September Birchbox: Ruffian Polish in Fox Hunt and Bonus Review

Let me start by saying that I totally voted for this color on Birchbox's website. So I'm a little bit biased. I loved it on the website and I love it even more on my nails.

Ruffian, from what I understand, is a high-end fashion brand that is just now stepping into the world of nail polish. And from my experience, they are having a hell of a good start.

This polish went on smooth as butter. Better, even, then some of the other high end brands that I have tried. It was perfectly opaque in two coats, which is stunning for a color this vivid. Means that I can save more polish for later. 

There was absolutely no streaks with this Ruffian polish. And the color is amazing. It's a burnt orange with hints of gold shimmer, and just a touch of pink if you look at it in the right light. Perfect for fall, it screams pumpkins and (of course) foxes. 

I also have to say that I was dubious about the chip free aspect of this polish. I work my hands pretty hard, and I wasn't expecting it to live up to the hype. However, I'm on day four of wearing this polish and my nails look just like they do in that picture. Minimal tip wear, but no major chips. My nails also aren't peeling, which is completely new to me. 

It might help that I'm also using Deborah Lippmann's Gel Lab Manicure set, which I purchased from Birchbox a while back and absolutely adore. 

This kit contains a tough as all get out case coat and a high gloss top coat. It adds impressive lasting power to any polish. But even this isn't perfect. It takes a really great polish to get the kind of wear that I'm experiencing with this Ruffian polish.

I have to say, if this one mini bottle is anything to go with, Ruffian is definitely in it to win it. They're a brand to look out for in the nail polish world. 

Thanks for reading!

Review: Orly Polishield

**This product was provided to me by Orly for my dissatisfaction with Flash Dry Drops. My review is unaffected by this.**

As you guys may remember, I wasn't a big fan of Orly. Their polishes are dupeable and the Flash Dry Drops left me pretty frustrated.

After informing Orly of the issues I encountered with their products, they were kind enough to provide me a free bottle of Polishield, their fast drying top coat, and another bottle of Flash Dry.

My review is for the top coat.

I have a top coat that I like a lot, since it's cheap and pretty fast drying. I also have issues with Seche Vite. So I didn't know how I was going to feel about this top coat, provided to me by a company I'm not a big fan of already. But actually, I was impressed.

It doesn't dry as fast as Seche Vite, but it certainly speeds up dry time significantly. Faster than my giant bottle of cheap top coat from Walmart. 

It also seems to do pretty well to prevent chipping, which I was surprised by. Most of the time, I just accept the fact that my manicure is only going to last a couple of days. I work with my hands a lot, so it's part of the job. Even "chip-free" top coats just leave me disappointed.

This however, helped my polish last about 4 or 5 days. And since it was a polish that already chips easily, I was really happy with that. 

This also dried to a high-gloss shine. Also nice, although my polish at the time was shiny enough without it. 

Overall, this is a decent product. I'm glad they sent it to me, because I probably wouldn't have bought it on my own after my previous experience with the company. But my faith is slightly renewed in the company, so there's that. 

Here's hoping this product continues to be as useful as it is now. 

Thanks for reading!

Review: Ruby Wings Take 2

Like I said in my first review of Ruby Wings, their customer service is unbelievable!

Within a few days of talking to them via email, I had a package containing the color changing Fate, a lavender indoors and a rich violet outdoors.

What follows is the review. Just for sanity's sake, I will state that this sample was provided to me for consideration.

This is Ruby Wing's Fate indoors. It actually looked a little lighter, but unfortunately no light seemed capture the color exactly right. It's a nice, muted lavender. A little on the dark side. Not pastel or frilly, but still feminine.

Outdoors, within seconds, it changed to a dark, rich purple. Definitely a significant difference, I'd say, and a lot better than the sample bottle that I received in my Birchbox.

Overall, this polish was much better to work with than the sample of Peony that I reviewed earlier. What you see here is three thin, manageable coats of Fate. It went on smooth, with none of the weird, stringy, pooling mess from before. There were no bald patches after two coats, but I put on a third just in case I missed something. 

You'll notice in the second photo that there are some decent chips in my polish. That picture was taken at the end of day three of wear. And I have come to assume that I will always chip my polish within three days since I work with my hands a lot. 

Even without the staying power of a standard polish, this is a fun little addition to my collection. I like that the colors are within the same family, so both indoors and out my nails looked good with my outfit. It was also a great conversation starter.

I'm very proud to say that Ruby Wings has good polish and amazing customer service. I can't wait to try out more of their products in the future. 

Thanks for reading!

April Birchbox: Ruby Wing Color Changing Nail Polish in Peony

I was so excited to get this polish in my box this month! When I heard it was an option for some of the subscribers, I cross my fingers and wished very hard.

And, voila, I got it!

Unfortunately, that was the only good thing to come out of this polish. What follows is one of the most disappointed polish reviews I've ever had to write.

This is the polish, indoors. Hm...I was told it would be bubblegum pink.

Something doesn't seem right here. In fact, this looks more like a coral. A very bright, very orangey coral with an undertone of pink. 

And...wasn't it supposed to change color? Y'know...like...a lot?

Oh look, an imperceptible sliver of color change, after spending ten minutes in the sun. And the instant the sun went behind a cloud, wham. Gone. 

My left hand had been in the sun for about ten minutes, my right hand had been in my back pocket. Also, pardon the terrible picture. My husband had to take it since my hands were busy modelling. 

Now, that was just the tail end of my woes. Let me start at the beginning. 

Out of the box, I knew something was wrong. This was coral, not pink. Maybe in some bizarre planet where the sun sets in the East, this is pink. But on this planet? In this time stream? This is an orange coral. 

Fine, whatever. It wouldn't be the first time I've been lead astray by marketing, especially nail polish marketing. And I like the color, so I decided to roll with it.

The formula, however, was an absolute nightmare. Even being very careful, using very thin coats, this polish was dreadful. It was thick and goopy, stringy like my bottle of Seche Vite towards the end of its lifetime. There was so much pooling around my cuticles that I had to pause my television show just to focus more on my manicure. 

Five coats later, and it is still patchy. There are bald spots aplenty near my nail beds and right before my nail line. 

And the color change? Non existent. I don't know if I just got a bad bottle or what, but the color change was so imperceptible I would hesitate to call this color changing polish. In the sun, it came out as a little more pink. Just so slightly deeper. But still, definitely, a coral. 

Even after ten minutes of sitting in full, bright sun, the only spot on my nail that changed color was one of the baldish patches along my cuticle. 

I'm thinking that this polish's cool effect works best with two coats or fewer, but the formula just does not allow that. 

Unfortunately, this is one product I'm iffy about buying. I've heard some of the other, full size bottles are much better. And that this shade, in particular, has issues. 

But I'm honestly kind of upset that they sent an iffy formula to Birchbox subscribers. 

Luckily, Ruby Wings has excellent customer service. After informing them of the problem, they have offered to send me a different bottle of Peony or another bottle of my choice. I'm going to try out a different polish and see what happens. Keep an eye out for that review!

Thanks for reading. 

A to Z: O is for Orly Flash Dry

A rare negative review has been appeared!

This is a review of Orly's Flash Dry nail drops.

This is a product that I bought upon recommendation from a sales woman at a Sally's Beauty Supply. From reading the label and what the woman told me, I was lead to believe that these drops would help my manicure dry faster and would increase the shine of the lacquer. 

Boy, was everything wrong. 

First off, this product has a pretty decent price tag. This cost me about $8 all told. And really? It makes my manicures consistently worse. I have only used the product a couple of times because it, without fail, makes my manicure gummy and squishy. Even fully dried polish is susceptible to its ruination. 

This is an utter failure of a product, in my opinion. It doesn't work as advertised, and it ruins manicures. 

When I contacted Orly about this, I got absolutely zero response. None. Not even a "we got your email" email. Just radio silence. 

Most beauty companies are excellent about offering refunds. Orly, apparently, not so much.

I was so severely disappointed in this product that I'm kind of surprised I still had the bottle to take a picture of for this review. It was buried in the recesses of my makeup drawer. And there it shall return, because there are tons of products out there that actually live up to their name. And don't, you know, ruin half an hour's worth of work. 

Thanks for reading!

Miracle Finds Under Five Dollars

You remember when I said that sometimes buying cheap is the best option? Because it lets you test out a product and maybe get lucky?

This is the story of the best $5 I've ever spent on a nail product.

You see, I used to be a huge fan of Seche Vite. Everyone recommended it. It was expensive, but supposedly worth it. And, in fact, it was.

For a time.

But as you may have heard or experienced, after a couple of months, Seche Vite has a habit of getting gummy. And not just a little thick and gloopy. Oh no. It gets thick enough to drag wet polish around and off the nail. If you use a bottle of Seche Vite a month, then fine. This wouldn't be a big deal. But I don't know anyone who paints their nails that often, even for swatching.

In the end, I was severely disappointed by this "miracle" product because, for me, it wasn't worth its money. I paid $8 for it and only made it through half a bottle before it became too gluey to use.

Enter a necessary Walmart run.

While waiting for my prescriptions, I perused the beauty section like I always do. At this point, my nails were naked because I had no top coat. Suddenly, I saw a big, round bottle looking up at me from the bottom shelf. I don't know why it caught my eye, other than its sheer size, but I'm so glad I picked it up.

The price? $4.99. The effect? Awesome.

Now, don't get me wrong, this doesn't dry as fast as Seche Vite. But within five minutes, my nails are dry to the touch. No smudges, no pooling, no gumminess. And look at the size of that bottle! 

I've already had this product for two months and there have been no negatives. And the best part? I don't feel bad adding two or three coats of this because it was so cheap! 

All in all, this is definitely tiding me over until I can afford the Deborah Lippman Gel Lab. And for $5, it's something great to have in your arsenal if you're planning on swatching at all. 

Thanks for reading!

Birchbox February 2013 – Color Club Wild Cactus

Right out of the box, I knew this color and I would become fast friends. Birchbox revealed it as a potential spoiler, and I am so very, very glad that I got it. No picture can do this color justice.

Color Club describes this on trend color as “a rich emerald” but there’s more to it than that. It’s got this blue in it that’s just marvelous. And it goes on smooth and perfect in two buttery coats. No bubbling, no pooling, no visible nail line. Just bright, pigmented color.

I really wish this picture did more justice. Unfortunately, my camera had trouble capturing the accurate colors, and even my editing tools couldn't get the jewel tone right. This is very, very washed out. Here is a more accurate representation of the color:

Bottle image courtesy of Birchbox.

And even that in the bottle picture isn't quite right. You're just going to have to see this for yourself, cause the color is fabulous and wonderful in every way. 

I’ve already put his beauty in my Birchbox cart, because there’s no way I can go without this color. It’s already one of my favorites, and this polish…well, it’s my new favorite. And I have a lot of polish.

In addition, I've had several customers at work comment on how beautiful the color is. This is an eye catching color that is sure to be awesome all year round. 

I’m so happy I could faint.

Thanks for reading!

Polish Review: China Glaze Pull Me Close

Now, this isn't my first time working with China Glaze's Magnetix line. I have two of the polishes, and really like them. Even without the magnet art, they are nice metallic colors.

However, on a recent trip to Sally's Beauty Supply, I happened to see the new Magnetix II magnet. So I picked it up (on sale, might I add) and decided that today would be a fine day to give myself a manicure.

Here's my review of the new magnets and an official review of Pull Me Close.

Pull Me Close is a nice magnetic blue-toned grey polish. The color is slightly streaky, but manageable. The formula is what you would expect from China Glaze: pretty awesome. You can get near opacity in one coat, but I would recommend two for using the magnet. It makes sure there is a nice base so there are no bald patches. 

As for the magnet...I'm impressed. As some of you who are into the nail polish world will remember, China Glaze got slammed for its first magnet. The little U-shape has three magnets, which is awesome, but they were really, really weak. You would have to hold your nail steady under the magnet for upwards of 30 seconds, and sometimes even longer. And even then, the design wasn't really as eye-catching as we were all hoping. 

They seem to have solved that problem with the Magnetix II magnets. These aligned the metal in the polish in about 3 seconds, and the designs, as you can see, are very distinct. The designs are also something that I haven't seen a lot of in other brands. The circles look fabulous in person. Just as stunning as in the pictures, and maybe even more so. I can't stop staring at my nails. 

I know, without a doubt, that I am going to get tons of comments at work. With the ripples looking 3D, the effect is undeniably gorgeous. 

China Glaze really renewed my faith in them, and I know I'm going to be picking up more magnetic colors to use with this new set of magnets.

Fun fact: If you go to Sally's they might still have more of these magnets. I got this bar (which usually runs at around $3.99) for $.79. Seriously. 

Thanks for reading!

Old Polish Review: Zoya Shawn Ombre Manicure

Today is going to be an old polish review from my Tumblr, but it's pertinent to today's story (I'm a creative writer at heart, so there're going to be a lot of stories).



That right there is my first ever ombre sponge manicure.

The base is Zoya Shawn, a delightful forest green creme. This polish color was one of the first I bought from Zoya, and it's what got me addicted to their brand. The formula is smooth and perfect and self leveling. The color is rich. I got tons of compliments on this color whenever I went out to run errands. People were amazed at how distinctive it was.

Then, I added to the style of the manicure by putting drops of China Glaze Champagne Bubbles on a makeup sponge and dabbing it onto my tips. It created an excellent effect that would be great for the holidays, or St. Patrick's Day, or really any other time (because it's just that pretty).

This manicure was really a big part of me stepping out of my comfort zone and trying something new. And you know where I learned it?

The internet.

I'm here to tell you that while the internet can be full of mean weirdos with nothing to do but offend other people, there are high points as well. I saw this style of manicure on Pinterest and saw how easy it was. It seemed a lot better for me to handle than the drops-of-polish-on-paper-and-then-sponge style. Which, by the way, I still haven't mastered. At all. It always blends into one awful color.

This, however, was fast and simple and something that I have repeated over and over again with different color combinations.

The internet is your friend for trying new things. It really is. Because when it comes down to it, there's probably someone out there who has done what you want to do and made a video/wrote a tutorial about it. And following someone's instructions is easier than going wildly into the great beyond with no navigation system whatsoever.

So, go find a tutorial on something you're interested in. Recreate it. See if you like it. If you do, CONGRATULATIONS! You've just took one step beyond your beauty bubble. If you don't, then at least you tried and you still stepped outside of your comfort zone. No matter what, you're more knowledgeable than you were before, and knowledge is the enemy of fear!

Thanks for reading!

Polish Review: Orly Velvet Rope

This is a case where buying a small sample is the best thing in the world. I'll explain after the review. For now, here are some pictures of this polish.

Orly's Velvet Rope is deep, medium purple with a metallic silver shimmer. On the nail, it is much less shimmery than it is in the bottle.

Overall, I really like this color. It's not a purple that's going to detract from your professionalism. It's not vampy, or obnoxious, or anything else. The color is fabulous.

But the formula...well, that's not really something I'm super excited about. The formula was really runny. I normally don't have an issue with polish getting in the edges of my nails. Well, I don't anymore. I spent over two years getting to that point, but with most higher end polishes, my amateurish application isn't an issue. Here, it was. I had to use three thin coats for this swatch. I made the mistake of using a lot on the first nail and it ended up pooling everywhere.

Then, there are the bubbles. You can see them if you look closely at my middle finger. I have only ever had a couple of polishes bubble like that, since I take my time with painting my nails. No rush usually means no bubbles.

And last but not least, I bought this because of the purple with silver shimmer. It looked awesome in the tiny bottle at Sally's Beauty Supply. But in the end, that just didn't translate on the nail well. I was hoping for lots of shimmer, but it ended up just being bits of microglitter spattered randomly on the nail.

This polish could be a lot worse. But it could be a lot better as well.

Luckily, I only paid $.79 for the pint sized bottle. I probably won't be buying the full size, especially because this polish isn't super unique. I'm sure I could find dupes with a better formula.

Thanks for reading!

Zoya Cheryl Nail Polish (And Story Time!)

As I stated in my introduction post, nail polish is what first got me into beauty products. What started as a lacquer addiction turned into something more. Something transforming.

So here, I give you Zoya Cheryl. One of the polishes I got from the Try 3 Free promotion. It’s a color I wouldn’t have paid for at the time because I didn’t know whether or not I would like it. But more on that later. For now, here’s the color:

Apologies for the terrible lighting. It has been raining in Atlanta for the past several days straight and I've had to rely completely on my desk lamp for lighting.

Zoya describes this polish as a smoky brown base completely packed with metallic copper, gold and mahogany metallic microglitter. A jeweled brown for a very rich look!

I couldn’t agree more. The color doesn’t look how I thought it would look. The brown is rich and shiny and goes on in two easy coats (like all of Zoya’s polishes). I think this would be a flattering color for pretty much every skin tone, and it especially looks great with mine.

And now it’s story time.

I wouldn’t have paid for this polish because it scared me. I love wearing brown, don’t get me wrong. But on my nails? I was worried it would look dirty or weird. Like I had dipped my nails in dirt or chocolate. But I figured that if ever there was a chance to try something out of my ordinary, it would be when it was free. So I took the dive. And it turned out brilliantly! This shimmer in this is gorgeous and I really like the way it looks on my tips.

And that’s what this whole post is about. Because let’s be honest, all those ladies out there who can paint their nails perfectly have reviews of this color. Their edges are neater. Their application less patchy. Their lighting professional. They do this for a living, or they received the color as a freebie from Zoya for marketing purposes. This isn't a new color to the world of nail polish.

But it was new for me. And I just really needed to step out of my comfort zone of greens and blues. And if you’re new to makeup/beauty/skincare/polish, I can’t recommend that highly enough. Prod the bubble until it pops and then step beyond the soapy ring that you thought was your happy place.

This blog, the beauty routine that has now become my standard, it’s all outside of my comfort zone. But I’m doing it. I’m trying new things and testing the waters and learning what does and doesn’t work. And for me, that’s the most important thing in the world. 

And if your money is tight? Don’t worry. Lots of online retailers do wonderful promotions to get some of their products moving. They’re hoping you’ll fall in love with something that you got for free and you will turn into a regular customer. And that happens really often. So if you don’t love it? Don’t feel obligated to buy it. Makeup is an evolving world and you have to constantly be learning and moving and changing, finding your go to items. 

What’s important here is trying out everything you can get your hands on because you never know what’s going to make you look and feel amazing.

There’s a big, wide world of makeup out there, you just have to take that first step outside of your normal.

Thanks for reading!