Cynthia, Author at Of Life and Lacquer

Author: Cynthia

Of Life and Lacquer > Articles by: Cynthia

Nubar Berry Blue Crush

Posted on 23 March, 2014 by Cynthia

Hey, hay, hey! I’ve been dreading Monday and the start of another work week, but what choice do I have? We can’t all win the lottery, quit our jobs, buy a mansion and travel the world…is that my dream? Maybe. I keep wondering about those people who have jobs that they love and can’t wait to get into work. To me, they are as mythical as Unicorns. I want to be a Unicorn!!!!! Anywho, I’ve spent my day running errands, doing laundry and watching stuff on Netflix. I am still obsessed with The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo so I’ve been watching the extended 6 part version as it was aired on Swedish TV and it’s still kind of amazing. I hope that when Hollywood does the other two remakes they are just as great. Personally, I thought the first remake with Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig was very good so I have hope! Moving on to the polish, today I have something simple to show you: Nubar Berry Blue Crush from the Crushed Candy Collection. I really love these fun glitters so let me show you this beauty…

Like most swatches I’ve seen, I layered Berry Blue Crush over black because I love the effect. I wish Nubar was a little more visible because they put out some really great polishes, but I feel like not a lot of people know about them. This glitter was very easy to apply and the clear base wasn’t too thick as is sometimes the case with this kind of polishes.

Lately I’m being very diligent about my spending because I want to buy two things: a new laptop and a new camera. I know I shouldn’t just splurge right now, but I would like to get these two items so that I can work on all my blogging stuff. My blog sale has always gone well so thank you so much to all of you who have made purchases. All of the funds from that are basically going back into my blog so thanks for the support! Well, I hope that you’ve had a nice weekend. Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Stamping Saturdays #11

Posted on 22 March, 201422 March, 2014 by Cynthia

So I just want to preface this post by saying that I’m not really happy with today’s Stamping Saturdays offering. I think I did a sloppy job, and I go from thinking it isn’t too bad to actually hating it but I figure that I should post it anyway because not every manicure is going to be perfect. I’m feeling kind of blah today for a variety of reasons so I apologize for the lack of “pep” in this post. Let’s get right to it, shall we?

I started off with two coats of Nails Inc. Baker Street which is probably one of my favorite blues ever. This color is just so amazingly electric that I can never get enough of it.I always love to see the combination of a bright blue and Max Factor Fantasy Fire so I applied two thin coats over Baker Street.

Lastly, I used an image from Bundle Monster Plate BM 310 for my stamping design. I’ve used this image quite a few times because I love it, but I don’t think it quite works with this mani. I don’t know if it’s the color or something else, but I don’t like how this turned out. I think I’ve had a pretty good run of awesome stamping manis, so a dud was bound to happen, right?

While I was finishing up writing this post, I was watching Thelma & Louise and that final scene of their car flying off the cliff was so perfect! I love that movie! Last night I went to watch the movie Divergent and I was actually surprised that I enjoyed it. I wouldn’t say it’s a great movie, but I think it serves its purpose which is to entertain. I felt that the characters could have been a little more developed and I wanted to see more of Ashley Judd and Tony Goldwyn before they were killed…womp womp. Anywho, I’m looking forward to watching Noah next week. Are there any movies out right now that you can recommend? Let me know what you think of this week’s mani–I won’t be butt hurt if you tell me it sucks–haha! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

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OPI Spotlight On Glitter Collection

Posted on 20 March, 2014 by Cynthia

Ok, so I know I’m way behind on EVERYTHING lately, but I promise you that I have an excuse. I recently got a promotion, and my new position is kind of kicking my ass at the moment. I’m really grateful that my hard work did not go unnoticed, but there is a definite period of adjustment so right now I’m mentally and physically exhausted by the change. Even though I did a ton of swatching this past weekend, it’s been torture having the energy to actually write up a bunch of posts, but I’m trying! I’m trying to remain active on Facebook because I enjoy talking to all of you on there so join us on my Facebook Page if you want to chit chat

! Today I will be showing you the OPI Spotlight On Glitter Collection which I layered over some solid colors. I don’t have that much to say about glitters in general, but I will address a few things at the end–mainly the whole dupe thing. Let’s take a look at my swatches first.

OPI Blush Hour

OPI Chasing Rainbows over OPI Red Hot Rio

OPI Desperately Seeking Sequins over OPI Incognito In Sausalito

OPI I Reached My Gold! over OPI I Sao Paulo Over There

OPI Rose Of Light over OPI Don’t Bossa Nova Me Around

OPI You Pink Too Much over OPI Kiss Me I’m Brazilian

Before I say anything else, let me tell you that I absolutely adored Blush Hour. I think it looks amazing on it’s own and because I used the Glitter Off base coat, I did not have a hard time with removal. Now, for the bit about these being dupes of existing polishes: I can confirm this 100% with all the polishes, because I don’t have them all, but I do think that a few of them seem to be repromotes. For example, I Reached My Gold! seems to be When Monkey’s Fly–taco glitter and all. Chasing Rainbows looks a lot like Rainbow Connection and Desperately Seeking Sequins looks a lot like Which Is Witch? So I say that if you don’t already have dupes, these are really nice. However, I don’t like the idea that these may just be recycled polishes that were just renamed. If you see any other dupes, please let me know!

If you’re interested in any of these, Spotlight on Glitter by OPI nail lacquers will be available now at Professional Salons, including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, jcp Salons, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, ULTA and ulta.com for $9.00 ($10.95 CAN) suggested retail for each nail lacquer. For more information, please call 800-341-9999 or visit www.opi.com. Follow OPI on Twitter @OPI_PRODUCTS and become a Facebook fan!

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Zoya Magical Pixie Collection

Posted on 18 March, 201418 March, 2014 by Cynthia

One of the sucky parts about having to be at work at 5 am is that I never want to stay up past 8 or 9 pm which means that I miss all of my favorite shows. A few minutes ago, I finished watching last night’s episodes of The Following and The Blacklist. HOLY CRAPOLA!!! Tom’s true identity coming out shocked the hell out of me and then Claire is alive?! I nearly shit myself and now I have to wait a whole week to see what other information we get. Ughhh!!!! I’m so impatient. I’m currently watching Resurrection which is a new show that I’m liking–as if I needed more shows to add to my list. Anyway…today I have the Zoya Magical Pixie Collection to share with you so I hope you won’t groan because I’m sure you’ve seen a billion swatches of these already. I wasn’t planning on purchasing these because they looked like CHUNK city.

No, not that Chunk. Still, they appeared to be so chunky and thick that I figured I would hate them. Ultimately, I decided to give them a try and figured that they would be perfect for today’s Textured Tuesday which is organized by the lovely Amy from The Fancy Side. Let me share my swatches with you and then I’ll let you know what I really thought…

Zoya Cosmo

Zoya LuxZoya Vega

Soooo…I didn’t hate these. In fact, I think they are quite lovely. If you’re looking for the pretty and fine Pixie Dust finish, move along because they are really chunky and do feel considerably rougher than the Pixie Dusts. While the glitter is chunkier, I found the formula rather easy to control and the glitter does lay flat. Overall, I like these, but I must prefer the finer Pixie Dust formula. I used OPI’s Glitter Off Base Coat (review coming soon) so removal was a breeze, but I can imagine that these are a nightmare to remove on their own. You may also notice the new nail shape here! I’m still getting used to it and I think I filed them down a little too short, but I think that once I get a little more length going, I will really like the new shape.

I did put these up on my blog sale along with a crapton of other stuff so make sure that you stop by to check everything out…especially because I reduced the prices on so many things. Click here for my blog sale page. While you’re here, don’t forget to enter my giveaway for a mini set of the OPI Sheer Tints! The giveaway is open for a few more days so go enter now! Thanks a bunch for continuing to visit despite the sporadic posting. I hope you’re all doing well, and I will talk to you soon!

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Stamping Saturdays #10

Posted on 15 March, 2014 by Cynthia

Hey! Good Morning? I apparently no longer need sleep since I’ve been up for almost 24 hours straight so excuse me if I start acting like a lunatic…and I mean more than usual. And that’s as far as I got before I completely passed out. haha! I decided to just leave that bit in and continue this morning now that I’ve slept a few hours. Last night I ended up not having much time to think about what I wanted to do for today’s post because I was out so late. By the time I got back home, it was almost midnight, but I knew that I didn’t want to skip my beloved Stamping Saturdays. Sooo…I plopped myself down on the couch to start thinking about my mani and then I started catching up on Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, Law & Order…and before I knew it, it was almost 3 am. I did manage to do my mani during that time but it felt like it took me forever! Be warned that this post is picture heavy compared to most of my other posts. Let’s take a look at what I came up with.

I don’t usually purchase too many Finger Paints polishes, but lately I’ve noticed that they are putting out some really gorgeous shades. I first saw Finger Paints Gorgeous Graffiti on Yadi’s blog, Night Swatcher, and I knew I had to have it. I totally blame her for my Finger Paints lemmings. Gorgeous Graffiti reminded me of Sephora Formula X Hyped but for less than half the price. Hyped is a little more shimmery and vibrant, but I do think it’s a good dupe if price is a concern.

Because Gorgeous Graffiti dries matte, I applied a coat of Seche Vite to liven it up. I much prefer this shiny.

Because the blue shimmer wasn’t enough for me, I decided to apply one coat of Nubar Cotton Candy Crush to brighten my mani. Overkill? I really love this glitter topper!

For my stamping design, I decided to use the houndstooth design from my MoYou London Pro Collection 18 plate (press sample) because it is a full nail design but also allows the base polish to show through.

I’m a little on the fence about my final result. I think maybe the whole mani is too busy, but I do like the color combination. You can never go wrong with houndstooth! I love how crisp the design transferred which is due to the special black Konad polish and a great plate. I’ve been using these MoYou London plates regularly, and I absolutely love them!

So what do you think of this mani? Are you on the fence about it like me? I hope that your enjoying your weekend so far, and I will talk to you soon!

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Illamasqua Glitterati

Posted on 13 March, 2014 by Cynthia

I know I haven’t posted in like 3 days which is like eons for me because I’ve been trying to post regularly, but I’ve been so stressed out lately that all I want to do is sleep, sleep and sleep some more. I feel like a donkey for not being able to comment on the blogs I read on the regular and for not staying on top of responding to your comments here. I am now woefully behind on my swatching, and I think I must have about 30 polishes in line. Yep, 30. Among them are the OPI Glitters, the OPI Muppets Most Wanted, China Glaze Sea Goddess, Zoya Magical Pixies and a bunch of other random stuff. Just to let you know how sick I am, I think my nail place may have the Essie Wedding Collection so I may get those tomorrow. If they have any new China Glazes, I will probably get those too. Anyway, I’m just hanging on for dear life and relishing the idea of my upcoming weekend which will be full of sleep and lots of polish. Since my mood is so blah, I kept listening to MIKA’s Grace Kelly on a loop. I can never get enough of MIKA and his first album. Enjoy some MIKA:

The polish I have for you today was a gift from my lovely sister-in-law. Illamasqua. As a gift. Yep, she knows what’s up in polishland! Let’s take a look at Illamasqua Glitterati…

While the jelly base of Illamasqua Glitterati is pigmented enough to be worn on its own, I ended up applying it over Illamasqua Vice which I reviewed here. The base covers up the glitter a bit, but boy does this baby come alive in the sun. The glitter just sparkles and you may be tempted to stare at your nails even when you shouldn’t…like when you’re driving…down the freeway…in rush hour traffic. Anyway, this is a total win for me!

The last few days I have been falling asleep by 7:30 or 8:00 so it’s almost my pathetic bedtime. I won’t be able to stay up and watch Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal or Hell’s Kitchen but I’ll be sure to watch them this weekend at my leisure. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I hope you have a good Friday!

OPI Sheer Tints – Review & Giveaway

Posted on 10 March, 20149 March, 2014 by Cynthia

Happy Monday? Uhm, yeah…not so much. I’m kind of hating life right now because of daylight saving time and the whole missing an hour of sleep thing. Yeah, 1 hour is a big deal especially when you have to be at work at 5 am. It’s going to take me at least a week to get used to this so I’m probably going to be a grouchster until then. In the meantime, I have a new product to share with you: the OPI Sheer Tints. When I first saw the press release, I had no idea what these were. I googled some similar products and I sort of got an idea of what you might be able to do with a sheer tinted top coat such as these, but I still wanted to try them out on their own to start with.

I am not too impressed with these when worn on their own. They are very sheer so I applied 3 coats to achieve the above results. The consistency of these top coats is also a little difficult to work with–they feel very jelly-esque and tend to dry really quickly so they were very easy to overwork. I started out applying thick coats but thin coats worked a lot better.

This isn’t the most creative use of the OPI Sheer Tints, but I like how this looks. I applied one coat of these tinted top coats over a white base and also used them to do a dot design. If you want to see some cool ideas, check out what Nory from Fierce Makeup and Nails did with them so go check out her post here. The gradient that she did is really fun!

Now for the fun part! I purchased a set of minis so one of you will be getting this set to try out! In order to enter, use the rafflecopter widget below. As always, the giveaway is open worldwide to those 18 years or older. Please don’t enter if your country has strict customs regulations as I will not be responsible for confiscated prizes.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Overall, I think that I need to play around with these some more to see what other ways they can be used. What do you think? Have you used a similar product? Thanks so much for stopping by today, and good luck if you decide to enter the giveaway!

Stamping Saturdays #9

Posted on 8 March, 20148 March, 2014 by Cynthia

Hi there and happy Saturday to you! I have some exciting news to share, but I think I should wait until everything is 100% secure because you know the whole “don’t count your chickens before they’ve hatched” thing might blow up in my face. Still, it’s just a matter of some details being confirmed so I hope it all goes well–wish me luck! Last night I told myself that I should finish my mani for Stamping Saturdays early so I wouldn’t have to worry about posting it today, but of course I passed out early and didn’t get it all set up in advance. Silly me for thinking I could escape my procrastinator tendencies! What I decided to do is use a polish that I’ve loved since the day it came out: Ninja Polish Mystic Glacier.

Isn’t this just an amazing polish? It has an amazing depth and it just glows in a deliciously icy way. I find the formula a little thin, but it does build up nicely and is completely opaque with 3 coats.

For today’s design, I decided to use one of my new MoYou London plates (press sample) from the Sailor Collection.

I stamped this swirly wave design with my Konad white polish and I was pretty satisfied with the results. While the design is pretty large and covers most of the nail bed, I like how beautiful Mystic Glacier looks where it’s peeking out. I had no issues with the MoYou plate and the design transferred very well. I did use my Konad stamper, but I will continue to experiment with the more squishy stampers in the future.

So what do you think of this design? What about the awesome plate? I hope you’re having a good weekend…I’m gonna sorta celebrate tonight so I’m looking forward to that! Thanks for stopping by, and I will talk to you soon.

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MoYou London Pro Collection Plate 02

Posted on 6 March, 201415 March, 2014 by Cynthia

You guys know I love stamping, right? I hope that you have been following my Stamping Saturdays posts and that you’re also checking out my friend’s posts because we’re all doing this stamping thing together which has been really fun. I think that it pushes us to be more creative and come up with fun combinations of polishes and designs. Personally, I’ve done some of my favorite stamping ever during Stamping Saturdays so I hope that you’re liking it as well. MoYou London plates have been all the rage lately, and I’m excited to bring you a review of one of the MoYou London Pro Collection plates. I have a few others to share with you, but I wanted to start of with this one.

Isn’t this an awesome plate? The designs are really large so if you have wide nail beds like me, you won’t have to worry about the design being too narrow. I tried eight of the images from this plate below so you can see what they look like on the nail.

I think the stamping came out fairly decent in both of these attempts. Normally my stamping is a little more crisp, but I was using a different stamper which threw me off a bit. I ALWAYS use my Konad stampers, but this time I tried out the small stamper that came with these MoYou plates, and I had a hard time because the stamper was really slick and super squishy. I think that maybe if I roughen the stamper a bit, I won’t have so much trouble with it. Either way, I think the stamper is just a minor thing and maybe it’s just a matter of practice. The designs transferred really well onto the stamper and onto the nail so I have no complaints. The images are VERY large so this will work for a lot of different nail shapes and lengths.

Overall, I am very pleased with my first MoYou London plate! I can definitely see why so many people love these. I have a few more plates to show you in the coming weeks so stay tuned! I also wanted to mention that shipping was lightning fast–I got my plates in less than a week (from the UK to California) so that’s always a plus for us who hate to wait for long ship times. Have you tried any MoYou London stamping plates? Thank so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

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Illamasqua Vice

Posted on 4 March, 2014 by Cynthia

I’m kind of hating life right now for a variety of reasons, so I decided to wear a hot, Hot, HOT! nail polish to distract myself from the terrible ennui. After all the massive selling of polishes, I find myself going through my melmers on the regular trying to figure out what else I can get rid of. I also re-discover polishes I forgot I even had…and Illamasqua Vice is one I had totally forgotten. I actually don’t even recall purchasing it so I’m sure it was acquired during one of my many polish shopping binges. Let me show you how pretty this polish is.

Illamasqua Vice has that rubber finish that was all the rage a couple of years ago. It’s not quite matte and it’s not quite glossy so it looks a little off initially. The colors is this deep and vibrant cherry that feels a little thin and sheer but it builds up very nicely.

Since I can’t live without a gorgeous glossy finish, I applied a coat of my trusty Seche Vite to give it this beautiful shine (imagine me saying that in the Cutepolish voice).

So that’s my story for today. I hope that you’re having a better day than me, but hey…at least I don’t work tomorrow which means I don’t have to be up at the buttcrack of dawn. That makes me happy. Thanks for stopping by, and I will talk to you soon!