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Year: 2015

Of Life and Lacquer > 2015

Vintage Polish: China Glaze In The Mood

Posted on 3 July, 2015 by Cynthia

Heyyyyyyyyyyyyyy! Are you off today? I am and I thoroughly enjoyed sleeping in until 10 am. I can honestly say that it felt glorious, and I wish I could sleep in every day. I ended up going to my nail places to see if they had any new stuff, but the trip was a bust because they had nothing that I wanted. To top it all off, traffic was insane so it took me an hour to even get out there even though it normally takes 15 minutes. I hate traffic. Anyway, today I was browsing on IG and I came across a post from Nichole and she was sharing an old Wet n Wild nail polish under the tag #vintagepolishfriday You know that I’m going to just right on this vintage polish train because as a nail polish ~~hoarder~~ collector, I get excited when I see older bottles of nail polish. Let me show you the polish I decided to wear for my very first #vintagepolishfriday

I wish I knew more about this line of polishes, but information is super sketchy online. It appears that the Chine Glaze In The Mood Collection was originally released in 2001 but there were subsequent releases. Unfortunately, the polish is not labeled and does not have a name so there isn’t really a way to track this down. Since the polish is so old, the color changing properties are pretty much nil so it no longer changes color in the sun. One thing that I did not notice from looking at the bottle is that it has a gorgeous gold shimmer that is only visible in direct sunlight. If you don’t like the smell of old polishes, this one will probably kill you because it stinks like polish chemicals of yore. I guess I’m weird because I really love the smell of older polishes. The formula was super thin too so I had to apply 3 coats for full opacity. This is not really a polish I would wear again just because it’s finicky and I have other pinks that are much easier to work with. For me, this is more of a collector’s polish and I am happy to have it in my stash.

So what have you been up to lately? I’m going to get all the shopping done for tomorrow’s BBQ tonight and hopefully I have time to do a 4ht of July mani. I did attempt to do one last night but it was a disasticure since I had a few (a lot) of beers at the same time–yeah, don’t ask. I hope that I can do a vintage polish post here and there because it’s always fun to see some of the oldies we have in our stashes. Don’t forget to check out Nichole’s IG–I love her swatches and nail shape so you won’t be disappointed. Anyway, I hope you’re doing well today and thanks for stopping by today.

Illamasqua Ouija

Posted on 29 June, 201528 June, 2015 by Cynthia

This past weekend, I basically did nothing. I did not get out of my pj’s all day on Saturday and on Sunday I went out to do some errands, washed my car, did my laundry and basically nothing else got done. It felt pretty amazing. I don’t know about you, but I am such a freaking homebody. It’s starting to get toasty outside, so the last thing I want to do is be running around outside. I’m thinking of starting out my work out routine slowly by going for a brisk walk each morning before going to work but you know me and my hatred for waking up early so let’s see how that one goes. I also did not get a bunch of posts done. I did my nails. I took the pictures. I uploaded the to my computer. And that’s where it all ended. I fail so bad at blogging as of late, but I’ll just have to deal with it and do what I feel like doing…when I feel like doing it. So, instead of working on other blog posts, I decided to just pull out one of my unused Illamasquas while I watched Bloodsport. (Don’t ask.) When I took Illamasqua Ouija out of the bottle, I was not that excited but that soon changed once I applied it.

Isn’t she pretty? And no, it does not have flakies…it’s just the holo reflection on the bottle from my sparkly background.

The first thing I want to say is that the formula on this polish is like out of this world phenomenal. It is so full of shimmer that it has an almost sandy consistency so it applies very precisely with zero flooding. Since it is thick, it is very pigmented and you can almost get away with one coat. I know that this type of pink isn’t for everyone, but you know I love pink in any incarnation so this one gets a good review from me. When I bought this polish, I did not realize that it’s kind of a glow in the dark type polish–it looks all glowy under black light so I guess I can wear it the next time I go clubbing or go to a rave…so basically never. I find this a little gimmicky, but it’s a beautiful polish nonetheless.

So what did you accomplish this past weekend?? If you’re in the US, are you already planning something for the long weekend? I have a 4 day week, so I’m pretty excited about that. I’m not sure what I’ll be doing yet but I’m sure it will involve some bbq and probably fireworks. Anyway, I hope your Monday goes well! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Stamping Saturdays #60

Posted on 27 June, 2015 by Cynthia

Look at me participating in Stamping Saturdays again! I find it a little funny that I am in such a good mood today because I had such a rotten June. In fact, despite the really crappy start to my month, I’m going out on a positive note because so many positive things are waiting for me right around the corner. I really hope July is a much better month! Anyway, today I wanted to use the mani I’ve been wearing for a couple of days because I couldn’t bare to remove it. I know some of you may hate seeing polishes that you can’t get, but can you begrudge me for wanting to showcase this pretty?Since Ninja Polish is back, I figured I might as well use one of my favorite polishes from their line: Mystic Glacier. Isn’t just breathtaking?

It’s very difficult to capture the amazing color shift in this polish, but I think these pictures give you a good sense of how majestic this polish is. I got some new lighting, and I’m still struggling with figuring out the best settings on my camera so excuse these sort of weird pictures. I freaking love houndstooth, so I decided to use the houndstooth image from Bundle Monster plate BM-322 and used Mentality Black Opaque for the stamping polish. Pretty, eh?

Currently I’m engrossed in watching Sense8 on Netflix. Have you checked out this new show? It’s freaking amazing! I’m just sorry that it’s only 12 episodes long. Well, I hope that you’re having a great weekend so far. I’m looking forward to a short week for the 4th of July long weekend. Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

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Winner Announced – OPI Hawaii Collection

Posted on 24 June, 2015 by Cynthia

So I’m a major turd and it has taken me forever to actually announce a winner for my last giveaway. I don’t have any excuses besides just life getting in the way, but I really should have done this a long time ago. The winner of the entire OPI Hawaii Collection is…
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Congratulations, Andrea! I have sent her an email and am just waiting on her response. Thank you all for entering and for being patient. I really want to get back into regular blogging but it’s proving very hard to get back into the swing of things. Thank you for continuing to stop by, for commenting, for your sweet messages/emails. Even though I’m not always around, I always appreciate every single one of you. Thank you!

Stamping Saturdays #59

Posted on 20 June, 201520 June, 2015 by Cynthia

I fell like it’s been forever and a half since I did one of my Stamping Saturdays post–almost 4 months to be exact! I know I’ve been pretty bad about blogging this whole year actually, but I just have become kind of apathetic about stuff. I want to want to blog again, but I just feel so tired and lethargic most of the time. We are pretty much halfway through the year and I need to get my butt in gear and make myself feel better physically. Yeah…I know I talk about this all the time, but I think that I’ve finally reached the point of no return–I am sick of feeling sick. Let’s see what this moment brings about! Today I wanted to share with you a mani that I did a while back but never got around to posting on my blog. I started off with my favorite Color Club Halo Hues shade of all time: Eternal Beauty.This is seriously the most gorgeous purple holo that I own. Not only is the formula pure perfection, but it just looks like my purple dreams come true.

I dosn’t normally like to stamp over holo polishes, but I think this ended up looking pretty awesome. I used Mentality Black Opaque to stamp this flower image from CHEEKY plate CH44.

So whaddayathink? I really loved this mani, and I got so many compliments from random people. I honestly don’t think that we will ever get tired of holo polishes, right? Well, I hope that you like this mani as much as me. Don’t forget to check out the other stamped manis from the ladies below. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

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OPI Infinite Shine First Impression

Posted on 18 June, 2015 by Cynthia

I’ve had a really sucky June so far so excuse me for not being around much. Instead of posting sad and depressing stuff, I just decided to lay low and come back when things were looking better. I’m glad that things are getting back to normal so I figured that I should get back to a more regular posting schedule. I really do miss posting all my nail shenanigans and interacting with all of you, so I hope that I can commit to a consistent schedule. For today’s post, I have my initial review of the OPI Infinite Shine system. I can tell you that I am not the target demographic when it comes to long-lasting nail polish because I change my polish 3-4 times a week sometimes. I am extremely hard on my nails so every time I try “long-lasting” polish, I’m like..

Well, how do you think this lived up to the claim of 10-day wear? Let’s find out!

To start with, the OPI Infinite Shine system includes a primer/base coat, the polish and the gloss top coat. So basically this is just like regular polish except that this system is supposed to give you gel-like results and wear without having to cure the polish in a lamp. To be honest, I did not have any issues with these products but I have heard of people reporting bubbling. I applied one coat of the primer, 2 thin coats of the polish and 1 coat of the gloss. I remember reading Karen’s review about this line and how she suggested that you get some sun/uv rays on your fresh mani to make it harden quicker so I ended up following her tip. The polish felt sticky even 5 hours application which seemed weird, but it was dry because I did not get any smudges. Let me show you what my fresh mani looked like.The shade I decided to try out first is called Grapely Admired; and you know I love it. It’s such a gorgeous purple/pink–totally up my alley. Are you noticing the weird crinkled/wrinkled look of my manicure? Yeah–I’m not happy about that. I don’t know why it looked like that. Maybe I should have loaded up my brush a little more with the gloss so I could glide it over the polish. Maybe my application sucked…I can’t be sure what’s going on here. Next I’m going to show you what my manicure looked like 6 days later.

Ugh, that growth drives me insane! My nails tend to grow really quickly so I don’t normally wear nail polish this long to avoid that huge gap. After 6 days, I think my manicure is a little less glossy and is showing some tip wear but no major chips. I am actually really surprised by how well this wore because, as I mentioned earlier, I am very hard on my nails. When I took this off, I used my regular acetone and it came off just like regular polish–sweet!

So what do I think overall? This is a pretty nice system, and I was definitely pleased with the performance. By day 6, normal polish is barely hanging onto my nails so I think that this would work out great for me in situations where I would need a week out of my manicure. OPI Infinite Shine Gel Effects Lacquer System is available at Professional Salons, including Beauty Brands, beautybrands.com, Chatters, Dillard’s, Regis, ULTA and ulta.com for $12.50 suggested retail for each nail lacquer. Now it’s up to you to decide if you want to give this a shot. Let me know if you’ve used this system before and how it worked out for you–I’m very curious to hear what others thought of this line. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Kiara Sky Hidden Garden Collection

Posted on 8 June, 20157 June, 2015 by Cynthia

How’s your Monday going? I hope all is well and that you’re having a good start to the week–and month! I have had a pretty busy start to this month so I am once again apologizing for my lack of posting. I am *almost* caught up with my swatch pile so it feels good to almost be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. However, I have a bunch of new stuff coming in so that swatch pile is about to grow…big time. Lately I have been thinking about how in the world certain bloggers are able to do massive reviews every day for extended periods of time because I would go bonkers. Chapeau my dear blogger friends, chapeau! Today I have a new collection to share with you from a relatively new brand. The Kiara Sky Hidden Garden Collection is made up of 6 shades and 1 glitter topper so let me show you my swatches before I tell you what I think of this collection.

Kiara Sky Posh Escape

Kiara Sky Pink Petal

Kiara Sky Roses Are Red

Kiara Sky In Bloom

Kiara Sky I Like You A Lily

Kiara Sky Have A Grape Nite

Kiara Sky Masterpiece

First things first: these colors do not make a cohesive collection. They basically give me the impression that random colors from random seasons were lumped together and left me wondering what they were trying to go for. However, the individual polishes are nice…really nice. If you’ve never tried Kiara Sky before, I can tell you that the make the most amazing cremes: perfect consistency and opacity. 4 of the 7 polishes here are cremes so I was very pleased with all 4. There were 2 shimmers that also applied nicely, but Pink Petal is a little too frosty for my liking. The glitter is really nice–it will look great over many different colors but it has a pretty thick formula that dried way to quickly so you can’t overwork it or else you’ll have a gummy mess. Overall, I would have liked to see a collection of colors that made sense to me, but individually, I enjoyed these polishes. If you have a chance to try their polishes out, I think that you will not be disappointed.

Anyway, I hope you’re doing well. Currently I’m without my car (since last Thursday) because apparently my transmission is messed up. I took it to my local mechanic who didn’t even want to mess with it and told me to just take it to the dealership. Since I got my car about 2 years ago and it has such low mileage, the repair is covered under my warranty but I’m pissed. I mean, I’m glad it’s under warranty and all but not having a car sucks. This morning I’ll be taking the bus to work so I have to leave my house right before 7 am even though I don’t start work until almost 9 am. I swear public transportation in California is pitiful. Supposedly I’ll have my car by Tuesday at the earliest so I’m getting read for 2 days on the bus. I used to take the bus a lot when I was a kid and during my first semester in college because I didn’t have a car yet so I know how crazy the bus can be. I actually always end up meeting interesting characters on board so I may have some entertaining stories in the next couple of days. So wish me luck in getting my car back soon and that it doesn’t break down on me again because that would really suck. Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Cirque Colors Metropolis Collection June 2015

Posted on 1 June, 201531 May, 2015 by Cynthia

Can you believe that today is the first day of June? Where does time fly? I’m kind of freaking out thinking that we are almost halfway through 2015 and we are entering my most hated season of the year: Summer. Don’t get me wrong, I like Summer colors, I just don’t like the heat and we sure get plenty of that here in Southern California. Lately it has been uncharacteristically cool so of course I’m getting ready for the heat to punch us in the face any day now. Terrible heat + massive drought + wildfires = rough times ahead for California. All I can hope is that we get some rain before Summer really starts. So besides impending Summer doom, I’ve been pretty busy and bogged down with stuff so once again my blogging is suffering. I’m really going to try to set up a schedule that makes sense for me because I hate feeling so flaky. For today’s post, I have the 2 new shades for June’s Cirque Colors Metropolis Collection. Every month I anxiously await the release of these babies, so I can’t wait to show them to you!

Was there any doubt that I would go gaga for Cirque Colors Nolita Lolita? This is a truly gorgeous pink, right? The formula was ok. I felt that it applied somewhat unevenly so I recommend two thin coats and one thicker third coat.

Cirque Colors Golightly is a beautiful dusty blue with a fantastic formula. This one was almost a one-coater so you know it made me happy. Breakfast at Tiffany’s is one of my favorite movies so I really enjoyed the character reference.

Well, lucky for you, these polishes are available now! You can head over to Cirque’s website to order these beauties if you’re interested in picking them up. I also wanted to let you guys know that there will be no more releases for The Metropolis Collection until September (sadness for July and August!). So what do you think about these shades? Will you be getting any of them? Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Essie Peach Side Babe Collection Summer 2015

Posted on 27 May, 201526 May, 2015 by Cynthia

Whaaaat? Another Essie collection? Yes, there are two summer collections from Essie! Aren’t we lucky? (No, that was not sarcasm!) Coming off the ~~neons~~ brights from the previous collection, you might feel a little underwhelmed. Well, let me tell ya that while the colors may not be as bright, but they can still blow your socks off…or not. The Essie Peach Side Babe Collection for Summer 2015 is a collection of rather tame colors. I found myself not getting too excited as I sat down to swatch these, but I was pleasantly surprised by a few of the shade. Let me show you what I’m talking about.

I nearly had an aneurysm when I first laid eyes on Essie Private Weekend. In the bottle it looks like a gorgeous white with freaking sparkle. Yes, I went all googly eyed…until I put it on. Let me tell you that I didn’t find the formula that atrocious..it was no Zoya Genesis. While the first coat was super uneven, I found that three coats was enough to get it looking good. The tragic part about this polish is that the sparkle pretty much disappear on the nail. So sad.

I am really really liking Essie Chillato. What is a chillato? It sounds like clamato to me but when I wore this is reminded me of eating a huge cone of pistachio gelato as I walked the streets of Florence. The formula on this one was pretty typical of light colors like this: thin and patchy but it easily built up opacity with three coats.

Ahhh…my love of blues continue with Essie Salt Water Happy. Be warned that my camera makes this look a little more vibrant than it actually is. It’s a little less blue than what you see here, but it’s still gorgeous and it has a great formula–2 easy coats is what I am wearing above.

Look! Another beautiful blue. Essie Pret-a-Surfer should have been this collection’s namesake because it really steals the show. This one easily has the best formula of the entire collection–you could almost get away with one coat if you’re application is precise. Even better, there was no crazy staining. Score!

I don’t think peach colors look so hot on me, so Essie Peach Side Babe is definitely not one of my favorites. I lost my notes on application on this one, but I would remember if it was atrocious. I am pretty sure this was two coats.

And lastly we have Essie Sunset Sneaks. This one surprised me a bit because I am kind of an orange-red hater (omg, I remember how much i hated that color in my Crayola box!!!), but I actually really ended up liking this. The formula was ok on this one so no real problems to report.

I feel like I should like this collection more. I feel like I should go to the gym too, but that ain’t happening. I am feeling a little uninspired by this collection because the color are so mundane. Maybe I should have reviewed this before the brights, because now I’m feeling almost let down by their blandness. There are a few colors that I really love like Chillato, Pret-a-Surfer and Salt Water Happy so those would be my main recommendations. I really wish Private Weekend had fulfilled it’s delightful bottle promise, but alas, it was not meant to be. Anyway, I’m curious to hear what your take is on this collection so let me know in the comments below. Thank so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Essie Summer Neons Collection 2015

Posted on 26 May, 201526 May, 2015 by Cynthia

Neons. Neeeons. NEEEEEEONNSSSS. Did anyone say neons? If you are like me, you pretty much live for neon polishes in every shade, every finish and every brand. I know that when Essie puts out a “neon” collection, it won’t really be neon but that doesn’t dissuade me from stalking my beauty supply. I know some of you get insulted by the lack of true neon colors, but let’s just make nice with Essie and realize that their neon = bright. If they were to put out a true neon collection, they would have to call them radioactive or something like that so until that happens, let’s just work with them…mmmkkk? The Essie Summer Neons Collection for 2015 is just what I was expecting: 6 bright polishes with a somewhat tricky formula. I’ve got to admit they’re kind of gorgeous, so let me show you these beauties.

First up is Essie Coacha’bella. This one is pretty, oh so pretty but oh so forgettable. The formula isn’t horrible–you just have to apply it precisely and not overwork it. I recommend two very thin coats–with adequate dry time in between coats–and a thicker third coat to level it all out.

Next we have Essie All Access Pass. This one was the one I knew would make me age 3 years just trying to capture the color accurately. My camera is super difficult when it comes to capturing these indigo/purple colors so I pretty much gave up after a few dozen pictures. The formula on this one is incredibly thin and sheer so I figured I’d need 50 coats to make it look good. Three coats is what it took so no biggie.

When I saw Essie Vibrant Vibes, I was afraid–very afraid. This type of color is notoriously difficult to work with so I said a little prayer to La Virgen de Guadalupe before I sat down to swatch this one. Well, it seems that my prayer worked because it really wasn’t horrible. Yes, it was super streaky after the first coat, but it looked fine after the third coat. I’m not gonna complain about that because 1) I didn’t apply white undies 2) It could be much, much worse.

I love me some bright blues, so Essie Make Some Noise is right up my alley. Out of the 6 polishes, Make Some Noise has the best formula. It’s super pigmented and opaque which means that it’s out of control gorgeous and also stains like a mofo. You can see what happened after I removed this polish over on instagram in case you’re curious. It was a blue massacre. Still, it’s pretty and only needs two coats for full opacity. If you want to avoid hella staining, wear a good base coat.

Essie Groove is in the Heart is a beautiful pink with a patchtastic formula. Patchtastic /pachˈtastik/ is a word in the Cynthia Polish Lexicon in case you were wondering. Colors like this make me look extra tan so please excuse the blatant darker skin picture–it’s still my hand…not some darker random stranger. This one required 3 coats as well and to be honest, I think this one was the hardest for me to work with. Still, it’s pink and pink is my color even when it’s baby pink so I’ll let it slide.

And lastly we have Essie Melody Maker. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. The formula on this one is really good, even for Essie. It’s the second two coater from this collection, but I didn’t get staining from this one like I did with Make Some Noise. Lesley and I were remarking that we probably have dupes for this one but we don’t care because we can NEVER get enough of these types of colors. The first couple of colors that came to mind are OCC Chlorophyl…

Sorry, I couldn’t help it. So, I was saying: OCC Chlorophyl and YSL Vert d’Orient are two polishes that are possible dupes. Do I care? Nope. It’s a sickness, I tell ya.

So what do you think about this collection? Personally I like it, I like it a lot. I’m happy that they do not require a white base because ain’t nobody got time for that. I know that the major complaint will be that these are not neon, so let’s just get that out of the way right now. The only neon in this whole collection is probably Vibrant Vibes and even that one didn’t require a white base. Despite the atrocious staining, I think Make Some Noise is my favorite one from the collection with Melody Maker coming in at a close second. I’ve heard that this collection is exclusive to Target (Essie’s post on IG), but that’s kinda weird, no? I got my set at an independent beauty supply so there’s that. I do wonder what the general reaction will be to this collection so please share your thoughts below. I hope you’re doing well today, and thanks a bunch for stopping by today. Talk to you soon!