Friday, October 31, 2014

OMG Nail Strips: Pink Scream

Press Sample

Hi everyone and happy Halloween!  I had all this nail art planned and honestly, it's been a long week and I was just too tired, so nail strips to the rescue!  It's also the last day of the month, so you know that means the Proud Beauty Bloggers are doing their monthly post today.  Theme: Halloween.

So because I'm lazy, today I have OMG Nail Strips in Pink Scream.  These nail strips are comparable to the Sally Hansen nail strips, which I love.  They're easy to put on the nail and come with a variety of sizes (something I usually have trouble with because my nails are so wide).

omg-nail-strips-pink-scream

omg-nail-strips-pink-scream

omg-nail-strips-pink-scream


There are tons of other designs to choose from, and from what I've been told, they're adding even more.  These can be purchased from OMGNailStrips.com and retail for $7.99 USD.

Press Sample

Don't forget to check out these other Proud Beauty Bloggers of Color and check out our Facebook page!


An InLinkz Link-up

**This product was sent to me for my honest review.  All opinions are my own.

Thursday, October 30, 2014

KBShimmer Winter 2014 Collection Selections

Press Sample

Collection selections.  I swear I didn't do that on purpose.  Maybe...

Today I have some of KBShimmer's Winter collection to show you.  I can't believe it's that time again.  It feels like 2014 just started!

On to the swatches!

First up is Let's Sleigh Together.  This polish has a pale/light gray crelly base that borders on being white with blue, mint, and green glitter as well as some smaller holo glitter pieces.  This applied easily.  No complaints.  This is 3 coats.

KBShimmer lets sleigh together winter 2014

KBShimmer-lets-sleigh-together-winter-2014


This post is picture heavy, so check out more after the jump!

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Revlon Enthrall

Hi everyone!  Today is just a quick post because I am dead tired.  Thesis writing is definitely getting the best of me.

I bought Revlon Enthrall at Big Lots for only $1.50.  They really do have some nice polish selections right now.  Enthrall is a blackened swamp green shimmer with micro flakies in it.  If you zoom in on my photos, you can see them.  I really do love this color.  It went on perfectly.

This is 2 coats.

Revlon-Brilliant-Strength-Enthrall

Revlon-Brilliant-Strength-Enthrall


Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Girly Bits Howl at the Moon

Hi everyone!  Today I have a polish from Girly Bits called Howl at the Moon.  I think I bought this one almost 2 years ago and I'm just wearing it.  I seem to say that a lot on this blog.  The amount of untrieds I have is ridiculous.  It's probably the size of some people's collections.

Anyways, Howl at the Moon is gorgeous.  It's a blackened blurple (purple/blue) jelly with several sizes of gold hex glitter.  It looks great alone and builds up in 3 coats, or you can layer it.  I chose to layer it over black.  Either way, it looks great.  I'm thinking next time I'll try it over a blurple.  Maybe OPI Do You Have This Color in Stock-holm.  Application on this was nice.  I didn't have to fish for glitter and that's always a plus!

This is 2 coats over black.

Girly-Bits-Howl-at-the-Moon

Girly-Bits-Howl-at-the-Moon

Girly-Bits-Howl-at-the-Moon


Howl at the Moon can be purchased at GirlyBitsCosmetics.com.  Pam's is really sweet and her customer service is great.  (I posted about a minor issue with a polish and she contacted me without me even emailing her to resolve any issues I had!)  Also be sure to check out the Girly Bits Facebook page for more info on current collections and places to purchase.

Monday, October 27, 2014

KBShimmer Fall 2014 Selections

Press Sample

Hi everyone!  I hope you had a great weekend and your Monday hasn't been too bad.  Today I have a few selection from KBShimmer's Fall 2014 collection to show you, so lets get on to the review!

First up I have Hugs & Wishes.  This is a gorgeous lavender cream with a bit of gray and blue mixed in for good measure.  It applied nicely.  No complaints here.  This is 3 coats.  You can get away with 2 if you apply it just right.

KBShimmer Hugs and Wishes Fall 2014

KBShimmer-Hugs-and-Wishes-Fall-2014


Next is Kiss and Spell.  This is a Halloween themed glitter topper with green, black, orange, and purple glitters of different sizes and shapes (stars and hex).  For this swatch I layered it over Hugs & Wishes.  I think it would look great over white or a lime green as well.  This applied well.  I had no trouble getting glitter on the brush at all, which can sometimes be an issue with toppers.  This is one coat over Hugs & Wishes.

KBShimmer-Kiss-and-Spell-Fall-2014

KBShimmer-Kiss-and-Spell-Fall-2014


Last, but definitely not least is the stunning A Raisin to Live.  This is absolutely gorgeous.  The base is a very deep purple/raisin jelly and it's filled with tons of holographic glitters that range in size from micro to normal size.  Love, love, LOVE!  No application problems here.  This is 2 easy coats.

KBShimmer A Raisin to Live Fall 2014

KBShimmer-A-Raisin-to-Live-Fall-2014



These can be purchased from KBShimmer.com and retail for $7.50-$8.75.  Be sure to check out the KBShimmer Facebook for updates and news on new collections and check back here for swatches of the new Winter 2014 collection!

Press Sample

**These items where sent by PR for my honest review.  All opinions and thoughts are my own.


Saturday, October 25, 2014

HPB October Halloween Mani Link-Up

Halloween is fast approaching, so what better way to get in the spirit than with Halloween themed manis!  The Hobby Polish Bloggers Facebook group is starting up their first of  monthly link-ups with a Halloween theme which is perfect.  The HPB is a group of polish bloggers on Facebook that talk about nail polish blogging.  It's a place to ask questions, find support, etc about blogging about polish as a hobby.

Now as I've said before, I'm not much of a nail artist.  I love looking at it, but most times I'm just not patient enough for something really complicated unless I'm in the mood, so today I did what I can only describe as spooky eyes in the dark.  I saw this on Pinterest, but of course there was no source.

spooky-eyes-in-the-dark-halloween-nail-art

spooky-googly-eyes-in-the-dark-halloween-nail-art

spooky-googly-eyes-in-the-dark-halloween-nail-art


To do these, all you need is black and white polish, two different sized dotting tools or a bobby pin and a toothpick, and topcoat!

Step 1: Apply a base coat and black polish (and quick dry top coat if you're impatient like me).

Step 2: After everything is dry, use your largest dotting tool (or bobby pin) to make a pair of white dots on each nail.  You can put them all in the same position on each nail, or have them vary.  It's up to you.

Step 3: Wait for the white dots to dry.

Step 4: Use the smaller dotting tool or toothpick to make black dots on top of the white dots.  You can place the black dots wherever you'd like in the white to have the "eyes" looking up, to the side, etc.

Step 5: Let it the black dots dry and apply topcoat.  Be careful when applying topcoat.  It may smear your nail art a bit.  Some top coats are better than others for this.  I actually like Barielle Manicure extender for this.  I've heard more established nail artists rave for HK Girl topcoat as well.  (If you have any other recommendations, please leave a comment!)

Be sure to check out these other Halloween themed manis!

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Zoya Ultra PixieDust for Fall 2014

Press Sample

Hi everyone!  Today I have the Fall 2014 Ultra PixieDusts from Zoya.  These Ultra PixieDusts are not only textured, but have tons of glitter, both large hex glitter and micro.

On to the swatches!

First up is Oswin.  Oswin is a red.  It has a red jelly base and red glitter.  This is the only one that truly dried down completely matte and I really loved this one.  It's my favorite of all three.  Application was great.  No complaints there.  This is 2 coats.


zoya-ultra-pixiedust-oswin

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-oswin


With topcoat.

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-oswin-topcoat

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-oswin-topcoat


Arianna is a more blue toned red than Oswin, leaning almost berry.  It has a jelly base with matching colored glitter.  Arianna didn't dry down completely matte like Oswin.  I was a bit disappointed about this, but it's still a lovely color.  It applied nicely.  This is 2 coats.

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-arianna

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-arianna


With topcoat.

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-arianna-topcoat

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-arianna-topcoat


Noir is the darkest color in this collection.  The jelly base is a dark purple/berry color.  The glitter seems to have two slightly different colors going on.  One more berry, while the other is more of a reddish color.  Like Arianna, this didn't dry completely down to a total matte finish.  Noir applied well, so no complaints.  This is 2 coats.

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-noir

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-noir


With topcoat.

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-noir-topcoat

zoya-ultra-pixiedust-noir-topcoat


The Fall 2014 Ultra PixieDusts are currently available from Zoya.com for $10 USD

Press Sample

Monday, October 20, 2014

Essie Fall in Line

I have a late post today of Essie Fall in Line from their fall collection Dress to Kilt.  (A few weeks ago I posted The Perfect Cover Up from the same collection)

Fall in Line is a gorgeous grayed out sage green with hints of blue.  Essie calls it a jade.  The point is, it's gorgeous!  From the bottle I was just so so about it, but once I had it on, I really fell in love with it.

The formula one this is nice.  No complaints at all.

This is 2 coats.

essie-fall-in-line

essie-fall-in-line

Friday, October 17, 2014

Smitten Polish Nimbus

Press Sample

Hi everyone!  Today I have another gorgeous polish from Smitten Polish!  Nimbus is a creamy off white, dove gray with one of my favorite things: holo!  It's so dreamy, soft and delicate, but the holo gives it a little edge.  My mom is already demanding to borrow it lol.

This polish was a little thick, but went on without a hitch and was suprisingly opaque.

This is 2 coats.

smitten-polish-nimbus-holo

smitten-polish-nimbus-holo


If you've fallen in love with this like I am, Noelie just stocked the shop and Nimbus and Seasonal Lattes are in stock on smittenpolish.com.  Both retail for $11.  Also, if you're still lemming Girl Sprouts, it's on sale with a few others for $9.  For more Smitten Polish info, make sure to check out their Facebook.

Press Sample

Thursday, October 16, 2014

OPI Ink Suede

It's been a while since I've pulled out an old polish and did a throwback Thursday post, so that's what I did today.

In 2009 OPI came out with the Suede collection that consisted of 6 suede versions of some core polishes.  I bought 4 of them and am now kicking myself for not getting Russian Navy, Lincoln Park After Dark or the later release Here Today Aragon Tomorrow.  Ebay prices are ridiculous!  It's so strange to see something go up in price that much even though it feels like it just came out yesterday.

Anyways, Ink is a dark blue that has a bit of purple and lots of silver shimmer. It is of course matte.  When I put this on, I realized how I'd forgotten how perfectly it applies.  It's slightly thick and goes on opaque in 1 coat and dries almost instantly.  Now I remember why I bought these.  They're perfect for when you're in a rush and don't really have time to wait for polish to dry.  A minute or two after putting it on, you're good to go!  Here's to hoping OPI re-releases these (I won't hold my breath though).

In case you want to see the original Ink: OPI Ink

This is 1 coat.

opi-ink-suede-matte-nail-polish


opi-ink-suede-matte-nail-polish


Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Barielle Me Couture Collection for Fall/Winter 2014

Press Sample

Happy hump day everyone!  I hope you week is going well!

Today I have the Me Couture Collection from Barielle for Fall/Winter 2014.  This collection consists of 5 creams and one shimmer that are perfect for the season, so lets get to the pictures.




Tuesday, October 14, 2014

China Glaze Evening Seduction

I broke my nails.  That was 2 weeks ago.  When I say broke my nails, I mean all the way past the meat, a few were bleeding, and they hurt kind of broke.  It's been two weeks and they are still extremely short.  I don't think they've been this short in years.  I might be exaggerating a bit, but I know some one out there feels my pain.  So I've decided to come out of hiding, bust out one of my untried vampies and rock the nubbins.

China Glaze Evening Seduction fit the bill, so that's what I've got on today.  It originally hails from the Visions of Grandeur collection  that was released in 2005 but it's apart of the core line now. This is a true vampy polish.  It's a deep plum cream that borders on looking black.  Actually at a glance in certain lighting, it does look black.  It's perfect for my short nails and for October.

Application on this was great.  Everything applied smoothly, but be forewarned.  Apply with care because this is one of those polishes that's a pain to clean up.  Looks like your fingers have been bleeding if you don't do a thorough job.  Other than that, I love this polish.

This is 2 coats.


china-glaze-evening-seduction-vampy



china-glaze-evening-seduction

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Gabriel Cosmetics Brooke Anderson Nail Polish Collection Press Release

Gabriel Cosmetics is doing a nail collaboration with a celebrity, Brooke Anderson. Gabriel Cosmetics is headed down South just in time for fall with Brooke Anderson by Gabriel Cosmetics Nail Collection! The collection of SIX “5-Free” Limited Edition shades are a wink and a curtsey to theEntertainment Tonight Host’s Southern Georgia roots infusing beloved Southern expressions from classic films like Gone with the Wind and everyday Southern terminology into a collection fit for a Southern Belle (Don’t we have some of them in LA?)!

gabriel cosmetics nail polish



•       Blue Belle: Mariner Blue / Shimmer

•       Darlin’: Aqua / Turquoise Glitter

•       Hush Hush: Steel Grey / Shimmer

•       I Do Declare: Graphite / Sparkle

•       Shine Y’all: Chrome / Glitter

•       Southern Belle: Boysenberry / Shimmer


A collaborative effort by both Brooke and Gabriel, the collection is inspired by the ideals of happiness and a central theme of femininity – and of course some good ‘ol Southern charm, y’all! The line showcases Brooke’s fun, witty spirit by marrying rich, bold colors with high-shine, sparkle, and shimmer finishes that any farm orcity girl will love.

The Brooke Anderson by Gabriel Cosmetics Nail Collection is available October 1st through the holidays at www.gabrielcosmeticsinc.com and retail indivually for $8.50.