I'm Not Dead!

Hi guys! Sorry for dropping off the face of the planet! My family and I went to Florida and for whatever reason, the hotel has no internet. I can use my phone to do some stuff, but all my nail photos are on my computer. So I just wanted to check in and say hi and things of that nature. Until we go somewhere with internet, here is a picture of the cute towel swans at our hotel. Thanks for reading and I hope everyone is having a good weekend!
P.S. Shark week!!!!

Shooting Shoots

       Sorry about missing yesterday! I was languishing in the cool air (heat wave begone!) and literally did nothing all of that day. But today, I have the final installation of Barielle Week. Huzzah! But since I didn't have a new color to show you guys (only had six colors), I decided to do some quick and simple nail art with one of my favorite Barielles, Shooting Star.

Sunlight, no flash.

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           To do this, I started with two layers of Shooting Star and then used China Glaze 2030 to stamp on the bamboo shoot pattern from Konad Plate m66. I wanted to use a bronze polish, to match with the glitter, but it turns out I don't really have one. *softly weeps* But anyway, even though I feel like this looks a little unfinished (like there should be something else on there), I'm still happy with it and I think it looks pretty darn good.

And with that, Barielle Week is all done! Thanks for reading, and have a happy day!

Barielle Elle's Spell

    For today, I have Elle's Spell from last year's Holiday Hustle Collection.

Elle's Spell is a wine red jelly base with tons of multi-sized and duochrome flakes in it. The flakes are the same kind as the ones in say, Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure. 

Sunlight, no flash.

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      Elle's Spell is beautiful and totally reminds me of the holiday season. Thanks to the rich color and jelly finish, my nails look like little radioactive cherries, and I just want to nibble them off. My only gripe is that the flakies don't change color on the nail as well as they do in the bottle, but maybe layered over a darker color, one could get more colors out of them. I don't know yet, but if I do that, I'll update with pictures and stuff. 

     In terms of formula, Elle's Spell was fine but for one terrible flaw. It was really really really sheer. This was like four coats over one layer of Essie Limo-Scene (five coats on my index and middle fingers), and I'm still not quite satisfied with the depth of the color on the four coat fingers. So this is one definitely best saved for layering.

And that's all from me today! Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone is enjoying their Saturday! ^_^

Barielle Blackened Bleu

    Today's Barielle actually came from a blog sale instead of from the actual place, but whatever, I'm still including it. This is Blackened Bleu, from the All Lacquered Up Collection. 

Blackened Bleu is a black jelly base stuffed with bright blue to teal shimmer. 

Sunlight, no flash.

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     I'm so superbly in love Blackened Bleu. I was kind of scared that it would be another NOPI Drama in the Dark dupe, but it's actually so much better. It's deeper, richer, and the shimmer is more distinct and sparkly. It's so pretty...like looking at the ocean on a gorgeous starry night. 

     Blackened Bleu had an okay formula. It was a bit thinner than what I would have liked, but it wasn't terrible. I needed four coats before I was satisfied with the opaqueness and depth of the color, so next time I wear this, it'll be over a black or dark blue creme. Also, it needed a really shiny topcoat to be at its absolute best, but at least after all the struggle and whatever, the end product is lovely. 

And that's all from me today! Thanks for reading, and enjoy your Friday!

Barielle Swizzle Stick

        It is so damn hot today. I want to go outside and do something, but I'm too afraid, since just taking these pictures, I feel like the part in my hair got sunburned. To make myself feel cooler, I decided to put on a chilly blue. So here's Barielle Swizzle Stick, from the Sugar Rush Collection. 

Swizzle Stick is a bright baby blue creme. 

Sunlight, no flash.

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       Swizzle Stick was one of the colors that I went back and forth on, but I'm glad that I ultimately pulled the trigger. I have such few pale blues, and this one is beautiful. I love that it's bright, but still quite soft against my skin, and I really like the vaguely squishy finish. 

       And finally...finallyyyy the formula was not thick or gluey. On the contrary, it was actually pretty thin and liquidy, but happily, not unmanageable. I went with three layers for opacity, but upon reflection, I could have used one more, just to make it all perfectly even.

       My only sadness is that Swizzle Stick did nothing to help me....my nails make me smile, but I continue to lounge beneath Satan's balls. *weeps softly*

And that's all from me today! Thanks for reading, and have a great day peeps!

Barielle Blossom

        Hello guys!! For today, I have a polish that I was lemming for like a million years, so I'm excited to wear it and show it to you guys. Meet Blossom, from Barielle's Wildflower Collection!

Blossom is a pale but saturated peachy pink creme. 

Sunlight, no flash.

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     I really love Blossom's color. It's very cute and ladylike, and satisfies the intense craving I've been having for peach and coral polish. I don't know why, but I just really want to wear them. And I like that Blossom is probably more wearable for most people (including moi), because it leans more towards pink than orange.

    However, Blossom was again kind of hard to work with. It was thick and gluey, and needed three coats to be opaque and streak-free. And really, I'm kind of reaching a point of annoyance with Barielle over this. It's easily solved with thinner, but I'm lazy in my soul and don't want to go through the trouble of thinning the polish. I have to open the bottle and then pour it and shake it and test it....ugh, I don't want to do that stuff!! Whyyy? *rolls around in bed*

But enough whining...time to go find something productive to do with my life. Have a beautiful evening and thanks for reading!!

Barielle Falling Star

      For today, I have Barielle Falling Star from the All Lacquered Up Collection. 

Falling Star is a saturated deep periwinkle creme base, filled with small copper hex glitter. 

Sunlight, no flash.

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     Falling Star is pretty and I was happy to see that it didn't look like toad skin at all. Barielle chose a rich, flattering and eye-catching shade of blue, and the copper glitter creates some beautiful contrast against it. I also like the amount and size of the glitter, because it allows the glitter to be a noticeable accent without being garish or looking like a craft project. 

    Formula-wise, Falling Star was not as bad as Sweet Addiction, but it was still uncomfortably thick and gluey. I used two coats for opacity, and was relieved to find that with topcoat, it dried pretty smoothly, but I'm still gonna drop some thinner in it.

And that's all from me today! Thanks for reading, and have a great Tuesday!!

Barielle Sweet Addiction

         A little bit ago...maybe in May, Barielle had a one day 50% off sale. I'd been interested in their stuff for a while, so when that happened, I went and placed myself a little order. Sadly, it was too early for me to get anything from their new collection, but I still thought it would be fun to make this Barielle Week around here. So to kick it off, here's Sweet Addiction from their Sugar Rush Collection. 

Sweet Addiction is a slightly dusty jade green creme. 

I couldn't get the dustiness to come out on the screen, and I think it may be a bit greener than it looks in my pictures. My camera clearly can't play nicely with greens. 

Sunlight, no flash.

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    I fell in love with Sweet Addiction's color right away. The smoky but still kind of bright shade of green was so pretty, and it looked so cheerful and sweet that I couldn't help but smile when I looked at my nails.

    However, the formula was kind of bad for me. It was very thick and gluey, and it was so hard to get it to level correctly, which I feel comes across in the pictures. It also bubbled like mad. The upside is that Sweet Addiction dried quickly and was opaque in just two coats, or one thick coat if you were a good polisher. 

    Although Sweet Addiction gave me hell, I'm not quite ready to let it go. It's so pretty, you know? So I think I'm gonna drop some thinner in it and try again later. If it works out better, I'll update this post with new pictures. 

And that's all from me today! Thanks for reading, and have a happy happy Monday!! ^_^

Milani Hi-Tech

     Hi guys! So as some of you know, I've been trying to clean out my stash to make room for more children for the sake of my sanity, and I'm happy to announce that I'm finally ready to have my blog sale! I made a little tab up there for that, so feel free to check it out!

On the nail polish front, today, I have Milani Hi-Tech from their 3D Holographic Collection. 

Hi-Tech is an electric lime green polish with a strong holographic effect. I know the pictures all look more celery green, and I reallyyy do not know why or how that happened, but it's brighter and more yellow than it looks here. 

Sunlight, no flash.

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     Okay, so since I have bombarded you with a million pictures, I'll keep the writing portion short. Hi-Tech is amazingly beautiful, and is a really good example of why you can't count drugstore polish out. The color is so bright and lovely, and the holo is uber strong....my camera dulled it, but in person, it's stunning. If you love holo greens, you gotta pick this one up.

     However, Hi-Tech's formula gave me a tiny bit of trouble. It was a little gluey feeling, and initially, I had trouble with bald spots. But after three coats, everything seemed to be okay. Next time I wear this, I'll have to try it over some kind of Aqua Base. And I used Seche Clear Base as a topcoat. It didn't dull the holo at all, so huzzah. 

And that's all from me today!! Thanks for reading, and have a beautiful Saturday!