Author: Lara
Reno Wedding Nails
…OH, not MY wedding. I got married in Vegas, like…twenty years ago. My niece got married in Reno last weekend. I was wearing a Barbie pink dress, so I thought pink nails would be too matchy-matchy, so I went for a rose gold type thing.
I started with Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and two coats of Sally Hansen Color Therapy “Burnished Bronze”. I used a little bit of Funky Fingers “Supernova” on the tips for extra gold and pink glitter. A quick layer of Glisten & Glow Glitter Grabber and I finished with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
I would’ve liked a better blend with the base of “Supernova” and “Burnished Bronze”, but I didn’t have time to start over. You git what you git and you don’t have a fit.
Barbie Ulta Haul
Even though I know the quality is gonna be bargain basement, I went ahead and ordered the NYX Limited Edition Barbie The Movie Collection Vault PR Kit ($90). The set includes BARBIE Mini Palette in “It’s a BARBIE PARTY!”; BARBIE Mini Palette in “Turn Up the KEN-ERGY!”; BARBIE Jumbo Eye Pencil Kit; BARBIE Smooth Whip in “Dreamhouse Pink”; BARBIE Smooth Whip in “Perfect Day Pink”; BARBIE Mini Cheek Palette; BARBIE Butter Lip Gloss; BARBIE Jumbo Lash; and a BARBIE Flip Phone Mirror.
As I suspected the quality is mid…but it’s Barbie, so I don’t care. The eyeshadows and blush are fine, but the lipsticks are shit and smear all over everything. Lily wants the little flip phone mirror, so I’ll probabaly just let her have it, as well as the lashes. This set is a far cry from Colourpop’s Malibu Barbie Set, but it’s not total trash. I’m glad I ordered this when I did – it’s out of stock and I doubt it’s coming back.
There was a lot of other Barbie stuff for sale – hair ties, OPI Nail Polish, CHI dryers and straighteners…but the only other thing I got was Barbie x Moon Bubble Mint Whitening Toothpaste ($12.99). It’s kind of disappointing for a $13 toothpaste. It tastes like the Barbie and Spongebob toothpaste I used to buy for my kids when they were toddlers.
Oh, I also bought some stuff I had been saving in my cart. I got a Milani Green Goddess Transforming Lip Balm ($9.99) because I was hoping for a dupe of my beloved Frog Prince Lipstick…it’s not exact, but it’s decently close! The Tony Moly Tako Pore Blackhead Scrub Stick ($12.50) works really well. I don’t know HOW is scrubs out my nose pores, but it does.
I also got a free sample pack with my purchase that included Mugler Alien (I fucking hate this scent and give it away the first chance I get); Viktor & Rolf Good Fortune; Prada Ocean Luna Rossa; La Roche-Posay Vitamin C Serum (my daughter showed me THAT TikTok and now I cannot help but think of roach pussy every time I see this brand); Tanologist Face + Body Drops (will be given to a child); KylieSkin Hydrating Face Mask (low key scared to try it); and Avene Solaire UV Sunscreen Fluid. This is one of the shittiest sample packs I’ve gotten in ages – like they are trying to get rid of nasty shit. At least I got to use a $5 off $25 coupon…
$366 to Diamond in 2024. (I got my hair did a few weeks ago – even though I used $175 in Ulta Points, I still spent $90 or so.)
Wooaaaaaah Pigeon on a Chair
Okay, last polish from June’s Polish Pickup…because July’s will be in my mailbox today or tomorrow!
This is Danglefoot Nail Polish “Wooaaaaaah Pigeon on a Chair”. I haven’t personally heard this particular misheard Bon Jovi lyric, but maybe it’s from across the pond? Danglefoot is a UK indie brand, so I never would’ve gotten my hands on it without Polish Pickup.
I am always attracted to turquoise/red combos, so this turquoise polish with red/black flakies and and an orange/pink shimmer was MADE for me.
This is two coats of “Wooaaaaaah Pigeon on a Chair” over Vibrant Scents Base Coat in “Island Petals” and topped with Vibrant Scents Top Coat in “Vibrant Petals”. I think it would look SMASHING with a matte top coat.
July 2023 Ipsy Bag – The Great Escape
This month’s ipsy bag was a bit odd…
Not only were the items odd, but the bag was odd. The violet and yellow satin pouch is from ipsy’s sister brand Refreshments, which appears to be a monthly razor and/or deodorant subscription. I’d check it out if the the family wasn’t already set up on Dollar Shave Club (which is somehow no longer a dollar, but more like three or four per razor). It’s fine, I can always use more pouches.
This month’s product choice was Dew of the Gods Cutie Fruities Blemish Stickers. I haven’t been able to test them out yet, somehow my skin has been fairly clear this summer.
Also in this month’s ipsy bag: First Aid Beauty KP Bump Eraser Body Scrub with 10% AHA (I’ve been using this on my chest and bikini line – it makes everything so smooth!); Mudmasky Vitamin-A Booster French Clay Mask (I used this last week – it was like powerwashing my pores); Mo Beauty Divinely Defined – Precision Brow Pencil & Brush in “Light Brown” (it was empty and unusable, but I am too lazy to complain to ipsy about it); and Seraphine Botanicals Amla Nude – Silky Nude Eyeshadow Palette in “Dawn Light” (I actually gave this to my stepmother-in-law to wear to a wedding, so she could feel sparkly and fancy). A good – but odd – mix of products.
I’m glad next month is an Icon Box (curated by Vanessa Hudgens!), so I can get some full size products.
I subscribe to the basic ipsy bag for $13/month and Icon Box (formerly Glam Bag X) for an extra $43/quarterly. If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my referral link.
Barbie: The Movie
Yesterday, I went with both my kids, LaLa and Miss Lisa to go see the Barbie movie in Lufkin…we’d been planning this for MONTHS, and I assure you…we were NOT disappointed. It was everything we wanted it to be, and more. But this isn’t knobbyverse, so I’ll save the rest of my thoughts for the official review.
Of COURSE, we all (except Logan) did Barbie nails for the film. After reviewing dozens of pink polishes, I decided that I wanted to do a combo of Color Street Nail Strips and a pink polish. I wanted to use Formula X “Astrolady”…but it was totally dried up! Even OPI Nail Lacquer thinner couldn’t save her…but I had a backup plan. Julep “Cadance” is a similar textured pink polish, just without as much gold sparkle. I painted two coats of “Cadance” over Vibrant Scents Base Coat in “Island Petals”.
The pink polish was an accent for black and white stripes and chevrons – I wanted to represent the first Barbie’s iconic swimsuit. There is NO WAY I could paint stripes, so I decided to use Color Street Nail strips. I started with plain white – “Swiss and Tell”. I then topped those nails with black and clear nail strips. I used “Between the Lines” for the stripes and “Keep Calm and Chevron” for the chevrons. Thank GOODNESS for nail strips!
I hope these nails last a few more days – I absolutely LOVE them.
You Can Dance, You Can Die…Havin’ the Time of Your Life
This is Lucky 13 Lacquer “You Can Dance, You Can Die…Havin’ the Time of Your Life” from June’s Polish Pickup – Misheard Song Lyrics.
I know…it’s a really long and awkward title…but that’s the thing about misheard song lyrics – while not always long, they are almost always awkward.
The real lyric from ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” is “You can dance, You can jive” – no seriously, that’s the real lyric. I had no idea until I looked it up. I think I thought the lyric was “You can dance, You can try” – but that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense either. “Try” makes more sense than “jive” though, right? RIGHT?
Looking at the bottle, I assumed it was a scattered holographic polish, but NO – I was wrong. It’s a dense red microglitter! I could’ve left it without a top coat, but I wanted to enjoy the polish longer than a day, so after Vibrant Scents Base Coat in “Island Petals” and two coats of polish, I topped with Glisten & Glow Glitter Grabber and then a coat of Vibrant Scents Top Coat in “Island Petals”. Even using the Glitter Grabber, the texture of the glitter came through. I didn’t hate it.
Revved Up Like a Douche
Admit it, you thought the lyric was “Revved up like a douche”, too.
Originally written and released by Bruce Springsteen, the cover by Manfred Mann is the better known version of “Blinded by the Light”. This version includes the oft misheard lyric “Revved up like a deuce”…but wouldn’t if be more fun to be revved up like a douche?
Swamp Gloss Indie Polish “Revved Up Like a Douche” is from June’s Polish Pickup – Misheard Song Lyrics. It’s a sheer, but buildable crelly jam-packed with different shapes and sizes of glitter. It’s also giving me heavy 90s Taco Bell vibes.
This is two coats of “Revved Up Like a Douche” over Vibrant Scents Base Coat in “Island Petals” and under both Glisten & Glow Glitter Grabber and Vibrant Scents Top Coat in “Island Petals”.
Polish Pickup June 2023 – Misheard Song Lyrics
I love a good misheard song lyric, don’t you?
June’s Polish Pickup theme is indeed Misheard Song Lyrics, and I had a hard time picking just one…or two…so I picked four!
Zombie Claw “I Wanna Have Boobies” ($13.50) is a baby pink polish inspired by Pussycat Dolls’ “I Wanna Grow Up”. I’m not keeping this one – it was a get well gift for a friend going through some boobie “stuff”.
Lucky 13 Lacquer “You Can Dance, You Can Die, Havin’ the Time of Your Life” ($11) is a red glitter mix inspired by ABBA’s “Dancing Queen”.
Danglefoot Nail Polish “Wooaaaaaah Pigeon on a Chair” ($13) is a blue glitter mix inspired by Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ on a Prayer”.
Last, but not least, Swamp Gloss “Revved Up Like a Douche” ($13.50) is a turquoise glitter mix inspired by Manfred Mann’s “Blinded by the Light”. Come on, we ALL sang douche instead of deuce!
Not a cheap order…but these babies are worth it!
Sage Simulation
OPI Infinite Shine “Sage Simulation” is CLEARLY misnamed. Although sage has a greyish tinge, it is green?
I supposed it’s possible that OPI means ‘sage’ as an adjective – a profoundly wise person – but then I looked at OPI’s website description of “Sage Simulation”. They really DO be thinking this is a sage green nail polish. Is their nail polish name colorblind?
I admit, the polish has a shimmery grey finish that doesn’t come through my phone camera…but this is simply NOT green. It was FREE though, so whatever.
This is two coats of “Sage Simulation” over Vibrant Scents Base Coat in “Island Petals” and under Vibrant Scents Top Coat in “Island Petals”.
Last (Semi-Annual) Chance!
Believe it or not, I only hit Bath & Body Works ONCE during this Semi-Annual Sale…it was the first day of the sale, so they had lots of stuff, but the discounts weren’t there.
About a week in though, they had a really good coupon code – 20% off AND free shipping, so I loaded up my cart with hand soaps, plus some of the Aromatherapy line was 75% off, so I decided to try “Orange Flower Sandalwood” Body Wash and Ultimate Hydration Cream – it’s really good! Most orange products are sickly sweet, but the Sandalwood gives it a nice woody undertone.
Technically, I guess I hit the sale twice…I believe that TODAY is the last day of the sale, so go get some soap!