NOTD - Love Your Life

I know this is very Valentine's Day-esque, but I guess I was in a lovey-dovey mood! This is Sinful Colors - Sugar Sugar (Ones of my favorite reds) topped off with Nicole by OPI - Love Your Life, a clear with iridescent glitter and pink hearts suspended, much like the Nicole I showed you recently here, Let's Get Star-ted.

I saw Love Your Life on sale at Walgreen's and screamed "mine!" and bought it. I later checked out the name and I loved it even more! It's so positive. I have to sometimes remind myself to be happy. You know how sometimes you're just in a rut, or down or blue? And you get those "my life sux" thoughts? Well, if you don't that is really awesome, but if you do, I feel ya. It may seem silly to think a nail polish can change your mood or day but a positive little message like that does help!

Have a wonderful day!
-Elaine

New From Nicole by OPI

Hello all and HAPPY FRIDAY! I am super excited today because I am going to the train station right from work and going away to Michigan with a friend for the weekend! I won't be doing my nails so I have on a color that I will love for that long and it's Illamsqua - Whack, the best. orange. ever. Whoa. And you know how I love orange!


Today I bring you a new color from Nicole by OPI. It's Let's Get Star-ted. It's not really a color. It's a clear top coat with glitter and stars!


The stars are purple and do glint a prismatic effect at different angles and the glitter is a pink/blue/green iridescent. The application is okay. I tried to just paint two coats and see how it did without me trying to get the stars and that worked fine, and if any were in an undesirable spot I would move them and if I wanted more after 2 coats then I would fish them out.

This photo is of Let's Get Star-ted over Essie- Mesmerize.

Have a great weekend!

Seche VITE for Breast Cancer Awareness

Hello everyone! I had a nice surprise the other day when I went to my Sally's Beauty Supply to pick up a new bottle of Seche VITE top coat. For the same price, I purchased a bottle of SV which came in a box and included a strip of pink ribbon nail decals and rhinestones for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I have been trying to support breast cancer any way I can, including joining Michelle from All Lacquered Up in raising money for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation here.

About Seche VITE: I love this stuff. I couldn't live without it. Before I learned that such a wonderful product as this existed, I never used topcoats because to me it seemed a waste since I would just have to wait longer for my manicure to dry. I never used anything that took more than two coats (which excludes plenty of colors that are gorgeous but take at least three coats, and forget about layering combos) and I usually always ended up messing up my manis. Then this baby came into my life and I will never go back. It sets my polish quickly so I can do my nails even if I am in a hurry. I can layer layer layer! I can do anything!! It's empowering!

Back to the decals.... They are super cute:

Here is the mani I did for today with them:It is Sinful Colors - Social Ladder with one of the pink ribbon decals. I had a hard time putting in on. Not the fault of the decal; I just never use them so I was sloppy. I messed up the nail first so I had to take off the polish and try again. Then I put on the topcoat to dry my polish so I wouldn't wreck it, then put on the decal, then I put on another layer of topcoat to seal it in and I instead made the polish underneath do a weird crinkling action over the whole nail. I probably couldn't do it again if I tried! It actually looked kind of cool. It has since smoothed out a bit. It must have been the first layer was still trying to get things set and then the second layer showed up too soon and messed up his plans.

I have never bought Seche VITE in a box so it was interesting to see what they had to say:

"Seche VITE Acknowledged as the world's finest top coat. Its patented formula allows it to penetrate through the nail lacquer to the base coat forming a single solid coating over the nail plate for a much more durable finish which is guaranteed not to yellow. Seche VITE is unmatched as a top coat. Your nails will feel silky, be stronger, and will absolutely not chip. Seche VITE creates the highest gloss and is longer lasting than any product on the market today. Apply thickly, get a nice bead on the end of the brush, then set softly down on the first nail painted and watch how Seche VITE flows over the wet nail polish without dragging of streaking the underlying manicure"

It may be a little hyped up, but it is a wonderful product. I have seen it at Target for about $10, at CVS for about $8, at Sally's for about $7, but with a Sally Beauty Member Card it only costs $4.95. Big difference from $10!

It is however, not completely big 3 free:

Warning: This product contains a chemical known to the state of California to cause birth defects or other reproductive harm.

Butyl Acetate, Toluene, Cellulose Acetate Butyrate, Isoprpyl Alcohol, Trimethyl Pentanyl Diisobutyrate, Benzophenone-1.

L.A. Colors and L.A. Colors Color Craze

Helllooooo everyone! I went on a hunt recently for polishes and I was trying to hit beauty stores I never went to before. Independent or smaller chains as opposed to something like Sally's. I discovered LA Colors!

In picture above: Silver glitter, Shock, Force, Phenomena


Silver Glitter - Shown alone and over black. This is a small grain, silver glitter top coat. This swatch was two coats but it covers very well with just one too. This is the stuff I used to make Evening Twinkler, my Starry Starry Night dupe.


Shock - I love this shade! I just wish is was more opaque. I would layer this over white for a mani. It's a neon yellow-orange, tangerine color and dries semi-matte. If I remember correctly, this was 3 coats and you can still clearly see visible nail line.


Force - I love this one too! This is a very shimmery metallic burnt orange. It reminds me of fall more than any other fall-ish nail polish I have seen. It is gorgeous.


Phenomena - This is a red purple creme. I love red-purples! I can not get enough. But this would NOT photograph. It looked cooler/more blue in real life than this. More magenta and not so red. This was the best pic I could get and I still don't like it.

I found the Color Craze polishes at the same store as the Santees I showed you. They were $1. And I found Silver Glitter in a different store and I think it may have been $2. These are all also available on Cherryculture.com.

Amazing Nubar Deal!

You have to see this: http://bynubar.blogspot.com/2009/08/nubar-offers-top-coats-for-1.html

You can get Nubar top coats for $1!!

For a limited time, you can try V for Men Quick Dry Matte Top Coat, which makes any nubar nail lacquer quickly dry to a matte finish, for only $1 with any retail order of just $30, and Diamont Seal & Shine Quick Dry Top Coat for $1 with any retail order of only $60. These offers can be combined, so you can try both for just $1 each with an order of $60, a savings of over 25%! Just add the items from our home page to your qualifying order.

There is a limit of one of each $1 item per order, but there is no limit on how many orders may be placed, and our policy of free shipping within the continental U.S. on order of $75 or more always applies. If there are questions, please email us for more details!

Holy cow!