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....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.

Fast and Furious Glitter Drive-by Glitter Manicure

Fast and Furious! I did this mani the other evening and was out the door early the next morning. I usually take my photos before I leave for work. But, not this time. This is after I got home.

As you can tell, a lot happens to my nails from the start of the day to when I get home...

I started out with a base color from Color Club. This is 'Pretty in Platinum.' And I am in love with this platinum. It wasn't one bit streaky and was actually set to go after just one coat.

I used 'Pretty in Platinum' to showcase this glitter overlay...

Forever 21's love & beauty polish called 'Red/Black/Silver.' Well, I guess that doesn't leave me taking up any time describing it, does it?

I tried the glitter over a medium green creme, wanting to stay within a Christmas color theme, but I had to go so light with a green for the glitter to show, that it wasn't even close to Christmas. In fact, it seems weird-looking.

Here's what a platinum shade did...

Two issues! One, I had to dab the glitter on as it was just bunching up at the tip. Second, this made the glitter coat so thick it took more than forever to dry. As I mentioned, I polished my nails the night before and they were still tacky the next day.

The expression, cool. The play out, meh, could be better...

And I'm not even giving my thumb any face time. Notice on the middle finger how thick the polish is. And that nail seems to have the least amount of glitter too. I did do two coats of 'Red/Black/Silver.' I didn't do a top coat over the glitter so it was a bit gritty too.

What color would you use to show off this glitter?

Phantom Fright's Last Night

First, I love glitter polishes. I'm a human magpie. However, I am going to draw the line with the Halloween shape glitter from Phantom Frights. These cute but evil polishes are a pain.

This one is totally high maintenance...

No name but I could come up with a few not so nice ones. Grrr... How about 'Star Blight!'

I dumped a spot of this polish onto a sheet of paper and fished out the glitter, then applied with a dotting tool. I'd rather just get loose glitter and use that because it was gloppy the way I did it.

 I knew it would need a base color, so I used Color Club's 'Sheer Disguise.' I think it was a good choice. And, I'll get back to that thumb in just a moment.

Here's my right hand which I use for experiments. If I haven't done a particular look before, I'll test it out on the right hand. Sheesh, this is a fail!

On the middle finger, I used 'Sheer Disguise' as the base color. Then I used China Glaze Crackle 'Lightning Bolt.' On top of that I used that damned glitter. N.O.P.E. On the ring finger, that's a base color of Color Club's 'Who Are You Wearing?' Hmph...good question. Want to know more about the pinky? Read on.

I wasn't privy to get Wet 'n Wild's On The Prowl. I still have hard feelings about that. *weeps softly* But, love & beauty came in to soothe my distraught mind...

I'm likening it to Wet 'n Wild's 'Tangled in My Web.' Click here to check out my gal pal, Nouveau Cheap's blog, where she swatched it.

Do you think it is sort of like 'Tangled in My Web'? I think the black glitter in a clear base is more dense, here, with love & beauty's 'Black'...

And here is it swatched over 'Sheer Disguise.' Oh, and I'm renaming 'Black.' First, let me yaawwwwn, there...now I can tell you that is should be called 'Black Dot.' Well, just a wee bit better, no? If you go back up to the photo of my left pinky, that is 'Black Dot' over my naked nail: no bottom coat.

Let me say, I liked 'Black Dot' a LOT more than 'Star Blight.' And, 'Black Dot' applied down flat so it was barely gritty. After a top coat of Lumos, the grit was gone. Oh, and it came off very easily. I can't say that for 'Star Blight'; I had to use the foil method to remove it.

These are my lovely assistance in this performance...

Color Club's 'Sheer Disguise' and 'Who Are You Wearing?'

'Star Blight' is going, unceremoniously, into the trash.

Do you have any shape glitter that gives you grief? What do you do with it?