Zoya Delilah

Yet another Zoya for y'all today...

Zoya Delilah




(outdoors)




This one is a nice, sparkly, glittery, jelly red color. I am wearing two coats here, but three would have been better. What really surprised me with this one is that the removal was a piece of cake. It wasn't as complicated as I thought it would be. I think I just see glitter and think the worst. But, since this one is a jelly polish, it came off pretty easily.

Zoya Tosca

I think this color is absolutely perfect for summer! (well, what remains of it anyway...)

Zoya Tosca




(outdoors)




The formula was this one was great -- I didn't have any problems with it. It was practically opaque in one coat, but I am wearing two here. It is a bright pink with a hint of gold shimmer on it. You can see the shimmer better in the bottle than on the nail, but I swear it's there!

China Glaze Chocodisiac

I'm a sucker for browns... I think everyone already knows that :-)

China Glaze Chocodisiac




I am only wearing two coats here, which I initially thought would be enough, but after I took the pics and noticed some bald spots, I realized I probably should have slapped on another coat. I love the color -- it reminds me of a muddy brown, but it's still shiny and delicious, like chocolate. It's also got a touch of dark pink in there, which makes it decidedly different from your normal brown. Yum!

Zoya Mercedes

Happy Labor Day!! I hope everyone enjoyed a nice day off :-)

Zoya Mercedes




(outdoors)




Mercedes is a nice, almost-frosty, slightly-shimmery light mauve color. The formula is a tad on the sheer side, so this took three coats for full opacity. I like it, but can't say I'm in love with it. I will have a lot of Zoyas to show over the next couple of weeks. I got a ton of new ones during their recycling program this past summer, so I am slowly going through them all :-)

OPI Magnifico Mexico

EEEK!!! Sorry for the lack of posts, guys. Things have been crazy busy around here. That and I am (still) in the middle of moving and literally living out of boxes right now. I only get to change my nail polish every 3-4 days, instead of every other day like I used to do :-( And 2/3 of my polish is packed up right now, so I don't have a lot of choose from when doing my nails :-( But, hopefully all of this will pass soon and I will be fully moved and unpacked. In the meantime, does anyone want to buy a nice 2 bedroom/2 bathroom condo from me? :-D

OPI Magnifico Mexico




I'm not really an "orange" person. It's actually one of my least favorite colors! But, since it's summer and it's been scorchingly hot around here, I figure this would be the perfect summer color. This is more of an orange/red than a true orange. It looks a lot more orange in the bottle than it does on the nail. The hint of slight shimmer is also great for summer as well. Application was good and took three coats to be fully opaque.

I will try to be a bit better about updating... I have a huge backlog of pics... just have to get up off my lazy bum and actually post them! xoxo

Sephora by OPI Mermaid to Order

This is one of those posts where I wish I knew how to work my camera better, so that I could get more accurate pics!!

Sephora by OPI Mermaid to Order




This polish really does remind me of a mermaid -- the polish has a slightly frosty finish, and it flashes from teal blue to teal green -- it's absolutely gorgeous! Unfortunately, it only looks one color in my pictures, so you'll have to take my word for it :-) The formula was also really good - only took two coats, and the dry time and wear were both phenomenal. I do love $OPI polishes a lot - I just wish they were cheaper! At $9 a pop, buying a lot of them starts to add up!

Some Photos From Hawaii

Hey everyone! I thought I'd take a minute to share some of the pics I took from Hawaii while I was there. It was a wonderful trip, and truly one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to in my life. I hope one day I'm able to go back and check out some more islands!

A view of Waikiki/Honolulu from the condo where we were staying.



Lots and lots of pineapples @ the Dole Plantation



Pineapple FAQ!



Manoa Falls



Check out all the people hiking up Diamondhead Crater!



Beautiful view of Waikiki from the top of Diamondhead Crater.



Gorgeous Waimea Beach and some brave cliff jumpers.

Now I know why so many people vacation and honeymoon there! The trip was a bit of a pain, coming from the East Coast and all, but the perfect weather, super-nice locals, and the gorgeous beaches more than made up for it!

Aloha, Hawaii! Until next time :-)

Essie Rock Star Skinny

I'm back!!! Sorry for the long delay between posts -- I actually got back last week, but have been using the extra time to catch up on everything and adjust back to East Coast time :-)

Essie Rock Star Skinny




(outdoors)




I absolutely love this polish! I think it's awesome! After I put it on, I realized that it would have matched my bridesmaid dress really well -- it was a dark wine/burgundy color, and I like the hint of shimmer as well. The formula was consistent with most Essies -- very good, and applied evenly in 2-3 coats. I feel like I have a million other polishes that could very well be dupes for this shade, but for some reason, I still really like this one -- I think it stands out from other similar shades.

Orly Cherry Bomb

I decided to give Orly another try, even though they haven't thoroughly impressed me as of late...

Orly Cherry Bomb




While I can't say that they've thoroughly redeemed themselves, this is a step in the right direction. Cherry Bomb is a *bright* red with a slightly frost/metallic finish that glimmers silver. The formula on this one was actually very good and only required two coats. Wear was very good -- I wore it four full days before I saw any kind of tip wear. The pics above are just before I was about to remove the polish, so you can see how well it held up!

China Glaze Flyin' High

Here's another polish from the Up and Away Collection -- and a polish that ended up being one of my favorite blues ever!

China Glaze Flyin' High




Based on the formula issues I had with the two pinks I tried from Up and Away, I was a little hesitant to try this one, but I'm glad I did! It applied perfectly and was smooth during application (unlike its two pink siblings). I am wearing three coats here, and this blue is definitely gorgeous. It is darker than a Tiffany Blue, but still reminds me a little of it. I probably should have gone the extra mile and done a white Konad design on top of it, but I was a little pressed for time, so I didn't have the chance to. I know Up & Away can be hit-or-miss, but this one is definitely a HIT!

Orly Glam

This is what I wore as my Fourth of July mani. I know I'm a little late to post, but I wanted something that was a deep red, and I wanted some sparkle, so this seemed to fit the bill perfectly!

Orly Glam




(outdoors, direct sunlight)




Sadly, I didn't love this polish. I can't really put my finger on it -- maybe it was the formula. It wasn't quite jellyish, but it definitely wasn't opaque in less than three coats either. I just feel like the red shimmer/glitter polishes have been done to death, and nothing really stands out about this out. I probably should have just stuck to China Glaze's Ruby Pumps or something.... This looked a lot prettier in the bottle than it ended up looking on my nails :-(

China Glaze Strawberry Fields

Here's another beauty that's been sitting in my pile of "untrieds" for a while now. I figure the recent heat wave would be perfect to try it out!

China Glaze Strawberry Fields




(outdoors, direct sunlight)




I don't know if it's possible to fall in love with a polish and want to marry it, but if it were, this would be my mate of choice. It just screams "GORGEOUS!" in every possible way. The formula was great, and the color -- OMG the color! It is a medium-colored pink absolutely loaded with gold shimmer. It is a lot more visible outdoors than in, though the flash on my camera did manage to pick up the majority of it. This polish is from last year's Summer Days collection, and it is a must-have IMO.

I will be MIA for the next week and a half. However, in my absence, I've scheduled some posts to go up, so you won't be without me for that long :-) My family is going to Hawaii to watch my little brother get married. His lovely bride is from the Aloha state and that's where they are having their "official" wedding. We will have another little banquet/celebration for them here in a few weeks also. I am SO looking forward to this vacation. My family will probably drive me crazy (as is always the case when we are stuck traveling and living together), but I am so happy for and proud of my brother. He deserves all the happiness in the world, and I'm glad we're all going to be able to be there to witness this blessed event. Not only that, but I've never been to Hawaii before and I am STOKED! We will be in Honolulu, so if anyone has been before and has any ideas/tips of what things are a must-see, please let me know.

P.S. I can't swim, so I can't do any sort of under water activities :-( Also, I am under some physical restrictions, so nothing crazy like cliff diving, skydiving, strenuous hiking, or volcano jumping :-)

OPI Crepes Suzi-ette

Happy Friday!!! I hope everyone has a great weekend! :-) There's another heat wave expected here in the Northeast, so it's gonna be a HOT one out there!

OPI Crepes Suzi-ette




(outdoors, direct sunlight)




I don't know what took me so long to try this polish -- I've loved the majority of OPI's France Collection, and this one is no exception. The formula was excellent on this polish -- I am wearing three coats here, but the third was mainly just to even out the color. This polish makes me think "burnt sienna" when I look at it -- it is the perfect mix of orange and brown. I love it! I think this polish would be perfect for fall -- it reminds me a lot of the foliage here in New England :-)

China Glaze The Ten Man

This polish is from China Glaze's re-launched Wizard of Ooh Ahz Returns Collection. I apologize for the huge chip on my ring finger -- I took these pics wicked late. Oops!

China Glaze The Ten Man




I am wearing three coats here. The polish was a little sheer, so it took a little bit to build up. I really like the color because it is subtle, but packs a lot of glitter without being overbearing. I think this color would be perfect for a night out on the town, or maybe a special occasion, like wedding or prom :-) It's pretty, but not gaudy. WIN!

China Glaze Vampy

This polish is *old.* I'm not exactly sure how old, but you can tell by the label on the front that it is from at least a few years back! Maybe that explains the formula issues I had...

China Glaze Vampy




The color can probably best be described as a wine-colored burgundy shimmer. You'll have to excuse the flaw on my index finger -- I was in the middle of moving/packing stuff, and something scratched across my nail :-( As I mentioned above, I had some issues with the formula. I think this polish is supposed to be jelly-like in consistency, but due to the bottle's age (or maybe it really is the formula), it was incredibly thick and difficult to work with. When I first took the wand out of the bottle and saw that the polish didn't drip off, I knew it was thick, so I added some polish thinner, hoping it would help. It did help a little, but the formula was still a tad on the thick side. I think I'm only wearing two coats here, which isn't too bad, but goopy formula is never fun to work with :-( Maybe I should just stick with newer collections from now on. Le sigh.

MAC Seriously Hip

I have no idea why I waited so long to try this polish -- I absolutely love it!!!

MAC Seriously Hip




(outdoors, direct sunlight)




I don't think I can find the perfect words to describe this polish -- the base is a dark, mossy green that borders on almost-black. What makes this polish really pop is the remarkable gold shimmer. You can see microshimmer as well as flakey shimmer as well. Outdoors, it really stands out a lot more. The formula was also amazing -- perfect in two coats, excellent wear (pics were taken after two days of wear), and good dry time. Score another one for MAC!