Franken Week Day 2: Siren Song

Monday's franken is something I made after RBL chose their top eleven fan submissions and I wasn't one of them. While this wasn't my submission, the whole thing got me thinking and I came up with Siren Song, a teal/purple duochrome with orange, blue, purple, green microglitter/shimmer and flakies. To make it, I used Rimmel Night Before, Sally Hansen Laser, Sally Hansen DVD, Sally Hansen Blue It, Hard Candy Beetle, Sally Hansen Marine Scene, Pure Ice No Means No, Twinkle Toes green shimmer(it's hoof polish for horses...I got it as a joke), Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure, and probably something else that I forgot. It's definitely my franken with the most ingredients so far.

Unfortunately, Siren Song photographed horribly. It was rainy when I took the pictures, and all the lighting in my house made it look really blah, which it doesn't in real life. It's much sparklier and duochrome-ier and generally much prettier than in the pictures, but I figured I'd show it anyway. WARNING: the pictures ahead are realllllly bad.

 indoors, artificial light

indoors, artificial light

The color of the first picture is closer to accurate, but the second picture kind of shows the flakies and sparkles, which the first doesn't do at all. Sorry for the terrible pictures - this is definitely on my reblogging list.

Franken Week Day 1: Eloise

*announcer voice*

Welcome tooooo.....franken week! Since I've made a ton of frankens that I haven't shown on here yet, I thought I'd have a week where I show one franken each day. The first one is Eloise, the first franken I made using pigment - in this case, an old Maybelline eyeshadow. I went through a phase where I bought eyeshadows because they were pretty colors, ignoring the fact that I would never actually wear them near my eyeballs because I am a very conservative (read: untalented and unsure) person when it comes to makeup. However, I realized recently that I would absolutely wear those colors on my nails! The only bad thing is that since it's just eyeshadow suspended in clear nail polish, I have to shake it like a mofo every single time I want to use it because it settles really badly. This is two coats without top coat.

indoors, artificial light

As you can see, Eloise is a cool-toned, mossy golden green that I am in love with (well, I don't suppose you can see from the picture that I'm in love with it, but now you know). It has kind of a satiny finish without top coat, but I kind of like the satin finish and I always use top coat anyway for actual manicures, so I'm not bothered about that. Plus, it dried fast. You can also see in the picture that it's a bit brushstrokey, but it's not enough to make me fall off my chair or anything. All in all, I'm very pleased with this...I'll have to go digging around in more of my old eyeshadow stash to see if there are any good colors for polish. 

Are you looking forward to the rest of franken week? I sure hope so!

Neon Skittles

At the beginning of last week, I was in the mood for something happy and bright. The weather was warm (it's not anymore), the sun was shining (it's cloudy now), and it felt like spring was on the way (what's spring again?). While that mani definitely doesn't reflect the current weather anymore, maybe it'll brighten up everyone's day regardless. Sorry for my gross cuticles...I really do love winter, but why does it have to make my hands look like I wash dishes all day? Also, apologies for the nasty staining on my thumb.

indoors, artificial light

From thumb to pinkie, I used Icing Electric Feeling, Sally Hansen Sun Kissed, Nina Ultra Pro Punki Pink, China Glaze Kiwi Cool-ada, and Sally Hansen Lightening, and added Rush top coat on top of all of them. I used the same colors on my other hand, but in a different order. Since all of these but the orange and yellow are true neons (matte when dry, etc.), they didn't photograph too well. Punki Pink is definitely not that orangey, and Kiwi Cool-ada is not quite that cool. Electric Feeling, on the other hand, is pretty much accurate.

Nicole by OPI Yellow, It's Me!

I want to preface this post by saying that the only reason I got this color is because it was on sale at Ulta for $4. I think Nicole by OPI polishes are too expensive, and the only other one I have was a gift. Anyway, I thought Yellow, It's Me! (come on, OPI...just get over the whole punctuation thing, won't you?) looked like a nice yellow shimmer. Well, it is, but it's also a pain in the butt, which I'll explain in a minute. This is four coats without top coat.

indoors, artificial light

I do really like the color of this polish. It's a bright yellow jelly with orange glass flecks, and I certainly don't have anything like it in my collection. However, it's still not opaque in four coats, which is pretty much unacceptable in my book for a polish that's not intended for layering. I think next time I'll try it over Sally Hansen Lightening if I want it to look like it does in the bottle, and maybe I'll try it over some dark greens or blues to see how it layers. The bottom line? I'm glad I have it, but if I had paid full price I would've been sorely disappointed.

American Apparel Dynasty

American Apparel Dynasty is a lovely mauve-y, dusty purple creme. The only similar polish I have is Nina Ultra Pro Sweet Nothings, but they're not dupes by any means. This was two coats without top coat or any cleanup - as you can see, it applied very nicely and is quite shiny on its own.

indoors, artificial light

I have a feeling I will definitely be wearing this more this spring...I think this would be a great base for some floral nail art or Konading. I do have some Viva La Nails decals that I haven't used yet, so maybe that will happen someday. I have way too many manis on my to-do list!

Dr.'s Remedy Winter Wonder-Nails

EDIT: I added some bottle pics.

I'm sorry it took me so long to get this post up...I've been very busy, and now I have strep throat! I'm just glad it's not the flu. Anyway, I am so glad that I got the chance to try these, and I'm very excited to share them. The Dr.'s Remedy Winter Wonder-Nails collection consists of four polishes - Healing Heather Grey, Revive Ruby Red, Desire Dark Brown, and Nurture Nude Pink. I got to try the first three, and I am happy to say I love them all! I used artificial lighting for the first two and sunlight for Revive Ruby Red because I felt like those were the best pictures of each particular color. Here are some pictures of the bottles and of the bottoms of the bottles. (Alliteration, anyone?)

 

indoors, artificial light

Dr.'s Remedy describes Healing Heather Grey as "a seductive pewter with deep blue undertones." As it's a creme, this I wouldn't really describe the color as pewter - I was thinking more dove grey. It is very lovely though, and only took two coats. The application was a bit streaky with the first coat, but by the second everything was perfect. It also dried very quickly. This is without top coat.

indoors, artificial light

Desire Dark Brown is described in the press release as "a cocoa-meets-hot-fudge handsome hue." YES. I couldn't say it better myself. If Barielle Coco Bar is a milk chocolate, Desire Dark Brown is a dark chocolate, and a gorgeous one at that. Look how shiny it is without top coat...and even better, it took only one coat for opacity and dried just as fast as Healing Heather Grey! It is pretty dark, but it's not quite as black-looking as the picture shows, which I'm thankful for.

outdoors, sunlight

And lastly, my favorite - Revive Ruby Red, "a shimmer-infused, Wizard of Oz-inspired shade of crimson." I have to say, while many red polishes have the word "ruby" or "rubies" in the name, none of them remind me of actual rubies except Revive Ruby Red. The polish is a dark red shimmer on the edges but absolutely glows wherever the light hits it, and it's perfect one coat. I love, love, love this color. Oh, and by the way...the weird-looking background is my choir folder. I took this picture in the car when the sun came out for five minutes on the way to school. :) Also, I used top coat, but only because I was wearing it as a full manicure - it was plenty shiny on its own.

I am absolutely thrilled with these polishes. While the colors are gorgeous, what really makes them unique is the amazing formula. I can truthfully say that this is the best nail polish formula I have ever come across - better than Zoya, OPI...the list goes on. Ultimately, that is what would make me willing to buy one of these for $16 a bottle. I can franken dupes of many expensive colors, but I can't replicate such a wonderful formula.

Also, here's a heads-up for you all: because I'm sick, I don't feel much like painting my nails and tromping around finding the best spot outside to take a picture. Therefore, I won't be posting frankens this week like I thought I would. Instead, I'll post some of the colors I've swatched and not posted yet, and I'll be on the franken wagon as soon as I feel better. Cheers!

EDIT: I forgot to mention that this brand is formulated by doctors and is supposed to have anti-fungal properties, as well as be generally healthy for your nails. I actually have nail fungus on two of my toenails, meaning that I normally can't wear cosmetic polish on my toes (though I do use a prescription lacquer, ciclopirox, that is helping) and therefore can't (well, won't) wear flip-flops. While I still think it's best to leave polish off my toenails most of the time, I definitely plan on wearing these as pedicured sometimes during the summer! I also plan to do a wear test and see how well the Dr.'s Remedy polishes wear.

The products in this post were provided to me by Dr.'s Remedy's PR company for review. However, this in no way affected my review - I will always say what I truly think about a product.

Sinful Colors Secret Admirer

I seriously considered wearing this for Valentine's Day - it's black, sure, but the name is perfectly Valentine -appropriate, and it's a gorgeous color. I was really surprised with the formula of this one, too. I didn't expect much, but Secret Admirer went on very easily and barely needed two coats. I probably could've gotten away with one if I had better application skills. This is without top coat. Sorry for the blurriness - for some reason, I couldn't get my camera to focus on the shimmer.

indoors, artificial light

I can't wait to wear this as a base for layering, or with a matte top coat - I bet it'd be gorgeous! It's the only black shimmer I have, so I can't compare it to any polishes in my stash, but I can't think of any dupes that I've seen on other blogs, either. My opinion of Sinful Colors is growing with every polish of theirs I get!

Catherine H + DVD

While I like Rescue Beauty Lounge Catherine H, I wanted to add a little more excitement to it - but without making it blingy. I decided to add Sally Hansen DVD and a coat of Essie Matte About You. Here are the results, and sorry for the notepaper background - it was that or the tablecloth at my grandma's house, and I thought paper would be a little nicer. :)

indoors, artificial light

When I put this on, I didn't like at as much as I thought I would. Looking back at the picture now, though, I really like the combination. I'll be curious to see what else I can do with layering the HD polishes I have - while I love them, I don't think I've worn them much over other polishes. I don't really have much else to say...until next time!

Borghese Euro Green

Today (well, not today for me, as I'm writing this on Thursday) I have Borghese Euro Green for you. I found this at Ulta a while back when I was looking for the Rapido Dry line...and I found them, but I didn't like any of them as well as Euro Green. It's an olive shimmer with gold, and I love it. I used two coats with Seche Vite.

indoors, artificial light

outdoors, shade (not sure how I managed to get VNL in this one...)

indoors, artificial light

I really love this colors. It's so rich and gorgeous, and while it's definitely not the color of the Euro, I still love the name as well. Euro Green reminds me of China Glaze Peace on Earth, which I wasn't able to get my hands on, and now I'm not sorry about that. This is the perfect green-and-gold combo in my opinion.

Icing Mint 2 Be

Today I have Icing Mint 2 Be, a mint green creme. Unlike Essie Mint Candy Apple and some other minty colors I own, Icing Mint 2 Be is really green, with less of a blue tint than some of the others. In the picture, I used two coats of Mint 2 Be and no top coat.

indoors, artificial light

Mint 2 Be applied nicely - I didn't feel like I had to fight with it like I do with a lot of pastels. I think like this would be a really good base for Cover Girl Krypton Ice, which I found after I took this picture, so I may have to try that at some point. While this color isn't particularly unique or special, I really like it and I feel like it fills a hole in my collection. If you don't have a dupe, I'd definitely recommend it.

Note: I'm writing up a few scheduled blog posts before I leave so that I can concentrate on my interview weekend and still put blog posts up. I hope it works - I've tried to schedule posts before and it didn't work right.

Ulta Material Girl

Before I talk about the polish, I wanted to let you all know what's going to be coming up on this blog in the next little while. First, I'll be posting the three Dr.'s Remedy polishes I received to review, and I am super excited to do that. I've tried two of the colors so far and they are lovely, and even better, the formula is amazing! Then, as I'm sure most (if not all) of you know that Rescue Beauty Lounge released their top eleven fan colors to be voted on yesterday, and a lot of people - including me - were disappointed in the colors chosen. That inspired me to go to frankentown yesterday and I created four frankens last night, and I am absolutely in love with all of them. Along with several other frankens that I haven't blogged about yet, that'll probably be what I post on for at least a week after the Dr.'s Remedy polishes.

However, none of this will start until Sunday or Monday of next week, for one simple reason. Tomorrow afternoon, I leave town to head to an interview weekend at the college I'll be attending in the fall. I've been selected to come interview for their full-tuition scholarship, so that's very exciting! Unfortunately, it also means that I'll be wearing a fairly boring polish most of the weekend, and if I have time to blog at all I'll be blogging about colors I've already swatched.

indoors, artificial light



I love it! The combination of the shimmer and holo glitter give the polish a great depth. I just hope Ulta puts out more stunners like this one, especially their polish is so affordable with the sales they have on all the time. I got this in a giveaway, and I ended up loving it even more than I thought I would. This was two coats with a coat of Rush, which it needs because it's a bit gritty and not completely glossy without top coat. But when you put top coat on, it's totally worth it!

Note: If you submitted a color to the RBL competition and didn't get selected, email Ange from Scandalously Polished - she's a frankening genius and has offered to try frankening people's ideas. She's already frankened a gorgeous one thought up by Stephanie at Imperfectly Painted - check it out!

Kelier Nail Crack Polish in Blue

It sure took me a loooong time to post this after my review of the pink Kelier crackle, didn't it? I have no excuse...but here it is now! It didn't take me nearly as long to apply this as it did the pink, because I had already figured out how best to apply this kind of crackle polish. This is one coat over two coats of Icing Mint 2 Be.

indoors, artificial light

Like the pink crackle, this takes a while to crack and looks a bit streaky if you don't apply it well (like me). However, I still prefer this crackle pattern to that of OPI Black Shatter and the China Glaze crackles. You can buy these crackle polishes from Born Pretty for $3.67 a bottle, and international shipping is free, which is a huge plus for me. 

I was lucky enough to find an old white crackle (Ghost) from Cover Girl yesterday at the Dollar Tree (among other things), and it looks like it'll have the same kind of crackle as these, so I'm anxious to see how it applies compared to the Kelier crackles.

*This product was provided to me for an honest review.

Finger Paints Romanticism Ruby

I had a LOT of trouble picking the color I would post today. It's Valentine's Day, after all, and though I didn't do any V-Day nail art, I wanted an appropriate color to post. I swatched several reds and pinks last week, and a lot of them had Valentine-appropriate names: Finger Paints Romanticism Ruby, Sinful Colors Secret Admirer (not a pink or red, but just look at the name!), Color Club Sexsea, Nina Ultra Pro Sweet Nothings, Sinful Colors Sugar Sugar...you get the point. Finally, I decided on Romanticism Ruby because it's gorgeous and glittery and very romantic (ha, ha).

indoors, artificial light

Mm, sparkles! In real life, this glows much more than in the picture. It's absolutely gorgeous, and applies like a dream as well. I used two coats. It's not too shiny without top coat, but it is MUCH smoother than most glitters...it's about a smooth without top coat as any of the OPI Burlesque glitters are with two coats of Seche Vite. Impressive. I've been searching for the perfect red glitter for a while now, and I think I've found it. This, my friends, is love. :) Happy Valentine's Day!

Color Club Regatta Red

Color Club Regatta Red, from the Rebel Debutante collection (EDIT: My bad! Alison kindly corrected me - this is not from the Rebel Debutante collection. I believe it's actually from the Yacht Club collection.), is a bright medium red that leans a bit pink. While it's not my favorite kind of red, I do like it and am glad to have it in my collection. This was two coats without top coat, and the application was very easy, like all the other Color Club polishes I've tried.

indoors, artificial light

That's all I have for today...I'm not feeling my best, and I really ought to be spending my energy doing schoolwork (even though it's a snow day) rather than blogging. TGIF!

TBN Hot Pink Flouro

TBN (Totally Beautiful Nails) Hot Pink Flouro is one of several Australian polishes I received in a giveaway. This one sat in my untried box for quite a while because even though it looked like a great pink, I always had something else to try. I swatched it the other day as part of my marathon session, and here are the results. Like any true neon, Hot Pink Flouro dries matte. Unfortunately, like most neons, Hot Pink Flouro does not photograph accurately. It's pinker and less salmony than my pictures show, as well as more neon. Here are two coats, without top coat and then with Rush top coat.

indoors, artificial light

indoors, artificial light

Isn't it lovely? It's more of a satin finish than a matte, which I actually prefer, at least for cremes. I feel like completely matte cremes make my hands look really greasy and gross. The color makes me think of flip-flops and the beach...summer pedi, anyone? I like that even thoughh I pretty much hate summer - hot, humid, sweaty, UGH - this color makes me wish it was summer. Good job, TBN.

Dr.'s REMEDY

Here's a press release I got in my email the other day. I mentioned this to my mom, and she said she'd heard of the brand...I must admit, I felt like a bit of an idiot when she knew something about polish I didn't. :) 

"DR.’S REMEDY WINTER WONDER-NAILS

The Hottest Nail Shades of the Chilly Season

Sleigh bells are no longer ringing, snow is well-past glistening, and the mere thought of walking through a winter wonderland has you worrying – way too early – about next year’s Christmas plans. Enter some seasonal delight to make you sizzle (literally): Dr.’s REMEDY introduces four fabulous shades of Enriched Nail Polish, perfect to ring in 2011 and wear throughout the rest of winter (wonderfully).

The collection includes:

·       Healing Heather Grey: a seductive pewter with deep blue undertones

·       Revive Ruby Red: a shimmer-infused, Wizard of Oz-inspired shade of crimson

·       Desire Dark Brown: a cocoa-meets-hot fudge handsome hue

·       Nurture Nude Pink: a delicate, damsel-in-distress barely-there beautiful

Dr.’s REMEDY Enriched Nail Polish is available for $16 online atwww.remedynails.com

or by calling 1-877-323-NAIL.

Dr.’s REMEDY is a new line of doctor-inspired cosmetics that are dedicated to using clean, hypo-allergenic, anti-fungal ingredients. The birth-child of two New York-based podiatrists, Dr. Adam Cirlincione and Dr. William Spielfogel, Dr.’s REMEDY proves quintessentially-perfect for any person looking to better the condition of her skin and nails. Dr.’s REMEDY is sold online at www.remedynails.com or by calling 1-877-323-NAIL."

What do you think?

This press release was sent by a PR firm. For more information, see my disclosure policy.

Le Beauty 56

For the rest of my posts up to and including Valentine's Day, I'll be showing pink and red polishes to celebrate my least favorite holiday of the year...however, I DO like pink and red, so I guess that'll be my excuse.

I received Le Beauty 56 in a giveaway a while back, along with a couple other Le Beauty polishes. I've already tried 152, which is silver, and I wasn't too happy with it - I liked the color, but it was too brushstrokey for me. This one, on the other hand, is perfect. It's opaque in two coats, the application is great, and it's a gorgeous color. The blue flash isn't as dominant in real life as in my picture, but it was definitely visible even in dim light.

indoors, artificial light

Even though I hate heat and love winter, this polish makes me want summer and strawberry sorbet. *slurps* I can see myself wearing this any time of the year because I wear whatever polish I want no matter the weather, but I'm sure I'll be bringing it out more once the warm weather rolls around...not anytime soon, judging by this evening's weather forecast. That's perfectly fine with me, though - bring on the snow! 

All Fired Up Nail Art

I took All Fired Up off after it chipped and replaced it with China Glaze Ingrid, but I loved that red so much that I had to do something else with it. I wore it again with black tips and polka dots because I absolutely love black and red together. I used Nailene tip guides for the tips and a dotting tool I got from Sally's for the dots.

indoors, sunlight through the window

I'm really happy about the way this turned out, and I got several compliments on my nails when I was wearing this, which always makes me happy. I did the same thing on the right hand, but with the dots on the ring finger instead of the thumb. Unfortunately I'm still having computer problems - my mom's been sick and hasn't been able to look at it any more. So for now, I'm still going to be blogging somewhat sporadically, and probably not on the weekends. Sorry about that! Fortunately, I do have plenty of material - I swatched a bunch of my untried polishes yesterday (26, actually), so I'm not short on stuff to post.

Sally Hansen All Fired Up

I'm sorry for not posting for the last few days...this has just been a crap week for me in a multitude of ways, and not being able to post because my grandparents' Internet was down just added to that. Fortunately, it's working again now (though my laptop is still pitiful), so here I am! I will say that I got All Fired Up purely because the name has some sentimental value for me, but it actually turned out to be a great red. Unfortunately, I only have one picture because it's been gloom and doom outside for the past week or so. Fits my mood, I guess.

indoors, artificial light

Squishy, bright, and opaque in two coats. What's not to love? This is the perfect pinup red, in my opinion. It makes me think of cherry tomatoes, old cars, and fifties movie stars (I typed that and then thought, "one of these things is not like the others..."). As you can see, it did chip on my ring finger, but that was after two days of me bashing my hands around like a maniac, as I tend to do. I took it off after I took this picture and wore China Glaze Ingrid for a couple days, but I loved All Fired Up so much that I have it on again today with some nail art, so you'll see that next. It's really rare for me to love a red creme this much, but I'm so glad I do! I may have to find a backup bottle... :o