Hi everyone! This week has been very busy as I've been gearing up for a Prototype Sale in my shop. I've been mixing up a lot of new polishes, so I thought I'd use two of them for some simple nail art.
Sketchy floral nail art
As an indie maker (still feels weird to refer to myself that way) I get to play with glitter all the time. But if you told me two or three years ago that I'd have a ginormous glitter collection, I probably would have scoffed at you. Now I have glitters in every colour of the rainbow, in different sizes, finishes, even some cool shapes (although I'm not big into shape glitter). It's such a huge part of making polish, so tonight's mani is my glitter tribute.
Hi everyone! Last week I quietly released some new polishes in my shop. I can't tell you how much I enjoy making polish again - when I was working on my dissertation I didn't have time to make new stuff. Now that I'm making polish again, I love the creative aspect of it.
One of the things I wanted when I opened my shop was to have a range of polishes - colours, finishes, etc. So these new polishes fit in with that goal. All of them are currently available at Renaissance Cosmetics.
Hi everyone! Look, a blog post! Thank you everyone who commented on my last update post - I really appreciated all the support. In case you missed it, I've been finishing up my dissertation this past month and a half. I'm not 100% finished, but I have a bit of a break while my committee looks over everything, so I'm going to take some time to schedule some posts.
As for my life this past month and a half - let's just say I'm eager to get back to blogging. I think things can be summed up with this picture...
Hi everyone! After three months I'm so pleased to be finally releasing another collection. I really wish it hadn't been so long, but sometimes things don't fall into place like originally planned. When I set out to make a spring collection, I had a few ideas, but none of them really excited me. So I decided to go back to the drawing board and try a new idea, and I think the collection is stronger because of it.
Hi everyone! This is my fifth and final design for Digit-al Dozen texture week. I don't know about you, but I felt this prompt was kind of a mixed bag for me - not the most inspiring of the prompts I've done with the group. However, I always have a feeling of satisfaction when I finish a Digit-al Dozen challenge week. This week is no different.
Hi everyone! This post is a little homage to my indie brand, Renaissance Cosmetics, which I started back in November. My challenge was to do something that tied in with the brand, while using only polishes I had made - no easy feat I must add.
Hi everyone! I've got some work deadlines coming up so my posting may be sporadic for the rest of the week, but I'm hoping to get my Digit-al Dozen posts up by the weekend. I still have one more design to post, and one more to paint, and I'm really looking forward to both!
Hi everyone! Sorry I've been MIA lately. I have no excuse besides laziness and spending a bit too much time with Netflix...that thing is totally addicting.
I have the new Valentine's Day collection from my indie brand, Renaissance Cosmetics. These polishes will go on sale tomorrow, Friday January 24th, at 12pm (noon) EST at Renaissance Cosmetics. At the same time we'll be restocking the popular L'Hiver! So if you missed out the first time, now is your chance to get it!
Hi everyone! A few weeks ago, I quietly celebrated one full year of blogging with a pat on the back and a status update on my Facebook page. On November 30, 2012, I published my first post on this blog, and since then there's been many, many hours poured into this hobby of mine: countless sleep-deprived photo-editing sessions, many nail art frustrations and breakthroughs, many self-doubts, and lots of support from readers and fellow bloggers. Support that I'm incredibly grateful for of course!
Hi everyone! Along with falling behind on my posts for the Digit-al Dozen this week, I also fell behind on my piCture pOlish posts. I tend to dislike publishing posts that serve a dual purpose, for some reason it feels like cheating for me. However, the ladies at piCture pOlish sent me the gorgeous red O'Hara, and it was perfect for this week's Digit-al Dozen challenge.
piCture pOlish O'Hara
So this week's piCture pOlish post features the O'Hara in a holly design inspired by one of my favourite nail artists Lindsey at Wondrously Polished.
Hi everyone! You may have noticed (or not!) that I didn't published many posts for The Digit-al Dozen challenge this week. The prompt was red, gold, and green, but because of my work with my day job (teaching assistant) and my dissertation, it was just impossible for me to do any nail art this week. So I have one post for you today, and I'll have one more tomorrow, then I'm giving up on this challenge.
This design is super easy but perfect for the holidays. I've used two Renaissance Custom Lacquer polishes to do a gradient that is very classic and shimmery!
Hi everyone! Another week, another entry for the Nail Polish Canada Holiday Nail Art Challenge. The theme for this week was decorations, and I'll admit it was pretty difficult to try and come up with an interesting slant for this one. However, I was able to use some polishes from my indie line, Renaissance Custom Lacquer, so I'm very proud of the results.
Hi everyone! I haven't blogged for a few days, but behind the scenes I've been very busy. My sister and I have been working to get new polishes in the shop and I was finally able to release them today. All of these polishes are currently available at Renaissance Cosmetics. You can also go to the shop to see more swatch photos.
Renaissance Custom Lacquer Evenstar
I'll be sending these to some bloggers so that you can get some unbiased reviews, but in the meantime if you have any questions about finishes, formulas or whatever, please ask!
Hi everyone! Another week, another gorgeous piCture pOlish shade to share with you. When I was asked by the ladies at piCture pOlish if there was any polish in particular that I wanted to review, Whimsy was my choice - and do you blame me!? This collaboration shade with Neverland Nail Blog is so stunning that I had to show you swatches and some simple nail art, so make sure to check out the full post!
Hi everyone! This is just a short post to update you on what's going on here at Renaissance Custom Lacquer / Renaissance Cosmetics. If you haven't noticed, we've launched our store, and my sister and I have been so happy with the response so far. No, we didn't break the Internet, but I'm so amazed that quite a few of you took a chance on a new indie and placed your orders. I hope you enjoy your polishes as much as I enjoyed making them.
Renaissance Custom Lacquer The Seasons Collection
We've added two new listings to the shop: one for The Seasons Collection, and one for all six polishes of our first release. You can save money by ordering these as a set. There are very, very limited quantities so if you are interested act fast! Also if you have your heart set on L'Hiver, we are running dangerously low on that polish and won't be able to restock it for a few weeks.
We'd love to see your Renaissance Custom Lacquer nail mail and manis. You can tag us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter: #renaissancecosmetics or #renaissancecustomlacquer. Or tag me on Instagram @willpaintnailsforfood.
And don't forget to sign up for our newsletter! I've included a sign-up below. You will get the latest scoop on new releases (sometimes before they make the blog), features on certain products, nail art looks, and special newsletter-only deals and discount codes. You can check out our first newsletter here.
Have a great weekend everyone, and happy shopping!
Hi everyone! Today's post is a very special one for me. Several months ago, my sister and I sat down at a cafe on Bloor Street in downtown Toronto and discussed ideas for what would become our own indie polish line. After many weekends experimenting with different pigments and glitters, weeks spent testing and bottling our creations, developing a website, and swatching polishes, the time has finally come to set an opening date (more info later in this post).
So I introduce to you Renaissance Custom Lacquer, aka Renaissance Cosmetics (since we would eventually like to expand and introduce other products). You can find our website at renaissancecosmetics.com. Right now it is in maintenance mode, but if you like, you can sign up for our newsletter, or send us an email. You can also follow us on Facebook. As much as I try to be objective in describing and showing our polishes, I do realize that I am biased, so on our Facebook page I'll be showing swatches from other bloggers.
Renaissance Custom Lacquer
Without further ado, I want to show you our first collection and two stand alone polishes we've created...
