28 Feb

Review of Sassy Color Shifting Polish in Maroon Chameleon

I’m sorry that I kind of disappeared for a bit. The kids and I went out of town for a week to visit friends and when we got home, Mr. Nailinator was pretty sick. Then I had a horrible sinus headache over the weekend, and one of my friends had a baby this week, so we watched their older child while they were at the hospital. So nails haven’t really been high on my priorities list. But I do have some ideas lined up for the near future.

I finally got my hands on some thermal polish and that is what I’m going to show you today. I heard a while back that Sassy came up with a line of “Color Shifting” shades, and I found them at Ayala Cebu a couple of weeks ago. I chose just one to try since I didn’t know if they were any good. I picked Maroon Chameleon.

Sassy color shifting polish Maroon Chameleon

I used 3 coats of this shade and, as you can tell, there is still some VNL going on there in the “warm” area. I couldn’t get the polish to warm up in the bottle in the air conditioned shopping area and I couldn’t find any swatches online so it was a surprise to me what the warmed up shade would be. Turns out, it’s warm shade was much lighter than I had anticipated and also ended up being a shade of greyish lilac that is not flattering at all on my skin tone. So I wasn’t really loving it on me. When I applied the first coat of this polish to my nails, I noticed several white specks in the polish and on the brush. I was concerned about these white specks but after I finished applying all 3 coats, I didn’t see any more specks. The gradient effect was really cool and it was fun to watch it change in water and when cool air blew on the nails. Maroon Chameleon dried to a semi-matte finish.

Another thing I’d like to note is when the sun came up the next morning and warmed up the air, there was no “cold” shade showing at all. I guess there isn’t much difference between the normal temperature of the air in Cebu and the warmth of my finger tips. Oh well. Maybe if I worked in an office building with air conditioning instead of at home with no a/c or if the warm shade had been more flattering on me, I would have enjoyed this polish a lot more.

Sassy color shifting polish Maroon Chameleon when warm

Will I buy any of the others? Probably not. I’d like to find some nice swatches so I can see the transitions of the different colors first. 45 pesos for a 7ml bottle is steep for local polish prices so I’d really love to see some swatches… Please, Sassy Colors?

Have you tried thermal polish yet? What brand did you try and did you have any of the same observations as I did with this one?

I hope you have a great week!

10 Feb

Review of Chic Siam (and Freehanded Zebra Stripes)

Hi!
I’ve got another locally made beauty to show you today. Chic has a line of polishes called their “Grainy” collection. I’ve used 4 of the 5 shaded in the collection in the past but this is my first time to use Siam. I applied 2 coats of Siam and used black acrylic paint and a striper brush to free hand some zebra stripes. Yeah, another edgy Valentine’s Day appropriate look!

With topcoat

I added a bow I purchased from Blooming Nail Cebu.

Just like the other shades in the Grainy Collection, Siam dries to a semi matte, slightly textured finish. The light box lighting doesn’t do the sparkle justice at all.

It is so sparkly and I love the slightly textured finish. Siam only required 2 coats for opacity and it wears well. Clean up was easy too. There were a few sparkly bits left behind, but they came off easily when I washed my hands. I would like to note that, even after I applied top coat, it still was a bit textured. So if you want that extra smooth, glossy finish, you might need 2 coats of topcoat. I love this polish just as much as I love the others in this collection. These are available in 10ml bottles for PHP 34.75/US$ 0.78.

Check out the other colors in the collection:
Shadow Crystal
Montana
Peridot
Amethyst
Montana & Amethyst Gradient

I hope you have a great week!
Hugs,
Rachael

05 Feb

L.A. Girl Sparkle Ruby with Edgy Tips

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner but, instead of flowers and hearts, I’ve got something different for you today. These colors are typically what you would see in a Valentine’s mani but it is edgier than most “romantic” looks. I wasn’t really going for an anti-Valentines mani, but I did want something special.

I saw a picture online ages ago of a line work mani by Haus Of Lacquer and I really liked the look, although I doubted I could pull off that particular look. I stumbled across the picture again this week and decided to a modified version of it and this is what I ended up with. I love it!
L.A. Girl Sparkle Ruby with edgy tips

I started with 3 coats of L.A. Girl Sparkle Ruby (You could get away with 2 easy but the color is much deeper with a 3rd coat) and then used my striping brush and free handed the lines with Sally Hansen X-treme Wear in Golden-I. I will be getting a back up bottle of Golden-I when I go to the US in April. It is perfect in every way!

L.A. Girl Sparkle Ruby and Sally Hansen Golden-I

You have heard me rave about L.A. Girl 3D Effect polishes in the past, and I still can’t get enough of them. I’ve used Sparkle Ruby before, but my nail shape is different and I still love it. I will have to see about getting my hands on the colors from this collection that I don’t have.

L.A. Girl Sparkle Ruby swatch

I’ve included a light box shot (above) and one with some direct light (below) so you can see some of the holo sparkle and the depth. Just gorgeous!

L.A. Girl Sparkle Ruby swatch in direct lighting

Are you a flowers and hearts kind of girl, or do you like things more on the edgy side? I personally love girly things, but I am challenging myself to try new things and looks that I have shied away from before. I do have some girly ideas up my sleeve, but I’m learning that I like some things I didn’t think I would! It has been fun!

I hope you have a great “hump day”! Don’t forget to make someone smile today.

Hugs,
Rach

02 Feb

Caronia Stellar and PUEEN Stamping

Hi!
I’ve got a just quick post for you today. I finally got my hands on Caronia Stellar this week. It was so pretty in the bottle that I just had to put it on ASAP.

Caronia Stellar swatch

It did NOT disappoint! I used two easy coats here. The formula of Stellar was identical to Trance (check out my review). It dried quickly and it is so shiny and vibrant. It is definitely an eye-catching shade. I think it would be perfect for Valentine’s Day.

Caronia Stellar and PUEEN Stamping

I decided to add some stamping and settled on this lace and roses image which is off of plate 27 of the PUEEN Love Elements set. I didn’t use stamping polish so the black isn’t as pigmented as I would like but I still love how they turned out.

What is your ideal Valentine Mani?

Here is hoping you have a great weekend!
Hugs,
Rach

 

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