Lilla Smalto 21

Gifted Item

I was given two bottles of Lilla Nail Laque all the way from Italy, and today I'll be swatching the first of them. Both of these polishes were gifts from a friend and I couldn't be happier to be sharing these gems with my readers today.

Greens are an increasing scarcity in my polish collection, being one of the few colors that I rarely find myself drawn to. While a nice rich forest or a pastel pistachio may hold a certain allure, they're not my most reached for bottles when a new collection is debuted.

This particular bottle has a soft spot in my heart because it was a gift from a close friend. It reminds me that even when she was in the throws of a summer college trip to Italy she still had our friendship in mind when she picked up some polishes for me as tokens of her trip.

Smalto 21 is a beautiful mix of mossy green and rich veins of golden green shimmer. It's truly lovely in the bottle and the shimmer is bold enough to wear true on the nail.

The brush was flexible, flat, and moderately wide which allowed for easy and precise application. My swatch is two coats of Smalto 21 with base and top coat.

What colors are scarce in your collection, and which ones hold sentimental value? Let me know in the comments and thanks for reading!

Hare Polish Bisbee 2.0

Nothing to Disclose

Happy Tuesday lovely readers! Today I'm showing off a polish that's been sitting in my Indie Polish drawer for far too long. This little bottle reminds me of the first year I started nail blogging, since it also corresponds to the year that this indie brand launched! Hare Polish was one of the first indie brands I ever really fell for, and I'm happy to say I've finally added some of their polishes to my collection.

I've been a fan of Bisbee since Hare Polish first came onto the scene, and when she reformulated the color I finally made the purchase of this long lemmed-for shade. Even though the new version doesn't have the same simplicity of the original it's still a gorgeous polish in it's own right.

Bisbee 2.0 is a beautiful mix of gold squares and hexes in both small and medium sizes, all suspended in a true turquoise jelly base color. Throughout the base is a very subtle golden shimmer that adds just the right amount of depth to this already squishy polish.

My swatch is three coats of Bisbee 2.0 accompanied by both base and top coat.

The formula on Bisbee 2.0 was fairly easy to work with, although at some points it required more fiddling to get the glitter to come off of the brush. The ratio of base color to glitter was good after you get the hang of working with this color.

What was your first indie brand crush? Let me know in the comments and thanks for reading!

POFA Summer Collection Pt. 2

Press Sample

Hello again my lovely readers! Today I'm bringing you the second half of the POFA Summer Collection. In case you missed my first post on this brand I've included some repeat details to get you up to speed. For those of you who caught the first half, you can skip ahead to the polishes!

POFA is a new to me brand but also a fairly new brand in general. I had never heard of their polishes before I was contacted by the owner, so I'm happy to be on the fore front in helping to spread the word about these polishes!

POFA as a brand describes itself as "a new, innovative, and exciting line of nail products. We are emerging as the newest standard of quality nail color in the industry, while providing the best customer service". That's a tall order in and of itself, but to top it off POFA claims to have a chip-proof formula. The polish retails for $8 USD per bottle and is available through PofaNailColor.com.

Melanie was one of the colors I was most excited to try. I knew that my mom would adore the bright pink for summer! My swatch is two coats with base coat. The formula on this one was flawless! It applied beautifully and my swatch is shown with zero cleanup! It's almost a one coater, but I applied a second coat just to create a totally solid finish.

Naftaly is a cheery orange with slight red undertones. It's not neon and isn't too yellow so it should be flattering on a wider range of skintones. My swatch is two coats with base coat. The formula on this polish was a blend between a creme and a jelly, but not a full on 50/50 split. It leaned more towards a creme and was smooth to apply. I didn't have any issues and this swatch is shown without clean up.

Gemma is the oddball out of the collection; A rich medium red in the bottle. I never really classify reds as a specifically summer color, but every brand needs a signature red shade so I'm assuming this is POFA's interpretation! My swatch is two coats with base coat. The formula on this one was easy to work with just like the rest, although not as stellar as Melanie.

As I said in my previous post, none of my swatches feature top coat because the polishes themselves dry so super shiny. If these were more than swatches I would definitely add a protective layer, but I wanted you to see them on their own.

The brush on all these polishes was fairly flat with a slightly rounded tip that fanned out smoothly on the nail and allowed for easy application. The POFA bottle itself is a substantial glass square with 0.5oz of product. The brush handle is a slightly tapered matte black with a subtle textured finish that provides grip. The length of the handle is perfect for ease of polishing.

Overall I'm pretty impressed with the quality of the polishes that POFA is producing. It's a new brand so there's still a lot of room for improvement. My gripes would be that the polish names are not included on the bottles themselves (only on the website) and that no formula information (Big 3 Free, Cruelty Free, ect) is mentioned on either the Facebook page or official website. Both of these things are easily fixed and I'm excited to see where this brand is headed with upcoming collections.

What colors are calling your name from the POFA Summer Collection? Let me know in the comments and thanks for reading!

POFA Summer Collection Pt. 1

Press Sample

The weather here is finally starting to ascend into the 70's (fahrenheit) and I'm more than ready for summer nail colors! Whether it's a manicure or pedicure, there are few things I love more than a splash of color on my nails during the summer months.

I had never heard of POFA Nail Colors when I was contacted by the owner and asked to review their summer collection, but I'm happy to be sharing it with you today! I'll be doing three of the six colors in this post, and the remaining three in the next blog post.

POFA as a brand describes itself as "a new, innovative, and exciting line of nail products. We are emerging as the newest standard of quality nail color in the industry, while providing the best customer service". That's a tall order in and of itself, but to top it off POFA claims to have a chip-proof formula. The polish retails for $8 USD per bottle and is available through PofaNailColor.com.

First up is Briana, a soft and sophisticated jelly ballerina pink. My swatch is three coats with base coat. The first coat goes on super sheer, and could be used as a base for a french manicure. The second coat adds some opacity but it still needed a third to even out and show a significant amount of color. Despite being the most fickle of the three shades in this post, I still think it's quite a lovely palette cleansing pink.

Sathina is a bright pistachio green that packs a punch. My swatch is two coats with base coat. Sathina was slightly streaky on the first coat but this was quickly remedied with a second coat. The polish itself was an easy to control creme and was a good consistency.

And to round out today's post I present Jessica. This crelly purple polish is right on trend with Pantone's Radiant Orchid theme and is perfect for the warmer months ahead. My swatch is two coats with base coat.

The brush on all these polishes was fairly flat with a slightly rounded tip that fanned out smoothly on the nail and allowed for easy application. The POFA bottle itself is a substantial glass square with 0.5oz of product. The brush handle is a slightly tapered matte black with a subtle textured finish that provides grip. The length of the handle is perfect for ease of polishing.

All the colors were quite glossy on their own, which is why I didn't add top coat. I usually include it for swatches, but I wanted you all to see how shiny these polishes dry!

Be sure to check back this week for Pt. 2 of the Summer Collection including my overall opinions of the brand, and again late in the week for my wear test of the chip proof claims!

What do you think of the first three polishes in the POFA Summer Collection? Let me know in the comments and thanks for reading!

OPI Push and Shove

Nothing to Disclose

Ever since the salon exclusive Minx chrome nail wraps hit the nail art scene, bloggers and nail fanatics alike have been searching for the perfect liquid polish dupe to the unforgettable shine and mirror quality that the wraps provide. While many faux nail companies have come out with press-on nails with the same chrome finish, there's something about the hunt for the polish version that has never quite waned.

OPI saw a need and answered with their version of mirror nails in their latest collaboration with Gwen Stefani. Push and Shove is marketed as a one-night-only polish that promises chrome tips to any who dare to wear them. Packaged with a mini bottle of the speciality Lay Down That Base base coat, this duo was the polish to nab from the Stefani collection.

My swatch of Push and Shove is two coats shown with the Lay Down That Base base coat and Nail Pattern Boldness Glitter A-Peel as a top coat. Glitter A-Peel is marketed not only as a peel off base but also as a top coat for foils, and I'm happy to report that it doesn't dull the chrome effect hardly at all! I swatched it on a nail wheel half and half, and I can barely tell any difference between the non-top coat side and the side with Glitter A-Peel.

The formula was less tricky than I expected, but due to it's super chrome finish it brings out any flaws on your nails exponentially more than a standard chrome. Mainly because you can't use any type of ridge filling base coat underneath. I'm tempted to experiment with layering base coats to see if I can work around this, but for now it's a disadvantage.

So lovelies, is your hunt for nails with mirror shine complete or still on going? I can't say that this didn't fix a missing niche in my collection, but the quick to chip formula and high maintenance nature of this polish has left me less than ecstatic.

What are your opinions on OPI Push and Shove? Let me know in the comments and thanks for reading!

Knits and Glitter: SammyDress Review

Press Sample

If you've been on Pinterest for any amount of time you're sure to have come across at least one or two (or a thousand) pins about wholesale clothing websites. Being that I peruse pinterest for all kinds of inspiration I've checked out a few of these sites but always end up leaving because I'm never sure if they're legit or good quality.

I was recently contacted by a representative of SammyDress.com, which is one of these wholesale women's clothing websites. They asked to send me a complimentary product sample and out of curiosity I accepted. I figured that I had a great platform to talk to my readers about my experience and either debunk or confirm the too-good-to-be-true prices of these websites!

I decided on a graphic black and white sweater with an interesting neckline because it reminded me of the ever popular laser tape manicures that are both bold and easy to create. Being that it's still winter temperatures where I live I've already gotten a fair bit of use out of this sweater, and I've worn it enough to do an accurate review.

The sweater itself is soft, stretchy, and comfortable to wear. The quality is similar to what you would find at fast fashion stores like Forever 21. The sizing on the website can be slightly confusing since a lot of items are "one size", but if you know your measurements you can accurately gauge which size you require or if the "one size" is going to fit your shape.

There are a lot of cute clothing items on the SammyDress website, and the prices are extremely low. With that said I think that if you're looking for a cute statement necklace or a one season trendy piece this is a perfect avenue. I love the sweater I received and I definitely think it's priced right for the quality and material.

On to the nails I matched with this sweater: I used two coats of OPI Metallic 4 Life on my index, middle, and pinky nails. I then used tape and China Glaze Liquid Leather to create a negative space 'laser stripe' accent nail. I really like the way the silver glitter plays off the black and white knitting of the sweater.

Now, I feel like it's my duty as an honest blogger to share some information I came across when SammyDress was brought up in one of the blogging groups I'm a part of. Apparently there are quite a few negative reviews of the company because of items not being delivered correctly or the wrong items being received.

I can only speak from my personal experience (in which my personal money was not involved) in saying that my interactions with the representative were easy, had clear communication, and the item was shipped to me quickly and without issue. Of course I will always advise you to proceed as you see fit after doing your own web browsing for information.

What do you think of this matching manicure? Let me know in the comments and thanks for reading!

China Glaze Your Present Required

Nothing to Disclose

I think every nail polish junkie loves a good sale, and few are as good as the Sally Beauty 50% off already reduced clearance sale! It's known for having deep discounts on nail polish, and I picked up two China Glaze beauties for under five bucks this time around.

One of the colors I chose was China Glaze Your Present Required from the 2013 Holiday Collection. I've been on quite a low buy for several months now, so I'm a little behind on collections. Your Present Required is a mixed bag of glitters in various shapes and colors, all suspended in clear base.

My swatch is two coats applied in a dabbing fashion with heavy placement and manipulation. I found that the formula on this polish led to sparse glitter payoff and I really had to be intentional with every brush stroke to get the desired result. I layered Your Present Required with one of my favorite purples; Essie Play Date. My swatch includes base and top coat.

Your Present Required definitely has a unique quality that's familiar to indie polish lovers. The glitter mix of white, royal blue, purple, and rose gold hexes in various sizes is fun but complimentary in color.

Did you pick up any polish from the Sally's sale? Let me know in the comments and thanks for reading!