FingerPaints Rockin' Renaissance

On a recent trip to Sally's this FingerPaints color caught my eye. There was more to it than meets the eye though! I'm still in my neutral phase and this one while it has some pink to it still reads to me as a neutral based on the subtly of the color. It's also metallic!

Rockin' Renaissance

Rockin' Renaissance is a dusty rose mixed with gold metallic texture.

Collection: FingerPaints Core Line

Color: This is hard color to describe. The main base of this polish is a dusty and muted rosy pink, but it's mixed with golden flecks. This does read to me as something on the rose-gold spectrum, but there is more pink than gold. I love this color because is a subdued pink so I think it would flatter many skin tones and many color palettes in regards to clothing and makeup.

Formula: What surprised me about this polish is that it was a texture! I had no idea it was when purchasing it. I thought it was a glitter. I'm on the fence with textures, but I really like this one because of how metallic it is. I do like it, but I can't say I wasn't a little disappointed this wasn't just a glitter. I used 2 coats and it applied smoothly. I did try to add top coat to this to see if I could get a shiny finish, but it ate my top coat. Unless, you want to layer gel-like top coat on this, you're going to be stuck with a texture.

Price: I believe I got this at Sally's for around $6.

Overall: I like Rockin' Renaissance. I think the color is beautiful and if you're a a fan of rose gold colors you will definitely like this. The textured formula was a surprise to me, but I do end up liking it because of the metallic finish. I think this a color that is flattering and would look nice on many.

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Paint Splatters

Happy Wednesday!

FingerPaints Pink Patina

I don't know why, but I've been craving pink polish lately. I think it's because I just don't wear it often anymore probably because it's hard to find cool pinks. On a recent trip to Sally's I did come across a pink by FingerPaints that struck my fancy. That's what I have to share with you today

Pink Patina

Pink Patina is a cool-toned medium pink creme.

Collection: FingerPaints Core Line

Color: This is Barbie pink to me. I know this is not the color for everyone. I get it, it's pretty classic Barbie bubblegum pink color. That being said, I like it! I love cool-toned pinks and it's really a great creme.

Formula: Excellent formula. This formula was creamy and easy to apply. I used 2 coats.

Price: I don't remember exactly what I paid for this, but it was in the $4-$5 range I believe at Sally's Beauty Supply.

Overall: I like Pink Patina. I think it's a fun, bright, and beautiful pink creme. It satisfies my pink creme desire right now. The formula is great and it's just an all around solid color. I know this color may not be this most interesting in the sea of indies and all the other amazing stuff out there now, but sometimes simple and classic is nice too!

My Rating: 5 out of 5 Paint Splatters

Happy Friday!

Way-Cool Mani Wednesday: Avon Brights

It seems like in the past few years that neons have become appropriate to wear in fall. I wouldn't wear neons as a full outfit, but neons as accents and accesories in fashion seems really cool to me. I love the combination of fall deep and muted shades with neon accents. Mind you, I'm about as fashionable as a banana slug, so my fashion sense should probably be disregarded. However, I do like to try to coordinate fashionable trends through color, that typically being through nails and makeup.

I did this neon, bright, and fun mani recently, and I think it would look great during any season!

Polishes Used: 

L-R: Avon Hot Pants, Shock, Electric, OPI The Man With The Golden Gun, and Finger Paints Are You Hoppy?

Manicure Description: I painted my thumb, index, and pinky fingers with Hot Pants. I painted my middle finger with Shock topped with The Man With The Golden Gun, and my ring finger with Electric topped with Are You Hoppy?

I'm very happy with this mani.  I love the colors together with the glitter accents. It's manis like these that make me feel good. They're fun and they pop!

Happy Wednesday! 

Finger Paints Cordur-Orange

I have a few Finger Paints polishes, and I love them all. I have an issue with Finger Paints. It's not really Finger Paints fault though. Their LE collections are really going to be more LE than others. Why? They are only found at Sally's Beauty Supply. It's not like OPI or China Glaze LE stuff, because you can find those in multiple locations. Finger Paints on the other hand, I feel more of an urgency to find these before I never see them again...ever. I messed up with this color. I completely bypassed it, and regretted it. This one was in the 2011 Fall Fashionista collection.I figured I lost my chance, but thankfully I found it on a blog sale!

Cordur-Orange

Cordur-Orange is a rich saturated red-orange creme.

This is such a great color. I love the richness and vibrancy of it. It's definitely more difficult to write a good review on something, so I'll leave it at that. Awesome color. What else could I possibly add?

Happy Thursday!

Finger Paints Scarlet's Paint

One brand I've become increasingly impressed with is Finger Paints. I've always had good experiences with their formulation and color selection. They always release seasonal collections too with some unique colors. The only problem is the only place I know if you can find it is at Sally's Beauty supply, which is probably why it isn't the spotlight. I love this Finger Paints color I got at Orlando swap meetup a little while ago.


Scarlet's Paint

Scarlet's paint is a vibrant scarlet red-orange creme.

I've always been a fan of red cremes, and red-orange cremes. I love the pigmentation and the formulation in this polish. This goes on very smoothly. Sure, it's not the most imaginative of colors, but a good red-orange creme is a great classic color to have in your stash!

Happy Thursday!

Finger Paints Vermillion $ Painting

When I posted my orange botte spam, this Finger Paints color got a bit of attention. I spotted this on in the Finger Paints core line at Sally's. I saw this color and it intrigued me, for various reasons, but gold shimmer being one of them of course!

Vermillion $ Painting

Vermillion $ Painting is a vibrant orange-red with an intense gold shimmer.

This color looks like lava. It's hot! I don't have much else to say about it. You know why I like this, it's a warm color with gold shimmer. I don't want to continue to repeat myself! :P

Happy Tuesday

Steph

Finger Paints Heavenly Hydrangeas

I've been really impressed with Finger Paints lately. I don't have many Finger Paints, but the ones I do have I really do like. I think they have a great selection in their core line. I'm not sure why this brand gets kind of sweeped under the rug, my only assumption is that the only known place I know about you can find it is at Sallys. It's definitely a brand worth checking out though. I love this one from their recent spring collection.

Heavenly Hydrangeas

 

Heavenly Hydrangeas is a dusty orchid creme.

I really like this shade. It deviates from your typical bright or pastel pink, blue, lilacs, and etc. This is definitely in between a purple and pink, and it has this muted quality that makes it unique. Great color!

Is there lesser known brand of polish you really love? What is it?

Happy Friday!

Steph

Pink Wednesday: Finger Paints Rose Patina

Does anyone else get the most random songs stuck in their head? Right now, I have "Endless Love" in my head. There is nothing wrong with that song. In fact, it's really beautiful. I love those 80's love songs that some may call cheesy, you know the ones by Luther Vandross (may he rest in peace one of my all time favorite singers), Anita Baker, Lionel Richie, Michael Bolton, Christopher Cross, and etc?  I know, it's weird a lot of those songs came out before I was born.

Back to Pink Wednesday! I found this Finger Paints color at Sally's recently. I got it as part of the Buy 2 Get 1 free sale they have going on all nail polish this month. I always was interested in this color, but never got around to getting it. I have it now, and I'm pleased.

Rose Patina

Rose Patina is a rosy-barbie pink with a golden shimmer.

No need to go through this. Pink + gold shimmer = instant love for me. Yes, pretty much any color that's a variation on China Glaze Strawberry Fields I'm going to love. I have feeling this pink & gold shimmer thing is getting kind of redundant. :-/ I was actually worried about this color at first. I thought it maybe sheer based on what I saw on the bottle, but it's not at all. I like how sweet and girly this color is, which is why a lot of people probably won't like it! :P

Happy Pink Wednesday!

Finger Paints Signed by the Artist

Phew! Yesterday was quite a day, hence the no blog post. That came unexpectedly. My first day back to classes was rather overwhelming and full of work. I don't recall a first day of school being swamped with homework. That all being said I quite enjoyed doing the work. In an effort to work towards changing my major I signed up for a humanities class online. We already have tons of assignments just for the week. I was doing some comparisons of Medieval art pieces vs. Renassiance art pieces and writing a symbolic analysis of Jan van Eyck's "Arnolfini's Wedding" painting.

I feel like I'm in my element again. It's so nice to be able to express my intereptations and insights. It's nice to be challenged and learn other points of view from my classmates. I think I'm on the right path, but it's going to consume my schedule probably more than I thought. That's ok with me though. Please forgive me if I cannot post daily though. I probably will be able to post a few times a week. :)

Anyways in honor of all the art I had to interpret yesterday here is Finger Paints Signed by the Artist!

Signed by the Artist

Signed by the Artist is a light magenta shimmer that also has hints of pink and gold shimmer added to it. I only have a few Finger Paints polishes, but I enjoy all of them. They all have a great formula and I love the artistically named polishes! This is a pretty polish that seems to be lit from within!

I noticed I hit 500 followers yesterday! Thank you all so much for following me. I appreciate the support and I hope to continue to keep you guys entertained and reading. I will probably be hosting a 500 follower giveaway sometime in October. That all being said remember to enter my Back to the Grind giveaway that ends tomorrow!

Happy Tuesday!

Ulta, TransDesign, + Sally's Haul

I'm not feeling great today, so I'm not feeling up to a normal post. I figured I would show you some recent damage I did. Ulta, TransDesign, & Sally's are dangerous places. Thankfully, I had an Ulta gift card, but I have no excuse for the rest! :P Swatches will be coming in the future!

UPDATE:  Sorry if I wasn't clear. I didn't get Space Cadet from Sally's I got it from TransDesign. I didn't organize these in order of where I got them. I just mixed everything up.  The only things from Sally's are the China Glaze & Finger Paints. I got Space Cadet from Transdesign . They have the Cosmix colors for $5. They are currently out of Space Cadet, but I'm sure they'll restock soon!

Essence

L-R:
The World's Coolest, Suferama, What Do U Think?, & No More Drama

LA Splash

L-R:
Sparkling Stratosphere, Sparkling Fuchsia, Golden Seahorse, Sparking Oceanspray, Crimson Tide,
& Ocean Sprinkles

Multiple Brands

L-R:
Ulta Material Girl, Ulta Bombshell, Borghese Stellar Notte, OPI Ski Teal We Drop, China Glaze Riveter Rouge, & Finger Paints Easel-y Entertained

Orly

L-R:
Opal Hope, Rockin' Rocket, Space Cadet, Razzmatazz, & On The List

Yeah....so many pretty things out these days! You can't resist! That's it for today. :)

Happy Friday!

Mega Lacquer Haul!

Hey guys!!! Sadly, my parents are leaving in about 2 hours :(. I will miss them a lot. We had so much fun shopping though. I wanted to share with you my my lacquer haul mania I did while they were here! :)

Ulta:
Ulta Beauty Gems & Ulta Glam Goth

 Utla: Essence
L-R: Hang Loose, Point Break, Pool Party, Plum Perfect, Glamourous

Aldi: Lacura
L-R: Rum Raisin & Sweet Pink

Walgreens: Eva
L-R: Kelly Green & Green Glitter

Big Lots & Sallys:
L-R: WnW Denim Chrome, Savvy Tangy Tarte, Finger Paints Sapphire Shimmer, Orly Ruby Passion, Orly Royal Navy, China Glaze Golden Enchantment

Claires:
L-R:  Glam, Peaceful/Confident, Fabulous/Funky, Flirty/Shy

That's it!! Swatches to come soon. Normal blogging will resume tomorrow! :)

Happy Wednesday!

Finger Paints Coral Collage...I love thee

We're going to go from yesterday's bad to today's good. One of the fun things I enjoy about nail polish is that the many variations of shades. There isn't just one universal red, blue, green, or pink that looks good on everyone or everyone likes. I think everyone has that one shade from each color family that is "their" red or "their" blue. It's a fun and sometimes frustrating process to help find your "it" color. For example I think I've covered all the color bases except greens. I have yet to find a green, mint green, whatever shade of green that suits me. It will be an ongoing quest! Of course you can also have more than one "it" color.

Today I'm going to talk about my "it" coral color. Finger Paints Coral Collage definitely fits the bill. I love corals. I don't care for orange, but I love corals. That probably doesn't make too much sense since they are similar. I tend to like corals that have more pink or red in them than orange.

Coral Collage

Coral Collage is a bright reddish-pink toned coral jelly. I love the words coral and jelly combined. It's a beautiful, fun, and beachy shade. I wish I could give you a better description, but I don' think this color needs much pomp and circumstance. It's just a great shade and my personal favorite coral among the millions out there!

Have you found your "it" coral? Do you have any favorite corals?


Happy Thursday!

I Won't Spend More Than 10! Part Two

Reminder! You only have 2 more days to enter my giveaway!

In continuation from yesterday's post I will be featuring moderately priced drugstore brands today $3-%6.

Moderate end $3-$6
Cover Girl

Featured Colors: Ruby Dust, City Lights, Crystal Mist, Rhythmic Blue, & Gold Rush
Price: $3-$4
Where to buy: various drugstores, Target, Walmart, some grocery stores
Pros:
-Amazing selection of glittery/shimmery top coats for layering that I personally use often
-Usually have sales, coupons, and BOGOs in drugstores
Cons:
-Don't have wide selection of colors
-Color range is limited and not very imaginative

Maybelline

Featured Colors: Beach Plum, Banana Bamba, & Coral Cabana
Price: $3.50-$4
Where to buy: various drugstores, Target, Walmart, some grocery stores
Pros:
-Usually come out with seasonal collections with trendy colors
-Fast drying
-Usually have sales, coupons, and BOGOs in drugstores
Cons:
-In general they don't have a wide color selection

Milani

Featured Colors: Dot Com, Gold Lame, Disco Lights, Pink Pop, Garnet Gems
Price: $3.50-$5
Where to buy: various drugstores, Target, Cherry Culture, and some grocery stores
Pros:
-Wide selection of colors and finishes
-Come out with various collections throughout the year
-Colors are trendy and funky
-I find Milani similar to China Glaze as far as the types of polish colors they make
Cons:
-Not widely available in certain parts of the country
-Only get 0.45fl oz of polish which is a smaller amount compared to other brands

Revlon

Featured Colors: Midnight Affair, Plum Seduction, Raven Red, & Steel-her Heart
Price: $4-$5
Where to buy: various drugstores, Target, Walmart, some grocery stores
Pros:
-Has a good selection of wearable mainstream colors
-Usually comes out with seasonal collections
-Has a nice selection of basecoats and topcoats
Cons:
-Some may find their colors not very imaginative or unique

China Glaze

Featured Colors: Ruby Pumps, DV8, Nova, Strawberry Fields
Price: $3-$6 (cheaper from e-tailers pricier at Sallys)
Where to buy: Etailers- (8ty8 Beauty, Head2Toe Beauty, Trans Design) or Sally's Beauty Supply
Pros:
-Vast and I mean vast selection of colors and finishes
-Colors are trendy,funky, and unique
-Come out with amazing seasonal collections that tend to be very popular
Cons:
-Personally I'm not found of their brushes I find them too small and difficult to use

Orly

Featured Colors: Oh Cabana Boy, Pixy Stix, Passion Fruit, & Glam
Price: $3.20-$6 (cheaper from e-tailers pricier at Sallys)
Where to buy: CVS, Etailers (8ty8 Beauty, Head2Toe Beauty, Trans Design) or Sally's Beauty Supply
Pros:
-Have a nice selection of wearable mainstream colors
-Come out with seasonal collections that are trendy
-Great application
-You get 0.6fl oz of polish which is more than most brands
Cons:
-They don't have the most unique variety of colors

Claire's/Icing

Featured Colors: Blackout, Roger That, Goldmine, Yel
Price: $3.50-$5.50
Where to buy: Claire's & Icing stores
Pros:
-Unique colors including mood, neon, and glitter types of polishes
-Typically can be found on sale (ex. BOGO 1/2 off)
Cons:
-Limited selection of colors
-Can only be found in Claire's or Icing stores

Finger Paints

Featured Colors: Signed by the Artist, Maroon Macaroon, Decked with Dazzle, & Coral Collage
Price: $4-$5
Where to buy: Sally's Beauty Supply
Pros:
-Great application
-Wide range of mainstream colors
-Usually come out with seasonal collections with trendy colors
-Usually can be found on sale at Sally's
Cons:
-As far as I know it's only found at Sally's
-Some my find their colors not to be as unique as other brands

Sally Hansen

Featured Colors: Hidden Treasure, Zip, Antique Bronze, Purple Pizazz, In the Spotlight
Price: $3-$8
Where to buy: various drugstores, Target, Walmart, some grocery stores
Pros:
-Have various lines that cater to different peoples preferences,style, price range,and taste
-Usually come out with seasonal collections for some of their lines
-Have a wide range of nail products not just polish
-Usually have sales, coupons, and BOGOs in drugstores
Cons:
-Products can be inconsistent
-Some of their lines can be pricey
-Some seasonal collections are hard to find

Phew! That's a lot! Stay tuned for the high end under 10 brands tomorrow!
International readers remember to post your under 10 products and their info so I can add it to my international affordable nail polish post for Saturday!

Have a great Thursday!

Mutli Glitter Comparisons & Best Buys of the Week

Lately, I've been seeing quite of a few multi-glitter nail polishes being introduced. I decided to do a comparison for 3 of them I have. I'll show you pics and give descriptions!

I'll be comparing.
L-R
OPI-Mad as a Hatter, Sally Hansen-Rockstar Pink, & Finger Paints Wicked Glitter



I understand some of these photos are blurry, but I added the last picture in on purpose. It's hard to photograph glitters with my camera, but in this blurry picture it does show you the different colors of glitter in each polish.

OPI-Mad As a Hatter- At first glance this looks like it's mainly a silver,purple,and light blue glitter. It is way more than that. In the right lighting this has not only silver,purple, and light blue glitter, it has pink, gold, and green. I'd say since the polish seems to showcase more of the silver,purple,blue glitters it does have a more cool tone than the others. This is 3 coats.

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear- Rockstar Pink This is magenta glitter with blue and gold glitter mixed in. This is more warm toned as opposed to Mad as Hatter, but just as flashy and glittery. I used 3 coats. The only drawback with this is the formula is very thick. A few drops of nail polish thinner should fix that. That being said, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not use nail polish remover to thin out nail polishes. I have ruined so many that way. You can pick up nail polish thinner for $3.99 at Sally's Beauty.

Finger Paints-Wicked Glitter This somewhat similar to Rockstar Pink. I'd say in Wicked Glitter each color of glitter is equally dispersed within the polish maybe with an exception of magenta where there is slighty more than the rest. However, unlike the other polishes this at first glance in the bottle you are able to see every single color glitter in it. I used 4 coats of this but it could maybe use 5. That is the only drawback to this one it applies thinner than the rest. I got this at Sally's and it was misplaced. I did some research and I found that his was part of a Limited Edition Glitter's collection. I never saw a display for this, but apparently there was another shade Sapphire Shimmer. These obviously were made with the intention of being dupes to OPI Mad as a Hatter & OPI Absolutely Alice. As you can see Wicked Glitter is not an exact dupe of Mad as Hatter they very different as far as color, but it is cheaper and just as glittery.

As far as I know right now OPI Mad as a Hatter is hard to find except on Ebay, so if you really want a glitter similar but not exactly like it I'd suggest either one of these two. SH Rockstar Pink is usually $2.99, but at CVS this week Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear polishes are on sale for $1.99. Finger Paints Wicked Glitter is $4.99 at Sally's Beauty Supply. I got that one for free though, because Sally's doing buy 2 of any brand nail polish get the 3rd free! There are some good deals there!


Here are the readers best buys of the week. Great job ladies!

* Jewelry Designer: Harjot * of Classy H Jewelry got Sally Hansen HARD AS NAILS (purple w/ silver sparkles) for $2.99

Bec of Bec's Beauty Buzz was feeling crafty and bought a few holo glitters, flakie glitter, pinky gold glitter, along with some clear polishes and made her own nail polish. She did this all for $8. Yay, for being creative!

That's all for today!