Friday, June 29, 2012

Review: Duality Cosmetics - Jennifer

Duality Cosmetics was kind enough to send me a polish to try. Before I get to the swatches, here is a little bit about the company (from their website):

During the pregnancy of her identical twin girls, she had an epiphany and the creation of Duality Cosmetics was born.  As her family grew to include six daughters, Barbara’s motivation, skills and business acumen thrived.   Keenly aware of her desire to bring beauty and color into the lives of those around her and with her energy, tenacity and incredible desire to succeed, she was motivated to put into action an idea she had developed for a dual purpose nail polish product. Duality Cosmetics is a company dedicated to creating quality, efficient, multipurpose cosmetics that are fun, functional and fashionable for women with active lifestyles.


The whole idea of Duality Cosmetics is ease. That's the cool thing, there is a compartment under the polish:


Inside the "secret" compartment is a little lid that has a nail file on it and under it are 40 nail polish remover pre-soaked pads.


I chose Jennifer, from their Hope Springs Eternal collection. It is a light purple/dark lilac base with micro pink shimmer.


The shimmer does not translate out of the bottle very well. I also had some big problems with the formula. The only saving grace of this polish was a good top coat. It took 3 coats for full coverage, and it was only because their were very bad, streaky bald spots. I took a quick (and horrible) cell phone pic after the second coat so you could see...


You can really see is on my ring and pinky finger. I dont know if it was the formula, or if the brush was too stiff... but it seemed like every single bristle of the brush showed with EVERY stroke. Even the third coat looked this lumpy. The top coat was the life saver...


As I said above, there are pre-soaked remover pads in the base. They had a nice, fresh scent that I really enjoyed, but it took a whole pad to remove one nail... That means the 40 provided would only last 4 uses.

You can purchase Duality Cosmetic Polishes here for $20. Although, I wouldn't recommend it. The quality that I got out of the polish was not worth that cost, in my opinion. There is a chance that it may just be the color I chose... Please let me know if you have tried it and gotten a different result!

**this product was sent to me for review. I was not paid for this review and the opinions reflected are honest representations of my experience with the product**

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Cult Nails - Living Water

I was finally able to grab a Cult Nails during their last $5 sale... but thanks to my extremely tight polish diet, I was forced to only pick one. Let me tell you, picking one of her polishes was so freaking hard. Like, ridiculously hard!! I finally decided on Living Water. I had wanted it for a while... and it was limited edition, which meant I may never have another chance (and I think it's gone now. That goodness I grabbed it!!)


It is a gorgeous deep emerald green jelly base with a lovely shimmer. I can't tell if the shimmer is green, of if it i just the base that makes it look green lol.


It applied like a dream. I had no problems at all with the formula. It took two coats for complete coverage.


I am 100% in love with this polish. So amazing!!!!

Do you own any Cult Nails polish?? What's your favorite??

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Deborah Lippmann - Let's Hear it for the Boys

Who could turn down the opportunity to snag two Deborah Lippmann's for only $10?? Amazing deal!! So, I snagged them up.

This was my first DL...


I must say, I was actually a bit disappointed with the formula. I didn't feel like it self leveled well at all... the only thing that saved it was my top coat! It did only take two coats for full coverage...


I think the color that you see in the bottle is actually more of an accurate hue. It isn't quite as bright as it appears on my nails.

I am not a huge cream polish kind of person... but I have to say I enjoyed wearing this color. I got a few compliments (including a nail tech at my hair salon, who even complimented my nails shape too! We sat and talked for like 20 minutes about polish lol). The durability was nice too, I wore this for five days (although I probably should've taken it off on day four, but I was lazy lol).

Do you think any polish is worth $18??

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Try It On Tuesday - Sinful Colors Unicorn

Week two of Try It On Tuesday!! I bought this Sinful Colors polish way back in January, and haven't given it any nail time yet!!


Unicorn... A pastel yellow, cream polish:


I had a hard time capturing the true color, I would say this is a bit bright... The color is more of a pastel than appears above.

It took three coats for this coverage. It probably could've used one more (there were a couple of "bald" spots... but they were only visible up close). The formula was watery, like most Sinful Colors I have tried. I don't dislike this polish, but it isn't a knock your socks off kind of color (at least not in my opinion!). I also had a bit of yellowing, even through my base coat... and I only had it on for a day. Although, to be fair, pretty much all yellows seem to slightly stain my nails!

There are a lot of other bloggers joining in on this challenge... Go check out their posts!

Beauty Gnome
DIY Polish
365 Days of Color
College Polished
Munchy's Nails
Manicurator
Beyond Beauty Lounge
Tall Girl In Heels With Pretty Painted Nails
Princess Polish
Jilltastic Nail Design
Shenailigans
Kyoti's Nails
Polished by Maddie
Samples By Entaeyen
Shelly's Sassy Nails
Nail Polish Anon
Mixed Mama
Pinked Polish
Nails By Ms. Lizard
Polished Paradise
Enchanted Nails and Fluffy Dog Tails
Two Lacquered Girls
Enchanting Cosmetics
Frugal Polish
Polish Monster
Love & Lacquer
Spicey'z Nails
Sparkle and Shine Nails
Sincerely Obsessed with Polish
Polish and Such
Something Polish Like
Fancy Schmancy Nails

If you want to join in, and don't have a blog. Stop by my Facebook wall and share your picture with me!!

Monday, June 25, 2012

Pixi Polish #23 Pedicure

Every 4-6 weeks I re-do my toes... I tend to do them every month in the summer just because lake trips take a toll on them. I will share my pedis with you, even if I am not exactly thrilled putting my toes out there for the world to see (especially my pathetic pinky toes haha).

Hautelook.com had a sale last month for Pop and Pixi polishes. Since I don't have any Pixi, I wanted to snag some so I could give it a shot. Of course, I grabbed shimmers (because, well, I love anything shiny) so I grabbed the black, purple and turquoise shimmers. I decided to put #23 (the turquoise) on my toes because it was bright and more summer-y.


Let me tell you, the shine did not disappoint! This polish is so shiny, I would actually probably classify it in the metallic category!! The formula was slightly watery, but no huge complaints. It only took two coats to get full coverage.

I only have one issue with this polish, As of today, I have been wearing this pedi for two weeks (this pic was taken on the day I did it) and my big toe is showing a lot of tip-wear. I don't usually have a problem with my toes showing tip-wear. I typically change a pedi because it has grown out or the sand at the lake has dulled the shine. I have not been to the lake since putting this polish on, so I see no reason for it to have this much wear. I will have to put the Purple or Black on my nails, and test it out!

Since I can't not add some sort of art to my big toe, I went with a simple stripe design. I used my Stripe Rite Silver and White and just randomly painted stripes from the corner. I finished it off with a small black rhinestone.

Overall, I am loving this pedi!! The color is amazing and I have even gotten a few compliments!

Do you do your own pedis??

Saturday, June 23, 2012

New Blog Banner

Hi everyone!

I hope you're having a lovely weekend!!

I decided to spend my Saturday updating my blog banner. When I started my blog back in March, I created a quick banner with clip art that was meant to be temporary... It has lasted WAY longer than I had ever planned!!

I decided to have some fun with nail art!!

PEACE


I didnt want to change the colors of my blog... just the banner. So I picked polishes to match my current hot pink/dark grey theme. I used Dollish Polish Dining At The Pink Taco and Zoya Freja.

LOVE


I also didn't want it to be too mono-toned, so I used Freja on the base for "love" and used my Sally Hansen White On to make the Pink Taco pop.

LACQUER


I had a hard time deciding on what to do for "lacquer." I ultimately decided on making little bottles on my naked nail. I think they turned out pretty cute!!

I've also updated my watermark and my Facebook cover picture! Now... I have to actually paint my nails and get ready to go hang with my favorite little nephew!!

What do you think of my new banner?? :)  

Friday, June 22, 2012

365 Days of Color - Make Me Laugh-y Taffy

I love the nail blogging community. If you are contemplating starting a nail blog, do it... this community is amazing, and supportive and just all around fantastic!!

My husband is currently out of work. Our budget is very tight, so I am on an extremely stringent polish diet. It's killing me... there are so many amazing indies being released, and there is no way for me to buy them with a coupon (which is pretty much the only way I have been getting new polishes lol)... so I am stuck... not getting any amazing new polishes. Sigh...

Now, off of my sob story, and on to the amazing kindness. Nichole from Adventures Of The Nail Friends took pity on me and my tight polish diet. For no reason, other than to be the sweetest woman in the whole world, she bought me two of 365 Days of Color's amazing Candy Shoppe polishes: Make Me Laugh-y Taffy and Mint Chip. A-MAZING!

If you are not already following her on Facebook (here) and following her blog (here), you should be. She kicks ass, and I highly suggest showing her some love ;)


I have a sick love for shredded glitter... Sanaz from 365 Days of Color is after my heart with the multicolored shredded in this amazing polish!!


The base if a light pink jelly/cream hybrid (jelly in one coat, more cream in two). I love it because even with two coats, like I am wearing, you can still see the first layer's glitter, but you cant see my nail line at all like most jellys! It's the best of both worlds!


The formula was amazing, the glitter was easy to work with and one coat of top coat smoothed the glitter right out!! I have no complaints about this polish... only love!!

How do you feel about shredded glitter?? Love it, hate it or indifferent?? ;)

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Review - Premier Beautifying Nail Kit

I was lucky enough to be sent a goody from Premier by Dead Sea Premier to test out for you guys. I have been using this Beautifying Nail Kit for the last month and I LOVE it! 

Premier Hand and nail care products are designed as an invigorating beauty treatment for your nails, to prevent roughness and cracking, while nourishing and protecting your hands and nails.


The Premier Beautifying Nail Kit comes with 4 items:


Product information:
        - Buffing Block: a new high-tech design buffer which grants a beautiful gleam to your nails and stimulates the blood circulation underneath your nails, which encourages healthy growth
        - Hand and Body Cream: a light lotion that leaves you skin irresistibly soft and supple. It's luxurious formula is enriched with Dead Sea minerals and natural plant extracts to soften and smooth your skin. When combined with the cuticle oil it improves the flexibility of your nails and helps to reduce flaking and breakage.
        - Nail File: To smooth away rough nails edges and shape your nail faster and easier than ever before.
        - Mineral Rich Cuticle Oil: A specialty formulated product that softens and conditions cuticles, giving you a well groomed contour to your nails. It softens the skin and gently loosens the cuticles from the nail. This permits the nail to grow freely and enables you to shape a perfect nail contour.

I have been using this set twice a week for a month; except I didn't use it and push my cuticles back last week to allow them a couple weeks of growth to really test it out for you... they look horrible (mind you, I still moisturize them 2-3 times a day... but thanks to living in a super dry desert, you cant tell from this picture haha).


Here the are with my Maisie Shine Villain (reviewed here)... you can really see the horribleness that is my cuticles. eek!




Here's a few more angles of my naked nails. First, I filed and shaped my nails. Then, I did the cuticle oil soak...


After pushing back my cuticles, and letting the oil soak in, I used the buffing block (blue side, then grey and lastly white). And once you have the gorgeous shine, finish it off with a healthy dose of the Hand and Body Cream.

After all of that, this is what my nails look like!




Look at that shine!! This is with no product on, at all... I could swear it looks like I have clear nail polish on!! Just scroll up and take a look at the before; the difference is mind blowing.

I highly recommend this set. I really enjoy the cuticle oil. It has a nice gel consistency that makes it easy to work with... And my cuticles stay soft and moist for hours after use (which is saying something in the desert). The buffing block and nail file are very high quality (the block especially is much nicer than any I have dealt with before) and the lotion is creamy, yet light. I didn't feel like my hands were greased up. In fact, the after pictures were taken right after I lotioned... and there is no grease visible!

I have used this regularly twice a week; except for the blue side of the buffing block. If you use it too much, you can thin your nail out. I would recommend only using it once a month. But, the grey and white side promote nail growth, so using it once a week is really beneficial to your nail health. I have noticed a lot of nail growth, and much healthier and much stronger nails since I started using this kit. I am very excited about it, and will restock with more oil and lotion when it runs out!

You can purchase this set here, it costs $39.99 plus shipping.

**This product was sent to me for review. However, all opinions stated above are accurate representations of my feelings and experience with the product**

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Tutorial - Lochness Monster Mani

**Today is a very picture heavy post**

Day 29 of the 31 Day Nail Art Challenge I participated in last month was a big hit with a lot of you... I must admit, this little guy was one of my favorites too! It's been nice to get to wear it for a couple of days and really enjoy it!! If you need a reminder of what my original Nessy looked like, you can find it here :)


Compared to my other nail art tutorials, there really isn't a lot needed for this one:


(sorry, I know this picture is really dark... it was the wrong time of day for this, and I was too lazy to redo it! lol)

L to R
Haze Glaze Mystique (or any deep blue jelly polish for the water)
Sally Hansen White On
Nina Pro Black
China Glaze For Audrey
Sinful Colors HD Nails
China Glaze It's Alice
The New Black Runway Collection Yellow


You will also need a brush (I prefer the short stubby one above for easier control during this mani) and three different sized dotters (The largest and smallest on the left, and a medium like the two on the right). You will also need a piece of foil.

Other optional supplies:


Fresh, sun-brewed Iced Tea (yum!)... to cool me down on our 112 degree day! (I hate summer)


And a furry friend for moral support (Meet my handsome little mama's boy, Chinook)!

Now we're ready to go!!


Start of with your base... a pretty blue for the sky. I used my favorite for skies, China Glaze For Audrey.


Place a nice, big pool of your lighter green shade (I used Sinful Colors HD Nails) on your foil (or plastic plate or whatever you prefer to use), and use your largest dotting tool to put a generous dot near the middle/top of your pointer finger.


Use your medium dotting tool to shape the dot into a rounded triangle.


Use your brush to smooth out the head and draw his neck.


On your middle, ring and pinky finger, create the arches of his body coming out of the water behind him. Start off in the middle of your nail and work out; repeating that technique on the other side of the nail.


This will take two coats depending on the polish you use. It doesn't need to be perfectly smooth, your top coat will take care of any inconsistencies.


Complete this with both of your hands.


With the darker green (I chose China Glaze It's Alive because I love the chunky glitter. It gives it the feeling of scales, in my opinion), use your brush again and accent the top of the monster.


With your medium dotting tool, and some white polish (Sally Hansen White On), give you little Nessy's eyes.


Use the smallest dotting tool you can find (even a toothpick) and finish off his eye with a small black dot, centered as best you can.


Chinook is on the edge of his seat with excitement... as you can see lol.


Using a thin brush or striping polish, give your little guy a mouth. It went a little lower than I would've liked... but I'm not going to dwell on it!

Now, onto the thumb... When I did this for the challenge, I didn't have a whole lot of time; so, all I did was fill the nail with little white clouds. Today, I decided to continue the scene!


Using the large dotting tool, fill the upper corner with yellow.


Finish off the sun with rays, use the thin brush or striper that you did for the mouth and make little birdies. And then I finished it off with a cloud (if the birds are too intimidating, just add another cloud or two!)


Finish off your other nails with clouds. I used the medium dotting tool to create them. Then, grab your dark blue jelly polish (Haze Glaze Mystique with the large glitters settled to the bottom) and brush a thin line along the bottom of all of your nails. It doesn't need to be perfect. Remember, it's water and there is something swimming around in it lol. Top coat it, clean it up, and enjoy!





Love him!!!!

Are you going to try this mani out?? If you do, please be sure to stop by and share a picture on my Facebook Wall!!