Two for One

Howdy, everyone!  I know it's been awhile since I've posted, so I hope some of you are still reading.  My life has been a bit of a whirlwind of late, so I haven't had the time to keep up with my blog.  I had a few spare moments today, so I thought I'd show you a couple of manicures I've done in the last few weeks.  Both of these manis are great for holiday wear.  

The first manicure I have for you is really just a swatch of a new color I picked up at Walgreen's awhile ago.  Here's a peek:

....more after the jump....



 
Sparkly enough for you?  :)  This is 3 coats of SinfulColors in Ice Dream.  ID has tons of silver microglitter and icy blue glitter in a clear base.  I love the way this one turned out on my nails; definitely an eye catcher!  No problems with application, though I could wish it was a bit more dense, it went on easy.  Taking it off was an issue, but that's just glitter for you.  Here's another look:
 

On to mani #2!  I wore this one today and I love the way it turned out!  Without further ado, here's a photo:
 

This was my first time using microbeads.  I'll steer clear of the incendiary "caviar" reference.  Microbeads are pretty easy and inexpensive to use.  This one is from a set of 6 by Reflection that I bought at Michael's yesterday ($6.99 and then they had a half off sale...woot!).   The polish is 2 coats of e.l.f. in Cherry Bomb, a beautiful deep red.  CB is not quite an oxblood, but it's close.  Two coats covered with no problem.  I actually got this one in a set of 14 for $10 at Target.  It's one of those holiday sets and I'm super happy with it so far.  Here's another look:

To add microbeads to your manicure, simply apply your base color and then a top coat.  While the top coat is still wet, sprinkle the beads onto your nail over a small bowl or paper towel to catch the excess.  Gently tap the nail to further adhere the beads to your nail.  I did use a coat of Seche Vite on top of them, but you can omit that step if  you'd like.

Thanks so much for reading!