seasonally appropriate manicures. I could also be body-snatched by aliens... it could of happen though.
Once again, I used the same plate I used for the manicure yesterday - Dixie Plates - Spring 02. 
I know I posted the photo yesterday, but here it is again, as there will be another manicure using this plate before the Easter.

You have to admit that this little chicken is too cute for me to pass, of course I had to use it. It is also a layering image, great way for me to practice layering, as I hear practice makes perfect.
I paired that little flower bouquet, and hand painted the little basket flowers are in. Small steps with the freehand.
On my middle and ring finger, I applied Sally Hansen - Crème de la Crème, palest pink crelly, that I found to be nice base for the nail art.
Rest of the nails sport a bright yellow Nails Inc. - Belsize Park. I have several Nails Inc. polishes, but because they are in the drawers, I pretty much forgot all about them - which is a real shame, as I like their formula and colors.
For stamping, I used Moyra - SP.12 (yellow), and Esmaltes da Kelly - Bruce (neon green) + Dolly (white). Did you noticed how my yellow polishes match perfectly. I also brushed some orange polish on the chicklet to give it more dimension. I colored flowers using Heroine NYC - Mean Girl.
Never wore the yellow matte, so I decided to add the matte top coat, and have to admit, love it. It almost looks brighter when matte. 
I loved this bright manicure, and it might put a little bit of sunshine in your day.
Cheers! 

It appears that in lots of manicures I did last week, yellow seem to be a color I was reaching for. It must be my subconscious transposing the sun, or whatever fancy name we can attach to it. Yellow and blue seem to be my theme. Not sure where the theme came from, but I like those bright manicures. When it comes to think about it, I had a bouquet of flowers sporting the same color scheme... you even seen some of the flowers from that bouquet in last couple of days as a props on my photos...
So.... this long introduction is to prepare you for another manicure in the colors of the week! LOL!
I started with stunningly beautiful Painted Polish by Lexi - Whimsical Wanderlust.

Teal jelly base filled with holographic microglitters and flakies. So beautiful. My first instinct was to make another mermaid manicure, but I am glad I decided to be more grounded...
On the swatch above, I am wearing two coats and no top coat. 
I went with the garden theme here, and very appropriate - Easter lilies and daisies seemed to be just perfect for the season.
All images are on Dixie Plates - Spring 02. 

It just occurred to me that I never shown you the plate. I used plenty of images from this plate, and I am not even half done showing you off all the manicures I done with it.
Plate is full of layering floral images that I heavily used in several manicures, some super cute animals and couple of negative images. 
It become my favourite Spring plate, and I do have one or two of them. 
I grossly overestimated the surface of my nails. I loved the lily image before I added a leaf, but what is done is done.
For stamping, I used Painted Polish By Lexi - Stamped In Honeydew, Moyra - SP.12, Esmaltes da Kelly - Bruce + Dolly and Born Pretty - Orange.
I hope this bright floral will brighten up your day.
​Cheers!

Second polish I received in my surprise parcel from Born Pretty Store is another polish from the same pearlescent series Born Pretty - 6ml Pearlescent Matte Nail Polish named Sailing Forward, item #45576-5.

I love this deep gold that wears like a nude, because it dries to a matte finish. it is totally appropriate for pretty much any occasion from work to evening out, or special occasion of any kind.
Metallic sparkle is so intense, that it is really hard to see that from the photos above. If you want to up your game and go for the full bling, just add the top coat. Glossy top coat will bring out that delicious sparkle. 
Did you noticed how much dimension this polish have- how much deeper it looks on the sides of the nails, with almost the red kind of flash. 
On the swatch above, I am wearing two coats and no top coat. 
I was surprised that this one is actually slightly textured, because green was not. I found that pretty interesting.
Application was really smooth, and both green and gold polish dry super fast.
My parcel also contained 6 ml bottle of Born Pretty - Moisturizing Pink Peel Off Nail Latex, item #44753.
I forgot to use it with the first manicure, so  I made sure I used it this time, and I even remembered to take the photos. Good for me. :)

I have sensibility/allergy to latex products, and I avoid using them. They leave my skin dry when I remove it, and dryness turns into redness after few minutes.
Peel Off Nail Latex applied pretty easily, it looks really thin, but one thin coat was enough. Cloudy pale pink turns to clear when dried. Good news is that your fingers will not stick together, like with some other brands I tried. 
Removal is easy, and peeled in one piece. As you can see from the photos that I was taking while removing it, that my skin did not turned pale and dry, so I will believe the claim that it is moisturizing. Another thing I like is that this product has no odour - no chemical odour or any perfume is added, which is pleasant to use, and easy on the skin of the people like me, that can react to it.
Image I used is on Born Pretty - A03 In Blossom, which I purchased by myself, and can be found on the site by using item #42503.
For stamping, I used Hit the Bottle - As Black As Night, and Esmaltes da Kelly - Dolly.
​I actually loved this one matte, so no glossy look for this polish. 

I really love this polish. You also know that there is my special discount code SHGK31 that is good for all fully priced items in the store.
Free shipping worldwide, and Paypal as a payment option are just some of the advantages of the Born Pretty Store. 

*** Products were sent to me for my honest review. All opinion is mine, based on my use of the product, and my experience with the same. For all pricing inquiries, as well as for availability, please refer to seller, all links provided. ***

Last Thursday I came home to totally random and unexpected parcel from Born Pretty Store, that totally made my day, day that was trying to say at least.
Inside, I received two nail polishes, and around the cuticle latex.
Let me start with the one of the polishes I received.
First polish I received is 6 ml Pearlescent Matte Nail Polish named Silent Flute, item #45573-6.

Ok, let's talk about the frosted bottle - love it, and that gold logo just pops! I am a sucker for a pretty packaging!
Not even the matte finish dulled the sparkle of this polish. It looks like it should be textured, and I have to tell you I was really surprised how smooth this one felt.
Super elegant sage green is just a right shade that could be worn all year long. On the macro I have a matte vs. glossy, and I love it both ways. If you want to bring out the sparkle, glossy would be your choice.
Nice wide brush makes application a breeze, as it pretty much took one stroke per nail for me. Formula is bit thicker in consistency than I am used to, but applied surprisingly smooth, and self-levelled to perfection. As you can see, there is no brush stroke left behind, which can be a norm with polishes that have almost metallic finish.
One coat was enough for the full opacity, even though I am wearing two coats on the swatches, just in case. Lighting can reveal things you usually would not notice in normal circumstances, so I am not taking any chances.
I wanted super simple design over this color, as I wanted color to shine through...
Images I choose are on Born Pretty -A03 In Blossom, stamping plate I purchased myself, but if you are interested, you can find it under item #42503. I found the silver lining for the short nails. You can use one single image, turn it sideways, and use it over two nails. How cool is that, and that is exactly what happened here.
I used Girly Bits Cosmetics - Silly Daffodilly for stamping, and I mixed some with green and added it over the design with fine brush. I know I said I wanted something simple, but this yellow kind of stole the show here, but you have to admit, background green is perfect for this manciure.

I couldn't resist my bright yellow lilies, and had to use them as a prop.
This was the matte version. I wanted to wear this to work on Friday, and not top coating it would do nothing for the stamping, so I sealed it with glossy top coat. 
This is how it looked glossy.

Loved this one glossy, and all of my coworkers loved this color so much. It was such and easy color to wear, and that can not be said for the green I particular.
You know that I do have a special discount code SHGK31 that is good for any fully priced item storewide.

 *** Product was sent to me for my honest review. All opinion is mine, based on my use of the product, and my experience with the same. For all pricing inquiries, as well as for availability, please refer to seller, all links provided. ***

Some birds are sign of spring, and my favourite is robin. There is a robin's nest somewhere in the tree that is hanging mostly in my yard, same maple tree that supplies me with the endless supply of fallen leaves and seedpods in the fall. It is actually in the neighbour yard, but most of the branches - you guessed, are over my yard. 
Love hearing them in the morning, and I know spring is here when I can hear their chirp. 
I tried to do a robin here, and my color scheme is little bit messed up, but I could get an 'A' for and effort at least.
I started with super pretty crelly from Anchor & Heart Lacquer - Fine Apple.

I adore this funky flakie crelly - Neon yellow green with color shifting flakies and some red shimmers. Love the contrasting shimmers, they got me every time.
On the swatch above, I am wearing 3 coats and no top coat.
Anchor & Heart Lacquer is fairly new Indie brand for me, and I purchased few polishes from her, and just to tell you how much I like them, I ordered another four polishes couple of days ago, one of which belongs to the same collection as the Fine Apple. That is all I will tell you at the moment.
I wanted spring design, and I needed flowers that would be different color than my base, and I settled on peonies. 
There is another reason for it - Peonies need ants to open up, so my little birdie is really smart to hang around bush for some yummy antsy treats. 
You see, yesterday I gave you the feather, today it is whole bird... different bird, but bird nevertheless. LOL! Sometimes, my planning is not the best...
I used two Dixie Plates for this manicure - Spring 01 for the peonies, and Autumn 02 for the bird.
Both of the plates had layering images, and I use every opportunity to practice my layering. I have to admit, I did pretty good here - I guess there is still hope for me.
I started with the different color combo on my middle finger, and I even managed to stamp over again using the different color scheme without much issue. I guess new glasses designed for the close up, really can make a big difference!
I used several polishes from Hit the Bottle, Moyra and Esmaltes da Kelly. I forgot to write down all of my colors, and I refuse to write here just ones I can remember. It doesn't seem fair. 
Anyhow, I hope you like this bright number, as little bit later I will share something less bright.
Stay tuned, and have a wonderful, restful day.
​Cheers!

Few weeks ago, I managed to snag possibly the last Picture Polish from Nail Polish Canada site.
I could not be picky about the color either, and when I received it, I was still unsure if I would like it.
 Peach is not really the color I reach for, and because I liked this manicure and kept it on my nails for three days, have to admit it kind of grew on me. Colors like this clash with my skin tone, so I usually avoid wearing them.
color in question is Picture Polish - Rebelle.

Name is pretty confusing for me, as for the life of me I can't imagine what is so rebellious about the peach, but here it is. On the swatch above, I am wearing three coats, and polish applied smoothly. Loving those little flecks in the polish - not really in-your-face glitter, just a nice surprise if you look close up.
After three days of wear, there was a barely a tip wear, so I am totally smitten by that fact, more than with the color itself.
I went with the super simple, minimalistic design, as I done this for the collaboration on Instagram, and minimalistic was the theme of the day.
I kept my color scheme pretty neutral - black and gold are always a good, safe choice.
Black I used was from Hit the Bottle - As  Black As Night, and then I double stamped with Essie - Good as Gold.
I also used Good as Gold for a dry brush like strokes on my pinky, index and thumb. 
Images I used are on Clear Jelly Stamper - CjS-34 stamping plate. 
I really loved this super simple look.
 I was hoping for some gardening, but rain had different plans, so I am keeping myself indoors, tied down by Cinderella duties... Some days I can't wait for the Monday to go to work to 'rest' some … this was one of those days.
Wishing you all the best.
Cheers!

I always liked feather images. Not sure why is that, but they always been my favourite - I even drew plenty of them while doodling. All the colors, softness and light weight - beauty of the feathers.
Few days ago I received the order full of flakies and chrome/unicorn powders (12 jars) and I was really itching to try at least some of them right away. Not that I do not have any at home already - used maybe once, then put in the box and promptly forgotten...
Yeah, I am a bad girl! LOL!
Anyhow, I picked one random jar, and I had to make it work for this design somehow...
Brilliant blue base is Orly - Snowcone.