Limited Addiction

I used to rarely wear red polish. Like, next to never. I don't know what is going on with me lately, but I do know that, when faced with Essie's Fall 2010 collection in Face Values last night, I picked Limited Addiction over all the other colors. I'm a red convert, so shoot me!!

This is the kind of gorgeously classic color that almost makes me want to forsake all my other nail polishes and make red nails my signature. Almost.

 

Can you blame me though? Limited Addiction is one of those jelly-cremes, which means that application was flawless and clean up a breeze, especially for a red. You could definitely get away with two coats but I went with three just to make sure they looked perfect. I love this type of blue-based red, it suits my skin tone and doesn't make me want to scream (like Nars Dovima does).

The above two shots are in natural light, and Limited Addiction, like a lot of reds, looks much brighter there than it does under artificial light.

Still love it to bits though!! Absolutely gorgeous. I'm so glad I picked this up rather than going for one of the trendier shades. I'll be wearing this for years and years to come. For me, this is a backup bottle kinda color.

Is there a color that you always gravitate towards? 

Welcome to Cindy of Nail'd & Polish'd!

Red Hot

"Reddd hot, our team is reddd hot, our team is r-e-d red h-o-t and once we're hot we can't be stopped red hot!"

Wow, when I looked at the label of the Brucci polish I was instantly thrown back to middle school, where I spent two fall season cheerleading "cause everyone else was doing it". That didn't last very long, but that chant sure did, because I'm reminded of it everytime I hear the words "red hot"

Funnily enough, this isn't really a color I'd categorize as red hot. More like, reddish-pinky hot. It is bright, that's for sure, but has a definite tinge of pink to it rather then a full on red.

See what I mean? Definitely a hint of fuscia.

I did quite like this. My Brucci polishes have yet to let me down. This was one of those jelly-cremes, so it required three coats for full opacity. Also, cleanup and removal were amazingly easy and mess free - win/win!

What do you guys think?

Hunter

Since acquiring the much sought after Nars Zulu, I've been on the hunt for another polish that would satisfy my green jelly craving. I love Zulu, but it borders so much on black that I wanted to find a jelly where the green is much more apparent.

This isn't a jelly, but the shade of green is divine. Hunter is the last American Apparel polish in my mini haul from a few weeks ago.

Just like it's fellows, the formula is a dream and beautifully opaque in 2 coats.

Is it possible to franken a jelly? Do you just add clear polish to a cream?? Has anyone done this??? I think I'm going to buy another Hunter and a cheap clear to try this out...

Peacock

Isn't that the name of a dirty new Katy Perry song? Anyway...

Here's another one of the American Apparel polishes I picked up last week. This is Peacock, a dark, dusty teal/blue creme.

Natural light.

Inside.

You can see it pulls a little darker inside under florescent lighting, and lighter and more teal under natural light. Either way, it's a pretty color, and application, like all my other AA polishes is a dream. Great quality polish for $5, I definitely recommend them :)

Berry

Listen guys. I need to be locked up. I've been shopping NON STOP. Online shopping, in-store shopping, window shopping (the most harmless of the bunch); any kind of shopping that you want. Yesterday I went to Forever 21 ONLY TO EXCHANGE a dress...and I ended up taking home and additional dress and 2 pairs of jeans.

Sigh.

I popped into American Apparel on my way out to see if they had any new colors...they didn't, but that doesn't mean I could resist their 3-for-$15 deal on nail polishes. This is one of the babies I picked up, a smooth creamy berry color appropriately named - you guessed it - Berry.




American Apparel really does a great job with these cremes - they're so saturated with color and completely opaque with one coat. I do two out of habit but you could easily get away with one if you're careful.



No cons here at all. The polish was easy to apply and went on like a dream, and clean up wasn't bad at all for a red - they usually stain my cuticles like woah.



The color lightens up in the sun, as you can see in the first two shots, but inside or in the shade it'll look more like my Dunkin' Donuts coffee pic - darker but still beauteous :)

What's your favorite American Apparel shade? Berry is gorgeous for fall/winter, but for summer my very favorite is L'Espirit, a crisp lavender-periwinkle. Can't believe I haven't swatched it yet! It's on my list :)

Also, welcome xnosugaraddedx!

Brown

It's been a week of crazy!! Sorry I've been MIA guys. Missed you all! 

Would you believe that my Nars Jungle Red manicure lasted a full five days with nary a chip? The pros to that polish just keep adding up - I'm definitely going to have to put out for the full size (pay for it, not put out - get your minds out of the gutter!)

Today I'm talking about a polish I bought over the weekend, one that I didn't have very high hopes for. It's from Love&Beauty, a cosmetics brand that you can find at your local Forever 21. I really like these taupey brown colors, but in the store it looked to have almost a greenish tinge and I thought on the nail it'd fall as flat as it's name: Brown.

They couldn't come up with anything better?? It's a shame because I actually really really like this. I have to apologize for my bad cuticles and scratched up polish - I did this mani yesterday but the weather was so bad I couldn't get a single good pic. My hands are disagreeing with this weather and just withering up - I need to moisturize every 5 seconds! Le sigh.

So you may be looking at this saying, "This is looks mighty close to a little polish by OPI called You Don't Know Jacques...". I agree! It does look very close. I did a quick swatch just on a piece of paper and they're looking almost identical. YDKJ might be just a tiny bit warmer while Brown leans more toward grey, but I won't know til I try it on the nail. What I did notice was that, surprisingly, Brown's applications was wayy way smoother and more streak-free than YDKJ. I'm wearing only two coats at the moment, while I distinctly remember having used three of YDKJ in the past.

Besides that, application was really easy, as was cleanup. Brown dries really shiny on it's own, and is gorgeously glassy with Seche Vite. My pics are color accurate but don't do the shine justice. If you see it, grab it!

What's your favorite taupey-brown? 

Welcome to my 24th and 25th followers, Jen of Jenilee's Beauty Blog, and Jessica Vaquiant! Honestly, I'm blow away that there's even 25 of you who have read let alone follow my blog. I appreciate every single one of you and love all your comments! Hopefully we keep growing - I want to have a big giveaway for 100!

<3

Wicked

Today's manicure is one of my all time, go to, never fail colors: Essie Wicked.



Here's Wicked in natural light. I know many people aren't fans of the "almost black" look, which this deep, dark burgundy jellyish creme most definitely is. I don't care though, I love this shade. Even though it does look black, it has a depth to it, you see a little of the burgundy peep out around the edges, and in direct sunlight, it shows up a lot more.



In sunlight. Even so, I don't think that this is really a good representation of the color, because unless you're on the beach, you're going to get that black look. I love it, it's super classy and gorgeous.

The only bad thing about this polish is that cleanup is a complete bitch. If you happen to get it on your cuticles, they'll be pink no matter how much you try to clean those edges. I'm actually sort of dreading taking off the whole mani because I know my fingers will be pink and I'll probably need half a bag of cotton.



This girl definitely runs on Dunkin'.

M. Butterfly

Hi everyone! Today I've got another one of my red Nars minis to share with you. The last one, Dovima, was a gorgeous bright red creme but not my shade. M. Butterfly, is much more my speed.

Can I get a hell yea! I absolutely love this deep almost mulberry red shade. It's definitely much more suited to my skintone. This was taken in direct sunlight. 

 

Can you tell that I'm ready for fall and winter colors? I'm slowly delving back into the dark, vampy section of my collection. This is M. Butterfly in the shade.

And in artificial light with flash.

This was three coats of Nars' smooth formula. It's easy to apply but I found the color a little sheer -  even with three coats I can see a few bald patches on my nails. I think this may be due to the stiffness of the mini brush; you may not have that problem with a full sized bottle. Even so, the color is beautiful and glossy.  I would recommend letting the coats dry a little in between to avoid bald patches, or you could always slap on another coat if it's really needed.

I've got one more Nars mini left, a red shade somewhere in between Dovima and M. Butterfly. Stay tuned!

Every say hello to our newest friend, Lauren! Check out her Youtube channel, Lovely's Instict which is dedicated to all things nail polish. Her newest video is all about Shellac, which you guys know is very near and dear to my heart :) Welcome Lauren!

Mount Royal

Hey all! Sorry I've been MIA. Just so much stuff going on!

Today I've got a beautiful blue creme for you ladies. This is American Apparel in Mount Royal: 

I'd describe this as a dusty navy. It's really pretty - AA does a really good job with these opaque cremes. This is two coats to smooth everything out, but you could probably get away with one thick coat if you were careful enough. Application is pretty good; sometimes I find that AA polishes thicken up as you're using them - weird, but I guess they start drying on the brush as you go. I didn't find it too much of an issue, but if you do, a drop or two of thinner should take care of the problem.

These were both taken inside in artificial light. You'll find that the color is a little lighter in natural light; unfortunately the weather has been so bad here the last couple days I didn't get a chance to shoot outside :( If by chance I catch a ray of sunshine I will update.

Have any of you ladies used a polish from American Apparel? What's your favorite shade?

Welcome to Leeblee of Belly Full of Nail Polish and Deanna of Lorraine Nails! Check them out :)

Alexandra's "Hot" Gray

Hey everyone! It's been a couple days. Today I've got a beautiful grey creme from Brucci called Alexandra's "Hot" Gray.

Pretty, right! This is a really nice cement grey creme with a bit of a blue undertone to it. Application was just like my other Bruccis - a bit of streaking on the first coat, but slap on a second and you're golden. It dries smooth and glossy and wears for days with no chips. Every new Brucci polish I try, I love them more and more. The quality of this product for the price is phenomenal. If you see these in a drugstore, please don't hesitate to give them a try, it'll be SO worth your two dollars and change!

I've got a mini haul from Eyes Lips Face (or E.L.F., as it's known) coming my way. I've heard some great stuff about these products, and at $1-$3 bucks a pop, it's hard to resist! Stay tuned :)

 Also, a big welcome to K of Glazed Over! Go check her out!

Vamper Sunday

Here's a Nars mini I got from a friend who does makeup for Nars. Dovima is creamy and luscious, and as red as red gets.

The formula on this was so great, almost opaque in one coat, and perfect in two. I feel like $16 is almost worth it when the formula is as easy to use as this one. This is inside with flash.

This is indirect sunlight. It makes me sad that I really just don't like this shade of red on me. In person it brings out the yellow undertones of my skin and I cringe looking down at my hands. A red with more of a blue undertone suits my skin better. I have two more Nars minis in shades of red, so I'll have to give them a test run next Vamper Sunday.

Did you watch Trueblood today? Who's your favorite character this season? I always have a soft spot (or a "I want to rip off your clothes" spot) for Eric lol!

Revised Marble

Here's the marble I tried over Gianna's "Rockin" Blue. I wanted to go for really subtle so I used GRB in the marble as well so only OPI Go On Green would really show up on the nail.

I actually really like how this came out and would do it on my whole mani - it's a classy way marble with this color without making the already bright mani too obnoxious.

On an slightly unrelated note, can we talk about how last time I tried to swatch GRB, it took me HOURS to get a shot that was even CLOSE to the real shade - this time, it comes out no problem!! The color on this photo is right on; and its gorgeous!

On a very unrelated note...

Look at my charge for the week! I'm babysitting my sister's BF's doggie for the week, and she is just the cutest, roundest, fattiest little mush ever!!

Another Rite Aid haul

This one wasn't too bad though, just two polishes.

It seems I can't resist the Brucci polishes. They have some great colors and a really great price: only $2.79 each. I have a couple different taupe-y shades, but no plain old flat greys, so I grabbed Alexandra's "Hot" Gray. And when I saw the shimmery green/burgundy goodness of Black Emerald, I couldn't resist.

As you can see, my Shellac is still going strong at 6 days of wear. I'll post another picture of them in a few days time. I love how gorgeous and low maintenance they are, but I'm also eager to get some bright colors on my nails. We'll see how long they last!

Office

It's been a few days! I hope everyone had a lovely weekend full of fun in the sun, but hopefully you didn't get as sunburned as I did. I'm a little crispy!

I did this manicure Sunday night, so unfortunately I had to snap a few pictures inside and they didn't come out too great. But until I get a chance to redo this, here is American Apparel Office.

Office is a pretty pastel minty green creme. I had some trouble with application; the formula is a little runny and had some cuticle drag and bald spots. This is two coats with Seche top and base, but I definitely should have gone for 3 coats as looking down at my hands now, it's a bit streaky. Otherwise, the color is beatiful, and at $5, an inexpensive alternative for Chanel's Jade.

Didn't get a chance to do a Marble Monday this weekend :( I'll try my hardest to take some time tonight to do one and make it a Marble Wednesday!

Thanks for reading!

Marble Monday!

Happy Monday everyone! Ohh, the start of another joyous workweek -- yuck! At least I've got this pretty little treat on my nails to gaze at all day. Marbles are so fun! 

Apparently I am really feeling the blues lately because that is all I seem to be putting on my nails. I've never worn blue polish before the last month or two and now I'm in love! And how could you NOT be in love with that absolutely gorgeous cornflower blue creme I'm rocking?? That's Hally hansen Hard as Nails X-Treme Wear in Pacific Blue, marbled with American Apparel's L'Espirit on my ring finger. Above is indirect sunlight.

And this is inside with flash. I'm in love with this color. It's so bright and cheerful and unbelievably glossy and shiny. It's so cute with AA's light lavender/periwinkle creme. Sally Hansen may be a drugstore brand, but this formula was just perfection. It was pretty opaque with one coat, but I always go with at least two just to get that perfectly smooth finish. It went on really nice, just thick enough and the brush gave really nice control. This polish gets an A++++++ in my book!  It's a must have for anyone with a hard-on for blue polish.

I got my marbling groove back! I was having some issues for a while, not really sure why. Perhaps you can have marbling block just like writer's block. I'm really loving the results of this one, I love the colors together, the two cremes are in such nice contrast with each other. I usually like to have some shimmer in my marbles but I like this one just the way it is. I was entirely too lazy to do my whole mani marbled, I've just got the one nail out of all ten, but I think just one is such a cute accent. I promise I will be posting a how-to soon, I just need to find the time to do it!

Holiday weekend!

Hope everyone had a great fourth of July! Besides loving fire works, having a reason to party, and Monday off, the holiday is special to my family as it's my parents' wedding anniversary! They've been married 28 years and going strong. What an inspiration! 

To celebrate the happy day, I chose one of the polishes I got from my Rite Aid raid. Wet 'n Wild's Wet Shine polish in Night Prowl was perfect for the holiday.

Forget everything else for a second, can we start with how much I love the name of this polish? LOL! Night prowl, rawr! When I saw this on the rack, I knew I had to snatch it up. It reminded me of the New Deborah Lippmann shade, Bad Romance. This is what I thought Bad Romance looked like before I saw the swatch over at All Lacquered Up where you could see the hexagonal glitters.

In any case, I liked it! Not exactly a summer shade but I thought the bright glitter was perfect for Fourth of July. This is magenta glitter in a black jelly base. It went on easily enough not too thick or thin Three coats made it nice and opaque, but even with 2 coats of Seche Vite to get it smooth, it wasn't quite and I think it could have even used another coat. Also, I had some small chips on a few nails after a night of wearing it, so the next day was a new nail color. Taking it OFF was the worst part though, like most glitters it was a pain in the butt and resulted in me with ripped up strings of cotton attached to my fingertips. Le sigh. Still, worth the $1.99 that I paid for it.

This morning I was in the mood for something more fun and summery, so I chose another of my Rite Aid purchases. 

This is a Brucci nail polish, a brand I didn't even realize was still around! I remember this brand from wayyy back when, and I still have a few oldies but goodies in my collection.

Gianna's "Rockin" Blue is a supremely hard color to catch on camera, and it's not even my blackberry's fault this time. It's a bright turquoise-green creme that just pops. This is pretty close to the correct shade, but it's juuuust a hint more green in person. Formula was a dream - gorgeously opaque in two coats, and super duper shiny with a coat of Seche. I wore this in the pool for hours with no damage, so I'm pretty impressed. I love this shade so much it's on my fingers and toes at the moment. For the $2 and change I paid for this, I'd definitely recommend it to anyone. I have another new bottle of Brucci polish and a few old ones, so we'll have to see if they're all as good quality as GRB.

I was fiddling with my old Canon which had what I thought was a broken screen, when suddenly it turned on! Just like that!! I tried it out to see if it would give me better results with the color than my Bberry did, but it no luck, so I stuck with the Bberry pics. 

On a side note, this reminds me of pics I've seen of China Glaze's For Audrey. I'll need to get my hands on a bottle soon and see if they're dupes...

...until next time :)