NOTD: Covergirl Outlast Stay Brilliant Nail Polish in Lingering Spice

This is my first drugstore nail polish and I'm so happy that it's from Covergirl.

Covergirl claims you don't need a topcoat when painting your nails because the formula combines base coat, high gloss color and a chip-resistant top coat in the polish.  The packaging is classy and sophisticated as it resembles the same packaging as Chanel and Dior.  The polish is very opaque so you can get away with just 1 coat.  I follow a 2 coat rule so I feel like the 2nd coat with this polish will give extra shine on your nails.  The color lasts at least a week without any chipping.

I really like Lingering Spice (265) for spring.  It's a soft mix of coral and dark orange that is so beautiful.  I also have Tickled Pink and Out of the Blue.  I'm not a huge fan of Out of the Blue as the color doesn't quite suit the "cobalt" blue I'm searching for.  These go for $4-$6 depending on what beauty store you purchase them at.  Other than that, I definitely want to get more polishes since there are 45 colors to choose from!

I highly suggest you try these polishes out if you haven't.  If you're a nail polish hoarder or junkie like me, then you need to have these!

NOTD: OPI Pamplona Purple

Sorry for my absence everyone.  Moving isn't easy though I'm 90% settled in my new home.  There are a few straggling boxes that take up some space, but overall, I'm happy to be in the new house.  My mother- and brother-in-law drove up over the weekend with most of their furniture from Florida.  So it's been busy moving BIG furniture and unpacking item after item.  I haven't had any chance to follow up on fellow beauty blogs and channels on Youtube.  The only reason I have this time is because 1) my daughter is napping and 2) everyone is lounging in the living room watching tv.  I figured I could do a quick post on my latest polish obsession.

Meet Pamplona Purple from OPI.  I'm not over winter just yet so I'm trying to make much use of all my dark, winter nail polish colors.  I remember purchasing this at Ulta thinking this is a great plum color.  It's not too dark like eggplant purple and not too royal purple.  I only needed 2 coats for full opaqueness.  This does dry a tad bit darker than what it looks like in the bottle so definitely test the color before you purchase it.

Happy painting!

NOTD: OPI Euro Centrale Collection

You know that I'm a big OPI nail polish hoarder so this comes as to no surprise that I have a couple of new polishes from their latest collection.

This collection showcases colors that are playfully named after a few cities throughout Europe.  Two colors that I picked up are Can't Find My Czechbook and Polka.Com.  The first color is my first ever turquoise polish.  It's vibrant and is a true turquoise color.  You need 2 coats to make it opaque because 1 coat will leave streaks on your nails.  The second color is a top coat with big and micro glitter chunks of blue, magenta and purple.  Layering this color on top of the turquoise makes the blue glitter really stand out.

(L) Can't Find My Czechbook; (R): Polka.Com

After reviewing a few swatches from other bloggers, I think I might pick up a few more colors.  You can purchase these at any local beauty store at $9.  Have you tried any of these?

DAILY GRINDS

♥ What drew me to this specific collection is the name of the turquoise nail polish.  I had the privilege to travel to Europe during my senior year of high school.  One of the cities I went to was Prague in the Czech Republic.  The city is absolutely PHENOMENAL!  It's a city that I want to go back to with my husband and daughter some day.

Prague, Czech Republic 2005

♥ Lately I've been busy trying to be a productive Mary Kay consultant.  I started this adventure back in October and I'm starting to take advantage of the makeup products as a makeup artist.  I challenged myself to do 30 makeovers in 30 days which I was just short of my 30 makeovers.  Outside of my family and circle of friends, I hope to create a bigger clientele pool and maybe get some wedding/engagement gigs for the summertime.  It isn't easy taking care of a 3 person family with only 1 income.  Maybe I should look into how to become a successful salesperson...

♥ My moving countdown is now at 9 days.  Time is flying!

NOTD Valentine's Day ♥

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

How appropriate is this day to share my nail art from new nail polishes I picked up for spring.

(L) Mariah Carey by OPI in A Butterfly Moment
(R) CoverGirl Outlast Stay Brilliant in Tickled Pink

Mariah Carey and OPI partnered up to create a new collection inspired by the singing sensation herself.  This is limited edition and comes in 8 beautiful shades that seem to reflect Mariah's personality.  When I visited my local Ulta and saw MC's new polish collection, I was immediately drawn to this color called A Butterfly Moment.  This is a beautiful pearl pink with a noticeable gold sheen.  The formula is a bit thick, but I can't complain about how lovely it looks on my complexion.  This is a great neutral color perfect for spring.  If you have olive skin tone or warm undertones, I think this will work great for you.  Two coats is perfect enough for smooth coverage.

I was watching eleventhgorgeous review a couple of CoverGirl products recently. (watch here) The girls had a high review of the nail polishes that I had to pick up one color.  The one I have is Tickled Pink which is a hot magenta.  These trendy polishes allow you to skip the top coat because the formula leaves a long lasting shine.  I'm surprised by the price of these polishes; it definitely blew my mind.  I don't own any drugstore polishes so I'm really happy with this one.  The packaging is similar to Dior polishes where the top is removable.  The same goes for the Butter London polishes.  I definitely want to purchase more from CoverGirl.

Even though my nails look simple, the heart on the ring finger is a perfect touch for today.  I also have a video posted on my Youtube channel for you guys.  It's all about my favorite lip products that are suitable for today's holiday.

Enjoy your Valentine's Day everyone! Sending lots of cyber love ♥♥

Just Another Manic Monday

I have a shoebox full of nail polishes from OPI, butter London and other brands that mostly have a black handle (weird obsession, I know) and do not contain the "toxic trio".  The "toxic trio" is the nickname for dibutyl phthalate (DBP), toluene and formaldehyde in which these ingredients have been known to cause side effects. [link]  So, when purchasing any nail polish, I always read the finely printed ingredients to make sure they're considered "toxic free".

I'm introducing a new nail polish brand that fits perfectly in my "toxic free" black handle world.  I purchased these Julep beauties a while ago and have only used 2 out of the 6 polishes pictured below.  I'm wearing one of the colors today and I must say it's a good "waiting period" color between seasons.

From L to R: Viola, Felicity, Hoch, Donna, Stefani, Keira (Hello Ladies!)

Donna is beautifully painted on my nails and is a true peacock blue.  Two coats is more than enough as the color is very rich and leaves no streaks from the brush.  The polish dries quickly and with a good top coat, you won't see any chipping for a few days.  You can say that Donna is my girl of the week.

Julep Donna paired with Spoiled Good Karma

Have you tried any Julep nail polishes?  Let me know and happy painting!

DAILY GRINDS

♥ Pictures from the Beer Expo over the weekend

NOTD: butter London Toff & Aston

October is one of my favorite months of the year.  My favorite color lately has been variations of mauve and purple.  They're quite soft and beautiful on all skin tones.  My current NOTD are polishes that I purchased during Ulta's "Buy One, Get One Free" offer for butter London nail polishes.  This awesome deal was something I couldn't pass just because I love butter London!  Plus, buying 2 polishes for the price of 1 is a wallet's best friend.  I'm so happy that I was able to snatch up these 2 polishes (I bought 4 polishes in total, but you get my drift).

NOTD: OPI Schnapps Out of It!

It's September and already the transformation from summer to fall in fashion and beauty has arrived in a blink of an eye.  Everyone can say that the summer flew by so quickly that people are still in summer mode post Labor Day.  Well I'm not one of them- I LOVE FALL!  I already started picking up a few items that are perfect for the fall including a new nail polish by OPI from their latest collection.

The OPI Germany Collection includes 12 new shades that were inspired by what fashion editors are calling "Europe's hottest new fashion metropolis".  It embraces elegance as well as the avant-garde essence of modern Berlin.  Personally having travelled to Berlin over 7 years ago, I love the boldness of each color and the names are quite catchy.  These shades are great transitional colors into fall and are perfect for any activity, day or night.

Being a loyal OPI consumer, I couldn't resist purchasing at least one of the new polishes.  Among all the new colors, Schnapps Out of It! is a color that caught my attention.  It's a beautiful mauve/brown color with red and grey undertones.  There's a super fine hint of silver glitter and shine that's nearly noticeable after applying 2 coats of polish.  I don't know why but this color reminds me of rose petals.  When I first swatched it at the store, all I could this of was rose petals and potpourri (weird, I know).  Anyway, this color is great for those who are still holding onto their summer tan (guilty to that!).  The color on your nails is warm and very fall appropriate as the weather starts to get cooler.

   

Have you tried any of the shades from OPI German Collection?  Let me know.  Happy painting!