Maybe I Need To Stop Buying Nail Polish- A Haul

So I may not be posting as much but that does not mean that my spending on nail polish has waned. In fact, it has probably increased. In the past year or two the amount of polishes available to consumers has exploded in conjunction with the popularity of nail polish itself. We now have available to us polishes from countries around the world along with the always innovative polishes from indie sellers. Big name brands have taken notice of this and stepped up their game offering a wide variety of creative colors and finishes. Now is definitely the time to be a nail addict. I'm definitely happy, but maybe my bank account isn't! These are all polishes I've bought in 2013. And there are probably more that I've stashed away in a Helmer that I've forgotten about (bad girl!).

Hard Candy polishes. From left- Crush On Pink, Crush On Tin, Fun 'N Festive, Pixie Pink, Cocoa Smore, and Gummy Green.

Sigh. I'm so, so impressed with Hard Candy and bringing out this completely revamped line of 45 polishes. I literally want every single one. I don't think that has ever happened to me before. There are maybe a few I could live without. It was almost torture limiting myself to these 6. The bottles are small at almost half the size of a standard polish, but the price is right at $4 a bottle. Just be prepared to go hunting at WalMart to find them. (Here is a list of all the polishes)

Hit Polish. From left- Tes-Stained Linen, Turq-ish Delight, On Angels Wings, and Lilacs in Bloom.

Unf. These are so pretty. I'm most excited about Tea-Stained Linen. It's so unique!

Cult Nails polishes. From left- Disciplined, Untamed, Scandalous, Flushed, Annalicious, I Got Distracted, and Spontaneous.

I finally picked up the Cult Nails polishes that had been on my wishlist when they had a sale recently. You can never go wrong with Cult Nails.

Etude House Sweet Recipe Ice Cream Nail Polishes (not sure if they have actually names but the colors are numbered 1-4).

I was REALLY excited for these. The whole Etude House Sweet Recipe collection looks amazing, but these called out to me the loudest. These polishes were shipped all the way from South Korea (Etude House is a Korean brand) and I couldn't be happier. Korean cosmetics and skincare are becoming a new obsession for me. (I bought these on eBay)

Hits Mari moon Modern set. From left- Cool, Dreamer, Trendy, and Cutie Pie.

More foreign polishes! These are from Brazil and I bought them from Ninja Polish. I have the Unique Set (and posted about it here) and need the Modern Set to round out my collection. These polishes are a must in any polish lover's collection. Especially Cutie Pie. I think I need a back up of it.

From left- Ninja Polish Divinity and Nebula, A England Dragon, Hits Salsa and CanCan.

The rest of the polishes from my Ninja Polish order. You can't tell from the picture but Divinity is a multichrome in the same vein as Clarins 230 and Max Factor Fantasy Fire. The bottle of Nebula is backward because it shows the color shift in the bottle better. The A England polish is a long time lemming that I'm super excited to finally have. And lastly the two Hits polishes are color changing flakies in a colored base. It's hard to tell with Salsa, but it has the same color flakies as Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure and Essie Shine of the Times.

From left- Orly Orange Crush, China Glaze Beach Cruise-r and Surreal Appeal, Essence Oh My Glitter!

Some random polishes. The first three I think I got on clearance at Ulta or Sally Beauty. Something like that. It was a busy polish buying day.

From left- Rainbow Honey Be Mine, Urban Outfitters Chilly, Ulta XOXO and Diva, and OPI Fresh Frog of Bel Air

Last batch of random polishes. I needed Be Mine by Rainbow Honey to round out my Valentine's collection from them. The Urban Outfitters glitter polish I'm really excited about. I wish I had bought a few more polishes while I was there but I was trying to be restrained. And the last three were Ulta impulse purchases.


And theeeeeeeeeeeere we go. I really should stop buying polishes faster than I can wear them. Do you see anything that catches your eye?

I'm Captivated By Cult Nails' Devious Nature

Geez, all my blogging motivation seems to have *poofed* away. So I guess you'll continue to see sporadic posts from me until it comes back. And seeing as my last several posts have all been about nail polish,  I seem to have lost my makeup mojo as well. Working at a cosmetics counter seems to have burnt me out on it a little. One thing that never wavers in my undying obsession with polish. This layering combo is from a few months ago when two of my Cult Nails polishes jumped out at me from their Helmer drawer. Looking at it in these pictures makes me want to do this again. Actually I just bought Scandalous from Cult Nails so I might try Captivated over that next.

This is one coat of Cult Nails Captivated over two coats of Cult Nails Devious Nature.

Cult Nails Captivated over Cult Nails Devious Nature

Cult Nails Captivated over Cult Nails Devious Nature

Cult Nails Captivated over Cult Nails Devious Nature

Here is an uncropped picture just for fun. My hands are huge!

Cult Nails Captivated over Cult Nails Devious Nature

Cult Nails Vicious and Initial Thoughts on Their Base and Top Coats

A box packed with cotton balls? Who could this possibly be from?

Do the little burrito/eggroll wrapped packages give you a clue?

Well, duh! It's Cult Nails!

I ordered this September 19th and received it yesterday, the 24th. Pretty quick, huh? Cult Nails just released their base and top coats along with this purple creme polish. And until the end of today (Sunday the 25th) they are offering the base coat Get It On, top coat Wicked Fast (which retail for $8 each) and any polish from their online store (retails for $10) for $20. And since I already own every other color that has been sold by Cult Nails, I picked up this new purple.

I haven't had enough time to get a good feel for Get It On and Wicked Fast so I'll just give my initial impressions at the end.  I apologize for the crappy application, a nail just broke and I had to chop them all off. I'm not used to painting the shorter nails just yet!

This was 2 coats of Vicious with one coat each of Get It On and Wicked Fast.

Cult Nails Vicious in the sun

I wasn't expecting this purple to be so dark and it's a pleasant surprise. I already own several medium purple cremes like China Glaze Grape Pop, but none that are this beautiful eggplant color.  Like most Cult Nails polishes this was opaque in 2 coats and as usual was a creamy, dreamy, breeze to apply. A fangirl, me? Naw... ;-)

Cult Nails Vicious in the sun

It was somewhat difficult to get a good picture of this polish because the top coat, Wicked Fast, was so shiny and reflective.

Cult Nails Vicious in the shade

So here are my thoughts on the base and top coats thus far.

Get It On (base coat)- It dries really quickly. I hate base coats that take forever to dry. It didn't impede the application of polish, which I've actually experienced with some base coats.

Wicked Fast (top coat)- Seche Vite is my Holy Grail top coat and so far I like this one just as well. It dries super quick and shiny like Seche Vite, but it thin and viscous while Seche is thick and prone to glueyness. Especially when you reach half-way through the bottle. So if you hate Seche for the thickness, this top coat might be the one for you. I'm actually impressed at the dry time; I haven't had anything come close to Seche Vite for me until this.

I can't comment on the wear yet as I've barely been wearing them, but I'll right a more thorough review when I can.

Available:

• Cult Nails polishes are available for purchase from their website.

Thank you for reading and have a great day/night/whatever!

Cult Nails Labor Day Sale

So, I'm still sick. Yay. I barely have the energy to sit at the computer, so I just have something quick for you.

I got an email from Cult Nails announcing their Labor Day sale and I thought I would pass it on to you guys. In case you haven't noticed, I love Cult Nails. I love that Maria, the owner, had this dream to start her own company and actually followed through on it. How rare is that? And you can tell she puts everything she can into making it a success, in addition to having a family AND a "regular" job. I'm not affiliated with Cult Nails at all, just a huge fan and extol their virtues every chance I get. I own every polish they have released so far!  Check here to see my previous Cult Nails posts and swatches.

Let me know if you guys buy anything. I love being an enabler! And yes, they do ship internationally and the free shipping (on orders over $60) applies to both domestic and international orders!


Thank you for reading and have a great day/night/whatever!

Random NOTD: Cult Nails My Kind of Cool Aid Under Orly Winter Wonderland

So, I'm still sick, fever, stuffy nose, sneezing, coughing... all that fun crap. I took a 4 and a half hour nap today (well, once again, yesterday, by the time this posts) and I'm already ready for bed again at 8 pm. I don't want to ruin my perfect record of a post every day since I started blogging, so I dragged myself off the couch and away from my Iron Chef America marathon to write this post.

I wore this a few weeks ago and I really liked it. Orly Winter Wonderland is one of my favorite layering polishes ever. I reaaaaally want to go lay back down, so just pictures after this!

Thank you for reading and have a great day/night/whatever!

Cult Nails Hypnotic Collection Bottle Pics

Yay, look what came in the mail on Tuesday!

No, they aren't extremely inedible-looking eggrolls, they're nail polishes! Cult Nails' Fall 2011 Hypnotic Collection, to be precise.

From left- Awakening, Enigmatic, In A Trance, Hypnotize Me

Sigh, aren't they beautiful? I can officially say that I own every single polish that Cult Nails has released. I think this has become an obsession within an obsession as I'm already obsessed with nail polish in general. I didn't have time to swatch these before I left to visit my parents, but I'll get on it first thing when I get back.

You can purchase Cult Nails' polishes from their website here- http://shop.cultnails.com/


Thank you for reading and have a great day/night/whatever!

Cult Nails A Day At The Races Collection Swatches

I'm gonna post this in the morning, but right now it's night and I'm writing this post, drinking strawberry daquiris, and cooking dinner (steak, shrimp and vegetable skewers, and twice baked potatoes- yum!). I drink like twice a year and am notoriously bad at holding my alcohol so I'm going to go ahead and make this a quick post! Hopefully I finish dinner before I'm too far gone... (Apparently I did get too far gone because I forgot to set this post to actually you know, post when I wanted it to)

Today I'll show you guys Cult Nails' A Day At The Races collection.  A few of these polishes are sold out and won't be coming back, but at least it gives you a good idea of the awesomeness that Cult Nails creates. I'll let you know which you can still buy (although really, you should be buying them all!). Check out my review of Cult Nails' polishes and swatches of their Inaugural Collection here.

Cult Nails Captivated in the sun

 This was 2 coats on my left three fingers and one coat over Cult Nails' Quench on my index finger.

Captivated is my favorite of these, but unfortunately it's sold out!

Cult Nails Captivated in the shade

Cult Nails Always Winning in the sun

This one was 3 coats and is still a bit sheer. It's pretty and unique but isn't my favorite just because I wish it looked on the nail how it does in the bottle!  It does look better in real life than my picture shows, however.

Always Winning is currently available.

Cult Nails Always Winning in the shade

Cult Nails Cruisin' Nude in the sun

This was 2 coats. I love this polish! I just wish the pink shimmer was as apparent in the picture as it is in real life.

This is not currently available but it available for pre-order.

Cult Nails Devious Nature in the sun

This was 2 coats.  This one isn't quite as bubblegum pink as it looks here and has a more purple tone.  The shade picture is more color accurate.

This shade is currently available.

Cult Nails Devious Nature in the shade

Cult Nails Let Me Fly in the sun

This was 2 coats.  Let Me Fly is sold out online :(

Cult Nails Let Me Fly in the shade

Available:

• Cult Nails polishes are sold through their website and retail for $10 each.

Thank you for reading and have a great day/night/whatever!

Cult Nails Inaugural Colection Swatches and Review

Cult Nails is a new nail polish brand started at the begining of this year by a fellow blogger named Maria.  I thought it was really inspiring that she had this dream to start her own company and actually followed through with it and is doing everything she can to make it a success.  Of course I immediately wanted the whole collection.  I couldn't afford it at the time so I saved for awhile and about a month ago I bought both the Inaugural collection (5 polishes) and the Day At the Races collection (5 polishes and mostly limited editions). Their collection for Fall called Hypnotic is up for pre-sale on their website and I love their polishes so much that I purchased the collection the first day they put it up!

And now I know why Cult Nails is quickly becoming, well, a cult favorite.  The formula of the polishes is amazing.  I didn't have any issues with streakiness, or too thibk or thin formulas, or bubbling.  All of the ones that are supposed to opaque were opaque in two coats. Every time I would start applying one I would think it was sheer with the first coat.  And then with the second coat it would become perfectly opaque.  I shouldn't have been surprised when this kept happening over and over, but this held true with the entire line.  There are a few polishes that are intentionally sheer and even those build up pretty well.

At $10 each these aren't the cheapest polishes around.  But I wouldn't expect them to be.  This is a small company with no employees but the owners. Unless you are producing/selling in massive quantities like brands that are sold at drugstores and such, you have to charge more.  $10 really isn't so bad if you think about.  You can tell that Maria puts a lot of thought and love into the polishes and her company and it really shows.  You know that your $10 is buying quality.  Sometimes you aren't even guaranteed that with $25 Chanel polishes.

Cult Nails Quench in the sun

This was 2 coats but would need more to fully eliminate VNL. This is a glossy jelly red, so like most jellies, some VNL is expected when using fewer coats.

Cult Nails Quench in the shade

Cult Nails Iconic in the sun

This is a berry reddish pink with gold shimmer and flakies. I've heard somewhere before saying this is a dupe for Barielle's Elle's Spell but I have that one also and it is most definitely not a dupe. (Here is Elle's Spell for proof) I think Maria should do more polishes with flakies! (hint hint)

This was 2 coats.

Cult Nails Iconic in the shade

Cult Nails My Kind of Cool Aid in the sun

This is a greyed lavender with silver shimmer. But not the ugly frosty silver shimmer. This one is subtle and pretty.

This was 2 coats.

Cult Nails My Kind of Cool Aid in the shade

Cult Nails Living Water in the sun

This is a deep blackened blue jelly base with blue and green glitter. This is so gorgeous and I can't think of any colors that look similar to this.

This was 2 coats.

Cult Nails Living Water in the shade

Available:

• Cult Nails polishes sell for $10 each and are available on their website.

Thank you for reading and have a great day/night/whatever!

My Cult Nails Order

Unfortunately I don't have swatches for you guys.  I think I mentioned before that I had a bad break on my swatching hand.  Not just an ugly break, but a bloody one.  I'm going to wait until my nails grow out a bit to do these gorgeous polishes justice, but I was just excited about my order and wanted to show you guys the bottle pics.

I was super impressed with the shipping time.  I order on a Tuesday and got my tracking number that same night.  So they were probably mailed the next day (Wednesday).  I recieved them on Saturday.  See? Quick!

The owner of Cult Nails, Maria, is a blogger and nail polish fanatic just like many of us.  On her blog, www.r3daily.com/, Maria often writes about the behind the scenes of starting her own company, creating new colors, and other interesting tidbits.  It's nice to a company be so forthcoming and it makes me want to support her.

Cult Nails polishes retail for $10, which may seem a bit high to those of us used to paying drugstore prices.  But really, I don't find the prices that bad for a small company just starting out.  It isn't like creating mineral eyeshadows where you can make them at home; Cult Nails actually works with a lab to formulate each of her polishes.  You can tell Maria puts a lot of thought and effort into working with the lab and picking the colors for the collections.  Most of the colors are extremely unique and the formulas of the ones I have tried so far has been amazing.  I feel like you know you are buying quality when you order from them because the owner really cares about her product.

Sorry if this seems overly gushing, but I just find it really inspiring that Maria went for her dream of starting her own company.  I think of how many times I have thought, "I should do this" and never followed through with it because I was afraid of the work it would take or was afraid of not being successful.

But anyway, on to the pictures!  I'll do swatches as soon as my nails stop being gross!

It came packaged in a Flat Rate Box.

The polishes look like little eggrolls wrapped in their packaging material.  Cotton balls are also used as packing material, which I thought was cute and clever.  Everything arrived packed well and nothing was damaged.

From left- My Kind of Cool Aid, Living Water, Iconic, Quench, Devious Nature, Cruisin' Nude, Captivated, Let Me Fly, and Always Winning

Inaugural Collection- My Kind of Cool Aid, Living Water, Iconic, Quench

A Day At The Races Collection- Devious Nature, Cruisin' Nude, Captivated, Let Me Fly, and Always Winning

You can buy Cult Nails' polishes from their website- http://shop.cultnails.com/  Polishes are $10 each or you can buy all 9 polishes for $75, which is what I did.


Thank you for reading and have a great day/night/whatever!