Boom, Boom, Boom

I've really been liking my Phallic manicure so instead of completely changing my polish yesterday I just added to it.

I layered one coat of Revlon Watermelon Fizz, one of the summer scented polishes, over Illamasqua Phallic.  And I really like it.  The red glass fleck looks really, really cool over the dark blue.  Plus it smells yummy.  I'm pretty sure this Revlon can be opaque by itself; maybe someday I'll give it a go and see.  

I showed my nails to my friend on the train on our way to an Indians game last night and she said, "Did you do that because of the fireworks?"  She was half-kidding, I'm sure, but when I thought about it...this does kind of remind me of fireworks.  We were going to a special game where afterwards there is a huge fireworks display set to classic rock.  It's called Rock 'n Blast and I guess it's a yearly thing.  It was also Dollar Dog Night.  Even though the Indians got totally spanked by the Royals (shudder), I was pleasantly full of many hot dogs as I watched the show.  With a big stupid grin on my face the whole time, I'm sure.  BUT who doesn't LOVE fireworks? 

Pretty, huh?  :)  I love my little city.

Has anyone else tried layering these Revlon scented polishes?  I loved the combination I did a while back with RBL Bikini Bottom and Revlon Colada Fizz, so maybe I'll have to experiment a little more...

Illamasqua Phallic

Hi friends.  Have you ever said to yourself, "Gee, I really wish I had a nail polish named after the implication of male genitalia?"  Yeah, me too.  And that's why I have Illamasqua Phallic.

With flash.

Blurred for sparkle factor.

These photos aren't great because it's storming here in Cleveland.  Phallic is a deep, dark navy blue absolutely packed with blue glitter.  The glitter gives it this amazing depth that makes the polish look like little jewels glistening underwater.  The formula was pretty good; very smooth.  Two coats would have been okay, but I did three just to be safe.  Sometimes I get bad luck and cuticle drag with darker colors, and I find the Illamasqua brush to be kind of stiff.

Close-up of the bottle.  Looks like blue velvet, huh?

This is the second time this week that my nails have been inspired by what I was wearing.  I wore this to work at the museum the other day:

Long sweater:  Charming Charlie, belt:  H&M, tank:  Old Navy, black skinnies:  H&M, earrings:  Forever21

I was playing with different shades of blue.  Even my earrings are turquoise (and coral).  I remember buying this long sweater/vest thing at ChaCha's in December or so.  Normally I wear it with my favorite LBD from H&M, but I've been branching out with it lately.  Anyway, I decided that I wanted my nails to match a little bit, so that's why I ended up choosing Phallic.  That and the name makes me giggle.

That's all for today.  How does everyone feel about Phallic?  Are blues your thing ('cause they're not normally mine)?  Any opinions on outfit-and-nail-polish matching?

Barry M Mulberry Pink

Mulberry Pink is a polish that I've had for quite a while, about a year, and it took me until last weekend to use it.  It was sent to me in a package from my pal Nathalie along with a couple other Barry M polishes and a plethora of other little treats.  These images are from earlier in the week when my nails were longer (read:  more annoying).

While I was wearing this one I couldn't tell if I loved it or hated it.  I think that by the time I removed it my verdict was more on the love it side, but this is a strange color.  On the one hand, it has that "edgy neutral" thing going on, which is very cool.  On the other hand, it looks kind of dated and 80s.  But I think in the end I thought that it really was more of an edgy neutral and I decided that it looks really nice and elegant on my hands.  

I used three coats here.  The formula was fine, a little thin.  Unfortunately I guess the chemistry of this one just didn't agree with my body because hours after application I had a huge chip on my thumb.  Which I noticed at lunch with my boyfriend and two friends, and which prompted me to say, "Awwwww what the fuck?!" kind of loudly.  Class all the way, people.  Class.  All.  The way.  

So what's your opinion on Mulberry Pink?  Edgy and sophisticated or dated and too 80s?  

China Glaze Gussied Up Green

With all the hubbub happening over the fall 2011 China Glaze Metro Collection (notably, see swatches here and here) I thought it might be nice to show a really well-known polish from an autumn collection of yesteryear (since it's likely that I won't get my hands on any new polish releases for a while).  Gussied Up Green is probably one of the most popular polishes from the Rodeo Diva Collection, released in the fall of 2008.  I took a lot of photos of this one because it has a lot of personality. 

Wait, I thought this polish was green?  Psych, sometimes it's teal!

Gussied Up Green is a really lovely darkened forest green absolutely packed with shimmer.  In normal lighting it does look kind of dark, but stick your hand in the sun and you've got a lovely, lit from within forest green happening.  And at the right angle this polish is teal.  WHUUUUUT?!!?  It's.  So.  Pretty.  

In the bottle you can see purple and blue duochrome.  Again, WHUUUUT?!?!.  Bananas.  The formula on this is okay.  It's from around the time when companies were perfecting their Big 3 Free formulas, so Gussied Up Green is a little runny...but completely opaque in two coats, which is what you see in the photos above.

One reason I wanted to bust out Gussied Up Green is because this weekend I got this faaaaabulous belt that's brown, orange, black, mustard and forest green.  I'm wearing it with my orange H&M poofy skirt and I wanted my nails to complement the ensemble.  Normally I don't put that much thought into matching my nails to my outfits, but today it just seemed right.  

Sorry I didn't get my shoes in the photo.  They're boring, though.  Tiny black wedges.  I'm just not that adept with the self-timer and it was early in the morning before work.  Everything I'm wearing here is from H&M (belt, skirt, tank).  PS this skirt was pockets.  I love it.

So there you have it, friends.  A beloved polish from one of the best collections of all time.  I wonder if Metro will even come close to Rodeo Diva.  My guess is no, but I love to be surprised.  So tell me, what are your feelings about our old friend Gussied Up Green?  Do you have a favorite Rodeo Diva polish?  A favorite fall release?  Spill. 

Coral Fixation: OPI Hot & Spicy

It was a little goal for myself to post every weekday this week.  Weekends I do the barista thing so I don't really have time to change polishes.  So I've met my goal!  It's really hard to find the time to do my nails, so I did my best to really make the time this week.

Here's the next coral in my Coral Fixation series, OPI Hot & Spicy, a nice, heavily orange-leaning coral.  The formula was okay, but after two coats I had bald spots near my cuticles so I ended up doing three (and it's still not even).  This type of coral is entirely too orange for me, but it's still pretty anyway.  This is one of the only polishes I got from OPI's Hong Kong collection, actually.  

The name is fitting for this week because the midwest is having a RIDICULOUS heat wave.  My bedroom is the only room in my third-floor apartment that has air conditioning, and my window unit can't keep up with the hundred degree temperatures.  Even though it's 83 degrees in my room (my window unit has a little thermometer) when I open my door and step out into the hallway it feels like I'm stepping into an oven.  Ugh, it's just terrible.  Little known fact about me because I curb the impulse when I'm with others:  I love driving with my windows down.  I spend a decent amount of time on the highway going from the east to the west side of the city and back, and there's almost nothing better than windows down, music blasting.  In the summer I keep them down and crank the air.  In the fall I keep them down and crank the heat.  It's bliss.  But today...today it was too hot for the windows down even at 70mph and with the air on.  Siiiiiigh.  Thwarted.  But I did see this while I was on my way to my parents'. 

Any opinions on Hot & Spicy?  I hope everyone has a great weekend.  Hopefully I'll talk to you guys on Monday.

*NEW* Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Bronze Ablaze

Sometimes there is a polish so gorgeous, so wonderful, so absolutely amazing that not even I have the words to babble about it.  In cases like these, I am showing you many pictures instead (in addition to?).

Okay, so I'll write a little.  Here's Bronze Ablaze, a new Insta-Dri for fall 2011 (found mine at Walgreens).  Um.  It's.  Perfect.  Indoors it's a nice subdued bronze but in the sun...holy.  bananas.  It sparkles red and green and gold, and in that last picture you can tell that it definitely looks olive at some angles, which is undoubtedly a huge win in my book.  Two coats shown here.  Typical Insta-Dri formula; no troubles.  I can't believe I paid less than $5 for this polish.  It's that nice.

And...that's all I have to say.  Just look at the pictures.  Look at the pictures and fall in lust.  Oh, and then go out and get a bottle.

Fin.

Sephora by OPI Slushied

A while back my pal Sam got the Sephora by OPI mini Glee polish set, which is good for me because I got to play with them.  Actually, none of the colors really did anything for me in the bottles, but Sam suggested that I try Slushied so I did.

Slushied is a bright turquoise-y creme.  As I said, in the bottle this one didn't do much for me, but on my nails...I really like it.  I don't normally love blues, but this one is just really, really pretty.  This same thing happened to me with another blue last summer, H&M U Must Have This.  Slushied is a darker version of that color, but is along the same lines.  Even with the itty-bitty brush that came with the mini bottle application still wasn't too difficult.  The polish had a really nice formula and I only needed two coats.  I'm really glad I was able to borrow this one!  

Just for fun, here's the mini Slushied bottle next to a full-sized Sephora by OPI polish (Go With the Flow-er).  This prompts me to ask a question that Lorelai Gilmore asked Luke Danes about his tiny tv:  how long has Slushied been away from its mother?  It's a cute little bottle but dude.  It's super tiny.  

That's all for today!  I was up bright and early this morning forty minutes before my alarm (why my grad student body is waking me up at 6:40 I'll never know) so I had time to write a post.  And I'm glad.  I've been missing you guys lately.

Sinful Colors Adventure Island

Hi guys.  I've got a lovely drug store polish to show you today, Sinful Colors Adventure Island from an eponymous collection that's full of dupes for the OPI Pirates of the Caribbean collection.  This one isn't a twin for an OPI, though.  It seems to just be a Sinful original.

LOVE this color.  Adventure Island is a lovely/weird dusty chartreuse/avocado.  I don't know how to describe it, but I adore it.  For such a light green it gives me minimal lobster hands.  This is a win.  Other wins for Adventure Island?  Great formula--only needed two coats.  The price--only $1.99.  The availability--I've seen this collection in several different drug stores (but I think Rite Aid is your best bet).  Also, kinda matches one of my favorite Target Boutique dresses (which sadly I don't have a full-length picture of):

K, that's all for today.  Short and sweet.  Opinions on Adventure Island?  Gotta admit, it's a good buy, especially for what seems like such a unique color.

Happy It's-Not-Monday-Anymore Tuesday!

Black Label: OPI Up the Amazon Without A Paddle (and Flamingos!!)

Today I wanted to wear a polish inspired by the newest addition to my wardrobe.  Pink was called for, but I just couldn't pick one.  Finally I decided on a pink that, in the bottle at least, has orange-y, coral-y undertones, OPI Up the Amazon Without A Paddle.

Sadly I clearly had issues with this polish.  First of all, super sheer.  I did four coats (the fourth coat was a mistake because it caused bubbles).  Then I ended up getting sheet marks.  Because of the four coats it took FOR-EV-ER to dry.  Also there's no sun here today, which is a bummer.  I'm sure this bad boy would sparkle nicely.  Anywho, this is a long discontinued OPI, but if you've been lemming it I think that it might be REALLY SIMILAR to Sally Hansen HD Wavelength.  I think Wavelength is still available in drug stores, so don't despair.  This frosty, light orange-y pink isn't really my jam, so I don't think this polish will stay on too long.  BUT I wanted to wear it because...it reminds me of flamingos!  Let me explain.

Last week I was browsing for skirts online.  I had something very specific in mind, and that very specific thing was essentially a retro-looking circle skirt.  So I looked.  And I looked.  I couldn't find what I wanted.  My friend Amber's mom is a wonderful seamstress, so I e-mailed her to see if she could whip something up for me.  And whip something up she did (it was done in a matter of hours once I delivered the fabric).  

Here's the fabric I chose.  It's classic Stephanie.  Repeated animal print, a little whimsical, slightly ridiculous.  I feel no shame.

And here's how it turned out.  Perfect!

And even at twenty-four years old I am still VERY concerned with the twirl-ability of a skirt.  This one has a high twirl-ability rating.  At least a 9.  

Amber's mom, Sharon, is one of the sweetest people I've ever known and she was so happy to make this for me.  I couldn't be happier with how it turned out!  It's so cute.  I can't wait to wear it to work on Tuesday.  

So that's all for today.  Does anyone have Up the Amazon Without A Paddle?  Is this pink anyone's jam?  And be honest:  who is jealous of my flamingo skirt?

Coral Fixation: China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy

Yesterday I felt like wearing a neon.  I was wearing an outfit that was completely black (skinnies, button-down, kitten heels) and I thought that a bright color would really liven up the outfit.  China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy just felt so perfect.

Flip Flop Fantasy is a retina-searing coral neon (which I showed you once here).  I like how my camera freaked out at the brightness and the color looks different in every image.  I remember when this collection was coming out this polish was all I could think about for weeks.  Weeks, I tell you!  Then I got it, wore it once, and haven't looked at it since.  Isn't that sad?  Truth be told that happens with most of the polishes that I buy unless I really love them.  That having been said, if I'm going to wear a neon, this is definitely the one I'm going to reach for.  The formula is crappy.  It's really hard to get it even, and even with three coats I have noticeable bald spots.  Actually, I'm surprised they didn't show up so much in the photos.  And of course neon pigment makes the polish dry matte/satin, so if you want this shiny look you'll need to add topcoat.  

Last night I went to the midnight release of...well, I bet you all know.

Things I learned from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2:

1.  Awkward Voldemort hugs are truly the best hugs.

2.  Even with a huge special effects budget and Hollywood movie magic, it is evidently still completely impossible to make Emma Watson look any older than she is right at this moment.

3.  Cleveland LOVES Neville Longbottom.

Seriously, in EVERY SCENE that featured Neville the people in the theatre were clapping and cheering.  I didn't get it.  I clap and cheer when I see Gary Oldman, though, so to each his own (I almost had a happy aneurysm when they showed the new Batman trailer and a very bedraggled G. Oldman is featured prominently; squee!).  I'm a huge HP fan.  When I was 13 I broke my ankle.  I was couch-ridden for a while, and my mom brought me Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone to read.  Ever since then I can't get enough.  I've read the books more times than I'd care to admit.  I feel like I grew up with these characters and I definitely wish Sirius Black was my godfather ;)  But the movie was good.  Very fun, very fulfilling.  They changed a few things from the book, but I was okay with it.  I'm glad I saw it at midnight.  Sigh.  The end of an era.  

That's all for today.  Opinions on Flip Flop Fantasy?  What's your favorite neon polish?  

Revlon Colada Fizz

I finally soaked the Gelish off my nails and I feel so free!  I'm glad I had two and a half solid weeks where I didn't have to worry about my nails (except then I worried about neglecting my blog) but I don't think I'll do the gel thing again.  I really hated removing it.  Anyway, last week I was at Rite Aid before I had to go to work and I totally impulse bought two of the scented polishes (all of them have "fizz" in their names).  When I got home I Googled swatches of the one that looks baby blue in the bottle, Colada Fizz, and found out that it's incredibly sheer.  I was pissed at first...until I decided I'd layer it over one of my favorite polishes, Rescue Beauty Lounge Bikini Bottom.  So here it is!

I didn't know how much I would adore this combination until I finished putting it on.  This is three coats Bikini Bottom, which I've shown you once here, and which we probably all know is pretty sheer.  Then I used two coats of Colada Fizz.  Because this one is so sheer it just gives you this absolutely beautiful silver glass fleck glitter effect.  I could have used one coat of the Revlon and gotten the same result, but I did two just for the hell of it.  Isn't this gorgeous?  It reminds me of the weathered colors of the beach.  My friend said it made her think of an ice princess.  Either way, this is just gorgeous.

Oh yeah, and as you can see this polish is scented.  It smells like coconut, sort of.  It's not too strong and it doesn't bother me.  Although yesterday when I met my boyfriend for lunch he said, "You smell good."  I feel like it was partially the sweet smell of my hands, but who knows.  In any event, the scent of this one isn't too overpowering, so if you like the look of it but aren't into scented polish, don't let that deter you.  

So that's it!  It feels good to post my nails of the day again; I get so antsy when I don't post.  How are you guys feeling about Colada Fizz?  Does the sheerness scare you?  The scent?  I considered layering this with OPI What's With the Cattitude?, but in the end the promise of a squishy, jelly look with Bikini Bottom won out.