We Interrupt This Earth Week Already In Progress...

            ....to show the nude color that I wore today, courtesy of my teacher. The name of it is Naked Ambition, from Sally Hansen. 
.

Naked Ambition is a creamy pale peach color, with a crystalline secret shimmer. I call it a secret shimmer, because most likely, the wearer is the only one who will really notice that it exists. 

Sunlight, no flash.

Sunlight, no flash.

Natural light, no flash.

     This is a great color! It's delicate and feminine, but quite robust and rich. No sheerness here.  The shimmer keeps the finish from being flat and gives Naked Ambition a hint of sparkle and interest. And the base shade  itself is really flattering. I always worry about paler colors looking horrible with my complexion, but this is looks really good! And I think it'd work well with other complexions too. 

    My only real beef with Naked Ambition was the horrible application. I did three coats, and you could still see all the brushstrokes. And I actually love the Sally Hansen Brush, so the brush wasn't the issue. After the third coat, I was tired, so I slapped on some Poshe and hit it on down the road to bed. When I woke up this morning, my nails were creamy perfection and the brushstrokes were gone. I don't know how that works, but I don't like it!

And even though this post is technically not included in the Earth Week ones, I'm still going to give my tip so nyah.

Today's tip is: Ease up on the air conditioning! This is a hard one for me to follow because I am totally addicted to my air conditioner. I love the feeling of the cool air against my skin, especially when I sleep. But using it places a huge strain on the power grid and by extension, on the planet. So instead of cranking the AC up to polar, either use it on fan mode, power saver mode, use a regular fan, or just open a window. It's good for the environment and your pockets!

Earth Week Day 4: Brucci Black Emerald

           HAPPY EARTH DAY!! ^_______^   
           On this, the greatest of all April days, I'm unfortunately not wearing what I really wanted to wear, due to the fact that I'd only have to take it right off for tomorrow. Which would normally be fine, but I've been really anticipating this color, and I'd like to revel in it for a bit. But that's okay, I'll show it at the end of Earth Week. 
Anywho, I'm wearing Brucci Black Emerald, which isn't a very celebratory color, but it's pretty all the same. And there are lots of pictures today.....it's a celebration, you know. 

Black Emerald is a green to copper duochrome shimmer in a blackened green base. 

Bottle shot. Sunlight, no flash.

Sunlight, no flash. 

Sunlight, no flash.

Natural light, no flash.

Artificial light, flash.

Sunlight, no flash. Sorry for the jank index finger...during clean up, I was practically falling asleep.

Sunlight, no flash.

Sunlight, no flash. 

Man, this color is complex and my pictures don't begin to cover it. Looking at my nails, I think of the floor of the rainforest. It's dark down there, and everything looks black, dark green and brown. But in some places, a shaft of sunlight will filter down and illuminate the undergrowth, making it bright green until the sun moves. This polish is so much like that. 
I feel like they should have named Black Emerald Envy instead. LOL, I know that every green polish in the world is named Envy, but honestly...what's one more? And the name would be perfect for this color. Black Emerald is actually the exact color that I visualize when I say envy...it's all dark n muddy...and somehow cancerous looking. Me gusta!


The formula was okay. A little streaky but opaque on the first two coats. By the third, it was smooth and even. Dry time was fine...I used Poshe and the Essie drying drops, and went to bed about 30 minutes later. There are no wrinkles or sheet marks today, so there you have it. When I bought this, I was looking at it funny, because I wasn't sure if I would like it, but I'm glad that I did. Brucci really outdid themselves on this one.


The tip for today is: Invest in a tote bag for your groceries!
Thanks to my semi-rant on Day 1, we all know the deal with plastic. They are Satan! And buying groceries is a great way to unleash Satan upon the Earth, doncha know. Think about it. If you buy a ton of groceries, and the clerk double bags them, you can end up with as many as 20 plastic bags going home with you. I know that most people save grocery bags to reuse them, but eventually, those bags do end up in a landfill or in the ocean somewhere. It's best for them to not even leave the store. Plus, there are some stores (CVS is one, and I think Whole Foods is another) that offer discounts and reward programs for using canvas bags instead of plastic ones.
And if you regularly buy large amounts of groceries, then just get a few tote bags and one of those folding metal carts to carry them in. Problem solved!


Have a great Earth Day!! (And don't forget to hug a tree!)

Earth Week Day 3: China Glaze Beauty and the Beach

           Today, on this glorious rainy third day of Earth Week, I'm wearing Beauty and the Beach from China Glaze. I think this is discontinued, but it's not HTF. On ebay, it's going for a reasonable price (around 3 bucks), although I got mine from the clearance bin in a local nail supply shop for a dollah! ^_^

Beauty and the Beach is an electric, shimmery turquoise blue. The shimmer flashes sea green too, although I wouldn't call this a duochrome. 

Natural light, no flash.

Natural light, no flash.

Natural light, no flash.

    This is one of very few light blue polishes in my collection, but surprise! I like it! ^_^

The brightness and shimmer are magnetic, and I like looking at my hands with this on. I think it makes my nails look longer too. 

     But death to this formula!! Death and all kinds of destruction!! Firstly, this is ridiculously sheer. This is FOUR coats of color over one coat of Sally Hansen White On. I can't imagine how many I'd need if I didn't use the white. And actually applying it was a royal PITA. It streaked and dragged....fought me at every single turn. Although the nails on this hand came out pretty smoothly, on my right hand, you can see brushstrokes and all kinds of tromfoolery. I also got a little bubbling and dry time was awful...that's how my index finger got wrinkled up, although that may just be due to all the coats.  

    So even though I like this color, I probably will not be using it too often. I can't go through what I just went through again.

   Finally, the tip for today is: Grow a green thumb! Even if you don't have a sprawling backyard in which to plant a garden, get a few potted plants for your windowsill. Or participate in a local tree-planting event, which happens in many communities, especially around Earth Day. Plants purify the air by sucking up carbon dioxide and producing fresh oxygen for everyone to breathe, and can help improve mood and morale, especially in the case of bright flowering plants. They're really easy to take care of as well...just a little water and sunlight is all you need. And if you don't have the time or attention span to pay close attention to a plant, that's okay. Get a cactus. They perform photosynthesis too! ^_^

And with that, I am off to work. Where there is no sunlight, or air, and the only plant is dead and crispy and depressing to look at. :(

                                

Earth Week Day 2: Orly Enchanted Forest

            Okay, no chit chat today...I'm a little pressed for time. So without further ado, behold...Enchanted Forest!!

Enchanted Forest is a deep, muted, blue-based green creme. 

Sunlight, no flash.

Sunlight, no flash.

Natural light, no flash.

    This is a really lovely color! I think that the name is slightly misleading, because when I look at this on my nails, I think more this:

than this:

I don't know why...I know that enchanted forests can be dark and deep, but I don't know...this color just makes me feel all evil inside. But it's a good feeling. ^_^

I will say that I did not like the formula on this...I think Orly polishes just hate my guts or something, because this was pretty streaky. It was fully opaque in two coats, but I had to use one more, and two more on certain fingers just to even up the streaks. But that said, everything was rich and creamy in the end and it didn't bubble,  so I guess all is forgiven.

After everything dried up, I decided to use some flower decals that I got from Five Below. 

Natural light, no flash.

Natural light, no flash.

Out of boredom, I matte-ified this with one coat of Essie Matte About You. It interestingly came out the EXACT color of one of those green chalkboards from middle and elementary school. Brought back some memories man.

Lastly, the tip for today is: Change your lightbulbs from incandescent to fluorescent! They use less energy without sacrificing light, which is a twofold blessing. Less energy use means less strain on the Earth as well as a nice drop in your electricity bill.  And it's very easy to make the switch, because fluorescent bulbs are sold everywhere, for as little as one dollar. Just remember to call your local recycling/garbage disposal place to see how to dispose of the incandescent bulbs safely. They contain lead, so you can't just chuck em in the trash.

And that's all for today! 

Earth Week Day 1: Brucci TJ's Blue Suede Shoes

           Yup, I'm officially declaring it Earth Week here at the Phalanges Files! Earth Day is only a few days away (22nd) and to celebrate, I'll be wearing and showing nothing but blue and green polishes for the next seven days. I'll also be giving little tips about how to be nicer to the environment without killing yourself. The only exception will be on Friday, when my whack teacher is making me present my class project to the USGBC. She made me promise to wear something "demure" on my nails..."nothing outlandish". Boo, teacher! Stifling my creativity. *sucks teef*
           But anyway, the blue that I'm wearing today is TJ's Blue Suede Shoes from the house of Brucci. This polish first made its debut here as a part of a konad design, so I wanted to get it documented and out of the way.  Additionally, I wanted to start the week with something dark and somber, because although Earth Day is supposed to be about celebration and education, I think it's also a time to reflect and mourn over how much we have effed up this poor planet with our foolishness!

TJ's Blue Suede Shoes is a shimmery, deep navy blue, with a slightly dusty quality to it. It's not jewel-toned at all, and is much more reminiscent of the uniforms worn by the NYPD. 

Sunlight, no flash.

Sunlight, no flash.

Natural light, no flash.

     This is a nice color. It's not the very best dark blue in whole wide world or anything, but I like it. That...dusty thing it has going keeps it from being boring. And I really appreciate how even in lower lighting, it always looks blue. 

     The formula was okay...it didn't spread as evenly as I hoped it would, and it took a long time to dry. I used Seche Vite and Essie Quick-E drying drops after painting, then waited a few hours before going to sleep. In the morning, I still had sheet marks...I couldn't even believe my eyes. On the upside, it is highly pigmented...these are two coats, with one layer of topcoat. It was even opaque in one coat. I just used two for security and to smooth out the streaky places. 

    This polish was a cheapy...only $2.79, so I wasn't expecting magic or anything, but man...Blue Caribbean kicked its butt. 

And the tip for the day: Don't buy exfoliaters with plastic in them! Many body scrubs today unnecessarily and irreponsibly use little balls of plastic to slough off the dead skin. And many people buy these body scrubs, use them, and wash millions of little balls of plastic down the drain. But what most people don't realize is that these  little plastics end up in the ocean where they make a BIG mess. Lookit:

Yes...this is the ocean. The Pacific, to be exact. And ALL of that is plastic!! But nobody dumped it there...it got there and accumulated on its own. O_O

Of course, larger things like containers, packaging, bags, and bottles make up most of the mess, but the microscopic plastic bits are also dangerous! They end up in the bodies of  zooplankton, which end up in the bodies of fish, which end up in OUR bodies, doing only Jeebus knows what. Plastics also kill marine animals by lodging in their poor intestines, wreak havoc on ecosystems, and overall, they just make the planet a big ugly mess. Worst of all, plastic does not break down, because microorganisms in charge of biodegradation don't know how to do that. And it can take them thousands of years to learn how. Meanwhile, plastic is piling up all over the planet! So when you buy body scrub, buy the kind made of sugar, apricot hulls, or other natural exfoliants, because those are perfectly biodegradable and won't be harmful to the planet. 

To know which is which, peep the packaging...if you see that it contains "microbeads", or if you see polyethylene or polyurethane in the ingredients, run like mad!! And for more information about that nasty looking patch of ocean in the picture, google "Great Pacific Garbage Patch".

*hops down off soapbox*  ^_^

Wet n Wild Caribbean Frost + Konad

           I'm not wearing this today, but I wanted to post a color that I wore recently, Wet n Wild Caribbean Frost, and the konad print that I did over it. So polish pics and review first, and then konad pics. And, I have to say that I manipulated these pictures..my camera was picking up the wrong color entirely, so I had to correct it to match what I saw on my nails.

Caribbean Frost is a metallic, sea green polish. It actually looks much like the waters in the Caribbean...clear and bright.

Natural light, no flash. 

Natural light, no flash. 

For comparison's sake, here's the unretouched version of the photo.

     Besides the fact that this polish does not get along well with my camera, I think it's fabulous. The color is beautiful and perfect for warm weather. And the formula is amazing. The pictures are all with only two coats of color, and there were no issues with dragging or brushstrokes. Dry time was quick, and overall, I can definitely put this into my category of nail polishes to put on when it's late and I need to quickly slap on a color and hit the sack. Not bad for 99 cents, man.

    

    After this was dry, I decided to Konad over it.

I used plate M57, and the circled pattern. 

Natural light, no flash.

Natural light, no flash.

    I stamped the pattern with Sally Hansen White On, and then topped it with one coat of Nubar Opulent Pearl, for a little iridescence. The pattern is smudged, but that's my fault, not Opulent Pearl's. The flakes show up when the picture is enlarged. But anyway, this definitely confirmed my suspicions about Opulent Pearl...it definitely needs to be put over lighter colors. 

   And I need to complain about Konad real quick.

Wtf, man?! Why the patterns so small for?! My thumb so looks so jank right now because I had to double stamp on it, and my nails are not especially long or anything. I think they're normal. They need to make the plates with full nail patterns bigger, so they can make the patterns bigger and so people don't come out with jank looking manicures. Shooo. *sucks teef*  (end rant ^_^;)

Nicole by OPI Dream Catcher

           Since yesterday was Saturday, and I was fully planning on procrastinating my way through life, I got a chance to swatch some polishes. I'm not going to post all of them (more on that later) but I did want to get this one up as it rounds out the last of my Nicole by OPI shades. The name of this lovely polish is Dream Catcher.

Dream Catcher is a pale tangerine jelly base, absolutely packed with silver shimmer.

Natural light, no flash.

Sunlight, no flash. The sun really warms up the shade.

     Dream Catcher is pretty much what I wanted Peach Sherbet to be. It's warm, sparkly, squishy, and very flattering. The formula was easy too. The only problem that I had with it was that it was so damn sheer. I don't even know who in their right mind makes something so sheer, and doesn't intend for it to be layered. This here is SIX coats. Yes, SIX coats. And it needed every last one of them too. I may end up re-swatching this, and if so, I'll wear it over a white instead of on its own. 

   And the reason why I'm not going to post most of my other swatches is because of my cuticles!!  Thanks to the macro function on my camera, I see now that my cuticles are a train wreck, severely in need of emergency assistance. Last week, they did not look like this....they were not the best cuticles ever, but they weren't this ugly, and I know exactly why. I ran out of my Beauty Secrets NPR, and my Mango Mend at the same time (last week). Since then, my cuticles have gotten uglier and uglier, no matter what I try. I look back at my cuticles in some of the pictures from before, and it makes me sniffle a little.
So I'm going to have to break my no buy and make the trek to Sally's to stock up on Beauty Secrets and Mango Mend. Or maybe they'll send me a coupon for free shipping and I can get it that way. Whichever. And I know it's bad...I shouldn't break my no buy. But this is a serious matter!

   Already, I've used cuticle remover in the corners (that's where most of the ugly is) and I've been applying plenty of oil to my hands all day. And my cuticles feel and look (IMO) a little better already. Hopefully, when I get everything I need, my ugly cuticles will soon be naught but a distant memory. ^_^