Friday, August 2, 2013

SUMMER BUBBLES: Del Sol color-changing* polish

I have owned Del Sol First Kiss for quite a while and decided it was time to try it.

  It's a song on the new Tommy February album and you can probably find it on youtube

The "before" silvery pink color is very close to how I remember my first nail polish ever: Love My Nails Innocent Pink, given to me at age six by a student teacher who knew not what she wrought. I kept it for years and years, until it finally got sort of yellowy and unfortunate. Then I barely missed my last opportunity to buy another before the brand went defunct; you could buy it at Walmart forever, but when it finally occurred to me, all I could find were some godawful magenta ones in a clearance bin.

  The pearls are white, the corals scarlet and the fish surround me

My older, more sophisticated palate decried the color as TOTES BORING (also the VNL was unacceptable), so I stamped it with the bubbles from Mash-43 in China Glaze Galactic Gray (very subtle effect). Then I got all glitter-happy and added a layer of OPI Pirouette My Whistle to simulate MORE BUBBLES.

* There were too many layers of top coat to allow enough UV light in to change the Del Sol. Sometimes I fail to think these things through.

  I could use a daiquiri about now

It does change color nicely in the bottle, so presumably, if you don't slop on endless UV-filtering top coat, it will also change on your nails. I ordered it from Sally's, but they have a wider variety on the Del Sol website in delightfully redesigned bottles. SWEET.

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

YOU CAN CALL ME HEAVENLY: Zoya Tomoko

I have a love-hate relationship with Zoya and am on a (well-intentioned) no-buy right now, but this happened. It is one of the fall PixieDust collection, but it is unseasonably cool today, so I gave myself a preview.

  YOU CAN CALL ME HEAVENLY

Kawase Tomoko is what I want to be when I grow up and we have the same birthday and WOULD TOTALLY BE TWINS IF I WERE SIX INCHES SHORTER AND ASIAN LET'S BE BEST FRIENDS OKAY

  or Serenity Heavenly6

WE CAN WEAR OUR CAT EARS TOGETHER AND I WILL BAKE STRAWBERRY CREAM CUPCAKES

  I also answer to PRINCESS

I am not a huge fan of the textured polish thing, but this is shiny enough that I can forgive it. The Zoya "Pixie" thing is too precious for me to forgive, however. THAT'S JUST WEIRD GUYS and coming from me that's saying something....

  as should all self-respecting weekend heroines

I also discovered the Great Galloping Gallons promotion, where if you buy four 32-ounce bottles of Remove+ you get four free. The price per ounce is 39 cents as opposed to $1.25 per ounce when you buy the flipper thing. If you can steel yourself to spend $100 at once on nail polish remover, it's a bargain.

  SHUUMATSU HIROIN DESU wait wrong J-pop

Two gallons of remover should last a couple months at least.

Monday, July 29, 2013

NEON DEATH PINK: Zoya Does It Best

In keeping with our Let's Summer Like It's 1993 theme, I present Zoya Neon Death Pink (aka Layla) with tips in Zoya Neon Death Pink mark Glitter (née Gilda).

  seriously guys my cuticles are burning

I bought these as part of a box set in December a couple years ago when I was overexcited about a buy-two-get-one sale. This box came with yet another Neon Death Pink (I think Lola, which I have since given away due to general grossness thereof.

  your mom's a CHEETAH

Oh tiny stub nails, how you radiate toxic pinkness.

I can't say that I was thrilled with either of these polishes; they like to pretend to be dry until you go to change the laundry and then HAHA MADE YOU SMUDGE. But for the probable forty-eight hours I will be able to tolerate looking at this, they were good enough.

Friday, July 26, 2013

LISA FRANK NAILS: yup, I'm that old.

I originally saw this idea on a slideshow somewhere and have seen several different versions since then. But this is my best take on it.

  your mom's a leopard

Stripes lovingly hand-painted in (from the bottom up) Orly Charged Up and Sinful Colors Cream Pink, Savage and Innocent, topped with China Glaze Fairy Dust. Leopard spots stamped with Mash-23 in Konad black. Photobucket is being an ass about letting me rotate these pictures for some reason.

  your mom's a CHEETAH

As long as I have tiny stub nails, I need to practice stamping. Obviously.

  FUCK YOU, MAN

Does anyone remember the Lisa Frank picture of a dog and cat wedding? The dog has a sadistic leer, and the cat looked terrified. It was so traumatizing that there is no evidence of it on the internet anywhere. Ashleigh remembers, so it was not a crack dream of my youth.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

YET STILL MORE MERMAIDS: Layla Softouch 10

This is a mermaid color in spirit if not in name. The internet gods tell me #10 is "Turquoise Splash."

  your mom's a mermaid

I really like the finish on this line. It is rare, if not unique, but wear time is not very good.

  your FACE is a mermaid

Immediately after these pictures, I snapped off my left index nail below the quick. Angst happened.

  LIKE A FOX

If I'd been wearing base coat under it and a nice thick sludge of Seche Vite over it, I'd probably still have that nail. JUST SAYING.

Monday, July 22, 2013

MERMAIDS AGAIN: Mermaid's Dream

THE ORIGINAL THAT STARTED IT ALL. Do mermaids dream of electric eels?

  look Ma! no hands!

Since I live a billion miles from anywhere that sells Deborah Lippmann, my aunt gave it to me for Christmas. She had to go to a mall. You can get CHOLERA going to a mall.

  oh wait, that doesn't make any sense.

It looks like sea glass. And magical fantasy CGI water. And things I want to lick.

  look Ma!  no tongue!

Here I stamped it with scales from Mash-39 in Essie Good as Gold. LIKE A MERMAID TAIL. My next career is going to be "professional mermaid." IT IS A REAL THING; Google it.

Friday, July 19, 2013

MERMAIDS PART TWO: Mermaid's Kiss

I imagine that a mermaid's kiss would taste like sushi, or maybe like Trader Joe's roasted seaweed snacks in the morning. A diabetic mermaid would have breath like Sonic ocean water.

  I want to paint my car with this.

This matches my pink sapphire ring, but I neglected to photograph that.

  I wonder if one can purchase by the gross at Costco.

This is what seashells look like on my home planet.

  they really should look into that.

Formula and wear were fantastic, A+++ would buy again.