Sally Hansen

Here's my little collection of the limited edition Xtreme Wears for this fall.

Left to right: Purple Gala, Purple Fiesta, Mystic Lilac and Concrete.

I only found Concrete last night! I found Purple Fiesta while in NYC. I've only had success finding these when I pop into random Rite Aids that I don't usually frequent.

These wear really nicely for me. I bought a backup of Mystic Lilac since it seems to require more coats than the others. Also it seems like a perfect color to wear in the spring. Purple Fiesta didn't seem to get too much love on the blogs, but I like it! Purple Gala, on the other hand...maybe it's a little too foil-y for me. It seems more...formal? Maybe I'll try it when dressing up.

Polish hauling as of late...

I have brought home to the Helmer all sorts of things!
Here's what I've hauled lately:


Sally Hansen:
Purple Fiesta
Purple Gala
Mystic Lilac
Shining Moments

Essie:
Sew Psyched
Merino Cool
We Can Do It Pink

OPI:
DS Classic
Suzi Skis Suede
Halloween Go Goth Minis
Pikaki Phakakta Plum (very very old)

Nina:
Never Glum Plum

Orly:
Bonder

China Glaze:
Halloween Awakenings Set

Seche:
a fresh Vite
Chemise

CND:
More of my trusted SolarOil

Borghese:
Stellare Notte

Petites:
Vintage Gray

Barielle:
Out-Grey-Geous

Along with the Nubars, which are currently on their way, that's a lot of new polish to play with! At least for me, I don't have a huge collection (yet?).

Pink AND grey!

From the Essence Surfer Babe summer 2010 collection. Pointbreak is a shark grey creme, Hang Loose is lilac-tinged pink creme. Both applied nicely.

I especially love the way these two polishes look paired together. I'd do a manicure in one color and a pedicure in the other.

I'm not very familiar with the Essence brand, I just happened to come across these at Ulta and grabbed them. Very reasonably priced polishes.

boredom is the mother of invention.

(or something like that)

At times, I have this weirdo memory that holds onto the most useless facts, tidbits, and (particularly vexing), product information.

For instance, I've never forgotten reading in a beauty magazine (Allure?) at least four or five years ago (and maybe much longer than that) about the splendid combination of NARS polishes that is Pussy Galore topped with Arabesque.



See, wouldn't that be pretty? Or at least rather interesting to try?

Alas, NARS polishes are $16 each, which makes trying that out a $32 whim. A little pricey.

So, while trying to decide what shade to apply next, I attempted instead a frugal little DIY with some polishes I already had on hand.

For my wannabe manicure, I used:

*one coat of Lippmann Collection Constant Craving
*one coat of China Glaze Good Witch?
*three coats of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Strobe Light

with Seche Rebuild as base and Vite for top.

The verdict? It's very, very, very pink. And the Sally Hansen is holo which is a little distracting from the look I was going for. But it's certainly fun, and perfectly summery.

Haul

Now that I have nail polish on the mind, of course I'm going to grab more when I can.

Here's what I've picked up lately:

*China Glaze Tinsel
*China Glaze Light As Air
*OPI Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees
*OPI Sweetie Pie
*OPI Honeymoon Sweet
*American Apparel Factory Grey
*Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Strobe Light