Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Aphrodite Lacquers!

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Happy Tuesday evening!

Tonight I have for you two polishes I bought from Aphrodite Lacquers. Owner Rebecca sells some beautiful hand-mixed creations! I picked up two for my first purchase from her store, Fortune's Fool and Two Star Crossed Lovers. For all my photos, I used three coats of the polish over a base coat of white, topped with Seche Vite.



Fortune's Fool


Fortune's Fool is packed with different sizes and shapes of blue glitter, with a very fine blue shimmer in a milky base. There are also some holographic hexes in the mix. I'm loving the circle glitter in this polish! Below is a bottle shot.



Two Star Crossed Lovers



Two Star Crossed Lovers is very similar to Fortune's Fool, but purple! Instead of circle glitter, however, there are purple squares! So pretty! Another bottle shot below.


Rebecca has some really unique mixes for sale on her Etsy page. Each Aphrodite Lacquers polish sells for $8. 

See y'all tomorrow!

XOX
Jess






Sunday, March 17, 2013

St. Patrick's Nails & Sunday Sales!

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all my fellow Irish folk! 

I'm finally recovered from having the flu, so back to regular posting! I have a lot of great things coming up that I'm really excited about, but unfortunately I've had to abandon the 31 day challenge from being sick for so long. I'll try to pick that up again sometime in the future!

Today I'm going to show you my green mani I wore this weekend, and a few sales at the end of the post!


Base color: Zoya Neely (2 coats)
Accent nail: China Glaze Grafitti Glitter 
Stamping polish: Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Jumpin' Jade
Stamping plate: Konad m22
Rhinestones from Cheeky


And onto the few sales for this week! They run from today through Saturday, March 23.

Select Wet N Wild cosmetics, 99 cents
Cover Girl cosmetics Buy One, Get One 50% off

L'oreal cosmetics: spend $12, get $4 ExtraBucks
Sally Hansen products: spend $10, get $5 ExtraBucks

Revlon cosmetics Buy One, Get One 50% off

OPI Disney's Oz The Great and Powerful collection: $9 each
Ulta nail polish, 2 for $4


Hope everyone has a good rest of the weekend! Enjoy some pics from my family's St. Patty's party yesterday! :)


Image found via Google


Monday, March 4, 2013

31 Day Challenge: Combo! Days 7 & 8

Another Monday is upon us! They should really just turn Monday into the 3rd weekend day, right?!

I decided to combine challenge days again! Day 7 is skittles or ombre, and day 8 is holo, flakie, or duochrome - so I decided to do holo skittles! I only own a few holos, and I used them all for this mani!



Thumb to pinkie:
Color Club Harp On It
Color Club Angel Kiss
Color Club Blue Heaven
Layla 04 Ultra Violet
Color Club Halo-graphic

The Color Clubs are from the Halo Hues collection from last year. I absolutely love these polishes! There is a second holo collection for this spring, so far I've only seen it on transdesign.com, but it's sold out right now. If anyone sees these in stores, please let me know! I am patiently waiting for the purple holo! Speaking of which...

About the Layla purple holo... I hate to say, I do not like it at all. The only reason I bought it was because it was in the clearance section of Ulta for only $6.99 (original price is $15.50!). You would think for the price, this would be an amazing holo! First of all, holo or not, $15 is ridiculous to spend on such a tiny bottle - it is only 10mL, compared to Color Club which is 15mL and costs less than half the price. The other issue I had was the formula - super watery and very difficult to build up. It took 4 coats to be opaque, and still dried dull and almost gritty looking. I didn't use a top coat for any of my other fingers except this one. You can see how dull the holo effects are compared to the Color Clubs. 


Sorry about my little Layla rant, but I think as consumers you should know what you're buying, before you pay for it!

XOX
Jess

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Sunday Sales & Challenge Day 6!

Hey hey hey!

First up I have Sales for you, then another nail art challenge!

Image found via Google


Sally Beauty (sale prices valid the entire month of March)
Finger Paints: Buy 2 colors, get a Free base coat
Barielle Skin care and nail treatments, $7.99 each
Beauty Secrets 8oz. Acetone, $1.79/ Non-acetone, $1.99
Beauty Secrets nail treatments, $2.79 each
China Glaze - all colors 2 for $11 (excludes Glitz N Bitz collection)
China Glaze Avante Garden Spring 2013 collection - 2 for $11
China Glaze Glitz N Pieces collection, $6.99 each
China Glaze Ombre 4 packs (comes in purple, teal, or pink) $12.99 each
Finger Paints GEL POLISH now in stores... 24 shades for $10.99 each
             Starter kit $42.95, does NOT include the light ($54.59)


The sales below run from today through Saturday, March 9:

Walgreens
Cover Girl cosmetics are Buy One, Get One 50% off
Sinful Colors polishes are 4 for $5

CVS
Buy $10 of L'oreal Riche Lip or Nail color, earn $3 ExtraBucks rewards
Buy $10 of Sally Hansen, earn $5 ExtraBucks rewards
All NYC cosmetics are Buy One, Get One 50% off
Essie polish $8 each

RiteAid
Wet N Wild: any polish originally 99 cents is now only 69 cents!
In-Ad coupon for $3 off Revlon nail color (must have coupon!)

Ulta sales are the same as last week, you can view their full ad here.

Now on to POLISH! Today I am sharing my look for Day 6 of the challenge: Your Favorite Color Family! If you had asked me a year ago which color I'd choose for this, I probably would have told you pink. But I am now a true-blue girl!



Base color: Zoya Tallulah
Stamp color: Zoya Ibiza
Stamp plate: Bundle Monster BM-314
Rhinestones from a Cheeky nail art set I ordered on Amazon


Zoya Tallulah is one of my most favorite blues ever! It just seems to glow, I love it!
Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

XOX
Jess

Saturday, March 2, 2013

New 31 Day Nail Art Challenge: Days 4 & 5!

Hey there!

 Today I have another day of the challenge, and I've decided to combine days 4 and 5, which are pink and purple! Details on the polishes I used at the end of the post!




Base color: OPI You're Such a Budapest
Stamp color: China Glaze Designer Satin
Stamp: Cheeky CH26
Dots: China Glaze Dance Baby and Zoya Aurora
Top coats: Seche Vite & INM Northern Lights 


I'm a little bit behind from where I was expecting to be with the challenge right now, so you may get a few extra posts this weekend! Stay tuned!

XOX
Jess


Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Pink Wednesday!

Happy Hump Day! 

Today I have a look featuring one of the polishes I showed you yesterday from I Love Nail Polish! I couldn't bear to take Strawberries and Creme off my nails, it was just too beautiful!


For this look, I used three coats of I Love Nail Polish Strawberries and Creme to start. For the stamp I used Mash plate 17 and China Glaze Designer Satin. Topped everything off with a coat of Seche Vite!

While I was going through my stamping plates book, I came across the stamp below and thought it would be perfect for this polish/brand! Turns out the stamp didn't work as perfectly as I'd have liked, that little blob on the bottom is supposed to be a nail polish bottle!

Hope you enjoy!

XOX
Jess

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

I Love Nail Polish!

Good morning beautiful people!

Today I have two indie polishes to show you. I Love Nail Polish has been on Etsy since last summer, and I am super impressed with what they have to offer! Run by the beautiful Barbra, these glitter mixes are out of this world! 

For my first order from I Love Nail Polish, I picked up two polishes. Info on how to purchase at the end of the post!

Babes in Toyland and Strawberry Creme
They come in the most adorable packaging too! 



Babes in Toyland
I wanted to show the versatility of this glitter, so I layered it over a few different colors here.
One coat over (left to right)
Wet N Wild Black Creme
Orly Au Champagne
OPI OPI... Eurso Euro
Nicole by OPI Alex By the Books
Nicole by OPI Stand By My Manny

Babes in Toyland bottle shot!
This awesome glitter has magenta circles, teal squares, purple, gold, and green hexes, and tiny little magenta, teal, and gold hexes.

And here's a super close-up shot:



Strawberry Creme

Strawberry Creme is to die for. All different shades of pink circle glitter with tiny pink glitter in a milky white base - this is so so so beautiful! A jelly sandwich in a bottle! I got so many compliments when I wore this to work! I LOVE THIS POLISH!

You can find I Love Nail Polish on Etsy here for $10 each. This was my first Etsy purchase and I am a fully satisfied customer! I already have a few other of Barbra's amazing creations in mind for my next purchase!

Have a great day!
XOX
Jess



Monday, February 25, 2013

Sunday Sales on Monday, and Challenge Day 3!

Sunday Sales on a Monday? Sorry about that!

First up I'll show you my nails for Day 3 of the New 31 Day Nail Art Challenge, which is "gold". Let me just say, I am not a fan of gold in any way, so I was none too thrilled for this day. Which explains my lame mani.


Orly Luxe
accent nail: 
Orly Sashay My Way over Orly Au Champagne


Nothing super exciting happening this week sale-wise, bummer. 

Ulta (sale runs 2/17 - 3/9)
OPI Euro Centrale collection, $9 each
All Ulta brand cosmetics are Buy 2, Get 2 Free

The sales below run through Saturday, March 2:

Walgreens
Wet N Wild Fergie nail polish and cosmetics are Buy One, Get One 50% Off
Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure polishes are 2 for $12
Maybelline and Revlon cosmetics are Buy One, Get One 50% Off

CVS
Revlon cosmetics, Buy One, Get One 50% Off
Sally Hansen: spend $10, get $5 ExtraBucks rewards

Rite Aid
Revlon cosmetics 40% off
Buy 3 and get $3 UP rewards when you purchase:
     - Maybelline Color Show polish, Baby Lips balm, or any mascara
     - Cover Girl cosmetics (also Buy One, Get One 50% Off)


Just a little FYI: I do Sunday Sales to help you find the best deals on the brands you want. With that being said, please look in your area for local beauty supply stores. They usually carry the big brands like OPI, China Glaze, Essie, and Zoya, for a lot cheaper than the big chain stores. I buy my OPI's for less than $7 a bottle at my local place; if I pay with cash I get an extra 10% off. So start looking in your area for these stores; plus it is always nice to support small businesses in your hometown!


XOX 
Jess




Saturday, February 23, 2013

Spring Training NOTD!

Happy First Spring Training Game Day!!!!!

My favorite time of the year is upon us... BASEBALL SEASON!

In honor of the official first day of spring training games, I bring you a New York Yankees NOTD!



Ulta Indigo-Go Girl over China Glaze First Mate
Accent nail: China Glaze White On White
Wet N Wild Red Red

Hope you like! Go Yankees!

XOX
Jess


31 Day Challenge Day 2: Silver

Happy weekend everyone!

This is the first of two posts today! I'll be back this afternoon with another NOTD!

For this post I have the second day of the challenge, which is SILVER. I am not a huge silver polish fan, so I did something really simple with one of my favorite silver glitters.



Base: China Glaze Glistening Snow (3 coats)
Stamp: Cheeky CH13, Wet N Wild Black Creme

XOX
Jess


Friday, February 22, 2013

31 Day Nail Art Challenge Day 1: Black & White

Hi everyone! So sorry this post is a day late! 

I have taken on the *new* 31 day nail art challenge! Today's prompt is black and white!



Colors used:
Wet N Wild Black Creme
China Glaze White on White
Sation Men-ipulation
INM Northern Lights

When I started this mani, I thought Men-ipulation was just black and white hexes, which is why I went with the dots! Turns out, it is white hexes and black shards. I like the effect of the white glitter on the white base, it makes the hexes look like they're floating.

I'm really happy with how my dots turned out! My fave is the pinkie! :)

I'll be back later to post day 2!

XOX
Jess





Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Pink Wednesday!

Hi guys! Happy Hump Day!

Today I have a NOTD for you! It's gonna be a quickie post, because I have to get to work on my black and white mani for tomorrow - first day of the nail art challenge!




Base: China Glaze Pool Party
Stamping: Wet n Wild Black Creme
BM-319
INM Northern Lights

Come back tomorrow - first day of the New 31 Day Nail Challenge!





Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Mini Spam! Wet N Wild MegaLast

Hello hello!

Today I have six of the Wet N Wild MegaLast polishes to show you guys. These are great colors if you're building up your stash and need some good basics. There's also a little announcement at the end of this post! :)


Break the Ice

Break the Ice is a pretty pearly white with a silver shimmer. The formula is sheer but it can be built up. I used 4 coats for my photos and it was almost fully opaque. I actually really, really like this color, it's great as a base coat for glitter.

Candy-licious 

Candy-licious is a dull bubblegum pink. I had a hard time getting the color just right in my pictures. I'm a bit eh on this color, I have other pinks of this shade in my stash that I like a lot more. For these pics I used 3 thin coats.

Through the Grapevine

Through the Grapevine is a perfect wine color. I had never used it before swatching for this post, and I am loving it! This is two thin coats, and it covered perfectly. 

On A Trip 

On A Trip is a nice lavender - it is not as dark in person as in my photos. This was also perfect at 2 coats. And look how shiny it is without a top coat!

I Need A Refresh-Mint 

I Need A Refresh-Mint is a dusty Tiffany blue. I find this color family just so pretty! The formula on this one was slightly watery, but I only needed 2 coats. 

Root of All Evil 

Root of All Evil is almost electric blue with so much shimmer packed in! This color is much more vivid in person, it really jumps out at you! I think this color was part of the Fantasy Makers Halloween line last year. I was afraid it would stain so bad, but it didn't at all, which is always a bonus when it comes to blues like this! I used 2 thin coats for my pics.

And there you have it! Again, if you're looking to add some basic colors to your collection, MegaLast is a great place to start. You can usually find them in any drugstore (CVS, Walgreens, etc) and they're less than $2 a bottle! 


As a side note, I've been thinking I want to work on my nail art skills, so I am going to attempt the *New* 31 Day Nail Art Challenge! It is a bit different from the first one that everyone was doing last year, but I found I liked these challenges better. I am planning on starting this Thursday, and doing between 3-5 each week (instead of going insane and doing them in only 31 days!!). 


Do you think I'm crazy? LOL! If anyone would like to join in this challenge with me, e-mail me at lacquerlovebysoromantical@gmail.com and I'll give you the schedule I worked out. 

Have a great day everyone!

XOX
Jess