#ManiMonday: Stars & Stripes

On today's edition of #ManiMonday Im doing a Stars & Stripes edition. I actually took some care of the tips since I need the design to last all the way through the weekend. 

Undies: Orly Base Coat

Top Coat: Seche Vite Quick Dry Top Coat

I did 3 different colors this week. On all tips except my ring finger is a gorgeous sparkley - but not glittery - blue from the wonderful Butter London (Scallywag it is surely named). I did 3 coats of this polish... Not because 2 coats didn't work just fine but I had to do 3 coats of my accent color that I thought why not?

To accent it off, I put (as mentioned above) 3 coats of Revlon Colorstay in Calla Lilly. It's not a true white, but more of an eggshell with slight gold sheen.  The coating of this is actually pretty bad considering its in the Colorstay line. This would be better off as a thin (suuuuuuuper thin) coat to add a nice hint of iridescence- otherwise you're going to put multiple coats on to get an opaque color. 

Now, to celebrate Amaricas independence, I took Nailtinis Bloody Mary & drew a little star in the center of my ring finger. Let's just say, be glad I photographed my left hand... My right is a giant blob of a star; no where near cute or dainty. Haha. 

With 4th of July around the corner, what's on your tips? 

{Belated} Mani Monday: Memorial Day Nail Art

I know this is a few days late but better late than never... Right?

This weeks mani was done in Honor of those men & women who have died in the line of duty. May God rest your soul & heal your families hurt. 

The base of the nails is an Essie color that I can't quite remember the name (I'm doing this post while out & about). The base of the stars is Sinful Colors "Snow Me White" while the stripes are Nailtini "Bloody Mary". 

I took a small detailing paint brush to draw both the stars & the stripes on them. Easy peasy (:

What's your mani this week?

Revlon Lip Butters 2013 & Update.

I have some exciting news - well, hopefully it's exciting to you. I am going to try & blog at least twice a week & have a new YouTube video 3 times a week. Aren't you excited?! I know I am! I am hoping to get more dedicated & bring you the most awesome of awesome EVER. Yep. I just went there. & now I'm going here... ↓↓↓↓↓↓

It's that time of year where all the new goodies come out! I'm so excited! Living in Oklahoma, I tend to feel that our state is the last to get all the cool new stuff. Needless to say, I was pleased to find the new Revlon 2013 Spring? Summer? Spring? {heck, I can't remember!} Lip Butters! The new collection contains 4 lip butters; a watermelon red, a vibrant pink, a coral, & nudey-pink. Lets get onto the swatches & thoughts, shall we?

LEFT TO RIGHT: "Wild Watermelon", "Sorbet", "Juicy Papaya", & "Pink Lemonade"

 The new Lip Butters have the same formulation as the full line. The pigmentation is amazing & the feeling is great as well. Let's see some swatches, yes?

"Wild Watermelon"

"Wild Watermelon" on lips

 "Wild Watermelon" is a gorgeous, well, watermelon red. It's pigmentation is buildable but even the first swipe across the lips gives a generous pay off of color. I'm not sure if my sniffer is broken but the lip butter doesn't have any sort of scent to it.. I was hoping it smelled like watermelon - you know, because it's name is watermelon? Although, I don't think any of the Lip Butters have a "scent" to them. Hmm...

"Sorbet"

"Sorbet" on lips

  "Sorbet" - despite the picture - is a gorgeous, deep pink. Pigmentation, like any Lip Butter, is superb. I wore this one to work today & noticed that it did have a tad bit of a staining power... sort of. It seemed to have migrated into the lines on my lips despite exfoliating. "Sorbet" looked gorgeous paired up with a neutral eye & bright pink blush to tie it all in.

"Juicy Papaya"

"Juicy Papaya" on lips

  I was really excited when I saw this color. I was hoping it would be a gorgeous corally color with amazing payoff like the rest the Butters. Now, don't get me wrong, the color is very pretty - at least when I swatched it on my hand - but I did not get the coral finish I wanted on my lips... then again, I did this swatch after the "Sorbet" that stained a little even after I used an exfoliating wipe to get it off. Still a gorgeous Spring or Summer color, just not the color I was hoping for.

"Pink Lemonade"

"Pink Lemonade" on lips

 Nevermind the tube picture that makes it look orange; I couldn't find the memory chip to my DSLR so I had to use my iPhone & apparently my lighting was horrible. :/  "Pink Lemonade" is actually a super pale nude pink & it seemed to have only added a shine to my lips with no real color pay off. I can see this being the perfect every day color for someone who wants that gloss finish but no color payoff.

If you can forgive the poor photography, these Butters are actually really great! The pigmentation is amazing, the feel is amazing... these definitely do NOT disappoint. Make sure you grab these while you can because they are limited edition!

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