Category: Press Sample

Pure Ice Bling On The Holidays Collection

Pure Ice Bling On The Holidays Collection

PressSample

 

 

Normally, this is the time when I would start lamenting that tomorrow is Monday and that I have to go to work, but not today because I have Monday off. Woot! Now that Thanksgiving is behind us, I feel like I can now bring out the holiday decorations without thinking that it’s way too early. Can you believe that tomorrow we will be entering the final month of 2014?! This is both exciting and depressing at the same time because I realize that one more year has gone by and I am still stuck in a rut–but hey, at least I’m alive. Anywho, today I’m showing the new Pure Ice Bling On The Holidays Collection which is made up of 6 glitter toppers. I picked some random colors to pair them with to show that they aren’t just for the holidays, so let me show you what they look like.

 Pure Ice Bling On The Holidays 1Pure Ice Bling On The Holidays 2Pure Ice Bling On The Holidays

Pure Ice Feeling Ornamental 1Pure Ice Feeling Ornamental 2Pure Ice Feeling Ornamental

Pure Ice Gold Peppermints 1Pure Ice Gold Peppermints 2Pure Ice Gold Peppermints

Pure Ice Pure Icicles 1Pure Ice Pure Icicles 2Pure Ice Pure Icicles

Pure Ice Santa Marry Me 1Pure Ice Santa Marry Me 2Pure Ice Santa Marry Me

Pure Ice Winter Blues 1Pure Ice Winter Blues 2Pure Ice Winter Blues

I have to admit that I was a little underwhelmed when I saw this collection because they pretty much all looked the same to me, but I ended up really liking them. The thing about these polishes is that they can look incredibly different depending on what base color you use. Personally I really liked the outcome when I used a dark base–which is probably why Winter Blues is my favorite of them all. These polish are going to pretty much change your base color because the clear base is full of fine shimmer that gives your nails an icy look to them. And you know what the best part is? These retails for just under $2. Yep, you know I love me some expensive polish, but I am not a polish snob in the least. I love Pure Ice for their affordable and quality polish. If you want to get your hands on these, I recommend that you check your local Walmart. My Walmart is usually pretty well stocked when it comes to Pure Ice, but they do go fast. So what do you think about these shades? Will you be picking any of these up? Let me know what you think below. Thanks for the visit today, and I will talk to you soon.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving

Hey, how are you doing today? Since it was Thanksgiving here in the US yesterday, I hope all of my US readers had a very wonderful and Happy Thanksgiving. I know that there are many times when we complain (I complain a lot!) about work, finances, family, etc, but ultimately we are very fortunate. Sometimes I feel like I get bogged down by many things, and I just feel like I’m down in the pits. There are days when I sit here, wondering why the hell things have to be so hard and why my life resembles a Rube Goldberg machine of dysfunction. Lately I have been struggling a lot with my health issues so that tend to bring me down a lot. I had a blood test earlier in the week and I brought my a1c down two points in one month, so I know I am headed in the right direction, but I still have a long way to go before I know I am “good.” I think my biggest hurdle will be just getting back into exercising. I know that starting to exercise will help me immensley but since I’m usually feeling so physically and mentally exhausted, I have found it so incredibly hard to just get started. I am really hoping that this mini vacation I am taking right now (I’m off for 6 days!) will recharge me. Today I’m just being totally lazy and am waching tons of stuff on Netflix. I am currently obsessed with the 30 for 30 series on Netflix which is an ESPN series focusing on major athletes, teams and events.  I totally recommend this series! I also felt like doing my nails so I went back to a polish that broke my heart: Tom Ford Bitter Bitch.

Tom Ford Bitter Bitch 1Isn’t the bottle sexy? I have this thing about Tom Ford: I love him and I hate him. When I first got my hands on Bitter Bitch, I was excited because 1) It was Tom Ford 2) It was Tom Ford 3) Bitter Bitch. Enough said. Well, the polish ended up being a huge disappointment.

Tom Ford Bitter Bitch 2Tom Ford Bitter Bitch was a polish I had been obsessing over so when I finally got my hands on it, I was expecting it to be amazing. When you pay $30 for a bottle of polish (now $32), you want a good formula. Well, that did not happen here. The formula is super streaky. I had to apply 4 coats for it to be fully opaque and to cover up sheer bald spots. Despite my initial disappointment, I don’t regret purchasing it because it was one of those pure lust purchases and the color is just like melted dark chocolate on my nails.

Delush Polish Gilded Diva 1Since brown and gold is one of my favorite nail combinations, I applied one coat of Delush Polish Gilded Diva (press sample) over Bitter Bich and absolutely loved the results. I think Gilded Diva is such a beautiful gold polish and it’s such a unique combination of gold circle and hexes as well as blue and green glitter. I just love how all the colors pop against the dark base!

So what do you have planned for this long weekend? I’m not doing much except just hanging out. Tomorrow night I’m going to babysit my little Peanut so I’m looking forward to that. Well, I hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving and that you aren’t getting into too much shopping mayhem. Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Delush Polish The Nue Collection

Delush Polish The Nue Collection

PressSample

 

 

Let me tell you that I had a very interesting Sunday because the power went out at around 8ish in the morning and ended up not coming back on until like 7:30. It’s crazy how much we depend on electricity, right? Apparently the power company was upgrading some equipment and a notice had gone out last week, but I never got it. The power was supposed to be down from 8-4 but that wasn’t good enough so they tacked n another 3.5 hours just for shits and giggles. Ugh!!! Anyway, the one thing I learned was that I need to be better prepared with things like flashlights and candle in case there is ever a real emergency and the power is out for an extended period of time. I am glad that I got a lot of swatching done on Saturday because Sunday was pretty much lost. I went out to run some errand but considering it starts getting dark by 4:30, it was useless being home. So besides power outages, I do have some polish to share with you.  I am excited to be sharing these with you because this is the first time I try Delush Polish. Big shocker, right? I feel like there are so many amazing brands out there that I just haven’t had a chance to try so I can cross Delush off that list now. Delush Polish The Nue Collection is a collaboration between Delush and Nue Magazine which is a fashion-focused publication. When I first saw the colors, I have to admit I wasn’t that excited but once I started swatching them, it was like they came alive. Let me show you my swatches before I tell you what I think of them.

Delush Polish Eat Sleep Chic 1Delush Polish Eat Sleep Chic 2Delush Polish Eat Sleep Chic

Delush Polish Gilded Diva 1Delush Polish Gilded Diva 2Delush Polish Gilded Diva

Delush Polish Trendsetter 1Delush Polish Trendsetter 2Delush Polish Trendsetter

Delush Polish Nue Girl 1Delush Polish Nue Girl 2Delush Polish Nue Girl

Delush Polish Glam Squad 1Delush Polish Glam Squad 2Delush Polish Glam Squad

Delush Polish In Nude We Trust 1Delush Polish In Nude We Trust 2Delush Polish In Nude We Trust

Delush Polish Dotticure 1Delush Polish Dotticure 2Here I was just playing around with three of the shades for this dotticure. I love dots so I just went for it!

This being my first experience with Delush, I have to tell you that I loved the quality of the polishes. The formula on all of them was perfection. The only one that gave me a slight problem was Eat Sleep Chic because I got some slight bubbling, but that was totally my fault because I overworked it a bit. All of these polish have a satiny finish and I decided not to top coat them because I loved the finish.

The collection will be launching together with Delush’s Holidaze Winter Collection on Wednesday 26th November at Noon est time along with the Black Friday sales! Full sizes will be available individually for $8.95 each or save with ordering the entire collection at the discounted price of $48. Minis will be available in small quantities.

Are you ready for some Delush promotions?

– Free Shipping for all orders over $50 on DelushPolish.com No code required, applies to U.S. Domestic orders only. Runs from 11/26 -12/31

– Two Free Full Size Polishes with a $60+ Purchase! Just leave a note with your color choices in your order. Order must reach $60 total after all promotional codes have been applied, does not include shipping. All other scratch your heart out promotions are suspended during this time. Runs from 11/26 -12/1

– Free Snowflake Glitter! The first 50 orders will receive a small bag of snowflake glitters to be able to use with their winter nail art!

Don’t miss out on this collection and all the promos!  What do you think about this collection? Let me know in the comments what you think! Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Follow Delush Polish

WebsiteFacebookInstagramTwitter

The Beauty Buffs – Metallic

The Beauty Buffs – Metallic

I’ll be the first one to tell you that I am not really excited by metallics. I have never been a fan of metallic nail polishes, but when I got China Glaze I’d Melt For You (press sample) I knew that it would be perfect for this prompt. Today The Beauty Buffs bring you everything metallic. Of course I am showing you a metallic–or chrome–polish because this is a nail blog, after all…at least I think it is. Let me show you the polish before I get into the finer details.

China Glaze I'd Melt For You 1China Glaze I'd Melt For You 2First off, I would like to explain that my nails look weird because I did some damage to my nail beds with some overzealous buffing and filing a few weeks ago. I accidentally made some grooves on the sides of my nails so now they look kind of warped. It’s not normally this noticeable, but this polish is a metallic/chrome which means that it shows EVER SINGLE IMPERFECTION on you nails. In retrospect, this probably wasn’t the best polish choice but hey–my nails aren’t perfect and here is the proof. China Glaze I’d Melt For You (press sample) is one of the polishes from the Twinkle Holiday Collection that I will be reviewing soon. It’s a very opaque silver chrome

Born Pretty BP-13 1Born Pretty BP-13 2In order to jazz this up, I used a design from a new plate that I bought from Born Pretty. The design comes from plate BP-13. No you can really see how badly damaged my nail is because the stamp didn’t even transfer there. Boo! I am not going to buff it anymore and hopefully it will just grow out.

I should have had this post up early this morning but I was so tired last night that I literally passed out with my computer open on my bed. I woke up like 30 minutes late and barely got to work on time this morning–womp, womp. I was super happy to read your guys’ comments when I got home today so that made me want to post again and again and again. I have a few new collections to swatch so that’s going to keep me busy this weekend. Additionally, I have like 5 days off for Thanksgiving so that will give me a bunch of time to do nail stuff. I’m excited about that.

Anyway, thanks for stopping by today and don’t forget to check out all of the posts from my fellow Beauty Buffs below. Talk to you soon!

 

 

 

 Loading InLinkz ...
Zoya Wishes Collection Holiday 2014

Zoya Wishes Collection Holiday 2014

PressSample

 

 

Hi! How was your weekend? Mine was way too short as usual, so here I am lamenting the start of another work week. I didn’t manage to get through my swatching pile so now I’ll have to do a few polishes every night to catch up–at least that’s what I always say and then get too lazy. I did manage to swatch the Zoya Wishes Collection for Holiday/Winter 2014. I was so looking forward to this collection because last year’s collection was a total winner in my book. How did this year’s offering fare? Let’s find out.

Zoya PrimZoya Prim

Zoya HavenZoya Haven

Zoya WillaZoya Willa

Zoya ImogenZoya Imogen

Zoya NoriZoya Nori

Zoya TheaZoya Thea

Where to start? Well, it’s safe to say that I dislike this collection. It would be an understatement for me to say that I am OVER the super magical ultra super duper Pixie Dust formulation. They never dry down matte which is what I think would make them look a little more special. Thea and Nori are very pretty, but Imogen is kind of a snoozefest. Now for the other three…Prim, oh Prim! Metallic, frosty, brush strokes. Enough said. I didn’t care for Haven either because it’ kind of metallic as well, but it doesn’t show brustrokes like Prim. The color isn’t something that I’d go out of my way to wear again. Willa is a good basic black with a nice formula, but that’s about it. You guys know I really love Zoya, but this collection is just a miss for me with the exception of Thea and Nori. What do you guys think? Will you be picking up any of these shades? You can purchase these polishes for $9 each (or $10 for the Pixie Dusts) over at zoya.com. Thank you for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

 

 

LCN Sweet Serenity Collection Winter 2014

LCN Sweet Serenity Collection Winter 2014

PressSample

 

 

Wednesday down and two more days to go before the weekend is here again. Is it pathetic how much we look forward to our weekends? I am also looking forward to Halloween because it’s my nephew’s first Halloween, and I can’t wait to see him in his little costume. Guys, I just don’t know what to tell you today. I feel like all of the winter/holiday collection are letting me down with their sheer boringness. I don’t think boringness is a word but it’s fits perfectly in Cynthia World so let’s just use it, ok? Normally I completely adore everything that LCN puts out, but I just can’t say that about their latest collection. The LCN Sweet Serenity Collection for Winter 2014 is comprised of 4 shades that just don’t pique my interest, but let me show you what I’m talking about…

LCN Sweet Serenity 1LCN Sweet Serenity 2LCN Sweet Serenity

LCN Tender Lace 1LCN Tender Lace 2LCN Tender Lace

LCN We're Meant To Be 1LCN We're Meant To Be 2LCN We’re Meant To Be

LCN Delicious Me 1LCN Delicious Me 2LCN Delicious Me

 Is it just me? Am I not seeing something in this collection? I don’t find that the colors go well together and that brown just looks ghastly on me. The collection’s namesake polish also looks terrible on me and the color is just not something I would ever think of wearing again. It’s a shame because I like the soft matte finish–maybe if it was more pink? Tender Lace is really pretty but boy is it patchy–it needed 4 coats to even it out! The last color, Delicious Me, is nice and the formula was not problematic but it’s not that interesting. I’m sad about this collection–like super sad! It has definitely been an off year for winter/holiday collections and this one is no exception. What do you think about this collection? I am very interested in hearing what you think. Thanks for the visit today, and I will talk to you soon.

Faby Italian Nail Couture

Faby Italian Nail Couture

PressSample

 

 

For US lacqueristas, we tend to have all the major brands at our disposal so we don’t know what the ladies in other parts of the world go through to get certain brands. Well, today I have a new-to-the-US brand to share with you: Faby! Faby who? Well, let me share with you a little about Faby:

Faby is a high-quality, professional line of nail care products with over 175 brilliant, richly-pigmented colors that capture the essence of Italian style. But Faby offers more than just a manicure; wearing Faby is a color experience. With shades that are inspired by Italian culture, music, literature, cinema, and fairytales, and each with a story to tell, Faby nail lacquers are an expression of person style that encourage you to make a statement and live “La Bella Vita.”

How’s that for an introduction? I have to say I’m a little biased to ANYTHING Italian because I adore Italy, and it was basically my home away from home while I was living in France. Now, let me show you the three shades I got to try out:

Faby A Long Summer 1Faby A Long Summer 2Faby A Long Summer

Faby Faby Is My Best Friend! 1Faby Faby Is My Best Friend! 2Faby Faby Is My Best Friend!

Faby Jump On My Magic Carpet! 1Faby Jump On My Magic Carpet! 2Faby Jump On My Magic Carpet!

I am so glad that they sent me 3 cremes to try out because I think cremes are the litmus test for polish companies–if they can’t do cremes right, then I don’t know what to tell ya. Fortunately, all three polishes had a great formula. They were very opaque, creamy and easy to control. Even better, they did not need any top coat to have that amazingly shiny finish. While this trio of colors isn’t my favorite (I’m not a fan of orange and brown isn’t on my lust list), they definitely were a pleasure to work with. Here comes the but…the price. You guys know I’m not opposed to paying a lot for my nail polish (hello Tom Ford!), but I’m not a sucker either. These polishes retail for $18 each which I think is pretty steep.  You can read more about Faby and see the wide range of colors that they offer at fabyusa.com. I also wanted to mention that Faby is cruelty-free and 5-free which I know is important to many consumers.  Let me know what you think of these polishes! Thanks for the visit.

OPI Gwen Stefani Holiday Collection 2014

OPI Gwen Stefani Holiday Collection 2014

PressSample

 

 

I was catching up on episodes of The Voice, and I was getting in the move to write up my review for this collection since I was watching Gwen on the show. Does anyone else think she looks more amazing than ever? How does she not age? I remember being in high school and freaking the fuck out when their Tragic Kingdom album came out. I still listen to that album often–ahh, simpler times. Every time I start talking about holiday collections, it surprises the heck out of me that in a few days it’s going to be November. Where did the year go? My little nephew is going to be 1 year old in a couple of weeks–when did that happen??? Soooo….where to start with this massive collection? Before I even saw bottle shots, I knew that Gwen + holiday would mean a whole lotta red and I was not wrong. Before I start rambling, let me show you the 18 polishes that make up the OPI Gwen Stefani Holiday Collection.

OPI Fasion A Bow 1OPI Fasion A Bow 2OPI Fashion A Bow

OPI Cinnamon Sweet 1OPI Cinnamon Sweet 2OPI Cinnamon Sweet

OPI What's Your Point-settia 1OPI What's Your Point-settia 2OPI What’s Your Point-settia?

OPI Red Fingers And Mistletoes 1OPI Red Fingers And Mistletoes 2OPI Red Fingers And Mistletoes

OPI First Class Desires 1OPI First Class Desires 2OPI First Class Desires

OPI Sleigh Parking Only 1OPI Sleigh Parking Only 2OPI Sleigh Parking Only

OPI Just Be-claus 1OPI Just Be-claus 2OPI Just Be-claus

OPI Kiss Me-Or Elf! 1OPI Kiss Me-Or Elf! 2OPI Kiss Me-Or Elf!

OPI I Carol About You 1OPI I Carol About You 2OPI I Carol About You

OPI Christmas Gone Plaid 1OPI Christmas Gone Plaid 2OPI Christmas Gone Plaid

OPI In A Holidaze 1OPI In A Holidaze 2OPI In A Holidaze

OPI Love Is Hot And Coal 1OPI Love Is Hot And Coal 2OPI Love Is Hot And Coal

OPI Rollin' In Cashmere 1OPI Rollin' In Cashmere 2OPI Rollin’ In Cashmere

OPI Unfrost My Heart 1OPI Unfrost My Heart 2OPI Unfrost My Heart

OPI I'll Tinsel You In 1OPI I'll Tinsel You In 2OPI I’ll Tinsel You In

OPI Snow Globetrotter 1OPI Snow Globetrotter 2OPI Snow Globetrotter

OPI Comet In The Sky 1OPI Comet In The Sky 2OPI Comet In The Sky

OPI So Elegant 1OPI So Elegant 2OPI So Elegant

Swatching a collection this large can seem like a huge chore, but I actually got through it rather quickly because the formula on all of these polishes was superb. They all applied easily and of course the OPI brush is perfect for my nails–I just can’t rave enough about it. I am feeling conflicted here: while I love the formula and the colors are really nice, I am just left feeling flat. Is it too much red? I don’t know. I just keep thinking of how majestic the Skyfall collection was a couple of years ago and how this doesn’t even compare. There are a few shades like Red Fingers and Mistletoes, First Class Desires, Snow Globetrotter and Christmas Gone Plaid that I LOVE SO HARD, but the rest I can live without. I kept going back and forth between liking and HATING Rollin’ In Cashmere and I think I have settled with disliking it. The color just looks horrible on me, but I can see it working on other different skin tones. You already know that I hate I’ll Tinsel You In because it’s silver and a foil. Barf. I guess the good news here is that your wallet will thank you for passing on a lot of these shades. If you have plenty of reds, then you don’t necessarily need to pick them up from this collection.  Now I want to hear from you: what do you think about this collection? Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

KBShimmer Winter Collection 2014

KBShimmer Winter Collection 2014

PressSample

 

 

I woke up this morning, “jumped out of bed and put on my best suit. Got in my car and raced like a jet…” Oh, wait. That wasn’t my morning, that was Magic’s! Anyway, I did jump out of bed because I thought I was going to puke in my sleep. For the last couple of weeks, I have been getting used to new medication and my stomach is still rebelling so the bathroom has become my best buddy as of late. It is getting easier but sometimes it just hits me like a ton of bricks. I’ve been feeling blah since yesterday but it all exploded today. Let’s just move on to the polish before I really cross the TMI line…or did I do that already? So I am super excited to be showing you some of the polishes that are part of the KBShimmer Winter Collection for 2014. The collection  consists of 11 new polishes and 5 returning holiday shades. Let me show you the 8 that I chose as my favorites.

KBShimmer Snow WayKBShimmer Snow Way

KBShimmer Sugar Plum FaerieKBShimmer Sugar Plum Faerie

KBShimmer Turnip The BeetKBShimmer Turnip The Beet

KBShimmer Too Cold To HoldKBShimmer Too Cold To Hold

KBShimmer Dressed To GildKBShimmer Dressed To Gild

KBShimmer Fallen AngelKBShimmer Fallen Angle

KBShimmer Flake DanceKBShimmer Flake Dance

KBShimmer Deja Brew 1KBShimmer Deja Brew 2KBShimmer Deja Brew

Sweet baby Jesus on rollerskate–the textures! THE TEXTURES! How gorgeous are those textures? I was hoping that there would be a creme or two (red or green) to pick from just because KBShimmer makes the best cremes, but there were none. This whole collection scream holiday and is just so festive! I think that the only one that seemed a little out of place is Deja Brew BUT it’s pretty damn gorgeous so I can overlook that. I don’t have a single holo with that kind of rich base color so I had to jump all over that. The official release date for the KBShimmer Winter Collection is 11/1 so mark your calendars and make sure to hear on over to KBShimmer.com for information on the entire collection. These polishes retail for $8.75 each. In addition to the new collection, KBShimmer will also be offering some promos:

-Free Shipping For All Orders over $40 on KBShimmer.com No code needed.  Runs from 11/01-12/31

-Free With a $70+ Purchase, Holly Back Girl, a white Christmas crelly polish with red and green glitters.  Use code HBGFREE to receive free polish and free shipping with $70+ purchase. Runs from 11/01-12/31

-Free samples!  While supplies last, we will be sending out a sample in each order.  Samples may include scrubs, lotions, vinyl nail decals, soaps, etc.  Orders will also include a branded emery board.

-Free Snowman Glitter!  The first 400 orders will receive a bag of 1000 snowmen glitters perfect for winter nail art.

What do you think about these beauties? Are you in love with them like me? Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Super Nails – Part 2

Super Nails – Part 2

PressSample

 

 

Do you have it when a TV show makes you root for the “bad guys?” That’s how I’m feeling about The Sons of Anarchy right now. Netflix finally has season 6 available so I’m almost done watching the entire season in 2 days. I can’t believe where this is headed and I did not see the whole Tara situation coming. HOLY crap. Of course I already read some spoilers so I know what happens, but shiiieeettt that’s some messed up tv. I will be caught up this week so I’ll start watching the current season–just totally sad that it’s the last season. This afternoon I have the second part of my Super Nails post and I think these three are my favorite. Let’s take a look at them.

Super Nails All StarSuper Nails All Star

Super Nails Bouncing Baby BoySuper Nails Bouncing Baby Boy

Super Nails Bundle Of JoySuper Nails Bundle Of Joy

Aren’t they adorable? These can look very different depending on the base color that you use so the possibilities are endless. My person favorite is All Star because it’s so bright and happy–I also think I picked the perfect base color for it. To learn more about Super Nails, make sure that you check out KC’s etsy shop for all of her fun creations. You can also find Super Nails on Facebook and Twitter. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!