Forever 21's Love & Beauty: Pink Star Glitter Polish

Pink stars remind me of a childhood cereal...

I would have thought those free stickers in the box would have been neat. If kids got those today, they'd be so pissed they'd punch their Mom.

This polish is a bit punchy too. I got it at Forever 21 and since it is pink, I had to get it...

I knew what I was getting myself into with those sparse glittery stars: it was going to be hard to get them onto my nails. But, looking at them in the bottle made them so inviting...

I have already reviewed the base color I used, Milani's 'Hot Pink Frenzy' here. And this is what it looks like with Pink Star glitter polish as a top coat...

 

I had to fish out the stars. And honestly, I didn't fish too hard. I knew too many glittery stars were going to be hard to remove later. I did like the glitter over the Milani creme pink though. And the sparse stars made the look more of an accent than a full-blown starry look.

These two polishes played very well together. I used 2 coats of the Pink Stars. That seemed to be just the right amount of charm for me.

I was not too partial to Lucky Charms. The marshmallows were the only tasty part. I liked Captain Crunch with Crunch Berries. Do you like Lucky Charms?

I Spy....Nail Polish and Eyeliner Stickers at Icing

As I have spoken about before, I'm a merchandiser and a lot of my clients are in malls. So I am in malls about 3 to 4 times a week. After I do my work, I know exactly which stores I want to check out. Do you know four of the 7 malls I go to have a Forever 21 store? Two different malls have Icing by Claire stores. And that's just counting the malls I visit on a frequent basis.

A couple of days ago, I was at a mall that has an Icing store. I found a couple of goodies and they are SO cute...

As I was admiring these, I realized that one could wear these as mustaches too.  Don't laugh. That's just as much fun as wearing eyebrow stencils! I think the idea of fun eyebrows is good but my luck, I'd have one fall off and no one would tell me. Or, I'd look like 'V' wearing them. LOL! What do you think, something you'd like to try out? If I went clubbing, I think it would be a hoot to sport these.

And here is what I really was looking for...

New polishes! Well, new to me. At first, I thought they were just regular bright shades. However, there was a sparkle going on so I picked one up. Oh, my goodness! Glittery brights!! I helped myself to putting the four of these together for their photo op. Normally, I don't do that but, I did return them back to their original state. That's the merchandiser in me=need for order.

Anyhoo, check these out...

 This is actually a yellow shade. Check out the group shot and you'll see what I mean.

Yummy, right?!! I wanted to get them soooo bad. But, I already have a backlog of swatches I have photo'd and a ton of polishes to be swatched. However, after looking at these photos, I still want them!!!

And that isn't all. Here are a couple more I want...

These two are a lot more sparkly in person. But I think you get the gist.

I found some more polishes at the checkout...

 Way cute idea too. But I just can't get past the thought of sniffing my fingernail polish. Even if it is a pina colada. And that's yummy!

And, remember I told you that I know where all the Forever 21 stores are in Orlando? I found these at this mall's store...

Almost all of the polishes were marked down to 99 cents. One, that is a good deal. But, two, when I see all of something marked down I think they are going to stop carrying that product. If it was just a few, then I would think they are clearing out for the new seasonal releases. Let's hope that they are just planning on getting a huge bunch of new shades in. I'll keep you up to date.

Then, I found this at Urban Outfitters. This is just hilarious...

And if you read my 'You Don't Know Kimberly' post, you would get how ironic it would be for me to have this as a phone cover with my personalized ringtone of the Geico piggy saying 'weeeeeeeeweeweeeeee.'

One last photo of cuteness...
Kayla loves, well, maybe love isn't a strong enough word, the sun coming in from the sliding glass doors. She has been in a cage waiting for adoption for so long, I'm sure she can't soak up enough of the sunlight. Now, she can have all she wants. Gosh, she's so cute, I love her to pieces.

See any cuties you'd like to get?

I Spy....Katy Perry False Eyelashes and a Neutral Palette

Even though I haven't read anything new in the beauty world that has piqued my interest, I still look. Yet it can be like going into a candy store with a $20 bill! There are some coming soon products I want but I'm trying to wait....oh, please hurry!!!!

I did find a display of Katy Perry's false eyelashes at Ulta though...

There are four different styles and I don't think any of them are demure. But then, Katy isn't demure, herself!

I like falsies that are just a bit less dramatic. But if you want to bat some serious lashes, these are some to try.

Last week, I went into Forever 21. I had no business in there, as I'm trying to maintain a budget on products, but I had to see if they had any new, spring nail polishes. I did find some but, I also found this...

Rats! What do I need another shadow palette for!!? Well, here's how I talked myself into it. I would love to get the new Urban Decay Naked 2 set. But I'm too stingy to pay $49. However, this love & beauty palette of neutral shades was only $9.80. Wow! That's a bargain and it could quench my Naked 2 thirst. It has for the past 6 days...

I'd never tell you that this palette even comes close to an UD palette; I know better! But they are pretty. There are shimmers and mattes and I haven't found a chalky one yet. In fact, all that I have tried, so far, have blended really good.

Naturally, I could just fawn and drool over a new, unused palette, without touching any...

Have you ever played 'shadow roulette'? I randomly pick three shadows and make a look with them. I do cheat a bit and preselect a brow bone highlight color. It flexes my makeup creativity, all just for fun. And when I learn how to take decent look of the day photos, I'll share these with you.

Have you played 'shadow roulette'?...anyone?....no? (OK, forget that I told you about this and asked the question.....) But....

...how are you doing with your beauty/nail polish budget so far this year????

Ashes to Ashes; Charlotte Russe Smolder Nail Polish

Spring is right around the corner (and so is my birthday...oye!) and there are bright, clean-color nail collections sprouting out everywhere. Yet, in a few collections, I am finding a dusty gray or ash color amongst the brights.

Here are a couple I just happened to swatch recently...

Charlotte Russe has nail polish on sale for $1.99. I rummaged through the collection to find something that I didn't have. I so did NOT need any nail polish, however, I couldn't resist the heart-shaped bottle. How cute!

This is 'Smolder'...

However, there is a trick going on here. My index and ring fingers have on a Forever 21 love and beauty polish called 'Grey'...

So, this polish is a gray that has a light gold shimmer to it.

But, 'Smolder' is a creme...

Check it out on my pinky here, that's 'Grey'. 'Smolder' is on my ring and middle finger.

Yet, it is really hard to see which is which on my left hand...

 This angle got the gold shimmer shimmering!

It's all in the lighting, of course. But to my naked eye, they both looked very, very close in color and finish. I used 3 coats and a top coat of Seche Vite. Well, I didn't seem to pick out a shade that I didn't already have. But, that's OK. I love these dark, smoky grays.

Which way do you spell 'GRAY'/'GREY'?

Forever 21's Trickster Nail Polish

If you have ever taken photos of a teal/green/blue polish, you know it can be a monster to try and capture the true essence of that shade. And since I am not even sure how to open a photo enhancing program, I'm just going to wing it. You know, like just about everything else I do and show on this blog. Luckily, it's just a hobby and not my living.

Let me show you...

Only the last photo can show you how cool (as in neat-o) the polish is and capture that shift of magenta in it.  Even Forever 21 calls this 'Blue/Green'. I'm gonna name it 'Trickster' because that's what it is.

'Trickster' totally fits. Here, it looks like a dominantly greenish teal. But there is that flash of pink or magenta that catches the eye and makes you wonder if you really did see something else in the color.

And before I go on, I want to say that this is 3 coats. And it was dreamy to apply this polish from Forever 21. I am sporting 3 coats with a top coat of Color Club's Vivid Top Coat. There is an amount of visible nail, however, it isn't so evident on real life.

So I wonder, it really isn't the polish that I playfully am calling 'Trickser' that is deceptive. it might be the natural light, this time. Either way, you will have no problems enjoying the shifting shimmer in this Forever 21 polish.

Not Just An Everyday Blue Shade of Polish

It's Friday and no one should be blue. That is, unless you are nails...

Lots of blue! Pretty blue. love & beauty comes from Forever 21 retail stores and I love looking for new polishes in those stores. I haven't found anything recently. However, I did nab this one before Christmas.

In real life, this blue is just a bit darker. But the shimmer cannot be diminished. It is there but not in an over-kill way.

For $2.80, you are not breaking the bank for a really decent nail polish. This one applied like a dream. I did not have one bit of an issue with it. I have 3 coats here and I did put a top coat of Lumos on. (I really want to get more than just this little sample of Lumos. It's something I do want to share with you. love.)

Looks like a galaxy of stars. Even though love & beauty don't like to give their nail polishes 'real' names, as this one is just labeled 'Blue', it could do well with 'Blue Galaxy.' Anyway, I think it is out of this world.

It is pretty, don't you think?