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Zoya Magical Pixie Collection Summer 2014

Posted on 25 May, 201425 May, 2014 by Cynthia

Woo hoo! Sunday funday! So I didn’t go to watch the new X-Men movie yesterday because I basically lounged around in my pj’s all day clear into the evening. I did do a lot of swatching while I watched a bunch of movies on Netflix which included La Bamba and The Buddy Holly story. Then I watched some episodes of Grey’s Anatomy and continued to bum around. I did finally take a shower and combed my hair because I met up with a friend and we just had a lot of catching up to do. So basically my Saturday was spent in lazy bliss and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Today I will be watching X-Men so I’m excited about that…and movie theater popcorn. For your manicure viewing pleasure today, I have the new Zoya Magical Pixie Collection for Summer 2014. This new trio brings us the same super gritty texture as the first Magical Pixies but with a slightly darker base. Let’s take a look at these pretties below…

Zoya Arlo

Zoya Ginni

Zoya Bar

If you did not like the texture of the first Magical Pixies, do not expect to like these.because they are identical when it comes to the finish. These are very chunky glitters and will feel rough to the touch even if you topcoat them. I wouldn’t topcoat them only because I think they look better this way. All of these polishes required two thick coats for full coverage. To he honest, I kind of really liked the way these looked with one coat even if there was major VNL. Out in the sun, these look amazing because they truly sparkle. I would have liked these a lot of if the base colors were more vibrant…these are just too safe for me to truly go gaga over.

What do you think of these polishes? Did you get the first ones? Will you be getting any of these? I hope you’re enjoying your weekend so far because I sure am. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Stamping Saturdays #20

Posted on 24 May, 201424 May, 2014 by Cynthia

I am super proud of myself for not missing a single Saturday since we started Stamping Saturdays and today I am on my 20^th stamped mani for this series. Yay! This is definitely huge for me because I feel like such a quitter sometimes. I stayed up way too late to do this mani because I got wrapped up in watching a PBS documentary where actors discuss some Shakespearean plays. I nearly pissed myself when I watched the episode where David Tennant talks about Hamlet. My favorite Doctor and my favorite play? Ecstasy! Anyway, let me show you what I came up with because I could keep talking forever about the documentary.

For today’s mani, I used the MoYou London Back To The 70’s – 02 plate which I have used a few times before. It has some really groovy designs. Sadly, I think it has been discontinued because I can’t find it on their website.

I started out with 2 delicious coats of OPI A Grape Affair. This lovely polish is part of the new OPI Coca-Cola collection which will be on the blog next week. This polish is absolute crème perfection and it’s very opaque so it only needed two coats. It dried super shiny and gorgeous.

And here is the image I chose from plate MoYou London Back To The 70’s – 03. What kind of design is this? It made me think of computers or something. When I was finishing up my clean up, I posted a picture on Instagram and Rei suggested that I apply a sheer tint on top of this. Hmmm…? I was a little hesitant to try it but look what happened!

I applied 1 coat of OPI Don’t Violet Me Down over my whole mani and it just looks awesome. Rei is a genius for suggesting this.

So what do you think about this stamped mani? Since I like it, I’m sure people are going to think it’s blah. Haha My cherry blossom mani got so much attention, and I seriously thought it was kind of blah. Well, I hope that you like this jelly stamped mani. I know that I am going to try this with other polishes because it creates such a cool effect. Do you have any plans this weekend? I’m dying to go see the new X-Men movie so hopefully I’ll go watch it later today. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

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The Lacquer Ring – Cherry Blossoms

Posted on 22 May, 201421 May, 2014 by Cynthia

After my orange debacle, I was sure that I was going to crash and burn on today’s challenge. Let me tell you that I am not one of those people who can do awesome freehand nail designs–there is a reason why I love stamping so much! I can admire the amazing skills that other ladies have when it comes to nail art, but I just don’t like it on my own nails because I want crisp lines and geometric patterns. I had to suck it up for this post because Nicole chose Cherry Blossoms as her second prompt for the month of May. You want to know what I kept thinking about? Ken Watanabe.

I kind of love him. Not as much as my childhood crushes, but he’s up there. I really like The Last Samurai even though I strongly dislike Tom Cruise. Rather, I strongly dislike Tom Cruise’s public persona and the whole Scientology thing but to each his own. Anyway, I kept thinking about what to do for this manicure so I took out some polishes to get started.

Here you see Nicole by OPI At Least I Pink So, Nicole by OPI Promises After Dark and OPI Minnie Style (all press samples). I also needed a nail art brush to draw the branches.

To start with, I applied 2 smooth coats of Nicole by OPI At Least I Pink So which is a delicate and creamy baby pink.

I then used Nicole by OPI Promises In The Dark and my nail art brush to draw some tree branches. I feel that they look super sloppy. Grrrr!

Finally I used the glitters in OPI Minnie Style to create the cherry blossoms. This was not very time consuming and I think it gives the whole mani a little bling factor. Maybe it’s a little tacky but I can be a little tacky with my manicures sometimes so who cares?

So what do you think? Be honest! I don’t totally hate it, but I’m not super happy with it either. To be honest, this was my second attempt. The first time, I used a base color that just looked awful so I removed everything and started all over again. I almost gave up completely, but I’m glad that I kept going because this is all about challenging myself. So, thanks Nicole for picking a design that I had never attempted before. Make sure that you check out the other Cherry Blossom manis from the other members of The Lacquer Ring. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I hope you have a great Thursday!

GIVEAWAY REMINDER

There is about a week left! Have you entered my giveaway to win a full size 4 piece set of the OPI Sheer Tints? Click on the image below to go to the giveaway post. Good luck!

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The Beauty Buffs – Coral

Posted on 21 May, 201420 May, 2014 by Cynthia

I am finally getting into my old swatching and posting groove, so I am happy to once again be posting with my fellow Beauty Buffs! Today The Beauty Buffs will be bringing to you everything coral. I absolutely love coral–especially for the summer. Let’s take a look at the beautiful polish I have for you today.

I don’t know why I had Sation Drama Doll on my blog sale, because it is fan-freaking-tastic. Yep, not on the blog sale anymore! Drama Doll is an opaque pink-leaning coral that borders on neon which is why my camera had a hard time capturing the color. It is a bit more saturated than what my pictures show. The polish is a bit thick but it is very opaque and you have to apply a top coat if you want a shiny finish since this dries a bit satin-y.

I then applied one coat of Nailventurous A Dash Of Princess which was a gift from my lovely Jessica from Once Upon A Polish. I love this polish so much because it came from her stash and she knew how much I wanted it but was very hard to find at that point. I think it looks gorgeous over Drama Doll.

So what do you think about these two polishes? As much as I love coral, it’s a color that is more prevalent during the summer and we all know how I feel about the heat. Poo! Don’t miss out on some awesome posts by the rest of The Beauty Buffs so make sure that you check out the links below. Also, you can follows us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest. Thanks so much for visiting today, and I will talk to you soon!

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Jade Vermelho Surreal

Posted on 20 May, 201419 May, 2014 by Cynthia

Hey, how was your Monday? Mine was pretty busy but I can’t complain–well, I can but I decide not to. That’s quite a revelation for me because complaining is apparently one of my favorite pastimes. I think that I’ve just come to realize that the more I complain, the worse I feel. It’s not to say that complaining is bad, but when all you do is complain, then that just has the potential to make you feel even worse.My life isn’t perfect, but maybe it’s what I need right at this moment. Another thing I need at this moment is to get MORE RED HOLOS and that is where Jade Vermelho Surreal steps in. I actually have two bottles of this beauty that were gifts from two amazing and lovely ladies: Lesley and Amy. I was so excited to get these that I didn’t even want to wear them cause they are just too lovely to use. Of course that thinking is just ridiculous, but I know that some of you understand! Let me show you what this polish looks like depending on the lighting.

Jade Vermelho Surreal looks a little more orange and coppery with artificial lighting. The holo effect is a little weak in this type of lighting but you can definitely see it.

This lighting is comparable to what the polish will look like in the sunlight. Isn’t it gorgeous? I wore this to work yesterday and I felt so sneaky because it looked work appropriate indoors but the rainbow was blinding once I left the office. The formula on this polish is really amazing as it only needs two coats and it dries super shiny.

Anyway, I hope that you liked todays gorgeous polish and a big thanks to Lesley and Amy once again. Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

GIVEAWAY REMINDER

Have you entered my giveaway to win a full size 4 piece set of the OPI Sheer Tints? Click on the image below to go to the giveaway post. Good luck!

Essie Haute In The Heat Collection Summer 2014

Posted on 19 May, 201418 May, 2014 by Cynthia

Sometimes I feel like I get this weird high when I review Essie collections–and no, I’m not sniffing the polish or acetone. I know I’ve said it before, but I am always excited when I see new Essies. Am I weird for loving the bottle shape? I just find their bottles so incredibly classy and identifiable that I want to have hundreds of them lined up in my melmers just so I can admire the white caps. I know that I have issues but that just works to your advantage if you’re looking for Essie news and swatches, right?! I am normally in the know when it comes to upcoming collections, but I seriously had not heard a peep about the collection I have for you today until last week when I was reading a magazine. Sometimes I just assume that their neon collection is their summer collection but nope—we get a separate summer collection. Hey, in my book that’s great news because I wasn’t too in love with the Too Taboo Collection. So anyway, once I saw the ad in my magazine, I went to harass and chastise my nail guy for not telling me about this new collection. Whenever I go to his store, the first words out of my mouth (after saying hello, of course) are: “What new stuff do you have?” Sometimes I don’t even have to ask him because he will steer me to any new displays. I love my nail guy, but I’m pretty sure he’s a little scared of me. So now that I’ve rambled, are you ready to see the Essie Haute In The Heat Collection for Summer 2014?

OH MY FLIPPING POLISH GOD. Essie Strut Your Stuff is such a freaking gorgeous color. It’s like the darker cousin of In The Cab-ana. The formula on this was pretty nice because it was very opaque and smooth. I applied two coats here and it dries pretty shiny. One thing to note is that it stains a bit–but not enough to ever deter me from wearing it.

What are you doing to me, Essie? Are you trying to make up for past duds with this gorgeous polish? Cause I have to be honest: It’s kind of working. Essie Ruffles & Feathers is another gorgeous polish with an awesome formula. In real life, this color is slightly more green but my camera makes it lean a little bit more blue. Still…hubba, hubba!

I love white creamy polishes so much but we all know that the formula usually sucks balls, so I wasn’t expecting for Essie Urban Jungle to be decent. In fact, the formula is quite nice even though the first coat applied a little streaky and had a kind of chalky look. After the second coat, it was all gravy.Essie Haute In The Heat is really pretty but i found it a little boring especially since it’s the collection’s namesake. Still, if you don’t have something super similar, it’s worth getting because the formula is superb. If you have a steady hand, this is a one-coater.

Despite the silly name, Essie Roarrrrange is a nice and juicy summer color. Unfortunately, I am still on the “I hate orange” train from last week so I can’t say I am really loving the color. Additionally, this is the only polish that gave me a little trouble because I needed three thin coats to even it out.

I really wanted to love Essie Fierce, No Fear but I think this color just doesn’t do me any favors. I think it look absolutely icky on me, but I’m sure it will work on different skin tones. The formula was nice and SUPER shiny so expect two coats.

Overall, I am very happy with this collection. Coming off my disappointment with their Summer Neons, this is just what I needed to reel me back in. I know that this doesn’t necessarily scream SUMMER, but I think I quite like that. I also always appreciate their 6-piece collections because this allows me to really focus on each polish. I can totally see this collection being very polarizing, so I’m very curious to hear what you think. I think most of the major brands have put out their summer offerings, so now I’m excited to start hearing about Fall collections. Maybe I’m just trying to ignore the fact that we have 100+ degree weather all last week and it’s not even summer yet. Kill me now. On that note, I hope that you had a nice weekend and that you’re nice and rested for this new week. Is it Friday yet? No? Ok. Thanks so much for the visit today, and I will talk to you soon.

GIVEAWAY REMINDER

Have you entered my giveaway to win a full size 4 piece set of the OPI Sheer Tints? Click on the image below to go to the giveaway post. Good luck!

Stamping Saturdays #19

Posted on 17 May, 2014 by Cynthia

Yep, I’m totally late for Stamping Saturdays mainly because I decided to try the decal method and it was a total bust. I figured that it would be a great idea because I have one Konad image that is barely wide enough to cover my nails so it is super important to line it up perfectly. Well, it did not work out at all because I applied too much top coat on the image and the decal was way too thick. Once I tried to apply it, it was not pliable at all so it just made a big old mess. Have you tried the decal method before? I know there are a few ways to do it, but Thea from Madness Nails has a great tutorial which is the one I followed. Maybe I will give it a try again some other time, but to be honest, it’s too much of a hassle if you’re going to stamp all 10 nails.

Today I felt like wearing Kiko 337 Periwinkle Violet which is freaking awesome. It’s super pigmented and only needed two coats. Even though the polish is super bright, it did not stain my nails at all.

I then used an image from Konad M63 to stamp over my base color. I like how this turned out, but I think I need to invest in new stamping polish because it’s getting harder and harder to get a clean and crisp image. I know there are a lot of choices out there, so please let me know if you have any recommendations.

I am happy to report that it’s nice and cool again in SoCal. I was dying all week so this is a welcome relief. This morning I woke up early because I want to go watch Godzilla early and avoid the crowds. Well, the movie kind of rocked. It was awesome even though it took forever for us to get to see Godzilla. If you like monster/action movies, you will probably enjoy it. I’ve been listening to Smooth McGroove’s YouTube Channel non-stop because he has the most amazing acapella renditions of classic video game themes. If you are an old-school video game nerd like me, you’ll probably piss your pants after hearing this:

How awesome is that? It brought me back to crying because I couldn’t beat Mike Tyson at the end of the game. He also has 2 videos on Chrono Trigger tunes–hello! Chrono Trigger is just about my favorite game EVER. Anyway, check him out!

I hope you’re enjoying your weekend so far. Thanks so much for visiting today, and I will talk to you soon!

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China Glaze Off Shore Collection Summer 2014 – Stoked To Be Soaked

Posted on 14 May, 201429 June, 2014 by Cynthia

Hey, how you doin’? I totally just said that in Joey’s voice.

I had the most ridiculous dream last night and I’ve been feeling off because of it. Is that normal? I’ll just blame anything unpleasant on the heat and call it a day. As promised, today I have the second part of the China Glaze Off Shore Collection to show you. I think we can all agree that the polishes I showed you yesterday certainly were not neon. What will be today’s verdict? Let’s take a look at my swatches first.

China Glaze Shore Enuff

China Glaze Be More Pacific

China Glaze Sun Upon My Skin

China Glaze Seas The Day

China Glaze When In Doubt, Surf It Out

China Glaze Stoked To Be Soaked

I can tell you that as far as colors go, I much prefer the other half of the collection. Because I’ve been super obsessed with green lately, my two favorites are Shore Enuff and Be More Pacific. The formula on all of these is nice–not nightmarish like previous summer collections. Sun Upon My Skin and Stoked To Be Soaked are the brightest polishes here but they aren’t true neons. I am happy to report that the formula on all of these polishes is nice. For my swatches, I applied two coats of polish and 1 coat of Seche Vite for shine. I’m a little meh on the colors here, but the two greens are definite must-haves in my opinion. So what are your thoughts on this half of the collection? If you haven’t seen the first part, click here. Anyway, I hope you’re doing well and staying cool. Thanks for the visit today, and I will talk to you soon!

China Glaze Off Shore Collection Summer 2014 – Dune Our Thing

Posted on 13 May, 201413 May, 2014 by Cynthia

Excuse me, but I’m melting. Melting while I sit on the couch is not something that I enjoy, but I’m sure that those of you without air conditioning can sympathize. It’s going to be a few degrees shy of 100 today so my mood is already sour. It isn’t sour enough to not share with you my review of the China Glaze Off Shore Collection, though! As usual, this collection is divided into two sets and today I have the Dune Our Thing set but don’t fret because the Stoke To Be Soaked set will be on the blog tomorrow. You know I’m always really excited about China Glaze Collections so I try to pick them up as soon as my beauty supply stores get them. I was super excited to get them because their shipment literally arrived as I was entering the store. SCORE! Anyway, let me show you my swatches so we can talk about them afterwards.

China Glaze Wait N’ Sea

China Glaze I Sea The Point

China Glaze X-ta-sea

China Glaze Float On

China Glaze Feel The Breeze

China Glaze Dune Our Thing

So, uhm…these are supposed to be neons? Neons they are not. Why must we keep getting “neon collections” that aren’t really neon? I’m crying neon tears right now. Some of these are definitely bright, but I wouldn’t call them neon. (Can I possibly say “neon” some more? Neon, neon, neon!) Despite this, I think these colors are really pretty and the formula isn’t bad. We all remember past Summer collections, right? I’m still not over last year and the year before. The only polish that gave me some problems is the lightest pink, Feel The Breeze. It was streak-arrific but it did even out after three coats. Most of these will dry to a satin finish so you’ll need a good top coat if you want a glossy finish. I was super scared of Sea The Point because I had read somewhere that it was an application beast. The first coat was all that I feared, but then I decided to give the polish a good rolling/shaking and the second coat applied very nicely. Overall, I think these are really beautiful colors but we’ve seen these colors already. If I had to pick my favorites, I would get Float On, X-ta-Sea and Wait N’ Sea. To be honest, all the colors are beautiful so I’m having a hard time trying to pick favorites. I think that if you don’t have similar colors, these are definitely worth picking up. So what do you think? Will you be able to get past the fact that these aren’t really neons and get some of these? Do you have any favorites? This collection should be at the usual places this June…can you believe it’s almost June? Ghhhhaaaa! Anyway, thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

OPI Neons Collection 2014

Posted on 11 May, 201411 May, 2014 by Cynthia

One of the only things–if not the only thing–that I love about Summer is the fact that we see tons of color everywhere and I’m not just talking about nail polish. Every Spring, I get giddy seeing previews of juicy Summer Collections and this year has been no exception. When I first started hearing about an OPI Neons Collection, I was very excited. Excited is not really the right word because I was going apeshit crazy for them. I don’t like to necessarily say that I have obsessive qualities in my personality, but you can definitely qualify my polish idiosyncrasies as such. Now, I do have to tell you that while I love bright neon colors, I definitely do not like neon formulas. I cannot stand the idea of 3+ coats of polish, and I just about lose my shit when I am told to use a white base under a polish. Do you understand my conundrum? For this review, I decided to follow OPI’s inscructions and used their Put a Coat On! white base coat which they state will further enhance color and basically make them pop. Look at me: following directions for once. Let’s take a look at my swatches before I break it down for you.

OPI You’re So Outta Lime!

OPI Life Gave Me Lemons

OPI Hotter Than You Pink

OPI Down To The Core-al

OPI Juice Bar Hopping

OPI Push & Pur-pull

Am I the only one doesn’t really see true neons here? Well, I shouldn’t say that because Life Gave Me Lemons is kind of electric. Other shades are very neon-esqe, but I was expecting something more retina-searing. Let’s get the ugly out of the way first: Push & Pur-pull, you are a beast. This polish was basically unmanageable. When I applied it over the white base, it never looked good. I applied 2 coats of the white base and 4 coats of Push & Pur-pull hoping that would make it look nice. NOPE. You may be thinking that I over-applied it, but I actually went really slowly and let each coat dry before making the decision to add another and another and another. Finally I took it all off and applied it without the white base coat which is what you see above. I am still not happy with it, but I would highly recommend that you skip the white base with this one. As far as the other 5 polishes are concerned, they weren’t horrible but they weren’t that nice either. Out of the collection, Life Gave Me Lemons had the best formula and coverage. For all of my swatches, excet Push & Pur-pull, I applied 2 coats of the white base and 2 coats of polish which I ten top coated with Seche Vite I am not a huge fan of the satin finish that most neons carry which is why I always Seche Vite the crap out all my manis. When did Seche Vite become a verb?

Let’s talk about the Put A Coat On! base coat…

Yep, hated it. It is the strangest white polish I have ever used. It’s chalky and strange and it felt like it never dried. When I applied polish over it, it kind of came off and would get runny. It was just weird. Also, can I tell you how much I hate that no matter how hard I tried, I can see some of the white peeking out around the edges of my mani? It’s a huge pet peeve of mine so it’s driving me nuts that I’m posting what I feel are sloppy swatches. If you are able to apply the white base in one swipe, then you don’t need more than one coat. If you need to make a second pass, then you’re going to get a streaky mess which is why I applied 2 coats of the white base.

Overall, I’m not diggin’ this whole collection. The three that I really like are You’re So Outta Lime, Life Gave Me Lemons and Hotter Than You Pink. Hotter Than You Pink is much brighter in real life than my pictures show and it has some beautiful shimmer to boot. I’m so conflicted because I wanted to love this whole collection so much and now I don’t. The OPI Neons Collection will be available this month and will retail for $9.00 ($10.95 CAN) at Professional Salons, including Beauty Brands, beautybrands.com, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, jcp Salons, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, ULTA and ulta.com. What do you think of this collection? Will you be picking up any of these shades for the Summer? Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

P.S. Have you entered my giveaway for a set of the OPI Sheer Tints? Come enter here.