NOTD: Ikat Turned Tie Dye

   Hey there y'all! Hope all is well, and that everyone had an amazing weekend! This weekend was a busy one for me - a weekend I wasn't actually overrun with work, and had time to go out, have a few drinks, play some bowling, eat some waffles.. you get the gist of it :P. And to add to all the excitement, I came home last night to 10k followers on Instagram! YAYY *dances* and for those of you who follow me on Instagram (@xtinemayyy): THANKS & BIG HUGS :D

   And so, at just past 4am Monday morning, I've found some down time to write up this post. Following through with the neon swing that I seem to be on, this is my version of a bright, neon IKAT design. Though it looked much better in my head, I still kind of dig it - sort of like a tie dye effect!

NOTD: Neon Skittles

   Okay so maybe I am on a neon roll. You can't stop me nowwwww! :P

   For the past couple of days, every time I sit down to do my nails, my eyes seem to always be drawn to anything, and everything bright. So why fight it? This here is Miss Ashleigh And It Was All Yellow and Like A Sunrise and Ulta3 Fruit Tingle. 

   I've been meaning to do a cut out mani for ages, but this just doesn't hit the mark. So look forward to an all out BAM in-yo-face cut out mani in the near future - hopefully :P

NOTD: Neon Mix 'n' Match + #mynailsmysmoothie

   Hey guys! So here in Australia, we've begun our descent into Autumn: last week brought a couple of cold, rainy days, the sky looming with clouds. Perfect weather to be skipping gym, staying cozy in bed, and reading a good ol' book (Game of Thrones saga.. anyone else addicted?!). But there are also nails to be painted! And who's to say I can't bring out the neons as the weather cools? 

   For this mani, I used Chi Chi OTT which I was quite intrigued by, because unlike most highlighter yellow neon polishes, it leans slightly more towards a green than a yellow. 

   Little anecdote - with my friend at the shops: 

      Friend: It's the same colour as the one you have already!

      Me: No it's not. This one is slightly more green than the highlighter yellow polish I have at home.

      Friend: But it's similar right? So you don't need this one?

      Me: Don't be ridiculous, of course I do. 

   Anyone else had a similar experience? haha SIMILAR DOES NOT MEAN SAME.

   Okay, so back to the mani, I used 4 coats of OTT. Which is a lot I know. But I didn't use a white base, and this polish was more of a jelly-like consistency instead of a creme. For the accent nail I used 1 coat of Butter London Fairy Cake and 2 coats of Australis Shimmy Shake. The lines were painted on using my ever trusty Sinful Colors Black on Black, and a small detail brush. 

AN Monday: Bridal Design

   Hey y'all! I haven't done one of these in a while, and it's good to be back! Though, since it's almost 4am here in Australia, technically I'm late for AN Monday, but hey, in some parts of the world it's still Monday, so this still counts and I'm not late :P And plus, until I sleep, it's still Monday to me haha

   The theme for this week's Aussie Nails Monday is Bridal Design. A handful of ladies in our group are bride to be's so this is for you girls! I was tempted to go with the classic french tip, as you can't possibly go wrong with wearing that, anywhere. But thinking of my own wedding, or even just a wedding I was going to attend, I probably couldn't stand just have plain french tips, so this is my little spin on the theme.

NOTD: Prismatic Triangles

   ...say what? "Prismatic Triangles" - what is that?! *shrugs* first two words that came to mind when typing up this post.. *awkward turtle hand motion*

   OKAY. Now that the awkwardness has been dealt with.. HEY GUYS! It feels good to be back, 2 weeks absence is too long - apologies! But my life's just taken an unexpected turn, and I needed time to deal with it, but in saying so, I have a great piece of news to share with you all. Starting mid April, I'll be beginning a Nail Technology course at a beauty college in the city *eep* so excited! It will be full time study, but hopefully my nail posts won't slow down too much, and I'd love to keep you guys in the loop with everything, and to also blog about my experiences (and hopefully that doesn't bother or bore you guys!). 

   And to celebrate the news, I did these, and wore them for almost a week! I couldn't bare to take them off, they even survived the week of stocktake we did at work :P 

Swatches: Aussie Indie Moonstone Nail Polish

   Helloooo and a (hopefully) Happy Monday to you all! Today's post is somewhat of a PSA - you all remember the Aussie Indie Moonstone Nail Polish I showed you in October of last year, well Caitlin has now released a new collection which goes live TODAY at 7pm (AEDST)! It is the Magic Treats Collection, and draws inspiration from the lollies found in Honeydukes, the magical sweets shop from the fantastical realm of Harry Potter. And so to celebrate, and maybe tempt you a little, I've got swatches for 3 of the 6 polishes to be released.

   First up is Levitating Sherbert Balls, inspired by the sour Fizzing Whizbeez! It's quite a busy polish, bursting with star shaped glitter, pastel yellow dots, pink, white, yellow, and iridescent hexes, as well as a pink/ gold shifting shimmer - this was the first to catch my eye when I opened up the blogger pack, which was unusual because I'm not usually attracted to shape glitter, or shimmer polish. Though after swatching it, I actually quite liked the look of it. This is one dabbed coat over Ulta 3 Citrus. 

Born Pretty Store Review: Glow In The Dark Nail Stickers

   Hey y'all, hope all's been well (: For today's post, I have a Born Pretty Store review for you guys. Something a little different to what I usually review, as I normally do all the nail art by hand or add bits and bobs to accentuate it, but this time around, I'm trying these Luminous Glow In The Dark Nail Stickers.

14pcs Glow in the Dark Nail Art Stickers

   You get 14 sticker pieces, so you can find the closest fit to your nail bed, and also comes in two different patterns. The pack comes with easy to follow instructions on the back, and are a breeze to apply. The only hurdle I had to overcome was the fact that my nail shape isn't square so I did have to adjust where and how I put the design on my nails so that I could show off the entire pattern.

NOTD: Belated Happy Valentine's Day ♥

   Hey guys! Today's post will be a quick one, just showing a little pink lovin' post Valentine's Day :D Hoping everyone spent the day with loved ones, and if not, spent the day loving yourselves, because that's important too! 

   For this year's V-day, I went down the pink path and used Ulta 3 Fruit Tingle - an amazing bright pink, that has jumped to the top of my pink favourites list - and Emily De Molly Super Vixen for the reverse gradient on top. The perfect combo for a day of love (;

Swatches: American Indie Liquid Sky Lacquer

   Hey Guys! Long time no see (talk, post, whatever you want to call it!). I've been exceptionally busy, and have therefore, shamefully, neglected the blog (even Instagram, I know, it's terrible). But I've had a little breather this past week, and so I've been able to whip up this blog post for you all! It'll be an incredibly picture heavy post, but I hope that not only do I do the polishes justice but, also make up for my absence! haha

   Without further ado, I give you all Liquid Sky Lacquer, an American indie polish brand run by Carolyn, who's been generous enough to send me a few of her polishes to swatch and share with you (: Today, I have the polishes she's released for Valentine's Day!

   First up is 24 Karat Rose, it's a gorgeous thermal polish with a gold shimmer that is a beautiful rosy pink when cold, and a delicate nude/gold when warm. When cold, the pink is opaque, but it is incredibly sheer when warm; in the swatch below I've used 5 layers on it's own, and there is clearly still VNL (visible nail line). I myself don't mind it so much, and actually quite like it's subtle and delicate feel, but for those bothered by VNL, I advise using perhaps a nude base polish first.

When Warm

Born Pretty Store Review: Triangle Nail Art Studs

   Hey y'all! Hope you've been well :D Today, I have another Born Pretty Store review to share ^^ This time it's triangular nail art studs, that are super easy to use, and can spruce up your mani in minutes. The studs are 3mm and come in gold or silver. Each pack contains approximately 200 pieces, so there's plenty to play around with. I chose to go with the silver triangular studs in this super girly - but edgy - Valentine's day inspired mani.

Packet of Triangular Nail Art Studs

   I was aiming for a heart shape at first, using the studs, but ended up with two floral shapes instead, which works out just as fine :P The studs don't need anything special to stick to the nail, I just use regular top coat to stick them on, and another coat of top coat on top to seal them in. Though, if you reallllly wanted to make sure they didn't come off too easily, you could always use nail glue to cement them in place (: 

   For the mani's base, I used Chi Chi Don't You Know Who I Am?, and topped it off with a reverse glitter gradient using Shades Of Phoenix Zeus.