OPI 18k Gold Top Coat

Ok so I know The Man With the Golden Gun came out last year, but a friend of mine recently gave me the OPI 18k Gold flakie top coat from the James Bond Skyfall collection, and I absolutely love it!  I especially love the fact that it sits in an extra-thin suspension base so you can add several layers of gold flakes to your manis without it getting to thick or clumpy.

 

It comes in a fancy box AND a fancy bottle!!  Isn't it just so glam?!  So I tried it out last night over 2 coats of Zoya's Louise and I am very happy with the results.  I used my Northern Lights holographic top coat in gold to complement the design

This picture doesn't even do it justice.  Being actual 18k gold flakes, it's a lot shinier and more sparkly in person.  I know it's decadent and you could probably find a cheaper dupe, but it sure is nice to say that you have solid gold nail polish :)

I'm thinking this would look especially gorgeous over a deep turquoise.  I think I'll try that out when it's seasonally appropriate.

So what do you think of the 18k gold top coat?  You think it's worth the current retail price of $69?

Shot of the Day: Dance in the Dark by JulieG

As I've mentioned before, I'm a huge fan of Jesse's Girl polishes.  Their application is amazing and the colors are always highly pigments and very smooth and creamy.  The limited edition JulieG colors are no exception.  Below are swatches of Dance in the Dark from Jessie's Girl limited edition JulieG collection:

As you can see, Dance in the Dark is a highly pigmented royal blue color with purple shimmery undertones.  But to really make those shimmery bits pop, I used my Out the Door Northern Lights Holographic topcoat in silver.

Without the topcoat, the color was still very bright and rich, but I love adding a Northern Lights topcoat to my manis (either in Gold or Silver) to add extra dimension to the colors.  With this polish, I think it has a bit of a galaxy look to it and is almost a dupe for Essie's much coveted Starry Starry Night - but with holographic sparkles instead of just silver sparkles.

What do you think?

Shot of the Day: Galaxy Nails

Hey y'all!  Hope you had a great weekend.  Now that my husband and I have finished moving into our new place, I have been seriously trying to restore my pitiful, chipped and broken nails.  Now that I've got them looking decent again, I thought I'd celebrate with one of my favorite looks - the galaxy mani.  Here's a picture taken in natural lighting:

For this look, I used Nina Ultra Pro's Purple Xing as a base color, which worked great because this particular shade includes fine-medium multi-color glitter which really adds to that "deep space" look.  Next, I used a cosmetic sponge to dab on the little galaxies.  I outlined each little nebula in white first, then added depth and color with layers of pink, yellow, and dark blue.

Next, I used Essie's Set in Stones to add the little "stars, and then I finished by adding a coat of Out the Door's Northern Lights Hologram Top Coat in Silver.  And by the way, this was my first time using this particular top coat, and let me just tell you how wonderful it is, especially for a look like this.  Just like Out the Door's other top coats, Northern Lights dries quickly and offers great nail protection, but it also adds a subtle holographic shimmer, which kind of gives a 3 dimensional impression.  I will definitely be purchasing Northern Lights in Gold.  Anyway, here's the galaxy look in darker lighting, which really seems to glow with this top coat:

And remember, this is what it looks like in a brighter setting:

Pretty amazing, huh?  I must say, I'm quite proud of myself for pulling this off so well.  I did take me nearly two hours, but I think it was worth it.  What do you think?