Sally Hansen Yellow Kitty

Sally Hansen Yellow Kitty

Yellow Kitty is a yellow creme and is very sheer, requiring 4 coats to become opaque. She is one of my first polishes in my collection and this is why I baby her. Other than how sheer Yellow Kitty is, the formula was fine. It wasn't runny or hard to apply and it dried to a nice shine. Contrary to what's seen in the picture, Yellow Kitty is much softer, does not have a greenish tint, and has a tendency to look stark against my pale skin. I think she's much prettier in real life. Yellow Kitty is part of Sally Hansen's Complete Salon Manicure line and I know many people do not like the brushes in this line because of the paddle-like design. I love it, though, because I believe it makes application much easier for me. However, it sometimes puts too much polish on my nail, making it hard to control.

Yellow Kitty's story: I saw a swatch online of a very pretty banana yellow polish. I found out that it was Yellow Kitty and went out to buy it. This was before I knew of the world of swatches and how yellows usually have bad pigmentation/opacity. I am still on the hunt for a pretty, pale banana yellow. However, I will always baby Yellow Kitty. (Probably because I adore cats too!)

See you guys on the other side of the day!

- M

CQ Golden Green

CQ Golden Green

Golden Green is a very opaque olive packed with gold shimmer, which gives it a duochrome quality. This beauty takes 2 coats to become opaque and dries relatively fast. You will be able to see brushstrokes, due to all that shimmer, if you're not carefully applying this polish. Carefully applying it minimizes the brushstrokes. At certain angles you can see the beautiful olive green peeking through and, at others, a warm, glowing gold-brown. Needless to say, Golden Green is beautiful!

Removal can be somewhat difficult, though. If not removed completely, shimmer will stay behind on your nails and can be hard to take off. At least that's what happened in my case... I still believe you should add beautiful Golden Green to your collection.

Please ignore those curved lines on my middle finger. I was testing to see how quickly the polish dried. 

See you guys on the other side of the day!

- M

Essence Gold Rush

In more direct light:

Essence Gold Rush

Gold Rush is a slightly warm champagne with multicolored shimmer and takes 3 coats to become opaque. At 2 coats, it is still relatively opaque, though there is VNL (visible nail line). Gold Rush dries relatively fast; though it is part of Essence's dry-fast line, the dry-fast formula is a hit or miss sometimes. Some polishes tend to dry slower, thicken up quicker, and/or separate in a short (a couple of months) while. Unfortunately, the multicolored shimmer does not translate well onto the nail (it even hides itself when close-ups were taken) and there will be visible brushstrokes if Gold Rush is not applied carefully.

On a happy note, this swatch made me appreciate Gold Rush. I did not know that it had multicolored shimmer (which flashes green and pink and maybe some yellow and orange). I've always viewed it from a distance, which makes it look like it had silver shimmer. I originally bought Gold Rush because I just wanted a cool-toned gold (though it really wasn't) and it was cheap. Gold Rush needs to be seen in real life and up close in order to admire and appreciate her beauty. Surprises definitely come in small packages!

Close-ups of the shy shimmer:

P.S. I really need to learn how to tone down the redness of my hands! Bleh!

See you guys on the other side of the day!

- M

Claire's Candy Shop

Claire's Candy Shop

Candy Shop is a sheer bubble gum pink with multicolored glitter and takes 3 coats to look as it is pictured. Application was fairly smooth except it was necessary to manually move some of the bigger glitters. Dry time was extremely fast! Claire's Candy Shop is a dupe of Deborah Lippmann's own Candy Shop (yes, the dupe really does have the same name as the original). Candy Shop has exactly the same glitter as that in Deborah's Candy Shop and Happy Birthday! and Milani's Gems, the famous dupe of Happy Birthday! Removal was a HUGE pain (as is with many glitter polishes), however, this one was more so. The glitter got under my nails! And some of the time, they were sooo difficult to get out.

If you have been meaning to purchase Deborah's Candy Shop, but decided that it was too expensive, look no further! Claire's Candy Shop was around $5, but there is usually a Buy-1-Get-1-50%-Off deal at Claire's for their polishes, earrings, and etc. But act fast or Candy Shop may as well disappear (I mean, who wouldn't want a dupe of a ~$18 polish when they can get a dupe for only $5?)!

Here are close-ups of Candy Shop for a clearer view of the multicolored glitter:

Note: The pink is definitely not this neon/bright. It is a much softer, light pink. I think my light made it appear that way, much as it makes my hands look red.

See you guys on the other side of the day!

- M

Versatile Blogger Award!

I just checked this blog's e-mail awhile ago and lo and behold, I received this!

The e-mail, sent by Maria G., was actually sent yesterday (I should really check that e-mail account more often!) A HUGE thank you to Mrs. Maria, whose blog you can visit here: http://www.rialovespawlish.com/

Rules:

1. Nominate 15 fellow bloggers who are relatively new to blogging. 
2. Let them know that you have nominated them. 
3. Share 7 random facts about yourself. 
4. Thank the bloggers that have nominated you. 
5. Add the Versatile Blogger Award picture to your blog post.

Seven Random Facts About Myself:

1. I love reading manga in my spare time! I'm currently enjoying Freezing! There are many other manga that I'm also reading (Kuroshitsuji, Yotsuba&!, Angel Heart, Cage of Eden, Bartender, etc.), but this one has my heart at the moment.
2. I am in an accelerated pre-dental program right now (everyone in this program is a biological sciences major) and that's why I don't post too often... But when I do, I post late at night. (A meme reference that brings me to my next random fact...)
3. I am an avid 9gagger! And PROUD! I LOVE MY MEMES!!! Be careful of going to http://9gag.com/ , though. Your soul WILL be stolen. You have been warned...
4. My favorite nail polish colors are turquoise and mint.
5. I love stuffed animals! I brought a few with me to college. :3 Maybe I'll introduce them to you guys some day.
6. I believe happiness is being able to snuggle into your fresh-out-of-the-dryer blankets and bed lining. <3 Which happened yesterday when it was hailing, raining, and thundering. Double the happiness!
7. I have a problem with organization; everything must be color-coordinated, facing one direction, stacked in same-height piles, etc. I am not yet diagnosed with OCD.

I was actually in the middle of studying when I decided to take a little break, so I'll get back on the bloggers that I will nominate. Thank you again to Maria G.! :)


See you guys on the other side of the day!


- M

Essence What Do U Think?

Essence What Do U Think?

What Do U Think? is a melon/salmon orange creme with gold shimmer, very much different from what is pictured. I guess the camera freaked out because of the orange pigmentation. :( It took 3 coats to become even and opaque (though I think it could be a 2-coater provided that you're very careful) and dried pretty quickly with a nice shine. Unfortunately, the gold shimmer is very shy and that really disappointed me; it was what enticed me to purchase the polish. You have to look pretty closely to see some of the shimmery goodness.

Here is the beautiful shimmer up close (Now you can understand how disappointed I am...):

See you guys on the other side of the day!

- M

Essie Turquoise & Caicos

Essie Turquoise & Caicos

Turquoise & Caicos is a turquoise creme that leans green and took 3 coats to become opaque. Turquoise & Caicos is not as bright as pictured and dried with a nice shine, but dry time was pretty long. It's because dear Turquoise is around a couple years old and was probably made from a bad batch or a bad formula because the darling did not polish well the first time she was used. Sadly, this polish has been thickening even more and becoming more of a pain to polish with. You can tell by how uneven and blotchy the application is. I think it's time to tell this beautiful, lovely polish "Requiescat in pace". :( I will probably revisit this polish whenever I purchase a new bottle.

R.I.P Darling Turquoise & Caicos. You will be missed.


On a MUCH happier note, there is a college holiday tomorrow, which means... NO CLASS! YAY! I will be busy studying for a bio lab practical and swatching. :)


See you guys on the other side of the day!


- M