Soft and Feminine Jelly Sandwich

Hey everybody!

Sorry I was MIA all this week. Monday was Labor Day so I completely forgot about posting and the rest of the week has been busy to say the least. This was the first time I got around to posting. 

I have another jelly sandwich for you guys today, but this one really surprised me with how beautiful it turned out. 

My friend Katie bought me a couple of Cirque Colors polishes for my birthday this year, and one of the ones she got me is called "Ophelia". 

It's a really beautiful periwinkle glitter and I've been trying to figure out what to do with it. Last week, inspiration struck me as I was driving home. I decided to pair it with NYC's "Kisses", a polish that I've had since long before I started collecting polish. 

The result was incredible. 

L to R: Cirque Colors "Ophelia", NYC's "Kisses"

I'm completely convinced that these colors were made to be worn together. The subtle blue-green shimmer in Kisses's sheer purple base was the perfect compliment to Ophelia's periwinkle sparkle. And the final manicure was feminine and work appropriate, yet completely eye-catching. 

Since I dropped the ball and was so late on posting this week I'm not sure if I will be on time next week, but I can promise you that my next mani will definitely be a really fun one, so keep your eyes peeled!

Color of the Month: Emerald

So I know this post technically comes a couple days late, but it is time to put the spotlight on May's birthstone - Emerald. 

Emeralds are one of the four precious gemstones (diamonds, rubies, and sapphire are the other three). According to earthsky.org, emeralds were "once believed to prevent epilepsy, stop bleeding, cure dysentery and fever, and protect the wearer from panic". 

The American Gem Society notes that emeralds are a symbol of rebirth, and, in mythology, were believed to grant the owner foresight, good fortune, and youth.

 Emeralds come in several shades of green, but since it is summer, I wanted to go with the brighter end of the spectrum. For my emerald manicure, I decided to try a jelly sandwich. 

Some of you are probably wondering what sandwiches have to do with nail polish. Let me clear up the confusion. Nail polishes come in different formulas or finishes. Your basic polishes with no glitter or special effects are called "cremes". Then you have holographics, metallics, mattes, textures, etc. A "jelly" polish is just a type of formula in which the polish looks sheer on the nail, but can be built up to full opacity in 3+ coats. 

So then, what's a jelly sandwich?

A jelly sandwich is when you layer glitter between coats of a jelly polish. The resulting effect causes the glitter to look like it's floating within the polish, and gives your manicure depth. 

I actually topped my mani with the glitter instead of the jelly polish, since my jelly wasn't as sheer as I hoped! 

Here it is...

For this mani I used Essie's "Shake Your $$ Maker" as my jelly, and then layered on OPI's "Fresh Frog of Bel Air" and Sinful Color's "Green Ocean" for the glitters.