Swatches of My Own Polish

I can’t exactly review my polish because of course I think it’s fabulous so here are some swatches instead. This polish was made from scratch and of course lots of glitter (it can be SO messy to make… Tip: Don’t exhale over the glitter while you’re handling it!). I wanted something really eye-catching that I had never seen before. I made several bottles and it will be for sale some time in the near future for just $6.00 a bottle (most indie polishes are at least $8.00 for some reason… I guess $8.00 is the magic price?).

On to the good stuff!

What do you think? I want honest opinions!

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Help Name my Polish!

So I began making indie polish about three weeks ago and have produced about 30 bottles so far. When I reach a point where I have at least five or ten of each color I’m going to open a shop on etsy.com. As I’ve said before this is more of a fun hobby than anything and I don’t expect to make this a main source of income or anything like that. It is just for fun and my love of polish.

With that being said, I have yet to come up with a good brand name! I actually designed and ordered labels recently but when they came in I didn’t like them… It wasn’t because of the design but because of the name. I was excited and in a hurry that I totally rushed the process of finding a good name that fits.

All I really need to do now is figure out a name for my product. If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know! So far I’ve been toying with…

– Nine Thirteen

– Shameless Polish

– Pretty Girl Polish

– Vixen Polish

– Parry (my last name); it would be like <Each Polish Name> by Parry

See how terrible I am at coming up with names?? I’ve always been this way (hence the terrible blog name!). I become impatient, want something to be named right away, and go with the first stupid thought that crosses my mind.

Review: Muse by Revlon

Muse by Revlon essentially looks like a cross between Marine green (the green used for PT and gear by the Marine Corps) and khaki. I hear that greens are going to be “in” this fall and immediately thought of this color. Not only is it a “fall color” to begin with, it’s also somewhat green. Like all Revlon polishes it is great quality. You only need two coats and they apply smoothly. Add a topcoat for best effect.

Challenge: Ugliest

In the last post I mentioned beginning a very laid back kind of challenge. There are no time constraints which I love and it’s also different. It’s not chock full of requests for themes like polka dots, stripes, french manicures, etc. Instead it has more unique categories I haven’t seen before (and I go through a lot of blogs!). In other words, it’s the perfect challenge for someone like me!

Since there is no particular order I decided to start with the one that piqued my interest the most: The ugliest polish I own. Quite frankly I don’t own many polishes I find ugly so it was hard to come up with one. While the polish I chose isn’t what I would call ugly, it is certainly one that I never wear and will probably never use in the future.

The polish is called Innocent and it’s by Sinful Colors. It’s not that this polish is heinous, I just don’t like neon colors. It was between this and a Cynthia Rowley hot pink polish but I am more apt to like pink than I am neon green.

Yep, I chipped my nail 😦 Rather than cutting it I’m going to try and file it back into a normal shape as it grows out. This is the same nail I lost [entirely] back in 2010 and ever since it has grown out slightly crooked. What’s one more kink in the nail at this point? It could be worse…

So what do you think of neon colors? What are some polishes you find unattractive or unflattering? Don’t hold back 😉

 

Nail Polish Challenge

I always see people doing nail polish challenges and have always wanted to try one. After a few minutes of looking around the internet I came across one that is pretty unique. Most challenges have things like dots, stripes, certain colors, etc. which is fun but also kind of tired. This one, however, has some pretty interesting ideas.

I think I’ll approach this casually. Some days I’m too busy to get on here so a 31 day challenge isn’t ideal. This one is meant for any blog at any time which appeals to me. I’m not sure when I’ll finish but I am starting tonight.

Also: I added a new page to my blog that features my polish collection. I’ve always loved looking at other people’s polish, how they organize and store everything, what brands they use, etc. My collection continues to grow at a fast pace and I regularly have to find a new home for it. It started out being kept in a single tupperware container and quickly grew to four containers. Once I was tired of hauling those out every time I wanted to paint my nails I decided to put everything into a drawer. Not long after that I began getting into indie and self made polish which just about doubled my collection. Now I use two drawers to house all of my polish and a third that contains everything else nail related. If you have any photos of your collections please feel free to share!

Here’s a link to the page: My Stash

Manicure Day

The first post I’m making is for the first manicure I did recently. It’ simple enough: I used In the Cab-ana by Essie as my base and Maximillian Strasse-her by Essie for the French tips. After my base coat dried I used tip guides by Orly to create a nice sharp line. If you don’t have strips you can always use the circular stickers used to repair notebook paper holes. (I find they work just as well unless your nails are extremely broad.) After applying the tips I used Seche Vite top coat to smooth everything out and leave a nice, shiny finish. Voila! A simple, easy manicure that anyone can do.

What do you think?? Don’t mind my knobby knuckles 😉

Have a great week!

 

 

Smitten Polish and OPI Reviews

Yesterday I got my order of Smitten Polish in the mail! I ordered The Ghost of Jupiter and Mother of Dragons. Before I get started, here’s a link to Smitten Polish.

At first glance The Ghost of Jupiter reminds me of a galaxy with its deep navy base and various silver, blue, and gold glitters. Mother of Dragons isn’t quite as in your face but just as appealing. It’s a lot more demure as it is composed of a light beige base with small blue and gold flecks of glitter. Below is a shot of the polish as I received it:

Although I tried both polishes I only took photos of The Ghost of Jupiter. The reason was because although Mother of Dragons looks great, it doesn’t photograph quite as well. Quite frankly because it’s a light color you have to use three or four coats which makes the polish a bit thick and goopy if you don’t do it right. I didn’t want to show bad photos and give the idea that it’s a bad bottle of polish because that isn’t the case, you just have to apply it more carefully than the average polish. Without further ado, here are some swatches:

Doesn’t it look like a solar system with a bunch of planets??

Once again please ignore my cuticles! I am trying to get them in better shape but it’s hard when you’re constantly doing housework, raising a two year old, etc.

Onto OPI’s polish, Don’t Talk Bach to Me. This polish is an extremely fun lime green color that’s perfect for summer. I’ve actually had it for a while but never used it until now. That will probably change though because it’s amazing stuff! It’s a good “go to” color for warmer months. Like all OPI polishes it applies smoothly and you only need two coats.

And just because, here are three of the polishes I’ve made recently 🙂 They were all made from scratch. I’m far from perfecting it but I’m getting better. I especially love the one on the left! The one on the right kind of reminds me of puke though, heh. It looks cool on but I’m not so sure I should have used that khaki yellow color with that specific glitter. Ah well.

Have a great weekend!

Mish Mash

Today’s post is a mish mash of items. I’ve got a review, two manicures, and some glitter.

First up is this simple manicure I did using In the Cab-ana by essie. This is easily one of my favorite polishes and I use it all the time, especially when it’s such an awesome summer color. Today I simply applied two coats of polish and let them dry. Afterwards I applied some Seche Vite topcoat to the tips of my nails and sprinkled glitter on top. I let this dry and then used Seche Vite on the entire nail to help seal in the glitter. What resulted was an awesome, easy-to-do manicure!

More below!

Mentality Polish

So I placed an order on Etsy for five polishes on the 12th. Today I received my order from Mentality (shop here). It included three metallic polishes in red, white, and blue. They are as follows: Allure, Tough, and Elizabeth. The other polishes I ordered are from Smitten Polish (shop here). Hopefully they will come soon as well!

I’m about to dive in and try Tough out but in the mean time here’s some filler.

Allure.

Tough. (Not sure why this one turned out kind of yellow but the photo is still pretty true to its color.)

Elizabeth

Enjoy!

Oh, Taiwan.

First of all I want to say I did NOT abandon my blog! I know it has been a few weeks since I last posted consistently but I’ve been extremely busy hosting friends and family before my husband’s deployment. Unfortunately he is now officially deployed and it will be between six months and a year before he returns =(

In other news, I finally got my bottles from Taiwan! I didn’t realize when I placed the order they would be coming all the way from the other side of the globe. It took nearly a month for them to get here somehow… Watching their progress was like watching paint dry. They were worth the wait though because I am now one step closer to having an indie start-up.

I recently read an article about how hard it is for indie brands to take off. It was a well written, well thought out piece. It pointed out the fact that most of them fail within a very short time. Fortunately for me I am not looking at this from a business standpoint. I am not starting my own brand because I want to make money, I’m starting it because I love all things polish. I’m not implying I’m somehow better, just reminding everyone that I look at this new adventure with a very realistic view. I don’t expect to make thousands but I am hoping people will try and love my polish as much as I do. If I get at least one person who enjoys what I have to offer then my job will be done.

Anyway, I plan to resume a regular posting schedule within the next few days. I have tons of new stuff I want to share with you all! Have a nice weekend!