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OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls

Posted on 23 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Remember when the OPI The Amazing Spider-man Collection came out? Yeah, me neither. The one thing I do remember is going super nuts over OPI Spotted which was a French exclusive. I did manage to get a bottle of this through my French polish fairy, Sabrina, and I was super excited to try it out. I recall purchasing two polishes from the collection but they sat there collecting dust for a while. When I finally got around to trying them out, I was floored. OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls is such a beautiful polish that instantly became a favorite. Let’s take a look at my swatches below.

The beauty of this polish lies in the beautiful creaminess and gloss of this slightly greyed white. It doesn’t have that stark white and chalky look that some white polishes tend to have so it’s a lot more wearable. Since this is a white polish, I was expecting an application beast, but it was fine with three thin coats. The first coat is a little scary because of the streakiness, but it evens out nicely. You may not think this is anything special, but I assure you that it’s absolutely stunning in person.

Today I was thinking about making slow changes in my diet stuff. Since I was reading Marlena’s blog, I liked that she was talking about making slow changes. My first change is to not use the vending machines at work. Even when I think I am making a healthy choice with trail mix or something of the like, I am just a button away from those bags of Cheetos. I love Cheetos. I can’t be around them. So that’s my plan for this week. Small changes seem more manageable and those small changes will add up to big results over time. I think that my biggest hurdle is giving up coke. I drink about 2-3 diet cokes each day which I know is way too much. I do drink a lot of water and I like iced tea, but I just can’t seem to give up soft drinks. I love the carbonation and I love the coke taste. Uuughhh! If you’ve given up soft drinks, let me know if you have any advice or tips. So how’s your Thursday going? Mine has been pretty meh so far, and I’m already looking forward to my next day off. Thanks for the visit today, and I’ll catch up with you later.

Golden Rose 37

Posted on 21 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Well, here I am still sick. I think that now that the weather is changing again (it was really cool this morning), my body is just going nuts. It’s kind of crazy that while we have been in the 80’s for the last week, other parts of the country are completely snowed in. Yep, I shouldn’t be complaining about sunny, hot days even though it is the middle of January. Today I have the other polish that Daniel brought back for me from his recent trip to South Africa. Here is Golden Rose 37:

This color screams Spring to me so it’s actually rather fitting considering the warm weather we are experiencing lately. I really like this beautiful melon color, but I found it to be an application beast. The formula is touted as a 1 coater, but it needed 3 coats to even out. Still, I love this juicy color and anticipate wearing it a lot this Spring/Summer.

So what have you been up to lately? I hope that I get over this nasty allergy/head cold thing so I can actually feel normal again….well, as normal as I can get. I decided to do some major purging today so I’m going to be setting up a lot of stuff for sale including eye shadow palettes mostly by Urban Decay, Stila and Too Faced. Make sure that you check out my blog sale page here for all the new items. I hope to have them up to day in addition to all the nail polish I have on there already. Thanks for the visit today and talk to you soon!

Nicole by OPI New Core Colors For 2014 – Part 1

Posted on 20 January, 2014 by Cynthia

And another week starts up again. I wasn’t able to go to work this morning because my allergies continued to torture me. I took some Benadryl last night because my face and eyes were swollen like crazy. Then this morning I still couldn’t open my eyes all the way. Ahhh….this stupid weather is going to be the end of me. Oh my glob, I almost forgot that The Following is back on TV!!! I just saw the first episode on my Hulu queue and I nearly pissed myself with excitement. I was so nervous that FOX would cancel this show just like every other awesome show (Dollhouse anyone?). I always go off on TV tangents, don’t I? I’ve completely stopped watching any kind of reality TV so now I’m watching a few dramas, mainly: The Following, Scandal and The Black List. I may watch a few other shows here and there, but I don’t follow any of them religiously. So today I have some awesome new polishes to share with you. Last week I received an amazing polish package which included the Nicole by OPI New Core Colors For 2014. Since there are 15 new colors, I decided to break up the post into 3 separate parts to showcase 5 polishes at a time. For today’s post, I have picked my 5 favorites to share with you, but it was sooo hard to pick 5 colors because I loved so many of them. Let’s take a look at the first 5 pretties, shall we?

Nicole by OPI Teal Me Something New

Nicole by OPI I Shop Mintage

Nicole by OPI Emerald Empowered

Nicole by OPI This Blue Is So You!

Nicole by OPI At Least I Pink So

The consistency of all these polishes is superb. They are all super smooth and apply beautifully. I would like to mention that Teal Me Something New stains like a mofo, but I didn’t wear any base coat so that’s my bad. Even though my pictures don’t really show it, Emerald Empowered is a duochrome that flashes green and blue—very pretty! All of my swatches show two coats of polish and top coat. The darkest color, This Blue Is So You! could almost be a one coater which is always a welcome surprise. We’ve seen so many of these dark and smoky navy blues lately, and I’m still not tired of them. These new nail lacquers should be available now for $7.99 each at retailers including select Walmart, Target, CVS, Kmart, Kroger, ULTA, H-E-B, Meijer and Duane Reade locations. In Canada, these shades will be available for $10.99 each at Shoppers Drug Mart, Walmart Canada, Jean Coutu, Loblaw, and London Drug.

What do you think of these first 5 new colors? I can’t wait to show you the rest later this week because they are all so gorgeous and they are mostly crèmes!!! My favorite!!! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Kiko 816 Taupe Brown

Posted on 19 January, 2014 by Cynthia

How’s your Sunday going? I am still trying to work through all my allergies, but I think I am losing the battle because I’m kind of miserable. When I am feeling completely off, I usually just veg out and watch tons of stuff on Netflix. Since I love watching documentaries, my feed is usually full of documentary recommendations. One of those recommendations caught my attention: Bronies: The Extremely Unexpected Adult Fans of My Little Pony. Basically, the documentary is about adults (they focus on males) who are fans of My Little Pony (Bros + Ponies = Bronies). I would have never known that this even existed if I hadn’t watched this documentary. It was actually pretty interesting! The reason why I even watched this is because I have a soft spot in hear for My Little Pony. When I was a kid, I wanted one so bad but my parents couldn’t get one for me because we were broker than broke at that point. Many years later, like when I was 19/20, my mom bought one of the original ones for me randomly at a garage sale because I guess she remembered how much I wanted one when I was a little kid. I still get choked up a little bit when I think about it because it meant so much to me. Alright, alright…enough of My Little Pony and let’s move on to the polish. If there is one color that I don’t have much of in my stash, it is brown so I am happy for this addition: Kiko 816 Taupe Brown.

While this is not a color that I would normally go gaga over, I ended up really liking it because it applied so smoothly and effortlessly. It only needed two coat for full coverage and it dried pretty quickly since it is a quick dry formula. I can see this polish working really well for some nail art! A big thanks again to Sabrina for sending this to me.

So, I hope that you’ve enjoyed your weekend. I’ll try to super medicate myself so that I can actually be functional for work tomorrow. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Sephora by OPI Eve-y On The Eyes

Posted on 17 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Happy Friday everyone! I’m really happy today because I actually have Saturday and Sunday off. OH MY GOD who did I have to pay off to actually have a normal 2 day weekend?? Unfortunately, this was just the way things worked out because my work schedule has been changed so I will be back to working one weekend day the following week. Womp, womp. I struggled so much to wake up this morning because the disgusting weather has triggered Allergygate 2014. I am feeling absolutely miserable, but I am going to push through it and try to enjoy my weekend. I went to buy some allergy meds and I forgot that I needed to bring an ID because people use this stuff for meth production. Yeah, no comment. Anyway, on to the polish! Today I have another one of my untrieds to share with you: Sephora by OPI Eve-y On The Eyes. Let’s take a look at this pretty.

This polish was so incredibly promising in the bottle. That beautiful shimmer drew me in immediately, so I was beyond sad when I finally tried it out and the shimmer basically disappeared. Waaaahhhh! Don’t get me wrong; this polish is still beautiful and the color rocks, but how gorgeous would it be if the shimmer showed up as well? The formula an this felt a little thin, but it does build up well.

I’m waiting for my nephew to get here right now so I can barely wait to see him. Every time I see him, he gets bigger and bigger. He just turned 2 months last week so he’s starting to coo and smile a lot which I love. He’s such a cutie. Hopefully he’s in a good mood today so I can get some good pictures of him. Make sure that you stop by tomorrow for Stamping Saturdays! I think that this time around, a few more of my girls will be participating so I can’t want to see what they come up with. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Kiko 389 Mint Milk

Posted on 16 January, 201415 January, 2014 by Cynthia

I’m not going to go on another long rant about the weather today (even though I want to), so I will just mention that there was an earthquake the other night. I didn’t feel it since it was pretty minor, but this hellish heat and now the earthquake makes me feel like something bad is coming; maybe it’s a second collection of Crinkled Chromes. Ehhh… To make up for the crappy weather, I decided to wear a lovely, bright and creamy polish: Kiko 389 Mint Milk. I defy you not to love this!

My camera always tends to photograph things a little more blue than they really are. This color leans more minty green but my camera was just going nuts and would not capture it accurately. I was anticipating a difficult application, but the formula is so creamy and delicious that it only took two coat for full opacity. This polish makes me angry…angry because we don’t get Kiko in the States. Sadness. A big thank you to the lovely Sabrina for sending me this lovely gift–I love it!

Well, that’s all I have for you today. I am anticipating the weekend with so much glee. Through some fluke where all the planets aligned, I have this weekend off. Yes, two whole days off in a row…on a weekend. The idea that I am so excited about something that most people at most jobs get makes me kind of sad. Anyway, I hope you’re doing well and thanks so much for stopping by today.

Nicole by OPI & Dove: Discover Your Dark Side in the New Year Sweepstakes

Posted on 15 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Let me complain just a little bit right now: It is so dang hot today!!! It should not be 88 degrees in the freaking middle of Winter. You have no idea how irritated I am about this because I feel like I can deal and accept summer temperatures during the Summer, but not during the months when I’m supposed to be enjoying cooler temps. I know California weather is not typical and that we don’t really have Winters, but how is this even normal? Ok, I’m going to stop. As if you couldn’t tell already, hot weather makes me grumpy. Anyway, today I want to alert you that Nicole by OPI & Dove have teamed up for an awesome sweepstakes where there will be 25,000 winners!!! Say what?! Yes, 25,000 winners! Before I get to the sweepstakes details, I want to show you the two gorgeous polishes that you can win!

Are you a chocoholic too? Because I am!

Nicole by OPI Promises In The Dark

Nicole by OPI Better After Dark

Aren’t both of these gorgeous? The formula on both of them is perfect: creamy, very pigmented and smooth. I had absolutely no problem with application. Aren’t these the perfect colors for a chocolate inspired duo? Now for the fun part…

To enter the Discover Your Dark Side in the New Year Sweepstakes:

From now through February 5, 2014, DOVE® Chocolate Facebook fans can enter once per day for a chance to win one (1) of the 25,000 NICOLE by OPI® kits, which include:

§ A coupon for a free DOVE® Dark Chocolate Bar (1.34 oz. – 1.44 oz.)

§ Better After Dark NICOLE by OPI® Nail Lacquer Bottle

§ Promises in the Dark NICOLE by OPI® Nail Lacquer Bottle

To enter, simply “like” the DOVE® Chocolate Facebook page and click on the Sweepstakes tab to enter your name, email address, shipping address and date of birth. The Sweepstakes is open to legal residents of the 50 United States who are age 13 or older on or before December 27, 2013. All winners will be selected at random by an independent agency in the week following the sweepstakes.

For more information, please visit www.facebook.com/dovechocolate or www.facebook.com/nicolebyopi.

Go enter now! What are you waiting for? Good luck!

Formula X Fathom

Posted on 14 January, 201420 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Today I have another pretty from Sephora’s Formula X line. I really wish I didn’t keep liking these because of the price, but I just can’t help myself. I have a gift card burning a hole in my pocket right now, but I’m going to try to buy something sensible with it…like my MUFE HD foundation. I have one more Formula X polish that I bought around the same time, but it looks HORRID on me. I don’t recall the name right now, but it is a neutral color that I initially thought would be the perfect nude for a mannequin manicure. NOPE. It made my skin look green and gross. I was also sad that the cap had a small chip in it which I didn’t notice until I took off the plastic wrapping. I almost never return anything, but I’m thinking of returning this. I wonder if they will take it back even though I lost my receipt. Anyway, the polish du jour is Formula X Fathom so let’s take a look at it.

Beautiful smoky blue, come to mama. This kind of color is right up my alley…but don’t I say that about every color? The formula on this baby is superb: smooth, highly pigmented and crazy glossy. I applied 2 coats for my swatches above but I think that you could get away with 1 coat if you’re careful with your application. Since I need a little bling with this mani, I applied some gold glitter.

I am totally spacing on what glitter I used here…yes, I have that many gold glitters. This is nothing fancy, but I really like how pretty this looks. Those of you who have been following me since the beginning are probably laughing at me right now because there was a time when I hated glitter. HATED IT. What was I thinking?

Besides the ugly nude color that I hope to be returning, I can honestly say that I am very impressed with the Formula X line. While the price is now a deterrent for me ($10.50-$12.50), I think these are worth checking out if only to satisfy your curiosity. Have you purchased any polishes from this line? What do you think about this line being sold as a system where they recommend their own cleanser, base coat and top coat? Have you used the whole system? Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Essie Resort Fling Collection 2014

Posted on 13 January, 201413 January, 2014 by Cynthia

It may still be cold and dreary in many parts of the country (not in my area since we’re getting up to the 80’s!!!), but it’s that time of year when we start to see Spring collections pop up. While I love the sizzling allure of Summer collections, I also look forward to the more restrained and delicate colors that inevitably pop up ever Spring. I always get excited about new collections because, frankly, that’s what polish addicts do. Today I have something new to share with you: the Essie Resort Fling Collection for 2014. I think I saw some promo shots late last year and I was a little underwhelmed. Since then I have seen some swatches, and I warmed up a bit towards the collection. Let’s take a look at my swatches, and I’ll let you know what I really think.

First up is Resort Fling. Ahhh…Resort Fling. I was really looking forward to this polish because it’s such a pretty sorbet type of color: like a creamy cantaloupe! Sadly, my excitement soon fizzled because of the formula. This polish is very sheer. Very, very sheer so the application was…difficult. I figured that it would be a 3 coater after I saw how sheer and streaky it applied, but I soon realized it would take more than that because it was still an uneven mess at 3 coats. I ended up applying 5 thin coats to get this polish to look nice. I am not ok with that.

Cocktails & Coconuts looks really pretty in the bottle, but I ended up not liking it on myself. I don’t think this is a particularly flattering shade on my tan skin. You can see some lovely shimmer in the bottle, but sadly it does not translate well on the nail. Because of the aforementioned shimmer, the consistency of this polish is somewhat grainy. Fortunately it covers a lot better than Resort Fling and I was able to achieve full opacity with 3 thin coats.

While I do feel that Essie has plenty of similar shades, Find Me An Oasis really grew on me. I love wearing white/off white polishes because they contrast so well on my skin tone, so I was very excited to try this one out even though I fear light colors such as this because they formula is usually streak city. Well, this polish was streaky, but it wasn’t as bad as I had feared. The first coat was very uneven, but it builds up nicely. Just make sure that you give ample dry time between coats and you shouldn’t have a problem with it. My swatches above show 3 thin coats.

And lastly we have Under The Twilight which is the best polish of this collection—consistency-wise. This baby is crazy pigmented so you could get away with one coat if you’re carefully with your application. This dark indigo polish leans a little more blue than purple in my eyes, but I would still call it a deep blurpe type of color. Is it just me or does it seem out of place in this collection?

Well, after the Essie high I had going on after their Fall and Winter collections, I am sad to report that I am not happy with this collection. The sub-par formulas really kill me because I’ve come to expect a lot from Essie. I also don’t feel that this collection is very cohesive nor am I a huge fan of the colors individually. Oh well! They can’t all be winners, right? In case you’re interested in these, I have made them available in my blog sale. Let me know what you think of this collection; are you as underwhelmed as I am? Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Formula X Chaotic

Posted on 12 January, 2014 by Cynthia

Remember when Lynnderella put out Connect The Dots and everyone pretty much went batshit crazy for it? That seems like 5 billion years ago, right? Things seem to move so quickly in the nail polish world that we quickly got similar offerings from other indie makers. While the polish I have for you today is not an exact dupe of Connect The Dots, it is more of a close cousin. Formula X Chaotic is a black and white glitter topper with different sized black and white hex glitter as well as black bar glitter. You may notice that the bottle shape of this polish is different than the current Formula X polishes and that is because it was one of the first polishes from this line. Let’s take a look at this polish over a gorgeous pink.

Yeah, I know that we’ve all seen a million versions of this type of polish, but it doesn’t mean that it’s not any less pretty. I love the combination of the black and white over a hot pink like Golden Rose 09. The formula on this polish is fine…nothing to really complain about because it goes on well and you get good glitter coverage with one coat.

So…nothing groundbreaking with today’s post. I really like how this glitter topper looks over this hot pink color! I’m feeling kind of blah today so I’ll cut it short. I have a new collection to share with you tomorrow so make sure to check back in with me. Thanks for the visit today, and I hope you have enjoyed your weekend.