Review: Seche Vite Top Coat

Hey everybody!
OK, so I know I said I would post a lot this weekend, but I ended up having more to do than I thought.  I hope you don't mind! Anyway, on to today's topic.  I was recently at CVS and of course got sucked into the beauty section.  I found the Seche Vite top coat and decided to try it out.  I have heard great things about this, so I figured it was worth a go. 

The verdict: This is a fantastic top coat! I like that it is thick, but not gooey.  I makes a very shiny, quick drying shield to keep your color/design in tact for a long time.  I highly recommend this top coat!
I hope yu guys enjoy this, and I hope you try out this top coat.  Have a great week!
~ Mary Elizabeth

My First Attempt at a Patchwork Mani

Hey there!
First of all, I am at my grandparents' house, so I will be posting a bunch this weekend! Anyway, last weekend I was checking out Chloe's Nails, a blog all about nails and nail polish.  Erika does some really awesome designs.  I decided to try a patchwork manicure inspired by hers. 

As you can see, it didn't come out perfect or anything, but I think it is a cool idea.  I started with my OPI base coat.  Next I used one coat (that's all you really need) of Sally Hansen's complete salon manicure in Navy Baby and let it dry for about 15 minutes.  Next I took a piece of scotch tape and unstickied it on my hand.  Then I placed it diagonally on different areas of my nails.  I painted over the places not covered in tape with Sally Hansen Celeb City.  Once that dried, I did the same thing with OPI No Room for the Blues.  Finally I used Seche Vite top coat (which I will be doing a review on soon!).  This look really isn't difficult, it just takes a long time.  I hope you try this out, and be sure to check out Chloe's Nails at http://chloesnails.blogspot.com/
~ Mary Elizabeth Curl
PS follow me on twitter for heads ups on new posts, life updates, and other randomness at www.twitter.com/theatre_geek151

Sunny in January Nails

Hey guys!
 So I really wanted to paint my nails a funky color, and I decided yellow was the perfect color to perk up those winter blues.

sorry about the crappy picture taking :/ I didn't have very good lighting

Of course I started with my OPI base coat, and then I used two coats of OPI's "Need Sunglasses?"  I thought that looked kind of thin, so I put OPI's "A Little Less Conversation" on top.  If you can't find this (it's pretty hard to find) a shimmery gold or silver would work.  Finally I used my Sinful Colors top coat.

As far as these two colors individually go, they go really well together.  "Need Sunglasses?" is a nice color, but it's not as bright as I would like.  "A Little Less Conversation" is actually a really old color that came out with the All Shook Up collection.  I ordered mine on amazon.com.  This color looks pretty in the bottle, but it comes out INCREDIBLY sheer.  On its own I put three coats and I could still see right through it.  This makes it great for putting over other polishes. 
Anyway, I hope you guys like this, and I hope you have a great week!
~ Mary Elizabeth

A Cool Twist on a French Manicure

Hey guys!
Yesterday I decided to do a french manicure on my nails.  However, I really wanted to try my new nail polish, "Fly" by OPI.  So I decided to use "Fly" in my french!

Unfortunately I messed up a little on the black :(

So this is how I did it: I used my usual base coat (OPI natural base coat), and when that dried I used one coat of OPI's Moon Over Mumbai all over my nails.  This gives the same kind of effect as using a light pink over a regular french manicure, but it looks better with the blue and doesn't fade the color.  Then I used OPI Fly for the initial tips.  This color is gorgeous, but it takes two coats to look really solid.  Next I used a thin line of Kiss black art polish to make it look a little more finished.  Finally I put a top coat on top. 
     I hope you guys like this design! Feel free to comment with ways you would rather me present these that would be more helpful to you!  Thanks for reading!

~ Mary Elizabeth
"There could never be a more beautiful you!" - Jonny Diaz

OPI Matte Nail Polish Review

Hey Y'all!
I recently tried OPI matte nail polish in Gargantuan Green Grape.  I'd never tried OPI's matte polish before, so I thought I'd see how well it worked.  Here is what it looked like when i applied it.

With flash

without flash

So, here are the pros and cons of this polish.
PROS:
- dries quickly
- looks very clean after the second coat
- has pretty good staying power
CONS:
- you are not supposed to use top coat or lotion, so it is a little bit limiting.
- easy to mess up, especially within the first couple hours
- takes two coats to look solid and not streaky (not too much of a con)
- when you take it off, it kind of tints your nails green

Overall, I like this polish.  It lasted all week and I got a lot of compliments.  One problem I found is that the longer I wore it, the shinier it got due to washing my hands.  Other than that, I think this is a nail polish worth trying.  I plan on trying other OPI mattes.
I hope y'all enjoyed this review, and have a great day!

~ Mary Elizabeth

My Nail Essentials

Hey everybody!
I hope y'all are having a wonderful week! Today's post is about my nail essentials.  These are the products that I use almost every time if not every time I do my nails. 

I just use a generic nail polish remover.  I've never really used a higher end remover because I don't feel a need to spend a lot of money on it.  It takes the polish of, and that's all that matters.

 I use two different top coats. The one on the left is Sinful Colors Top Shine top coat.  I use this for solid colors.  If I use it with detail work, it smudges the colors together.  The one on the left is Sally Hansen Hard as Nails UV top coat.  I used this for detail and designs.  The catch with this is that you need to wait a good 5 minutes before you apply it to be sure that you don't smudge!

 The base coat I use is OPI Natural base coat.  I really like the staying power this gives, although I redo my nails about once a week! It is best if you roll this between your hands as opposed to shaking it.  Shaking it causes bubbles to form, and they can transfer to your nails, which is not fun.

 Ya. I just use generic nail clippers.  I honestly don't even know what brand these are

 This is a cool product.  This is True Blue Spa's disappearing act cuticle remover.  What you do is unscrew the cap (that big white thing) and squirt a tiny TINY bit on each cuticle and let it dry for about a minute.  Then take the pointy end of the cap and push the cuticles back.  Then rinse your hands to get the gel off.

 These are my favorite design polishes.  These are by Kiss, and they are available at pretty much any drugstore.  These are really nice.  I used to have the white, but mine dried up because I used it so often!

These are Q-tip cotton swabs.  I use these to take off my nail polish and clean up any mistakes.  I would pretty much use any brand, but this is just what my mom always buys :)

I hope you guys enjoyed this. Have a great week!
~ Mary Elizabeth

Welcome to my Blog!

Hey there,

This is me!

This is my first blog post ever! I am very excited to be starting a blog about something I enjoy - beauty.  I believe that God made us all special, and we all have the right to be the best version of ourselves.  I live by Song of Solomon 4:7 "You are all together beautiful my love; there is no flaw in you," inspiring the name of my blog.  Every girl is beautiful in her own way.  I hope that the things i talk about on this blog will encourage you, entertain you, and help you be the best that you can be.  I plan on posting about once or twice a week, but that may vary depending on the week.  I am always open to suggestions, requests, and constructive criticism.  Enjoy!

~Mary Elizabeth