Just some nail of the week(Erika)

Sorry about my lack of posts... Sadly I have no reason, but lots of school work and sleeping. I spent the past weekend (well part of the weekend) visiting Julie. We have to make plans about a year in advance because shes a busy gal, and im sorta kinda busy(work, work, work).

We broke out the nail polishes, including the ones that she got for me at Ulta:) And I used her Barry M Indigo that I top coated with Nubar 2010.

This was taken a few days after I painted them, so excuse the tip wear and chipage. I also didnt realize that it could have used another coat, damn you sunlight.
I need to get, yes need, to get Indigo by Barry M. I came close to getting a dupe, Royal by Revlon.

 

 But as you can see, Barry M is more purple, so as order must be placed because this color is just amazing. The end. Tomorrow I shall post my VDAY manicure. It needs some, ahem, fixing. Lets just say, taking a shower after you paint your nails is not a good idea.


Here is the Barry M website:
http://www.barrym.com/

NUBAR Newbies For Me (Julie)

Sorry I haven't been maniacally posting lately! My nails all started to break one-by-one, probably from using too much acetone, since I change my polish once, and sometimes twice a day. I decided to give my nails a break for a few days and focus on getting them stronger.

Does anybody have tips for splitting nails? And not just at the tips, but my nails crack on the sides, down very low where it would be painful to cut them that short. Would love some help on how to prevent that!

So on to my NUBAR. I order most of my Nubar from enchantedbeautyspot on eBay. They ship so fast, and combine shipping. I had my eyes on 3 swatches by them, and finally decided to cave and make a purchase.

My picks:

left to right as seen in photo below:
1- Nubar Indigo Illusions (not yet swatched)
2- Nubar Antiquity Silver (not yet swatched)
3- Nubar Violet Sparkles

I didn't get around to swatching them all - so please forgive me. I will soon, but as I said my nails do need a break for a bit. Swatched below is Violet Sparkles. I tried with all my might to capture the pure sparkle that this polish provides, but I failed. I don't think my camera is good enough to do that. But it's SO rich in sparkles, and in certain lighting it gives way to pink sparkles that glow through the purple like they're on fire. I would probably guess that this entire collection is worthy of a purchase.

in natural light

in warm lighting (more close to the natural shade)

in natural light

in natural light

in natural light

in warm lighting

in warm lighting

Last, here it is blinged up with NFU Oh Glitter Series 125 (GS-125) a gift I received in an exchange on the Purseforum's Beauty Bar. Uhh...saywhat?? Glitter OVER Glitter? Oh yes, I dare so.

Cult Nails - Up And Coming and AWESOME! (Julie)

*Tues Feb 15 -Just updating this post to say WOW! I got my Cult Nails Iconic yesterday and I am just in love!! It was everything I hoped and some more. The flakes are the perfect size and amount, it applies smooth, and I'm on the second day of wear (I chopped, I cooked, I worked!) and not even one chip yet. My only recommendation would be to just be sure you let each coat dry before you apply the next to prevent bubblies. I used 3 coats, and no top coat. Though I'm sure seche would help reflect the gold glimmer in this polish. It's just super. And now I think I need to get the other too!

Here are my swatches of Iconic - my application was messy, sorry!

Iconic in direct sunlight. Wow!

I stumbled upon a nail polish *franken genius while skimming blogs the other day, and it turns out that she has released her own line of nail polish called Cult Nails, and so far from what I've seen, the swatches are to die for!

I pre-ordered a bottle of Iconic - it's a deep rose cream with gold sparkles and flakes in it. So completely unique!! When I say I LOVE flake polishes, I mean it. And I feel like there's a whole other realm of possibilities that most nail polish companies (with the exception of Nfu Oh) really haven't explored yet. So my hopes are that this line by Cult Nails is uber successful, so that the creator, Maria Morrison can rock out the flake polishes and make me happy woman :) I see SO much potential in her ideas thus far!

What do you think?

(these photos belong to cultnails.com)

Iconic:

 

My Kind of Coolaid:

 

Living Water:

*franken- mixing together of different nail polishes to create a brand new polish

Beauty tips! (Renee)

Vitamin A and calcium deficiency can cause nail dryness and brittleness.  Drink your milk ladies!

For a little skin first-aid, citrus fruits hold your skin cells together and keep them looking young by forming collagen.  This is why it's important to eat citrus fruits daily!  Craving oranges yet?

Speaking of skin, did you know that as an anti-aging food, raw nuts are tops?  They are a good source of vitamins and minerals such as potassium, zinc, magnesium and selenium, they are extremely important for the health of our skin.  They not only raise HDL cholesterol levels (good cholesterol) while deceasing LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol), but also are an excellent source of Omega 3 fatty acids, a nutrient that is vital for the proper functioning of the brain.
However, consume these bad (or should I say good?) boys in moderation, as they do have a lot of calories!

Models Own Gold Rush - $130,000 Nail Polish (Julie)

I crap you not my friends. Models Own released a $130,000 nail polish called Gold Rush.

What makes Gold Rush so exquisite? Well it's certainly not what's inside. It could, however, be the the hand-made gold cap, or possibly the 1,118 diamonds adorning it. But what do I know?

I wonder, did they sell even one? I can't imagine anybody besides celebrities feeling the need to own something as "blinged out" as this stuff. Who knows, some rich people will buy just about anything.

Like the color but want to go a cheaper route? Models Own also has this lacquer available for a mere £5 on their website...but don't expect any gold or diamonds. Just a fabulous gold color. It's called 24 carat gold.

 For those of us in the US, you can try Nubar's 2010, a golden flake top coat that compliments just about every color you can imagine. Though I do recommend trying it over red.

Beauty In A Bottle: NFU OH (Julie)

I just had a great weekend with 2 of my nail polish ladies - we painted nails, we pigged out, we watched tv, then painted our nails again.

Saturday in the mail, my 2 new NFU OH Nail Lacquers showed up. 052 and 059. Part of the flakeys collection. I buy mine from fabuloustreet.com. She is based in the USA and offers free shipping. They're $12.50 and well worth the price.

I took a few photos to display these magnificent colors. And there's so many! I am lucky enough to own 3.

Here is 52 and 59 (left to right, 56, 52)

I also participated in my very first (secret cupid valentine's day) nail polish exchange arranged on purseblog.com, and I had a great experience, the person who was to buy for me bought me NFU Oh! This is SUCH a beautiful swatch. I have not used it yet because I have a particular look in mind that requires I use a swatch I don't have yet. So for now enjoy some bottle eye candy.

I also purchased the Deborah Lippmann "All That Jazz" collection on Friday. I know it's a little late, but it was the last one left and I really thought $40 for 3 of her polishes was well worth the buy. The real highlight in this set is Lady Sings The Blues. It really sets itself aside from all the other glitters because it's in a deep navy jelly base. It's probably my favorite polish for the moment. Will swatch it soon. My nails are in terrible shape right now so as you can see I haven't been going swatch crazy. They all broke and I need to fix them up.

Happy Superbowl Sunday.