Fainting Couch: Lava near the azaleas

Hello ladies,

I am wearing Hard Candy Lava today. The gold shimmer radiates from the bright red base. When taking these photos, I almost swooned over the azalea bushes in rapture. I'm surprised the honey bees didn't faint as well.

Please have your smelling salts ready before viewing the photos. If you can procure a man to stand by with a large, feathered fan to cool any feverish excitement, it may be advisable.

Let us pause and look at some flowers.

Ah, the striped tulips make me think of a carnival. So festive!

I hope you have all regained your senses enough to read about the application. I am wearing three coats of Lava. I probably could have stopped at two, but I was so delighted painting it on, I added an extra coat.

I think I am going hunt down a man with some ostrich feathers to help distract me from the sultry beauty of Lava.

Hard Candy Lava was sent to me for review. You can see more of the Hard Candy range of products at hardcandy.com. Lava can be purchased at Walmart retail locations or on-line at walmart.com. Would you like a chance to win all 16 polishes in the Hard Candy Just Nails line? Please visit the contest post to enter.

Happy painting, ladies!

Fainting Couch: amidst cherry blossoms

Hello ladies,

It has been an age since I swooned. Needing rest from this season's pastel creams, I brought my bottle of Sally Hansen Salon Arabian Night to assist me in welcoming Spring. This is an untried and true manicure. Arabian Night is from one of the mythic Tracy Reese collections that were distributed sparsely and randomly in drug stores throughout the nation. I found mine on ebay.

Arabian Night is one of the most beautiful shades of purple I own. There is so much gold shimmer blended into the jelly base. I also see hints of pink and green. The colors glow in soft light and appear liquid beneath the sun. Please hold onto your smelling salts before perusing the images below.

I love the lacy patterns of sun and shade on my hand. It was such a delight to encounter a cherry blossom tree completely dressed in pink petals. I was happy to be let the beauty of the blooms enhance this already spectacular polish.

Arabian Night is a little deceptive. Your manicure might seem finished at two coats, but I recommend three for a bolder look. In bright light, the nail line could be visible with only two coats. This polish is a little slow to dry, but I don't care. It can do whatever it wants. I would still wear it and I would still lose consciousness.

Happy Spring, ladies of this hemisphere! Happy painting to all.

Fainting Couch on Atlantis

Hello ladies,

I suppose it's my turn to faint over China Glaze Atlantis. I will throw myself on the fainting couch that is a heap of those who have previously swooned. For the ladies who have since recovered their senses, please bring smelling salts or philters comprised of 100% acetone to help awaken the rest of us.

Yes, these pictures will enlarge. If you succumb to the sparkle and arise in a mysterious underwater kingdom, do not blame your whimiscal narrator. This polish may also attract mermaids.

Prettier than a perched bluebird, no?  

This is where I usually discuss application, but Atlantis is so beautiful, it's inconsequential. If you enjoy mesmerizing holographic glitter, the color teal and a jelly formula Atlantis requires purchasing. For the purists, I am wearing three coats. With one coat of CND Air Dry, there is some texture, but the finish doesn't feel rough. I have no real criticism of Atlantis. I feel a need to return to philosophy class and try to learn if this polish could possibly exist.

If you ladies need me, I will be using my fingernails to conjure peacocks, a hippocampus, a gathering of oceanic sirens and a muscular man with a trident.

Happy painting, ladies.

Fainting Couch: Blue Diamonds

Hello ladies,

It has been an age since I swooned. Please gather round the fainting couch with vials of smelling salts, painted fans and a tumbler of chilled water. Behold Blue Diamonds! I can't even believe how gorgeous this polish is! This breathtaking icy blue shimmer with holographic glitter particles was sent to me by Diamond Cosmetics for their Holiday Collection preview. 

If you are not already seated, please do so before clicking on any of the photos to enlarge. 

Diamond Cosmetics Holiday Collection: Rubies & Diamonds, Amethyst & Diamonds, Blue Diamonds,  Diamond's Diamonds. Clicking to enlarge will best show the glitter in  Rubies and Diamonds. Full sun highlighted the red jelly base. In the photo, the glitter is most apparent towards the left on the bottle. Rubies & Diamonds has a high shimmer content that is easily visible in person. The sparkle is a little camera shy in the bottle. 

Above is another butterfly from my visit to the Museum of Natural Sciences. So nice to be able to see live butterflies in November!

Blue Diamonds was opaque in two coats. I am highly impressed that one coat of CND Air Dry glossed the polish to a high sheen with only the slightest hint of texture remaining. Blue Diamonds reminds me of the older drugstore line L'Oreal Bijou with a far superior formula. Diamond Cosmetics chose finely cut holographic glitter. There is no bumpiness to level with extra layers of topcoat and patience.  

The base of the formula is a well behaved frost. There is a whisper of visible brushstrokes if you search behind the flashing holographic glitter. My only minor issue with Blue Diamonds is the dry time is longer than usual, even with a quick dry topcoat. If you faint after the second coat, fall carefully to avoid smudging.

I am so excited about this collection! I do wish there were five colors and the last was a dark green with holographic glitter. My friend Lisa and I were chatting today over iced coffee and she raised the idea of what my fantasy polish would be. A dark green version of Blue Diamonds would make me swoon many times over. That said, I am so very happy with the four presented to me for review. The holiday glitters are now available for purchase for $2.50 each at diamondcosmetics.com.

Also, how do you like the look of the three column format? I changed the site yesterday. I wanted to make all the categories easier to find and navigate. I am  currently working on extending my blogroll to be more inclusive with all the new blogs being introduced. If you have a nail polish blog and wish to be added to my blogroll,  please leave a comment and I will gladly add you.

Happy painting, ladies!  

Fainting Couch: Overcome at Target

Hello ladies,

I had to languish on the fainting couch today. By the second coat of Milani Totally Cool, I fell into a swoon. Be prepared for rapture when viewing the pictures below. Clicking to enlarge will likely upset the delicate constitution of ladies made excitable by purple. If perchance you are not moved by the photos, please stand by with smelling salts and painted fans to help return the rest of us to our senses. I hope you like my trinket. It's a treated amethyst set in silver. 

 

I found this liquid gem at Target. When David lingers over golf balls or supplies the cart with endless cereal boxes, I depart to cosmetics for...extended research. Milani Totally Cool was first mentioned to me by my friend Lisa. If a polish is available in drug stores or chains, she is prepared with names, collection information and release dates for shopping ventures. Totally Cool is evidence of what incredible beauty can be discovered for less than four dollars! While I am a devotee of luxury brands like Chanel, I still am open to be awed at Target. 

Totally Cool has juicy pink shimmer suspended in a purple jelly base. It's more pigmented than the average jelly finish, but it maintains that glassy transparency. The bright pink shimmer seems almost edible. The color could be the content of a faceted candy dish from a dream: scrumptious, otherworldly jelly beans.

Application was simple. The first coat seemed sheer, but the color built respectably. The dry time was a little slower than usual, but it's difficult to discern if local humidity was not contributing to or the source of the issue. 

I had fun placing rhinestones to highlight the shimmer. I like having a bit of flash where the moons of my nails are obscured by polish. At the coffee shop today, the barista asked me if the pink sparkles did anything. I countered that pushing different ones would open doorways to other dimensions. Try this at home for a bit of whimsy. 

Happy painting, ladies.

Fainting Couch: Golden Cat and Glitter

Hello ladies,

Today I am introducing the Fainting Couch, a series of polishes that are so beautiful I can't believe they exist. Qualifying polishes will appear on occasion and without warning. When you see the title, position yourself by a deeply cushioned sofa. Swooning is optional. 

I walked to a tiny nearby park, Fitler Square, with a bottle of Creative Nail Design VIP Status and a statue of Bast, the Egyptian Cat Goddess. What else would I bring to the park? En route, I talked briefly to several people in the neighborhood and no one seemed the least thrown off that I was walking around carrying a gilded cat statue! I suppose nothing is surprising after the parasol. I chose the statue to help showcase the polish because the gold exterior is of similar luster found in collections of Egyptian art. I received the reproduction Bast as a holiday gift when I was still in high school. It's from the Metropolitan Museum of Art catalog. While the gold is still bright, there is a slight patina not found in relics from royal tombs. I will begin and end with bottle photos. Please click on these photos.     

In the picture where Bast is facing the camera, my nails are in full, intense sun. It was like trying to capture the light refracted from a disco ball. The bottle picture in the final photo shows a settling of the round holographic glitter pieces towards the center of the logo. The shimmer surrounding it is composed of micro spheres of gold.   

VIP Status is an older, discontinued polish from CND. I found mine on ebay. While not plentiful, there are still bottles to be gathered. I used Creative Stickey as a base and two coats of Creative Air Dry for the top coat. Even layered between CND treatments, VIP Status was lackadaisical about drying. I finished the manicure, made an attempt at clean up with a brush and 100% acetone. That translated to making sure there were no holographic sparkles anywhere but on the nail. The gold particles were not to be contained! Usually at this time, my polish is dry to the touch. I carefully checked e-mail, read blogs, had a granola bar...the polish was dry, but could still be dented. I added another coat of Air Dry since the glitter felt textural when gently rubbed. With a second coat, there is a little bumpiness, yet nothing that could catch or pull. It feels like high grade embossed paper.  

VIP Status would make an incredible evening out accessory as long as you start dressing in the late afternoon. I love this polish! I am willing to work with it in regards to dry time. I am sure were it available during the reign of Egyptian royalty, many a queen would have sparkled along the Nile for its presence.

Here's my daily contest reminder for new visitors: Enter here to win a bottle of N.Y.C. Nail Glossies in Molten Metal. The contest runs through August 16 and is open to followers and e-mail subscribers. 

I hope you enjoyed today's glitter!