Tag: metallic

SquareHue: A New Nail Polish Subscription Service!

Happy Thursday! Today I have a great post for you about the brand new nail polish subscription service called SquareHue. Similar to Julep, SquareHue offers a monthly box of on-trend nail polishes. Each month, you will get three nail polishes for $21, and a portion of each sale is donated to a charity organization. In addition SquareHue polishes are three free, made in the USA, and not tested on animals. Plus, each bottle is a full size, 0.5oz polish! Let me show you the December box from SquareHue. Make sure to read the entire entry to find out how you can lock in the low monthly price of $14.99 for life!

 

SquareHue Subscription Box Review | December 2012

Here is what the box looked like when I opened it! As you can see, I got a cute welcome note that was signed by all members of the SquareHue team. Plus, each polish was nestled in it’s own little cubby complete with packaging streamers. I am a sucker for great presentation! I also love that the polishes are square shaped. It makes them easy to store, and they look different from the other polishes I own! Each bottle also has a great label on the bottom that says the name of the polish and the month and date it was released.

 

SquareHue – Sugar Plum SquareHue – Sugar Plum

The first polish in my December box is Sugar Plum, a gorgeous deep purple. Sugar Plum has a blue undertone, and a beautiful shimmer look. It has a great formula, and is opaque in two coats. I really like the brushes in the SquareHue polish, because the stem is short so you have more control when applying the polish, and the bristles are strong. When a polish has a great application, I automatically like it! Sugar Plum is a great purple for the winter, and a surprise color for the holiday season. I can’t wait to wear it again!SquareHue – Holly Berry SquareHue – Holly Berry

Up next is Holly Berry, the perfect Christmas red. Holly Berry is a true red full of red shimmer. This polish has the same great formula and is opaque in two coats. As my followers know, I am not a big fan of red nail polish, but Holly Berry is perfect for the holidays. I can definitely see this color being used for nail art, too. Another great thing about SquareHue polishes, is that they are long-lasting, but super easy to remove. No staining, even with the red color of Holly Berry.

 

SquareHue – Champagne ToastSquareHue – Champagne Toast

The final polish in my December box is Champagne Toast, a pretty light gold color with a metallic finish. Champagne Toast reminds me of Zoya Ziv but without the burnt orange undertones. If you are looking for a more neutral gold that can be paired with many outfits, this is the polish for you! Champagne Toast was also opaque in two coats, and dried very quickly. This is also the perfect base color for glitter polishes. Maybe you’ll see it in a future post (hint hint!).

Overall, I really love the SquareHue December box! The polishes are amazing quality, and remind me quite a bit of OPI. The monthly price of SquareHue is $21, but until Monday, December 24th you can lock in the price of $14.99 per month when you enter code DECBLOGGER09 at checkout. That’s right — only $5 per polish for life! Just like Julep, you can “pause” your account if you don’t want to purchase the monthly box, or you can cancel at any time. I highly suggest signing up as soon as possible to get the discounted price! You can visit the SquareHue website HERE.

 

Note: SquareHue is currently sold out of January boxes, so if you order now you will receive your first box in February. They had no idea how popular the program would be! Don’t worry, as long as you sign up by December 24th you will lock in the discounted price.

 

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

Sally Hansen Diamond Strength in Lilac Chantilly

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.

DSC02605

 

DSC02607

 

DSC02608

 

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?

Zoya Ornate Collection for Holiday/Winter 2012!

Happy Sunday! Today I will be reviewing the 2012/2013 holiday collection from Zoya Nail Polish called the Ornate Collection. This gorgeous line is comprised of six polishes that are perfect for the upcoming holidays and winter months. Let me show you each of the polishes from the Ornate Collection!

 

 

First up is Ziv, a beautiful gold. Ziv is a metallic polish with a foil finish, and is one of two foils in the Ornate Collection. The color is multidimensional, with hints of yellow, silver, and a warmer gold, too. Ziv is opaque in two coats and dries very quickly. It is the perfect gold nail polish to have in your polish collection! It shines in the light, but can also be great for those who like neutrals. My only gripe with Ziv is that removal takes longer than usual due to the metallic quality of this polish. Other than that, it is a fantastic gold!

 

 

The other foil polish in the Ornate Collection is Logan, a stunning green with undertones of yellow and blue. Logan is truly the perfect Christmas green! I definitely plan on wearing this during the holidays. Just like Ziv, Logan is opaque in two coats and dries quickly. It was also a bit difficult to remove, but is worth it for the fabulous color. Logan is a very unique green polish, so if you love green this is a must have!

 

 

Up next in the Ornate Collection is Blaze. This polish is the first of three polishes in this line full of holographic glitters! Blaze is a deep red color that Zoya calls mulberry. It is opaque in two coats, and I just love the formula! The three holographic polishes in this collection apply very smoothly and easily, but the downside is they take a long time to dry. I suggest giving yourself plenty of drying time with these polishes, because you are going to want to wear them! The holographic glitter is stunning! I am not a huge fan of red nail polish, but Blaze is another that is just perfect for Christmas. Very festive!

 

 

The next holographic polish in the Ornate Collection is Aurora. This is my favorite polish in this collection! Aurora is what Zoya calls a sugarplum purple, but I definitely see this almost as a pink. Nonetheless, Aurora is absolutely gorgeous! The holographic glitter just brings this polish to life. Like Blaze, it is opaque in two coats. Make sure to give yourself that extra drying time, but it is so worth it! I even got compliments on this polish while I was on the Subway! If I had to get one polish from this collection, it would be Aurora.

 

 

Storm is the final holographic polish in the Ornate Collection, and is a black polish full of that eye-catching holographic glitter. Storm is opaque in two coats, and has that same amazing formula that Blaze and Aurora have. This is a great polish if you are looking to dress up a black manicure. It goes with any outfit, and the glitters really stand out against the black base. Storm is an alternative for those of us who like something more exciting than the basic black polish. It reminds me a bit of Orly Rock Solid (see review of that polish HERE), but instead of a grainy finish, it is smooth as can be! I love the glossy finish.

 

 

The sixth and final polish in the Ornate Collection is Electra. This polish is a clear base filled with holographic bar glitters. I decided to layer it over Storm in the photos above. Believe it or not, that is just one coat of Electra! As you can see, Storm is still quite visible underneath, so I wouldn’t want to wear Electra on its own (but you certainly can!). I am personally not a huge fan of bar glitter, but if you are then this polish is for you! It is unbelievably shiny! I suggest lots of top coat with Electra to make sure all the glitters stay in place.

I hope you like the Zoya Ornate Collection as much as I do! It is perfect for the holidays, and is right on trend for the season. You can purchase the Ornate Collection for $48, or each polish individually for $8, on the Zoya website HERE. Zoya will even throw in a free gift on any order over $30! Make sure you have this gorgeous collection on your nails this winter.

 

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

 

Wet ‘n Wild Chrome Stay Outta My Bismuth — A Clearance Bin Find!

Drugstores are the perfect place to find fabulous and affordable nail polish, but the best place to look is in the clearance section! Not all drugstores have a regular clearance department, but if you’re lucky, you’ll find a bin with with some polishes on markdown. Sometimes the bin will be in the beauty aisle, other times it will be somewhere else in the store. I was thrilled to find this bottle of Wet ‘n Wild Chrome in a basket near the front of my local Rite Aid for only $1! I couldn’t pass up this gorgeous blue polish, especially when other stores are still selling the Chrome collection for $3.99. Take a look at Stay Outta My Bismuth!

 

 

Stay Outta My Bismuth is a gorgeous metallic blue polish mixed with gold shimmer. It is super shiny, and has a unique finish. The formula was different in that it wasn’t creamy, and wasn’t sheer. It applied evenly, though, and I only needed two coats to achieve opacity.  My one dislike about this polish was the brush. For some reason it was a bit fanned out, and that made it hard to get used to. Other than that, I loved this polish! It is like nothing else in my collection!

 

You can find Wet ‘n Wild Chrome polishes at your local drugstore or department store for $3.99. This is a limited edition collection, but I recently saw a full display near me, so they are still available for purchase. Maybe you’ll get lucky and find them in a clearance bin, too! If not, keep your eye out for a $1 off Wet ‘n Wild coupon that is floating around right now. Who doesn’t love the extra savings?!

Have you tried any polishes from the Wet ‘n Wild Chrome line? What are your best clearance finds?

My August Julep Maven Box!

I’ll be honest with you. When I first saw the Julep boxes online for August, I wasn’t thrilled with the options. I went ahead and chose the Boho Glam style anyway, as I had a free credit to use. I can’t pass up free polish! Now that I’ve had the chance to use the polishes I received, I am thrilled with my August box! Let me show you what was inside.

A pink box to celebrate Julep’s one year anniversary!

All August boxes came with a reusable tote bag.
From left to right, Isla, Piper, and nail polish remover.

I haven’t tried out the nail polish remover yet, but I did get the chance to use the new polish. I thought Piper and Isla would look perfect together, so I decided to a “Carly” manicure inspired by LacqueredLover.com! This style combines at least two different nail polishes in a unified look. I used two coats of each polish. One coat was very sheer, but a second coat achieved opacity. Piper is a metallic green, which I love. It is almost the metallic version of a mint, but a bit darker. Isla is a metallic white. I love the way they are both shiny and frosty. I never thought I’d be so impressed with these polishes! Here’s a cool Instagram photo of my manicure:

 

I love Julep products, and being a Maven member. If you’d like to join this monthly subscription, click HERE. Be sure to enter code COLOR2012 at checkout to get your first month for a penny!

Brand Power: Tip Top Nails South Africa

Tip Top Nails is a brand from South Africa that creates vegan and 4-free polishes made from natural ingredients. Today I have four polishes from their NailChic line to show you. I really loved all of these polishes, especially the brush! The flat brush applies polish perfectly, distributing it evenly with every stroke. The formula in each polish was also outstanding. More detailed comments to come in the color descriptions!

First up is Sitting Pretty, a bright pink jelly polish. The color was a bit brighter on my nails than I thought it was going to be, but I really like it. With two coats the color was opaque. The one thing I really did not like about this polish, was that even after wearing it for two days, I woke up to impressions on my nails from my blankets. I can understand that this happens when polish is not completely dry, but it was strange that it still occurred forty-eight hours after application. It must just be the formula. Besides this one issue, I love Sitting Pretty and can’t wait to wear it again!

 

Traffic Lights is a metallic red polish with a beautiful shimmer. I am not usually a big fan of red polishes, but this one is stunning. I did apply two coats, but you could honestly just use one! My only complaint with Traffic Lights is that removal took a bit more effort than usual, but other than that I am happy with it. I definitely plan on using this color again during the holidays. It is perfect for Christmas!

Next up is Jitterbug Lime, a metallic lime green. This is also a shimmer polish, with green and gold undertones. I was very surprised by how pretty this color is. Upon first look, it has a frosted finish, but in the light the color truly shines. I used two coats of Jitterbug Lime, and both were necessary to achieve opacity. Brush strokes are visible with this polish, as with almost all other metallics that I’ve used, yet this does not take away from the polish at all. Similar to Traffic Lights, removal of this polish was more difficult that I would like. Otherwise it is stunning!

Without flash
With flash

The last polish I have to show you is Gold Drop Glitter. I assumed that this polish could easily be worn on its own as the bottle read “Apply 2 coats of colour” on the bottle, just as it did with the other three polishes. But as soon as I applied one coat I realized that Gold Drop Glitter is best used as a glitter top coat. I was determined to use this on its own, so I started painting with hopes that I would achieve full coverage. Four coats later I was satisfied with the look. Gold Drop Glitter is a clear base with fine gold grains. If you’re willing to apply four coats you can wear it on its own. Otherwise, it would go great on top of another color. One day I’ll use this in another mani to show you what it looks like as a topcoat.

All in all, I really loved these polishes from Tip Top Nails. I wore each for 2-3 days and only experienced minimal wear along the tips of my nails. I definitely recommend these polishes. Those in South Africa can purchase Tip Top at their local Clicks store. The rest of us can follow the Tip Top Facebook community HERE and on Twitter HERE. You can also view all Tip Top products on their website: http://www.tiptopnails.co.za.

Have you tried this brand before? What do you think of these polishes?

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