10: Showtime

This past week, I broke out one of my favorite polishes. It's a 10 Professional Nail Lacquer called Showtime.

This is 2 coats over base, and topped with Seche Vite. Showtime is a taupe-y greige creme that, in bright light, can come across as slightly purple (like in my picture). I don't usually gravitate towards cremes, but this one is just gorgeous.

That's all for now. Wishing everyone a happy holiday!!!

NOTW: Sally Hansen Angel Wings

This week, for once, I actually wanted to wear something a bit more subtle. I decided to try out Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Angel Wings.

This is 3 thin coats over base, and topped with Seche Vite. This polish is a gorgeous pearl shimmer that flashes pink in the light (unfortunately I couldn't capture it on my camera). This was fairly sheer. After 3 coats the nail line was still very visible but, strangely, I was okay with that.

Well, that's it for now. Til next time!

NOTW: OPI Divine Swine

I am, quite possibly, the worst blogger. Sorry that I haven't posted in so long, but real life kindof took over. Hopefully I'll be back to my weekly posts now. Anyhoo, here's my mani this week.

Yesterday was the big cross-town rivalry basketball game between the college I went to, and the evil ones. I decided to make my nails as purple and bling-y as possible to distract during foul shooting (not sure of it helped, but oh well).

This is 3 very thick coats of OPI Divine Swine topped with Seche Vite. Divine Swine is fine purple glitter and larger silver hex glitter in a clear base. It is verrrrry sheer. I ended up having to glop it on so that I'd be ready for the game. I absolutely LOVE the way this looks, but I am soooo dreading taking it off :/

Until next time, loves!

Happy Halloween!!!!

It's Halloween today!! Yay!!!! I was going to do a rainbow water marble/tie dye mani to go with my hippie costume, but I procrastinated too much. So, I figured I would try out some glow in the dark polish instead.


I started with 2 coats of OPI Alpine Snow.I then added some decals to my accent nails, and then put a coat of China Glaze Ghoulish Glow. I finished it all off with a coat of Poshe. The glow doesn't show up well on camera, but in real life, it's very bright.

Overall, I really like the glow in the dark look, although it loses its 'charge' fairly quickly :/ I'll have to be sure to recharge them under porch lights when I take my cousins trick or treating :)

NOTW: Candy Corn!!!

It is officially 9 days until Halloween!!!! I can't wait! Halloween is one of my favorite holidays of the year. I'm a bit late getting into the spirit, but candy corn nails are one way to start everything off with a bang.

I attempted to do this last year, but it was a total fail. I did it all free hand, and I didn't have fast dry top coat at the time, so it took (no lie) at least 2 days for everything to dry.

This time I used french tip nail guide stickers, and a coat of Poshe after each layer to make everything go much faster, and come out much cleaner. As for the polishes, I used OPI Alpine Snow (white), Sinful Colors Great Wall (orange), and Color Club Almost Famous (yellow).

I can't stop looking at my nails. This really helped to get me in the Halloween spirit. Is there anyone else doing any Halloween themed nails?

NOTW: OPI Russian Navy Matte + NYC Starry Silver Glitter

I've been under the weather the past few days, and finally decided this afternoon that I had had enough of my chipping polish (a sure sign that I'm getting better), and redid my manicure.

I started with 1 coat of OPI Russian Navy Matte, a navy blue matte, and then put on 1 medium coat of NYC Starry Silver Glitter; small silver glitter, and larger pink and blue hex glitter. Then I topped it all off with a coat of Seche Vite. I absolutely love this look and can't stop staring at my nails! At a distance they sortof look like mini-galaxies, which makes my inner astronomy geek very happy :)

Urban Outfitters: Blue 1

I've got a quick swatch for y'all today. I was going through my stash and found a gorgeous Urban Outfitter's polish that I thought I'd share. This is Blue 1, a very pretty light blue. I ended up doing 3 coats.

This did give me several problems during application. It is fairly thin, and so was a challenge to keep it from pooling. The short stubby brush didn't help either.

That's all for now! Til next time!

NOTW: Wet N Wild Party of Five Glitters

Hey all! Sorry I've been MIA, but I've been kinda lazy lately, regarding my nails. I had an interview on Thursday and decided, once I got home, to go completely funky.

This is Wet N Wild Party of Five Glitters. I've had my eye on this for a while, but I almost never go to Rite Aid, and when I do, I forget to pick it up. I finally got it the other day, and I'm mad that I waited so long. Party of Five is a mix of blue green, silver, red, and pink/purple hex glitter. I did 1 fairly thick coat over 1 coat of Morbid Black, and it looks FANTASTIC! I can't stop staring at my nails!

NOTW: Essie Vintage Wine

The local salon/shop where I buy my nail polish finally put out a bargain bin last week. While they were mostly blah, I did find a bottle of the gorgeous Vintage Wine.

It was tough to get a decent picture of this since I didn't have any sun (thank you Irene!). Vintage Wine is a dark wine red color with subtle shimmer. I did 2 coats, and it's just too pretty!!

NOTW: Zoya Neeka

As promised, here's a pic of Neeka for you all!

This picture was taken after 2 days of wear. Neeka is a gorgeous dark grey/purple (much darker than it looks in the bottle) with subtle red and gold shimmer. I probably could have gotten away with 1 coat, but I did 2 just to make sure there were no bare spots, and topped with Poshe. I really like this color, and I'm glad I picked it up.

Well, that's all for now. Til next time!

Zoya Haul

I took advantage of Zoya's buy 1, get 2 free promotion this past week, and just recieved my package today. So excited!!

Left to right: Faye, Neeka, Caitlin.

Faye, a gift for my friend, is a great mauve with intense gold shimmer. Neeka is a dark grey-purple with red tones and gold shimmer. Finally, Caitlin is a very pretty purple-grey.

Apparently, I am in a purple mood. I just did a manicure with Neeka (which I'll post in a few days), and I can't stop staring at my nails. So pretty!

That's all for me. Til next time!

Scherer Chameleon Calypso

Hey all! Sorry I haven't updated in a while, real life got in the way for awhile. But I'm back now with a mani from a month ago.


This is 2 coats over base, and topped with Poshe. I really really really wanted to like this polish. It looks absolutely GORGEOUS in the bottle, flashing between pink, blue, and purple. However, on the nail it was a complete fail. It mostly showed pink, flashing a silvery-green if looked at at a certain angle. Not a hint of the blue or purple :(

The formula of this was really difficult to work with. It had a tendency to pull and cause lumps if I overlapped while I was applying. Really annoying. Then, I ended up with brail nails, the bubbling was the worst I've ever seen.

Needless to say, I probably won't be purchasing any more Scherer Chameleon polishes any time soon.

That's all for now! Til next time!!

NOTW: Zoya Apple

I'm going back up to Maine this weekend. So, what's the perfect polish to wear to a weekend on the beach? Something from Zoya's Sunshine collection, of course!

This is 2 coats of Zoya Apple, a gorgeous apple green with golden shimmer, topped with 1 coat of Poshe. I can't get enough of this color, it's so pretty!

And now I'm off to pack! Til next time!

NOTW: Nicole By OPI: Me + Blue

I never thought that I would one day own a Bieber polish, but this one called to me.

I lovelovelove this polish! It's a gorgeous blue with holo glitter. This is 2 coats of Me + Blue, topped with 1 coat of Poshe (I did end up putting another coat of Poshe on later since it is seriously gritty).

I was surprised that I really liked the brush for this polish. I wasn't sure about it since I have such small nails, but it was the perfect size for them. I only used 1 or 2 swipes per nail.

Harry Freakin' Potter

The last Harry Potter movie premieres tomorrow and, since I'm going to the midnight showing, I thought I'd show off my Potter pride. I decided I wanted to represent Gryffindor since it's my favorite house (and I'm kindof in love with Neville...), but I also wanted a shoutout to my favorite character, Snape. I decided to do a mostly Gryffindor (red & gold) inspired manicure, with some Slytherin (green & silver) thrown in.


I did 2 coats of Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Cherry Red on all nails except my ring. On my ring finger, I did 2 coats of I Love My Nails Chrome in Angel. Then, I used scotch tape for the tip guides. For the gold tips, I used Orly Glitz & Glamour. And, for the green tips, I used Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Jumpin' Jade. I had a little 'whoops' moment when I was putting Poshe on, and smeared the green a bit. But, oh well.

I can't wait to see the movie tonight, but I'm so bummed about it over. Anyone else going to see HP tonight?

Color Club Almost Famous + Sally Hansen Fuschia Shock

I've really been loving the hot pink and yellow combo lately, so I had to break out the pink crackle.



This was 2 coats of Color Club Almost Famous, 1 coat of Sally Hansen Fuschia Shock crackle overcoat, and finished with a coat of Seche Vite. I absolutely love the color combo, it might be my all time favorite.

4th of July Mani

Happy 4th of July to those in the US! I decided to go all out with this mani (well, all out for me...lol)



I started alternating red (Sally Hansen Hard as Nails in Cherry Red) and blue (Sally Hansen HD in Blu over Morbid Black). Then, I used Sinful Colors striping polish in Bad Chick to make the "stars" and stripes. Then, I decided it wasn't "bling-y" enough, and added a coat of NYC White Lights Glitter on top before finishing with Poshe. Whew!

This is the first time I've really attempted any kind of nail art (other than tape manis), and I definitely need practice, but it's not too bad for the first time.

And now I'm all ready to see the fireworks tonight. Have fun y'all!

Used Up: B&BW Wild Honeysuckle Shower Gel

I just finished up my bottle of Bath & Body Works Wild Honeysuckle Shower Gel.
This is one of my favorite scents from B&BW; a nice fresh floral scent that really stays on my skin. I want to go out and get a replacement, but I'm trying to restrain myself, since I have three other shower gels that I need to finish up first. Right now, I'm alternating between The Body Shop Strawberry shower gel, B&BW Warm Vanilla Sugar shower gel, and Dial Yogurt body wash in Vanilla Honey.

Rainbow Manicure

In honor of New York State's Senate approving same-sex marriagelast night, I did a quick rainbow manicure.

Sorry for the less-than-stellar picture. A couple nails on my left hand smudged, which meant I had to take pics of my right hand. Impossible, I tell you!

In terms of polishes, I used Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Cherry Red (red), Sinful Colors Great Wall (orange), Color Club Almost Famous (yellow), OPI What's with the Cattitude? (blue), and Zoya Mira (purple). I wish I had used a darker blue, but I don't have a creme blue any darker than Cattitude. I did 2 coats of each, except for the yellow which took 3 to even it out, and topped with Seche Vite.

That's all for now. Til next time!

NOTW: Sephora By OPI Shopping Frenzy

I could not decide on what I wanted to do my nails this week. But, I finally settled on Sephora By OPI Shopping Frenzy. This is my first Sephora By OPI polish, and now I want to go get some more!

This is 2 coats of Shopping Frenzy over basecoat, and topped with Poshe. This was completely opaque at 1 coat (!!!), but I did a 2nd coat just to make sure everything was even. I love this color. Its a bright pink/fuschia that has a blue/purple flash. So pretty.

Til next time!

NOTW: OPI Who The Shrek Are You?

I decided to cross another of my polished of the 'untried' list. I've used this polish before, as part of my St. Patty's Day manicure, but never by itself. This is OPI Who the Shrek Are You? from their Shrek Forever After Spring 2010 collection.
This was 2 coats of Who the Shrek Are You? over basecoat, and topped with Seche Vite. On my ring finger, I decided to add a coat of NYC 110A (I believe its the same thing as Luxery Lime) on my ring finger. The NYC polish, by itself, is a very sheer yellow-green with medium green shimmer. Over Shrek, it gives the polish a pearly/frosty finish.

I love this OPI color. It's the exact same color as this slime (gak?) that I had as a kid. Good times.

Til next time!

NOTW: Zoya Phoebe

For this week, I decided to try out Zoya Phoebe, from their Mod Matte collection.

Phoebe is a gorgeously bright electric blue, that I can't stop staring at. I did 2 coats over a basecoat, and topped it with Seche Vite. The top coat really brings out the shimmer. Then, I added Sally Hansen's white crackle, Snow Blast, on my ring finger as an accent.

I really love how this turned out. I can't believe it took me so long to try out Phoebe, it's such a pretty color. And I got tons of compliments when I went to the store.

Unfortunately, I decided that the day after doing my nails is a good time to start scrubbing down the kitchen cabinets....without gloves. Needless to say, this manicure is wrecked. Bummer.

In other news, I recently started up a music blog, Records Spinning. Check it out if you're interested, and let me know what you think!

Til next time!

Finished Products

Here are a couple products that I used up the other day.

Avon Flavor Savers Cherry. I think this is first chapstick I've ever completely finished. I really like this. It gives my lips a bit of a tint, and leaves them semi-glossy. The only problem is that it really is not that moisturizing. I've been using it constantly over the past few days to use it up, and my lips are still dry. Bummer.

Avon Foot Works Deep Moisture Cream. I live for this stuff. Every spring/summer my mom buys a whole bunch of the Foot Works products to get us through the year. This bottle is what is left over from last year. My feet get super rough during winter, but after a week of pumicing every other day, and putting this on after, my feet are amazingly soft. I need to get another bottle of this. Luckily, I have the overnight cream to tide me over until then.

That's ir for now. Til next time!

OPI Mermaid's Tears

Hey all! Sorry I've been MIA, but I haven't had much to post, and then I went to Maine for a few days. Apparently I was super inspired by the ocean, and ended up using OPI's Mermaid's Tears for my manicure (along with a sky blue pedicure).

Picture taken after 2 days of wear. This was 2 coats of Mermaid's Tears over base, and topped with Seche Vite. I absolutely adore this color. It came out much more blue in the photo, but in real life, it is a gorgeous dusty seafoam color.

This manicure held up surprisingly well. Usually OPI chips within a day on me, but this lasted 3 full days before there was even a small chip.

And now I leave you with some gorgeous, albeit cloudy, pictures from my trip. Til next time!

Sally Hansen Crackle Overcoat: Antiqued Gold

I was getting kind of bored with Essie Coat Azure, so I broke out my new gold crackle to it.


This was 1 coat of Antiqued Gold over my previous manicure. This isn't the best crackle out there, but the color is nice. Its a light gold, almost champagne color, which goes great with the blue.

Lovely in Lacquer Giveaway

Lovely in Lacquer is having a 100 Follower Giveaway!!
Click here for more information. Ends on June 14th, 2011.

Enamel Girl Giveaway

Enamel Girl is having a giveaway for her blog's first anniversary.
Click here for more details!

Essie Coat Azure

So, I'm graduating from grad school tomorrow....YAY! But, I was having the hardest time trying to find a nail polish that wouldn't clash with the blue dress I'm wearing. I was just going to go with purple, my school color, but I'm going to a party after and I didn't want to clash. My friend had a great blue polish, Essie Coat Azure, that she let me borrow. It looks amazing next to my dress.

This was two coats of Coat Azure over base, topped with Poshe. Its a gorgeous dusty blue with a nice shimmer, which didn't really come out in the pictures I took. So pretty!!

In other news, I did go back and pick up the gold Sally Hansen crackle polish. I tried it out on a nail wheel, and it's awesome. I'm planning on using it for my next manicure.

That's all for now. Til next time, loves.

Sally Hansen Crackle Overcoat

Usually my CVS is the last place to get any new polishes, but when I stopped there today, they actually had the new Sally Hansen crackle polishes. Yay!!! Since they were buy 1 get 1 half off, I got two to try out.

I got white, Snow Blast, and pink, Fuchsia Shock.






I did quick swatches of them over Sinful Colors Nail Junkie (which hasn't chipped after 4 days!!), no top coat. These polishes work better with thicker coats; the thicker the coat, the larger and more noticeable the cracks (like with the pink). If it's too thin, it doesn't really crackle, just goes on as a film over the polish (you can see it most in the white on my pinky finger).

The formula is nice. Not as thick as the OPI shatters, and easy to work with. I'm already planning my next trip to the store to pick up some more of these...the gold one is calling to me ;)

Til next time, loves!

Sinful Colors Nail Junkie

Changing up the nails again!! I found out this morning that one of my favorite bands, A Silent Film, was playing a free show tonight at a bar downtown (if you don't know who A Silent Film are, check them out!!!). I wanted something more fun and flashy on my nails than the Mets colors, so I picked out one of my untrieds to use.

Nail Junkie is a gorgeous turquoise/aqua jelly with blue, green, and gold glitter. This is 2 very thick coats of Sinful Colors Nail Junkie, over base coat, with 1 coat of Seche Vite on top. I only did 2 coats because I kind of like the sheerness, but you would probably need at least 1-2 more coats for full coverage, depending on how thick they are.

Let's Go Mets!!

So, my friend, her mom, and I are going to a Mets game tomorrow, and taking a tour around Citi Field. I originally wasn't going to do anything special with my nails, but decided at around 10 that I should do something to show my team spirit (even though they suck...). Its not fancy, but it gets the job done.
On all nails except my ring finger, I did 1 coat of Morbid (Hot Topic) Black over basecoat. Then, I put one coat of Sally Hansen Blu. On my ring finger, I did 2 coats of Sinful Colors Great Wall. I topped it all with Poshe.


By itself, Blu is nothing special; really sheer and not that great looking. But, over black, it practically glows. I always get tons of compliments on my nails when I wear it.

Giveaway!!

Sweet Sugar is having a 500 follower giveaway!

Click here for details.

NOTW: Milani Hi-Tech

I haven't had the time to polish my nails lately, but I finally finished my last final and decided it was manicure time! I chose Milani Hi-Tech since the yellow-green color reminded me of Bugette in Starship (can anyone say Starkid obsessed?), and I wanted to try out my very first holographic polish.

No Top Coat

With Top Coat

This was 3 coats over base coat, topped with poshe. I probably could have gotten away with 2 coats, but it dried so fast, I decided to slap a 3rd on there just because.

Hi Tech is a gorgeous yellow-green holo. Its not an in-your-face holo, but its still very pretty. I can't stop staring at my nails..lol! I don't know what took me so long to try out holos. The formula of this was a dream; applied like butter, and dried super quickly.

Mario Badescu Skin Care Samples

So, about a month ago, I took the skin care survey on the Mario Badescu website. I had completely forgotten about it, until my samples arrived in the mail today. For those of you who don't know, if you take this survey on the website, they will come up with a personalized regimine, and send you free samples.

These are the samples I received:

• Ceramide Herbal Eye Cream


• Elasto-Collagen Night Cream


• Control Moisturizer for Oily Skin


• Almond and Honey Non Abrasive Face Scrub


• Flower and Tonic Mask


• Drying Cream


• Seaweed Cleansing Lotion

They also send a guide that tells you when to use each of them, how to apply them, and in what order. I'm really excited about trying these out. I tried the Cleansing Lotion, Almond and Honey Scrub, Night Cream, and Eye Cream tonight, and I'm already in love with the scrub. I don't think my skin has felt that smooth in years. I'll post a results update in a week or two.

Avon Porcelain Pink

I've got an oldie for you all today. This is a polish that my mom bought for her honeymoon...back in 1985!! I found it when I was cleaning out the cabinets in the bathroom and (surprise surprise) it wasn't dried up. Yay!!
This was 3 coats, though it could have used a fourth to even everything up, and no base or top coat. The formula is really thin, so it was a (failed) effort to keep it from flooding my cuticles. It also stank to high heaven. But it's such a pretty, clean, pink that I think I can get over that :)

Easter Mani

Hey all! So, I decided to jazz up my NYC Hint of Mint mani for Easter tomorrow (today?...it is 2am..). It's pretty simple, but it looks cute.

I used scotch tape as a guide, and used 1 medium coat OPI What's With the Cattitude? to make asymmetrical tips. I really like the color combination. It reminds me of blue sky and green grass, the way spring is supposed to look like. Unfortunately, the colors blend together, unless you look closely under bright light. :/ Still pretty though...

Well, that's all for now. Happy Easter, Passover, what have you. Til next time, loves!

NOTW: NYC Hint of Mint

First, a quick follow-up of the Scherer Chameleon polish I posted last week. I'm not happy. It looked soo pretty, but ended up peeling off completely the next day. Boo! The past few days, I've been rocking *gasp* naked nails! But, since I'm going to Holy Thursday mass tonight, I decided I should probably cover them, lest I scar people with my yellowed nails.

I wanted something nice and pastel since, hey, it's (supposed to be) spring. I ended up chosing one of the new polishes I got, NYC Expert Last Nail Polish in Hint of Mint. It's a gorgeous light mint green creme, close to a pastel, but not quite. I did 2 coats over base coat, and topped it with Poshe.

I'm hoping this does actually last 7 days, because I'm loving this polish! Usually I don't like creme polishes (too plain for me), but this is sooo pretty! The formula was awesome. It went on like butter, and dried quickly too.

I'm already planning what I can add to it for Sunday. Maybe some Easter eggs? Or maybe a funky french? Hmmm...

Til next time, loves!

Clinique Rinse Off Foaming Cleanser

Whew, what a mouthful! Anyway, my grandma gave me this sample awhile ago, but I waited to use it until I finished with the cleanser I had. This was a sample size, but it lasted forever! I finished it a few days ago and am just now getting around to posting about it. Add one more to the project 10 pan list!

So, I am kinda in love with this stuff. It removed all my foundation, and left my face feeling sooo soft. It also didn't dry my skin out, which is an issue I have with most of the cleansers I've used.

I might purchase this, since it does work very well on my skin. However, I'm also completely cheap, and it's hard for me to justify spending 20+ on facial wash.... Decisions, decisions!

Well, that's all for now. Til next time, loves!

NOTW: Scherer Chameleon Blue Sky

I found Blue Sky at Rite Aid the other day (along with Calypso) and it looked so pretty in the bottle that I just had to get it. Its a gorgeous duochrome that flashes between purple, green, and blue.

Indoors, artificial light

Natural sunlight

As you can see, it does not disappoint. Depending on the angle, it flashes between all three colors, reminding me of a peacock feather. This is 2 coats, over basecoat, and then one coat of Poshe. I ended up putting OPI Black Shatter on my ring nail because my cousin's daughter wanted to see how it worked. I really like how it came out.

Overall, application of this wasn't too bad. I had read some horror stories about this brand on different blogs, but it wasn't that bad for me. I did medium coats since it has a tendency to dry quickly, and then pull. I'm also loving Poshe right now. Its not as shiny as Seche Vite, but it dried just as quickly, and didn't shrink. Yay!!!

Drug Store Haul

I had some extra time today before my class started, so I ended up wandering around CVS and Rite Aid. Of course I ended up buying nail polish (I have no self control...). After this, I am banning myself from buying nail polish for a little bit.

• Sinful Colors Nail Art in Bad Chick


• Poshe Top Coat


• Scherer Chameleon Calypso


• Scherer Chameleon Blue Sky


• Sally Hansen HD DVD


• NYC Expert Last in Hint of Mint


• Milani 3D Holographic Hi-Tech


• Sinful Colors Nail Junkie

I'm really excited about these polishes. I picked up Poshe since Seche Vite has been driving me crazy lately with the shrinkage, and it's time for a change. The Chameleon ones look absolutely gorgeous in the bottle, I hope it translates to my nails. I'm not completely sold on DVD yet. To be honest, the only reason I bought it was because it came with a free Double Duty, which is my go to base coat. *shrug* I'll have to see what it looks like over black.

The last three were complete impulse purchases. I wanted to try out some new brands/polishes. My first real glitter, and my first holographic. Can't wait to try them out!