Polish Organizing (and stuff)

So I finally opened my polish racks today (that came in August 2nd) and one was smashed on 2 shelves.  :(  I'm working with UPS and the seller to fix this because at $70 a piece, this is no bueno.  I may be able to use super glue?  But I'd much rather not.  I've already been talking to my Dad (who is still in the hospital) about building a table for my polish racks but he wants to make a whole elaborate piece of furniture on wheels... oh geez.  So for now, they are all sitting on my dining room table.

Oy.  I'm also still in painting, so that's why my "white" wall is actually two toned (paint and primer).


I think I'm going to organize by brand and then by color.  I really like having them all by color because then I can look at dupes but I like having them by brand because the bottle sizes all line up.  I'm weird, I know it.


Here's the current list of my polishes (also available on my sidebar) - listed are how many bottles of that brand and then the brand.  I don't have my base/top/matte coats listed except for ManGlaze, but eventually I'm going to do those too.

Number/Brand

2       10

2       A Beautiful Life

3       American Apparel

6       Barielle

6       Bon Bons

1       Borghese

1       Chanel

41     Cheeky Monkey Cosmetics

225   China Glaze

7       Claire's

8       CND

6       Color Club

2       Confetti

2       Cover Girl

4       Dusty Round

1       Dusty Square

37     e.l.f.

5       Essie

2       FingerPaints

2       Hot Topic

1       Illamasqua

5       Jolly Rancher

2       Loreal Paris

1       Love My Nails

2       M.A.C.

4       ManGlaze

3       Milani

1       N.Y.C.

1       Natural Glow

18     Naughty Nailz

1       Nfu-Oh

22     OPI

3       OPI (Nicole)

8       OPI (Sephora)

3       Orly

1       Piggy Paint

6       Piggy Polish

4       Pure Ice

1       Rescue Beauty Lounge

1       Sally Girl

23     Sally Hansen

4       Savvy

5       Sinful Colors

2       Spa Ritual

2       Sula

14     Urban Decay

12     Wet n Wild

51     Zoya

And with China Glaze coming out with a whole 12 piece set for Christmas and then 12 pieces in the Spring with Anchors Away, well - let's say I'm going polish nuts.  I'm also really wanting to get some Nubars and Nfu-Ohs but my wallet is begging me to wait.  I'm supposed to close on my house tomorrow (it was supposed to be today), but things have been crazy.  Thanks for reading and I'm looking to get some swatches done now that I have my polish out again!

Blogs of Note

Starting off my series of "Blogs of Note" - blogs that I follow either because I found them, I know the author, or whatever crazy reason I have.


Today's Blog of Note is my friend Chele whom I met through work (kinda).  She's literally JUST starting out, but she's been a big supporter of mine, so please, do check her out at Polished & Frosted.


I'm hoping to make this a weekly post - possibly on Fridays?  Any suggestions (or even suggestions for your blog) feel free to either leave in the Comments section or email me at krystal@polishgalore.com 

A Little Ramble

I don't have a nail polish swatch today (sorry!) but I have a bit of news.  My Dad is still in the hospital after finding a very bad infection in his big toe (yeah, he's diabetic) and he's having surgery later today to try and scrape all the infection out.  It's been an emotional roller coaster, but we're survivors.


On a totally different (happy) note, I got all my polish racks in!  However, I'm having the hardest time figuring out (a) where to put them and (b) how to organize my polish.  Because things are kinda up in the air at the moment, I'm kind of thinking about putting all 5 racks on my dining room table (since I haven't used it yet), and organizing the polish by brand first, then by color.  My Mom wanted to paint her toenails today and grabbed Zoya Posh, not knowing that it was a matte or that it was more pink than maroon (to her).  I had painted my toes with A Beautiful Life Hot Rod, and it's probably the first time I've painted my own toe nails in well over a year... while I don't go for manicures, I do adore pedicures.  


I have another post coming up on Beauty Debutante soon involving a self tanner and soon I will have skin care related posts as well.  I'll be sure to link you because I'm really excited about beauty blogging as well.  


I read a LOT of blogs, and so I would like to start sharing some of them with you each week.  I think I follow about 167 blogs at this point and not all are nail polish related.  Is that something you'd be interested in?


I got myself a small mini haul of OPIs from the website that I bought my polish racks from, and there is an Ulta opening "sometime this fall" in the next big town over (about 30~ miles northwest) so I'm excited to check that out.  I also have the Zoya Wicked/Wonderful collection and this scandalous bunch of polishes from Naughty Nailz coming up soon too.  My nails are still in need of some TLC - I have to be honest, I'm happy with my Dermelect Launchpad... I thought I broke my nail the other night but nope, it was intact and I was shocked.  It has lived up to being a nail strengthener.


As soon as I hit 500 readers (I'm currently at 466), I'm going to be holding a sponsored giveaway from China Glaze, and today I got a bonus prize in the mail.  In June, I was apart of the HBO True Blood Ultimate Fan Experience and got to represent San Antonio, Texas as the Sheriff.  Today, I got my "thank you" gift which was season 2 of True Blood on DVD... I'm going to be like a Maker (get the reference?) and gift it to someone because I bought the discs on Blu-Ray on pre-order about 6 months before it was available.  Unfortunately, it is a region 1 copy so that has to go to someone in the USA (and maybe Canada?).  I'll find out more later.


Well dear friends, I'm going to go finish my DVR list of shows - I'm absolutely in love with the concept of DVR.  I have about 3 or 4 more hours that I'd like to watch before I call it a night (hah), but tomorrow I plan to get that polish organized and get some swatching done!  Thanks for reading my ramble!

10 Spring Awakening

While I was at CVS the other day, I found this brand called "10" which is pretty inexpensive (under $5) and had a lot of cremes that I figured could be dupes for several colors that I'm lemming (wishing for).  I accidentally photographed the top and not the name, but this one is called Spring Awakening.  10 is big 3 free and states that it has "micro matrix technology pairs breathability with durable, chip resistant protection, no streak, no smudge formula with a high shine UVA protection to resist fading."  Breathability?  Really?  That's not even a word!  Anyway.


This bottle is tall and tall bottles mean tall brushes.  I was kinda of scared that I was going to tip this bottle over the entire time.  I used Dermelect Launchpad, two coats of Spring Awakening and a top coat of Seche Vite.  The formula was horrid.  It pooled into my cuticles and was rather runny.

I tried to clean up my cuticles as much as possible but you can see it in my pointer finger and the pinkie was pretty bad too.

Slightly darker looking in the shade.  Overall it's a pretty color but just a bad formula.  I don't think I'll be purchasing many more of these unless I'm hit by sheer curiosity.


10 can be purchased at CVS/pharmacy.

A Beautiful Life Soy Nail Polish Remover

I was also sent A Beautiful Life's own soy nail polish remover.  It's big 3 free, soy based and non-toxic, safe for kids, recyclable packaging, gentle and effective and has a mild scent of grapefruit.  The smell was very faint for me but it was different from the smell of acetone for sure.


The top of this bottle is a small screw top which I wasn't sure if it was just a gaping hole or what, but nope, it's a little squeeze bottle that you can either let drip onto your cotton ball/pad, or squeeze the plastic bottle to get it on the cotton ball/pad.

I prefer cotton rounds, so I squeezed a little bit out onto my cotton round.

It looks a little oily from here and being soy based, there is a bit of an oil like residue that is left on your hands.  Not sure if you can tell that my nail and cuticle looks shiny here.

Now, the bottle states to wash your hands thoroughly after using, which I did and really felt like I had to because I'm not into having oily hands - I'm used to Zoya Remove+.  It did take a little rubbing for me to get my polish off my nails - it wasn't like a glitter scrubbing procedure but it wasn't a quick swipe either.  It was nice to have an alternative to acetone, especially when I'm trying to swatch several polishes in a day.  Like I need dry(er) cuticles at this point!  ^_^  Overall, I'm pleased with A Beautiful Life.  While the polish and remover is more than I pay for typically, this also has the all natural products in it, which is important.

A Beautiful Life soy polish remover is available on their website [official store] for $20 a bottle.

Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post. 

Rescue Beauty Lounge - Fall PreOrder

From Ji over at Rescue Beauty Lounge:

Pre-Order - 48 hours only!
Begins Monday August 2nd at 1pm EST.
Ends Wednesday August 4th at 1pm EST.

One married her dead husband's kid brother, another was a real witch, one left her child motherless and still another turned one too many heads.

Meet four of Henry the VIII's most intriguing wives—and my inspiration for my very regal polish collection for A/W 2010.

Okay, so I was already engrossed in the Tudor novel Wolf Hall when the Fall collections hit the runway. Givenchy's intricate brocades, Lanvin's feather-festooned metallics, and the strong, powerful neutrals at Celine hit the runway, all seemed reminiscent of the queens' elaborate wardrobes. I had my inspiration for Rescue Beauty Lounge's Autumn/Winter color collection.

Now for the who's who of Hampton Court:
Catherine—Henry the VIII's first wife and Europe's first female ambassador inspired this royal purple with a fine pewter sheen and hints of blue and fuschia shimmer.
Anne—Rumored to be a sorceress, Henry's second wife lends her short-lived name to this bewitching olive green with a subtle pink-gold metallic iridescence.
Jane—my (current) favorite polish, named for Henry's favorite wife, is a pale grey pearl with sheer washes of pink and gold.
Catherine H.—Like Henry's trophy wife, you'll lose your head for this shimmering Wedgewood blue hue with a hint of a gold- and pink-flecked darkening sky.

Needless to say, my loyal VIP subjects, these colors are going to fly off the shelves like, well, Tudor heads off shoulders. But as this Queen's favorite, you're first in line. So I order thee to...pre-order now for shipping the 2nd week of September!

As ever,

Ji


The link to preorder these shades is right here


For nail swatches, please check out Scrangie or All Lacquered Up 

A Beautiful Life Juiced

The other color I received from A Beautiful Life is their new colored Juiced which they call an intense orange creme.  However, I have to call it a neon because it was screaming orange that dried matte.  


I used a base coat of Dermelect Launchpad, 3 coats of Juiced, and left it without a top coat because of the matte finish.  The formula was also nice but I did still have a bit of VNL after 3 coats.  The first time I did my manicure, I got a phone call immediately after and while holding my phone to my ear, my hair smeared the polish everywhere.  I had to take it off and try again.  Up first is my sun picture.

See what I mean about a neon instead of a creme?  It looks a little red in this picture but to me it seems a bit more orange.

In the shade you can see that it's definitely a glowing color.  I like it a lot!  You can also see that I smudged my ring finger a bit and you can see the VNL as well.  I still really enjoyed this color as it's definitely a hot summer color.

A Beautiful Life is available on their website [official store] for $12 a bottle.

Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post.

A Beautiful Life Hot Rod

Today I have a new line of polish for you called A Beautiful Life [official website].  Not only do they sell nail polish, but also makeup, perfume, skincare and more.  The nail polish is big 3 free, long wearing and chip resistant, non-toxic and soy based, recyclable packaging, and safe for kids.  They have a nice range of colors from cremes to shimmers, frost and what I'm calling a neon.  A Beautiful Life was founded by husband and wife team Tony and Jennifer Artur in New Jersey.  Hot Rod is a candy apple red that has a surprise red shimmer in it.  It doesn't translate as well on camera, but it was really pretty on the nail.


I used a base coat of Dermelect Launchpad, 2 coats of Hot Rod and I didn't use a top coat this time.  A Beautiful Life makes a 2 in 1 Top/Base Coat but I don't have it but I wanted to check the dry time.  The formula was great!  Not too thin, not thick, and no pooling into my cuticles.  The brush was a little awkward for me because the top is shorter than I'm used to, but it wasn't unmanageable.


Check out how pretty this color is in the sun!

BAM.  It's definitely a very pretty bold red and like I said, while you can't see it - the shimmer is in there and is so pretty!

In the shade, it's still such a stunning color.  Now dry time wasn't horrible but it did dent after I came inside after taking pictures.  A top coat would have stopped that, I know.  I have another color and their soy nail polish remover to review coming up later this week, so see you tomorrow readers!


A Beautiful Life is available on their website [official store] for $12 a bottle.


Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post.

CND Fall Fashion Week & Fall Release

Please enjoy the following press release from CND.

Femme fatale manicures take on a masculine edge this Fall by going shorter and more square. The classic dark nail is rich red, and the modern look to dominate the season is a range of heathered mushrooms, greys and browns. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the new “clean manicure” is a sheer bone.  Pair these shades with Super Matte Top Coat for a fresh finish:

Additionally, in September, CND's Fall 2010 box set of Urban Oasis and Teal Sparkle will be available for $20 in select salons and professional beauty stores.

CND is available for $9 per colour, and $11 per effect and you can find locations to buy here. TransDesign and Head2ToeBeauty has the colours for $4.50 and effects for $5.50.

China Glaze Encouragement

Sorry for my delay in posting - all my polish is still in a box, a bag, and a few bottles are on my desk at the moment.  My polish racks will be here on the 3rd.  The house appraisal was on Thursday so YAY that's done, however, my Dad was put in the hospital on Wednesday night and will be there for several days as they try to dissolve the blood clot in his right leg.  Also I'm attempting to potty train my 3 year old before he starts Pre-K3 on the 11th and I'm having second thoughts about school for him.  Finally, I'm having to go to my doctor on Monday because the swelling in my legs have gotten worse and my doctor wanted me to go to the ER but I said no way.  FUN TIMES.


Back to the polish - that's why you're here!


So unfortunately, I only was able to swatch one of these before they got put in The Bag for moving.  Now, this is the first time I've received actually PR samples from China Glaze, that has the PR bottle label instead of the normal bar code.  Me, being a horrible speller, has noticed that "Encouragement" which was spelled correctly in the press release, is called "Encouragment" on the PR bottle.  I'm just double checking on that.


Now the only thing that made me slightly sad about this years BCA (Breast Cancer Awareness) collection was that the bottles will not have a tiny pink ribbon printed on the bottle like last years.  That's okay though because the colors are still absolutely beautiful.


Encouragement is a very milky white pink that was slightly sheer and contained a silver shimmer.  I had forgotten all about the shimmer until I got outside and saw it.  Sadly, I didn't have any sun the day I swatched, but you can still see how beautiful it is!


I used a base coat of Dermelect Launchpad, 3 coats of Encouragement, and topped it with Seche Vite.

Encouragement is a very soft color which I think is great for the office and the shimmer gives it a little punch!  The Fight Like a Woman collection will be available in professional beauty supply stores and select salons this September. Availability will be very limited internationally.


China Glaze [official website] can be found online through several etailers, including my favorite Head2Toe Beauty [official website], Sally's Beauty Supply [official website] as well asTransDesign [official website].

Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post.