By far the brightest polish I've ever worn and mini-vacation pictures!

China Glaze's Shocking Pink is actually quite nice for a neon. I find it has a distinct 70s feel (obviously) to it and I like it. It makes me want wear spandex and take Polaroid pictures!

The formula is only okay. The first coat was really streaky and the second coat left a some bald patches. I left it at that though because I'm lazy.

The accent nail is two coats of China Glaze Snow Globe. It looks very chunky in the pictures but it didn't look that bad in real life. I was pretty pumped about having this manicure for my vacation - especially because it was to GLOW under the BLACKLIGHTS at the CLUB. WOAH!

Remember when I said I was leaving the city for the beach, beer and lobster? Well it ended up being that and more - including locking keys in the car in the middle of nowhere, extremely cold and windy beach with deer flies, cute schnauzer, mussels and clams, rum, dancing and good music. Oh and I met Post Tropical Storm Irene on the way back, no big.

Mollie was the sweetest little dog ever. She just loves people. Here she is, claiming the chair.

My feet on the beach. Wearing OPI's Mrs. O'Leary's BBQ on ze toesies. 

The wind MAY have been really strong... Hence the messy messy hair.

The boy, trying to kill some deer flies.

I found some kewl stuff...

And went for a boat ride! It wasn't the one in the picture though - a much better one.

All and all, twas an amazing vacation. I met some great people, ate some delicious seafood and smelled lots of beach air. I loved it. It was just what I needed. Plus, I knew it was a good vacation because Monday at work was brutal - it's always a good sign.

Next will be a few more China Glazes polishes as I have a slight obsession with them right now. The brush is just so fantastic!!!

Bullish, OPI?

Doesn't the name make you think of bullshit? It's totally a pun on that, I'm sure. Either way, this polish isn't bullshit OPI, it's very seriously pretty. It's a classic red with a hint of orange. It's very flattering on my skintone and I would think it would be just as beautiful on a tanned skin.

The formula was great, as is usual with OPI. However, I'm not sure I could say I'm a fan of their brushes. I find wide brushes always make it harder to flub up the side of your nail. But then again, this isn't anything a Q-Tip and a little remover can't fix. The colors is the most color accurate in the last picture.

I'm heading off for a great adventure this weekend! Lots of beer, friends, beach and laughter - hopefully. And LOBSTER! Fresh off the dock. Things like this make me realize how lucky I am to have the life I have. Even if I'm jeal of all my friends' money making abilities - life is still good. Especially with lobster somewhere in there. I hope you all have a great weekend!

Topless & Barefoot

Short and sweet for today.

Here's Essie Topless & Barefoot. I basically only got it because it was on super sale for $5 at Trade Secret. I'm not a huge fan BUT it would be the perfect color for a wedding. Since I'm not getting married any time soon, it shall stay in the back of my nail polish drawer. It needs two coats because the first coat is really streaky as is usual with most Essies.

I find it a bit pinker than most nudes which is nice. I wouldn't consider it pink though - kind of a sandy color with a tiny tone of pink.

I wanted to include this picture of Billie. She sleeps in the weirdest positions.

Do You Believe in The Dupe?

Can a true dupe really exist? I find it hard to believe myself because of the complexity of color mixing. Being a half-assed painter myself, mixing color is very difficult, especially if you are wanting a specific shade. My paintings prove this - they are just a kerfuffle of muted colors. I'm still working on it.

Please clap your hands for the fight to the death of Joe Fresh Khaki (once again baffled by the originality of the name) and Essie Sew Psyched.

Essie's Sew Psyched came out in the Fall 2010 collection while Khaki just came out about a month ago. Did Joe Fresh steal Essie's formula? See for yourself.

Index is Sew Psyched, then Khaki, then Sew Psyched and pinky Khaki.

Essie Sew Psyched + Smudge of doom, Joe Fresh Khaki, Essie, Joe Fresh on pinky

Like whut? I honestly cannot see any difference between the polishes. The subtle shimmer is even there (yes, the bluish shimmer AND the silvery shimmer). Maybe, MAYBE, if you want to be really really picky, in SOME light, Khaki is a bit darker. But that wouldn't even be considered a smidgen darker. Maybe an inkling. Then again, I'm not sure. Even the formula is the same - they both required two thin coats. And both brushes are crappy - the Joe Fresh one is really fat and the handle is short and tricky to use, and Essie's brush has always been too thin for my liking. So that part is a lose lose.

Obviously (hopefully) Joe Fresh didn't steal the formula. But as you can tell from your own eyes, they are essentially the same. The lesson here folks, and the bottom line after all this comparing and contrasting, is that Joe Fresh is a third of the cost of Essie. So go with the Joe Fresh.

I'm a Dior Addict: Are You?

I'm already up to four shades and have a list of another four I want. Lucky me, I didn't have to pay full price on these or else I wouldn't be able to justify the purchase. I totally fell in love with Diorkiss at a department store in my home town. The mission was to not pay $37 CND (WTF?!?!) and find it elsewhere. I did, and am very very happy I did.

Diorkiss is a true pink. It's not warm and it's not too cool. Miss Rachel from Makeup Never Sleeps describes it as a strawberry pink and I agree. If I don't slather it on, it is truly a my lips but better color, much like the swatch above. There are no shimmer bits in this Addict lipstick.

The formula of this lipstick is amazing. It feels like a glossy balm/balmy gloss kind of formula. No complaints here - I hate the feeling of dry or matte lipstick. But because of the glossy/balm thing going on, these do not last very long on the lips. Diorkiss does leave a nice stain behind though. The scent is gorgeous too - I can't describe it really because there isn't much sent there. Either way, it's not unpleasant at all.

I have a few more coming up for review. I'm definitely recommending these!

Teal? How boring can a polish name be Joe Fresh?

Don't get me wrong, some Essie (AKA, Meet Balls) and OPI (AKA Uh Oh, Roll Down the Window) nail polish names are ridiculous. But for Joe Fresh to stop at "Teal" to name a polish, you know they've done the minimum effort required to find a name.  Besides, the color isn't really a true teal to me - I find it more to be a sky blue with a tint of teal. Anyway, regarless of the boring name, the polish itself certainly isn't.

Looking at the photos again, it kind of does look teal. It really wasn't in real life - it pulled towards blue a lot more. This was one coat of semi-gloopy polish. I'm a-okay with gloopy if it gives me one even coat of polish. This definitely did. And what's more - the polish lasted a long time on my nail without chips. I definitely recommend you to pick it up!

This polish came out for the new Joe Fresh fall collection. I must say, there are some beautiful and unique colors in that collection. I you have a chance to stop by your local Joe Fresh supplier, please pick up a few of their fall collection. It's definitely worth it.

Borghese Euro Green: Wallis Dupe?

I have been totally wanting Butter London's new polish for the 2011 fall collection called Wallis. But because I'm po' and shipping within Canada is like 10 bucks for ONE polish from their website (ridic much?) I decided to get Borghese's Euro Green instead to satisfy my Wallis craving. I don't own Wallis to compare but from what I've seen, they're pretty similar no?

I think Wallis may have bigger glitter bits and less goldish tones in it. I'm very happy with this polish nonetheless. Actually, I don't think I've ever been truly disappointed by Borghese.

Velvet Voyeur

All I can think about is how much I love Havarti cheese.

I'm a nutcase.

Anyway, here's Essie's Velvet Voyeur. Great formula, longevity was good, color is kind of meh. It's not terribly unique. I like my Black Cherry Chutney by OPI better for a vampy color. Or my Orly Naughty.

Here you can kind of see the purple in the bottle. Ignore the blurry nails.

 

I wanted to load a video of Billie licking my lamp. She licks my lamp for 5 minutes straight every time she wakes up from a nap. She loves lamp. I can't figure out how it works so I shall ask the filmmaker boyfriend later.

The trial of a new brand

You know when you try something out of your usual brands and you're extremely disappointed and you're like, WHA? why the eff did I buy this crap? Well, it's called testing things out my friends, and doing that, as part of this beauty blogging stint, I have come across some shit product. 

A good example is this Nina Ultra Pro polish in Ink-ling. It was the gloopiest mess I have ever encountered. It was so hard to get the polish even, I was raging and swearing at every nail. I persisted, however, and ended with this:

Not the worst application ever. And quite a pretty color.

As you can see, it ended being an okay looking manicure (disregarding the cuticles). My family, who I was visiting for the weekend, couldn't figure out what color it was. That always pleases me. But I sure as hell won't be fighting with this polish any time soon.

On another note, I always laugh out loud when I walk into my bedroom to this:

Who's under there you may wonder? Well, it's Billie of course!

She loves sleeping under my top blanket. Sometimes I'll leave the house and come back 4 hours later and she's still napping under there. Bless that little weasel face <3

Sigma - Worth the Hype? Aye or Nay?

Well lemme tell ya - so far, so awesome.

Let's be fair though, I did read reviews thoroughly on the interwebs to make sure I was getting the best options Sigma offered. Many many beauty bloggers raved about the Flat-Top Synthetic Kabuki F80. I LOVE this brush. It makes such a HUGE difference in applying liquid-type foundations (MAC Face & Body in my case) for a light airbrushed finish. I'm never ever going back to my regular foundation brushes. It even works for my Estee Lauder Double Wear which I find regular foundation brushes makes it look caked - the F80 totally buffs the product in. Just be careful to wash it often because it will hold bacteria/foundation in the middle of the brush.

 

The F35 has given me a bit of grief with shedding but only a couple of hairs in the last three days. I love that it is tapered. I used it for contouring and might use it in the future for highlighting. I'd recommend this brush but if shedding is something that REALLY bothers you, maybe you should reconsider.

The famous E25 is said to be a dupe of the MAC 217 and I must say I quite agree. I personally do not see much of a difference between the two brushes. The one tiny thing I found was that the 217 was stiffer than the E25. Fine by me though. And plus, Sigma sent me a sample E25! Now I've got two of them. I shall be using the sample size one (pictured above with the gray handle) for traveling. The brush is very good at spreading the shadow while blending it in. I do find that since it is not as stiff as the 217, it takes a bit longer to blend it in perfectly. Still, great value for the price.

I've been looking for a great gel eyeliner brush for a while - let me tell you that the E05 is perfect. It's stiff enough to hold its shape but has enough flexibility to give you a smooth line. However, if you're the kind of person who likes a very thin gel liner, maybe you should go with the E10 instead.

Overall, I'm very happy with my Sigma purchases. I definitely recommend all these brushes if you're looking for affordable quality brushes. Plus, there are always codes floating around the internet for 10% or 20% off AND they ship to Canada for cheap (my order was only $5).

Comparison of the day

My collection has grown so much in the past few months, I finally feel comfortable posting some comparison pics!

Here's the comparison of the day: OPI's Strawberry Margarita, Deborah Lippmann's Pop Life and Essie's Guilty Pleasures.

From the bottle, they don't look that similar. On the nail though:

These are all two coats. Strawberry Margarita is clearly darker than the other two. And Guilty Pleasures is peachier than Pop Life. Regardless, these are two cheaper options than Pop Life. I much prefer the formula of Pop Life BUT the other two have stellar formulas as well.

Hope this was useful! I am now off to a wedding where my boyfriend is the officiant. It shall be fun!

Yes, I AM posting 4 photos of the same product...

It's because it's China Glaze's Ruby Pumps! The only explanation for this polish, in my opinion, is in photographs.

It's a gorgeous polish for the glitter fans but also conservative enough for me, a not so keen on glitter polish fan. If you don't have this in your collection, yo gotta gets it. 

I wanted the pictures to speak from themselves but they can't tell you that the formula was excellent and it dries super quickly.

Quite the Case Study here...

Isn't this a strange color? This Essie color called Case Study is from the Fall 2011 collection named Brand New Bag. It's a milky sort of chocolate color with a tinge of green. It's very faint but it's definitely there. What's nice about this color is that I find it strangely flattering. It doesn't look that great in the pictures but I love the look of it on my hands. What a weirdo!

EUGH, excuse the fingers. I took every precaution to NOT put my hands near water before this picture. But then I had to pee. And make coffee. So yeah, my apologies.

The Brand New Bag collection looks quite impressive. As I am po' (I sense a blog sale coming soon), I could only pick one color from the collection to choose from. I'm quite happy with my pick. It's different without being one of the SPARKLE in yo FACE unique colors.

This was two coats with Essie Good to Go top coat. One tiny little thing that I didn't love about the polish: it dried darker than it looks in the bottle and than it applied. I don't like that. I actually think I would've liked it better if it was the color in the bottle. I found myself a bit disappointed when it dried. But why be bummed when it's only half a shade's difference. It's still a very nice polish!

Billie says hello from behind the curtain! Hi Billie!

Can you tell I've had coffee too late in the evening to be able to sleep? Tomorrow is going to be a tough one.

Essie Uptown Taupe

If you're into taupes/greiges and neutrals, this color is for you. Essie's Uptown Taupe is a perfect color for someone who prefers their nails on the conservative side. While I mostly do myself, I found this color to be a bit blah even for me. It has a tiny amount of shimmer in it which is more visible in the bottle than on the nail. The color was maybe a bit too close to my skintone to be flattering on me as it sort of walks the fine line between taupe and pink. It's nice but not as nice as some other taupes I have in my collection such as Orly's Prince Charming or OPI's Tickle My France-y.

I had a fabulous weekend despite the uber downer last post. I think I'm slowly realizing I've got some work to do on myself - this blog is like 1/4th of that work I'm talking about. I guess you could say I'm on a quest for bettering myself after the hellish last years. I'm slowly re-picking up things I used to love: writing, reading, painting, researching, school. It seems like possibilities are finaly arising. And that's good.

Let me tell you about this little wonder. I've been putting Essie's Abricot Cuticle Oil on pretty much each night before going to bed. And it smells great! My cuticles are slowly starting to look better. Technically though, how my cuticles look is proportionately related to how stressed my week was and how much I picked at them. And how much hand cream I bothered applying.

Again, writing this from work so I better end it here. The job has been uber frustrating today - how is it that some people who are really honestly dumb get higher positions than me? RAHH!