Adventures in Polishland

Author: Adventures in Polishland

Indie Spotlight: Shimmer Polish Part II

Posted on December 12, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Remember a few months back when I posted THIS entry featuring Shimmer Polish?! Well, today I have part two to share with all of you! Shimmer Polish is an amazing indie brand that has the best glitter polishes I’ve tried yet. Each polish is opaque in 2-3 coats, and can be worn alone or layered over another polish. If you are a glitter girl like me, you should definitely treat yourself to some Shimmer Polish! Let me show you four more of these beauties.

First up is Cindy, a true red polish with a hint of holographic glitters mixed in. I am not a huge fan of red polish, but Cindy is gorgeous! The holo glitters make the manicure really pop and look multidimensional. I also love that Cindy is opaque in two coats, and that the formula isn’t goopy like some glitters. If you love red, Cindy is a must!

Up next is Jenny, a blue-based glitter mixed with purple and gold with extra hints of green and red. I love the color combination! I applied three coats of Jenny in the photos above to achieve opacity. Jenny is definitely a unique polish. I think it would look great layered over another polish, too!

Melissa is the next from Shimmer Polish that I have to show you. This polish is a mix of red and plum purple with hints of gold and teal. Melissa is opaque in two coats and has that same great formula that all of the Shimmers have! The plum purple color makes this polish more understated than the bright red of Cindy, but just as stunning. Plus, the hints of turquoise are a beautiful touch! Melissa is a must for all purple lovers!

The last polish I have to show you today is Gerry, my favorite of the bunch! Gerry is a mix of dark blue and purple with hints of red mixed throughout. I love both purple and blue polishes, so both of them mixed together is a winner in my book! Just two coats are needed to achieve opacity with this polish. Gerry actually reminds me of a higher quality version of L.A. City Nights from Jordana! I would pick Gerry over that polish any day!

All in all, I love these glitters from Shimmer Polish! You can purchase Shimmer on Etsy HERE and visit the Shimmer Facebook page HERE. Stay tuned, because I have even more of these amazing polishes to show you!

Products in this post were provided for my unbiased review. All opinions are my own.

Sally Hansen Diamond Strength in Lilac Chantilly

Posted on December 9, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

If you’ve read my blog for a while you will know that I love Sally Hansen nail polish! Not only is it affordable, but it is typically very good quality. Sally Hansen has many different lines of polish, and today I have one from the Diamond Strength line. This is the first Diamond Strength polish that I’ve tried, and I love it! Let me show you the gorgeous Lilac Chantilly.

Lilac Chantilly is a metallic purple nail polish with hints of silver reflected throughout. I love the unique purple color! I was also impressed with the formula. It was opaque in two coats, but I did add a third to even out the visible brushstrokes. Like many metallic polishes, the strokes are visible, but to me that just adds dimension to the reflective look the polish has. I also love the brush that came with this Sally Hansen polish. It had a very long stem, which tells me that I will able to use the polish right down to the last drop! Overall, I really like Lilac Chantilly! It is advertised as no chip nail polish, and it stays true to that slogan! I can’t wait to try out other Sally Hansen Diamond Strength polishes in the future.

You can find Sally Hansen Diamond Strength at your local drugstores and department stores for around $5 per bottle, and even cheaper at other stores! Sally Hansen often goes on sale and offers coupons in the Sunday newspaper, so be sure to keep an eye out for additional savings. Have you ever tried the Diamond Strength line? What did you think?

Celebrating the Season with Christmas Tree Nail Art

Posted on December 7, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Friday! Today I have a short post telling you about the Christmas themed nail art I did for a contest on Facebook. Many of my readers have been requesting more nail art, so ask and you shall receive! I am in no way a nail art expert, but I am super proud of my little Christmas trees. Let me show you the manicure!

Here are my two little Christmas trees! First, I started out with a base of Zoya Ziv. Once Ziv was completely dry, I used scotch tape to block off a triangle on my nails in the shape of the Christmas tree, and painted on Zoya Logan. (See Ziv and Logan alone HERE). Next, I took some yellow polish and carefully added a drop to the top of my Christmas trees for the star. As a final touch, a did some polka dots with red polish for some ornaments! I don’t have any dotting tools, so that’s why my circles aren’t perfect, but I think this manicure still looks really festive! I decided to go with polishes that all had a shimmery, metallic finish, but you can choose any polishes you like. I also did two accent nails just to keep it simple. I love the finished product!

What do you think of my Christmas tree manicure? It’s so simple that anyone can do it! Let me know what you think in the comments, and feel free to share your holiday and winter themed nail art, too!

A England in Holy Grail (Limited Edition)

Posted on December 5, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Today I have a beautiful polish to show you from the brand A England. This is the first polish I have ever tried from this brand, and I couldn’t be more excited. I have seen many gorgeous posts from other nail bloggers featuring A England, but because the company is located overseas (England, duh!), and the prices are a bit high, I didn’t expect to purchase any. I luckily came across a promo on Facebook a few weeks ago that offered the limited edition version of Holy Grail for a discounted price of £5 (around $8) and jumped at the chance to try it! Let me show you this gold polish.

Let me first explain that there are three different versions of A England Holy Grail. There is the old version, the new version, and this one — the limited edition! Each color varies, so I just want to make sure everyone knows this is the limited edition. Holy Grail is a gold polish with hints of orange shimmer. It is definitely a yellow gold tone. I loved the formula — it was opaque in two coats and dried quickly. Although I have a lot of gold nail polishes in my collection, Holy Grail is quite different from the rest. It is much brighter, and more of a jewel tone than other golds I’ve tried before. Definitely something unique to have in your stash!

If you would like to try A England Holy Grail, the limited edition is still on sale for just £5! This is a big discount from the usual A England price of £9 ($14.50). Here is the direct link to that polish on the company’s website: CLICK ME! You can also follow A England on Facebook HERE to find out about more promotions!

Influenster Beauty Blogger VoxBox!

Posted on December 3, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Today I have a different kind of post for all of you! There’s a cool website called Influenster that lets people who are active in social media get rewarded. The really fun part is when they send out VoxBoxes! A VoxBox is a box filled with products that are to be tested and reviewed. I was lucky to receive the Beauty Blogger VoxBox back in October! I loved the products and can’t wait to share them with you, even if I am a bit late with this post (whoops!). Let me show you everything I got, and tell you about the items.

So many goodies in one box! I’ll speak about each one now, from left-right.

Not Your Mother’s Kinky Moves Curl Defining Hair Cream: This cream is supposed to encourage natural curls and eliminate frizz and fly-aways. Basically, when your hair is till wet from the shower, you scrunch this product through your hair. I have naturally wavy hair, and the cream did work a bit, but only for a short time. I hoped it would help encourage my hair to stay curly for the entire day, but after a half an hour or so my hair was already falling straight again. I tweeted this to the company, and they tweeted me back saying it is only for naturally wavy hair. They failed to respond to my next tweet that informed them I do have naturally wavy hair…. I’m not too pleased with this! Because the product didn’t work for me, and the company was rude, I would not recommend Kinky Moves!
Vitabath Fragrance Mist in Pomegranate & Blood Orange: This is by far my favorite product in the entire VoxBox! This body spray smells just amazing, and I don’t even like the scent of oranges! The mist is light and refreshing, and does not overpower. I love Vitabath and would highly recommend it!
Bath & Body Works Mini Candle in Black Pepper: I will admit that I did not light this candle (just not my thing), but it does smell amazing!
Kiss Ever Pro Lashes Starter Kit: I have bad memories from wearing false eyelashes as a competitive dancer growing up, so I was afraid to have a go at these, too! I do plan on trying them out for a special occasion. I do like that this is an all-in-one kit, and that the box has careful instructions. If you do wear false eyelashes, this is the way to go!
EBOOST: I also did not sample this product, as I can’t stand orange flavorings! EBOOST is basically a powder that you mix into your water for flavor and added benefits such as vitamins and immunity. If you are someone on the go, this is for you!
Goody Simple Styles Spin Pin: I was so excited to receive these spin pins, because I’ve wanted to try them out for a long time. Instead of sticking a bunch of bobby pins into your bun, these pins are supposed to easily twist into your hair and hold a bun in place. While the pins do work, they are just too big for my hair. I have very thin hair which amounts to a small bun. The pins were longer than my bun! If you have thick hair, these will work out much better for you.
NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Custom Compact: The final product in my box is this great compact! It came a bit banged up due to shipping, but with some q-tips I was able to clean it up just fine. I don’t wear a lot of make-up, so this compact is perfect for me. Not only does it give me directions on how to apply each shadow, but it is an all-in-one look! I also didn’t feel overdone when I was finished. I definitely recommend this product!

I hope you enjoyed today’s post! If you would like to receive an invite to Influenster so you can receive VoxBoxes, too, let me know! I can invite you! If you would like to know more information about a certain item, let me know that as well. I will be back to blogging about nail polish soon!

The products in this post were provided for my unbiased review. All opinions are my own.

Indie Spotlight: A Rhyming Dictionary Polish in Unc Nunkie

Posted on December 1, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Saturday! Today I am very excited to show you a beautiful polish from the indie brand A Rhyming Dictionary. This brand is owned by a lovely lady named Morgan, and she sent me this polish from her line a few weeks ago as an RAOK (Random Act of Kindness). I was pleasantly surprised at how much I loved Unc Nunkie when I put it on, and wore it for four days! Let me show you this amazing polish.

Unc Nunkie is a glitter polish with pink, red, purple, blue, and turquoise hexagonal glitters in small and large sizes. Plus, the base is filled with blue shimmer! I layered two coats over Julep Jennifer (see Jennifer HERE) and was amazed by the result. I do admit, I had to fish a little bit to get the hexagonal glitters on the nail, but it was definitely worth it. The polish dried very quickly, and the glitters lay perfectly flat. I did finish up with a glossy top coat for some extra shine! Unc Nunkie, like all of the polishes from A Rhyming Dictionary, is named after a character from L. Frank Baum’s Oz series. To me it looks like candy! I loved the outcome of this manicure so much I found myself staring at my nails a lot. I highly recommend it!

You can shop for A Rhyming Dictionary Polish on Etsy HERE. Full size bottles are $7.50. You can also follow on Facebook HERE.

On Wednesdays We Wear Pink!

Posted on November 28, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

This post is dedicated to all of the Mean Girls fans out there! If you’ve seen that movie you know that every Wednesday it is mandatory to wear pink. Otherwise, you won’t get to sit at the lunch table with Regina George and the rest of The Plastics. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, make sure to go watch Mean Girls right now!

In honor of Pink Wednesday, I have two nail polishes to show you. Both are, of course, pink! I normally wear bright pink nail polishes a la Barbie, but I tried out two pale pinks recently, and I love the understated look. Today you will see both of these polishes alone, and at some point in the near future you will see what glitter top coats I added on top!

The first pink I have to show you is Pink Wishes from CND Colour. This is a brand that is new to me. This polish was a gift from a fellow nail blogger, but it retails at around $7. Though not the most affordable polish brand on the market, you are certainly getting a good quality product! Pink Wishes has a great formula that is opaque in two coats. I really like the application, and was surprised at how much I enjoy the light pink color. It reminds me of cotton candy! My only gripe with Pink Wishes is that you can see brush strokes a little on the finished manicure. Other than that it is a great polish!

The other pink polish I have to show you today is Jennifer from Julep, one of my favorite brands! While Julep retails for $14 per bottle, there are many ways to get this amazing polish at discounted rates. You can join the Julep Maven program HERE to get a box of goodies for $20 per month, plus keep a lookout for promo codes on Julep’s Facebook page HERE. I got Jennifer for $5 through a group order with other nail polish fans — quite the bargain! Jennifer is a beautiful pale pink that I expected to have a cream finish, but it is actually quite sheer. I have on two coats in the photos, and as you can see it is not fully opaque. Because I knew I would be layering glitter over it, I didn’t add another coat, but even with just the two I think it looks gorgeous! Jennifer is perfect if you don’t like overstated or “loud” manicures, but still want to be polished.

I hope you enjoyed my Pink Wednesday post! What are your favorite pink nail polishes?

Indie Spotlight: Kelara Lacquers

Posted on November 27, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Happy Tuesday, everyone! Today I have three polishes from the brand new indie brand Kelara Lacquers to show you. These polishes are amazing right down to the cute bottles with professional labels. Let me show you these gorgeous polishes!

First up is my favorite of the polishes. It is Uranus from the Planetary Collection! Yes, the name is silly, but I just love this color. Uranus is a gorgeous teal polish with holographic micro glitters mixed in. It has a textured finish, which I love. The formula is spot on for this one, as it is opaque in just two coats. It is also chip proof! I had this one on for days without any signs of wear. I absolutely love Uranus and hope to wear it often.

Up next is Seaside from the Fantasy Collection. This polish is a gorgeous sea blue with hints turquoise glitter. It really does look like an ocean on your fingers! Seaside was opaque in just two coats, and has a jelly texture to it. This is a great blue nail polish, especially with the green glitters thrown in. I recommend it to any blue lovers!

The final polish from Kelara Lacquers that I have to show you is Butterfly Kisses, also from the Fantasy Collection. Butterfly Kisses is a slightly tinted purple base filled with fine purple and turquoise glitters and pink butterfly glitters! This is definitely a unique polish! The first photo shows three coats of Butterfly Kisses on its own, and the next two show one coat over Seaside. While you can build opacity in three coats, I definitely suggest using Butterfly Kisses as a layering polish. Three coats was too bumpy, but one coat looks great as a topper! Although I am not a huge butterfly fan, this polish is adorable! I can guarantee you don’t have anything like Butterfly Kisses in your collection yet.

All in all, I love Kelara Lacquers! The polishes are really good quality, and I love that the brand offers a variety of colors and finishes. You can shop Kelara Lacquers on Etsy HERE. Full size bottles are $9 and minis are $4.50. You can also follow Kelara on Facebook HERE.

The products in this post were provided for my unbiased review. All opinions are my own.

Shop Cyber Monday Deals on Coterie!

Posted on November 25, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

Remember when I wrote THIS blog post about the new website Coterie? I scored an amazing deal on Butter London nail polish that I could never have afforded otherwise. Well, Coterie let me know about the huge Cyber Monday sale they are having tomorrow, and I wanted to share the details with all of you. Not only will there be nail polish on sale, but Coterie has other special treats as well.

In addition to the sales already going on at Coterie, on Cyber Monday (tomorrow, November 25th), there will be three main events.

Get 3 Julep Nail Colors for $23 and with your Julep purchase choose between the Glow on Age Defying Hand Brightener or Facial for Hands Glycolic Hand Scrub for free
Back by popular demand with the best offer yet — 50% off MOR Salt & Sugar Scrubs
More than 40% off on Oscar Blandi Texture and Volume styling products

Plus, Coterie will be choosing 20 random shoppers to receive their entire Cyber Monday purchases for FREE! I definitely plan on purchasing the Julep deal!

Remember, you can join Coterie HERE. It is free to join so there really is no catch. You can also follow Coterie on Twitter. Search for @Coterieinc.

Happy Shopping!

My November Julep Maven Box!

Posted on November 20, 2012August 12, 2015 by Adventures in Polishland

You may be wondering why it took me so long this month to get up my review of my Julep Maven Box. To be honest, it is a combination of the fact that I did not receive my box until November 8th and with how busy I have been with school and other polish reviews. Let me show you what I got in the November box, and tell you more about Julep’s new changes.

Since the last time I posted about Julep, a lot has changed! The company completely re-vamped their website, and unveiled a new rewards program that lets members earn Jules, or points, in a variety of ways. Although these changes are for the better in the long run, Julep struggled a bit with the launch of their new site, and I think that is why I didn’t receive my box for so long. Nonetheless, my box was just as wonderful as usual when it arrived. I got the It Girl Box, which came with two of the coveted Julep suede nail polishes, a matte top coat, and a few nail polish remover wipes. I apologize for the photo quality — I forgot to take a picture with my camera, so this is from Instagram!

The first polish I got this month is Hailee, a khaki green suede. A suede polish is just as it sounds — it has a matte finish that is multidimensional to look like suede fabric. Hailee is very pretty, but I think it looks more of a grey or silver than a green, but it depends on the lighting. In terms of formula, Hailee is great! It is very easy to apply, and is opaque in two coats. Hailee also dries very quickly. I would not wear this polish every day, but it is definitely a unique color that I haven’t seen before.

The other polish I received in my November box is Nora, what Julep calls a “silver, aubergine suede.” In other words, Nora is a gorgeous deep purple! Just like with Hailee, Nora’s forumla is great. It is opaque in two coats, and dries quickly. Nora is definitely my favorite of the two polishes. I am much more into purple polishes than khakis!

All in all, I did like my November Julep Box. I wish I had gotten it earlier in the month like I have in the past, but hopefully Julep has figured out their issues now. I do have to say that I am really excited for the December Julep Box. They were released today, and are all gorgeous, holiday glitters! Join Julep today and enter code TWOFREE at checkout. Not only will you get your first box for a discounted price of $14.99, but you will get two bonus nail polishes for free! Click HERE to sign up now!