Lacquer or Leave Her!

Monday, August 24, 2015

PLEASE READ: Mentality Nail Polish

Hello--

You may have recently heard about issues that some users have had with Mentality Nail Polish, particularly with their recent neon collection. Some users have had severe reactions to the polish, which have led in some cases to nails even separating from their nail beds.

I do not swatch or blog for Mentality, have never received a press sample from them, and have not featured any of the polishes they've put out in the past year (the approximate time period polishes with the problematic ingredients have come from). But, I have recommended this brand in the past on my blog and social media; most recently, I featured one of their polishes in a 'best of Indies' post. So, I want to make sure than anyone who has purchased any Mentality polishes in the last year, especially if it was on my recommendation, is aware of the situation, and can take whatever action they feel is appropriate.

There is a lot of speculation going around the internet regarding the situation, including when exactly Mentality knew about the potentially harmful polishes, and which polishes are safe and which are not; there is also a lot of dissatisfaction with how Mentality has handled the situation. I don't have direct knowledge regarding most of it, and I don't want to speak on what I don't know. But what I do know is this: (1) some Mentality polishes may cause severe physical reactions, and (2) Mentality has recently released a statement saying they are no longer willing to take any more refund or remake requests. I believe this makes it even more imperative that everyone who has potentially purchased these polishes be made aware of the situation, so they can look into it as soon as possible and see what options are available to them.

It's my hope that Mentality will make known exactly which polishes are potentially harmful, and will change their minds and refund and/or remake polishes for everyone who has purchased these potentially harmful polishes.

M.

Sunday, August 23, 2015

Review: Zoya's Flair Fall 2015 collection

(Press sample; affiliate links)

Hello!

Metallics. Jewel-toned liquid metals. Awesome multichrome. How do those words make you feel? Cause they make me feel pretty darned good, I gotta tell you.

Zoya's Flair collection (half of their 2015 fall offerings) has these things in beautiful, decadent swaths of YES.

First up is Zoya Aggie, which is both a luscious burnished gold metallic and green-brown-gold tiger's eye multichrome:

Zoya Aggie

Hey Michelle, did you really need this many pictures of Aggie? Yes, yes I did. Because she's amazing and awesome and any other word that starts with 'a' that means really uber-excellent things. This is two coats that slipped on easier than your yoga pants at the end of a hard day. At first glance this might look to you like another of the Chanel Peridot dupes that was so popular a while back; I'll do a comparison post for you, but spoiler alert--it's not a dupe. And if I may go out on a limb--it's better. Yeah, that's right, I said it.

Next we have Zoya Cinnamon, a rich dark chocolate brown metallic that looks like it contains just a hint of cinnamon for a little extra flair:

Zoya Cinnamon

This is a beautiful fall shade that will go with anything at any moment. This is two coats, perfect application and color. Browns can be a controversial shade; they need something that makes them a little sexy rather than just myddy. The metallic shimmer on this does just that; this looks like a cup of hot cocoa with a dash of heat. Love.

And the there's Zoya Ember, the red shimmer that no fall would be complete without. I love my reds, and I adore this:

Zoya Ember

This polish is perfectly named--this red shines from inside like a red-hot coal. These pictures look like I've done something strange with a filter of some sort--nope, that's the polish. Sexy and simmering and just HOT. Two coats, and if application were any easier, it'd apply itself.

Up next is Zoya Estelle, a cerulean blue shimmer:

Zoya Estelle

In my imagination, this is what the Caribbean looks like at the end of the day when the sun is setting; an impossibly rich blue with sun sparkling off the surface. This is two coats, excellent application and formula.

And then there's Zoya Giada, a deep violet with a pink flashing shimmer:

Zoya Giada

Gorgeous aubergine vampiness. Sexy. Regal. Wearing this polish makes me feel like a 14th century Italian renaissance queen. Two coats, perfect application and formula.

And to end on a high note, we have Zoya Tris, a sparkling pewter statement piece:

Zoya Tris

Whether or not they named this after the Divergent character, I believe Tris the character would approve of Tris the polish--it has a edge, but also a shining beauty. I'm not a big fan of wearing silver on my nails, and usually don't wear it alone. But the darker pewter is a whole 'nother story, and I absolutely will be wearing this (and stroking it and loving it with all my heart). This is two coats, easy application and great formula. Adore--the perfect non-boring neutral to jazz up any fall outfit.

I love this for a fall collection--rich jewel-tones that will take you flawlessly into winter while giving you plenty to celebrate during the fall. The finishes on these give a splash of sparkle. And I think the metallic shades (the gold, brown, and silver) give this collection versatility and, well, flair.

You can find the collection now on Zoya's website by clicking here; you can also find them here on Amazon.

I'll be back soon with Zoya's Focus collection, which is filled with yummy cremes!

Happy polishing!
M.

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Tutorial: Tropical Flowers

(Press sample; affiliate links)

Hello!

I got a lot of compliments about the Tropical Flowers manicure I did with UberChic Beauty's collection 4 plates, so I thought I'd put together a tutorial on how to get the look yourself. I made a pin-able graphic, but I also did something I've never done before: I made a quick video tutorial as well:

This is my first 'still' video tutorial, and I'd love any feedback you have on it.

In the meantime, here is the graphic:

I used the following to make this mani:

Zoya Darcy, Jancyn and Thandie for the gradient
Zoya Darcy and Julep Karissa to color the flowers
UberChic Beauty plate 4-01
Konad black to stamp the flowers

Happy stamping!
M.

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Want to name a Zoya polish??

Have you ever dreamed of naming a Zoya Color? This is your big chance to join in on the color naming fun... Zoya Creative Director, Rebecca Isa has created 3 gorgeous, new colors for Redbook and the magazine is running a naming contest for them in the September 15 Issue (page 60).

· Creamy Cherry Red

· Metallic Plum

· Sheer Sparkly Gold

As you may know, Zoya names all of our colors after women - so submit your Mom or Bestie or Idol or even your own name to maybe become the next new Zoya!

ENTRY FORM: http://redbook.hearstmobile.com/sweepstakes/31602

CONTEST RULES: http://www.redbookmag.com/sweepstakes/rules/a39228/september-2015-contest-official-rules-5-beauty-tricks-i-just-learned-zoya-contest/

OR USE THE QR CODE PROVIDED HERE FOR DIRECT ACCESS.

After the winning names are selected by the Redbook team, the colors will be available through December on Zoya.com as a full size (0.5 oz) trio - $27 (US).

And as individual colors in salons and ULTA stores - $9 ea. (US).

Before & After: It Girl Nail Art fashion plate IG103 + SinfulColors Rebel Rose

(Press sample)

Hello!

I've been waiting to get my paws on the art nouveau image on It Girl Nail Art IG103 (or, get the image on my paws! See what I did there?), and today is the day! If you want to see my full review of It Girl Nail Art's three inaugural plates, click here.

I started out with SinfulColors Rebel Rose (see the full collection here), a magnificent fuchsia shimmer with little blue bits in the shimmer:

SinfulColors Rebel Rose

Then I used the lovely image second from the right on the bottom row, stamped with SinfulColors Blue Sensation:

I chose SinfulColors Blue Sensation to stamp with to pull out the blue shimmers in the base polish; here's how it turned out:

Art nouveau-oh-oh!

It Girl Nail Art IG103 over SinfulColors Rebel Rose

I love how the image is large enough for me to get the scallop-shell portion clearly on one nail, and swoopy side images on the other two nails, for a full, cohesive look. And I love how well the blue plays with the fuchsia. What do you think, are you an art nouveau fan?

You can find It Girl Nail Art fashion plates on her Etsy store, and on her Store Envy shop. You can also keep up with her on Facebook and Instagram.

Happy stamping!

Sunday, August 16, 2015

Review and Before & Afters: Incoco's Modern Marble Collection

(Press sample, affiliate links)

Hello!

As summer heading far too quickly toward fall, I have one last summer Incoco collection to review for you--the Modern Marble collection, available now.

This collection features wraps that look like beautiful Carrara marble, with hints of blues, purples, and/or pinks threading through. This is a tough look to create with nail art, and I love it when nail wraps do for me what's hard to do myself.

Incoco sent me two sets from this collection to try out, and today we're going to look at Set In Stone, a pearly white set with dark purple swirls that go almost to black:

Incoco Set In Stone

I love how they look on the nail just by themselves--a work of art without any effort, on both long and short nails:

Incoco Set In Stone

One thing to keep in mind with the short nails. Incoco nail appliques are double-ended so that they can maximize the slight differences in shape on each end, to help get you the best fit possible; of course the design is going to be a little different on each end, too. When you apply on shorter nails, keep in mind how much of the pattern will make it onto your nail, and be sure you choose your end in accord with the art you want to make--in my opinion, it's better to trim the end a bit if you need to in order to get the most awesomest art you can!

So this is gorgeous, and I did wear it this way for a couple of days. And then, I saw a post about 'seriotype' manicures (which are sort of a cross between splodge manicures and saran-wrap manicures, depending on who does them), and I knew this would be the perfect base for me to try one out...Especially because my Julep mystery box came and all of the colors in it were perfect for the seriotype I wanted to do, and when the universe aligns like that, who am I to say no?? In fact, there were too many ideas for how to combine them in my head, so I did a slightly different seriotype on each hand.

For my left hand, I put a few drops of Julep Christa (Orchid holo) and Joanne (deep dusty purple) onto my ring and pinkie fingers and smooshed them around with saran wrap. On my ring, I went for a more full-coverage look, and on my pinky I wanted the beautiful marble swirl of the wrap to show through:

Incoco Set In Stone Seriotype with Julep Christa and Joanne

On my right hand I also added in some Julep Nic, and oxblood red-purple:

Incoco Set In Stone Seriotype with Julep Christa, Joanne, and Nic

Which do you like better? I personally prefer the second, with the hint of more reddish purple to it...

...But of course that wasn't enough, and I couldn't leave it without stamping it. So I got it in my head to see if I had a stamping image that would match up with the marbling in the appliques; I stamped using Cheeky jumbo plate D, with Nfu-Oh 61:

Incoco Set In Stone Stamped Seriotype

Yes. Yes yes yes yes yes!!! I love this look so much, and the coolest thing about it is it's super easy to do. The appliques have a gorgeous swirled look with gradients of color I could never replicate, and then the super-easy seriotype sets those off beautifully. Pretty, elegant, textured, and fun. LOVE!

You can find the Incoco Modern Marble collection here; they also have a couple of other very cool things out that I'll be reviewing soon and that you should check out while you're there--accent nail wraps, and Top It Off transparent nail art overlays that allow you to put patterns over any base polish you want, quickly and easily. I love the ways they're expanding to make nail art fast and easy for beginners and experts alike!

You can also find Incoco in Walgreens, and you can find the Cheeky Jumbo D plate on Amazon here, and Nfu-Oh 61 here.

Happy wrapping!
M.

Cheeky jumbo plates available again!!

(Affiliate links)

And they also have the alphabet jumbo plates back, as well. I don't have reviews for these, but I own most of them and if you'd like to see a review of them, let me know and I will make it happen!

You can find the plates on Amazon; they vary in price but are each around $8-11 depending on plate and if you buy them in a bundle.

Happy shopping!
M.