Category: Nails
Salmon Clamdiggers
So Old Navy was having a ridiculous Memorial Day sale – the whole store was on sale and I ended up going twice, knocking out a little of next year’s School Shopping…although mostly shopping for myself. I’d been coveting The Pixie Ankle Pants for while, although on my 6’1 frame, they’re more like what my mother would have called “Clamdiggers” on me.
I’d tried them on several times, but never saw the right color and fit…until now. I came across a pair with a salmon pattern and fell in love. I don’t know why – I’ve never particularly cared for the color, but they were just so…funky. I tried them on and they were like magic pants. I grabbed a salmon colored cardigan (grandma sweater) and white tank top to match…and I saw a Real Housewife staring back at me. I finally have something to wear while skipping out of PTA meetings to go smoke behind the elementary school! Wouldn’t you know, my husband said they’re HIDEOUS.
Of course, I had the perfect polishes to match – Julep “Nan” for my toes and Jenna Hipp “Crème de Cantaloupe”.
I went back to Orly Bonder for the base coat. “Crème the Cantaloupe” was streaky as hell on the first coat and started to worry, but the second coat smoothed out perfectly. My “HK Girl” is getting low and hard to get out of the bottle, but I got it on there – only a few uses left.
That color though…it is NOT for my skin tone. It’s like an electric cantaloupe!
Pink or Purple?
This polish has me all verklempt – is it pink or purple?
At first, I was convinced it was light purple, but when I showed my husband – he said it was very pink. I argued that it was purple, but my daughter agreed – definitely pink. Well shit.
In any case, Jenna Hipp “Très Parfait” was just as awesome as “Rose Tart” – super smooth in two coats. I used Sinful Colors Base Coat this time, but stuck with “HK Girl” – I love that shit, even if it smells like super glue.
Pond Mani
…and now for something completely different.
I decided to try a “Pond Mani” – layers of sheer polish over layers of dots that appear suspended in different layers of a pond. After Sinful Colors Base Coat, I started with a layer of white dots in Sinful Colors “Snow Me White”, then a layer of Sinful Colors “Prized Plume”. I repeated twice more – 3 sets of dots and 3 layers of “Prized Plume”. I topped it with “HK Girl”.
Obviously, my impatience shows – a few of the white dots smeared a little bit. Other than that, it worked perfectly. Next time, I’ll try a sheerer polish, but I’m ecstatic about how this one turned out.
Sinful Friday
I couldn’t resist a final stop at Walgreen’s on my way home from work Friday evening. What? You know how I am!
I decided I wanted the other two Sinful Colors opalescent top coats to go with “Prized Plume” (blue) – “Flight to See” (purple) and “Sheer Flight” (green).
I also went basic and picked up some black and white for nail art – “Black on Black” and “Snow Me White”.
They didn’t have any good clearance polish – so disappointing.
Climbing the Social Ladder
After removing the foul “Italian Leather”, doing 7 loads of laundry, heating up dinner, paying bills and other assorted household chores, I needed a quick fix for my nails. No nail art, multiple colors or textures to coordinate. No fussy cremes that take forever to dry…
I picked Sinful Colors “Social Ladder”, a pale pink shimmer. It looks almost white in the picture, but it is pinker in real life. It’s a perfect Bridal polish. As my husband said, “It’s a little bit understated for you.” Every once in a while, I need to pretend to be normal. It was exactly what I was looking for – Sinful Colors Base Coat, 2 quick coats of “Social Ladder” and “HK Girl”. Wham, bam, dry and I went to bed…and proceeded to lay there for two hours, tossing and turning. Well fuck.
New Car Smell
I’ve tried scented fingernail polish a few times and had never been particularly impressed with the results. The ones I’ve tried either flat out did not smell at all or had a faint scent that quickly faded. Not so with Revlon Parfumerie “Italian Leather”. That shit has an odor you can smell several feet away. Do you understand the horror of being able smell my own hands while they’re down at my sides???
It wouldn’t be so horrifying if the polish emitted a pleasant smell. “Italian Leather” is not a pleasant smell – it is a chemical-laden leather and plastic smell – not unlike that “new car smell”. Even with a thick layer of lotion on my hands, I couldn’t stop smelling it as I fell asleep last night. Luckily, it fades in time. It’s been about 24 hours and I can now only smell it if I intentionally sniff my fingertips, although I pick up the odd whiff every now and then.
I used it with Orly Bonder. The formula was a good consistency – good coverage in two coats. I did get a lot of tip wear within 24 hours, but that is to be expected without a top coat. The color is doo doo brown with a subtle shimmer – it looks like I have been playing with my fudge machine. The staying power of the scent makes me want to try more Revlon Parfumerie polishes, but I’ll use more care in choosing the scents…
Nail Polish & Chocolate
Lunchtime shopping at Walgreen’s means two things – nail polish and chocolate.
I’ve been waiting and waiting for Sinful Colors to go on sale for 99 cents – finally! I showed restraint and picked up four – “Zest of Times”, “Prized Plume”, “Social Ladder” and “Star Blast Off”. I also grabbed a clearance Revlon Parfumerie “Italian Leather” for $1.69.
I also came across Lindt Chocolates for half off – Mother’s Day leftovers? Sweet Baby Jesus, these are some of the tastiest chocolates I’ve ever had.
I couldn’t resist trying the two toppers over my current Jenna Hipp “Rose Tart”.
“Prized Plume” is on my middle finger – it is a beautiful iridescent peacock blue. “Zest of Times” is on my ring finger – it adds a glassy glimmer and makes it look like a dupe of “Forget Now”.
Which one do I play with first?
Rose Tart
Jenna Hipp “Rose Tart” is exactly the same color as the Knockout Roses along my back fence. It’s a creamy pink with a touch of red. As a matter of fact, when my husband first saw it, he said, “Bloody.” He thought it was blood red. I’d be concerned, but we constantly argue about colors.
I am quite impressed by the Jenna Hipp formula. It went on smoothly, with almost one coat coverage. I started with Orly Bonder and then painted 2 coats of “Rose Tart”, just to be sure. I topped with “HK Girl” and although I got 1-2 bubbles, it was mostly trouble free.
I am looking forward to trying the rest of the colors…
Sephora Math
Sometimes shopping at Sephora takes a bit of math to get the best deal.
I totally fell in love with the Tory Burch perfume I received a few weeks ago. Since they didn’t have it at Ulta, I decided to break down and order it from Sephora…but $28! Daaaaang, girl. But I also noticed that Tory Burch was one of the options in the Spray of Sunshine Perfume Sampler, which was only $24. Bingo! So I ordered the set online and it got here Friday. They were also offering a Fresh & Floral Perfume Sampler for free with each $25 purchase. So I added a $1 hair tie to my order to get more samples. (I’m pretty sure that’s what those hair ties are for…)
Also inside the Spray of Sunshine Perfume Sampler: Chloe “Love Story” (old ladyish, gardenia?); Elizabeth and James “Nirvana White” (Fuck you, Olsen Twins – although marginally better than “Nirvana Black”, it smells like a knockoff, like one of those designer impostors at the grocery store); Giorgio Armani “Si” (Spicy flowers, smells like the lobby of the Palazzo in Vegas); Marc Jacobs “Daisy Dream” (Reminds me of a Mother’s Day Bouquet – bright, but cheap); and “Stella” by Stella McCartney (Love this old fashioned rose scent – already own it). Inside the Fresh & Floral Sampler: another Tory Burch; another “Nirvana White”; another “Love Story”, Burberry “My Burberry” (smells like new leather shoes – why?); Dolce & Gabbana “Light Blue” (Douchey); philosophy “live joyously” (literally smells like nothingness); Dior “Miss Dior Blooming Bouquet” ( Citrus, but flowers – good job, Natalie Portman) and my personal favorite of the bunch – Atelier Cologne “Mandarine Glaciale” (The ultimate in unisex – like masculine & feminine at the same time – orange spray, but an underlying sexual scent that’s almost obscene). For my regular 3 samples, I picked Atelier Cologne “Orange Sanguine” (I lucked out and got 2 – I already own it, but so?); Buxom “Show Some Skin” Weightless Foundation”; and Urban Decay “Naked Skin” Ultra Definition Powder Foundation.
I always have a trick up my sleeve. I volunteered for the monthly trip to Costco, knowing it would be a perfect opportunity to hit Ulta and Sephora first. Of course, I didn’t tell Logan this until we were almost to Ulta. Oh, the moaning! All I needed was more Zoya Remove+, but he also talked me into buying him a new eos lip balm in “Lemon Drop”. I must say, the kid’s got taste. We then zipped into Sephora to get my Tory Burch Rollerball. Nothing else caught my eye.
I was surprised that something did catch my eye at Costco – the Jenna Hipp “The New Candies” mini nail polish collection. I’ve never heard of Jenna Hipp, but it was only $7.99! It included 8 creme polishes in yummy sounding colors: “Marshmallow Fondant”, “Crème the Cantaloupe”, “Pink Lady Finger”, “Violet Éclair”, “Très Parfait”, “Thin Mint”, “Rose Tart” and “American Pie”.
So that’s Sephora Math – any questions?
We are Living in a Material World
…and I am a Material Girl. I was totally bananas for Madonna in the 80s. Of all the accessories that I had as a kid, I wish I still had my ‘Boy Toy’ belt. Yeah, I was probably 7 or 8 at the time, singing “Like a Virgin”, wearing that ‘Boy Toy’ belt…pretty normal, I’d say.
This is Ulta “Material Girl”, a deep plum microglitter that shifts to fuchsia. (This isn’t the color I would expect for Material Girl – I would have expected a pink satin, like Madonna’s dress in the video?) I know I have enough fuchsia nail polish to paint the Astrodome, but I can’t NOT buy them. BUY ALL THE FUCHSIA!!!
I used Orly Bonder as the base coat, but I didn’t use a top coat – I can’t resist the fine, gritty texture. I find myself unconsciously stroking my fingernails throughout the day. I wonder if I look like a psycho?