Halloween Nail Art

I'm currently rocking some nubs after snapping not one but three nails last week, so hopefully this posting helps you and I alike find some creative ways to celebrate Halloween with our nails - long or short. All images courtesy of their respective companies.

If nail art isn't your thing, Dermelect Cosmeceuticals has 4 brilliant colors that will help accent your costume or show off your holiday spirit.

Head Turner

A brilliant tangerine creme - perfect for pumpkin related costumes.

Decadence

A metallic espresso - great for a witch or zombie look.

Red-iculous

This classic red creme works great for blood related manicures.

Persuasive

This delicate peach is perfect for princess costumes.

Dermelect ME Anti-Aging Nail Lacquers ($14) at Dermelect.com and high-end apothecaries, beauty boutiques, salons, spas, medi-spas and doctors offices.

Next, Pure Ice has 18 scintillating and stylish shades in their new Perfect Potion Halloween Collection including a Glow in the Dark polish to help you mix and match for the perfect manicure.

Perfect Potion Halloween Shades

-Glow In The Dark

-Cheatin' (glittery purple)

-All Night Long (sparkle blue)

-Hit The Floor (sparkle red)

-I'll Never Tell (glitter brown)

-Superstar (white)

-Blackout (black)

-Can't Stop (coral pink)

-Free Spirit (sea green)

-Silver Star (silver)

At only $1.99, the price is definitely right to collect them all and rock several different looks. Pure Ice is available at Walmart and Walmart.com

CND is constantly being the innovated one that thinks outside the box, and this Halloween they created Hollywood-inspired nail looks to die for. Ask your favorite salon to help recreate these Shellac looks or the last one is done with Vinylux for the at home DIY-er!

 The Redrum - Inspired by the cult classic "The Shining". Created by Heather Reynosa-Davis, CND Education Ambassador.
1. Apply a thin later of CNS Shellac Base Coat and cure for 10 seconds in the CND UV Lamp.
2. Apply two thin layers of CND Shellac in Wildfire. Cure each layer for 2 minutes.
3. Apply a thin layer of CND Shellac in Black Pool - DO NOT CURE.
4. Use a style to etch the letters into the wet Black Pool revealing Wildfire underneath. Cure for 2 minutes.
5. Apply a thin layer of Shellac Top Coat and cure for 2 minutes.
6. Wipe with 99% Isopropyl Alcohol to remove top film.

The Dracula - Inspired by Bram Stoker's 1931 classic horror film. Created by Kris Kiss, CND Education Ambassador
1. Apply CND Shellac Base Coat and cure for 10 seconds in the CND UV Lamp.
2. Apply two coats of CND Shellac in Cream Puff. Cure each layer for 2 minutes.
3. Apply CND Additive in Black Pigment from cuticle towards the center.
4. Apply CND Additive in Red Pigment from the edge towards the center.
5. Apply drops of isopropyl alcohol randomly on black pigment area.
6. Lightly apply CND Shellac in Wildfire over red pigment area and cure for 2 minutes.
7. Lightly dust CND Additive in Steel Dreams over black pigment area.
8. Apply CND Shellac Top Coat and cure for 2 minutes.
9. Wipe with 99% Isopropyl Alcohol to remove top film.

The Alien - Inspired by Steven Spielberg's 1970s Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Created by Torie Bastian, CND Education Ambassador
1. Apply two coats of CND Vinylux in Steal Gaze and wait for it to dry (8.5 minutes).
2. Using a striping brush, draw two large almond shaped eyes using CND Vinylux in Black Pool.
3. With a striping brush, outline the shape of the alien's head and fill in the surrounding area with CND Vinylux in Midnight Swim.
4. For additional effect, use a sponge dipped in CND Vinylux colors of your choice to create a nebulous, space-like look. Let dry for 1 minute.
5. Apply CND Vinylux Weekly Top Coat.

ORLY brings you 4 polishes that are sure to give you just the right of glitz and glam for any Halloween Look.

Black Pixel, Right Amount of Evil, R.I.O. and Monster Mash; $10 each at OrlyBeauty.com. Additionally, ORLY is offering free shipping on all orders over $16 with the code FALLFREESHIP from now until November 15th. Any guest who makes a purchase using FALLFREESHIP is additionally eligible to receive a coupon code for 20% off their next order. All 20% off coupon codes are eligible for savings through December 15th.

Finally, Gelish brings you a great Spooky Eyes nail art from head manicurist Danielle Candido. This is great for those who may not be able to dress up at the office but can rock a look on their nails! (And it's also for someone like me who may be a little nail art challenged!)

Prep the nails first: Apply Gelish MINI Nail Surface Cleanse on to a lint-free wipe to clean the nails. Push back the cuticle and clean the surrounding nail. Apply an adhesive tab to the plastic pusher and lightly buff the nail to remove the shine. Apply Gelish MINI Nail Surface Cleanse to a lint-free wipe to remove the dust and clean the nails. Dehydrate the nail plate with Gelish MINI pH Bond. 

1. Apply a thin coat of Gelish MINI Foundation Gel to the nail, making sure to cap the free edge. Use a clean orangewood stick to clean up any excess Gelish MINI Foundation Gel from around the cuticle or under the nail. Cure in the Gelish MINI Pro: 45 LED Light for 45 seconds. After curing Gelish MINI Foundation Gel, a tacky surface will remain. 

2. Apply a thin coat of Gelish MINI Black Shadow to the entire nail bed from the cuticle to the free edge.  Cure in the Gelish MINI Pro: 45 LED Light for 45 seconds. Apply a second coat of Gelish MINI Black Shadow for full coverage. Cure in the Gelish MINI Pro: 45 LED Light for 45 seconds. Darker colors, such as Gelish MINI Black Shadow may need to be cured longer. 

3. Using the larger end of a double-ended dotting tool, place two dots of Gelish MINI Sheek White on the nail bed next to each other. Cure in the Gelish MINI Pro: 45 LED light for 45 seconds. Using the smaller end of the double-ended dotting tool, place two smaller dots of Gelish MINI Black Shadow inside the dots of Gelish MINI Sheek White. Cure in the Gelish MINI Pro: 45 LED light for 45 seconds. 

4. Seal with a thin coat of Gelish MINI Top It Off Sealer and cure in the Gelish MINI Pro: 45 LED Light for 45 seconds. Your nails will remain tacky until they are cleansed. 

5. Apply Gelish MINI Nail Surface Cleanse to a lint-free nail wipe to remove the tacky surface. To finish, apply Gelish MINI Nourish Cuticle Oil to the skin surrounding the nail plate and massage into the cuticles.  

There you have it! No matter what your skill level or what products you have, there are many options to rock a great manicure next week for Halloween. Stay tuned to PolishGalore to see what I ended up wearing next Thursday!

JulieG Frosted Gum Drops Holiday

Texture has been all the rage in 2013 but one thing that has kept me from buying all the polish is the price. Not the case with JulieG Frosted Gum Drops by Jesse's Girl Cosmetics!  This holiday season, they are coming out with 6 more jewel toned shades and the price? Only $3.99 each. They just recently held a pre-sale on their website where all 6 was only $20.01 but sadly that ended on Friday.

So where else can you find these awesome polishes? Rite Aid stores.

Shout out to the amazing photography and hand modeling done by Leslie Henry of work/play/polish. I got to meet her this summer and she's an absolute inspiration to me in the blogging world. 

Let's see the polish!

Gift of Gold

Ho Ho Ho

Mistletoe

Silver Bells

Sleigh Ride

Sugar Plum Fairy

If you see them, get them. Don't question me.

China Glaze Howl You Doin'

Press Sample

Also from the Monsters Ball collection, today I have China Glaze Howl You Doin', a purple base with orange and blue flakies and frankly I really was excited about this. It looked so vampy and pretty in the bottle. Sigh.

I started with a base of Cult Nails Get It On, then used 2 coats of polish and finished with Cult Nails Wicked Fast. The formula on this polish absolutely sucked for me. It was thick and bumpy and dragged on the nail. It dried bumpy and matte (which is why I needed the top coat).

 See the pinkie? See that pulling? Rawr. I was so sad panda about it.

Even in the shade you can see the bumpy texture and whatnot. I just didn't love this polish at all.

I feel like this one will end up my shelf for awhile which makes me sad. I think maybe if I thin it out a little, it may be better.

China Glaze [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] can be found online through several etailers, including my favorite Head2Toe Beauty, Sally's Beauty Supply as well as TransDesign.

Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post.

Morgan Taylor Royal Life Holiday

These are the days when I wish either Morgan Taylor was available to the non-professional or that I had a license because this Royal Life holiday collection is aaaaaaamazing. They are available for $8.50/each  at beauty supply stores like CosmoProf.

This collection is just stunning.

Regal As A Royal

Wrapped In Riches

To Rules Or Not To Rule

Sapphires, Rubies, and Emeralds Oh My

Where's My Crown

Fit For A Queen

Get in my collection!

China Glaze Boo-gie Down

Press Sample

So maybe you remember the drama from last year's China Glaze Halloween collection. Long story short, the 3rd party graphic designer that was hired to make the box artwork ended up stealing a photo off DeviantArt and changing the colors. Well China Glaze fired the graphic designer (and who knows what else) and this year as a sign of good will, they worked with the original artist Abigail Larson for the box artwork. Abigail even got to sign the image which is in all beauty supply stores and I think that's really awesome.

When I saw these at Cosmoprof North America, all I wanted to do was hide them in my bag and run away. I'm such a sucker for glitter. When these arrived at my door, I decided to try Boo-Gie Down first. This multi-sized orange, black and white glitter needed a good base color so after looking in my stash, I decided on Electric Pineapple from the 2011 Summer Collection "Island Escape". I had a base coat of Rejuvacote, 2 coats of Electric Pineapple and then just one coat of Boo-Gie Down. I topped my nails with Cult Nails Wicked Fast to smooth out any glitter and add shine.

I had tried a new manicurist and she just didn't quite get my cuticles smoothed out so I apologize for them. I'm also working on keeping them oiled at all times so they look healthy and moisturized.  So here it is in the sun - you can see all the different glitters in there... small, medium and large (pointer) as well as bar glitter. Great mix for Halloween!

I tried using the glitter on its own for an accent nail but I feel like it just makes the nail look dirty - like you stuck your hand in salt and pepper. Otherwise, I'm in love.

This photo is indoors without flash. I'm still without a storm door so I'm trying to find good lighting in my house for photos. This was also taken with my PaS camera instead of my DSLR so it's all a learning curve up in here.

If I had to pick one polish out of this whole collection that's a MUST BUY, I'd say it this one. Definitely a big fan of the size of glitter and the appropriateness for Halloween. I'm seriously thinking about making this my Halloween manicure but with all fingers using Electric Pineapple instead of just 4 out of 5.

China Glaze [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] can be found online through several etailers, including my favorite Head2Toe Beauty, Sally's Beauty Supply as well as TransDesign.

Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post.

China Glaze Monsters Ball

I snagged this picture at Cosmoprof North America earlier this year. The Halloween Collection - Monsters Ball is already out in Sally Beauty Supply stores and available online but in case you hadn't seen it, I have a bit more information for you (but no bottle shots, sorry).

The 6 piece collection includes

Howl You Doin': Shadowy purple glitter

Bat My Eyes: Ominous gold glitter

Boo-Gie Down: Multi-sized orange, black and white glitter

Fant-Tastic: Mysteriously mixed up green, blue and magenta glitter

Bump In The Night: Hair-raising black texture

Ghoulish Glow: Glow-in-the-Dark top coat.

Additionally, the artwork for this collection was done by Abigail Larson, which made me excited.

ORLY Updates

ORLY has really worked hard this year to revamp their line, starting with the new logo and working all the way to their new website. (All images courtesy of ORLY)

They have also released several awesome collections. First is the fall 2013 collection Surreal. This was a pretty full palette of duo-chromatic shimmers and soft cremes. 

Purple Poodle: Fuchsia duochrome shimmer

Digital Glitter: metallic duo-chrome glitter

Angel Rain: Light blue duo-chrome

Pink Waterfall: Pink creme

Teal Unreal: Teal creme

Pixi Powder: Light purple and gold shimmer

The Surreal Collection launched in September and are available for $8.50 each.

Also launched in September was the new Matte FX collection. I got to sneak peek these at Cosmoprof North America and it was so unique! While most polish companies are just pushing out a matte top coat and calling it on trend, ORLY took it one step further and added flakies to the mix.

Three top coats - to include just a plain Matte Top (clear, matte finish).

Green Flakie Top Coat

Sheer green base with purple, blue and green flakies.

Pink Flakie Top Coat

Sheer pink base with multi-colored iridescent flakies

And to throw it into the mix, two lacquers as well.

Iron Butterfly

Charcoal matte shimmer

Purple Velvet

Purple matte creme

Launching this month in support of Breast Cancer Awareness, ORLY is re-introducing the Pretty in Pink Collection in which 20% of the profits will go towards Cancer Schmancer. Founded by actress and cancer survivor Fran Drescher, Cancer Schmancer is an organization that focuses on education, prevention and early detection of cancer. The Pretty in Pink Collection includes one all new glitter shade, Pink Your World.

Fight On

Chunky Pink Glitter/Blue Pearl

Pink Your World

Pink Glitter w/Holo and Gunmetal Glitter

You Are Not Alone

Cool Tone Pink Glitter

And there you have it! I can't wait to see what they come out with this winter and in the months to come. I've already fallen in love with their water based stripers (soon to come on PolishGalore!) so I'm looking forward to what's next!

NCLA Sweet Revenge

This summer, NCLA launched their Sweet Revenge collection - 3 sweet and spicy hues inspired by a day at the carnival. Did you know that NCLA is not only big 5 free but also cruelty free? You can purchase these online at NCLA or at high-end stores like Kitson and Fred Segal for $16 each. (Images courtesy of NCLA)

Mostly Sunny With a Chance of Sprinkles

Sunny skies with one ominous cloud, this light blue lacquer has a dark side: navy glitter.

Not So Sweet

Feeling not so sweet? Fool your frenemies when you wear this cotton candy pink shade.

Sugar Fix

Coming down from a sugar high never felt better! This light grey lacquer with fuchsia and electric blue glitter is sweet to the max. 

iFabbo 2nd Annual Social Media Conference 2013

I joined iFabbo in June 2011 but I had been pretty quiet with them. They recently revamped their SHOP and I'm waiting for some awesome nail polish to possibly hit because PolishGalore is all about polish ^_^ (and well, sometimes I'll review something else but it has to be pretty special for that to happen). When they announced the 2nd Annual Social Media Conference this summer to be held in San Francisco, I wavered on going. What was I going to learn? How could this benefit me? After some brief inner dialog (and a small push from co-founder Sinead Norenius, whom I adore), I bought my conference ticket, booked my hotel and booked a flight to SFO!

The conference was held at the Merchants Exchange Club in the Financial District so I took an UberX car (affiliate link where you and I both earn $10 off our next Uber ride) down there (which was only $55 with my $20 iFabbo Credit woo!) and arrived JUST as the conference started. I actually ran into Sinead right away and it was like no time had passed between our last visit (which was summer 2012!). I missed the Welcome/Opening Remarks but I was able to grab a seat before the PR Panel started, which was fab.

I tried to live tweet and Instagram for the bulk of the conference. Highlights for me included meeting Laurie Mueller, Product Manager at Facebook & Lifestyle blogger at Eye for Elegance; Jen Mathews, President of Top Tier Media & Founder of My Beauty Bunny; Serge Jespers, Evangelist at Adobe, and the one I squee'd about the most, Sarah Price from Google Glass who was sitting behind me during half the conference.

I won't tell you EVERYTHING about the conference because thanks to the wireless sponsor/PPV sponsor Spreecast, you can watch the entire conference via PPV! Check this blog posting by iFabbo to purchase the all access pass or just watch a few panels.

I also got this fantastic press bag that had SO many goodies in it that the handle broke before I even left the conference. But even better, PolishGalore will be giving away some of the amazing goodies to readers! Stay tuned as I review the product and then give you a chance to win it for yourself. (How cool is that?)

Finally, I wanted to just share a few of the awesome fellow bloggers I met while out there. I was awake for 21 straight hours and I can tell I was on cloud 9 to begin with, but I was so impressed with the caliber and professionalism of each person I met at the conference.

First up is Linda from Beautzyblog [Website | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram] - we just randomly said hi to each other and gushed about nails. Oddly enough, we are both members of the Beauty Blog Coalition and I didn't even realize it at the time! She has a great beauty blog, so be sure to check her out!

Next was Lisa from The Makeup Social [Website | Facebook | Twitter]. This girl is a go-getter. She is all about pro-self esteem for all people and is looking at hosting a conference next year in the midwest. I'm really excited to watch her grow and I gave her a few nail contacts to help her hopefully get started. 

At one of the breaks, I got to talking to Claire who works with Vitabath. Vitabath [Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest] was one of the Goodie Bag Sponsors (so look for a giveaway soon!). Their tagline is luxury in a bottle, so I'm pretty stoked to try out the goodies I received.

Our keynote speaker, Jacqueline Wales of The Fearless Factor, told us to turn to our right and ask the person next to us who they are and what they need. I was sitting next to Brandy from Will Bake For Shoes. Okay for starters, let's talk about that name. HOW cute is it?! Brandy is a fashion blogger and cake decorator in California and she was just so super cute. I hope she gets a chance to update her blog soon because I really enjoyed it. You can follow her social media here - bloglovin', Facebook, Pinterest, Google+, Instagram, Twitter.

During the cocktail hour, I bumped in to Elba from Live Colorful. She is a designer and big lover of color! She was a bubbly person too so it was neat to run into her. You can follow her on various social media channels as well - Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+.

One of the things I was looking forward to the most was getting to finally meet my nametwin Krystal from Beauty by Krystal. She is SO fantastic. I could have spent hours with her, just chatting about makeup and our kids. Follow her social media already! Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, & Pinterest. I'd love to do a collaboration with her in the future - Twin Power!

With Krystal was the online clothing and accessory boutique IndulgEra. If you're looking for a cute new look, check out her site!

While iFabbo was full of amazing bloggers, there were also some great brands there too. Crown Brush is a professional private label makeup brushes, brush sets, cosmetics and more. They are currently looking to revamp their online presence so be looking for some great things very soon. Their social media is as follows: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, Instagram and Flickr.

Finally, I wanted to say thanks to Jen Mathews for letting me take an Uber to her hotel before I headed back to my own hotel. Jen was rooming with Cheryl of Unite Socially & The Skinny on Beauty who was very nice and helped me down to my Uber back home.

Sorry for such the wall of text - want to see my nails?!

I wore a gradient of Zoya Sunshine and Carter from the Pixie Dust collection.

I ended up wearing this manicure for 5 days before it finally chipped on my index finger of my Cinderella hand so I took it all off to let my nails breathe. I wore a base coat of Cult Nails Get It On, put a full coat of Zoya Sunshine and let it dry, then dabbed on Zoya Carter from the cuticle up. I used an e.l.f. Concealer Brush for my clean up (my favorite - and only $1!) and off I went!

The iFabbo conference really helped me recenter myself. PolishGalore had gotten away from the polish and I'm not willing or able to turn this into a beauty blog. My passion is in the polish! I also was really glad to make new contacts, see Sinead, and just get out of town for a bit. I was barely in San Francisco for 24 hours but it was so worth it.  Be looking for new great things!