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Stamping Saturdays – The Beginning!

Posted on 11 January, 201411 January, 2014 by Cynthia

One of the things I miss when I do tons of swatching is doing freehand designs and stamping. Stamping will always be my first love because when I first started getting obsessed with doing my own nails, it was the first technique I felt that I mastered. In order to push myself to at least do some stamping once in a while, a few friends and I will be trying to post stamping manicures every Saturday. For now I am feeling pretty enthusiastic about this, and I hope I don’t flake out like I always do. Ha! I think that because it’s only a once a week thing, I won’t be such a weirdo about it. For my first Stamping Saturdays mani, I decided to start with a gorgeous base: Illamasqua Superstition.

Seriously. This is such an amazingly gorgeous polish that it made me want to fall in love with Illamasqua all over again. I don’t know about you, but I was pretty annoyed when they raised their prices to $17 a bottle from $14. Uhm, yeah…no mas Illamasqua for me. I know that $3 isn’t that much and yes, I am that person who buys $30 polish, but such a sudden price hike rubbed me the wrong way. Anyway, I still love this. The formula is like buttah and it has a beautiful squishy quality to it. Then I started to stamp it up.

I’m not going to lie: I am way rusty with stamping so this manicure was kind of a nightmare. I really hate how the black konad special polish streaks like crazy when you top coat it. I actually had to redo the stamping because I smudged it up pretty horribly the first time. This particular image comes from Konad plate M64 in case you were wondering. I tried creating one of the inlinkz thing for this but I gotta be honest: I was way too lazy and I got confused easily. I’m sure the alcohol contributed to that but let’s not focus on that, ok? Once I figure out who and when my girls are posting, I will list their entries below. Edit: I think Amy figured out the linky thing.

So what do you think? Do you like stamping? I am definitely looking forward to doing more of these so make sure that you visit us next Saturday. Thanks so much for stopping by and I will talk to you soon.

Golden Rose 09

Posted on 10 January, 20149 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Hola my polish friends! For most of you, Friday means that your weekend is about to start. But for others like me, who work on the weekends, it just means that another week is almost coming to an end. Can you believe we are almost half-way through the first month of 2014?? Can you believe it’s actually 2014?! I’m not freaking out thinking that I’m getting older, even though I am, but I am thinking a lot about all the stuff I haven’t done. One of the things I constantly think about is that I had made a pact with my best friend, Daniel, to TRY climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro before we turned 30. Did that happen? NOPE. I’m now 34 and in terrible shape so I don’t think it’s going to happen anytime soon. I also just would NOT be able to afford it since it is quite expensive so now I’m stuck lamenting my poor planning and my even poorer finances. (Is poorer a word? It just sounds weird to me like “fork.”) Daniel still works in the travel industry and he still goes on vacations that make me jealous. His last vacation was to South Africa which he said was great. Any time he goes on any kind of vacation, I ask him to bring me back some polish. When he went to Puerto Rico last year, he brought me back my very first Bettinas. This year, he brought me back some Golden Rose polishes which I hadn’t really heard much about , but you know me: always happy to try something new! The polish I have to share with you today is Golden Rose 09 so let’s take a look at my swatches.

Golden Rose 09 is a hot pink polish…hello! Daniel sure knows my favorite colors! From looking online, this polish line is supposed to cover in one coat, but I didn’t think that was an accurate claim. The first coat covers well, but it definitely needs a second coat. I am not too sure where this brand really comes from, but I’ve never seen it in the US. It’s such a ME color that I am totally in love with it.

A big thanks to Daniel for such an awesome polish (1 of 2) that he brought back for me…even if I do force him to buy me gifts. hahaha Anyway, what do you think of this polish? Is this a brand that you’re familiar with? Let me know if there is something you have been wanting to do but haven’t gotten a chance to do yet. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I hope you’re having a nice Friday.

Nicole by OPI New Top Coats & Treatments For 2014

Posted on 9 January, 2014 by Cynthia

With all the pretty polish colors out there, sometimes it’s easy to forget that using a good base coat and top coat is going to be essential to keep that mani looking shiny, new and fresh. I realize that most people aren’t like me, meaning that you don’t all change your polish daily, so longevity is always important to the average consumer. This year we have some new offerings to choose from: Nicole by OPI New Top Coats & Treatments For 2014. Let’s take a look at some new products, shall we?

Now let’s see these in action!

First up is the 3-in-1 Base, Top Coat & Strengthener. This is a pretty convenient product because it’s actually 3 products in one so this is perfect if you’re traveling and don’t want to carry around multiple bottles. It gives a nice shine and it worked great to smooth and prep my nails before applying my nail color. Here I have applied it over OPI Gargantuan Green Grape (purchased myself).

Top coats…ahhh top coats! When you find one that you love and works for you, stick with it! I found that while this top coat is nice and smooths my polish nicely, it’s not a shiny as others that I use. I also found that it is thicker than what I normally prefer. Here I have applied it over OPI Gargantuan Green Grape (purchased myself) and Butter London Tart With A Heart (press sample).

Next up is a Matte Top Coat which I think had a nice consistency and wasn’t too thick. It mattifies nicely!

And lastly, we have this Oil To Go which is such a convenient way to give constant TLC to your poor battered cuticles. I keep this at my desk at work and apply some product after I wash my hands which is a lot of times throughout the day. I am always cautious of these types of products because if they are heavily scented, I probably won’t use them. The scent of this product is rather sweet and smells kind of tropical to me, but it’s not overpowering. While I would like a more subtle scent, it doesn’t really bother me.

Have you tried any of these products? Are you a cuticle product fanatic like myself? Considering the amount of abuse I put my hands through, I have to make sure that I keep my hands and cuticles super moisturized. Anyway, I hope you’re having a nice day, and I will talk to you soon!

OPI Gargantuan Green Grape

Posted on 8 January, 2014 by Cynthia

After yesterday’s disgusting turn (sorry if I offend your eyes), I wanted something that was clean, crisp and smooth so that is how I ended up picking today’s polish. I completely overslept today and now I’m feeling like I got run over by a truck. I am also going to have a hell of a time trying to fall asleep early tonight so that I can wake up at dawn to go to work. Holy shitballs this sucks. Oh well, such is life! Sooo…back to the polish. I’ve had OPI Gargantuan Green Grape for a while but I hadn’t used it, and I have no idea why because it’s such a cool color. To be honest, the first time I grabbed it, I was attracted by the name. Being a complete lit freak, I just kept thinking of Rabelais’ Gargantua novels which was a series I loved reading when I was taking some hardcore French lit classes. How could I not like them? Satire and scatological humor galore! Before I get too off track, let’s look at my swatches, shall we?

Isn’t this color just deliciously creamy? It made me think of pistachio gelato! I’m sad to report that the formula is not as wonderful as the finished result because it is fairly thin. Because of this, it applies super streaky so I do want to warn you that you will need multiple coats to even this out. When I saw how thin the formula was, I decided to apply very thin coats to minimize any dragging and bald spots so I ended up with 4 thin coats. Despite this, I still very much like this color and I can see myself wearing this for Spring.

What do you think of this color? If you like the color, are you willing to deal with a sort of difficult formula? I wanted to mention that I really enjoyed all of your comments and thoughts on the Crinkled Chrome polish that I posted yesterday. At least I know I’m not alone in my hate for that polish. Ha! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and we’ll talk soon!

China Glaze Crinkled Chrome – Don’t Be Foiled

Posted on 7 January, 20146 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Happy Tuesday everyone! I think I’m feeling a little giddy right now because I am suffering from exhaustion even though I’m denying it. My work schedule has changed again so I am back to working at the buttcrack of dawn which is pretty brutal when you’re NOT a morning person like me. I know it’s going to take me some time to get back into the groove of things, so I may act a little cray cray here and there. So….I don’t know where to start today. When I first saw images of these polishes from CosmoProf, I am not going to lie, I was horrified. When I started seeing swatches pop up, I thought I was going to barf. When I saw that my Sally’s had these polishes, I told myself that I would take one for the team and buy *one* to try out. Well, today I have the demonic spawn of popcorn texture polish and feather-like glitter polish to share with you. Its unholy name is China Glaze Crinkled Chrome in Don’t Be Foiled. Yeah, more like Don’t Be Fooled…into buying this polish. Before I get into, let’s take a look at the polish.

I should have known to stay away after all the swatches I had seen online. I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN! When I asked my nail guy when he was getting this collection, he told me that he wasn’t going to order them because they are “ugly and weird and [he] would never be able to sell them off.” Even that didn’t completely deter me. When I saw that Sally’s had these, I figured that I might as well buy one to try out because how bad could they be? Holy crap, this polish is hideous. To start with, I already hate chrome and metallic finishes so it had one strike against it before I even tried it out. Then this super strange combination of hairy bar glitter and some bead texture just makes it look incredibly odd. You want to know what it reminds me of? Cultures growing on a petri dish. To top it all off, the formula on this is absolutely atrocious. It dries way too quickly so it gets super goopy while you’re still trying to apply it. Since the formula is rather opaque, you can get away with just one coat so that will eliminate the issues that arise when you want to apply a second coat.

I don’t think I really need to say this, but I’ll say it anyway: I absolute abhor this polish. These Crinkled Chrome polishes need to be banished to the 9th circle of hell where they can entertain Satan. You may think I’m being overly dramatic here, but I just can’t contain myself because I adore China Glaze and then they do this to me? Yes, I take it personally. I always look forward to new China Glaze releases, and now I’m starting to feel scared before I click on a link purporting to have some sneak peeks of upcoming collections. I know a lot of people out there are calling these “interesting” and “unique.” I can agree with that if they mean “interestingly vomiticious” and “uniquely horrifying.” However, I can concede that there may be some people who actually like these. They are probably the same people who like Crocs. Now I’m really hoping that the Sea Goddess collection makes up for this bitter disappointment, but I’m not going to hold my breath. Traditionally, China Glaze puts out my favorite Fall collection so at least I have that to look forward to. Sooo….what do you think about this polish? Please let me know because I am very curious to know if I’m the only one who feels this way. Thanks so much for stopping by, and I will talk to you soon.

P.S. If anyone wants this, pay me $3 for shipping and it’s yours.

Carrie Underwood For Nicole by OPI – Swatches & Review

Posted on 6 January, 20145 January, 2014 by Cynthia

I don’t know about you, but I am always excited when I see interesting and fun celebrity collaborations. When I first heard that Carrie Underwood would be teaming up with Nicole by OPI, I was thrilled because I looooove her. I can’t say that I’m still an American Idol fan, but I still remember when she won her season and how awesome I thought it was. Now that she because a huge superstar in her own right, I’ve continued to follow her and her music despite the fact that I’m not a typical country music fan. As soon as I received this collection, I set out to swatch it because I was so excited. Let’s take a look at my swatches for the Carrie Underwood for Nicole by OPI Collection, and then I will share my thoughts with you.

Love My Pups
Let’s “paws” for this adorably sweet pink

Carnival Cotton Candy
This spun sugar pink is all about fun

Color Me Country
This soul-ful hot pink makes me want to sing

Some Hearts
You can’t beat this romantic coral dream

Sweet Daisy
A bouquet of southern peach blossoms

Southern Charm
Frankly my dear, this nude shade looks charming on you

American as Apple Pie
Tradition runs deep in this classic red

Goodbye Shoes
Hit the road, but leave me this standalone gray-green

Fisher Queen
I’m hooked on this deep, deep eggplant

Lips are Dripping Honey
This multi-gold glitter is sweet on you

Backstage Pass
I want access to this brown with purple nuances

Party Bus
Celebrate on-the-go with this party-perfect confetti glitter

Sing You Like a Bee
Put some of this frosty ice on that, honey!

Carrie’d Away
Carrie’s own gold record signature shade

Wow, that was a lot of swatching! This 14 piece collection is composed of 8 cremes, 4 glitters and 2 shimmers. All of those crèmes made my heart happy! The two best crèmes—formula-wise—are American As Apple Pie and Goodbye Shoes. American As Apple Pie is one of those perfect one coat reds that I can always appreciate. The 6 other crèmes were nice, but I did find that they required a little more work because they all applied streaky on the first coat. I left plenty of dry time in between coats so that I could eliminate and dragging which unfortunately creates bald spots. I just love pink polish so I was so excited with all the pink here. The light pink nudeish shade, I Love My Pups, will require multiple coats and you may still have some visible nail line. Despite this, the color is very crisp and lady-like so I’m diggin’ it.

The two shimmer shares (Bastage Pass and Fisher Queen) are great dark and vampy colors. At first I felt the formula was lacking pigmentation, but the second coat evened out my polish perfectly. I think these shades are super welcome in this collection because of the sugary sweetness of most of the crèmes. We all need some variety…amirite?

The four glitters include two glitter toppers that I quite liked. I wouldn’t say that Lips Are Dripping Honey is revolutionary, but boy did I love how it looked. In fact, it’s my favorite glitter from this collection. Party bus is cute but I’m always cautious about big glitter. I didn’t notice any curling with the bigger flower-shaped glitters and I left this on for a day. I may have to try it out again because I suspect it might curl a bit. The two other glitters are somewhere between fine micro-glitters and texture polishes. I didn’t think that they were quite as rough-feeling as most texture polishes out there but they still had that sandy look to them and they dried fairly satin-y and matte. Carrie’d Away, in particular, is super sparkly. Even though I’m not a fan of gold polishes (I’m looking at you, Gold Master V!), Carrie’d Away is so bright and sparkly that I know I’ll be using it again. The one thing I didn’t like about these last two polishes is that the glitter gets into every nook and cranny. I used pure acetone to remove these polishes and I still had glitter embedded in my cuticles, under my nails, up my arms, in my nose…ok, maybe not in my nose but you get the picture.

Overall, I really like this collection. If you’re like me (or like Lesley), you’ll probably want these bad because they are Carrie Underwood polishes. While the colors aren’t something groundbreaking, you get a nice variety of colors and finishes. I’m not going to lie: I love that this collection has 8 cremes. I love crèmes. I have always loved crèmes and I always will. My favorites are: Goodbye Shoes, Carnival Cotton Candy, Color Me Country, Backstage Pass, Fisher Queen and Lips Are Dripping Honey. So now that I have rambled on and on, what do YOU think about these? Thank so much for the visit, and we’ll talk soon!

From Nicole by OPI

Nicole by OPI formulas are long-lasting, fast-drying, and salon-quality. This limited edition collection will be in newly designed bottles featuring the NEW Nicole logo. These shades will be available January 2014 for $7.99 each at retailers including select CVS, Duane Reade, HEB, Kroger, Kmart, Ulta, Walmart, Fred Meyer, Meijer, and Harmon locations. In Canada, these shades will be available for $10.99 each at Shoppers Drug Mart, Target Canada, Walmart Canada, Jean Coutu, London Drug, and Loblaws. For more information, visit nicolebyopi.com. Follow Nicole by OPI on Twitter @NicoleByOPI and become a Facebook fan!

Sephora by OPI I’m So Sari!

Posted on 4 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Oh man, I am so tired right now. Today we had a little party for my brother since he turned 24 a couple of days ago so there was a lot going on. Holy crap, we are getting old. It was really fun, and I had a great time with some family and friends. I didn’t get enough sleep last night because I was up until 2 am finishing up my swatches of the Carrie Underwood polishes, so now I’m paying for it. Since I have been swatching so much in the last week, my nails took a real bad beating, and I could tell that one nail wanted to break. I don’t know if anyone else has experienced this, but any time I use non-acetone remover, I feel like my hands and nails get really messed up. I never have a problem with just regular acetone which I would think would be the complete opposite. Anyway, after I finished swatching the 14 polishes, I filed my nails way down. I fee so much better because my nails were getting way too long for my own comfort. I have a couple of posts with my longer nails and then you’ll be seeing my new nubs. They’re not completely nubbinized, but I did take off some decent length. Today’s polish is also from my untrieds (yay!): Sephora by OPI I’m So Sari! Let me take a moment here and bless the polish Gods for such a glorious creation.

This beautiful glitter concoction is just so breathtaking that my photos don’t manage to do it justice. I didn’t think much of it when I bought it at Sephora, so it had been sitting in my melmers for quite a while. When I swatched Sephora by OPI Slushied, I figured that I might as well try out I’m So Sari! on top of it, and that is how this beautiful mani was born. I’m So Sari! is a pretty dense glitter which you can definitely wear on its own, but by layering it on top of a blue, I only needed one coat. It has a foil-like quality to it, but those holographic glitters really kick it up a notch.

Well, what do you think of this? I’m really loving it and will definitely be wearing it in the future. I have a bunch of stuff to share with you guys, but I think I will wait because I’m tired and should be going to bed since I work at 6 am tomorrow. Just typing that out made me cringe. Anyway, I hope that you’re enjoying your weekend, and we’ll talk soon.

Sephora by OPI Slushied

Posted on 3 January, 20142 January, 2014 by Cynthia

I’m wondering how long it’s going to take me to write 2014 every time I date something. Apparently, today I couldn’t even remember that it’s January so I was typing February on a whole bunch of orders and stuff at work. I’m an idiot, but I least I caught myself before causing all these accounting nightmares. I’m feeling pretty good about myself right now since I am continuing the trend of swatching from my untried stash so I hope that I can keep this going despite all the new Spring collections that are bound to start popping up any day now. Sweet Baby Jesus, please help me resist temptation with your sparkling eyes and wondrous curls. When I was putting some polishes away, I looked at my melmer drawer that houses all of my Sephora by OPI polishes, and I realized that I haven’t swatched even half of my stash so I picked this one up because I had recently swatched another beautiful blue. Let’s take a look at Sephora by OPI Slushied.

Ah, Slushied! You had so much promise. I swooned when I saw swatches online, and I refused to read anything negative about you. You were so pretty, bright and delectable. When Sephora started slashing prices on their now discontinued SOPI line, I jumped at the chance to get a few colors that I had missed out on. Sephora by OPI Slushied really is a great color, but the formula leaves a lot to be desired: it is thin, runny and streaky. Oh, how you wound my heart Slushied! I had to apply 4 thin coats to get even coverage so I know most of you are already thinking, “Ain’t nobody got time for that!” Sadly, I agree. Since I had swatched OPI No Room For the Blues earlier in the week, I felt that these could be dupes so I confronted them, bottle to bottle in a battle of the dupes.

Are they dupes?

Can you tell which is which? Don’t cheat.

It might be difficult to tell from my pictures, but these are not 100% dupes although they are amazingly close. Slushied is slightly more green leaning and is a little darker. No Room For The Blues is a tad lighter and more crisp. In this battle of the dupes, No Room For The Blues comes out the winner because of its superior formula and because you are more likely to be able to find it. I like both colors but sometimes you just don’t want to deal with a shitty formula, you know?

So what do you think? Are these blues calling your name? Are you sad that the SOPI brand is no more? To be honest, I am a little sad because I remember how I went bananas for Metro Chic when it first came out. Ahhh…polish memories. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Formula X Hyped

Posted on 2 January, 20142 January, 2014 by Cynthia

I read a lot of nail blogs. Despite having my own blog, I still read all the blogs that lured me into this world of nail fanatics and continue to find new ones that I enjoy. One of the blogs that I read religiously is The Polishaholic because I just love her pictures and she has a great variety of mainstream and indie brands. When I saw her post on the Sephora Formula X polishes, I nearly lost my mind. Formula X Hyped just jumped out at me, and I was obsessed with getting my hands on it until I actually found it at my Sephora. It was so hard not to grab all the polishes, but I knew that Hyped was the one that would give my psychotic mind some peace so it came home with me.

Holy crap this polish is everything I hoped it would be.This neon purple/magenta polish has some gorgeous blue shimmer in it that makes it come alive in the sun. Since it is a neon, it dries very dull so a shiny top coat is a must! One thing I did notice is that it was streaky and applied unevenly. I think that neons tend to do this in general so I wasn’t that surprised. I ended up applying 3 thin coats for full coverage, but I think two thick coats should be enough.

Have you tried any of the new Formula X polishes? I picked up 3 during my last Sephora trip, and this one is definitely the belle of the ball. You can purchase this polish for $10.50 for a .4 oz bottle. Personally, I think the prices are a little high so I probably won’t be buying too many of these unless I positively can’t live another second without the color. So in Cynthia logic, that means I will be getting one of each. Ah well, we can’t all have solid will power, right? Anyway, I hope you liked this baby as much as I did. Thanks so much for the visit, and I will talk to you soon.

Kiko 402 Jewel Pink

Posted on 1 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Hey, it’s 2014! If you’re reading this, you surely survived any kind of NYE debauchery so I’m glad for that. If you read last night’s post, then you know I had a calm and uneventful NYE and I am thankful for that because it was just what I needed to really start 2014 off on the right foot. This morning I woke up strangely excited about my blog like I couldn’t wait to swatch some polishes and start working on posts. This is something that I’m really happy about because to be honest, for the last month or so, I was feeling like I was losing interest in maintaining this blog. I still had a major boner for polish, but I wasn’t sure that I wanted to keep committing so much time and effort to blogging. Well, I’m glad those feelings went away and that I am once again feeling excited about writing up posts. I don’t know if this is normal for all bloggers, but I tend to go through this maybe 3 times a year and I think that the best thing to do at that time is maybe take a little break to just rest and not worry about your blogging schedule or anything else that you feel pressured about. I’m glad that I wasn’t that active in December because now I feel better about everything.

Today I was looking through my melmers (again) and I decided to try out a gorgeous holo. I remember that when I first started getting hardcore interested in nail polish (sometime around 2010), I knew nothing about different finishes and basically only used creme polishes. When I started my blog at the end of 2011, I had already been educated by various nail blogs so I knew about the existence of holographic polishes and I lamented the fact that there weren’t many viable options for affordable holos. Fast forward a year and EVERYBODY and their grandma was making holographic polishes…linear holographic polishes. The holo polish that I have for you today is Kiko 402 Jewel Pink so let’s take a closer look at it.

As far as holos go, this one is pretty darn great. The formula is really nice in that it applies smoothly and is very easy to control. I did notice that you can create bald spots if you don’t allow for enough dry time between coats, but otherwise it’s a great polish. Since the formula is so opaque, you could almost get away with one coat if you are careful with your application. The one thing that I didn’t like is that it dries very dull…even more dull than other holo polishes. I have learned that some holo polishes lose some of the strong holo effect if you top coat them, but thankfully that is not the case here.

Sometimes I hate posting polishes that I know will be difficult to get for most of you, but this is just so pretty that I couldn’t stop myself. Kiko is an Italian brand that can be found in a few countries in Europe, but unfortunately we don’t have easy access to them here in the states. Woe is me. I’m not sure how readily available this polish is since it does come from the Limited Edition Lavish Oriental Collection from 2012 so don’t hate me if you really want this. Anywho, I hope you’re having a nice day and aren’t suffering the horrible effects of too much alcohol from the night before. Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!