Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Things are looking a little different around here...
So after a grand total of four posts, I decided I didn't like WordPress and wanted to move to Blogger. And so far, I'm happy I did. It just looks so much cleaner on my end, and not too shabby as a finished product either. Just in case you noticed that my last four posts went up suspiciously quickly, it's because I was copy/pasting, and new posts will continue soon. The main reason I switched? I now have Google Friend Connect! Please follow me! :D
I don't think you're ready for this jelly...
All Destiny's Child lyrics aside, here's the next finish: a jelly! I present Milani Rad Purple.
But, it says neon! What does that mean??? Am I lying to you? Nope. One of the first rules of polishology (and life, I would presume) is don't judge a polish by its bottle. After I bought this polish, I learned my lesson. I make sure to check the blogs to see swatches, as they're called, before I purchase anything. You just don't know what you're getting, sometimes. This is not neon, and not even really purple.
More of a plum, really, and not neon at all. But see the nice "squishy" texture? That's what a jelly is all about. It's a close cousin to the creme, but more see-through, kind of wet looking. Please excuse my poor index finger; it had a problem involving a wall and some swearing. I'm not really very coordinated. This is what the color looks like most of the time. See? Nothing like bottle color. *Humph*.
And I shall call him squishy, and he shall be mine, and he shall be my squishy. NOTHING LIKE BOTTLE COLOR. NOT NEON. *Humph*.
In this picture, you can kind of see the slight streakiness I had going on. It's a result of the bright light, and it looked fine to the naked eye. This was 3 coats of Milani Rad Purple, with base coat and top coat.
How much was it? This was a present from the BF (thank you dear) purchased at a Walgreens. Generally Milani brand polishes go for $3.99, the Neons collection is apparently special, so they are $4.99 each. Based on how disappointed I was that it didn't look like the color on the bottle, that's a rip-off. But, this is a pretty magenta/plum/dark purply jelly, just not what I thought I was getting into.
Have you had this happen to you? Were you as peeved as I was?
But, it says neon! What does that mean??? Am I lying to you? Nope. One of the first rules of polishology (and life, I would presume) is don't judge a polish by its bottle. After I bought this polish, I learned my lesson. I make sure to check the blogs to see swatches, as they're called, before I purchase anything. You just don't know what you're getting, sometimes. This is not neon, and not even really purple.
More of a plum, really, and not neon at all. But see the nice "squishy" texture? That's what a jelly is all about. It's a close cousin to the creme, but more see-through, kind of wet looking. Please excuse my poor index finger; it had a problem involving a wall and some swearing. I'm not really very coordinated. This is what the color looks like most of the time. See? Nothing like bottle color. *Humph*.
And I shall call him squishy, and he shall be mine, and he shall be my squishy. NOTHING LIKE BOTTLE COLOR. NOT NEON. *Humph*.
In this picture, you can kind of see the slight streakiness I had going on. It's a result of the bright light, and it looked fine to the naked eye. This was 3 coats of Milani Rad Purple, with base coat and top coat.
How much was it? This was a present from the BF (thank you dear) purchased at a Walgreens. Generally Milani brand polishes go for $3.99, the Neons collection is apparently special, so they are $4.99 each. Based on how disappointed I was that it didn't look like the color on the bottle, that's a rip-off. But, this is a pretty magenta/plum/dark purply jelly, just not what I thought I was getting into.
Have you had this happen to you? Were you as peeved as I was?
La creme de la creme
I thought I might educate the nail polish un-initiated by doing a sort of primer on the various polish finishes. If you ever read polish blogs, or even polish companies' descriptions of their polishes, they throw around terms like shimmer, glitter, foil, metallic...how do you tell what's what? Well, here's your intro to some of the terminology of polish-world. We're going to start off very simply:
Here's a creme. It's not a cream, but a creme, and I don't know why. But this is your standard, creamy finish that most people probably associate with polish. Nothing sparkly or shimmery or fancy whatsoever, just creamy color.
This is CND Smoochie, a raspberry-ish shade I received as a gift. 2 coats of this was buttery and easy to apply- I love the CND polishes I have.
I had originally posted 3 different shots with three different light sources, which showed slightly different pinks. Unfortunately, in the switch from Wordpress to Blogger, I forgot to bring along my pics before I deleted the WP....d'oh. I've still got one. Anyway, in future posts, I will either show all the light sources I've got, or the one that is the most accurate to how the polish looks most of the time. I'm sure you've noticed that colors look different in varying amounts of light, so this shouldn't be too confusing...I think...
Finally, since this is polish4pennies...how much was it? This was a birthday present from BF's mommy (thank you BF's mommy!) so all it cost me was another year. CND polishes are sold in various salons and beauty supply stores across the country, and will run you about $8.50 a pop. The cheapest reputable source I can find online is www.transdesign.com , where they are $4.50 or $5.50 each. Still much too expensive for my budget, so I'm thankful for gifts!
I'm sure you have a creme or two, how do you like them?
My favorite brands
Whenever I tell someone that I collect nail polish, or more frequently, that I am obsessed with nail polish, the first thing they ask me is what brand I prefer. The quick answer? I like them all. I have yet to find a brand that doesn't have at least one color I am a fan of. Some formulas do seem to work better for me than others (Essie, Zoya) but I find that it has a lot to do with the age, pigmentation, and finish of the polish formula.
Age: Since I get my polish on the cheap, I frequent ebay for some deals. While I haven't had any outright issues, it can be questionable whether the polish you're buying is really what you think it is. I've received a few old polishes that have clearly had some evaporation (Zoya Renew to the rescue!) as well as some that just seem to be 'duds'- almost as though they were part of a bad batch and are streakier or chalkier than most.
Pigmentation: Highly pigmented polishes almost never give me issues. Two (or sometimes even one) coats are all that is needed for pure polish glory. I'm not a fan of sheer polishes for this reason. When you have to go up to 4 coats for your polish to even out, it gets a lot harder to apply neatly and evenly.
Finish: Just as with pigmentation, I almost never have a problem with glitter or shimmer polishes. The ones that seem to hate me are all cremes, and are thus harder to hide their imperfections. Who notices bubbles when you're loaded with glitter? (Well...I do...but that's beside the point).
So, I don't discriminate against any brands, and I will try anything that looks pretty. I admire some bloggers for their devotion to Big3 free nail polish, or using only polishes from companies that don't test on animals, but to be honest, these aren't concerns of mine. If a polish is B3F or comes from a brand that I know is environmentally-friendly, it's a plus, but it's not a necessity.
The only thing I do discriminate against is price. I like food, and heat, and internet, so all of the polishes I have purchased have come to me for $4.00 or less- including shipping- I'm a stickler! How did I settle on 4 bucks? Well...it was $2.50, but I couldn't pass up the Sunshine Collection from Zoya, which was selling for BOGO free...which amounted to $4.00 a polish. Zoyas, as mentioned above, wear really well on me, so they are my exception to the $2.50 rule. Anyway, this means I won't be showcasing many "designer" polishes. I don't have any Rescue Beauty Lounge, BB Couture, Chanel, Deborah Lippman, or MAC polishes. But, I am always open to swaps or gifts :D and will willingly accept an expensive polish and promise to love it just as much as my cheapies. Obviously.
Do you think the expensive polishes live up to their hype? Am I being ridiculous for sticking to my budget? Let me know what you think!
And for anyone who is new to the polish scene, I will explain some of the terminology in future posts :)
Age: Since I get my polish on the cheap, I frequent ebay for some deals. While I haven't had any outright issues, it can be questionable whether the polish you're buying is really what you think it is. I've received a few old polishes that have clearly had some evaporation (Zoya Renew to the rescue!) as well as some that just seem to be 'duds'- almost as though they were part of a bad batch and are streakier or chalkier than most.
Pigmentation: Highly pigmented polishes almost never give me issues. Two (or sometimes even one) coats are all that is needed for pure polish glory. I'm not a fan of sheer polishes for this reason. When you have to go up to 4 coats for your polish to even out, it gets a lot harder to apply neatly and evenly.
Finish: Just as with pigmentation, I almost never have a problem with glitter or shimmer polishes. The ones that seem to hate me are all cremes, and are thus harder to hide their imperfections. Who notices bubbles when you're loaded with glitter? (Well...I do...but that's beside the point).
So, I don't discriminate against any brands, and I will try anything that looks pretty. I admire some bloggers for their devotion to Big3 free nail polish, or using only polishes from companies that don't test on animals, but to be honest, these aren't concerns of mine. If a polish is B3F or comes from a brand that I know is environmentally-friendly, it's a plus, but it's not a necessity.
The only thing I do discriminate against is price. I like food, and heat, and internet, so all of the polishes I have purchased have come to me for $4.00 or less- including shipping- I'm a stickler! How did I settle on 4 bucks? Well...it was $2.50, but I couldn't pass up the Sunshine Collection from Zoya, which was selling for BOGO free...which amounted to $4.00 a polish. Zoyas, as mentioned above, wear really well on me, so they are my exception to the $2.50 rule. Anyway, this means I won't be showcasing many "designer" polishes. I don't have any Rescue Beauty Lounge, BB Couture, Chanel, Deborah Lippman, or MAC polishes. But, I am always open to swaps or gifts :D and will willingly accept an expensive polish and promise to love it just as much as my cheapies. Obviously.
Do you think the expensive polishes live up to their hype? Am I being ridiculous for sticking to my budget? Let me know what you think!
And for anyone who is new to the polish scene, I will explain some of the terminology in future posts :)
Welcome to my slice of the internets!
Greetings, reader!
After 3 years of admiring other blogs and slowly learning tips and tricks for caring for my little polished nubs, I decided it was time to start my own blog centered around nail polish.
A bit about me: I am a 22 year old college grad, just beginning my epic journey into graduate school in pursuit of my Ph.D in Pathobiology( I might be sneaky and post about science too). As a result of all the time I spend in lab and my fear knowledge of the world of microbes, I have short nails. I find they don't get as much love on the nail blogs, so I'm doing my part. Also as a result of the whole grad school thing, I'm on a bit of a budget. I can proudly attest to the fact that I have never paid more than $4.00 for a polish (more on that later). My BF and I live together in a little town in CT, close to where we are both studying at UConn -Husky Pride!! He is pursuing his Ph.D in Organic Chemistry, so I may feature some posts by him about the chemical nature of nail polish (and why you shouldn't be TOO afraid if your polish isn't free of the Big 3 chemicals). In my spare time (HAH!) I enjoy Netflixing (totally a verb) -especially sci-fi and quirky independent movies, as well as embroidery and cross-stitch, reading, and attempting to keep up with Jillian Michaels on her ridiculous fitness DVDs. (Also, I love parentheses).
As time goes on, I hope to set up a schedule of sorts, but until I can get my photos sorted out and learn how to use this fancy Blogger thing, I'll update you.
Thanks for stopping by!
~Cait
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)