Manicure Mondays-Confetti Purple Reigns With Essie Shine Of The Times

I've already mentioned that I had purchased the Essie Shine Of The Times top coat.  Well I couldn't wait to try it out.  Since the Essie polish is a play on a Prince song, I decided to put it over Confetti's Purple Reigns (I know, I'm a nerd).  I loved the effect!  This is two coats of Purple Reigns and one coat of Shine Of The Times.  Purple Reigns had a nice formula, very pigmented.  Shine Of The Times is also nice, but a little thick.  Nothing too hard to work with though.  I topped it with Diamond Dry top coat.  I'm sure the manicure would have lasted longer than four days but I grew tired of the bumpy texture and changed it.  All in all, it's a gorgeous top coat and I highly recommend it!

Essie Shine Of The Times

This is my first nail polish purchase under my stipulations for Nail Polish Out 2012 (see post here).  I'd heard rumblings in the blogosphere that Essie's Shine of the Times was a dupe of the super duper hard to find Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure (the original version).  Once I'd heard that, I knew this would be one of my 5 nail polishes I'm allowed for 2012.  And I'm so glad I purchased it!  It's a multichromatic flaky top coat.  The flakes give off shades of copper, gold, green, and blue and are suspended in a clear base.  It will be featured in my next Manicure Monday post.

So I now have 4 polishes left to purchase for 2012.  I think this may be harder than I originally thought.

Products I Regret Purchasing

Manicure Mondays-OPI Over The Taupe

OPI Over The Taupe was my very first OPI polish.  And still remains a top favorite of mine.  Over The Taupe is quite simply a taupe.  I still find these types of colors very chic and every time I wear one, I get compliments.  The formula on this is a little thin, although I was able to achieve opacity in two coats.  I used CND Stickey base coat and Sally Hansen Diamond Strength top coat.  I always get superior wear with OPI and this was no exception, lasting a full seven days.  Are you still liking the taupe trend?

Another Swap With BeautybyJJ

I recently did another swap with BeautybyJJ.  Check out what I sent her!  I'll do a video on the products I receive once I get my package.

My Newest Fragrance (And Obsession)-Prada Candy

From the moment I took the sample from the sales associate at Nordstrom, I knew I had to own this fragrance!  It is in one word...delicious.  It's a sweet fragrance but not overly sweet like say a Britney Spears Fantasy.  This is a sophisticated sweet, the kind of sweet you'd smell on a woman carrying a Celine Luggage tote.

It is not an overly complicated fragrance, consisting of just three notes: white musk, benzoin, and caramel accord.  When it's first sprayed, you really get the sweetness of the benzoin, as it drys down, the luscious caramel and white musk notes come out.

This is an eau de parfum, so it's more concentrated.  I find that on me, it lasts all day.  I'll spray it around 8 am and it will still be lingering around 6 pm.

I received this as a Christmas gift from the husband and I couldn't be more thrilled!  He happens to adore it also.  Side note: I find this to be a man magnet.  I've been stopped by men in the grocery store, at work, and at restaurants asking me what I was wearing.

Prada Candy is sold at your finer department stores (Saks, Neiman Marcus, etc).

Manicure Mondays-Color Club Love 'Em Leave 'Em

I have to thank my mother for me acquiring this shade.  While browsing her nail polish collection, I noticed that she had two of these, so I asked her for one and she obliged.  Color Club's Love 'Em Leave 'Em is a nude base with holographic glitter.  It's the kind of holographic glitter that doesn't need direct sunlight to show.  I only needed to two coats to achieve opacity.  I used CND Stickey base coat and Sally Hansen Diamond Strength top coat.  I lasted for a full 7 days before it started to chip.  Thanks again mom for giving me such a cool color!

Clinique Delovely Butter Shine Lipstick

I've been on the hunt for some "my lips but better" lipstick colors lately.  While browsing Sephora, I came across this Clinique Butter Shine Lipstick in the color Delovely.  Delovely is a peachy brown with a nice sheen to it.  The color is sheer but buildable.  The Butter Shine formula is very moisturizing.  It applies evenly and has a nice slip.  With it being so moisturizing, it doesn't have the greatest staying power.  I get two hours tops with this color.  Not great, but not a deal breaker.   I like the packaging, it's a nice shiny metal casing.  The way it's shaped reminds me of bamboo.

Clinique Delovely Butter Shine lipstick

 These lipsticks retail for $14.50 at Sephora, Clinique counters, and clinique.com.  If you're looking for a "my lips but better" color, give this one a try.

Manicure Mondays-Orchid Steel Guitar

Orchid Steel Guitar is a metallic steel grey.  In the bottle, it has a hint of warmth to it that doesn't translate onto the nail.  It applied nicely with the formula being just the right consistency.  It only needed two coats for opacity.  I used CND Stickey base coat and Diamond Dry top coat.  It wore all week, I applied it on Monday and it started to chip on Friday.  My only complaint is that it doesn't seem to like quick dry top coats.  I had to wait until the polish was all the way dry before applying my top coat or else it would "shrink" on me.  This brand is exclusive to HEB grocery stores here in the southwest region of the US.  This is my second color and I really like the brand.

Hello Lover!!

Hello Lover!!  That's what I said when I put these bad boys on my feet.  These were the last pair in the whole Houston Saks Fifth Avenue store during the after Christmas sale.  And I happened to get them...and for 65% off!!  It was fate!  Without further ado, I give you my new Yves Saint Laurent Palais 105 open toe pumps in the color velvet (metallic grey)...

I love them!  I wanted to do some modeling pics for you guys but I have winter feet right now!

Every year I treat myself to a Christmas gift and these were it.  I plan on saving them to wear for my birthday in March.  Now I just have to find the perfect dress for them.  Did you buy yourself a Christmas gift?

Nail Polish-Out 2012

I hinted to this on Twitter and Facebook. You may have heard of other bloggers doing something similar, i.e. Gloss-Out 20XX, etc. I have decided that with over 150 nail polishes (pictured above), many untried, that I would not be purchasing any new polish in 2012.  However, I have given myself 5 freebies, meaning if there is some super unique color that I just have to have, I can get only 5 total for 2012.  I still have more than enough untrieds to continue my Manicure Monday posts for all of 2012.  Each time I purchase one of the 5 allowed freebies, I'll do a post on it letting you guys know.  This is going to be soooo hard as I consider nail polish a cheap quick beauty treat.  I sure hope I can do this!  How many polishes do you own?

Manicure Mondays-OPI Bastille My Heart

Happy New Year! The manicure that I chose to celebrate the holidays with was OPI's Bastille My Heart from their French collection from a few years back.  It is a gorgeous cranberry red color with slight shimmer.  I used two coats for opacity.  I used my beloved CND Stickey base coat and Diamond Dry top coat.  It wore very well, lasting 6 days before chipping.  What was your holiday manicure?