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Contrary Polish Color Context Trio

Posted on 25 July, 2013 by Cynthia

Hello friends! Have you ever slept in a weird position and your body feels out of whack? When I woke up this morning, I was hanging off the bed…how do you even stay asleep when half your body is hanging off the edge of your bed? Now today my arms are crazy sore for whatever reason. I’m such a weirdo. I’ve always had a lot of sleeping issues and strange habits. I am not sure if I have talked about this on my blog yet, but I used to have a lot of sleep paralysis episodes. Basically, you feel like you are awake but you’re unable to move or speak. My episodes usually involved me seeing and feeling something move in the dark. Then I would feel the pressure of something getting on my bed, crawling up me and trying to smother or choke me. There were even times when it felt like I was being dragged off my bed. If this has ever happened to you, I’m sure you know how scary that feels. I am not necessarily religious, but I would pray like crazy whenever that happened until the feeling went away and I was able to get up. For like the longest time I thought my apartment was haunted or that I was going nuts–and then I read up on Sleep Paralysis which I am fairly certain is what I experienced. The worst part was that it was happening often…maybe a couple of times per month so I was freaking out all the time. I haven’t had one of those episodes in a while now so I’m super relieved. Watch me have one tonight…

Anyway, now that I’ve terrified you about possibly experiencing Sleep Paralysis, let me make it all better by showing you some new pretty polish. I picked up the Contrary Polish Color Context Trio as soon as the minis were available on Carrie’s blog. I know I mentioned it when I reviewed the Ain’t That A Beach Trio, but I am completely smitten and in love with Contrary Polish. If you haven’t tried these, do yourself a favor and at least pick up a mini or two and get ready for a polishgasm.

Contrary Polish Blood Orange

Contrary Polish Greenhouse

Contrary Polish Indigo Rose

I didn’t talk about each polish individually because the formula was pretty consistent on all three polishes: I felt it was a tad thicker than what I like and it was a little sheer as well. I applied two thick coats and that gave me full coverage. I wish my pictures could capture just how glowy these polishes are. I absolutely adore these three polishes, but I have to say that I’ve got a big old polish boner for Greenhouse. I can’t stand how gorgeous this polish is and I must have the full size stat!

I also want to mention that I had some issues with the brushes on a couple of polishes from the Ain’t That A Beach Trio. Carrie included a few extra caps in my package since she read about it here. I know it was just something small but it wowed me because she not only read my review, but actually did something about it! Once again, I’m telling you that the customer service I’ve gotten from the indie brands I buy from is spectacular. If you’re interested in purchasing some minis, Carrie sells them on her blog on Fridays. You can check them out here. If you want to purchase a full size bottle, you can check at the following stockists: Llarowe, Femme Fatale Cosmetics and Shoppe Eclecticco.

Thanks so much for checking in with me today and talk to you soon!

OPI San Francisco Collection – Shimmers

Posted on 24 July, 2013 by Cynthia

It’s Wednesday which means that I am doing a little happy dance because I had the day off! Woot! Even more importantly, I was able to sleep in until 7 am which was an unbelieavable treat. I don’t think the majority of people have to wake up at 3:45 am to get to work by 5:00 so sleeping in feels like heaven. I’ve been rewatching the first season of The Walking Dead all morning so I feel kind of scared and jumpy, but man is this show good. I didn’t do as much swatching as I was hoping to do since I was able to finish the swatches for this post last night.

Today I have the third and final part of my posts featuring the OPI San Francisco Collection. (You can see my posts for the cremes and the liquid sands by clicking on the links.) This post is going to feature the shimmers which also include some multi-chrome goodness. Let’s get this polish show on the road!

When I first started seeing swatches of OPI Dining Al Frisco, I was thinking to myself: “No, oh no. Not a frost, please no!!!” While this isn’t as frosty as I thought it was going to be, it’s still not a color I would normally gravitate towards and the application is a bit tricky because it’s very prone to brushstrokes.

If you love glowing lit-from-within polishes, you’re probably going to like OPI Embarca-dare Ya! I really like the base color of this polish but it did seem a little thin upon application. The second coat gave me an opaque finish.

OPI Haven’t The Foggiest isn’t very interesting to me. I’m not a big fan of silvery polishes. The application of this polish is great because it’s very easy to control, and it’s practically a one coater. I no longer have OPI Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous, but this reminds me a lot of it.

I wasn’t expecting to like OPI I Knead Sour-dough but it really won me over once I applied it. The formula on this one also seemed a little thin, but two coats were enough for a nice even finish. This one reminds me of a darker and more glow-y version of Gouda Gouda Two Shoes. It’s not a dupe by any means, but it’s definitely a relative.

OPI Muir Miur On The Wall is so gorgeous. The pigmentation on this was deceptively thin but it looked perfect once I applied the second coat. I love dark blackened colors like this especially when they have some amazing shimmer.

Last but certainly not least, here is the belle of the ball: OPI Peace & Love & OPI. I had heard talk about how amazing this polish is and I am so mad at myself for not being able to capture it’s full multi-chrome goodness. You can kind of see the purple flash at the edges which is basically just one of the colors that you will see as you change the angle of this polish. It’s just gorgeous.

So what do you think? My three favorites from this part of the collection are I Knead Sour-dough, Muir Muir On The Wall and Peace & Love & OPI. I hope you have liked my swatches of this 15 piece collection. I’m sorry if I have now enabled you to purchase some or all of these–apparently it’s what I do best. Don’t forget to let me know if you have any favorites. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.!

San Francisco nail lacquer shades each feature OPI’s exclusive ProWide^™ Brush for the ultimate in application. Liquid Sand nail lacquers should always be worn without top coat. San Francisco by OPI will be available August 7, 2013, 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!

LCN Shades Of Desert Collection

Posted on 23 July, 2013 by Cynthia

It’s Tuesday and I am kind of super excited because I have tomorrow off. Woooooot! I am going to try to get all my errands done today so I can have a completely lazy day tomorrow full of swatching fun. There are days when I love blogging and other days when I feel like it’s a second job. Those of you who blog will understand this because the amount of time we spend on blogging is crazy, but I stick with it because I really do love it for the most part. I have met a lot of great people through this blogging adventure so I’m going to keep at it while it’s fun.

Today I have an amazing collection to share with you: LCN Shades of Desert Collection for Summer 2013. This collection is so bright and gorgeous that I was itching to get these colors on my nails. Let me show you what I’m talking about.

I decided to show you LCN Blue Oasis first because it is my absolute favorite from this collection. It pained me to remove this color in order to swatch the rest. I want to mention that i had very minor staining with this polish, but I didn’t wear a base coat. I only needed two smooth coats for full coverage.

LCN Fiery Cumin made me this of terra cotta…but more orange. Isn’t it like that Crayola crayon called Burnt Orange? Man, I used to love coloring when I was a kid. I was so OCD about my crayons too so I would always have to keep them nice and sharpened. In kindergarten, this boy who used to bug me a lot would eat crayons and then show me how the wax was stuck to his teeth–yuck! Anyway, I didn’t think that I would like Fiery Cumin that much, but it’s another ugly/pretty color. It’s pumpkinlicious!

LCN Hot Chili has a jelly-esque quality to it so it shows some VNL after two coats. This color isn’t groundbreaking, but it’s glossy, smooth and squishy. Two thumbs up!

I think that hot pink is starting to be MY color so I was psyched to see another amazing pink in this collection. LCN Pink Pepper is a richly pigmented and smooth creme–the stuff my polish wet dreams are made of. Do I have a lot of hot pinks? Yes. Do I want more? YES!!!

I think that what makes this collection a winner for me is the fact that while the colors aren’t exactly unique, the formula is completely amazing and all the colors go so well together. Don’t you just love perfectly cohesive collections? It’s like there was thought put into it instead of just randomly throwing a bunch of colors together. You can purchase these beauties at the LCN Boutique, and you can get free shipping by usind the code 7WDKJJ which is valid until August 15, 2013.

Thanks so much for stopping by today and don’t forget to let me know which color is your personal favorite. Talk to you soon!

Each polish in the LCN Shades of Desert Collection retails for $7.50 and they are available now on the LCN Boutique. Inspired by the bold, colorful hues of the Orient, this quad of jewel-toned hues embodies all of the luxury and mystery that is the Far east.

OPI San Francisco Collection – Cremes

Posted on 22 July, 201322 July, 2013 by Cynthia

The weather seems to be picking up around here, and I’m kinda glad. It’s not that I necessarily love the Summer because I, in fact, HATE the heat, but I am tired of the stupid muggy dreary days. This is California for heaven’s sake! Today was pretty busy for me at work like most Mondays tend to be so I’m going to jump right in to the swatches. Yep, I know you’re all here for the swatches and not to listen to my complaining and rambling. But, before I move on to the swatches I want to say that I really love San Francisco even though I’ve only been there once. I have family up north so I went to visit once and we ended up taking a trip to San Francisco. What an awesome city–I can almost forgive Nor Cal for the whole “hella” thing after seeing such a gorgeous city. Anyway, let’s get to the pretty polishes!

OPI A-piers To Be Tan is an interesting color. Yes, this is one of those colors that you’re either going to love or you’re going to hate because I classify it as a pretty/ugly color. I am leaning towards liking this color because I don’t think I really have a dupe for this in my collection currently. The formula was nice and pigmented so I only needed two coats.

When I first saw OPI First Date At the Golden Gate, I wasn’t really blown away. It’s a red. I like red. I have a million reds. Still, it’s a nice color and it has kind of a jelly quality to it. I used two coats for the swatches above.

I have a soft spot for deep wine colors so OPI In The Cable Car-pool Lane is a deep burgundy that I’ll be sure to sport this fall. The formula here was good so I only needed two coats.

I think that out of this second batch of colors that I swatched, OPI Incognito In Sausalito has got to be my favorite! It’s this deep inky blue that almost looks black but not quite! Despite how dark this color is, I noticed that I had a couple of bald spots after two coats so I had to apply a third coat. I think that if I had waited a couple of minutes in between coats, that would have been enough, but I’m always so impatient!

Have you had enough of delicious blues yet? If not, OPI Keeping Suzi At Bay is definitely going to fit the bill. The formula was nice but again, I think I created some bald spots by not waiting enough time in between coats so I ended up applying 3 coats.

And lastly, here is another red: OPI Lost In Lombard. The formula was nice and very pigmented so I didn’t have any application issues after two smooth coats.

So, now that you have seen the cremes in the OPI San Francisco Collection, what do you think? I’m a little conflicted because on the one hand, I think these all have a pretty good formula which is always appreciated AND they are beautiful, but are they really original? Nope. I consider half of these staple colors which means that you probably already have some dupes in your stash. My two favorites from the cremes are Incognito in Sausalito and In The Cable Car-pool Lane because they are just so rich and beautiful and I can see myself wearing them the most often out of all of these. The other two reds feel a little recycled in my opinion but then again, I am a polish hoarder so I may be biased. I am really looking forward to swatching the last 6 polishes in this collection because despite my preference for creme finishes, I think that the shimmers in my last post are going to win me over BIG TIME. I hope to have those for you guys by Wednesday. Ahhhh….so many pretty polishes and so little time! Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

OPI San Francisco Collection – Liquid Sands

Posted on 19 July, 2013 by Cynthia

Hey there, lovahs. I was super glad for Friday because I have two scheduled days off in a row. Yay for having Saturday and Sunday off! And then I was asked to work on Sunday…womp, womp. While I could have said no, I am very conscious of the fact that I could really use the extra moola now that I have this new expense with the car. So of course I said yes which means that this week, I will be working over 50 hours. That may not seem like a lot to some of you, but I feel old, damnit! I need my rest. I know that I’m *only* 33, but I just feel like it takes me so long to get used to a new schedule and my body just needs more rest and sleep. Can you remember being in your late teens/early twenties and basically needing about 2 hours of sleep? How else could you party all night and go to class at 8 am like if that was perfectly normal? Do I sound bitter about getting older? Anyway, enough of my complaining and let’s move on to the polish.

When the OPI San Francisco Collection arrived, I was in nail polish nirvana. I ripped open the boxes like they were holding the last Twinkie on earth, but this was me when I saw that there were THREE Liquid Sands, and two of them did NOT have any sparkle:

I know…I know. Is every collection from now on going to include some kind of texture polish?
Anyway, let me tell you why I am now eating my words.

If you’re a dramatic blue lover, you’re going to love OPI Wharf! Wharf! Wharf! This baby is crazy pigmented and just makes your nails the center of attention. I wasn’t that excited about this polish at first because it’s a flat textured polish without any sparkle. No glitter in a Liquid Sand makes me a sad panda. However, this grew on me the more I wore it.

This is the polish that will fulfill the wet dream of anyone looking for an amazing neutral WITH texture. OPI It’s All San Andrea’s Fault is a beautiful milk chocolate neutral that I can see myself getting away with during more conservative settings without sacrificing the fun factor.

OPI Alcatraz…Rocks is the polish I was most looking forward to from the three Liquid Sands and I can tell you that it does NOT disappoint. Holy crap this polish is gorgeous! It’s full of so much sparkle that it makes up for the lack of glitter in the other two. As soon as I put on this baby, I thought of Sean Connery:

I’m kind of in love with Sean Connery so I was not about to pass up an opportunity to share this clip!

Overall, I am pleasantly surprised. The formula on all three polishes was identical: pigmented, easy to apply and perfect at two coats. I wasn’t expecting to like the first two because they are the usual popcorn ceiling texture, but I think the colors really won me over. Of course I knew that I was going to like Alcatraz…Rocks so it’s no big surprise that it turned out to be my absolute favorite. I decided to break up my post for the San Francisco Collection into three parts because there are 15 polishes in all, and I didn’t want to have such a picture heavy post. I’ll be posting the other 2 parts in the coming days so make sure that you check back. I have so many freaking things to share with you that I don’t even know how I’m going to get all the swatching done. Ok…ok…I’m not really complaining about having so many new polishes because that would just be nuts! Amiright or amiright?! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will catch up with you later.

Incoco Amped Up Nail Appliqués

Posted on 14 July, 201314 July, 2013 by Cynthia

Happy Sunday, polished dolls! After a week of completely spazing out because of my car drama, I am happy to report that everything has worked out. A big thanks to everyone for all the positive thoughts and comments. Not having a working car in So Cal is kind of a disaster considering that our public transportation is unreliable and beyond inconvenient…and it doesn’t help that I start work at the buttcrack of dawn. Anyway, now I can stress about other things besides my car! haha!

Today I have another design from Incoco to share with you. These polish strips have really impressed me! I am pretty obsessed with pink nails so I couldn’t wait to wear these. Let’s take a look at this hot pink and black design…

These Incoco Amped Up nail polish strips are so freaking cute. I love the black fishnet design especially because it combines two of my favorite colors: hot pink and black! These nail appliqués wear like iron and are so incredibly easy to apply.

These are the same appliqués a week later. I had very minor tip wear so I filed my tips a little which pretty much fixed them up. The only thing that gives these away is the gap. Since my nails grow so incredibly fast, the gap between the design and my cuticles is pretty noticeable. I have no doubt that these appliqués would last 2 weeks or more. Personally, wearing the same nail design for more than a few days is frankly a miracle so these are definitely a great way to have a beautiful mani when you’re not able to do your nails very often.

So there you have it folks: I love the Incoco Nail Appliqués! They wear like iron, and I really had to scrub with pure acetone to get them off. I normally wouldn’t use these on a regular basis but if you know you’re going to be particularly busy and won’t have time for a fresh mani for a couple of weeks, these are a great solution.

I feel like I haven’t posted in eons and it’s been mostly because I was too stressed out to do anything except worry about my carlessness. I hope to get back to a more regular posting schedule of at least 3-4 times a week–not that you’re necessarily missing my ramblings, but I miss posting. Now that I’ve had to purchase a new car, I’m making some major changes in my spending habits. Instead of my usual spending binges, I need to focus on saving that money. Since I’ve been walking a lot in the last week since I had to take the bus home in the afternoons, I noticed how great that made me feel so now I’ve decided to get back into the habit of going to the gym. I definitely that’s going to help me relieve some stress, get me all doped up on endorphins and just feel better overall.

So what have you been up to lately? Oh, before I forget, I just put up some polishes on my blog sale. I’m trying to pad my savings a little bit right now since the new car is kind of going to wipe me out. It’s worth it, though. I love my pretty little car. So make sure that you check out my blog sale here. I hope to put up new stuff regularly as I continue to sell stuff.

Also don’t forget enter my current giveaway for a bottle of Jindie Nails Moon Walk. Just click on the image below to be taken to the giveaway post.

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I hope you have a wonderful Monday.

Much love,

Jindie Nails Moon Walk & A Giveaway!

Posted on 10 July, 2013 by Cynthia

I’m feeling completely down and dejected lately because of my car issues. I went to a dealership yesterday and to say that the experience was horrid is an understatement. They tried to get me into a used car for $3,000 down and $400 a month for 72 months–that means that I would be paying close to $30,000 for a car that is worth $10,00 if that. Sweet Satan’s butthole! Is that ridiculous or what? I mean, I know my credit is NOT good, but do I need to be impaled up the butt with a financial cactus at every turn? So, I walked away from that feeling like the worst loser on the planet, and I’m still carless. I know that in the grand scheme of things, these are very minor problems, but they feel so overwhelming right now. While I figure things out, I will probably be posting less because I don’t want every single post to be a diatribe of self-pity. You guys have been so awesome and encouraging, so I really appreciate it.

So, despite my craptacular issues, I still want to share pretty polishes with you. Today I have another Jindie Nails limited edition polish for Summer 2013. Since I’m currently obsessed with pink, especially hot pink, Jindie Nails Moon Walk is right up my alley.

Jindie Nails Moon walk is a limited edition polish for Summer 2013 so make sure that you pick this one up if you love the hot pink jelly base with an awesome combination of black and silver chunky glitter (dots, and half moons!) The formula is shimmery–almost like a glass fleck type finish. This polish is a little sheer so 2 coats are necessary to get good coverage. I did have some trouble getting the bigger pieces of glitter out of the bottle so the next time that I wear this, I’ll probably fish out the glitter and place it where I want it.

So what do you think of this polish? Will you be picking it up? To keep up with Jindie Nails news, make sure that you follow Jen at the following:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JindieNails

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JindieNails

Website: http://jindienails.com/

And here is how a little error in my order ends up benefiting you! One of the polishes I had ordered was left off my shipment and when I contacted Jen about it, she not only fixed it but graciously included an extra polish for a giveaway. This is the first of two polishes that I will be giving away so stay tuned! As an aside, I want to tell you guys that Jen has amazing customer service and will always stand by her products which is rare nowadays. Please use the rafflecopter widget below to enter for a chance to win a FULL SIZED bottle of Jindie Nails Moon Walk. This giveaway is open worldwide, but PLEASE don’t enter if you know that your country has a lot of restrictions regarding shipping/receiving nail polish. Nothing will make me sadder than to mail a polish and hear that it got confiscated at customs.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and good luck!

Jindie Nails Summer Chic Collection 2013

Posted on 5 July, 2013 by Cynthia

Friday is here! I’m a little jealous that most of you who are in the US are enjoying an extra long weekend due to the 4th of July holiday. Unfortunately, I worked today and will work tomorrow so poo to this company that doesn’t respect holidays. Anyway, I can be bitter about it but it won’t do me any good so I’ll just keep amusing myself with pretty polishes. Today I’m super excited to be showing you 3 of the 5 polishes that are part of the Jindie Nails Summer Chic Collection!

Hex On The Beach is one of those white crelly polishes that Jen does so well! I felt this one was a little difficult to work with because of the larger glitters. I had a hard time applying the glitter evenly until I added a few drops of thinner and stored the bottle upside down for a few minutes. I applied 3 coats here to get an even look on the milky base.

Quit Staring At My Melons! is a glitter topper extraordinaire. I kept thinking of cantaloupes when I saw this polish which is why I decided to go with a cantaloupe-colored polish. Now I’m obsessed with trying this out on a light green like the flesh of a honeydew melon. The glitter was super easy to apply and I got a nice even glitter distribution with one coat.

Don’t Get Citrus Twisted is my absolute favorite polish from this collection. In fact, it might just be my favorite Summer polish of 2013. I love the combination of the bright pastel green base, yellow, pink and green glitter. I swear I am absolutely obsessed with this polish. I applied 2 thick-ish coats here, and I felt the base was very pigmented and the glitter was easy to apply. Seriously–if there is one gorgeous summer polish that you must get, it’s this one.

The other two colors that I am missing from this collection are That Purple Ish and Betty’s Fetti Milkshake, and I will probably end up picking them up since I’m such a polish hoarder. I have a couple other Jindie babies to show you next week, and also get ready for a Jindie Nails giveaway coming soon. To keep up with Jindie Nails news, make sure that you follow Jen at the following:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JindieNails

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JindieNails

Website: http://jindienails.com/

So, what do you think about these pretties? Are you a Jindie nails fanatic? Which is your favorite from the 3 polishes I shared with you today? I hope you’re staying cool–I’ll talk to you soon!

Disclosure: I purchased Don’t Get Citrus Twisted and Hex On The Beach. Quit Staring At My Melons! was provided for review.

Incoco Love Liberty Nail Appliqués – Happy 4th Of July!

Posted on 4 July, 2013 by Cynthia

Happy 4th of July to all my USA peeps! I hope that you are all having a great time and enjoying the day with your family and friends. As for me, I decided to do absolutely nothing. Since I have to go to work tomorrow, I can’t really stay up late so I’m basically being a bum at home. I went out to dinner with my brothers and my sister-in-law last night so we got a chance to catch up and have some family time. I hadn’t seen my sil in a while and I can totally see her preggo belly now. Awww! I’m so excited about them having a baby. Although he isn’t due until November, I already find myself looking at little boy clothes and toys. I’m gonna be a kick-ass crazy aunt! Since I’m just laying low today, I’ve been playing with my polish storage stuff because I bought 2 more melmers last week. Can you believe I outgrew 3 melmers already? In order to get ready for the 4th of July, I decided to try out these awesome Incoco Love Liberty Nail Appliqués that I recently received for review. Let’s take a look at them:

This is the package of nail appliqués. It comes with 16 strips of various sizes so that you can find your perfect size. They also come with a file and a cuticle stick to help with application.

The instructions are very clear and I had absolutely no problem with application after reading these over.

This is the pack of appliqués. As you can tell, there are a lot of different sizes so you shouldn’t have any problem finding the best size for your nails.

These nail strips are pretty cool. They were super easy to apply, and I can see these being a busy girl’s best friend. Since my nails are pretty wide and curved, I think I underestimated the size I needed for each nail because the appliqués didn’t quite cover my whole nail on the sides–but it isn’t super noticeable. So far these are wearing really well especially since I’ve been doing dishes and other housework without any issues. One thing I do have to work on is making sure that I don’t damage the tips when I am filing the excess off. These are supposed to last for up to 14 days, but I don’t think I’ve ever worn a manicure for 14 days–4 days tops!

Overall, I’m quite pleased with these. The design is really cute and they have TONS of other designs to choose from. I would not really used the solid color appliqués because I can get that look easily with just nail polish, but I think that the intricate designs are totally worth it if you’re going to use them for a special occasion and plan to leave them on for a while. To check out all the available colors and designs, you can go to the Incoco website. To keep up with Incoco news, you can check them out here:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/incoco

Twitter: https://twitter.com/incoco

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/incoco/

Have you tried any of these Incoco appliqués? What are your thoughts on the longevity of these? Thanks so much for stopping by today and once again, I hope you’re having a great 4th!

OPI Avojuice in Violet Orchid

Posted on 29 June, 201329 June, 2013 by Cynthia

This is my fourth day dealing with this miserable summer flu and I think maybe I’m finally starting to improve. My cough is still going full force and this runny nose is even worse, but at least I don’t have a fever and horrible body aches anymore. I’ve missed almost 3 full days of work this week so I’m sure they’re not happy with me, but I just couldn’t continue to go in to work feeling like I was going to pass out. Oh well.

One of the things I constantly get asked about is what I use to keep my hands and nails healthy–especially my cuticles. I will tell you that I am most likely just lucky because I don’t really do too much to maintain my cuticles smooth and moisturized. In fact, I tend to treat my hands pretty roughly and they can definitely get dry, rough and cracked if I don’t at least moisturize. Believe it or not, I was a nail and cuticle biter up until my early 20’s which pretty much had my nails and cuticles in the most disgustingly haggard condition. Once I kicked the habit, I found that moisturizing was my best friend. I try to use cuticle oil every day–especially when I am swatching. I also use thick hand cremes at night, and I am always on the lookout for lotions to use during the day. My big dilemma is finding something that is moisturizing, absorbs quickly and is not super greasy. Well, my friends, I was really happy that I got the chance to try out a new scent in OPI’s Avojuice lotion line: OPI Avojuice in Violet Orchid

I have seen the these OPI Avojuice lotions many times but had never taken the plunge to actually try them out. I am so glad that I did because this lotion is amazing. It is super moisturizing but lightweight so that you don’t feel that residual greasiness from thicker formulas. It literally disappears into your skin leaving it super soft. I do have a problem with it, though: the scent. I am notoriously difficult to please when it comes to scents so this should come as no surprise. It is just too darn sweet smelling for me and the scent lingers forever! I can’t stand super sweet smelling products (or anything that smells like coconut or gardenia, for that matter) because they eventually give me a headache. While I didn’t get a headache from the Violet Orchid scent, it definitely is not for me. I love the performance of the lotion but not the scent so I will be looking for something in this line with a cleaner, fresher scent because I really do love how it makes my hands feel.

Have you tried any OPI Avojuice lotions? Do you have any scents from this line to recommend that are not so sweet? I tend to like “cucumber” or “citrus” type scents so if you know of any, let me know! I’m always looking for great lotions to keep my hands in good shape so I can keep swatching.

OPI Avojuice Skin Quenchers Hand & Body Lotion in Peony & Poppy and Violet Orchid will be available beginning July 2013 at professional salons, including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, jcp Salons, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, ULTA and ulta.com. Suggested retail price is $7.95 ($9.95 CAN) for each 6.6 fl. oz bottle.

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 catch up with you soon!