Kiko Wisteria: You may not be the best polish, but at least you aren't a horrible person

Well I had...a day. First half of the day was great. Second, not so much. Long story short, got onto a commuter train, and some annoying guy who was with his son, asked if he could use my phone. I said no, for multiple reasons. One being I just didn't want him using my phone. Anyway, he got angry at me and started going off and calling me the N word, and saying how horrible black people can be. And this went on for a while. I was livid. It took a lot for me to not say anything. Long story short I contacted security, and technically I can press charges for harassment, but I'm not going to. I don't want to waste my time on filth like that. I will say I felt bad for the son(who was for sure biracial[not black though]), who was telling him to "Shut up" the whole time.

Now for the polish. This is two coats of Kiko Wisteria, a periwinkle textured polish, sans shimmer. I honestly didn't know how I would feel about this. I love textured polishes, but never loved the look of textured without shimmer. I always though it looked like a bumpy wall, but I decided to wear this today because I do love the colour. Honestly, I actually really liked it at first. I think it looks good on the nail, but from a far. I think textured polish in general looks better when it's not right in your face. What I didn't like about it was the dry time was it was longer than any other textured polish I own, and it got DIRTY from the dark foundation on my face. Which was impossible to wash off.

Overall I don't hate this polish, but I don't love it. Maybe I can find something artsy to do with it!

Simply Love - Barry M Blackberry

Again please forgive my photos. I am still playing around with my camera. If anyone has any tips on how to get sharper images on a DSLR let me know. I'm getting better, but most of the time the bottle will be in focus and the nails not.

Today I have the first swatch of 2015! Yes that is right. I am the first person to swatch anything in the year 2015! I'm just a little late posting it :P

Today I have Barry M Blackberry from their Gelly Hi-Shine line. Blacberry is a dark royal blue, along the same lines of the TARDIS(9 and 10's TARDIS). To get full coverage I used two coats, but it comes very close to being a one coater. Application was easy as 1,2,3 and clean up did not leave me with Smurf cuticles. This will be perfect if it doesn't stain when I remove it. Without topcoat this polish was super shiny(as Hi-Shine implies), but I ended up using TC, because I don't take chances.

Overall I loved this polish, and it is another reason Barry M is one of my favourite drug store brands. What is your favourite drug store brand?

Essie - Lots of Lux: Forbidden Love.

So I will be honest.  I'm not a huge fan of Essie.  I only have a few of them, but in order for me to buy an Essie I have to REALLY love it... or get it for free.  Currently I have 5 Essies.  One I loved until I wore it because it stained like craze. Two of them I bought because I did in fact like the colours, and to this day I still like them.  Then I have one that I got for free, which I like because it was free.  Finally there is this polish, Lots of Lux.  I am IN love with it.  It is by far on of my favourite polishes I own.

Now buying it was a magical experience.  When I see a polish I'm thinking of buying the first thing I do is look up swatches.  Even if I'm in the store and the bottle is in my hand.  I always want to see how it looks as a full manicure.  Here's the problem with this colour.  In photos and when looking at it in the bottle the colour looks AMAZING.  But in photos the polish always looks kind of grainy, and sand like.  For me a nice textured polish should not look like sand thrown into polish or stucco(textured polish that does not have shimmer in it tends to look like this)  So I was torn, a grainy polish, but a stunning colour. I decided I just needed to have it.  It was too pretty to pass up... and it was on sale :P

When I got home I applied 2 easy coats of this polish, and I was blown away.  This rich, bold blue, that was filled with what looked like gold, green, and purple glitter was even prettier on the nail than in the bottle.  I think the problem with photos is the fine glitter does not photograph well, and because the texture is so fine up close it does look a bit grainy.  Long story short this polish does not photograph well, and you all need to buy it NOW!

Gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!! Hopefully you can still find it because I THINK it was limited edition.

Does anyone else here shop for polish with their phone out?  Checking reviews in the store.

Literary Lacquers As The Waltz Was Ending + Love You Forever: I can't angry blog.

This post was actually originally written yesterday, and the whole thing started out as a rant at something I was mad about.  Now I generally love sharing with you guys stuff about me, but when I read it over it was not only did a write something that came off as VERY angry.  It came off something personal that I didn't want to tell someone, but I still wanted them to find out about.  Subsequently it made writing the actual review near impossible, because I just wasn't in the right head space.  So I had to step away and come back to this.  I didn't want to write a sub par review because of things that had nothing to do with it.  So lesson learnt, I can't and wont blog angry.

Jacquie

Jacquie

Jacquie

Today I have 2 polishes for you.  Both Literary Lacquers, and both from the community collection.

First up I have As The Waltz Was Ending, created by Lacey from My Boyfriend Hates Makeup.  And is inspired by one of her favourite books As the Waltz Was Ending by Emma MacAlik Butterworth. "An autobiographical account of a young girl whose ballet career with the Vienna State Opera was interrupted by the invasion of the Nazis and who later had to fight for her life during the Russian occupation."  To check out why Lacy chose this book go here.

ATWWE is a pink-purple liner holo.  And I'll be honest with you, it was so hard to photograph.  It always came out more purple than pink.  But the shots I did end up with are very close.  I used 3 coats and the formula was typical of a Literary Lacquer holo...  Perfect.

Sunlight

 Indoor FLASH *AH-HA*

Next up I have my favourite of the four polishes from this collection I have reviewed called Love You Forever.  It was created by Crisdee and her daughter Keera, and was inspired by the Robert Munsch children's book Love You Forever. "It tells the story of the evolving relationship between a boy and his mother."  If you would like to see the full story behind why they chose this book check it out here.

Love You Forever is a sky blue linear polish.  And man oh man is it beautiful.  Again like ATWWE, I used 3 coats and the formula was perfect.

Overall I love Literary Lacquers holo polishes.  They aren't super holo indoors, but they come to life in sunlight.  And while they may not be super holo indoors, that's ok with me, because the colours are all so beautiful.  Even when you can't see the holo in full effect, the colour itself can stand on it's own.

If you would like a bottle of one of these, or any other Literary Lacquer, head on over to the LL etsy page!  The bottles retail for $10 USD each.

Do you own any Literary Lacquer holo's?  Aren't they amazing???

*Products sent for honest review

Literary Lacquers Goodnight Moon: First foray into shaped glitter

I had lobster poutine the other day.  It was amazing.  The end.

Today I have another Literary Lacquers for you guys, it's Goodnight Moon, created by Tami of The Manicured Mermaid, and based on the Children's of the same name.  A book about a child saying goodnight to everything (Read full story of inspiration here).  And I'll be honest, I've never read it and I never had it read to me.  Is that weird?

Good night moon is a sheer blue jelly polish, filled with holographic glitter, silver hex glitter and of course silver and blue moon shaped glitter.  I applied one coat over Cult Nails Time Travler, a deep navy TARDIS blue.  I did have some problems getting the moons out though,  I kept having to shake and fish for them.  That being said overall I did really like this polish, and I have some nail art planned for it!

If you would like a bottle of this you should head on over to Literary Lacquers and grab a bottle for $10 USD.

ETA - Wait no.  This is the second foray into shaped glitter :P

*Product sent for honest review

Literary Lacquers Thermodynamics - The only thing I understand about Thermodynamics is you should wear this over black. DO IT!

This polish is Thermodynamics from Literary Lacquers Community Collection.  It was created by Alex of Sparkly Vernis.

Now normally I like starting off Literary Lacquers posts with a bit of info on the book the polish was based on.  Amy reads science books, and one thing she said she could read about all day is Energy and Work.  Yesterday I couldn't tell you what that meant, today I still can't.  I honestly tried to understand it.  I even used Wikipedia, trusted encyclopedia of Universities throughout the world.  It was if I was reading the words and they immediately fell out my ears.  So I gave up and accepted the fact that science wasn't my thing...minus genetics when I was in school...and pig dissections.

Anyways, less about piggies and more about polish!  Thermodynamics is described as a sheer cherry red jelly polish with a blue glass fleck and a touch of blue iridescent glitter.  Although I would say it was more of a pinkish red.  I used 4 coats due to bumping my hand and covering it up with an extra coat.  But you really only need 3 if you want it pretty much opaque(there may be some visible nail line).  Then I layered 2 coats over one coat of black.  I'll be honest, this isn't really my type of polish, but over black ASDFGHJKL!!!!!  All the particles stand out a bit more and it kind of has this duochrome-y feel to it.

With no undies

 FLASH *AH-HA*

 Over black

When I was done I decided to add some nail art.  This is equatsion, it's where k_B is the Boltzmann constant, and Ω denotes the volume of macrostate in the phase space or otherwise called thermodynamic probability...you know...that. *blinks*

If you would like a bottle of this, head on over to Literary Lacquers page.  A bottle of this .5oz polish is only $10 USD.

*Product sent for honest review

First Holiday Swatch of 2014!!!: Finger Paints - Sparkle In The Sky

Let's get the party started 11 months early! Today I have an older Holiday polish, from way back in 2013.   It's Finger Paints Sparkle In The Sky, from their 2013 LE Enchanted Winter Holiday collection.  Also a near dupe for OPI's polish Alcatraz...Rocks.

Sparkle In The Sky is super, duper pretty.  It's a navy textured polish with what appears to be fine pieces of  light green and purple(maybe pink) glitter.  I used 2 coats and it dried quickly.  Although not as fast as her sister Snow Crystals.  I also added 2 coats of top coat after a day or so.  It didn't smooth it out completely, but it wasn't noticeably bumpy.  It was noticeably pretty.  It really was like a sparkly night sky.

Overall I love this polish and I'm really happy I picked it up.  Do you have any polish from this collection?  I honestly don't think I heard much talk of this polish online.

 W/ top coat

 In sunlight

I don't know how I feel about you... I think I just fell out of like.

So just a quick post because I've been a bad blogger this year :P

1)  I don't think I have mentioned it here(or I may have just mentioned it in passing), but we have an Instagram now.  So everyone should go and follow us over there because that's the cool thing to do.  Everyone's doing it.

2)  This man.  All I did was use some white and then I used the saran wrap technique and blotted on Essence Ultimate Pink and Milani Dude blue.  I finally ended with a square neon pink stud from The Born Pretty Store.  I don't know if I like it.  I liked it when I originally finished it, but I kinda just fell out of like.  There's nothing wrong with it, I just had a really short like affair.

What do you think about this mani?  Are you in like with it?

*The colour of the pink stud was REALLY hard to capture in some of these.  In real life it is probably closer to the second picture.

Also if you would like to buy these studs you can get them here. And you can also use our 10% Born Pretty Discount code EAL91.

*Some products were sent for review.

China Glaze Bells Will Be Blinging: Snow is great in theory.

I love looking at the snow fall while having a cup of something hot(BUT NOT TOO HOT), especially when its a heavy snowfall.  But the minute I have to go outside it becomes horrible, glorified, hard water, that will inevitably turn into dirty slush as it melts.  Also as most of us know due to science, it needs to be cold for there to be snow.  I hate that too, the cold.  The only thing good about winter is it looks pretty and Christmas.  I would say "Damn you Australia," but I also hate really hot weather.  As you can see I am a ray of sunshine.

Today I have another polish sent to me by Nail Polish Canada.  China Glaze Bells Will Be Blinging.  It is also part of their Christmas Collection this year as well as the Dash of Dazzle trio.  Now in theory I shouldn't love this polish.  It's a glitter storm that includes small piece of blue glitter, slightly larger pieces of silver glitter and the pièce de resistance, holographic bar glitter.  Now I'm not usually crazy about glitters, but I liked this.  It reminded me of a snowstorm, when all the snow is falling, and the wind is also blowing it about.  I was ok with the bar glitter because even though it was small they weren't skinny like in those "fuzzy" polishes.  So they never reminded me of hair, or creepy bugs.  Application was easy and even, I only needed one coat over OPI's Dating a Royal.  To me this is a great Christmas/Winter glitter!

Natural outdoor lighting

 Natural indoor lighting

 You can see the holo here

If you would like to polish the Dash of Dazzle Trio you can get it over at Nail Polish Canada for $15.00CND.  Or you can buy the polish on it's own for $6.95CND.  And for a limited time all orders(no matter what the price) will be shipped for free within Canada!

Who else hates snow but likes things that remind them of snow?

*Product Sent for honest review

China Glaze So Blue Without You: The Tea Incident. ALWAYS USE YOUR BRAIN!

So the other day I decided to have a nice, hot cup of tea.  Then I did something stupid.  AS SOON as I made it, without thinking, I took a huge sip.  Liquid that had less than a couple minutes earlier been boiling.  Immediately I spat it out all over myself, the dinner table and a chair and got a glass of cold water.  It was the worst.  And to make matters even better, two days later my tongue just started to seep blood.  It's been about 5 days now and it still feels weird but it doesn't hurt.  Lesson Learnt.  Always use your brain when doing anything.

Anyways you know what scolding drinks remind me of?  Christmas!  Today's polish China Glaze's So Blue Without You was sent to me by Nail Polish Canada.  It came with 2 other polishes in China Glaze's Dash of Dazzle gift set trio, and is also part of their 2013 Christmas collection.  So Blue Without You in an icy blue metallic foil.  It applied in 2 easy coats.  Word of warning.  I swatched this without base coat, and despite only wearing it for a few minutes I could see that it was beginning to stain.  So if that's not a thing you are fine with base coat is for sure something you will want to wear unless you want Smurf fingers.

I also decided to compare So Blue to Orly's Sweet Peacock.   They are close and look like they could be related.  Application was also pretty much the same for the two.  But is you can see Sweet Peacock is a deeper, dare I say peacock blue. 

If you would like to polish the Dash of Dazzle Trio you can get it over at Nail Polish Canada for $15.00CND.  Or you can buy the polish on it's own for $6.95CND.  And for a limited time all orders(no matter what the price) will be shipped for free within Canada!

Tell me you deep dark feeling of metallic blues.
*Product sent for honest review.

OPI - Blue My Mind...*giggle*: YOU MADE ME INTO WHAT I AM TODAY!!!

So over the years I have always had nail polish, but never more than maybe 7 or so bottles.  Then Just over 3 years ago I say an OPI buy 1 get 1 half off sale, and decided to get two bottles.  I bought OPI's Blue My Mind *giggle* and Royal Rajah Ruby(one of my all time favs).  Little did I know those two polishes would start my slow, sickening ascent into nail madness.  That being said 3 years later my collection is tame compared to other collectors.  I only have a mere 250ish.  What can I say.  I'm a picky polisher.

OPI's Blue My Mind *giggles* is a great name first of all.  It's ok to have the humor or a 15 year old boy sometimes.  This is one of those times.  Blue My Mind *giggle*  is an dark electric blue, with a metallic finish.  I used 3 coats, but you can get away with 2 of you used thicker coats.  In the photos you can see streaks, but these are not noticeable at all in real life.

I adore this polish because it is on the dark side, and yet it is still bold and vibrant.  If you are a fan of blues or darker colours this is a polish for you.  It's also one of the few bottles of polish I have pretty much finished.  OPI's retail for around 8$ USD and Blue My Mind is part of their core line (CORE LIKE LOVE!).

What was the polish that turned you?  Or what turned you on to any of your (somewhat healthy) addictions?

Claw Polish - Phantom + The cutest zombie hand ever!

Let's just bang out the polish review first.  I actually won Phantom!   I was going to try and find a bottle of China Glaze Immortal(Halloween 2012) originally but when I won this my cravings for a shimmery gray had been satisfied.

Phantom is medium, leaning dark gray, with silver, blue and pink shimmer.  It was opaque in only 2 coats.  It was pretty much a perfect gray polish.  Honestly if you like gray polishes you should try and get your hands on this.  I can't tell you where to buy them or how much they are as I won this and have never seen it in stores.

 The pink was hard to capture, but you can see it here!

I wore it for 2 days before I decided I wanted to do some nail art on it.  So I thought it would be cute to do a little graveyard mani.  And my ring finger is a zombie hand reaching out.  I don't know why but my first thought was "That's a cute little hand."  My second thought was "It's probably a child."  Then I started thinking, would I have it in me to kill this undead child?  Probably.  The cross is a little decrepit and uneven looking, but I'm just going to say it's because it's an unknown grave, that has been neglected and forgotten over time.

I look mildly jaundice!

LynBDesigns - Lock, Shock, and Barrel: It's like the Joseph coat of polishes

I have my third LynBDesigns polish for you guys today from The Nightmare Begins collection, Lock, Shock and Barrel.  Lock, Stock and Barrel are those three trick or treaters that kidnap Santa Clause and take him to the Oogie Boogie's.  You know, the kids who in really life would avoid at all cost.  In the real world they would all be in jail by now.

This polish is a blue crelly PACKED with an assortment of small glitter.  If you can think of a colour it's probably in there.  Blue, pink, gold, green, red, it's all there.  It reminds me of candy!  This polish only needed 2 coats for full opacity.  It's a bit of a top coat om nomer so I had to use 2 coats of seche.  It was still a bit bumpy to the touch even though your couldn't really tell by just looking at it.  If you need it to be totally smooth then you may have to use a third coat.

If you would like a bottle of this you can head over to LynBDesigns Etsy shop.  Polishes retail from between $8-$10USD.  And if you order now through Sunday, and use the code CHICAGO you can get 50% of your purchase of $16 or more.

What was your favourite Halloween candy?  And if Halloween isn't a thing where you live, what is your favourite candy?

 NOTE: The colour is a tad darker when not directly under light. Closer to photo #1 and #3

 

 

 *Product sent for honest review

To matte or not to matte: Am I forgetting something?

The answer to that question is no.  I've just been bit caught up in life stuff.  I will be emailing the winner of out giveaway tonight and when they respond I will be posting the winner and of course some of your answers!

Now for the polish!  So I am in the loves with OPI Suedes.  They are mattes that never fall flat because of the shimmer. But for some reason the blue and blurple of the collection(Russian Navy and Ink) did nothing for me.  In my head I wanted them to be a bit more colour and a bit less shimmer.  I personally thought this would look more chic. (I don't know if this makes sense but I think it will when you see the polish I'm about to show you).

So was I ever happy when I found Nicole By OPI in No Limits Matte(in a discount bin)!  It was the colour that I was wishing the others had been!  First of all I'm not sure why they called this matte.  It's still under the OPI umbrella and it leans MUCH closer to a suede.  No limits is a deep rich navy blue, with just enough shimmer.  I used two coats but you can get away with one.  My one complaint about this is I found it dried SUPER fast.  So I had to move quickly so I didn't get any unwanted streaks, or bumpyness.

I think this was part of the limited edition Gossip girl collection, which means if you want this you'll have to do some hunting online.

Matte

 With top coat

 Ps.  I tried ONE LAST TIME to take a photo of the polish Robyn reviewed yesterday!