October Nail Polish

Hey there!

It's easy to get lost in fall home decor. The season begins early and there are always aisles and aisles of goodies to sort through at every store. I take pleasure in going up and down each aisle seeing what needs to come home with me. 

Picking out fall nail polish colors is just as fun. I have quite a bit of nail polish so I don't have to shop for anything new (but I still manage to!) but it's just as fun sorting through what you have and deciding what will help you transition into fall. 

I pulled all of my Halloween colors to play with. I pulled greens, purples, reds and oranges that I felt were appropriate for October nails. As you know, I like to change up my polish and I've been trying to live a little more seasonally. Naturally that means seasonal nail polish!

This week I decided green would be my friend. I wasn't sure if I could pull it off but it seems to work ok. I used Zoya's Gemma as my regular polish and then Revlon's Elusive on my party nail. If you are new to my blog and aren't familiar, I call my accent nail my party nail. I tend to use glitter polishes and fun embellishments on that nail. 

I don't have many purples. That's odd because the kiddo's favorite color is purple. Maybe she has them! Seriously though, I don't have many darker purples. What I do have is Revlon's Gwen's Crush and Zoya's Roxy. I have used Gwen's Crush and it's so pretty. I haven't tried Roxy but I am pretty sure that I will this month!

Let's be honest. Orange looks cray cray with my complexion. Orange scares me for that reason. I bought many of these for nail art. I can probably use them on my toes or for a party nail but I probably won't use them as finger nail polish. I have Wet n Wild's Luck a l'Orange, Revlon's Charmed and 2 by SinfulColors, Orange Crush and Ring The Bellini. Again, pretty colors...on my toes.

Apparently I like deep red colors. Why yes I do! I like to paint my tootsies with nice, deep burgundy colors. That is a great color against my skin. My faves (because yes, I have more!) are Wet n Wild in Taking The Red-Eye, Sally Hansen in Flirt, Sally Hansen in Wine Not, Wet n Wild in Under Your Spell and the color gracing my toes right now, Sally Hansen in Berry Magical.

Yep! You see a theme here as far as brands go. That's another blog. The other thing you see is a love for beautiful nail polish colors. Deep, rich, bold, strong nail polish colors are a love of mine. October begins the bold nail polish colors.

And I love it!

#HealthierIsHappier Exchange

Hey There!

I got a special email from Zoya nail polish!! It’s the #HealthierIsHappier Exchange! time. In case you don't know, this is when Zoya allows you to trade in your old nail polish for 50% off of new BIG5FREE polish (the link explains what to do). I use this opportunity to get rid of old crusty polish, colors that didn't work, brands that I no longer like...that sort of thing. You can bet that I already have colors in my shopping cart ready to be traded in.

And I researched these colors carefully. I have quite a bit of polish so I don't want to get colors like the colors I already have. But, over the years I have come to really enjoy Zoya polishes so I'm okay with swapping out colors. I also enjoy the Zoya nail polish remover (when you spend $30 you get a free 2 oz!!). It doesn't dry out my nails. Even though it's a bit pricey ($9.99 for 8oz, $25 for 32 oz) I still use this one on my finger nails.

Photo credit: Zoya website

So, the very first thing I did was check out the new Fall 2015 Focus & Flair polishes. I almost purchased the mini set for $42 but I really only wanted Cinnamon, the warm, syrupy, shimmery chocolate color. Tris was pretty (a bold grey shade) but I purchased the OPI Fifty Shades of Grey mini set and then 509 other grey colors followed suit. So, instead of paying for 5 colors I won't use, I'm just interested in the 1 color that I will use. I also checked out the Focus portion and loved the crèmes in the set but I wanted to get some lighter shades.

 

Photo credit: Zoya website

I ordered Mia, a soft, warm pink that leans brown. It's the shade that I've been loving this summer. I also ordered Perrie and Charisma which are lilac, purpley shades. They are my jam when it comes to fingers or toes!

 

Photo credit: Zoya website

Paloma is a deeper purple shade but I knew that I wanted it for my toes. The first time I saw it I knew that was going to be so fantastic on my feet. I kinda wish that I had this one for the summer but it's okay. I'll have it soon.

 

Photo credit: Zoya website

I also picked out India for my toes. Do you see the sparkle? I can't even describe this color. I can't! It's beyond amazing. This color has to live in my house. It just has to!

Photo credit: Zoya website 

Madeline and Coco and two warm cocoa shades that I had to have. I love pinky chocolates. I mean I get giddy about pinky chocolates. They melt into and mix and mingle so well with my complexion. If I have a favorite shade of nail polish it would be pinky chocolates. Then pinky purples. Sighhhhh. In love. 

Photo credit: Zoya website

And yes, I plan on purchasing everything in my shopping cart (Friday, when I get paid. You know how that works). And yes, I plan on shipping my old polished back in. I have 8 old, crusty, unused, unloved polishes ready to send back. If I didn't have the Zoya exchange I'd trash them.

And that's not right!

So, have I convinced you to send Zoya your old polish and trying some new polishes? If you've ever wanted to try their polishes, this is the time! Do it!

(Side note. No, Zoya didn't pay me at all for this post. No, I didn't get anything free or discounted other than the same way you can get it discounted. Zoya doesn't even know I exist. I like nail polish and Zoya is one of my top 5 brands. I enjoy their polish and LOVE their nail polish remover. When I see a sale, I like my good people know about it. When Zoya is BOGO or in any way $5, I jump on it!).

Nail Polish Change

Hey there!

It’s nail polish time! I finally figured out where my Sally Hansen Fast-Dri Top Coat was. I am able to put my hand on my cuticle oil. I have buffers. Let’s get to it!

I wanted to try 2 of my newest “friend gift” polishes. A very sweet co-worker gave me three nail polishes and they were such pretty colors that I knew it was time to try them out.

I wanted to begin with my Zoya polish in Shay. It’s a beautiful champagne cream color. It’s perfect for weddings, offices, or the person that wants to keep it subtle. It’s a very nice color. But, it can be streaky if not applied with great care. And, I think it requires a really good top coat. I probably need to pick up the Zoya top coat and see if that makes a difference with Zoya polishes. However, this particular color is a keeper. I’ll be using it often.

Because a girl needs a pop of color, I decided to use the Ruffian Nail Lacquer in Fox Hunt on my ring fingers. It’s a burnt orange with a very delicate trace of shimmer. Man, is it pretty! I almost wish I had put it on all my fingers now. It went on like a dream and looks so pretty against my complexion. I’ve gotten a ton of complements on it.

Side note - You are probably wondering why you don’t see nail swatches. Well, I broke ALL my nails when I moved. I didn’t think anyone wanted to see the craziness.

And can we talk about the toes? Ok, I get it now. Getting a pedicure is a nice, pampering treat and then at some point it goes from a treat to a must have. I decided to save a few dollars this month and do the nail trimming myself. HUGE mistake! Sighhhh. I’ll let the nice people at the salon do it from now on.

Now, I'm good with painting my tootsies. It's really ok if I color outside the lines. In a day or two, normal wear and tear will make them alright. But, to clip your own nails? They should demand that you get a degree, some counseling or at the very least, a permit of some sort.  Needless to say, I did a terrible job and that is why you won’t see the toes.

But, I will tell you about the color on my toes. I used the Zoya mini in Marion. It’s a metallic purple color that looks so cute in the bottle. Well, it doesn’t look quite as cute on my toes. I’ve had it on for about 36 hours and I’m ready to change the color. It’s terrible against my complexion and just does nothing to enhance my feet. I will not be using this color again.

Its ok thought. I have a lot of polishes waiting to be used. This weekend I’ll just move it along and try some new colors.

What nail varnish have you been dipping your nails in this month? Are you going with strictly summer colors or whatever the heck you want to use?

The Gift of Polish

Hey there!

I have some very sweet coworkers. One of my kinsmen from the old country gifted me with nail polish. She heard me speak of my obsession with nail polish and while she may not have understood it, she felt that it was ok to aid in my crazy and pass along polish that she wasn’t using. I just love her!

2 of the polishes are ones that I am very familiar with. She gave me a Zoya mini ($5, zoya.com) in the shade Shay and a Flower ($4.98 Walmart) polish in the color Evening Primrose. I have used Zoya polishes before and I am very aware of how much I enjoy their application and longevity. I’ve never used Flower polishes but if they are anything like their makeup products then I am going to love this one just as much.

Shay is a pearlescent cream color that is going to be beautiful. It’s a wonderful nude color that is perfect for weddings or office environments that frown upon too much color. It’s one of those colors that is great in the spring, summer, fall and winter. You can’t go wrong with it.

Evening Primrose is a pearlescent forest green. It appears to be a fun green that is best suited for fall or winter BUT you can pull it off any time really. If you are wearing a power suit, this can be your pop of color on your fingers and/or toes!

The third polish was one that I had never heard of before - Ruffian Nail Lacquer in Fox Hunt ($10 birchbox.com).  Ruffian appears to be a bring that can be found in a Birchbox or on their website. I also came across a mention by Nail It! Magazine. The color is pretty. It’s a burnt orange that are going to make my toes stand out! It is a perfect beach color. I don’t know about the wear but the reviews seem to be very favorable.

I like when people indulge my crazy. We all know that I have 998 nail polishes (NOT really!) and that 3 more will put me a true hoarder status. But you know you love it just as much as I do!

Zoya Mystery Minis

Hey there!

I wasn’t going to do it.

I really wasn’t going to buy them.

And then I saw the reviews. Everyone was talking about them and showing them off. So, I caved.

I saw that Zoya was having their mini mystery box for $15. They've done this before but this time I looked at it and kept going. The last Zoya mini mystery box was just ok. I didn’t think I needed to pay $15 for the next one.

But I did.

I just saw waaaaay too many showing the beautiful colors and flashing their nails around. And, I missed out! How could I miss out?

Luckily Zoya is smart and kept the code active. I was able to sneak in an order and get my deal at the tail end of the promotioin.

My mystery box came with 3 mini’s; Temperance, Violet and Marion. It also came with a travel sized nail polish remover (score!) and a hot lips gloss. Not sure what I’m going to do with the lip gloss (oh kiddo! Want a new lip gloss?) but I am stoked at the remover. That’s a $4.60 value! I love it when they give me free remover.

I ordered the mini trio’s because of Temperance. It’s a beautiful dusty blue/heather grey shimmery color. It reminded me of the Illamasqua color in Raindrop. Such a pretty blue. Worth the $15, almost by itself.

Violet is a warm lilac color. It’s a pretty purple cream polish. It just looks so rich! I think it’s a one coater but I’d always use two.

Marion is a shimmery purple. It’s like the other two polishes went on a date, had to many drinks and had a shimmery baby. I like the way it catches the light. I think it will make a great accent nail and it’s perfect for nail art.

I am so glad that I was able to make this deal. I almost missed out because I hesitated. I will make darned sure that I don’t hesitate next time!

Breaking Into Spring Nail Polish

Hey There!

The weather is being iffy. It's time for the April showers. I'm not mad though because the pollen count has been manageable because of all the rain. Because the weather has been iffy, I decided I needed to transition to the spring nail polish color.

Before I transitioned, I used my final 2 winter/fall polishes. The first one that I used was Milani Nail Lacquer in Heather. I have owned this color for a while. It was the first Milani polish that I ever purchased and I absolutely love it. The color comes off brown on camera but really it's a cream grape color. It's rich and pretty and is so easy to work with. It behaves better than some of my higher end nail polishes. I love it.

My last winter/fall polish was Zoya nail polish in Areej. Areej is the perfect berry color. You could totally get away with this year round but it's not quite as bright as you see in the picture. It's a creme polish and I love creme polishes better than all the rest. They are so rich and warm and Zoya does a great job with cremes.

About a month ago I lucked up on some Essie polishes at Marshalls. I love buying polish from Marshalls. Essie normally goes for $8.50 (I have no idea while the bottle says compare at $6.00) and I got these for $3.99. I picked up Sunday Funday (how aptly named!), Pansy and Spaghetti Strap.

I have Sunday Funday on my toes and I love it. It's a pretty coral shade and that was the perfect ice breaker (literally in some parts of the country). As a first polish of spring, I give it a high 5.

Pansy is this week's toe color. It's a bright, fun pink. A great weather transition color.

Now, Spaghetti Strap is going to be a problem. I only used 2 coats of the other 2 polishes but I used 3 coats of this one. It's super sheer. I don't normally go quite this sheer but I'll give it a try and see.

My only Essie complaint is that all 3 are hard to work with. They are a bit runny and you have to do that thin coat with a "pat pat pat" of another coat, trick. Maybe with some age they will perform better. I know that sometimes helps.

But other than that, these polishes are all nice colors that I will wear again (except, maybe Spaghetti Strap). The Essies will see a lot of play this summer!

What do you have on nail polish rotation now that it's getting warmer? Did you buy anything new? Did you know Marshals had discounted polish?

Zoya Earth Day Exchange

(image borrowed with lots of love from zoya.com)

Hey there!

I wanted to mention that Zoya is doing their Earth Day Exchange (link). What it is, is an opportunity to turn in any old or toxic or crappy polish in exchange for 50% off of new, BIG5FREE polishes. The link explains what that is and how to do it.

I have several Zoya polishes that I have managed to snag during promotions. And, I've been saving old polish that I didn't want, for this promotion. It really gives you an opportunity to go through what you have, toss the old, bring in the new and start fresh.

I don't have very many polishes on my Zoya wish list but I thought that I'd at least mention some of the colors that have caught my eye.

(image borrowed with lots of love from zoya.com)

Zara is a duo chrome shimmer, blue toned purple. It has a cool metallic finish and looks really nice against almost all skin types. I don't have this type of purple in my collection so I figured this is the one to add.

 

(image borrowed with lots of love from zoya.com)

Leslie is also a cool metallic finish but it's a truer pale purple. It's a soft spring color that I think will look fantastic on my finger and toe nails.

 

(image borrowed with lots of love from zoya.com)

Pandora is a cool metallic nude pink (see a trend here?). It's going to be a pretty shimmery nude that is going to work well for spring. It's a bit pearly and champagney and I know I'll enjoy it.

 

(image borrowed with lots of love from zoya.com)

And I know that I have said PixieDusts are not my favorite but Cosmo looks so pretty! It's a silver grey pixiedust that is going to add some sparkle to a party nail or even my toes!

I've been eyeballing a few more but these are 4 that will probably end up at home with me. I'm not sure about the others in my basket.

You should take a look at your polish collection and think about getting rid of some of your older stuff. Even if you don't pay $4.50 or $5.00 for a new polish, you shouldn't put anything too old on your nails.

And besides, can you really pass up a deal like this?

Zoya nail polish review

Hey there!

I should be ashamed to write this review. You know why? Because my other Zoya order of by4g4free just came in. Yeah, I know. I should be ashamed but I'm not! Not one little bit.

My very first Zoya polishes were pixie dusts and I was not a fan. Because of that, I didn't try new Zoyas for a while but when I did I realized what I was missing.

So lately I've been stocking up on Zoya Polishes (my first haul) when they have had special sales. It's probably been a 50/50 on what I've liked. This time is about the same. I hauled them at the end of March (my last haul) and now I've worn all the ones that I purchased (I haven't worn the freebies).

The first one I wore was Brigitte.  Yaaaas! I loved this color. I got a lot of complements and just enjoyed wearing it. It will be in the rotation a lot!! I'm sorry that I got such a lame pic but I was enjoying wearing it so much, I forgot to take a picture.

Next, let me say that the two satin polishes that I ordered were hella hard to use. They were super runny and you use a crazy hand to polish your nail. You couldn't use a thin coat (or you'd have to use 4 coats) and you couldn't use too thick of a coat (it would be gloppy) so you had to use some thin swipes and some heavy swipes and some taps and prayers. Yeah, all of that.

And, I made sure to take two pictures of the satins. I took a picture with it matte and ten a picture after I used my Sally Hansen Insta-Dri. I don't like matte nail polish finishes so I will always top coat my satins.

So, when I wore Brittany, I didn't know what to think. It had been hard to get it on and then it was just a weird color for me. I still don't know if I like it. It looked ok but...it's just nude and a weird nude.

Tove was the bomb. I loved it and didn't want to take it off. I wanted to wear Tove for weeks and weeks and weeks. But, I own way too many polishes to sit with one color for that long. That being said, you WILL see this color again. I love it just that much.

And bonus Jonas -- I tried the free lipstick that they gave me. Yeahhhh....no. It was extremely drying and the color wasn't right for me.

So, I won't be trying any lipsticks from Zoya but even with my 8 new polishes, I'll probably still try something else.

Don't they have some Earth Day promotion coming up? Yeah....I've been saving up for that!

Mini Haul - Zoya Nail Polish

Hey there!

Yeah, I did it again!

So what!

I know. It's a sickness. When Zoya had a nail polish sale (plus free gift) I just had to add to my collection. I couldn't resist. There were a few colors from the new collection that I wanted to try and an older one. I also really wanted to branch out and try the lippie stick that was the freebie.

I decided on Brittany, Brigitte and Tove. Brittany and Tove are from the newest satin collection but a top coat will take care of the matte problem (because in my book a matte polish IS a problem).

Brittany and Brigitte are shades of mauve and I am super excited to wear them (in fact, Brigitte is in cue for this weekend). Tove is a dusty blue that I am dying to get on my fingers. The swatches are 2 coats but I'm almost sure that 1 coat would have been enough. I am pretty happy about this purchase.

And that lippie is looks like a party waiting to happen. It's a bit dark in the tube so I wish I could have had the fall and winter to play with it but it might be sheerer or lighter than I think. We'll see.

The entire package was only $27, shipping and handling included. That's $6.75 per item. Not bad in my book. Just wait for the review and I'll let you know if they are worth it.

Review - Zoya Polish in Marnie, Aubrey and Odette

Marnie, Aubrey, Odette

Hey there!

I've finally finished wearing  all three of the Zoya nail polishes that I bought. I haven't worn the three free minis yet. I wanted to test drive the actual purchases first. 

The polish that I have had in my online shopping cart the longest was Marnie. I wore it last because I thought I would love it the most. It's a deep brown with hints of cherry, depending on your lighting. It's a beautifully rich color that looks fantastic against my skin. But, it is not my favorite color. 

Aubrey was the color I wore second. It's also a brown but it has warm pink undertones. I really liked this color against my skin as well. It was a gorgeous fall and winter color. 

My favorite of the colors was Odette. It was a warm, creamy purple. I had no idea I'd love it as much as I did. It complemented my complexion so well and it transitions from winter to spring nicely. The other two are very nice and I will probably pull them back out but Odette is on rotation! Odette is the bomb dot com. 

All of these polishes had a good formula. They went on smoothly and they wore well. I wore them all for 5 days and the only chipping was tip wear.

I must say that my previous 2 Zoya purchases were less than stellar. This purchase put them back in my good graces. I'm ready to try them again. 

ULTA, here I come!

Zoya Haul plus 3 Free Mini Polishes

 Hey There!

Ok, so it's not quite a haul. It's only 3 nail polishes but I saw a great deal and I grabbed it. That's all I can say. I've discovered that a few times a year Zoya does that. They will have a fantabulous sale and I'll pounce then. 

I haven't made it a secret that Zoya and I aren't besties. To me, they aren't any better than my Sally Hansens or even my Wet n Wilds. But, that being said, they aren't bad. So, if I see a sale that brings them under the $9 or $10 price tag, I'll bite. 

This deal was buy 3 free, get 3 minis and only pay $15. That means you are paying 5 bucks and getting 3 minis free. I can live with that, especially since 2 of the colors were ones that I was super curious about anyway. Let's just call this 3 shades of purple, shall we?

Marnie is said to be the closest to the color of the year, Marsala. I am in love with the color of the year because it's a color that works very well with my complexion. This color isn't as close as I'd like to think. Don't get me wrong. It is a beautiful, deep brown-purple that is about as vampy as I like to get but it isn't my idea of Marsala. No worries though. I'll wear this color with pride.

Aubrey is very close to Marnie in the bottle but, it is actually more of a plum-wine purple. It too is very beautiful and rich and creamy. I will have no problem rockin' this one either.

Odette is a dusty, winter purple. To me it's the truest purple of the group but of course, not grape.

Many people have mentioned how upset they are about the 3 minis that Zoya sent with their purchased. You know, I'm not bothered. They were free polishes that honestly, I'd never have bought but now I get to try. They look kinda weird but come one nail polish gurus! You know we can make them work!

The first nail polish mini is Charlotte. It's an innocent looking cream color. I think this off white with a splash of pale yellow will make a great nail art base or something. I'm going to play with it and see what I can do.

The second nail polish mini is Anais. It's a pale black. Does that make since? It's not gray. It's not true black. It's pale black. You would need three coats of this one. The others two coats work. I'm not sure what I'll do with this one but I will make it work. I promise.

The last freebie color is Severine. It's a weird green, gold color. It doesn't look like a pure gold color. I have no idea what to do with this color. I mean, I'm sure I'll do some funky nail art but...never mind. I'll figure it out.

So $15 later, I have 3 polishes that I think I love and 3 mini polishes that I am going to love playing with.

I'll let you know in a bit how it all works out.