#ManiMonday | Revlon Meet Maybelline

Welcome back to another edition of #ManiMonday! It has been a loooooooooong while since I have done a MM so I figured I would start this off with a bright, beautiful pink (Casino Royale by Revlon) & a sweet, tealy blue (Tenacious Teal edit: Urban Utopia by Maybelline). I did 2 coats of each color - both had an amazing drying time. One coat of the Revlon woud have been okay, but I am so use to doing 2 that it is out of habit. The Maybelline nailpolish did require 2 coats but both were amazing!

Both polishes are naked with no undies (for those who have NO idea what that means: no top coat or base coat)... however I did apply a coat of Essies Apricot Nail Oil & let that soak into my nail beds for a while before applying the polishes (my nails have been so gross due to moving & generally not taking care of them)... I dont think that has anything to do with how the colors applied or their staying power, but its just a thought.

So, my gorgeous cupcakes, whats on your nails this week?

Mani Monday: zoya's "Stevie"

Welcome to Mani Mondays! A weekly post on my mani of the week. (I know this post is late but I have limited Internet access. Please forgive me >.<;) this week, my nails are adoring Zoya's "Stevie" from their PixieDust line. "Stevie" is a pretty lilacy purple with silver matte glitter. 

On the website, it says NOT to use a base or top coat & to allow to dry about 10minutea. Now, we all know that I am impatient as all hell so I do 2 thin coats, & let dry my normal mani time. Overall I like the pixiedust line, but I have a textural issue - not with the polish! With myself in general. Since it IS a glitter polish, it does have that "rough" glitter feel. 

The wear time on the PD line seems to be longer than average nail polish but it usually doesn't stay longer than 3-5 days on my nails before I change polishes again. Hahaha. Do you guys have any of the zoya pixiedust collection? If so, which colors do you have & what are your thoughts of them?

Zoya PixieDust: London

So, I know this is not a new polish but it's been sitting in my polish drawer since it became available... I just never got around to wearing it. I tried using "Godiva" but the color payoff didn't please me. That doesn't mean I won't try it again however. SO! I will get on to the beautiful-ness that is London.

London.  Natural lighting.

 Zoya describes London as "fog gray with a sugared sparkle, in the exclusive Zoya PixieDust Matte Sparkle formula". They couldn't have nailed it more spot-on if they tried. I applied 2 thin coats & the coverage is amazing. Even with one coat it was a pretty foggy gray but I could still see my nail line. + I always do 2 coats anyway.

Swatch Info:

1. 2 Coats
2. No Base Coat
3. No Top Coat

London. No undies or top coat. Natural lighting.

 Zoya on the PixieDust application:

Do not use a base coat or top coat.
Apply 1-3 (for full coverage) thin coats of polish. 
Allow product to dry completely in between layers for full effect.
The PixieDust textured formula may take up to 10 minutes to dry down completely matte. Once dry, the textured finish is long lasting,  matte and ultra-glittery!

I didn't wait that long between coats... Just long enough to do the other hand & it seems to have turned out all right. My drying time didn't seem to be 10 minutes either.... I'm thinking MAYBE 5. & that's a BIG maybe.

 London's bottle has the same shape as any of the other Zoya polishes but it has a rubberized type of top. Why? Yes. In other words: not a clue why but it does. Since applying London, I then purchased Beatrix, Vespa, & Stevie to try! I will get back to trying Godiva once this one starts wearing off to see if I like it any better.

PixieDust's are $9 a piece from Zoya.com & come in an array of colors & apparently different "formulations" too. I'm putting this bad boy to the ultimate test: BAR TENDING. Constantly having to shove your hands in a bucket of ice, dealing with money, cleaning, stocking, & all the things that come with the territory can really wear on a girls mani -- even with a great top coat!

Until next time...

 

60 Second Nail Polish? How Absurd!

I was in Walmart the other day & saw Rimmel London's new line of 60 SECOND NAIL POLISH! Say what?! Nail Polish that dries in 60 seconds?! No flipping way! As a working mother with 2 toddlers, I need a quick drying nail polish. But just how great can the coverage be & the staying power? Welp, I put Rimmel's "Sage All the Rage" to the test!

2 coats. Day 1. No undies & no top coat.
"Sage All the Rage" by Rimmel London

I did 2 coats of this lovely sage-y green color {which, for some off reason looks teal from my camera. grrr}. Did it dry in 60 seconds? Umm... Maybe like 90 but I didn't allow the first coat to fully dry either before I slathered on a second coat. Still not bad for a $1.50 polish. (:

I'm expecting the polish to start chipping like crazy when I go to work later that day but take a look at this! 

2 coats. Day 3. No undies or top coat.
"Sage All the Rage" by Rimmel London

Absolutely NO CHIPS & NO FADING! 3 days in & it still looks fresh & clean! I am LOVING this polish. Hands down. To give you a better idea of how often I use my hands: I work in a call center taking insurance claims for about 10 hours a day meaning my nails are ALWAYS typing which should cause usual wear & tear on the tips. I am also a mother to a 2 year old & 3 year old little boys who are rambuncious from the time they get up until the time I leave for work. So top regular household chores with 2 toddlers & a full time job. Nails should chip... alot! Right?

Nope! Take a look at this ONE WEEK OLD mani!

2 Coats. Day 7. No undies or top coat.
"Sage All the Rage" by Rimmel London

Thats it! Minimal top fading & the only reason my pointer finger on my RIGHT HAND ONLY chipped at the corner was due to me chewing my on nails. Can you believe the staying power of this cheap-o nail polish?! I do believe I will be going back to Walmart & grabbing one of every color. (:

Have you tried the 60 second nail polish? What do you think of it? What is your favorite color of the line?

New Years Eve Nails

HAPPY 2013! I know I'm a week late on posting this but I thought it's better late than never! ♥  I did Essie's "Smokin' Hot" with Sinful Colors "All About Me" on the tips. I wish I had a silver glitter polish to have done the tips.. I think that would've looked a lot better. What do you think?

With Flash.

Without Flash -- You can kind of see the way the glitter reacted here.

"All About Me" actually looked really reflective in different lighting which was pretty cool. ♥ What did you have on your nails when you rang in the New Year?

A HoHoHo-Holiday Mani ♡

Hi everyone!

I am so sorry things have been on the slow end. I've been sick & the holidays have been keeping me busy. BUT! I did manage to do a cute Santa inspired mani using my new Butter London polishes sent to me by Shelby of (not) Making it Up.

The red is Butter London's "Pillar Box Red" & the buckle is "West End Wonderland". The "belt" is Wet'n'Wild's "Black Creme". I'm sorry it's blurry. I'm not sure what is going on with my stupid camera. Here's hoping I can get a new one at tax time. (:

The Perfect "Sally" Polish

Hi doll faces! ♥

With Halloween a little less than a week away, I have been on the hunt for the perfect nail polish for my costume. What am I being? Why Sally from Nightmare Before Christmas, of course! & since Sally isn't all lively & colorful, I was on the hunt for the perfect Sally-esque color without it washing out my skin & looking all grungy. Welp, I FOUND IT!

 

This is Wet'n'Wild Megalast Nail Polish in "Wet Cement". My picture is a bit blurry because there's something horribly wrong with BOTH of my cameras {oy} but the color is accurate. This is 2 coats with 1 coat of Coastal Scents base coat & top coat.

I found this at my Dollar General on CLEARANCE for $1.75. ♥ I am a happy happy girl!