REVIEW of Zoya Sunshine With SWATCHES

Hello sunflowers,

I think I've got a good one for you today. Zoya Sunshine is yet another polish I purchased from the Zoya Pixiedust line. Hooray for alliteration. I picked this up months ago and while it might be unusual to be testing out a dark blue polish in the middle of summer, it's what I gravitated towards after a run of bad luck with orange polishes.

Color: Zoya Sunshine is a deep blue textured polish. Like the other Pixiedust polishes, the textured finish isn't too pronounced. It doesn't feel that textured and isn't too abrasive to the touch and it doesn't look as textured and craggy. I'm using my OPI Liquid Sand polishes as a point of reference. However, I would say that Sunshine is more textured that some of the other Pixiedust polishes I've tried. I think the difference might be the color or maybe a change in the formula as new additions to the line have been released. For instance, Zoya London and Zoya Vespa are certainly not as textured as Sunshine. I would shade of Zoya Sunshine as a dark wash denim blue. It's what I instantly thought of when I first applied this polish. There are flecks of silver glitter which are apparent in its matte state without top coat and in its shiny state with top coat.
Formula: This polish has a thicker formula.
Application: I used two coats of Elmer's glue as my base coat, as is my wont for glitter and textured polishes. The first coat of polish offered surprisingly good coverage. The polish went on smoothly and was quite sparkly. By the second coat, the polish had already reached full opacity. I did have to even out the second coat a bit but it went on smoothly without any drag.
Wear: Now, I think this speaks more to the effectiveness of the glue as base coat technique than the polish itself. While wearing this polish without top coat, I chipped a bit of polish off my right pointer finger nail and my left thumbnail on the second day of my manicure. The next day, I chipped some polish off my right thumbnail. These chips were very easy to repair given the texture of the polish and the high opacity. When it was time to take the high shine photos, it took two coats of Seche Vite to bring Zoya Sunshine to a shine finish. With one coat of top coat, this polish still retains a bit of texture. However, if you really want a smooth surface, you might even need three coats. In the shine photos below, I used 3 coats of Seche Vite on the first two nails and 2 coats of Seche Vite on the last two nails. I don't know if you can really see the difference in the photos. You could get away with 2 coats. Three just look that much more like a regular, nontextured polish.

CONCLUSION: I would absolutely recommend this polish. The formula is easy to work with and the polish is opaque in two coats. If you like darker polishes, you will probably like Zoya Sunshine. I think the chipping I experienced was probably due to the glue I used as my base coat (to easily peel the polish off for removal) instead of a flaw of the polish itself.

Cat is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. If you would like to help support this site, please consider making your next purchase at amazon.com through the links on my page. I will get a small percentage of anything you purchase through one of my links at no extra cost to you.

SWATCHES

Babel Fair Sample Sale May 2014

Hello chickadees,

UPDATE: When I went by to check on things around 6:00 pm, there was a sign on the window announcing that the sale was over because they had sold out. I assume this means the sale is also cancelled for Saturday and Sunday.

I honestly don't even know how to begin covering this sale. First things first, this sale is being held in the basement of the Babel Fair storefront at 260 Elizabeth Street from today, Friday May 30 through Sunday June 1, though if you're interested, go by as soon as possible because I can't imagine that the merchandise will last long at the rate things are going. The store is open for its regular hours from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm.

I left the house around 10:00 am so I ended up there before 10:30 am. There wasn't much of a crowd, though more ladies showed up by the time the sale opened at 11:00 am. I was fourth in line which was lucky as they were only letting in 10 people at a time, given the lack of space in the basement. I was told they would continue to let 10 people in for 25 minute intervals as long as there was still a crowd outside. Nothing too crazy. I would guess there were maybe 20 to 30 women either shopping or in line when I left.

So, regardless of whether or not you want to fill a bag, you will be given a rather large white paper bag. Pricing is very simple at this sale. Whether it's on the racks or in the cardboard boxes, each item is $10 but if you fill a bag (I think they said past 4 items) you only pay $40 regardless of how much you shove in there. This is not time to be delicate and coy. This is a good old-fashioned sample sale and you better be prepared to get your hands dirty and to move quickly. My personal strategy was to grab anything with a particularly eye-catching print or made of a nicer fabric and throw it in my bag. Then, when I was about ready to leave, I rifled through my haul and checked the size tags (if there were any) and took out anything I didn't want. I still left with a very full bag with 22 items and if you're really committed, you could probably get more items into those oversized bags. Coming home to examine my haul, I don't see any damaged items but I can see why some items didn't sell at full price.

Hmn... what else? There is absolutely no trying on the merchandise. I don't know if this will change if the sale slows down and there's no line. Cash is fine. I was told cash is actually preferred.

You may have noticed there are no photos from inside the sale. Sorry about that. I was distracted and it was kind of chaos anyway. You wouldn't have been able to see anything with all the people in the way and the majority of items in boxes. I'll just try my best to describe what I saw. Most items seemed to be "small" but I saw one or two extra small items, a fair amount of medium sized items, and maybe a handful of larges. I don't know if they'll be restocking but it doesn't hurt to look as I obviously didn't get a chance to look through everything. There were quite a few floral pieces, which is what I personally gravitated towards. There was a bit of lace and a few leather items (mostly pants and shorts). I'd say it was mostly spring/summer wear, lighter fabrics and shorter hemlines.

To make up for the lack of photos inside the sale, I instead photographed some of my favorite haul items.

Eva Franco Sample Sale May 2014

Hello bumblebees!

Are you planning on catching Manhattanhenge tonight? I usually don't start off my sample sale reviews this way, but then Manhattanhenge doesn't happen every day. I think I'll try and catch it tomorrow as I don't live near a prime viewing location and I have to walk my dog. I did manage to stop by another special event, the three day Eva Franco sample sale taking place at 420 W. 14th St between Ninth and Tenth Avenues. Just to get it out of the way immediately, Friday hours are 12:00 pm - 7:00 pm and Saturday hours are 11:00 am - 6:00 pm. You've already missed Thurday's sale hours, I'm afraid. I'm posting this review on the later side as I probably arrived at the sale past 6:00 pm. I took the wrong train (I plead sleep deprivation) and ended up in Brooklyn. You know, I don't want to talk about it.

cardboard boxes

cardboard boxes

So what can you expect from this sale? Well, once you're buzzed in (#1), it's just one flight of stairs up to the sale. It'll be one of the first doors you see. Once you are inside, you will be confronted by cardboard boxes. If you are not a sample size or you don't have much time, do not spend time on the cardboard boxes. There are some very pretty items in the bins but they are not sized and eyeballing it I'd say sizes 2 and 4 dominate.

pale gold dress size 2

As for the racks, the smallest sizes start at the windows on the far side of the room. This sale carries everything from 0's to 12's but sizing is limited for some sizes. I would say that 2's, 6's, and 10's will have the best luck. There are a good number of 4's and 8's for a sale this size but 0's and 12's might have a hard time finding something. Of course, none of this truly matters as Eva Franco sizing runs small. This is certainly not vanity sizing but I'm not sure if it's sized to normal mannequin proportions either. So, what I'm saying is be open to going up maybe 2 sizes. This is not just me of the large bosom saying this. There were size 2's having issues.

sizes 4-10

sizes 4-10 (same rack)

REVIEW of Revlon Parfumerie Scented Nail Enamel in 10 Apricot Nectar

Hello hummingbirds,

Well, not every polish can be a winner. Full disclosure, I only had this polish on for a day. It wasn't that horrible but at the time I believed I was going somewhere and I didn't want to go through the hassle of doing a full manicure or really wearing this shade of polish to the place where I was going. Yay for cryptic, pointless vamping. I think I bought this polish from drugstore.com (not a sponsor, though they can sponsor me if they want to). I originally wasn't that impressed with the Revlon Parfumerie line when I saw it at Harmon's but I've been hearing some good things about it and as usual I needed to add more things to my order to qualify for free shipping. So let's start breaking down what I liked and what I (mostly) didn't like about this polish.

Color: Revlon Apricot Nectar is an orange creme polish. A hideous orange. I like bold, bright oranges that are almost red, corals, and perhaps pastels that veer towards peach. This orange is none of those things. It reminds me of nothing so much as fake cheese and is just a hair lighter than the Nickelodeon trademark orange No es bueno. It doesn't match the color of fresh apricots. It comes closer to matching the color of dried apricots but in a very artificial, unpleasant way. For some reason, this color just screams "not found in nature." It's just really not a terribly flattering color on me and I can't imagine it would be very flattering for most people.
Formula: The formula is on the thicker side.
Scent: As I was first applying this polish, I could already start to smell the scent even though the label on the bottle says that it's only supposed to be scented once dry. The scent was strong enough to be apparent without holding the polish close to my face. (Do not hold this polish close to your face. I don't want you to get high off of polish fumes.) I would describe the scent as soft and kind of citrusy. Once the polish was dry, I feel like the scent had changed. The scent had become sickly like orange cough syrup. I'm almost positive this is the same scent as the orange liquid Children's Motrin.
Application: As I applied the first coat, I noticed that the brush was creating streaks and ridges in the polish. I would not try to work with this polish too much. I was already having problems with the first coat. The second coat applied similarly. The brush was creating ridges and while the polish wasn't thick and gloopy (no threading), it did need to be evened out and this polish was not having any of that. As soon as you try and even out the polish everything goes to hell. I had to redo two nails at this stage. At three coats, this polish reaches full opacity but it isn't fully opaque because of some patchiness and balding. Also, there were some bubbles.

CONCLUSION: No, I would not recommend this polish. Because it is on the thicker side, I will probably be able to find a use for it in some nail art looks but I would not recommend putting yourself through the hassle of application for this frankly ugly color. This shade of orange is not that popular in polish lines (probably for good reason) but I'm sure you can find something else that will suit you more.

SWATCHES

Naturebox Review

Hello peanuts,

I know what you're thinking, and no, this is not a sponsored post. I wish it were a sponsored post. Seriously, Audible and Naturebox and Warby Parker can sponsor everyone else but they can't sponsor me? Well, anyway I generally resist the attempts of all such brands to brainwash me by advertising with every youtuber and podcast that I follow but I was intrigued enough by Naturebox to take advantage of the offer floating around for 50% your first box. I figured that I spend the same amount for my ipsy glam bag every month so it couldn't hurt to try out this subscription service which sends you snacks instead of makeup and skincare.

So what was the process like? Well, unlike some terrible websites, you can take a look at their snacks before you sign up for the service. Naturebox offers a wide range of snacks but they all fit into one general category or another. You have salty, sweet, and spicy. Dried fruit, granola, and chip-like snacks. In spite of the variety, you may not find something that appeals to you so definitely take a good look at the snack section before signing up.

Once you have signed up, you'll have access to other features of the site. You will be able to add snacks to your pantry as you browse. Now, don't panic. Just because you add something to your pantry, it doesn't mean that you're locked in to purchase it. Instead, depending on the plan you signed up for, the first few snacks in your pantry are the ones that will be sent to you in your next Naturebox. You can go to your pantry in the dashboard and reorganize the list of snacks to your liking until you're satisfied. Just be sure to check the information on the righthand side of the page which will keep you informed of how long you have to play around with the order of snacks in your pantry before your next Naturebox is sent out. You will also get an email with a link to allow you to track your package as you wait for it to arrive.

I ordered the smallest available package which sends you five snacks every month. They arrived in the large cardboard box you can see in the photo below. These are my immediate impressions: I liked the size of the snacks. Each snack comes packaged in a resealable bag that's a little bigger that a bag of chips that you'd get from a vending machine but not a giant Costco-sized economy bag either. It's enough to give you an impression of the snack you've ordered that should still last you through the month. Speaking of the packaging, it really is well designed. The bags are shaped in a way that allows them to stand up on their own and there is a clear panel in the front that allows you to see the snacks inside. The naturebox branding information is prominent and all the nutrition information on the back is very clearly printed. Props to whoever designed these snack packs. What I found disappointing was that all of the snacks that I chose seem to be rather high in calories and they also have other worrisome nutrition facts like high fat, sugar, and/or sodium content. Now, granted most packaged snacks and processed foods are not that great for you but Naturebox brands itself as a healthy, natural brand so I was disappointed when I read through the nutrition facts and some of the ingredient lists.

Poppy Seed Sticks
These were my favorite item from my first Naturebox. I would rate them as highly snackable. There was nothing offputting or offensive about them that would thwart snacking but they were still flavorful. I could definitely taste the sesame and poppy seed immediately. I developed a taste for poppy seed buns on a recent vacation and these poppy seed sticks definitely help assuage that poppy seed craving without my having to ingest calorically expensive poppy seed bagels, buns, or those wonderful buttery, flaky things from Breads Bakery here in NYC. I would call this a very accessible snack. It's basically a toasted sesame cracker with poppy seeds and that's what it tastes like.

Unfortunately, a whole bag of these poppy seed sticks is 720 calories with 9 grams of fat and 230 mg of sodium in each serving so for me, this is more of a snack for assuaging a craving than something like homemade popcorn which you snack on as you watch a movie or something you can pack a handful of in your kids' lunch box. I would get them again though because I love poppy seeds and sesame.

Toasted Cheddar Stix
This was my second favorite item in the box. They take a little getting used to but they taste kind of like mini pretzels. I got the sesame flavor and salt immediately but I couldn't really identify the sharp, sour flavor that makes this snack a little offputting. I guess maybe it's the cheddar but it's an acquired taste and not what I was expecting from these toasted cheddar stix. The sharpness of that sour note is either going to curb your cravings quickly or really inspire your snacking if you love it but it's not a snack that you can eat mindlessly.

An entire bag contains 640 calories while each serving contains 11 grams of fat, 510 grams of sodium, and 2 grams of sugar. I didn't hate these, but I wouldn't get them again.

REVIEW of Clinique All About Shadow Quad in Pink Chocolate

Hello ladybugs,

I haven't really reviewed makeup products in a while. It's usually nail polish and occasional lippies. I guess it's more difficult for me to review makeup because I don't wear that much makeup on my face and when I do I tend to stick to the same products for the most part. I picked up this Clinique eyeshadow quad from Sephora in the hopes that it would be one of those products that I could integrate into my regular makeup routine. Spoiler, it did not end up being one of those products. Let's break it down.

The Clinique eyeshadow quads are available from Clinique and Sephora for $28 each. Both the Clinique and Sephora websites have occasional sales and promotions so I would definitely wait for one of those offers before purchasing this quad, if you are interested in the product. To dispel the suspense, the main reason I returned this eyeshadow quad was because the colors just didn't work for me. I had some minor issues with the formula but had the colors been more flattering for my skintone, I might have kept the palette. Given the way the colors appeared on me, I would really only recommend this palette for women with fair complexions. I don't think these shadows would show up well on women with darker complexions since they barely registered on me and I have quite a fair complexion myself.

When I initially tried out this palette in March, I used my Urban Decay primer potion as a base and applied the shadows with my Coastal Scents eyeshadow brush, using my old Elf blender brush to blend the shadows together. I recently picked up a more expensive M.A.C. blending brush but I've never really had an issue with using cheaper Sigma or Elf brushes for my eye looks. I immediately noticed that the brush kicked up a lot of powder when I brushed it against the eyeshadow. I don't exert a lot of pressure so this was odd as this doesn't really happen for me with low-end shadows from Wet n' Wild or high-end shadows from M.A.C. or Urban Decay.

Cat is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. If you would like to help support this site, please consider making your next purchase at amazon.com through the links on my page. I will get a small percentage of anything you purchase through one of my links at no extra cost to you.

Shade 1
I found this shade to be too light for me to use as a base color all over the lid. For my skintone, I would have to use this as a highlighter in the inner corner or on the brow bone. I don't think it's bright enough for me to use in the inner corner and I find it looks odd as a brow bone highlight on me. I didn't think this shade blended very well. I found it to be a little chalky which isn't unusual for a lighter matte shade but I would expect better from a mid-range brand like Clinique and from a slightly expensive palette like this one. I've definitely used silkier matte shadows from Wet n' Wild. After a lack of success with different brushes, I tried applying this shade with the sponge tip applicator provided in the quad. I had much more success with the sponge tip applicator. The eyeshadow went on more smoothly and I was able to transfer the shadow more effectively so it appeared more pigmented. However, I still found the shade too light for me. It makes for a subtle highlighter, a little shimmery but not shimmery enough to really pop.

Araks Sample Sale Report May 2014

Hello lovelies,

I was up bright and early for the Araks Sample Sale which opened this morning at 8:30 am at 137 Grand St. I was third in line and by the time the sale opened, there were about eight other ladies with me. Because I jinxed myself before I left the house, I ended up climbing five flights of stairs to attend this sale. Of course, once I was leaving, the elevator was working again. I'd like to say that I was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed but even after two encores of the Glee version of Gloria on Spotify, my allergy eyes and I were not happy to be awake let alone climbing five flights of stairs first thing in the morning. Thankfully, you have until 7:30 pm today to shop this sale as well as Friday from 9:00 am to 6:30 pm.

So, what was the sale like? As you might expect from an Araks sale, there were several bins containing various underthings (undershirts, panties, thongs, etc.) separated by price and style.

Most of my fellow shoppers (about 10 by the time I left) were sorting through the bins where the best deals are to be found. However, I was pleasantly surprised to discover four racks of garments as well as two racks of underthings including soft bras/bralets and panties. 

Fleur du Mal Sample Sale Report May 2014

Hi chickadees,

You know the only thing I like more than a sale is a sale I don't have to go out of my way to visit, which is why I skipped the Oscar de la Renta and The Limited sales to attend the Fleur du Mal sale at 138 Baxter Street. I'm actually early with this report as the sale only opened at 4:00 pm. It will close at 7:00 pm tonight and reopen tomorrow Wednesday May 13 at 8:00 am and close at 6:00 pm. That's right. It's only a two day sale so if you're interested, run over as soon as possible.

Pro tip before you head out the door, do not wear your heels to this sale. You will be climbing six flights of stairs. I cannot remember the last sale I attended that was this many flights up without an elevator. There are print-outs along the way cheering you on and promising that the workout will be worth it. So was it?

Well, not for me. But then at my current dress size I'm a little more endowed so I wouldn't skip this sale based on my experience. Let me give you a bit more information before you write this one off.

There is a coat and bag check, which was an irritating discovery after climbing six flights of stairs. Both cash and credit are accepted and there is a walled off dressing room. The price list is as follows...

There are eight racks of clothing and bras, one long table of underthings, and some bins off to the side with extra merchandise in specific sizes. The clothing is on the expensive side, especially for the kind of lightweight, wispy pieces that dominated at this sale. I didn't really feel like the craftsmanship or the quality of the label justified those kinds of prices for a sample sale so I'd really recommend checking this sale out only if you're looking for lingerie. The bras came in a variety of styles and colors. I think all the bras I saw had underwire but there were full cup bras, demi bras, lace embellishments, mesh embellishents, polka dots, and leather. The bras came in a reasonable range of sizes. Fleur du Mal does not carry size A so if you're smaller than a B, you're out of luck. They also really only had a few size D bra's so this is going to be a sale for everyone who falls in the B to C range. You might get lucky with one of the 36 D's but personally, I found them all unflattering since the cut was exactly the same as the B and C bras without any adjustment made to accommodate or flatter a larger cup size. However, women in the B and C range have a good range of styles and colors to choose from at this sale so if you have the time and you're looking for a spring update to your lingerie drawer, maybe give this sale a chance. I can't promise you'll find something you like but if nothing else you'll get a workout climbing those six flights of stairs.

REVIEW of OPI Gargantuan Green Grape With SWATCHES

Hello bumblebees,

I've got an older polish for you today. I can't get confirmation on when this polish was first released but I know it's been a few years because I've had this polish recommended to me on more than one occasion in the past. I finally decided to pick up this polish from the discount site 10DollarMall.com. Again, not a sponsor but seriously, sponsors, I'm available. For a while I couldn't find Gargantuan Green Grape in stores. I think this was around the same time I was trying to track down What's With the Cattitude. Then I feel like it started showing up in stores again but I was no longer tempted to get it. Maybe it was the fact that I'd already been purchasing other light greens like Zoya Tracie and Essie Navigate Her. By the way, I can do a comparison of OPI Gargantuan Green Grape, Zoya Tracie, Essie Navigate Her, and Butter London Bossy Boots if you'd like. But anyway, I saw this polish on the site and you know I'm a sucker for a sale so I had to pick it up.

Color: OPI Gargantuan Green Grape is a pastel green creme polish. For me, it's definitely a pastel. It is just a touch lighter than the other greens in my collection and the color also has this creamy quality that is unique to pastels. It vacillates between a paler, cool-toned green and a brighter, pale spring green. I find that the polish looks cooler and dustier indoors and brighter and more yellow-toned outdoors in direct sunlight. I think it looks pretty indoors or outdoors but I think I prefer the cool-toned green as it's a bit more unique. This isn't the most flattering green for my skintone but I do think it's a fairly flattering color. It can veer on garish in the wrong lighting but for the most part, I love it.
Formula: The polish has a thinner, fluid formula. It is rather sheer.
Application: This polish has the typical wide OPI brush and longtime readers will know I prefer the thinner Essie brush but the width of the brush didn't create any problems for me. The first coat went on smoothly without any drag. However, because the formula is thin and the polish is sheer it was difficult to even out. I would suggest that you work with the polish as little as possible. Do not try and even out this polish with the brush. You'll just make things worse. I barely got any coverage with the first coat. With the second coat, I noticed that the brush was really creating streaks and ridges in the polish though the brush still glided smoothly without drag. With the third coat, the brush was still creating a few ridges but generally the polish glided onto the nail very smoothly. At three coats, the polish was not completely opaque. Light was definitely still able to pass through all of my nails and on a few nails, coverage was particularly poor because of the uneven application. I therefore chose to add a fourth coat of polish to my second nail, middle nail, and thumb nail. Painting with my nondominant hand, the polish appeared even less opaque. I had to do four coats on all of my nails and the polish still wasn't completely opaque. Actually I went back and added a fifth coat on two of my nails. I know. I know. Terrible!
Wear: I wore this polish for eight days. In that time, I experienced barely any tip wear. Really the polish only wore away from the very edge of the nail. I did experience a lot of growth in that time which is why I felt the need to remove the polish. I had absolutely no trouble removing this polish. In spite of the multiple coats, the polish actually came off quite easily

CONCLUSION: This is a difficult one for me. I want to recommend this polish because I do love the color and it ends up looking alright. But it is just so sheer. I think you have to make the decision for yourself. Application is manageable and this might work better if you can layer it with something else but I completely understand if you want to skip the hassle of dealing with such a sheer polish.

Cat is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. If you would like to help support this site, please consider making your next purchase at amazon.com through the links on my page. I will get a small percentage of anything you purchase through one of my links at no extra cost to you.

SWATCHES

REVIEW of Deborah Lippmann Nail Lacquer in Rockin' Robin With SWATCHES

Hello little birdies!

I've got a fun one today... It's Rockin' Robin from Deborah Lippmann. I know, it's yet another Deborah Lippmann polish. I also picked this one up in the beautybrands.com sale. This is actually the polish that inspired that purchase as I've been lemming it for a while now. Still, I always told myself I didn't need it and I could get a similar look from another brand or by mixing polishes but then it went on sale and all my arguments flew out the window. Isn't that the way these things always go?

Color: Deborah Lippmann Rockin' Robin is a light blue creme polish with dark blue glitter particles. There isn't much more to say than that. The creme base is not as light as some pastel or baby blues but it's still light enough to not be a medium toned or cornflower kind of blue. As you can see from the photos, it has a bit too much green to be a true blue. The glitter can appear so dark that it's black, but it's more of a dark navy blue. Of course, the lower layers of glitter are less prominent because they are partially concealed by the top layer of the creme polish base.
Formula: I would say that this polish has a thinner formula. It's not excessively thin or watery. It's just not that thick in consistency and it is a bit sheer.
Application: The first coat went on smoothly. It didn't apply evenly, I think in large part because the polish is a little sheer. It's sheer for a creme polish but not ridiculously sheer like a jelly or some nude polishes. I was worried at how much glitter was being applied with the first coat but that didn't prove to be a problem. The second coat also went on smoothly without any drag but the polish still appeared sheer and a little patchy. There was no drag on the third coat either. I did have to even out the polish a bit with the brush but I didn't encounter any issues with that. At three coats, the polish is still a little sheer when you do a light test, holding your hand up to a light source to test the opacity by seeing if light passes through your nails. Application was pretty much the same painting with my nondominant hand. I had to even out the polish a bit but it went on smoothly without any drag.
Wear: I did not use glue as my base coat for this polish because I've been having some bad luck with that lately and I didn't want the polish to peel off before I was ready to take it off. After five full days of wear, I didn't see any real wear at the tips of my nails. Really, there was just growth at the nail bed and a little bit of peeling on one nail after I took a bath on the day before I removed the polish. As for removal, I used my Zoya remove+ which is what I always use for glitter polishes or otherwise stubborn polishes. The creme base came off with almost no effort while the glitter stayed on. My method of removal was scrubbing at the glitter with cotton pads and Q-tips soaked in Zoya remove+. I did not pick at the glitter at all but I did have to exert some pressure. It wasn't the most fun polish to remove but I would say it was doable. It certainly wasn't as bad as trying to remove stubborn hex glitter. However, two of my nails did get a little scratched up on the surface so I'd proceed with caution. If I wear this polish again, I'll try the glue as base coat method.

CONCLUSION: Yes, I would recommend this polish. It is a little on the sheer side and thus a bit patchy but application is smooth and easy and I just love the look of it. I think the color will be flattering for a lot of people and it's a glitter polish with depth that's almost more like nail art.

Cat is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. If you would like to help support this site, please consider making your next purchase at amazon.com through the links on my page. I will get a small percentage of anything you purchase through one of my links at no extra cost to you.

SWATCHES

Butter London Lacquer Sale at Ricky's

Hi chickadees,

Here's a quick tip for those of you who love Butter London polishes. There is currently a sale at Ricky's online and in store on selected polishes. If you're shopping online, the selected polishes are already discounted. Be sure to add the coupon code B15 to get an additional discount.

Of course, if you live in New York and you don't want to pay the shipping cost or add enough to your cart to qualify for free shipping, head to your nearest Ricky's location. I just popped into mine. But be sure to check which polishes are discounted online first because when I went into the store they were unaware of the sale. So it's best if you know before you go which polishes are on sale in case they aren't sure so they can manually discount the polishes.

Happy shopping!
Cat

REVIEW of Wet n Wild Megalast Salon Nail Color in 205B Sugar Coat

Hello my little dragées,

Dragée would be the alternate French name for Sugar Coat listed on the bottle. That reminds me, I'm so behind on the Pod F. Tompkast. I was having iTunes issues and now I've forgotten which episode I listened to last. Anyway, none of that is important at the moment. I read a good review of Sugar Coat a while back and almost picked it up once at the drugstore but I ended up finally purchasing it from drugstore.com when I recently placed an order. Damn the $35 requirement for free shipping. Why am I telling you all of this? Skipping ahead in this endless story, I felt like I needed a palate cleanser, especially after a frustrating run of difficult to photograph polishes, so I pulled out Sugar Coat. I don't review that many nude polishes anymore as I don't really like them and mainly wore them when I had exams.

Color: Sugar Coat is a pale nude creme polish. It's not exactly a pale pink. I'd describe it more as a very pale peach, like a foundation shade. It's somewhat similar to OPI Samoan Sand but a bit more pink-toned. I wouldn't say it was as pink as Sephora by OPI A True Romantic. I would guess that it's somewhere in between the yellowish nude of Samoan Sand and the peachy pink of A True Romantic.
Formula: The formula of this polish is a little thick but sheer.
Application: I immediately realized what the problem with this polish would be when I applied the first coat. The polish went on smoothly without any drag for two brushstrokes but when I went to add a third brushstroke in the center and even out the polish with the brush, the trouble started. This is a case where the polish and brush work in tandem to thwart all attempts at getting even layers of polish applied to the nail. The brush creates streaks and the polish has sheer, milky quality that is easily displaced should you be so foolish as to try and work with this polish and even it out with your brush. Application of the second coat proceeded similarly. The formula is not super thick but the polish has to be evened out to get even application which you can't do because the brush will ruin the decently smooth layer of polish you just painted. You can sort of manage to even out the polish by loading more polish onto the brush and gliding it on very gently to get more of a smooth surface but the polish is still not really even. Honestly, I would suggest working with this polish as little as possible. I ended up applying four coats of polish. At three coats the polish is basically opaque. The only issue is patchiness and the uneven application. I added a fourth coat just to see if I could get the polish to full opacity.

When I was painting with my nondominant hand, the first coat went on smoothly. I didn't go over it with the brush to even it out as I had already learned my lesson when painting with my dominant hand. The second coat went on relatively smoothly though I experienced a bit of drag when I tried to even out the polish or add a third brushstroke in the center. At three coats, the polish still appeared unevenly applied and was not fully opaque so I added a fourth coat. At four coats, I would still call the opacity passable at best.

Wear: I wore this polish for four to five days. I barely experienced any tip wear. Really, the polish just wore away right at the edge where I wrap the tips of my nails.

CONCLUSION: Almost without fail I find nude polishes to be very aggravating to apply. I suppose if you're absolutely determined not to pay more than a few dollars for a bottle of nude polish, there are more expensive nude polishes that apply just as poorly. But there are also nude polishes that aren't as much of a headache. Personally, I think the color is a bit too light for me and not that flattering for my skintone and I would look for a polish with better application. Maybe try OPI Samoan Sand, which is my go-to nude polish.

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