China Glaze-Awakening

Enter my GIVEAWAY!!  :)  It's easy and you have a chance to win 5 lovely polishes!

I was thoroughly disgusted by how awful my swatches of Awakening were in my first post about it.  They were basically awful.  I wanted to do this polish justice since it's one of my all time favorites and it's a beautiful duochrome :)  Application is easy breezy, two coats.  These photos are two coats topped with Seche Vite:

this one shows the duochrome the best.  click me!

This one is a stunning purple/gold duochrome.  I can never seem to find swatches of this one which is a shame because I feel like everyone should invest in this beauty.  Definitely one of my top go-to polishes!

Sinful Colors-Verbena

First off, don't forget to click HERE to enter my giveaway!!  Now onto the review :)

Verbena is a gorgeously pigmented, slightly dusty, red-toned purple creme.  I can't get over how lovely the color is.  Great for all year round, in my opinion :)  It's fun enough to wear in the spring/summer, but dusty and toned down just enough to make it appropriate for fall and winter as well.  Application was stunning.  Opaque and even slightly jellyish in two smooth coats.  These photos are two coats topped with Seche Vite:

My camera wouldn't pick up the warmth of this purple and it looks a bit more blue here than it really is.
I think I'm in love :)
I wore this for three days through 2 long work shifts and it never chipped.  I got some tip wear, but that's to be expected.

Love you, readers!
:)

Butterfly Award :)

Today I was given the butterfly award by Theresa over at Tin Roof Nails :)  Her blog is pretty swell, you should check it out :)

The Rules:

1. Link the person back who awarded you

2. Share 7 things about yourself

3. Answer the following questions below

4. Award this to 15 bloggers

7 things about myself:

1. I have a 1 yr old dog named Lily.  She's black and white and sickeningly cute.

2. I am about to finish my B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Music (performance)

3. I also have a fish named Leonard

4. I transitioned into my love of nail polish through my love/obsession with makeup

5. My favorite food is corn, and my least favorite is celery

6. I still sleep with a stuffed animal named Rus that I got when I was 2 weeks old.  

7. I have an irrational fear of flying bugs, especially houseflies!

Questions:

favorite color: green :) 

favorite song: i dunno about one song, but i can't get enough of Modest Mouse

favorite dessert: cinnamon ice cream with mini marshmallows! (weird, I know)

what annoys me: when people patronize me/others

favorite pet: my Lily! (she's a lovely 1yr old mutt)

black or white: uhhhhh. both?

biggest fear: waves in the ocean.  so afraid.

best feature: Mr. NailsbyCourteney says I have nice eyes :) 

what is perfection: well...I suppose when I watch my pup sleep, I can't imagine something more perfect existing :)

guilty pleasure: Jersey Shore/nail polish :)

I want to give this award to these lovely blogs:
Beauty by Kayla Shevonne
Chic & Shiny
Eat. Sleep. Polish
Enamel Girl
Fingers Polish Mania
GiMiKd Girl
Imperfectly Painted
Liquid Jelly
Lovely in Laquer
More Nail Polish
Nightly Nails
OMG! Polish 'em
Polish Vixen
Shatter Me Claire
Spellbinding Nails


Hopefully all of you will spread the love with this award as well!  I love these blogs and read them regularly, so check them out :)


Thanks for reading <3

An Amateur's Nail Obsession 50 FOLLOWER GIVEAWAY!!!! (CLOSED)

Welcome to my 50 follower giveaway!

Ends 8/11 (This giveaway is now closed)

Rules: You must be a US resident (sorry!)

You must be a GFC public follower

That's all!  You can get extra entries as well, see the entry form :)

There will be one winner for this giveaway and that winner will recieve:

Sinful Colors Neon Collection (Neon Melon, Summer Peach, Fusion Neon) 

Two of my very favorite Sinful Colors polishes, Secret Admirer and Gogo Girl

A two sided buffer block for buffing and shining nails (still in plastic wrap)

White side of buffer block

Gray side of buffer block

All of the items in this giveaway are brand new and purchased by me :D

Sally Hansen-Pacific Blue

Pacific Blue is a gorgeous, vibrant blue creme from the Xtreme Wear collection.  You don't see blue polishes with this much pigmentation and vibrancy every day!  I've been really into creme finishes lately, and this one is so summery!  It makes me think of going for a swim :)  Formula was awesome, 2 easy coats.  These photos are sans topcoat:

My nail beds are still jacked.  I lightly buffed them a bit, so now polish goes on more smoothly and I started using Nail Magic Base Coat Therapy, which is supposed to help with peeling and flaking.  I'm still welcoming any suggestions :)

Also, I went shopping for my giveaway!!! I have the post all written out and everything cuz I'm so excited!  Only 4 more followers till I post it up :)  I love you all <3

Finger Paints-Primary Color

Primary Color is a gorgeous red jelly-creme finish polish.  It's extremely well pigmented!  I was blown away by how smooth the polish went on and how gorgeous it looked even after just one coat!  I was extra surprised because I picked this one up at Sally Beauty for only 99 cents.  It's on sale at their website for $1.99, but they were having a half price sale at the store near my house and they happened to have two in stock.  I figured they were so discounted because no one bought them/they were low quality, but damn, is this polish awesome!  These photos are two coats, no topcoat:

My camera tends to freak out when I photograph reds, but these photos are fairly color accurate, especially the first one.  It's a very true red, not too orange toned, but not too blue toned either.  Perfectly in the middle :)  I also apologize for the state of my cuticles.  I've been trying to baby them!

Also, same question as yesterday:  how do I mend my jacked up nail beds???!!  They're flaking and peeling up in the middle of the nail!  Eeek!

Thanks for reading :D

Sally Hansen-Mint Sorbet

Mint Sorbet is a minty creme finish from the Xtreme Wear line.  I really like minty colors in the spring and summer, so I was excited to wear this one :)  The formula is good, thin and creamy and opaque in two coats.  These photos are sans topcoat:

You can see a bit of cuticle pull on the ring finger in the first photo, but it wasn't noticeable in person.  Also, it looks like it's a bit bubbly, but it's really my jacked up nail beds.  I need help!  My nails have started flaking and peeling up at random spots on the nail.  I have been putting tea tree oil on them before I paint them to try to remedy this, but it's not helping!  I need some suggestions as to how to fix this!

Love you all, dear readers :D

Orly-Cotton Candy

Cotton Candy is a medium toned peachy pink with a cream finish.  The color is really cute, but the formula was awful.  Really, truly awful.  I think I may have gotten a dud bottle because the other reviews a read about it said the formula was decent.  For me it was incredibly thick and stringy like no one's business.  I ended up with tons of bubbles :(  I decided to thin it a bunch, shake it like crazy and let it set out overnight to let the bubbles get out of it.  I put it on again, and still had bubbles.  These photos are the second round of swatching, so there's bubbles, but not as many as the first time.  I had to use three coats both before and after thinning to get it even.

Does anyone have any tips on how to combat bubbles?  I've tried everything I know to get rid of them, but nothing has worked.  And it's a real shame because the color is adorable.

Thanks for reading, love you all!
:)

Nicole by OPI-Sounds Grape to Me

Okay, so this polish is so beautiful!  It is a wine colored base with gold micro glitters packed into it.  In the bottle, you can see a bit of duochromey color shift from wine to gold, but on the nail I couldn't seem to coax it out :( Still...it's super pretty.  I think it's such a classic color, especially for the fall.  I think I'm gonna be wearing this all the time when the weather starts turning cooler :)  These photos are two coats topped with SV.

Isn't that just gorgeous?  I'll just drool over it for a while now :)  I also think this color is flattering on my new nubbins.  I feel naked without my longer nails, but I'll get used to them eventually :)

Thanks for reading!
:D

Wet'n'Wild-Teal of Fortune

This is one of those colors that catches your eye immediately when you're walking past the polish section in a store.  It just screams 'you have to have me! I'm so shiiinnnyyy!'.  And let me tell you, it does not disappoint on the nail.  At first I thought it was just a basic glittery teal, but after looking closer, I thought I saw flakies!  I mattified it to get a better look and sure enough!  Itty-bitty flakies!  I was so excited :)  These photos are two coats, first topped with SV, then with Hard Candy mattifying topcoat.

enlarge this photo to see the gloriousness up close and personal!

do you see the tiny flakies!?

I have to say, I didn't think I'd like this polish because of the base color.  Boy was I wrong.  Gorgeous.  Also, colors like this usually stain on me, but this one didn't.  The brush was a bit wonky, but I think I got a dud because my other Wet'n'Wild insta dry's have pretty decent brushes.
Overall verdict:  totally pick this up if you don't already have it!!  It's definitely an under appreciated beauty :)

Love you all :D

Another Tag! Would You Rather? 2011 Edition :)

I really love keeping up with the nail and beauty community on youtube and this tag has been floating around :)    I thought I would share it with you all!  It's a bit more beauty oriented, but I know most of you are into that   junk too :)  I tag everyone!


QUESTIONS:

1.) Would you rather lose all of your mascaras, eyeliners, lipsticks, and lipglosses or lose all of your palettes and eyeshadows? not my eyeshadows!  haha I've invested far too much money in them

2.) Would you rather chop off all your hair or never be able to cut it again? chop it off

3.) Would you rather have a coral cheek or a pink cheek? pink :)

4.) If you had $1000 to spend, Would you rather buy clothes or makeup? nail polish!!

5.) Would you rather apply lipstick as eyeliner, or eyeliner as lipstick? eyeliner as lipstick

6.) Would you rather only shop at MAC or Sephora? I love MAC, but I have to say Sephora

7.) Would you rather only use one eyeshadow color or one lip color for the rest of your life? one lip color

8.) Would you rather wear winter clothes in summer or summer clothes in winter? winter clothes in summer, only because if I wore summer clothes in the winter where I live, I'd probably die.

9.) Would you rather dark nails or bright nails all year round? dark for sure

10.) Would you rather give up your favorite lip product or your favorite eye product? favorite lip product

11.) Would you rather only be able to wear your hair in a pony tail or a messy bun? probably messy bun

12.) Would your rather never being able to paint your nails again or never use lipgloss? never use lipgloss!  I would cry if I could never paint my nails again :(

13.) Would you rather shave your eyebrows and have none at all? or sharpie them in everyday? could I use a method other than sharpie?  Sharpie, I guess...

14.) Would you rather live without makeup or nail polish? ooh, hard.  ummmmm. I suppose I'd live without makeup because you can find stuff to tint your face with like in the olden days.  There's really no replacement for my precious polish :)




I love you all, dear readers!

Sally Hansen-Forever Lilac

Forever Lilac is from the Diamond Strength line.  It is a sheer berry-lilac mix of a color with a ton of pretty shimmer.  Now, I did not expect this polish to be called Forever Lilac when I first saw the color.  In the bottle it is more of a raspberry color, definitely not lilac.  On the nail, however, it dries just a touch lighter.  Still not a true lilac, but definitely closer than the bottle color.  These photos are three coats topped with SV.

I really like this color. I'm not sure it's the best against my skin tone, but it's super shimmery and pretty.  Very feminine.  It has a somewhat metallic quality, which makes it a little more unusual than your typical purple mani. Even though this color is super shimmery, I still think it is office appropriate because of the soft, feminine color.

What do you think?

Also, I've been getting quite a few comments where people are link spamming me.  I moderate my comments to avoid them being posted, but I would appreciate if you would please email me instead of leave a link here if you want me to check out your blog/website.  Thanks!! :D

Sinful Colors-Secret Admirer

Secret Admirer is a rich black with TONS of silver shimmer/microglitter.  I have always had a soft spot for this color because of how much microglitter is in it.  It's some serious bling on the nail! The color is rich and only requires two easy coats to achieve rich, glittery perfection.  These photos are two coats, no topcoat.

What I like the most about this color is that even though there is a ton of silver reflect to it, it still maintains that rich black base.  Sorry about the smudge on my ring finger :/

What do you guys think of shimmery/glittery blacks??

P.S. I have reached 35 followers!  Thanks to everyone who reads my blog, I write for you!  And a reminder that I'll be having a giveaway when I reach 50 followers to celebrate :)

Del Sol-Electrick!

Del Sol is a brand of nail polish that changes in the sun.  When UV rays hit the polish, the color changes from the bottle color to a color distinguished by a sticker on the bottle.  Electrick! is a frosty blue that is supposed to turn to a teal-ish green in the sun.  As you can see from the photos, the color doesn't change very much.  It just changes ever so slightly more green in the sun.  These photos are two coats, no topcoat.

artificial light

artificial light

sun

sun

As you can see, the color change is very subtle, but it's definitely there.  I like the sun color a bit more just because I'm not the biggest fan of frosty baby blues.  This color is WAY frosty.  It's almost impossible to get a flawless application because every brush stroke shows on the nail.

What do you think of color changing nail polishes?

ABC's Tag!!

A. Age:

22, 23 on October 27th

B. Bed size:

Full (too small!)

C. Chore you hate:

de-cluttering.  I actually really enjoy cleaning, though

D. Day:

I dig Thursdays :)

E. Essential start to your day:

If it's early: a nice hot cup of coffee

F. Favorite color:

Green :)

G. Gold or Silver:

Silver all the way!

H. Height:

5'6"-perfectly average!

I. Instruments:

Bass Clarinet, Clarinet, French Horn, Mellophone, Trumpet, Piano

I <3 Music

J. Job title:

Wish I had one!

K. Kids:

No kids for now!

L. Live:

Flagstaff, AZ

M. Mom’s name:

Betty

N. Nicknames:

Uhh...I guess I don't have too many nicknames.  Court?

O. Overnight hospital stays:

Never! Knock on wood...

P. Pet peeve:

When people say they'll do something but don't come through...I don't like it when people are flaky!

Q. Quote from a movie:

I'm more of a book person, myself.

R. Right or left handed:

Right

S. Siblings:

3 half siblings, 2 step siblings

T. Time you wake up:

Lately between 9 and 10.  The joys of being unemployed

U. Underwear:

Yes?

V. Vegetables you dislike:

CELERY.  I despise celery with every fiber of my being.  Other than that, I'll pretty much eat any other vegetable.

W. What makes you run late:

Boyfriend!

X. X-Rays you’ve had:

Back, chest.

Y. Yummy food you make:

I can make a mean lasagna.

Z. Zoo:

I love the zoo!

I tag everyone to do this!  It's so much fun to read these and get to know all of you :)

Sinful Colors-Courtney Orange

The reason why I got this color is obvious...the name!  How could I pass up a color named Courtney Orange?? Yeah, it's spelled differently than my name, but it's basically still the same, right??  Anyway, CO is a bright orange shimmer.  Application was pretty good.  A little sheer, so three coats were needed to achieve full opacity.  These photos are without topcoat.

I'm typically not a huge fan of orange polish, but I can tolerate this one because of how bright and fun it is.  It also has shimmer, so that's a plus.  I would definitely recommend this polish if you are an orange lover!

Let me know what you think!
:D

Sally Hansen-Going Green

Going Green is a tremendously pigmented deep emerald green with shimmer from the Xtreme Wear collection.  This color is truly gorgeous and is a stunner on the nail.  You could get away with one coat if you were careful, but I did two just to even everything out.  These photos are sans topcoat.

The shimmer is pretty subtle, which I like because the color itself is very in your face.  The formula was a bit thick, but nothing a couple of drops of thinner couldn't restore.  Even with the thick formula, application was decent.  Not as good as the Diamond Strength line, but decent enough not to require a ton of cleanup afterward.

What do you guys think?

Finger Paints-Art Lofty Toffee

Time for an oldie, but a goodie!  Art Lofty Toffee has been one of my very favorite nail polishes since I was around 16.  It is a toffee colored polish with the slightest duochrome flash of teal.  It's barely noticeable, and I mainly notice it when looking at the bottle.  These photos didn't pick up the teal well at all.  I included a bottle picture to try to show it...tell me if you can see it!  I can if I look reeaaallllyy hard.  These photos are 2 coats topped with SV.

do you see the faint teal flash in the bottle?

This is a frost finish, so be careful with brushstrokes.  Overall, I really enjoy this polish.  It's always a go-to for me when I don't know what to wear.  My bottle is about half gone (eep!  time for a replacement) and hasn't thickened up or gone weird or anything over time.

Tell me what your favorite go-to polishes are!
:D