Author: Lara
Yup, 5 More…
I couldn’t resist the 99 cent Sinful Colors sale, but I controlled myself and only grabbed 5.
I got “Purple Haze” (the only one that caught my eye from the new “Oh Snap!” Collection), “Let’s Talk” (upon the highest recommendation), “Starfish” (for the name alone); “Gold Medal”, and “Rich in Heart”. Unfortunately, the Walgreen’s by my work didn’t have the “Truly, Madly, Sparkly” display – so I see another trip happening before the sale is up.
You…yes, YOU…have until Saturday at Midnight to snag Sinful Colors nail polish for 99 cents at Walgreen’s.
A Galaxy of Toppers
I couldn’t let this black manicure (Zoya “Anais”) go to waste before I took it off – I decided to play with top coats.
From left to right – Sinful Colors “Pinky Glitter”, SpaRitual “Opaline Luminary” Matte Top Effect, Zoya “Monet”, SpaRitual “Citrine Limunary” Matte Top Effect and Sinful Colors “Green Ocean”.
The 5 different polishes look very different in the bottles, huh?
I was shocked at how similar in tone and palette these polishes looked on my nails. I used those polishes in the very same order from thumb to pinky. There’s not a hint of pink in “Pinky Glitter”. I was disappointed in how subtle “Opaline Luminary” was. “Monet” took on a rainbow of colors. “Citrine Luminary” was fantastically striking. “Green Ocean” came to life with blue and greens – I’d always been unimpressed with it before.
Each fingernail is like looking into a different galaxy with different stars.
VIB, Bitches!
A few weeks ago, I finally made Sephora VIB! I was buying a birthday gift for my Loo, so no celebratory post at the time…but I can celebrate the 10% off code that I got to use on this order!
I’d had my eye on the Deborah Lippman Wicked Nail Lacquer Trio on the Sephora Sale page for a couple months, at least. $15, down from $20…and even sweeter with 10% off. I just can’t resist Oz-related beauty products – I’m still kicking myself for missing the Urban Decay Theodora Palette. The set includes “Popular” – Glinda’s glistening pink, “Defying Gravity” – Elphaba’s unlimited green, and “One Short Day” – positively perfect emerald. Maybe I should watch the musical at some point? Oh yeah – these are my FIRST DL polishes!
I say stupid stuff – like that I don’t want to spend $21 on a lipstick – but $18.90 is acceptable? Well, whatever – but I fell in love with Kat Von D Studded Kiss in “Piaf” when I swatched it on my arm in the store. It’s a rich dark chocolate with purple shimmer – I’ve never seen anything like it…
…and then I wore it to work today. I am still not used to dark lipstick on myself. I felt like a freak – even though 20, even 15 years ago, I only wore dark lipstick. I caught a glimpse of myself in the bathroom mirror at work and spooked myself – I looked like nightmare Laura Palmer.
By the middle of the day, I was loving “Piaf”. Phew – I was afraid I would never wear it again and had flushed $18.90 down the drain.
Oh yeah – my samples: NUDE Progenius Omega Treatment Milk (I have no idea); Bumble and bumble. Surf foam wash shampoo and creme rinse conditioner; and Moss Commodity eau de parfum (I *think* it is the men’s version, but I cannot even tell).
Pewtery Black
Is it me, or do all blacks look the same?
Pick your jaw up off the floor…I’m talking about NAIL POLISH. Although you can’t tell from the picture, Zoya “Anais” is not your average black. It has a pewter shimmer to it that is wholly unique. A tiny bit of that glimmer is evident on the bottle. This is just two coats of “Anais” with Zoya Anchor and “HK Girl”. (I would have used Zoya Armor, but it was 30 minutes before bedtime and I needed my nails dry immediately.)
I love the way black polish looks against my skin, but it’s so hard to apply neatly – every flaw is immensely visible. And normal edge wear appears abnormally shitty. Even so, I keep doing it.
Worth a Pretty Penne
View this post on Instagram
Penne, like Penne Pasta – oh OPI, I just can’t get enough of your stupid, puntastic polish names.
This is OPI “Worth a Pretty Penne” from The Venice Collection – I got it in this month’s Birchbox. I’ve been obsessing over Rose Gold lately (someday, those Rose Gold Tieks will be mine) – so I was happy to get this color.
After Orly Bonder, I did two clean coats of “Worth a Pretty Penne”. It went on smooth, with no bubbles after the second coat. If you look closely at the polish, you’ll notice that it’s not solid rose gold, but a fine mix of gold and copper pigments. I topped it with “HK Girl” – gotta have my quick dry shine. I have a love/hate relationship with those little sample bottles. They’re hard to hold and manipulate, but the smaller brush is perfect for painting the edges of your nails without getting polish all over your fingernails. I almost prefer them to full size!
I LOVE Orange
I thought I hated the color orange, but Julep “Laure” showed me the light and the way. I LOVE orange. “Laure” is a blazing red-orange stardust polish – it just comes alive on your fingertips. It’s somewhat similar to “Jacqueline” – but a little more orange than red.
This is two coats of “Laure” over Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat. No top coat, because that would defeat the purpose of the stardust finish.
Orange! Orange! Orange!
August Ipsy Bag – Prep School
School started up yesterday, so Ipsy’s August theme is fitting – “Prep School”. (Ugh, I was SO not a prep – give me black eyeliner or give me death.)
Inside this month’s cute houndstooth bag: La Fresh Eco-Beauty Good Night. Night Cream; Skone Cosmetics Luxe Doubler Eye/Lip Pencil in “Wine” (how has no one ever though of this before???); Briogeo Blossom & Bloom Ginseng + Biotin Volumizer; Noyah Natural Lipstick in “Desert Rose”; and Trust Fund Beauty Nail Polish in “Elegantly Wasted” (eh, ok).
I also finally got my j. cat Beauty Hydrating Lip Stain – points!
If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my link.
Purple Pride
View this post on Instagram
Sinful Colors “Pride” has to be the most jam-packed glitter that I’ve ever come across. It’s a rainbow of glitters of all different sizes. This is just one coat of “Pride” over Sinful Colors Base Coat and two coats of OPI Sheer Tints “Don’t Violet Me Down” – I wanted a color underneath the glitter for a little pop. I feel like 2 coats of “Pride” would have been 100% full coverage.
“Pride” was a fairly smooth glitter, but I used “HK Girl” to protect it. This has to be one of the longest lasting manicures I’ve had – I did it…Wednesday night? It’s Sunday and it still looks perfect, except for a few spots on my right index finger. That being said, I’m not looking forward to taking it off – I’ll probably need a fucking jackhammer.
Target Beauty Box – August 2015
…and another Target Beauty Box – are we going to be getting these every month now? I hope so!
August’s box was more summer stuff – Hello Sunshine! Inside were: CoverGirl Super Sizer Mascara by Lashblast in “Very Black”; Fekkai Pre-Soleil Hair Mist (sounds like suntan lotion for my hair – I’m in!); Clairol Hair Food Moisturizing Mask (I got this in another Target Box – it smelled quite nice and I used it up a few months ago); Olay Active Botanicals Moisturizing Toner & Moisturizing Day Lotion (love that Olay); and Crest 3D Whitestrips 1hr Express (Sure, why not?).
As always, I got an extra 5% off with my Red Card and a $3 off $15 coupon was included. Fingers crossed for a new box next month!
Datsun 210
Nancoco “Orange Wonderland” reminds my of my mom’s very first new car – a 1980 Datsun 210. That little car was a big deal to her…so it was a big deal to us. She had a Gremlin before that and it was a piece of shit. Even though it was probably the cheapest car on the market at the time, it was NEW.
I was able to coax the last few drops out of my bottle of Sinful Colors Base Coat – I get to use my new one next time! Then I painted 2 coats of “Orange Wonderland” – it’s a swirly shimmer, so there were a few brush marks…and bubbles, oh the bubbles! At least with a shimmer, the bubbles aren’t too noticeable. “HK Girl” for the win.
I wish I could remember what happened to that Datsun – I’m thinking she just traded it in when she got a Sales Rep job that required a lot of driving or maybe it was because I bitched too much about having to wiggle my long legs into the backseat.