Hey there ladies and gents!
Today's feature will be Nina Ultra Pro "Caribbean Blue" I purchased this at Sally Beauty Supply during one of their Buy 2 Get 1 Free sales, so I paid $2.79 per bottle (that's also with my Club Card, of course).
She's a beautiful aqua blue. I've never been to the Caribbean, so I can't say for sure if this really is the color of the waters there. However, this does remind me of the beaches of Sarasota, Florida. The water there is so incredibly clear and gorgeous that you can see right through it.
Unfortunately this polish's formula is see-through, too. Even at three coats, there's still a wee bit of VNL. I usually use this as a topper. If you put this over black, it turns more green. I actually did a manicure once where I did a black-to-white gradient and put this over it. It looked amazing! Well, it looked mostly amazing--if my gradient skills were better it could have been phenomenal. It's a little hard to tell from this picture, but hopefully you get the gist.
One downside to the Nina Ultra Pro polishes is the brush. However, I think I'm in the minority on this. NUPs have a very wide paddle brush. For most folks, that's a good thing. For me, though, with my super narrow nails, it creates a problem. On my pinky and ring finger nails I actually have to turn the brush sideways. Otherwise, I end up with even more polish on my skin than usual.
So is "Caribbean Blue" worth the $2.79 I paid for it? Yeah, I'd have to say she is. Would I pay $4.00 or more for her? Probably not. But at less than three dollars, "Caribbean Blue" is such a stunning color and very versatile as a topper, so I think it was money well spent.
Greetings folks!
Today we'll be featuring Bundle Monster Wavelengths--one of their metallic creative arts polishes (stamping polishes).
I paid $11.99 for the entire metallic set. The set includes six polishes, putting each one at only $2.00. I can't remember for certain if I purchased these on Walmart.com or bundlemonster.com... I think it was the former and I got free shipping.
Wavelengths is a gorgeous royal blue metallic. As of yet, I haven't used this as a regular nail polish, so I can't say anything in regards to application or longevity. However, as a stamping polish, this stuff is phenomenal. The formula is thick enough to fill your image and stamp easily, yet thin enough that you don't have to worry about dragging polish clumps around. (Yes, I've had that issue... I won't mention any bornprettystore names.) :p
I also haven't had any problems with it staining my stampers as some blues have a tendency to do.
Overall, this is a great stamping polish that I know I can rely on to stamp beautifully every time.
So is it worth the two bucks? Yes, indeedy. For $2.00 a piece, the entire collection is worth it--even though the gold is a little dull and the pink is definitely not metallic. All stamp wonderfully and in my opinion are a great deal.
Greetings ladies and gents!
Today's Feature is Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear "Pixel Perfect". This is a glitter polish featuring different sizes of black and white hex, circle, and bar glitters.
I paid $2.49 for this at Target.
Usually the Sally Hansen Xtreme Wears have pretty good formulas, but this was my first time trying one of their glitters. I have to say... I was not impressed. You have to do a lot of fishing and dab-placement to get a decent payoff of glitter. The sponging method doesn't really work with this because you end up with a big chunk of glitter in one spot and nothing on the rest of your nail. The clear base is also rather thin and has a tendency to pool in all the places you don't want it to.
In the photo I painted on the first coat, and then fished, and fished, and fished some more to strategically dab the rest on. (This is over Nabi "Pastel Minty", by the by)
While the polish has a pretty cool concept, the work required to make it look decent just isn't worth it, in my opinion.
So was this glitter polish worth the $2.49 I paid for it? Sadly, I have to say no on this one. Thicken up the base a little bit and pack more glitters in there, then we might have something useful. Until then, I'd say go for one of the other black and white matte glitter polishes that are out there.
Good day, ladies and gents!
I find myself to be in a bit of a pickle. I'm considering doing a small polish purge.
On the one hand, there are a few polishes in my collection that I just never reach for. On the other hand, I do have a system that will eventually make me go through these particular polishes.
I abhor being wasteful, so I feel as though just getting rid of these bottles without using them would be a travesty. Yet I also wonder why I'm hanging on to them when I don't really care for them.
While it would be nice to free up some space, that of course will inevitably lead me to spend more money on more polish.
I have considered putting up a destash on storenvy or somesuch, but I have to wonder if it would be worth it. As I said before, it would be a small purge, and I wouldn't sell them for more than a dollar--most of them have been used at least once.
What do you folks think? Should I try to muddle through these polishes and maybe empty the bottles in a decade? Or should I destash and send them to homes that will appreciate them more than I do?
Good afternoon folks,
Today we'll be discussing KleanColor Metallic White.
This is available as part of a 12 piece set which you can purchase on Amazon for $11.99. That puts each polish at only one dollar!
The color is a gorgeous shimmery, glittery white. That's because the formula on this polish is basically just that: a shimmery white glitter in a clear base. The glitter is packed in there, though, making it a very thick polish. However, because it is so thick you can get this opaque in only two coats.
If possible, wear a peel-off base coat under this gem... she will want to hang around for a long, long time otherwise.
One thing to note about the KleanColor brand is that they stink. I can't say for certain, but I don't believe these polishes are even 3-free.
I'm constantly raving about the KleanColor metallics collection on YouTube, but I have to be honest: this polish is my least favorite of the bunch. Don't get me wrong, though. I still love it. I'm just not a huge fan of trying to get it off. Plus it doesn't work for stamping, so that's a bummer.
So is it worth a dollar? Heck yeah. Despite being more clingy than my last boyfriend, this polish is a stunning, blingy, crystal-snow-like masterpiece.
Good day, ladies and gents!
Lately I've been focusing a lot on the new YouTube channel, and my poor blog has been put off to the wayside. We can't have that now, can we? Therefore, I've decided I'm going to start a new series, entitled "Budget-Friendly Feature". In this series I'll go over random polishes in my collection and tell you about the color, the formula, whether or not I think it was worth the price I paid, and any other info I think might be relevant.
Our first Feature is Nabi "Teal" (not to be confused with "Teal II"). I bought a lot of 20 polishes from Nabi on ebay for $24.00, putting each bottle at $1.20.
Unfortunately I took a horribly shadowed picture, so the actual color is a bit hard to see. However, this is a stunning teal with just a light dusting of shimmer.
This formula is definitely on the thinner side--it does require three coats for full opacity. I'm wondering if perhaps "Teal II" has a better formula? I may never know, since I am now on a definite no-buy. My rack is full to the brim and I just cannot justify buying more polish until I use some up!
So is Nabi "Teal" worth the $1.20? In my eyes, yes it is. I've gone through half of this bottle. Normally I shy away from three-coaters, but the color on this baby is worth it. That's saying something, since I am incredibly lazy and the less work I have to do, the better.
What do you guys think? Would you try this polish for the price, even though the formula leaves a bit to be desired? Have you tried "Teal II"? Let me know!
Also, if ever there's a polish you've seen me use (either here, or on YouTube) and you'd like me to put that particular polish in a future Feature, speak up!
Good afternoon, ladies and gents!
Today I'll be going over the polishes I snagged in Zoya's Earth Day Exchange promotion. Every year Zoya has an Earth Day sale in which they'll give you a discount on their polishes in exchange for sending them your unwanted polishes to be disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner. This year they offered 50% off, plus free shipping. That puts each polish at only $5! Sweet! Keep in mind, however, that you do have to order at least 6 polishes.
You don't absolutely have to send in old polishes--you can take advantage of the promo regardless. If you'd rather, you can donate your polishes to a shelter, which is what I'll be doing. I'll be donating 12 polishes, some makeup, baby diapers and wipes, nursing pads, feminine hygiene products, and some baby food.
This promo runs until May 10th, so if you'd like to get on board you still can.
Let's get into the fun stuff, shall we?
From left to right we have the Naked Manicure Lavender Perfecter, Dove, Giovanna, Frida, Estelle, and Indigo.
The Lavender Perfecter is Zoya's award-winning color corrector. It is supposed to reduce the appearance of discoloration and staining. Does it work? Well, I'll have a first-impressions video up on YouTube soon! ;)
Dove is a very light grey creme. She does seem to be a wee bit on the taupe-y side to me, but I've been needing a light grey for a while and she'll do nicely.
Giovanna is a gorgeous metallic green with a hint of blue. I do have a similar polish in Finger Paints "Van Gogh's Verdigris", but the formula on this one is much better.
Next up is Frida, which is a teal jelly. If you recall, I also picked up Katherine a while back, which is Zoya's purple jelly. I'm not entirely sure whether the formula on Frida is better, or whether I've just gotten more attuned to working with jellies--either way, this one applied with fewer patches and streaks. I'm looking forward to trying some pond manicures with her!
Then there's Estelle. Oh dear Goddess... Estelle is... she's goooorgeous. She runs in the same family (collection) as Ember and Cinnamon--though I had no idea all three were in the same collection until after I had ordered Estelle. She is a stunning blue chrome. I thought to myself, "If Estelle is the blue version of Ember, she may just replace my current favorite polish." Unfortunately, she's quite a bit darker than I had thought, so the crown still remains with Nabi "Cobalt Blue". She's still amazing though, so I have no regrets about snatching her up.
Last but most certainly not least, we have Indigo. I was stuck on Zoya's website with 5 polishes in my cart and couldn't decide on which polish to go with to hit that 6 polish requirement. I finally settled on Indigo, which is a rich indigo (go figure) color with a tiny smattering of holo. I wasn't super excited about this one... until I pulled it out of the box. She is so gorgeous!! She instantly became my favorite of the order, and quite possibly my favorite Zoya! In fact, I'll be using her for the manicure commemorating my son's first birthday. I'm in love...
If you've taken advantage of this promo, or are considering doing so, let me know what polishes you pick(ed) up!
Today's feature will be Nina Ultra Pro "Caribbean Blue" I purchased this at Sally Beauty Supply during one of their Buy 2 Get 1 Free sales, so I paid $2.79 per bottle (that's also with my Club Card, of course).
Unfortunately this polish's formula is see-through, too. Even at three coats, there's still a wee bit of VNL. I usually use this as a topper. If you put this over black, it turns more green. I actually did a manicure once where I did a black-to-white gradient and put this over it. It looked amazing! Well, it looked mostly amazing--if my gradient skills were better it could have been phenomenal. It's a little hard to tell from this picture, but hopefully you get the gist.
