New Year Giveaway!

I know I haven't been around much, I've been enjoying taking a break and my nails took a beating over Christmas opening gifts and playing with my son's toys. :P I'm waiting on one nail to grow out a little more, at the moment polish remover really hurts near it. :/ Anyways, I thought since the new year is approaching it would be time to giveaway some new year themed polishes! :)

Please click "Read More" to enter.

Lynnderella "His Heart Grew 2 Sizes That Day" & Little Starry Night

It's not quite Christmas here yet, close though! Time got away from me so I apologize for the late 2nd post of the day. I wanted to add Snow Angel swatches to this post, I just haven't gotten a chance to take pictures yet. I'm hoping it brings me good luck tomorrow because the weather forecast predicts snow!! It will be my first time ever seeing snow and a white Christmas! I'm excited to say the least! :D

"His Heart Grew 2 Sizes That Day" is a mix of various sizes of green glitter, smaller red glitters and red heart glitter. All nails are 2 coats of Lynnderella "His Heart Grew 2 Sizes That Day" over Wet n Wild Poison Apple and top coat of Seche Vite.

I have officially been bitten by the green polish bug! >_< I'm kicking myself for not buying a darker green Lynnderella polish earlier because this one is so beautiful! This polish means a lot to me because it was given to be as a Christmas gift from Amy (aka AtlCatsMeow). Amy and Lynn are both very generous woman and I am so happy to have started talking with them this year. :)

Little Starry Night is described as black glitters with an overlay of royal blue microglitter, tiny stars and delicate holographic threads in a clear base. I used 2 coats of OPI DS Glamour with 2 coats of Little Starry Night and a top coat of Seche Vite.

My pictures made this look dull, in real life though it was a super sparkly! I love the holographic "threads"; I wasn't sure what to call them, I like the name threads it works nicely. :) I think like everyone else, I love the tiny stars too! I'm so happy Lynn is putting them in more polishes because I can't get enough of them!

Purchase Lynnderella polishes through eBay here. There are many ways to keep updated with new colors and shop updates from Lynnderella by following on Facebook here, Tumblr here, Twitter here and Instagram here.

Also, be sure to find AtlCatsMeow on Facebook here and Instagram here because she's just amazing all around! ;) 

Hope everyone has a lovely holiday! I'll be back on December 27th January 1st ♥♥♥♥

Jindie Nails Honey Blue Blue and Snow Angels Reviews & Swatches

Merry Christmas Eve everyone! :) I'll have two posts up today, before taking a small break for the holidays. This will be the first of two posts featuring the remaining Jindie Nails polish I have. My other post will be up a little later, "Santa" has to wrap a few more gifts before tomorrow. ;)

Jindie Nails Honey Blue Blue has a blue "crelly" base with royal blue, emerald and bright blue glitter. I used 3 coats with a top coat of Seche Vite.

Formula gave me no problems. If I was heavier handed with coats I think I could have gotten away with 2 coats instead of 3. Even with 3 coats though, dry time was not a problem. :)I love the mixture of green and blue glitters in Honey Blue Blue and how they stand out even against the blue base color. Redneckognize this polish is beautiful! ;)

Snow Angels is described as a pale blueish/teal colored base with multiple shapes and shades of iridescent color shifting glitter, satin matte turquoise & teal holographic hex and pink circle glitter. All nails are 3 coats with a top coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri.

Snow Angels is packed with glitter! It did make application a bit tricky; my second coat I was "fishing" for more base than glitter. :P Once I got the hang of it though, I had no problems. The color overall is very delicate and fun which is how I imagine snow will be when I finally see it! :P 

Jindie Nails' etsy shop can be found here, though it is currently closed and will reopen December 28th. Like Jindie Nails on Facebook here to keep updated on new colors coming soon. Also find Jindie Nails on Instagram here.

Honey Blue Blue was sent for review, all opinions are my own.

CoverGirl Blast Flipstick Minx, Stunner and Vixen Reviews & Swatches

I have something a little different than nail polish for this post. I have been a BzzAgent for a few years now (7 years actually, wow I can't believe it's been that long!) and recently I was asked to join the campaign for CoverGirl Blast Flipstick. I'm not a big lipstick wearer, but these looked like something different so I figured I would give it shot. ;)

Each Flipstick is dual ended with a darker and light shade allowing you to either combine the colors or create different effects such as an "ombre" effect. 

 CoverGirl Blast Flipstick Minx: Deep brown & gold.

 CoverGirl Blast Flipstick Stunner: Bright pink & gold.

 CoverGirl Blast Flipstick Vixen: Burgundy & pearl pink.

The good: 

• A variety of color options, 13 different duos (26 different shades altogether)
• Allows you to create different colors and effects
• Can be found at mass retailers like Walmart, Target, CVS and Walgreens
• Pigmented nicely for a drugstore product
• Sharp angle of each end made it easy for me to apply

The bad:

• Chalky formula
• The colors I received are very frosty/shimmery and remind me of something worn in the 90's
• Blending the colors works better with a lip brush than the stick itself. 
• Colors fade quickly
• Packaging feels very cheap 

Overall, I wouldn't buy any of theses personally. Out of the colors sent I only wore the dark end of Vixen out of the house because none of the other colors worked for my skin tone. When I do wear lipsticks, I tend to stick with matte or colors that have no shimmer and these really don't provide a finish like that. The price point is just ok for the quality, suggested retail is $8.49, though I'm sure you can find many stores like CVS or Walgreens running buy one, get one 50% off to make the price more reasonable. 

CoverGirl Blast Flipstick can be found in store at most mass retailers and online through Covergirl's website here. Find CoverGirl on Facebook here and Twitter here. 

These products were sent for review, all opinions are my own.

P.S. If anyone is interested in a $2 off coupon for 1 Flipstick (expires 4/30/13) I would be happy to mail some off. ;)

Pure Ice Playtime, Red Hot Mama and Sugar Cookie (Pink) Reviews & Swatches

I have a few Pure Ice polishes to show off that I received to use for Pure Ice's #NailBasel Challenge. I am hoping to have my entry completed soon, but for now I thought I would just swatch the colors sent to me. :) If you would like to know more about the challenge (you can win 50 Pure Ice polishes for winning!) read Pure Ice's Facebook post here.

Pure Ice Playtime is has a clear base with fine gold and copper glitter. All nails are 3 coats with a top coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri.

While Pure Ice's description labels this polish as having red glitter, it's definitely a copper glitter. The copper glitter is nicely distributed and doesn't get lost with the gold glitter. A top coat is a must because the fine glitter leaves a gritty feeling, but that's to be expected. The color is a great and reminds me of a twist on China Glaze I Herd That.

Red Hot Mama is described as a maroon creme. I used 3 coats with no top coat.

Formula of Red Hot Mama was a bit streaky at 2 coats, so a 3 was a must to even it out. Other than that, I had no trouble with the formula. The color is a nice vampy polish and would be great to use for holiday themed nails. ;)

Sugar Cookie (Pink) has a light pink shimmery base and various sizes of silver holographic and iridescent glitter. Except for my ring nail, I used 2 coats of Pure Ice Black Velour with 1 coat of Sugar Cookie. My ring nail is 3 coats of Sugar Cookie over bare nail. All nails have a top coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri.

Though this color has the same name as another polish by Pure Ice named Sugar Cookie (post here) it clearly is not the same one. My bottle does in fact have it labeled as just Sugar Cookie and I added the "(Pink)" to help clear up some confusion. I emailed Pure Ice's PR department and this is a color that maybe released in the future, but I did not get a definite answer on that. Anyways, I do love this color over black! On it's on it's pretty sheer, the black really makes it pop though. I did have to fish around for the larger hexes because there aren't too many in the bottle to begin with. No problems to report besides that though. :)

Pure Ice polishes are available at Walmart in store and online through Bari Cosmetics here. Find Pure Ice on Facebook here and Twitter here.

These products were sent for review, all opinions are my own.

Lacquerhead Polish Poison Poppies and Slumber Party Reviews & Swatches

My blog has been lacking some Lacquerhead Polish swatches lately. :P I love her polish and with her current sale, I couldn't not order Slumber Party after seeing it! She never ceases to amaze me with her great formula, customer service and polish combinations! :)

Lacquerhead Polish Poison Poppies is described as a black based polish with scattered orange and raspberry metallic glitters. I used 3 coats with a top coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri.

Poison Poppies has more of a jelly than creme base, so if you aren't up for doing 3 coats like me you could layer it over a black creme and still get a similar effect. Even with 3 coats it dried quickly and I had no trouble getting any glitter out. Like Lacquerhead Polish's Bonfire Sparks (post here), Poison Poppies is a nice twist on a black polish and is great for someone who just wants a a little bit of glitter on their nails. 

Lacquerhead Polish Slumber Party has a clear base with white holo, purple holo and ultra fine purple glitters. I started with 2 coats of Essence Grey-t To Be Here and added 2 coats of Slumber Party to my ring and pinky nail and 3 coats to my middle and index nail. All nails have a top coat of Seche Vite.

Formula was problem free, of course! No fishing, dried quickly and with no top coat was only very slightly bumpy feeling. As you can see, two coats of Slumber Party provide a lot of glitter and three coats really "blings" out your nails. :P I feel like this polish should be named something to do with Cinderella because it gives off a beautiful princess look!

Lacquerhead Polish can be found on etsy here. Currently she is offering 30% off your order with the code HAPPYHOLIDAYS. Make sure to try out one of her cuticle oils with your order, they are only $4 (before the 30% discount) and ship free with other products! Lacquerhead Polish is on Facebook here.

Poison Poppies was sent for review, all opinions are my own.

OPI The Man With The Golden Gun

I'm happy to report, I am officially done shopping and with the exception of one package, done shipping holiday gifts! Woo hoo! Since I did a lot of running around today, I only time for a quick manicure. ;) I may do a few double posts over the next few days to finish up some of the review polishes I have to do, so I can step away from the computer on Christmas Eve and Christmas and spend time with my family. :) I've been meaning to post this polish since I got it in the mail. I honestly wasn't too thrilled with gold top coats when everyone seemed to come out with them at the same time, but the OPI bottle got me and I'm happy it did! :)

OPI The Man With The Golden Gun has a clear base and 18k gold flakes. All nails are 2 coats of Barielle Berry Blue with 2 coats of The Man With The Golden Gun and a top coat of Seche Vite.

Formula wise The Man With The Golden Gun was a little on thicker side and I did need to dab some pieces here and there, but I had no trouble getting out any of the gold flakes. This is the only gold top coat I have and while I personally can't compare it to other brands, The PolishAholic did a great comparison post here. The only wish I had when buying any brand's gold top was for there to be larger flakes and luckily my bottle of TMWTGG fulfilled my wish! 

I decided to also see what this manicure looked like matted, so I added one coat of Hard Candy Matte-ly In Love. I personally like it more without the matte, but it was fun to at least try it out. ;)

OPI The Man With The Golden Gun was released as apart of OPI's Holiday 2012 Skyfall collection at the beginning of October 2012. You may still be able to find it at your local Ulta or other beauty retailers, though I haven't seen it in store for about a month. :( It can also be found online at various retailers like Amazon and eBay. Find OPI on Facebook here and Twitter here.

Silly Bee's Chickadees Melly's Mix and Orange You a Honeydew Smoothie Reviews & Swatches

I have a fun new brand to share with everyone today, Silly Bee's Chickadees! Not only are the colors and labels on these polishes insanely cute, the idea behind the Fruit Basket collection is amazing! Melissa, the creator of Silly Bee's Chickadees, was inspired by fruit smoothies and fruit cocktails for the collection. The "cocktail" polishes within the collection are glitter mixes in clear bases and their "smoothie" counterparts are the same or similar glitter mixes in a white base.  She also offers her signature Melly Mix color and Mystery Mix, a polish composed of "misfit" polishes that is a little of everything! Enough of my gushing over the cuteness of the entire idea and onto the swatches. ;)

How cute are her labels!

Silly Bee's Chickadees Melly's Mix has a clear base with various colors and sizes of hex, diamond and square glitter. It's described as a "celebration in a bottle" and I couldn't agree more! I used 2 coats of Essie Where's My Chauffeur topped with 1 coat of Melly's Mix dabbed on and a top coat of Seche Vite.

Formula was great! I only chose to dab on the glitter because I wanted more glitter in less coats. ;) If you wanted to brush on this polish instead of dabbing, I would guess it would take 2 coats to achieve the amount of glitter I did. I'm hoping we see more satin glitter next year and this polish is a reason why! Satin glitters are fun and if you aren't looking for disco ball nails, they still add some excitement to your manicure. :)

Orange You a Honeydew Smoothie is a creme white based polish with matte orange hexes, pale yellow squares and matte pale green hexes. All nails are 3 coats with a top coat of Seche Vite.

Formula was again wonderful! It dried quickly and required no "fishing" for glitter. It does dry with some "bumpiness", so I would opt for a top coat to make it perfect smooth and shiny. I love the white base, but you could opt to layer this polish over a white base color to save on polish. ;) Orange You a Honeydew Smoothie makes me want a smoothie or at least some honeydew! The glitters blend perfectly together, I especially love the pale green satin glitter. :) 

Silly Bee's Chickadees polish can be purchased through etsy here. Melissa also offers nail wraps and adorable pincushions in her etsy store! Make sure to like Silly Bee's Chickadee's on Facebook here and check out her blog here (she is a crafting queen!). For swatches of all of Silly Bee's Chickadee's polish make sure to read Polish Monster's post here.

These products were sent for review, all opinions are my own. 

Jindie Nails Battle Royale, Burrberry and Dream In Color Reviews & Swatches

Hope everyone is having a wonderful day! :) I'm almost done with my Christmas shopping yay! I'm one of those horrible last minute shoppers :X Today I have a few polishes from Jindie Nails Winter Chic collection to share. Currently her shop is closed while she is catching up on orders, but she will reopen soon and has more polishes in the works! :)

Jindie Nails Battle Royale is described as deep blue jelly with shifting shimmer (that shifts from blue to purple to pink) and periwinkle, deep purple, teal, magenta, mauve and lavender metallic and matte glitters. It also has turquoise, light pink and hot pink round glitters. All nails are 3 coats with a top coat of Seche Vite.

Formula was great! No fishing for glitter and it dried quickly. I probably could have gotten away with 2 coats, had I done thicker ones. I like doing thinner coats, especially with glitter packed polish like this, because too much in 1 coat and the polish can take longer to dry about harder to work with. ;) Battle Royale is beautiful, the glitters and base color work perfectly together and neither overpower the other.

Burrberry has a white "crelly" base with blue, pink, magenta and wine colored glitters in various sizes. I used 3 coats with a top coat of Hong Kong Girl.

I did have to give polish a nice shake to get the larger blue hexes out, though it was no trouble and I assume it settled during shipping. Other than that no other problems to report! Burrrberry is a perfect name for this polish because it has the perfect mix of berry colored glitters that pop with the white "crelly" base. :)

Dream In Color is black, white, neon yellow, neon blue, barbie pink, neon green all same size small matte glitters in a clear base. All nails are 3 coats with a top coat of Seche Vite.

Again, no problems to report for Dream In Color. It dried quickly and I didn't have to "fish" for any glitter. Since it is matte glitter polish a top coat is a must, surely everyone is well versed in this with matter glitters though. ;)Overall, this polish has a greener appearance, but when you look up close you can see all the fun mix of color it has in it!  tt

Jindie Nails' etsy shop is currently closed, though when open it can be found here. Stay up to date about her shop reopening on Facebook here and follow Jenn, the creator of Jindie Nails, on Instagram here.

Battle Royale and Dream In Color were sent for review, all opinions are my own.