Hiatus

Hello everyone!

It's been a while since my last "real" post. I've been M.I.A. (missing in action) because of some stuff I had to take care of back home and improving my grades. There is some time now for me to swatch here and there, but I just can't get myself to do so. I want to swatch, but I just don't want to actually do it. Hopefully an absence will make the heart grow fonder, as they say. I've been keeping myself busy with nail polish-related tasks when I'm not studying to help regain my passion and love. Here's a little of what I'm occupying myself with... (Warning: wordy post!)

Last night, my friend helped me build my melmer! (Well, more like I just assisted her...) It's the best investment I've ever made because there's now more room underneath my bed, my polishes are more organized, and I can finally get rid of all the boxes my polishes were in!

The first drawer is where all the big brand name polishes are, with some higher end ones on the side. Brands: OPI, Essie, China Glaze, Orly, Zoya (in the way back), Color Club, Deborah Lippmann, and Butter London.

The second drawer has a continuation of my higher end polishes, but mostly contains indies, out-of-the-country brands, retail brands, and what I consider "higher end" drugstore polishes. I left some space for the polishes that haven't been delivered yet. In my excitement, I forgot to leave a bigger space to accommodate the new Cult Nails collection that I already pre-ordered. So sad! :( Brands: Butter London, Rescue Beauty Lounge, Illamasqua, Julep, Candeo Colors, Candy Lacquer, Chick Nail Polish, CrowsToes, Cult Nails, Glitter Daze, Gloss 'n Sparkle, Jindie Nails, Ninja Polish, Ozotic, Pretty Serious, Wing Dust Collections, Essence, Ulta, Love & Beauty, L'Oreal, Milani, JulieG, Jordana, and Revlon.

The third drawer has a continuation of "higher end" drugstore polishes along with "lower end" ones, miscellaneous brands that I only have one or two of, and my frankens. I didn't think I'd be able to fit all my polishes (the ones that aren't packaged in some sort of display, at least), but there's actually some space still left! Yay!!! :D Brands: Maybelline, Sally Hanse, Sinful Colors, Wet 'n Wild, Spoiled, Confetti, Barielle, Layla, Nails Inc., Sephora by OPI, SpaRitual, Finger Paints, Sonia Kashuk, Avon, Winmax Delicia (Japanese brand), Catrice, Model's Own, Urban Outfitters, Claire's, Icing, NYC New York Color, Funky Fingers, CQ, Rimmel, Fantasy Makers (from Wet 'n Wild), Nabi, Sally Girl, and frankens.

Review: As of now, the melmer contains approximately 360 polishes. I still have polishes at home and on the way! (I'm going to estimate that it will hold close to 400 polishes. However, keep in mind brands use bottles of different shapes. I also had to leave space at the back of the drawers because the polishes wouldn't fit in them. Only my mini polishes could, and I don't have many of them. I tried my best to efficiently use the space provided.) The quality is ok; it will do what it was made to do. My friend and I had a particularly hard time with making the second drawer (though it could also be contributed to assistant error...) and the screw was drilled in a way that made part of the drawer crack. (To clarify, damaging the melmer is not that difficult to do, though it is still somewhat sturdy.) Since it is a melmer, it is obviously compact. Included are pieces that allow you to stack melmers so you'll be able to save lots of space! (Very convenient if you live in a small apartment or dorm.) Since the place from where I bought it always has a 40% off coupon, I only paid $20. Not a bad investment, right?

(Aaaaand now I just forgot to leave some more space for The New Black and Orly polishes I have on the way! Curses!)

I've also been doing stick swatches of my polishes. I do them as soon as I receive my packages so my workload won't pile up. After the swatches are dry, I organize them by color. I find that displaying the swatch sticks on binder rings is the most convenient method. Friends and I can find the color we want to wear easily. So far, it's been keeping me on my toes!

I hope to be back soon with a reborn passion! Until then, see you guys on the other side of the day!

Michelle