Day 9: Fav Holiday Nail Polishes | Blogmas

I'm kind of a confusing specimen when it comes to beauty- I'm very girly and love doing girly things but I'm not huge into makeup or trying new products or anything that beauty gurus love doing. I stick to the things I know and love and don't change my appearance heavily.

One girly thing I really really enjoy doing is painting my nails. I think it's such a simple way to change up your look without changing yourself in a dramatic way. My nail colour is always reminiscent of the time of year, or occasion of the season- I love doing my nails!

As my nail polish collection is quite extensive I decided today I'd share with you all my favourite nail polish colours for the holiday season! I narrowed my choices down to my two favourite nail polish brands- Revlon and Essie- because Lord knows I probably have dupes of each colour from different brand names haha. I love Essie and Revlon so much because the stay power is great, they only require two coats, and the brush applicators are small enough that I don't make a mess.

So without further rambling, enjoy my favourite holiday nail polishes!

Here's a general overview of the colours I tend to reach for this time of year- lots of darker, red tones, neutral tones, sparkles, and holiday themed colours.

From the Revlon line my favourites are:

Description order: top left, bottom left, top right, bottom right

905 Sophisticated: a very cool toned grey, this polish looks great with a matte top coat. Not so much Christmassy, but a really great winter colour in general.

705 Gray Suede: this colour has so many dimensions. It's my favourite nude this time of year because it's a little pink, a little grey, a little taupe... It's a little bit of everything. I feel like this is a great winter nude because it's slightly cooler toned than a lot of other nudes.

660 Divine: I really like a good deep maroon this time of year- this one actually being my favourite out of all the ones I have! It's got sort of a rich chocolate undertone to it with the tiniest little gold sparkles in it that reflect light beautifully. It's a great Christmas/holiday colour- what better time to rock some sparkles than the holidays!?

571 Posh: a Christmas green just had to be included! I like that this green isn't too in your face and it doesn't make my pale/fair hands look sickly like a lot of greens tend to do.

From the Essie line my favourites are:

Description order: clockwise from the darkest tone

Skirting the Issue: this deep plum is a really beautiful polish for the holiday season. It's a lot more of a deep red than it looks in the bottle but still sits on the nail as a beautiful burgundy. 

Bahama Mama: this is one of the Essie polishes I see mentioned most often and rightly so! It's such a beautiful plum/grape colour. It reminds me of mulled berry wine- great colour for the holidays!

Lollipop: a tried a true Christmas red, this polish is perfect for getting you into the Christmas spirit! I love pairing this with gold or green accents.

Ignite the Night: every girl needs a sparkly nail as the holidays come about and this silver/grey sparkle top coat is perfect! I've actually used this on it's own before without a base colour and the opacity is amazing. It took 3 coats but there were no spaces!

Penny Talk: another sparkle polish, this one is a beautiful bronze/gold. It's kind of subdued (more of a shimmer than a true sparkle) so it's not an intense, in your face sort of gold, but I absolutely love it this time of year!

Marshmallow: finally, a white polish has to be included- I love a white nail against the white of the snow. I think it's a great option when you have a very over the top Christmas outfit that would be hard to match otherwise. White is still part of the Christmas colour palette and it's a great little wildcard to keep in your back pocket.

Throughout the holiday season I will definitely be using all of these polishes at one point or another. I will probably also experiment with some holiday inspired nail art, however it will likely turn out quite crappy- my skills are limited to none when it comes with nail art but if anything turns out well I'll be sure to share a photo!

What are your favourite nail colours for the season? Please do let me know in a comment so I can check them out!

Thanks for reading, xo, Katelyn

9 Things in the 9th Month | September Favourites

1. Chocolate oatmeal

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of chocolate, but lately I've been trying to stray away from eating the refined stuff. I was inspired by Niomi Smart's video to create chocolate oatmeal using raw cacao- I'm so hooked! I featured my version of the recipe in my college what I eat in a day post, feel free to go check that out!

2. Smashbox Full Exposure Palette

This is an old favourite re-discovered but I've pulled back out my Full Exposure palette by Smashbox for fall. I love the pigmentation of these shadows, the colour pay off is amazing! They're super blend-able and I love the warm tones for this time of year. Stay tuned for a post where I show you my current go-to autumn look using this palette!

3. Riding Boots
I've been trying to find a nice pair of riding boots for what seems like ages now and I've finally found a pair that I liked enough to purchase (and feature in an upcoming lookbook)! I got these boots from Call It Spring and I really do love them so much, they're really comfortable and versatile. 

4. Superfood
I remember watching Jamie Oliver on the Food Network back when I was just a wee tot with my Mom whilst she cooked dinner. Even now, years later, I'm still a huge fan of his and his new show did not disappoint! Jamie's Super Food premiered at the beginning of this month and is now 4 episodes in. Jamie is traveling around the world to places with the longest life expectancies and exploring the superfoods they highlight in their diets. I love the show's message: you shouldn't eat healthy because you have to, you should eat healthy because it tastes good!

5. Hog's Back Park
I featured this gorgeous Ottawa park in an adventure time post- I keep going back! It's one of those places that you just don't get tired of visiting because it's just so stunning and serene. 

6. Essie: After School Boy Blazer
I was on the hunt for a really good navy blue/black colour nail polish for fall and I finally found it! After School Boy Blazer has been on my nails almost all month (which is really rare for me because I tend to get tired of colours very quickly). As with all Essie polishes, the application is amazing; 1-2 coats and you're good to go!

7. Dash Dolls
Another show that premiered this month was a Kardashian spin-off called Dash Dolls. I didn't have the highest of hopes for this program, but checked it out anyways- why not right? Boy was I impressed! The show covers controversial topics including the religious convictions of the girls, and also covers the business aspect of Dash which I really enjoy learning about! Plus it's jam packed with mind numbing drama, and what girl doesn't love that? Haha.

8. Pasta Salad Recipe & Romaine Lettuce

This meal was also featured in my college what I eat in a day post! I really love making freezer recipes purely based on convenience. I also really enjoy how the flavours develop upon a second round of cooking! Romaine lettuce has been a favourite of mine as well- it's so easy to chop up and eat on the side of any meal for extra vitamins and fibre. I dress romaine lettuce with just plain white vinegar and a bit of black pepper. I find the lettuce has enough taste that it doesn't need a lot to bring it to life!

9. Grey's Anatomy
FINALLY GREY'S IS BACK!!! My goodness, I missed TGIT with Shonda. Spoilers lay ahead: may I just say, Bailey for chief is LONG overdue! I'm also loving the sister bond in the house between Meredith, Amelia, and Pierce. I thought the plot line of the episode and Callie's passion toward the cause was a beautiful way to come back to the show. But seriously, if Jackson and April don't work things out I may just rip out my hair! 2 episodes in and I'm already OBSESSED all over again!

So those are my top 9 things from the 9th month of the year! Seriously where has the time gone? It feels like yesterday I was moving into my apartment and now I've been here a whole month! September was really good to me and I'm so excited to see what October brings.

What were some of your favourites from September? Please do let me know in a comment!

Thanks for reading, xo, Katelyn