Nichibotsu
Phoenix “Nichibotsu” is from October’s “Natural Phenomenon” Polish Pickup and is inspired by a particular scene in Hunter x Hunter, a popular anime series that I haven’t seen. (My son is a BIG fan.) “Nichibotsu” means sunset in Japanese, and this polish is a multichrome that flashes between bright violet and fiery sunset.
This is my first magnetic nail polish! I’m still getting the hang of it – I don’t think I left the magnet above my nail for long enough, because my thumb and ring finger were really the only ones that “stayed” magentized. I’ll try again soon!
This is two coats of “Nichibotsu” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Melt Down” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Champagne Toast“.
A Little Saturday Haul
Last Saturday, Lily wanted a haircut and I had just gotten my $25 off Beauty Services Voucher from Ulta for achieving Diamond Status, so we turned it into a whole day with Taco Bell and shopping…
While she was getting her hairs did with my coupon, I decided to use my free product coupon to pick a new foundation. Ulta expanded the eligible items, so I landed on Clinique Beyond Perfecting Foundation + Concealer in “Breeze” (regularly $40). I was initially going to try their new Serum Foundation, but the saleslady explained that it is HEAVIER than regular foundation, and I definitely don’t need that. It’s a perfectly serviceable concealer that matches my existing products. Cool, cool.
The ColourPop x Stranger Things collab is already on clearance, so I snagged the ColourPop Stranger Things Chapter One Eyeshadow Palette ($13, down from $26). It’s got a lot of outrageous 80s colors and glitters, so perfect for how I am feeling these days. I also snagged another Zuru Mini Brands x Ulta Ball ($9.99). I want that damn mini Naked Palette! I didn’t get it this time…but I will. At least I got to use a $3.50 off $15 coupon.
Bath & Body Works had $2.75 Wallflower Refills, so I ran in and got 10. Most are “Rose Water & Ivy”, but I picked a few other scents to go with.
Our last stop before our mandatory shopping Blizzards was checking out Katy Budget Books, which is a local version of Half Price Books. It’s a great store with an awesome staff! No hate to HPB, but there isn’t one close. The closest one is all the way in Sugarland! I found a retro (is early Y2K can be considered retro) crocheting book called The Happy Hooker and I snagged the Star Trek Cookbook for my husband…and all the recipes are inedible. At least 50% of them involve organ meat. No one in the house is brave enough to try Klingon Brain Stew.
Love You So Munchkin
Look…I’m not trying to be an asshole…but…the name of this nail polish makes no sense. (Since when do OPI Nail Polish names make sense?)
Hear me out…this is OPI x Wicked “Love You So Munchkin“. It’s a shimmery gold. Fine. The yellow brick road is golden yellow. The “official” Winkie (inhabitants of the western Oz region) color is yellow. Do you know what is NOT yellow or gold? Fucking Munchkinland. Munchkins are in the East and are represented by the color BLUE. Quadlings in the South are Red and Gillikins in the North are Purple. In the original book, Glinda has the South, but the 1939 film switched her over to the North. In later books, the good witch of the North is Locasta, but I don’t know much about her…I am just a regular person. Couldn’t the person in charge of naming these nail polishes have checked Wikipedia or something?
Oops, I got a little excited there. Sorry, rant over.
This is two coats of “Love You So Munchkin” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Melt Down” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Champagne Toast“.
October 2024 Ipsy Glam Bag – Beauty Nightmares
Beauty Nightmares? I don’t want Beauty Nightmares!
So it’s not that I am behind…although I am behind…but, I am delayed in covering October’s ipsy bag because it was missing two items! I contacted Ipsy Care and they dispatched them immediately, so I just had to wait for them to arrive…
The missing items were Dew of the Gods Sorbaé Hyaluronic Lip Butter in “Strawberry Mandarin” (which I am wearing right now) and a WingMe Cosmetics All Over Eyeshadow Brush.
My product choice this month was a Thread Beauty Face It Multi-Use Complexion Stick in “00 Fair”. I think it’s a concealer – I’ll have to try it.
Also in this month’s bag: tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes™ 4-in-1 Mascara (ugh, tarte is so tired), and Toyfactory Oatbaé Oil Makeup Remover (ew, oil).
Even though this month’s products are kind of duds, I always LOVE the October bags. This one is super-witchy (can you tell I just binged Agatha All Along?) with snakes and such.
I subscribe to the basic ipsy bag for $14/month (recently increased from $13/month) and Icon Box (formerly Glam Bag X) for an extra $60/quarterly (recently increased from $43/quarterly). If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my referral link.
Defying Gravity
OPI x Wicked “Defying Gravity” is VERY different than Deborah Lippman “Defying Gravity”. Instead of Elphaba’s skintone (which we saw in “Witch O’Clock”), we get a representation of the night sky. It’s a beautiful midnight blue with silver shimmer.
This is two coats of “Defying Gravity” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Melt Down” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Zombie Juice“.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the second bottle of “Zombie Juice” is not quick dry either. It stayed tacky for at least 30 minutes…ugh. I’ll try it out a few more times to be sure, just in case it’s a fluke interaction with OPI. I better try out “Blackberry Passionfruit” and make sure it’s not fucked up, too.
Polish Pickup October 2024 – Natural Phenomenon
Not only did I receive October’s Polish Pickup last week, but I also received my replacement Cuticula “Zombie Juice” Top Coat – Wheeeee! Even though it’s no longer spooky season, I’m looking forward to testing it out.
October’s theme is “Natural Phenomenon” and I ventured out of my comfort zone and got a few non-polish products.
Phoenix “Nichibotsu” ($13) is inspired by an anime called Hunter x Hunter (my son’s favorite). Nichibotsu means ‘sunset’ in Japanese. It’s also a magnetic polish, which is why I finally sprang for a Nova Nail Magnet ($5) – I cannot wait to play with it!
Painted Polish “Live Laugh Lava” ($13) is inspired by…DUH…lava.
Envy Lacquer “Synchronous” ($12.50) is inspired by the synchronous firefly display in the Appalachian mountains.
Proving that I don’t learn, I picked up one more Cuticula Limitless Quick Dry Top Coat in “Blackberry Passionfruit” ($10).
Oh, and I got a kitchen magnet/bottle opener ($8.75) celebrating two of my favorite things – True Crime & Nail Polish. I was a bit miffed that I got double charged for shipping, as this was an in-stock item. Boo.
25 Fly
Even though this polish is inspired by Veruca Salt’s album American Thighs, it’s giving Pink Pony Club, right? RIGHT?
I picked up Crystal Knockout “25 Fly” from July’s Rewind, but it was originally from October 2023 – 90’s Grunge. It’s a combination of two of the songs – “25” and “Fly”. My boyfriend in college used to play that album, but I’ll be damned if I remember any song except “Seether”. Maybe I’ll put it on next time I’m in the car?
This is two coats of “25 Fly” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Melt Down” and under Glisten & Glow Glitter Grabber, then Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Champagne Toast“. The heart glitters were definitely a bit lifty, so you’ve gotta use something to keep them flat.
I didn’t realize this this was a thermal polish until after I’d already posted pics…Oopsie! It was BARELY thermal, but I do recall side-eyeing my nails while wearing it.
Nessa-ist Rose
Does anyone else feel really WEIRD holding the tiny OPI mini bottles? Just me?
Instead of holding the tiny mini bottle, I thought I’d mix it up by holding something else OZ related. This Wicked Witch of the East doll AKA Nessarose was from a series of Happy Meal toys. Remember when the Happy Meal toys were actually GOOD? I mean…fucking Madame Alexander! They DID recently bring back the McNugget Buddies…but other than that, kids today are getting the shaft.
OPI “Nessa-ist Rose” is just a plain red nail polish. I don’t have any OPI reds to compare it to, but it’s fairly close to Zoya “Sooki”. It’s got a deepness to it that I like, like a candied apple.
This is two coats of “Ness-ist Rose” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Melt Down” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Champagne Toast“.
Witch O’Clock
What time is it?
For the last 30 some-odd years, my answer has always been the same – “4:30 – it’s not late, it’s early, EARRR-LAYYYY” – and if you get that deep cut from The Spin Doctors, congratulations…you now need antacids if you eat a single slice of pizza.
…but NOW, maybe I’ll change my answer to “Witch O’Clock”, WHICH is the name of the first polish in the OPI x Wicked Nail Lacquer 12 Piece Mini Pack. OPI “Witch O’Clock” is a dark olive green and is very similar to Deborah Lippman “Defying Gravity”.
This is two coats of “Witch O’Clock” over Cuticula Mic Drop Base Coat in “Melt Down” and under Cuticula Limitless Top Coat in “Champagne Toast“.
Pink Pony Ulta Haul
Killing some time before I had to go pick up the kid from Marching Band last week, so I bopped into Ulta to have a look around…
L’Oreal Colorista is not my favorite hair dye, but for $3, I don’t mind have an extra “Metallic Pink” on hand for…dancing at the Pink Pony Club? Or whatever…
I know it’s dumb, but I bought The Body Shop Edelweiss Cleansing Concentrate for Lily…because this year’s Marching Band show opens with “Edelweiss” from The Sound of Music and I thought it would be funny…I spent $6.25 for that eye roll!
I love Wet n Wild’s Fantasy Makers Halloween line, so I grabbed their “Vampire Venom” Lip Gloss Stain ($6.49). It’s got the weirdest applicator. I was expecting a doe foot – but it’s a little plastic spatula? It’s a sheer glossy stain, okay looking I guess.
Finally, I snagged a bottle of L.A. Girl Pro Matte Mixing Pigment in “White” ($9) for my super-secret Halloween makeup that I’ve told everyone about already. Shhhhh…
At least I got to use a $3.50 off $15 coupon!