Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Anchor & Heart Lacquer's June Duo

***Press Sample***

I'm super stoked - SUPER STOKED to show you this duo!!  There are two reasons for this.  First, when Taryn (creator and alchemist of Anchor & Heart) asked me to swatch this duo, I had a fangirl moment.  And I may have had a fangirl seat wiggle, where I wiggle my butt back and forth and do a little disco thing with my arms.

Don't judge me.

Secondly, when these arrived, I was so giddy - they are the *perfect* colors for the season.  PERFECT I SAY.  They are called "Melty Ice Cream" and "Lime Berry Slushie."

JUST LOOK AT THEM:


I am reminded of a vintage, 50's styled summer in an ice cream parlor when I look at these.  SO CUTE!  Let's just get to the swatches before I burst.

First is "Melty Ice Cream"





Melty Ice Cream is a lovely pale bleached neon pink with a rainbow shimmer, subtle holo pigment, and pink microglitter.  Opaque in 3 thin coats, and it applies like a dream!  No streaking or pulling or anything!  It did take closer to the 5 minute mark in dry time, but I don't know a single crelly that doesn't take that long due to the consistency.

And of then there's "Lime Berry Slushie:"





Lime Berry Slushie is a bleached neon lime green crelly with iridescent green microglitter and a speckling of matte and holo blue glitter in different shapes and sizes.  The larger sizes tended to fall to the bottom, but that is because this formula is less on the thick side (which I appreciate).  A good shake before application is all you need - no fishing required.  Opaque in 3 thin coats.

I love this duo.  I LOVE this duo.  This is the Real Talk talking, not the Fan Girl.  The formula is perfection - I have a love/hate relationship in general with crellies because they are usually on the thick side in order to suspend all the goodness.  But I don't mind giving the bottle a little shake before application if it means I get an easier formula to work with.  

You can purchase this duo tomorrow, Thursday, at 9pm EST at the link listed below with all the Anchor & Heart Lacquer social links.  This duo is LIMITED EDITION, so...get it quick, mmmkay? :D  You can purchase it as a set or separately.  There will also be a re-stock of a lot of other colors, as well as past duos that will now be available individually (whereas before, you could only purchase the set).  Here's all the info you need:

What do you think of this duo?  Do you also prefer a thinner formula with a little more shaking required, or do you like it better thick?  Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

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Polish was sent to me by the maker for photography purposes and an honest review, as I have provided above with full disclosure.

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Nail Hoot: The Fancy Floral Collection

***Press Sample***

Recently I was sent a new collection to review by Nail Hoot, and I was thrilled when I opened them because they are every jewel-toned color I adore (even the pink! *GASP*!).


Meet the Fancy Floral Collection!  Each polish is inspired by a type of flower, and they are all just lovely - and a welcome change of pace from the neons that seem to be taking over (not that that's a bad thing - I sure do love my neons!!).  So let's take a look at some swatch porn!!

First up: "Blue Geranium:





Blue Geranium is a lovely deep blue with lots of shine and shimmer.  Pretty easy to apply this one - it spread out nicely with no clumping, though it was a *tad* on the thicker side.  Not enough to make it a pain to work with though.  This was opaque in 2 coats for me.

Next up: "Hanging Fuchsia"





Hanging Fuchsia is a lovely light pink with a pinky/purple shimmer.  Also opaque in 2 coats.

Next: "




Midnight Sun Pansy is a gorgeous chocolate brown with a subtle gold shimmer.  I just love this one - it was my favorite of the whole collection :)  Opaque in 2 coats.

Here we have "Morning Glory"





Morning Glory is a fabulous purple with a strong blue shimmer - it actually looks more like a blurple in person, it's so lovely!  Opaque in 2 coats.

And lastly we have "Tiger Lily"


No, not THAT Tiger Lily, silly!





Tiger Lily is a fantastic orange-to-red shifting polish with a subtle pink shimmer - it looks JUST like the colors of the flower!!  This one is a close second for my favorite in this collection :D  Opaque in 3 coats for me.

Overall, this collection is lovely!  She did a wonderful job in creating polish that matches the colors in their floral inspirations.  Two polished thumbs up!

This collection is available now for purchase!  You can find them at the link below, along with Nail Hoot's other social media:

Which one of these struck your fancy the most?  Have you picked any of these up yet?  Let me know in the comments! <3

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Polish was sent to me by the maker for photography purposes and an honest review, as I have provided with full disclosure above.

Monday, June 13, 2016

daniPro Infused Nail Polish

***Press Sample***

I know I usually blog about indie nail polish, but I'm gonna dip my toe in the waters of the more mainstream market today.

daniPro nail polish @mommrsandme

I recently received 3 polishes by daniPro - a Doctor-created toxin-free polish infused with Undecylenic Acid.

I know, I know - "Good grief, Shawna, what the heck does that even mean??"

The long and short is this - a Podiatrist (foot doc, in a nutshell - I have more info on him at the bottom of the post) created nail polish that is formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, DBP, TPHP, and Toluene free (the big 5-free that we all love about most indies).  He took it one step further, though, by adding undecylenic acid to his polish - this ingredient is a fatty acid that works by preventing the growth of fungus (don't mistake this to mean it will treat an already-established fungal infection - it simply works to prevent fungus from developing in the first place).

I have never had any issues with fungus on my nails, but I know a few girls who have super sensitivities and get fungus easily just by wearing nail polish for "too long."  I can definitely see this product catching on, especially in places like salons.

So, now that the specifics are out of the way, let's take a look at the three polishes I received!

*Please note: All polishes are shown in 3 thin(ish) coats with one coat of the daniPro topcoat.

We'll start with the new summer color "Forever Girl: Perfect Pink"




Of the three polishes, this one gave me the least issues.  The first coat was very streaky, and it didn't really become opaque until the 3rd coat, but it leveled off nicely as soon as I added topcoat.  I do really love this color!  I am not an avid lover of the color pink - there are very few shades I like.  This happens to be one of those shades :D  It's a very nice, soft shade that can be dressed up or down (business or casual).

Next, we'll look at "My Girl: Pure Pink"




I did not like this one at all.  Of the three, this one was the most challenging to apply - it seemed to be the thickest of them, and it never leveled out for me, even with the topcoat.  I am also not a personal fan of the color, though I know several people who love pink that would really like this shade.  It seems to me to lean purple just a tiny bit, too, which sets it apart from most typical pinks.

And lastly is "First Kiss Red"




First Kiss Red was okay - still a bit thicker than I like, and also did not 100% level off for me after applying the topcoat.  It did not stain my nails though, which is always nice to see with a red polish, since a lot are notorious for staining.  This is a nice shade for summer - I like that it's less on the vampy side and more on the fun-at-the-beach side :)

Overall, I feel these polishes are just okay.  They were all thick, which isn't usually a problem for me personally.  I don't mind working with thicker polishes - as long as they level out in the end.  The only one that did for me was Forever Girl.  The topcoat though was amazing - it is not advertised as a quick-drying topcoat, but it absolutely is one and it is nice and shiny, too.  Reminds me a lot of Seche Vite.

These retail at $18 for a 15ml sized bottle.  Would I personally pay that much for this polish?  No.  I have a hard time paying $16.50 for an Enchanted polish, though, and have always been a bit more stingy when it comes to price of polish.  For those who suffer from susceptibility to developing a fungus on their nails, though, this may be worth the cost, even if the polish is a bit tricky to work with.

You can find the three colors above as well as many more at the website linked below along with all the company's social links:

So what do you think about this polish?  Is this something you would consider purchasing or trying if you saw it at a salon?  Let me know in the comments!

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Polish was sent for an honest review, as I have provided above.

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According to the information sent to me:

Dr. Gary Evans is a graduate of NYU and New York College of Podiatric Medicine.  He is a board certified podiatrist and surgeon.  He has been practicing in NYC for over 30 years and specializes in all aspects of podiatry (medicine, corrective foot surgery, and sports medicine).  He named daniPro after his daughter, Danielle, and it is the first and only toxin-free infused nail polish containing the active ingredient Undecylenic Acid.



Monday, June 6, 2016

Supermoon Lacquer's "Ready To Launch" Collection!

***Press Sample***

Howdy!  I do apologize for being so radio-silent.  I had a lot of personal family stuffs come up over the last two weeks that has been taking up some time.  Now that that is all through and done, I can finally get back to polish shenanigans!!

Speaking of which - let's get down to today's polish topic of awesome!!  Today we'll be looking at the "Ready to Launch" collection by Supermoon Lacquer - the polish brand of the Howling Boutique!



I am so stinkin' excited to share this collection with you, you have NO IDEA.  So, a little back story for you...

The Howling Boutique started by selling handmade jewelry, most (if not all) of which is made with polish she created specifically for her craft.  The owner decided to venture into making polish for the general public, and I gotta tell you, this inaugural collection?  GORGEOUS.

Space was the inspiration for these polishes, and her interpretations are just spot on.  Let's get to it!

*All photos are shown wearing 2 coats with topcoat; all art is freehand with matte topcoat.

First up: Stellar Stream





Stellar Stream is a coral-leaning (in some lighting) bubblegum pink with a brilliant blue shimmer.  Applies smoothly and evenly and is opaque in 2 coats.

Next up: Rosette Nebula






Rosette Nebula is a berry pink/burgundy holo.  This beauty could be opaque in 1 coat, though I have a very strong Visible Nail Line, so I did an extra coat.

Next: Cosmic Dust






Cosmic Dust is a stunning multi-chrome that shifts from a red/violet to magenta and then to a dark red/orange.  Opaque in 2 coats, and applies like a dream!  Apologies for the bubbles - those are from the topcoat I was using, NOT the polish.

Here we have: Galactic Halo





 
Galactic Halo is a beautiful dark purple with a scattered holo and strong violet/blue shimmer - it really makes this one quite a stunner in the sun, especially!  Opaque in 2 coats.

Next up: Mystic Mountain





Mystic Mountain is a dusty multichrome that shifts from green to blue/purple to red.  The red is much more subtle, but still present.  This one was not only my favorite of the collection, it is the most unique of the collection!  Opaque in 2 coats.

Next is: Pistol Star






Pistol Star is a holographic duochrome that shifts from a bright blue to a subtle purple.  This one is another stunner in direct sunlight!  Opaque in 1-2 coats, depending on how you apply it.

Here we have: Star Cloud





Star Cloud is a lovely aqua/medium blue with a gold/green shimmer.  Definitely can be opaque in one coat, and I'm willing to bet money it also stamps... I'll have to try that - for science!

Next is: Tidal Disruption





Tidal Disruption is a beautiful deep teal green with a gold/green shimmer.  Another that could very well be opaque in 1 coat!

And lastly we have: Polar Light






Polar Light is a gorgeous light green scattered holo with a brilliant gold/green shimmer and a subtle sprinkling of blue/green iridescent microglitters.  This one is sooooooo stunning in sunlight - the gold really shines through. Opaque in 1-2 coats, depending on how you apply.

Overall, I am just blown away by this collection!  The creator did a great job, and before she even created the official collection, she had several people test the polishes out for her to make sure there were no formula issues/wear issues/etc.  She really did her homework!  And it absolutely shows.

You can snag one or all of these beauties tonight at 6pm CST at the Howling Boutique shop, linked below along with her social media so you can stalk/follow the brand ;)


What do you think of this collection?  Any one in particular strike your fancy the most?  Let me know in the comments!!

And just for fun, here's a collage of all the space art I did ^_^


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Polish was sent to me by the maker for photography purposes and an honest review.  My opinions and experience with each polish are unique to me, and my review remains 100% honest with full disclosure.

All space images were found via Google Image search - I do NOT own any of those images.