O.P.I My Private Jet

This is the infamous MPJ, although it's the new version.  The old version was more of a charcoal color and a linear holo, this is more brown with a scattered holo although it looks black in most indoor lighting, and there is also a blue flash version; all with the same name!  Regardless of the holo, I love this color.  The TraceFace Philes has a great comparison on the different formulas of this color.

If you follow my blog you may remember I posted about my all time lemming (here).  I got my nails done in my normal salon 3.5 years ago and still remember this gorgeous color, but  I wasn't into polish as much as now so I never knew the name.  All I have of it are a few pictures from that time that you can barely see my nails in.  I thought I had found the color in Finger Paints Sketch-y until I got it on, photographed it and found more old pictures of my nails and realized it was no where close. Ladies; I fully believe MPJ is that color. Check  out the comparison pictures below, bottom left is probably the best picture.  I'm positive this is it!

My 3.5 year old lemming mani

This is 2 coats MPJ, it dries a little satin but clear coat glossed it right up.  Accent nail is one coat MPJ, China Glaze For Audrey, & Orly Nite Owl.  Clear coat is Sally Hansen Insta-Dri. Next time I think I will try a coat of China Glaze Fairy Dust for some extra holo sparkle, I wanted a simpler look today. This is what I call a fishtail chevron because a chevron is generally straight not curved but a fishtail is also referred to as this, which I'm calling a fishtail braid. Here is a tutorial from Chalkboard Nails for this design :)

*** Y'all please take a minute to also check out my jewelry page, the tab is at the top of the page, Contact me if you'd like to purchase one, and thanks for looking***

Zoya Mimi 50th Birthday Nails

Today I have a mani from my Mama's 50th birthday yesterday:)

So here is the motivation for this mani... The color is Zoya Mimi, Mimi is my son's name for my Mama (although we say it more than him at this age) which is actually why I bought this polish.  The design is actually an "L" which is the roman numeral for 50.  There are also 5 little polka dots on each nail for each decade she's been alive and the black and white is representing "Over the Hill".  I love how well this represents her, simple but still gets your attention and has a beautiful glow.  Happy Birthday Mama!

Warning: these are not good swatches, the first was taken right after painting my nails but the pictures came out blurry.  the second pictures came out better but i had broken my index finger and my cuticles are a bit rough.

I LOVE Mimi, this color is so amazing! It's a gorgeous purple by itself and then it flashes pink or flashes gold.  It is one of those lovely glass fleck shimmers I love so much.  The Silver Aluminum was a bit thick but that's to be expected considering it's a pretty old polish that I need to thin.  I taped this off but also could have free handed it, I just didn't have the time to start over if I messed up. The Gentlemen! was wonderful also, went on like a dream, no fishing for stars, nice formula and coverage.

This is 2 coats Zoya Mimi, the designs are Maybelline Express Finish Silver Aluminum, the accent is two coats Well Nails The Gentlemen! and all are topped off with Sally Hansen Insta-Dri.

*** Y'all please take a minute to also check out my jewelry page, the tab is at the top of the page, Contact me if you'd like to purchase one, and thanks for looking***

Not Your Mother's Beach Babe Texturizing Sea Salt Spray

Not Your Mother's Beach Babe Texturizing Sea Salt Spray

This is a texturizing spray infused with Dead Sea salt and sea kelp. It helps create voluminous texturized and wind swept waves.  I had combed some knots out of my hair so I used this on a test section there.  I didn't really notice a big difference, just slightly more defined curls, and it smells great.  One thing I noticed was the residue I felt on my hair and hands that was just like the residue from the salt air at the beach and it made my hair very dry.  I'm going to try this again the next time I wear my hair curly with a fresh start and I'll update then.


Here are the pictures of my curly hair, combed out
I applied the product to the left side of my hair in the bottom pictures

 

This sells for $6 for a full size bottle, $4.74 at Walmart (link below)

Not Your Mother's Facebook

Not Your Mother's Website

Buy Not Your Mother's 
Beach Babe on Influenster

***OVERALL: Undecided, based on this trial, probably would not purchase.  I will update after I try this product again.***

Disclaimer: I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.  These are my honest opinions, not influenced by anyone.

Sweetheart VoxBox From Influenster!

This week I received my very first Influenster VoxBox, the Valentine's Day themed Sweetheart Box!  

Influenster is "Basically, Influenster is a place for culture junkies to come together and share their unique opinions of products and experiences. Active members of Influenster get exclusive access to deals, promotions, and swag from brands that thrive off the input (the good, the bad, and the ugly -- they just want to know what's up)."

Here is a quick rundown of what I got in my box:

• Skinnygirl Daily On-The-Go Bars (Coco)-$9.99
• Olay Fresh Effects {Va-Va-Vivid} Powered Contour Cleansing System-$12.99
• Olay Fresh Effects {Shine, Shine Go Away!} Shine Minimizing Cleanser-$6.99
• Secret Clinical Strength Stress Response-$7.99-$9.99
• Not Your Mother's Beach Babe Texturizing Sea Salt Spray-$6.00

 Full shot of everything

 

Skinnygirl Daily On-The-Go Bar, Coco-Nut

These bars have only 180 calories, are natural, kosher, & high in fiber.  The best part though? They taste amazing!  I ate mine at 8:30 AM and wasn't hungry again until nearly 2 PM.  I loved the flavor and it didn't have that weird diet bar taste like most I have tried (I think it's the artificial sweetener?) I'd really love to try the other flavors also: Banana Oatmeal Dark Chocolate, Dark Chocolate Multi-grain Pretzel, & Greek Yogurt Blueberry Crisp.  The website shows them for $12.99, marked down to $9.99 for 5 bars.  For me, that's pretty expensive when I'm used to 5 granola bars costing $3.   

Skinnygirl Website

 Skinnygirl Facebook

OVERALL: I may or may not purchase again, I really love them but the price is a bit out of my range.

Olay Fresh Effect {Va-Va-Vivid} Powered Contour Cleansing System

 This is a battery powered, vibrating, triangle shaped cleansing brush. Designed to reach deep into contours & remove dirt, oil and makeup from hard to reach places.  Normally I wash my face with plain ole water on a washcloth, I have a very dry face so anything more than that is generally just drying and uneccesary.  However, I loved this brush! It was so much easier to get into the creases around my nose and eyes with this triangle brush.  I also loved the bristles, they were soft enough not to be overly abrasive but firm enough to remove the flaky skin from my face. The system here (brush and shine minimizing cleanser is $12.99)

Olay Website

Olay Facebook

Purchase from Target

OVERALL: Yes I would purchase this system again

Olay Fresh Effects {Shine, Shine Go Away!} Shine Minimizing Cleanser

(Included in above picture)

This is a daily cleanser that lathers and sinks into the pores of your skin to help reduce appearance of pores and shine.  Personally, I have very dry skin so there isn't a lot of shine to begin with but I did love the smell and how clean and fresh it made my face feel.  I plan to have a friend with more oily skin try this for better results.  This sells for $5.99 (at Target) and seems to be a decent deal.

Olay Website

Olay Facebook

Purchase from Target

OVERALL: No, I would not purchase this cleanser because it did not fit my needs.  However, Olay Fresh Effects {Bead Me Up!} exfoliating cleanser is something I will likely purchase.

Secret Clinical Strength Stress Response Deodorant

This is a deodorant specially design to protect you from all types of sweat, heat, movement and stress.  Stress sweat comes from a different gland and smells the worst!  It's proven 4x more effective than regular antiperspirant.  First of all, I love the scent- Serene Citrus.  After wearing this deodorant for 12 hours today, I can still smell the scent every time I move my arms.  I haven't done anything particularly exerting or stressful today, nor has it been hot outside so I can't really rate the protection in extreme conditions but I did stay dry today though :)  The price is $7.99-$9.99 so it's a few dollars more than what I normally wear (Old Spice Denali, about $4)  It's available in my local Walmart, Target, Dollar General, CVS, Walgreen's & more!

Secret Website

Purchase from P&G Estore

Secret Facebook

OVERALL: Yes, I would buy this product.  The main reason I wear men's deodorant is I like being able to smell the scent at the end of the day to know it's working and this deodorant definitely did that.  The scent was there without being over powering, and it kept me dry.  The price isn't much more than what I use now, so it's a great product in my opinion.

Not Your Mother's Beach Babe Texturizing Sea Salt Spray

This is a texturizing spray infused with Dead Sea salt and sea kelp. It helps create voluminous texturized and wind swept waves.  I had combed some knots out of my hair so I used this on a test section there.  I didn't really notice a big difference, just slightly more defined curls, and it smells great.  One thing I noticed was the residue I felt on my hair and hands that was just like the residue from the salt air at the beach and it made my hair very dry.  I'm going to try this again the next time I wear my hair curly with a fresh start and I'll update then.

This sells for $6 for a full size bottle, $4.74 at Walmart (link below)

Not Your Mother's Facebook

Not Your Mother's Website

Buy Not Your Mother's

***OVERALL: Undecided, based on this trial, probably would not purchase.  I will update after I try this product again.***

Disclaimer: I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.  These are my honest opinions, not influenced by anyone.

OPI Liquid Sand- Stay The Night

So sorry it took so long to get this post up, both my son and I have been sick the past week so not much has gotten done :( I did this mani friday morning 2/22 and am posting it 2/27 so I had to touch up a bit. Anyways, here it is...

I have been incredibly uninspired this week.  So after being up ALL night trying to come up with a design/color combination, I gave up and went with a swatch.  Here is OPI Stay the Night, a liquid sand polish.  For anyone who doesn't already know , a liquid sand/texture/concrete etc polish is one that feels like a fine grade sandpaper of a gritty glitterbomb.  It doesn't pick clothes or scratch you, it's just not glossy.  You can also add topcoat but be prepared to add 2-4 coats depending on the brand.  This is two coats STN, accent nail also has two coats Gelous and one coat Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Topcoat. 

Stay the Night, Natural Light

Stay the Night, Natural Light, 6 days of wear

keep in mind this is my left, non swatching hand

and also i broke my index finger and glued it back in the dark, hence the crack

The formula was a bit thin but good, and was much more pleasing than I expected.  The roughness was definitely different but I really enjoyed it.  This polish did seem to wear quicker than a glossy polish though.  After 6 days of wear, I noticed some of the pink glitters had turned silver (which still looked good), there was some tip wear (mostly my index & middle fingers) and one TINY chip from the tip wear on my right index.  Not bad in my book for 6 days of decently rough wear (not being gentle with nails, handling a 1 year old, cleaning house, showering, opening packages etc.) with no topcoat :)


coming up i have my prize package from Spellbound Nails that I won, my Sweetheart VoxBox, and as always my weekly nails :)

 *** Y'all please take a minute to also check out my jewelry page, the tab is at the top of the page, Contact me if you'd like to purchase one, and thanks for looking***

Cosmar Quik Nails- Brush On Gel Kit

Today I have a review on Cosmar Quik Nails Brush On Gel Kit, an at home gel kit from CVS.This is a kit that doesn't required a light to cure the polish, just the polish.  I have been fighting with my crazy thin nails a lot lately and I and tired of it.  They were pretty normal before pregnancy, hard as rocks during and now they're like paper.  I have tried Nail Tek Intensive therapy, 3 Minute Artificials, I've been taking Biotin for two weeks, trying to use cuticle oil, balm and lotion as often as I can remember, and have done EVOO soaks. The brush on products seem to work a little, or for a short time and I know Biotin will help but I don't have the patience (I'm still taking it, but needed something in the mean time).  I think a lot of the problem is me being dehydrated constantly, I can't seem to remember to drink constantly lately.  Long story short, nails that bend when I scratch my leg.  That's just not okay anymore, enter Cosmar...

 Excuse the orange fingers, had to lighten the picture up

Naked Nails

 Ok so included in this kit is a nail file, 4 wheels of nail tips, a bottle of nail glue, a bottle of gel overlay, a bottle of brush cleaner, and a bottle of gel activator. The basic run down is that you find a tip to match your nail, glue it on, and twist it off the wheel.  You then add a line of glue where the tip meets your nail (smile line) to seal it off then file it all down to blend it in and prevent humps.  These are a weird shape tip, but they also have french kit, or you can buy tips in bulk on eBay/amazon.

Tips glued on, trimmed and shaped

Next is the actual gel part. you spread the gel overlay on your nails just like a thick polish, and before it dries, take the brush out of the cleaner bottle and dip in it, then apply, the gel activator.  The key seems to be using equal amounts overlay & activator to prevent tackiness.  They dry to a high gloss and if done right, are smooth as glass.  

Gel Nails Done!

The only problems I had were fully user error, but really not bad results for a first time user with no experience, just following the directions.  At first you could see my smile line through the gel and I had some brush strokes but since I was painting them anyways and gloss didn't matter, so I buffed the surface smooth.  I also had a bit of yellowing near my cuticles but only on my right hand, i think due to too much activator.  My only complaint would be I think the glue is not good. I had lift on nearly all tips a few days later and I but reglued them and they still look good.  I picked up some Beauty Secrets glue at Sally's today recommended by the associate, and I'm going to get some regular tips from eBay/amazon.  I still have plenty of gel but not enough tips because a few of my nails are the same sizes, but the packaging does state enough for 2 manicures.  I think there's enough gel for more than that though.

Overall:

I LOVE this kit, it's decently cheap, good quality and easy to do. I paid $9.99 for my kit at CVS (packaging in link is different but lists same items) but even better, I scored some kits on ebay for 3.75 a piece.  I definitely recommend the kit! 

 *** Y'all please take a minute to also check out my jewelry page, the tab is at the top of the page, Contact me if you'd like to purchase one, and thanks for looking***

Valentine Ruffle Mani

Happy Valentine's Day Y'all!

The manicure I did today is a ruffle manicure based on Chalkboard Nails tutorial. This started with a China Glaze White on White base, then i did the ruffles with Orly Rock It!, Sally Hansen Diamond Strength Ruby Sequin, Pure Ice Strip Tease, & Zoya Kimber, and topped it off with one coat China Glaze Fairy Dust, a holographic fine particle glitter. I used the largest dotting tool I have, a straight pin, and just placed dots right next to each other in a row, overlapping slightly with each row. I finished this up with a coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat.  It's not perfect but I love it, I only wish I had used one coat polishes because strip tease was a little sheer.  For some reason my camera would not show the colors right so I took pictures on my phone also so y'all can get the right idea :)  Also this mani is on my new gel nails, which I will have a review of by Monday.

Natural Light 

Left: Blurry shows holo, Right: Macro

 Sunlight

Shade

Sunlight, See the holo?

*** Y'all please take a minute to also check out my jewelry page, the tab is at the top of the page, Contact me if you'd like to purchase one, and thanks for looking***

Haul Pics

First up this is my polish I won from Well Nails, The Gentlemen!

Here is what I got at Sally's 50% off Red Tag sale last weekend, I added everything's original price and my total should have been $58, I paid $11 after all coupons and sale prices. Here's what I got!

 China Glaze Ahoy!, Grape Juice, & Def Defying

 China Glaze Ingrid, Finger Paints Merry Mistletoe & Sparkle Top Coat

Orly Nite Owl

These are the polishes I got today with my $5 off a $5 purchase (FREE!) coupon, plus my free Orly

China Glaze, Flip Flop Fantasy, Glam-More, & Immortal

Orly Royal Velvet



This is my new remover pump!  I saw someone post about one at cvs (i think) but could find  the post.  My cvs didn't have then in so no way to know if it's what i was looking but family dollar had them, and it was cheaper! It has acetone remover in it, but I'll probably fill it with acetone instead.

Family Dollar Twist Lock Pump Nail Polish Remover: $2.75

I have also updated nail wheels, tab is at the top!

*** Y'all please take a minute to also check out my jewelry page, the tab is at the top of the page, Contact me if you'd like to purchase one, and thanks for looking***

Valentine's Nails- Dotticure

Happy Early Valentine's Day Y'all!

Here is my first of two Valentine's themed manicures this week, along with a fail nail.

First the fail, this is two coats Zoya Kimber with two coats Jindie Nails Be Someone Cute on the accent, no top coat.  I got this finished and just didn't like it :( BSC  is small pink, black, and white glitters, and it throws a purple iridescent flash.  Kimber is a hot pink glass fleck with gold shimmer. I love both colors, I just didn't like the warm toned Kimber with the cool toned BSC, so I changed it up...

With Flash, missed some glitter in clean up :/

Here is the second mani I did, a dotticure accent mani.  This is two coats of Zoya Kimber, and two coats China Glaze White on White on accent nail.  The polishes used on the accents, in order of dark to light, are: Orly Rock It!, Zoya Kimber, Pure Ice Strip Tease & LA Colors Bashful. One coat is Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat. 

Natural Light

 Natural Light, Accent Close Up

Natural Light

Later this week I will have my Valentine's Day Mani and my Sally's haul from their 50% off Red Tag sale this weekend. Hopefully I can also get a Glitzology post up soon, as soon as I receive my polishes! 

*** Y'all please take a minute to also check out my jewelry page, the tab is at the top of the page, Contact me if you'd like to purchase one, and Thanks for looking :)***

Revlon Blue Lagoon Swatch

When i got this color i was looking for Sinful Colors Cinderella but Walgreen's didn't have it and this was pretty close. The only difference I've noticed from swatches is that Cinderella has a lovely pink shimmer flash that Blue Lagoon does not.  Blue Lagoon is a baby blue with a silver shimmer. Its  sheer, this is 3 coats, and formula is a really thin, as you can see by my hideously flooded cuticles.  The glitter on top is Sinful Colors Ice Dream. Ice Dream is a cheaper dupe for China Glaze Lorelei's Tiara and Sally Hansen Gem Crush. There's small differences but hardly noticeable. Check out a comparison post at Hooked On Polish.

  *** Y'all please take a minute to also check out my jewelry page, the tab is at the top of the page, Contact me if you'd like to purchase one, and Thanks for looking :)