NOTD: Super Sparkly Half Moons

Good evening, nail babes! I did this incredibly glittery mani today to celebrate my (male) roommate's birthday...I'm not sure he'll appreciate it, but I hope you all will!

I used two of my untried polishes in this mani: Mermaid Lacquer - Shop Til You Drop and Zoya - Aurora. They turned out to be a totally glitterific combination.

Shop Til You Drop has a UV color changing base that goes from a light grey-purple to a bright purple in the sun and is packed with pink, purple teal, and holo silver glitters in various shapes. Since I did this so late, I'll try to get a sun shot of this tomorrow; these photos show three thin coats of STYD (on my middle and ring finger) in its indoor state. Jacquelynn of Mermaid Lacquer is AMAZING at packing her polishes with tons of fun glitter, and this one has just shot to the top of my favorites of hers. It's uncanny how much and what a huge variety of glitter applies with each brushstroke--absolutely no fishing necessary!

Aurora is a plum crelly polish with lots of holo glitter. I have a dismally low number of Zoyas in my collection, but I'm so glad to have added this one. Formula was fantastic; this photo shows two coats on my index and pinky finger.

And now for the macros! Just look at all those glitters, including the big and medium sized dots, my absolute favorite!

To achieve this look, I started by applying two coats of Aurora to my thumb, index, and pinky fingers, and three coats of Shop Til You Drop on my middle and ring fingers. I then used french tip guides to create a half moon using Aurora on my middle and ring fingers, then sponged on a gradient of STYD onto my thumb, index, and pinky fingers. Then I sealed everything with a generous coat of HK Girl Topcoat.

I think this is an appropriately celebratory look! Glitter makes everything better :) Have fabulous Saturday night, ladies!