China Glaze Peace on Earth

I think this color may have been the first mani I actually posted on the blog. It looked way too yellow under our eco-friendly lights, so here's another (and much more accurate) look.

This was part of last year's holiday collection from China Glaze and I was lucky to get it for 50% off of 50% off at Sally's in January. This is 2 coats over Zoya Anchor and under Seche Vite. I've found that the combo of Anchor and Seche Vite works really well for me. I've gotten at least 4 days of wear from every mani I've used it with.

I was talking about nail polish with the PA student who's doing clinical at my office, and told her that I use a great fast dry top coat. She asked what it was called and I told her it was a french name and I'd probably butcher it, but it's called Seche Vite. She started laughing, but said it's because it means "dry fast" in French. How original...

OPI Steady As She Rose

Behold! I lemminged this sucker for months before my pal hooked me up. I saw all the Pirates preview pics and was pretty unimpressed, but decided that this one looked nice. I don't have many pinks and the ones that are in my collection are much brighter.

Stephanie's post on Short n Chic made me really WANT it. I didn't want to pay shipping on one polish though, so I tried my hand at frankening. I came close, but not nearly dirty enough.

Application was wonderful. I used 3 very thin coats over Zoya Anchor and slapped a coat of Seche Vite over it. I wore it for six days before I got a chip, and there was very little tip wear. This is unheard of for me. I usually have a chip within the first 3 days.

I'm very happy with it. The color is lavenderish pink with a dirty look to it. I really hate the candy look that light polishes can give. It's very distracting when I type on a black keyboard at work. I had such an awful time getting an accurate picture of the color. Please ignore my horrid cuticles. I've done a shit job of taking care of my nails lately.

I always strive to take pics as good as Pam's yet never succeed....

Anyway, I'm all about a deal and I'm all about convenience. When I saw this Sally Hansen Insta-Dry in Lively Lilac on sale & I had a coupon, I just couldn't pass it up. I wish I had! Lets start with the positives. I love the color. It really is pretty. There has been very little shrinkage either. The problem us the brush! I painted my living room with a smaller brush! It's really thick and flat which gives the illusion that you've scraped enough off before you put it on your nail. However, as soon as the brush hit my nail it opened the flood gates of purple! It was a big mess and my tough up pen will never be the same. It also was NOT "Insta-dry"! It took several minutes....probably due to how thick you are forced to put it on. That brush is really awful! I'll never buy another one!

Zoya Sooki take 2

I saw Abbie this weekend and she was wearing Sooki. It looked fabulous, and I want to be just like her when I grow up, so look what I did. :)

I also chopped my nails down, and nothing looks better on short nails than red in my opinion. Love this formula! Above is Zoya Anchor base coat, 1 coat of Sooki (yes, 1!!), and 1 coat of Seche Vite. Put it on 10 hours ago and no shrinkage yet. I absolutely love this color. Let's see how it holds up through Zumba...

Hot Topic Pearly Red

This polish was quite the bargain. Originally $2.99, marked down to $0.99, and half off of that. Can't beat it!

I've got several Hot Topic polishes, and I love them. The bottle is tall and narrow, with a very short, round cap and a soft brush at the end of a long stem.

This one had great coverage with 2 coats. It glows nicely and leaves no brush strokes even though the finish is pearly. Sadly, it did chip fairly easily, but I caught my pinkie in a drawer at work. I think I need to be more careful.

Sally Hansen Color Quick Chrome Red

Hmm... Here we have another 75% off Sally Hansen that is cool, but I'm glad I didn't pay full price for.
It is in a click top pen, so you push one end until the brush has color, then paint away.

I'll start with the pros... It is very quick & easy. 1 coat had excellent coverage. Though I wouldn't call it red, it's a great color. The brush is very full and spreads easily over the nail. It dries super fast, so no top coat is necessary (and makes it look bad, in fact).

Cons: holy brushstrokes, batman! These fade significantly when the polish dries. The brush gets rather gunky. It left thin streaks of no polish (see my pinky).

All in all, worth the $2 I paid, but definitely not the $10 regular price. I looked on several blogs and most people seem to love these for stamping. I might hang on to it for that, if I decide to try my hand at more extensive nail art.

My First Zoya

Just to start off, i love promos! Zoya's buy 1 get 2 free was right up my alley! I was excited when they came in the mail and immediately put one on. This is Amanda. Very neutral, but I love it. I put on 2 coats, but one was pretty too. Maybe not as bold as Neeka (I'm jealous of Pam on that one), but great for more subdued occasions.