Of Life and Lacquer

OPI Euro Centrale Collection & Giveaway

Posted on 4 February, 20133 February, 2013 by Cynthia

Remember when I said that I was going to stay in bed all weekend and get better? I’ll give you one guess as to if I really did that. Who would have thought that I would have so many errands to run? Well, technically I did sleep in until 9 on Saturday and Sunday so that definitely felt like a little bit of heaven. I don’t know why, but it seems that I need extra sleep lately and by extra sleep, I mean like 9+ hours. I guess it could be that I’ve been sick for close to two weeks, but I just think that I’m in some strange funk. I really need to go to the doctor to have some bloodwork done, but it’s kind of hard when you don’t have medical insurance. I never realized how bad it is for those without proper medical care until I really needed it and found myself without coverage or substandard coverage. Anyway, I will eventually have insurance through my job but that’s still a few months away before I qualify. I’ll leave it at that because I can get pretty worked up talking about our healthcare system.

I was pretty excited to get my hands on the new OPI Euro Centrale Collection so of course I had to play around with them right away. I only got 6 of the 12 polishes but will probably end up picking up a few more. You can’t even imagine how hard it was to restrain myself, but it’s a work in progress so every time I manage to not grab EVERYTHING in sight, it’s a little victory. So let me show you the six polishes that first grabbed my attention from the latest Spring 2013 offering: OPI Euro Centrale.

OPI You’re Such A BudaPest was the polish I was most excited about…until I applied it. haha! This polish is so incredibly thin and watery that I thought I would never be able to get to bottle color. Well, it wasn’t as bad as I thought because it ended up needing 3 coats but it was so freaking streaky. I let it dry a little bit before I applied my top coat and that seemed to bring it all together. Despite the formula issues, I really love this color.

I feared that OPI Can’t Find My Czechbook was going to suffer of the same difficult formula that You’re Such A Budapest did, but it was easier to work with. I applied two coats for these swatches, and that is all that it needed. What a beautiful aqua blue! It’s seriously one of my favorite colors for Spring…and Summer…and Fall…and…you get the picture!

OPI My Paprika Is Hotter Than Yours! reminds me of a tamer version of OPI A Roll In The Hague which is one of my favorite oranges ever. When I saw how pigmented this polish is, I was worried that it would be stain-arrific but it wasn’t. The formula was not watery but it was noticeably thicker than all the others. It went on a little streaky after two coats but it leveled out nicely after I applied my top coat.

OPI Suzi’s Hungary Again! is one of those staple pink colors. It’s so girlie and so pretty! I didn’t have any real issues with the formula and applied two coats for these swatches. The more I look at this color, the more I want to stamp flowers all over it!

I was really on the fence about OPI Hands Off My Kielbasa! because it just did not look like it would look good on me when I saw it in the bottle. In fact, it kind of reminds me of A Butterfly Moment from the OPI Mariah Carey Collection but a little more tan and warmer in tone. I don’t know if I really like how this looks on my particular skin tone, but I’m sure others will be able to pull it off.

And lastly, this is OPI…Eurso Euro. Eh??? Am I the only one who has no idea what this is supposed to mean? I love how saturated and bright this polish is. I don’t have OPI Roadhouse Blues so I can’t compare it, but doesn’t it kind of look like it? Well, that’s what I thought in my head when I first saw it but I was actually thinking of Essie No More Film but that is not a dupe either. Jeez, I’m all over the place. Since I got rid of so many polishes from my stash, I don’t think I have a dupe for this which is always nice. The formula seemed a tad thin after the first coat, but it was perfect after the second coat.

Even though I had a few gripes about certain polishes being too thin/watery/streaky, I think that I am very pleased by the end results. I’m really loving the color variation in this collection and will DEFINITELY pick up other colors in the near future. If you want to get into a Spring mood, get some of these colors! Now, one of you will be able to try a few of these colors out because I am giving away a set of minis to one of my lovely readers. As usual, this giveaway is open internationally but please make sure that you know your country’s customs regulations before you enter. I will not be responsible for lost/confiscated prizes.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck to everyone and I hope you have a great Monday–even if it is the most dreaded day of the week. At least for me it is! Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

Blogger Spotlight: Perly From Nails For All

Posted on 3 February, 2013 by Cynthia

How about that Superbowl, eh? I couldn’t NOT mention it considering it’s the first time I have ever watched a whole game and of course I thought the power outage was kind of funny. Anyway, this is the first time that I do one of these blogger spotlights which I had mentioned in the past. My reasoning for wanting to do this is that I know how incredibly hard things can be when you first start blogging. I used to always wonder if people even read my blog and then I would get so discouraged. I still feel that way sometimes even now, but I have met so many lovely people because of this blog so I’m always happy to continue sharing my love for polish even when others may think it borders on psychosis. Although my blog is still a little baby blog in a sea of a million others, I would have loved if someone had done this for me when I first started out.

Today I have the lovely Perly from Nails For All who will be sharing a little bit about herself and her blog.

I started my blog in September 9^th, 2012 in course of a school assignment (I studies society and media) about to learn the system of WordPress. At the moment I just had started my “manicure mania” and saw the assignment as a good way to document my progress. -And when it was done I was stuck.

I “only” own about 100 polishes excluding topcoats (and so on), and about the half of them is glitters, my polishbox is screaming for different crème polishes, a truly scarce. Really surprising because of the fact that I love lime crèmes but I’m still not sure about my favorite finish, but I love glitters if I find the right layering polish so glitter would be it. About favorite brands it’s hard to tell, at least it aren’t any Swedish one because the only one I know from here is Viva la Diva and their polishes are kind of boring in my eyes. So out of the brands I own my favorite is China Glaze even if OPI is near to take the spot with the loveliness of Gone Gonzo! But their brushes are way too wide for me to work with. But my most used polish I found in Bulgaria last summer from the brand Flomar.

Among my family and friends I think the most of them know about my blog but probably it´s just about 1-2 of them reading it, maybe because I only have contact with people in school (I don’t have that much time and at my free time at weekends I prefer to visit family) and most of them are sport or game freaks.

What I mostly like about blogging is the fact that I can get and give advice from other that also is stuck in the nail polish obsession. Also I like the fact that I can feel free about when I blog or not, because we are all in the same boat about time for manicure making and blogging in combination with the rest of our lives.

Perly hails from Sweden which is a country I’ve always wanted to visit. Hopefully I’ll get the change to take a vacation there sometime in the future. Here is a manicure that Perly created for this post as well as her adorable mani profile picture:

Make sure that you check out Perly’s blog at http://nailsforall.wordpress.com/

If you are interested in being featured in a future Blogger Spotlight post, just send me an email and we can chat. Thanks for stopping by today!

Winner Announced: Silly Lily J-E-L-L-O

Posted on 1 February, 2013 by Cynthia

Hello everyone! Thank you for participating in my Silly Lily J-E-L-L-O giveaway. I won’t drag this out so the winner is….

Congratulations, Shelby! I have emailed Shelby and she has 48 hours to get back to me or else I will be picking a new winner. Don’t worry if you didn’t win this time since I have just launched another giveaway. This time I am giving away a bottle of Silly Lily Bunny Eggs! Head on over to my review and blog post here.

Don’t forget to check out Silly Lily’s Facebook page and Esty shop for updates on new products and promotions.

Silly Lily Bunny Eggs – Review & Giveaway

Posted on 1 February, 20131 February, 2013 by Cynthia

The weekend has arrived, and I don’t think anyone is as glad and relieved as me. I am in serious need of some bed rest, and so far that is all I have planned for this weekend. Of course I’m going to try to get some blog stuff done so I don’t feel so pressured and rushed to get things done during the weekend. I know I’ve said it before, but I am seriously bummed that I have been neglecting my blog so much since I started working. Hopefully once my training is over and I have my regular schedule, I’ll have more time to dedicate to my blog and reading all the awesome blogs I’ve been neglecting as well. Tonight I ended up spending some time with one of my friends and we went out for coffee and then watched a movie at my place. It was a low-key evening which is exactly what I needed. I also took a little break to paint my nails which is what I’m going to show you now. Behold, Silly Lily Bunny Eggs.

Ok, this isn’t Bunny Eggs, but I wanted to show you what base color I decided to use. This beauty is Illamasqua Velocity. I’ve worn it quite a few times in the past, and I thought that the lovely light purple would make an amazing base for Bunny Eggs. As always, the formula on Velocity was perfection.

I know Easter is still far away, but how cute is this polish? I don’t think that my pictures do it justice. It’s just so delicate and bright at the same time. I have to say that I felt that the polish was a little on the thick side so I did have to add some thinner so that I could apply it without causing a mess. I have come to realize that this is the norm when a glitterbomb is involved. I think that they key to applying a polish like this is to use very thin coats which is what I did. I applied 2 thin coats here.

And now, here is your chance to win your very own bottle of Silly Lily Bunny Eggs! Use the widget below to enter and don’t forget to share with your friends! As always, this giveaway is open internationally but please make sure that you know the customs regulations of your country. With all the issues surrounding international shipping, I just want to make sure that you understand that I will not be responsible for those problems but will do my best to make sure that your package arrives safe and sound should you live outside the US and you win the polish.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

I think I’m posting this just in the nick of time before midnight here on the west coast. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Be safe if you’re planning to have some Super Bowl festivities. Thanks for stopping by today and I will talk to you later!

Disclosure: The products featured in this post were purchased by me. Silly Lily Bunny Eggs was purchased by me at a reduced rate for review and giveaway purposes. For more information, please see my disclosure policy tab here.

Julep Beauty Resolution: Play With The Color Wheel

Posted on 31 January, 2013 by Cynthia

Hello my polish beauties! I am slowly getting back to normal after 6 days of complete flu agony. Since I just started my job, I was not allowed to miss work (we’re doing training) so I really had to tough it out. If you’ve ever been forced to go to work when you’re beyond sick, you probably know how miserably slow your days seem. I no longer have severe flu symptoms, but my cough is still pretty bad. Hopefully this weekend I will have plenty of time to just lay in bed and feel better so that when Monday comes around, I can be in tip top shape! I’ve been so bummed out these last couple of weeks because I just haven’t had time to post regularly or visit all my favorite blogs, but hopefully I can catch up this weekend.

About a month ago, I was invited to be part of a Julep Beauty Resolution Campaign. This particular assignment called playing with complimentary colors so I was sent two polishes to experiment with: Trina and Alma. I actually reviewed both polishes individually and created two separate looks:

This is what I did with Trina. You can read my complete post here.

This is what I did with Alma. You can read my complete post here. In fact, this look earned the honor of being Julep’s NOTD!! I was so happy and excited!

Today I am combining both colors in one manicure. Nicole and I always remember the first time that I ever combined yellow and purple in one manicure. If you are brave enough, you can check it out here. Just be warned that it is NOT pretty and that it was done in the very early days of my blog. So are you ready to see what I did? It’s not that revolutionary, but I am definitely trying to combine colors that I would normally not try to use together–especially after the earlier disasticure.

I started with 2 smooth coats of Julep Trina. One of my friends asked me if I knew of a dupe for Trina but I couldn’t really think of one. I thought of Essie Sexy Divide but it’s not really a dupe. If you know of a good dupe, let me know! 🙂

And this is how I ended up combining both colors. I know that it’s nothing out of this world, but I kind of like it! I added a strip of gold tape to really bring both colors together. If you haven’t joined Julep’s Maven subscription program, what are you waiting for? You can use my referral link here and enter the code JULEPVIP to get your intro box for one cent. Yep, for a penny.

So what do you think about my bold experiment with yellow and purple toned polishes? Win? Fail? I can tell you that I’m definitely not used to using colors like these together so it may take some time for me to get used to it, but it’s always nice to try new things. Well, that’s all I have for you tonight. My giveaway for a bottle of Silly Lily Polish in J-E-L-L-O ends tomorrow so don’t forget to enter here! I can’t wait until work is over for the week tomorrow…I am giddy just thinking about a whole weekend of being lazy in bed. Thanks for stopping by today and I will talk to you later!

Disclosure: The products featured in this post were provided to me by the manufacturer or their PR firm. For more information, please see my disclosure policy tab here.

Jindie Nails Strawberry Cupcake

Posted on 29 January, 2013 by Cynthia

Every time I look at this nail polish, I keep thinking of Strawberry Shortcake. Do you remember that cartoon?

Why can’t cartoons be so cute and innocent nowadays? It kind of makes me sad when I think that kids today don’t really have a real childhood. I’m just 33, bur I remember not having a cell phone or computer and actually going outside to PLAY! What a novel idea! Oh boy…here I am on one of my tangents. Let’s get down to the polish, shall we? Today I am sharing a quick swatch of Jindie Nails Strawberry Cupcake.

I purchased this mini of Jindie Nails Strawberry Cupcake during the last restock a couple of weeks ago. I haven’t purchased mani minis from any brand so I was curious about the bottle and brush. In short (pun–ha!), the brush is pretty short and I felt like I couldn’t really get the polish and glitter on it. What I ended up doing is adding a few drops of thinner and then let it sit upside down for a while. After I did that, it was pretty easy to get glitter on the brush without having to fish for it like crazy.

Strawberry Cupcake is a glitter explosion (duh!) in a delicate milky pink base. I see white, magenta, purple and teal hex glitters in many different sizes. I applied 3 super thin coats for these swatches because I didn’t want the polish to look crazy thick .

I’m going to keep this post short and sweet because it’s about time for me to take 3 cup shots of Nyquil and go to bed. No, I’m NOT joking. That’s the only way I have been able to get some rest lately. I am just glad that I was able to pull it together today and do this quick swatch.

You can find Jindie Nails at her etsy shop and at various online stockists. If you want to get direct updates regarding her next restock, make sure that you check out her Facebook page. What do you think of Strawberry Cupcake? Let me know! Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you later. 🙂

Sorry

Posted on 28 January, 201328 January, 2013 by Cynthia

I feel like such a turd for the lack of posts that will probably extend through the end of this week. The truth of the matter is that besides getting used to my new work schedule, I am also battling a horrible cold–or maybe even the flu. At this point, I don’t care. All I know is that I’m miserable. I seem to go through spans of hours where it’s not so bad and then it hits me like a ton of bricks. I had so much stuff that I wanted to share this week and now it looks like all of that is going to have to wait until I start to feel better. I am on twitter and facebook sporadically but just don’t have it in me to do new manis. In fact, I tried to do one today and it looked so bad that I just took it off.

When I got to work today in the morning, my co-worker looks at me and he asks, “You didn’t even do your hair this morning. You must feel real bad.” Gee, thanks. hahahaha We are pretty friendly so I didn’t take it amiss. In fact, I told him that I would go to bed extra early tonight so I could wake up early and do my hair so he wouldn’t tell me it looks like crap again. Everyone thought that was pretty funny and I love making people laugh–even if it’s at my expense–so all was good. I pretty much have a hazmat bubble around my desk so everyone has been staying away–NICE!

So that’s where I’m at at this point. I am looking forward to getting back on a more regular schedule because I miss doing my nails so much! Thanks for stopping by despite the lack of new posts. <3

Edit: After I posted this, I remembered another funny thing that happened: I was taking some meds which I hate cause they taste horrible. So I said: “Ugh, this stuff tastes like ass!” So the same guy who teased me about my hair says: “Uhm, I am NOT going to ask you how you know what ass tastes like.” So then I responded: “You know what I mean!” And he says, “Oh, yes…” At that point a few other people got involved and the conversation went to a place that it should never go at the workplace. Great…now I’m going to be known as THAT person in the office. Oh well…it could be worse, right?

Winner Announced: OPI Liquid Sand Minis

Posted on 26 January, 2013 by Cynthia

It’s always really fun to announce winners for my giveaways so I won’t keep you waiting any longer. The winner is…

Kimberly Y!!!

Yay, Kimberly! I have sent Kimberly an email and she has 48 hours to get back to me with her address or else I will be picking a new winner. Thank you to everyone for entering my Liquid Sand Minis giveaway. If you didn’t win, don’t fret: I’m a giveaway fiend! 🙂 I am currently running another giveaway for a bottle of Silly Lily Polish J-E-L-L-O so be sure to head on over here to read my review and to enter!

Cacee BFF Nail Lacquer Sky

Posted on 25 January, 2013 by Cynthia

It’s Friday which means that I have made it through my first week at my new job! Woot! I am still in training and it really is tons of information to process, but things are starting to fall into place so I’m not feeling so overwhelmed anymore. I still haven’t worn nail polish to work yet, but I’ll probably start wearing it next week. After work today, I headed over to my nail polish places to see if they had anything new…and they didn’t. I hate it when I go in hoping that they have some new collection early so I can get the scoop but end up with nothing. Well, you know what nothing means to me: 5 polishes, some Seche Restore and a new brush for clean-up. One of the polishes I picked up is what I decided to try out tonight: Cacee BFF Nail Lacquer Sky.

Sky seems like a run of the mill vibrant blue but beejus the formula is great! This beauty is so incredibly pigmented, and I was very sorry when I got it on my cuticles because it was a biatch to remove.

For this design, I used Sation Strumming My Nails to paint the tip of my nails white and for the white dotting. I’ve mentioned Strumming My Nails before and I can’t believe that I haven’t done a proper mani with it to show you just how amazing this polish is. It’s not a pure white–it has some grey tones which I looooooove. Even better, this polish is almost a one-coater! These nails are a direct copy of the mani that Siobhan has on her blog’s banner. Every time I would see that picture, I immediately wanted to copy it and I finally did!

I’m not that talk-y tonight. I should have posted this hours ago, but I got sucked into watching puppy videos on youtube for hours. I’m not kidding…HOURS. It was sooooooo worth it! Thanks for stopping by today. I have a new Spring collection to share with you this weekend so don’t forget to check in. Talk to you later!

Disclosure: Sation Strumming My Nails was provided to me by the manufacturer or their PR firm. All other products featured in this post were purchased by me. For more information, please see my disclosure policy tab here.

China Glaze Avant Garden Collection For Spring 2013

Posted on 25 January, 2013 by Cynthia

Guess what? The Spring collections are coming to us at a fast and furious pace. Today I have China Glaze’s Spring 2013 offering to share with you.

BLOSSOM INTO SPRING WITH CHINA GLAZE®

China Glaze® Nail Lacquer Invites You to Visit the Avant Garden

Los Angeles (January 2012) – Spring is here and China Glaze® is blossoming with vibrant color with its new collection, Avant Garden. The delectable palette flows between soft hues and vibrant pops of color, offering an unconventional bouquet of cheerful and vivid shades. Take a stroll down the China Glaze® path, passing a bubbling brook of light and bright blues. Take in the view of the mossy green meadow and stop to enjoy the fragrant flowers of soft pink and white. Let Avant Garden take you away to a playful, romantic field of color and innovation this Spring.

The Avant Garden shades include:

Budding Romance: moss green
Sunday Funday: bright blue
Fancy Pants: indigo with pink and purple shimmer
Snap My Dragon: bright red with pink shimmer
Passion for Petals: bright salmon-pink
Mimosas Before Manis: coral with a light wash of shimmer
Life is Rosy: blushed mauve
Pink-ie Promise: iridescent baby pink
Tart-y for the Party: light lavender creme
Fade Into Hue: periwinkle creme
Keep Calm, Paint On: sea foam green
Dandy Lyin’ Around: shimmery vanilla icing

China Glaze® Avant Garden is also available in:

6 Piece Collection of “Blooming Brights”

6 Piece Collection of “Pastel Petals”

12 Piece 3D Counter Display

36 Piece Rack

China Glaze® Avant Garden will be available March 2013. Individual shades retail for $7; 6-piece collections retail for $42.

China Glaze® is free of DBP, toluene, and added formaldehyde.

China Glaze® nail lacquers are available through salons and professional beauty supply stores nationwide. For more information, please visit www.chinaglaze.com or follow China Glaze® on Facebook (@ChinaGlazeOfficlal), Twitter (@ChinaGlaze) and Pinterest (pinterest.com/chinaglaze).

China Glaze® is a division of American International Industries.

About American International Industries

For 42 years, AII has been the leading manufacturer and worldwide distributor of innovative, quality beauty and skin care products for men and women. Our product lines include Andrea, Ardell, Body Drench, Bye Bye Blemish, Checi, China Glaze, Clean + Easy, Clubman/Pinaud, Duo, European Secrets, EzFlow, Fright Night, Gena, GiGi, Gypsy Lash, IBD, It’s So Easy, Jeris-Lustray, LASH BeLONG, Nail Tek, No Tweeze/Micro Tweeze, ‘N Rage, Poshe, Prolinc, RAW, Seche, SuperNail, Surgi-Care, Waterworks, Winning Nails, Woltra, Woody’s, and Youthair. For more information, visit our website: www.aiibeauty.com.