Update On Starry Starry Night Nail Decals

These turned out to be really great! This pic is after surviving washing hair, washing dishes and swimming. They never lifted up from the nail or disintegrated, but they did shrink ever so slightly around all the edges. It was ok though; I just wrapped the tips in a coordinating dark blue polish and added top coat as needed. They still looked good when I took them off. The removal was really easy; I just pulled them off with tweezers and it didn't damage my nails at all. I cleaned off the excess sticky stuff with a swipe of acetone; it took less time than removing regular nail polish. I would really like to get more of these; they were surprisingly good quality for being so inexpensive!

NOTD: Neon Mani With Cat Decals

Here we have 3 coats ChG Shocking Pink with nail decals from Vinyl It Up. The ChG is a very thin, streaky formula, but after 3 coats and top coat the color is amazing. This mani is Pusheen approved.😺

OOTD: BBQ Pool Party

BBQ and swimming today. :) I hope you all are having a relaxing weekend! Thank you to those who serve our country and my condolences to those who have lost loved ones.

Tank: Lane Bryant 

Skirt: Walmart 

Earrings: Target

Bag: Payless 

Sandals: gift

Recent Wax Reviews

Southbound Soap Co Cotton Candy Birthday Smoothie: This scent is from their Sweet Shop Sampler and was sent to me by a lovely lady! Before it was even fully melted it had started to smell amazing! Top notes of sweet, fluffy cotton candy and base notes of yummy bakery vanilla. Very sweet but well blended; not overwhelming. This had strong throw for a good 10-12 hours.I've only tried a few other scents from Southbound, but I've generally been impressed. Overall grade: A+. Would purchase.

House of Usher Molly Brown which is described as roses and tea & cakes. This blend is perfect for me in theory because I adore both of these aromas, but the execution is so so. On cold sniff the tart smelled fairly fragrant and I could detect both rose and bakery. When melting it has light to moderate throw at best. I have very small rooms and I have to be within about 6 feet of the warmers to catch decent whiffs of this tart. (Melting 1/2 tart in Glade electric warmer for living room/kitchen and 1/2 in BHG 15 watt bulb plug in in bedroom/bathroom.) Plus I have smelled better tea and cake blends from other brands. The bakery notes are not as rich or warm as I have smelled with other tarts; the scent falls a little flat, although the rose is nice and fresh. I'm glad that I received this tart in a swap and didn't buy it. So, it would have been the perfect scent for me if it had better throw. Have you tried this scent or any other HoU tarts? Thoughts? Overall grade: B+. Probably wouldn't purchase.

SGA Hello Lover Waffle Cone Birthday Cake: What sorcery is this?? It smells sooo good y'all! Strong top notes of sweet lemon sugar expertly blended with middle notes of crispy waffle cone and bottom notes of fluffy vanilla birthday cake. My house quickly filled with gorgeous bakery aromas and a small chunk threw nearly all day. I never fail to be impressed with SGA chunk tarts. Overall grade: A+. Would purchase.

Jamaica Me Crazy from Starry Skies Wax: Such a pretty, whimsical tart with it's sprinkling of glitter! It is a strong Pina Colada blend on cold sniff and when melting my whole house is filled with the aroma of the tropics! Perfect pineapple coconut blend; I love it! I'd highly recommend people try this new vendor. I haven't been disappointed by any of her scents so far. She's open now for orders. (Not affiliated.) Overall grade: A. Would repurchase.

NOTD: Starry Starry Night

Forget Essie Starry, Starry Night; this is the real thing!

These aren't exactly the same as decals, but nail wraps are stick on too, so I'm counting it. The brand is QJ purchased on wish.com.

Overall these were rather easy to apply. For being so inexpensive, this is one of the best brands of nail wraps I tried. They seemed to have just the right amount of stick and stretch to go on straight and smooth. They were well sized for me and fit my nails nearly perfectly. It was time consuming to trim and file all the tips down to fit my length, but in the end it took about the same amount of time as a regular multi coat polish mani. 

I wish I could have oiled my nails and used base coat. The instructions didn't specifically say not to, but I didn't want to interfere with the stickiness off the wraps. I debated doing top coat, but in the end went ahead and did it because I wanted to wrap the tips and sides to keep water out. TC doesn't seem to cause any adverse effects.

The only drawback to these things is that they smelled strongly like rubber when I first started applying them.

Overall I think I paid $2 shipped for these and I would definitely like to buy more! 

Available here:

https://www.wish.com/m/c/554c6d7dad24643dd8f800fb

They are so beautiful and if they hold up well they'd definitely be great for travel. I'm wearing them to a Memorial Day BBQ tomorrow and there will be swimming, so that will be a great test. Have you ever tried nail wraps? What are your favorite brands/prints? I hope you all are having a great weekend! 

NOTD: Many Shiny Mints

My mani from the past few days of SC Mint Apple and SH Let's Get Digital is still in perfect condition. I figured rather than going to the trouble of removing it, I would add onto it! Thumb, middle and pinky fingers have designs with Formula X Athena, index has a coat of Pinwheel Polish Tiny Miracle and ring finger a coat of Sea Glass & Surf. I adore all this minty, shiny goodness! Athena, which I just picked up yesterday, is such a stunning polish. I also love how my white glitter crelly looks mint when layered; definitely going to be trying more crelly layering combos. This is such a fun and standout mani to me; what do you guys think? Have you tried any of these colors?

NOTD: YSL Green Peace Dupe

Ever since LibraGirl recommended a blog article about using SH Let's Get Digital for a YSL Green Peace dupe I've been meaning to try it.

I'm very happy with the results! This is 1 coat of SC Mint Apple, which is very pretty on it's own, and 1 coat Let's Get Digital. I actually love my version even more; it has a more pronounced shimmer. Both polishes together cost about $10 as opposed to to YSL's $28, so it's a decent budget option.

Recent Wax Reviews

Kitty's Konfections Pink Panties: This is pink sugar + strawberry + tea & cakes. This blend sounds amazing, but it was rather light on cold sniff and when melting I only got a faint pink/sweet aroma. The individual notes are rather indistinguishable. The same day I also melted her Coconut Delight scent, which I had previously reviewed.It is coconut cream pie and maraschino cherry. I had the same issues with this one; light on cold sniff and fairly light throw. I had melted this scent previously and mentioned the light throw to the vendor and among other things she recommended letting it cure longer. I let it cure for a few more weeks but it doesn't seem to have made a big difference in throw. These are the only two from KK I have had throw issues with so far; the other scents I've melted have been strong and delicious. I look forward to ordering from her again. Overall grade B: probably wouldn't repurchase these scents.

Kitty's Konfections Cabana Spa (Avobath dupe): It's a great Lush dupe scent and I'm getting pretty strong throw from 1/4 tart and lasted about 8-10 hours. So fresh and bright and citrusy! Overall grade: A. Would repurchase.

Beezy VS Endless Love dupe: It is both fresh and floral in the most delightful way, and 1/4 tart has incredible throw! I've never smelled the original fragrance, so I can't say how accurate of a dupe it is, but it's a surprisingly likable scent to me. Overall grade: A. Might purchase.

Mainstays Sweet Pea 3-wick candle. It has moderate throw and is a sweet, creamy floral, very realistic and lovely. At $3.33 for 11.5 oz it's an amazing value from Walmart and one of my favorite inexpensive candle brands to purchase from. I would repurchase this scent. I get a good 48 hours burn time out of these, so about 12 hours a day for 4 days. Overall grade: A-.

Mainstays Vanilla candle: This is a pretty run of the mill vanilla scent, but it is pleasant and not artificial. It has light to moderate throw and is a great accent candle to go with strong bakery scented tarts. Overall grade: B. Would repurchase.

Pinwheel Polish Coconut Cake: This shop makes both lovely tarts and beautiful nail polishes. My 2 favorite things! The lid came off this particular tart during transit (but it was not damaged) and not only did it scent the entire package, but as soon as my husband brought it inside it scented the whole room too! It had wonderful throw and is the most realistic sweet coconut cake scent I've ever smelled. Heavenly! Sadly the throw was only strong for an hour or two and then became lighter. I can still smell it when I walk past the warmers, but it no longer fills the rooms. Overall grade: A- Might repurchase.

NOTD: Julie G Mermaid's Tale

This is definitely a mermaid-y, oceanlike color. It's such a pretty, shifty blue green shimmer and the formula is super smooth and highly saturated. I could have gotten away with 1 coat but did two originally.

In relation to yesterday's NOTD post, y'all nearly had me convinced that it was the jelly causing shrinkage, and while it did shrink worse, my frankened top coat did cause some shrinkage on this poor Julie G polish as well. I attempted to paint over it, so this is like 2.5-3 coats pictured. Stupid TCs; y u no play well together???

Anyway, this is a beautiful polish!

NOTD: Milani Rad Purple

I own exactly one jelly polish: Milani Rad Purple, which a sweet friend gave me a while back. It languished among my untrieds for a few months, because back when I was a muggle I thought nails showing through semi sheer polish would look messy. I just didn't know what to do with it, but prompted by this week's challenge I decided to try it and let some polka dots peek out from underneath.

So this is a clear base coat, a coat of French tip base, black polka dots of NYC Black Lace Creme, and two coats of Milani Rad Purple. I was fairly happy with how it looked, but I'm glad I took the photos quickly because once the top coat dried I experienced major shrinkage. :( I've never had any shrinkage issues before, but I'm pretty sure it's my own fault. I get so fed up with bottles of top coat that just have a little left in them so that the brush can barely reach, but I don't want to waste what's left, so today I frankened them all together in one bottle. Since they were all different brands, the ingredients probably didn't play well together. I had wondered about this before hand but still did it anyway. Oh well, a good excuse to do another mani tomorrow. I put another coat of Rad Purple over the top of everything and it seemed to help cover the shrinkage areas some.

Review: Shea Moisture Rose Mask

I received a free sample of this product from the website PinchMe.com. I am not affiliated with this brand or website; I'm just sharing my experience with the product. I was very excited to receive this particular sample. I had high hopes for it because I love mud masks in general and when I opened the sample packet it had the lovely aroma of fresh roses. The texture of this mask is quite nice; it is thick and creamy with a smooth texture, not gritty as some mud masks can be.

The mask felt nice and cool on my skin at first, but after about two minutes, the sensation took a surprising turn for the worst. My face began to tingle which quickly turned into a moderate stinging/burning sensation. I was extremely surprised as this product is specifically labeled for use on "sensitive skin". 

I reluctantly climbed into the shower and attempted to leave it on for the recommended 10 minutes, meanwhile wondering if I was melting the top layer of skin off my face. I left the mask on while I washed my hair and body and it dried to the powdery texture that dried mud masks normally do, but the unpleasant feeling did not subside. I was glad to rinse it off and it took about 7 minutes for the stinging to go away. I took a photo immediately after gently patting my face dry, and my face and chest were noticeably red and blotchy. Looking like I have a mild sunburn is not my desired result from a facial care product. It took about an hour for my face to return to it's normal color. While I do not seem to be suffering any long lasting irritating effects, I am extremely baffled by the fact that this product is geared for use on sensitive skin. I consider my skin to be normal, not particularly sensitive. I have used several dozen facial care products over the years and have only had a similar reaction to a product one other time, and that was with a Nügg Revitalizing Face Mask with Flax Seed and Peppermint Oil. 

You can read my review of that product here. http://thriftypolished.blogspot.com/2016/03/today-product-reviews_12.html?m=1

I received a similar result of facial redness with that product, but it didn't feel nearly as unpleasant as this Shea Moisture mask did. Out of curiosity I looked up the ingredients listed in the Shea Moisture mask. Perhaps someone with more experience in skincare ingredients can tell me what might be the possible culprit, but I can't make heads or tails of what might be causing the sensitivity.

"Water, Kaolin, Bentonite, Glycerin (Vegetable), Glyceryl Stearate, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter? ?, Glyceryl Caprylate, Calophyllum Tacamahaca Seed Oil, Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil, Allantoin, Panthenol, Balanites Aegyptiaca Seed Oil, Rosa Damascena Flower Oil, Rhododendron Ferrugineum Leaf Cell Culture Extract, Rosa Canina Flower Extract, Rosa Centifolia Flower Wax, Rosa Damascena Flower Wax, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Rosa Centifolia Flower Water, Selaginella Lepidophylla (Jericho) Extract, Glyceryl Undecylenate, Fragrance (Essential Oil Blend)"

If my review were based solely on texture and aroma of this mask, I would have loved it. But I cannot in good conscience recommend a product that gave me an unpleasant experience and less than desirable beauty results. I realize that everyone's skin is different and many people may use this product without any problems. I am glad I tried a free sample of this product through Pinch Me and did not have to find out after buying a $14.99 6 oz jar that it did not work for me.

UPDATE: editing my post to add that all the other user reviews on their own site had the same problems with this product that I did! Now I know my results were not unusual.
Here is a link to the product in case you wish to check it out for yourself.

Here is a link to the product in case you wish to check it out for yourself.

http://www.sheamoisture.com/Peace-Rose-Oil-Complex-Sensitive-Skin-Mud-Mask_p_1520.html#close

Review: Pink Zebra Wax Sample

Today I am melting in the kitchen/living room a new to me brand of "wax sprinkles" from Pink Zebra Wax. I was contacted by independent consultant Jessica Carrillo through Instagram and she asked if I'd like to try a free sample. Of course I would; who doesn't like free wax?? The sample arrived in a small, well sealed baggie with a business card. It was in a plain letter envelope so it got a little squished by the postal service, but it doesn't seem to have affected the quality of the wax at all. The sharpied name had worn off the sample bag, but due to our previous conversation I knew she was sending me a sample in the scent of Sweet Pea and Lilly. I knew it would be perfect to melt for today.💕🌸

I would guess the sample size to be around 1 oz, and the scent has fairly strong throw in my Glade electric warmer and is nicely scenting my small rooms. It is a very pleasant, fresh and sweet floral with a bit of perfumy-ness. It is similar to BBW's Sweet Pea body care products. I like the fragrance a lot and I believe anyone that's into florals would find it appealing as well. I will report back later on the longevity of throw. Pink Zebra offers a wide variety of wax and bath & body products including their wax sprinkles in 3.5 oz jars for $8 and 16 oz cartons for $25. The 3.5 oz jars come out to be around $2.13 per oz, which is a little on the pricey side for wax. The 16 oz cartons are a somewhat better value at $1.56 per oz, if you are interested in buying 1 pound of one scent. Out of curiosity I may end up ordering a jar of a scent that sounds good and see how it performs. I'm very pleased with my sample scent and the personable customer service of Jessica. If you would like to browse her website: here's the link: I am not affiliated with Pink Zebra in any way; I'm just sharing my honest thoughts on my free sample with you waxy lovers!

https://www.pinkzebrahome.com/jessicacarrillo

Country Lane Keepsakes Order Thoughts

First I must say that I am absolutely ecstatic about my entire Country Lane Keepsakes ordering experience! Carol's Etsy site has great note descriptions of the scents, lovely photos of the wax shapes and she allows you to request a scent to sample with your order. I requested to try a scent called Sunset because she only had it in stock in a larger 6 oz bag rather than the 4 oz, and I wasn't sure whether I would love it. I ordered 5 4oz bags, and at $3.95 that's slightly less than $1 per ounce, an amazing value! The shipping was $9.25 which seemed reasonable for the medium sized box that arrived. I ordered on a Friday and received 3 days later on Monday, so super fast shipping! I must note that my order was extremely, ridiculously well packaged. I received a medium USPS box with tons of those air filled packing thingies to cushion a smaller box inside. Two samples, Clean Cotton and Black Ice Type were sitting on top. My first thought was that samples are great, but maybe she had not gotten my note asking for a sample of Sunset. But I opened the second box, parted a sea of bubble wrap, and low and behold there was a second bag filled with samples and among them I received two Sunset tarts! I received SEVEN free sample scents all together, which is more than I've gotten from any other vendor! This is the most I've ever been impressed by a wax order and I'm always excited by each and every waxy package that comes in the mail.

When I finally picked my jaw up off the floor, I unwrapped a ton more bubble wrap and tissue paper and finally got to my order. To Carol's credit, all of the packaging paid off; each one of her carefully crafted and gorgeous wax shapes arrived in perfect condition.

I'll tell you, if all of these tarts smell as wonderful as I think they will, CLK has made a customer for life! I'm so glad I finally found room in the budget to place an order.

Now, onto the sniffs.

Cold Sniff Thoughts:

Guardian Angel (mixed animal shapes):

To me this is a unique and delightful aroma of smoke, cloves and other spices, rich homemade vanilla bean extract and fresh, sweet hay. It evokes images of Grandpa smoking a pipe in on the porch in a rocking chair overlooking a hay field, while the aroma of Grandma's freshly baked sugar cookies wafts from the kitchen. Heavenly! Fairly strong.

Warm Winter Vanilla Sugar: (yellow & orange mini loaves):

I was talked into ordering this scent by the wonderful descriptions on The Redolent Mermaid blog (not affiliated), but I probably would have picked this one for myself anyway because I adore vanillas. This one is no exception; it's like the most perfect vanilla bakery scent ever, warm and not overly sweet with just a pinch of spice. Very strong.

Coconut Sandalwood (hearts and 2 tiny cute bees):

There was a Bath & Body Works candle in this scent that I wanted to try but couldn't afford at the time, so when I saw this scent listed for CLK it was a no brainer buy for me. It is everything I'd hoped for; a creamy, not too sweet coconut expertly blended with rich, mellow sandalwood. It's so warm and inviting; I love it! Very strong.

Cherry Pipe Tobacco (stars):

My husband got excited when mentioned this one; he doesn't care a whole lot about my tarts (he's become nose blind to most of them, haha) but every once in a great while he likes to smoke a pipe and loves the smell of flavored pipe tobaccos. It doesn't disappoint; it is a realistic cherry juice with hints of spice, and warm, slightly sweet bottom notes of tobacco smoke. As a rule I hate smoking and can't stand the smell of cigarettes, but pipe smoke is an entirely different animal and I find this tart blend to be very comforting and evocative of nice memories. Strong.

Chocolate Orchid (crescent moons and a horse)

I may not have been inclined to choose this scent based on the name alone, but since a lovely MUA'er (thanks DiegoJose!) sent me a sample and I enjoyed it so much, I knew I must order it in vast quantities, haha! It's a special blend of sweet milk chocolate and a dark, musky, powdery, almost berry like perfume of orchids. I adore it; glad to have some more! Strong.

Free samples:

Sunset: (2 large stars):

I'm so glad I requested to try this one; it's a lovely bright and fresh scent with top notes of bergamot and sunny citruses, middle notes of powdery musk, and bottom notes of dusky tonka vanilla bean. It's very unique and pleasant but out of the norm scent wise for me. I'm undecided as to whether I'll order more. Strong.

Strawberry Fig (rose):

This is probably my favorite of all the shapes; soo pretty and perfectly crafted! The scent is also wonderful; ripe, juicy strawberries freshly picked from under the summer sun, and wonderful earthy bottom notes of dusky, dark dried figs to round it out. Fig notes can be hit or miss to me, but this blend seems very natural and well done. Very strong.

Mediterranean Cypress type (star):

Woah, this one was so fresh and realistic! When I opened the bag it was a blast of cypress leaves blowing on a summer breese, with a twist of lime. An unexpected new love for me. Strong.

Pink Sugar & Coconut (two butterflies):

I was very excited to see this one because I generally love this type of scent. This was no exception; it's a wonderfully sweet pink sugar and coconut flakes blend. I would definitely consider ordering this one. Strong.

Black Ice type (heart): 

I wasn't entirely sure what to expect of this one as I've never sniffed whatever it's duping, but it is a very fresh and clean, masculine cologne type scent. Aptly titled; it is both cool/refreshing and dark/sensual. I'm not sure how I feel about it for me as a tart scent, but I think it'd smell great on my hubby as a body wash or cologne. Very strong.

Sun Washed Linen (cherub): Although I usually don't care for most fresh and laundry scents, this one isn't unpleasant. It's a citrus laundry detergent type scent, kind of like Gain. It's not too artificial or chemical like some are, but the aroma is so strong that it's overwhelming my nose. I'm not sure if I'll try this one or pass it on to another wax lover.

Clean Cotton (daisy):

A most basic fresh laundry soap type scent; definitely not for me as a whole scent category. Not terrible, but I'll be rehoming this one. Strong.

Whew, thanks for reading all my musings; I'm going to give my nose a break now! Have you tried CLK? What are your favorite scents?

NOTD: ChG I've Got A Blue Attitude

This is the last of my untried Lite Brites, and I'm pleased to report it's s gorgeous one coater. I looked great by itself, but behold the gloriousness of it with Sally Hansen Let's Get Digital! Such an amazing iridescent shimmer; it helps with my cravings for some of those pretty NWP shimmer polishes.

Please forgive my sad nubs; I had my first break in 3 months today.😢 Ironically it was on my ring finger which is usually one of the strongest. I don't even know how it happened; I just randomly noticed it was split 1/3 of the way across the nail.😱 They were doing so well for a while and were my ideal length. Oh well, such is life.

PS: the Bitzy crelly from yesterday's mani chipped off in sheets.☹️ The 3 ChG's still looked good though.

NOTD: Neon Nerds

Here's a neon rainbow mani with 3 of the ChG Lite Brites: I'll Pink To That, Papa Don't Peach, and Whip It Good. The glitter crelly is Bitzy Sweetie Pie. 2 coats of everything. The ChG's all went on super smooth and are good formula. The Bitzy is super chunky; it's much goopier than any other crelly I've tried. I think this mani looks pretty overall and it reminds me of this box of Nerds.

Recent Wax Reviews

Haley's Heavenly Scents Pink Chiffon Lavender Birthday Cake: The lavender is strong with this one. But it's punched up with the sweetness of the pink chiffon and cake. A superb blend! It had strong throw that lasted all day; one of the strongest tarts I've melted in a long time.

Overall grade: A+. Would purchase.

Front Porch Blueberry Pumpkin Vanilla Noel:

I would have never thought to put blueberry and pumpkin together, but it is scrumptious! It's like fresh baked blueberry muffins with spiced pumpkin pie filling and hints of vanilla bean noel. It had strong throw for about 8-10 hours. Overall grade: A. Would repurchase.

Starry Skies Jinx: I had never seen pink sugar, peppermint and citrus blended together before, so Jinx from Starry Skies wax intrigued me. I love to buy unique blends from vendors, and I'm happy to report this one works! Prominent top notes of peppermint, sweet and slightly powdery middle notes of pink sugar and a base note of juicy, bright tangerine. I love it; such a fresh and cheery spring/summer scent! It has been having moderate throw in my small rooms. Lasted all day.

Overall grade: A-. Might repurchase.

Starry Skies Dusk: Lord of Misrule, French Vanilla and Zucchini Bread. It is a warm bakery scent, heavy on the zucchini bread and with hints of spice from the LOM. I like it a lot! Strong throw so far. Overall grade: A+. Would repurchase.

NOTD: China Glaze What I Like About Blue

2 coats of China Glaze What I Like About Blue. This is such a vivid aqua/Tiffany blue type color with subtle shimmer. The formula is not super smooth, but the finished product looks nice. If you are lemming it I'd recommend it. The accent nail glitter is LA Colors Sparkling Diamond. 

House of Usher Titanic Box Thoughts

I received this lovely Titanic themed box in trade from a sweet waxy friend, Deb, who felt the scents were not for her. 

You can check out her blog here:

http://somethingalwayz.blogspot.com

Here's my cold sniff thoughts on them.

Mr. Andrews: Sweet, creamy and slightly powdery pink sugar and fresh violets. It's quite lovely, but not at all a masculine scent. Kind of odd for Mr. Andrews. Fairly strong.

Ice Burg: again this scent doesn't go well with the name. I would expect a fresh aquatic type scent, but this is orange and cinnamon/spice with an almond note that is slightly artificial. Still, it's very pleasant and quite strong, and the ice berg shape is adorable!

Half Full: a very busy blend. Prominent top notes of orange and lime and salt, like a margarita. There are supposed to be bakery and other sweet notes in there, but it's hard to pick out all the individual notes. I think I would have just stuck with the margarita idea; the scent is pleasant overall but a little overwhelming. Very strong. 

Molly Brown: A delightful tea & cakes scent with a hint of fresh roses. One of my favorites from the box and one of the most fitting for the character. Moderate.

Cafe Parisien: Blackberry jam over white cake with coffee. I'm not sure if I love the blackberry and coffee together; it's unusual but intriguing. I think I will reserve full judgement until I melt it, but I'm cautiously optimistic. I think a better representation of a French cafe would have been chocolate croissants and coffee, but I think HoU is known for shaking things up. Fairly strong.

1340 Pennsylvania St: yummy sugared strawberries, fresh baked goods and orange cream. Quite delightful and surprisingly complex. Strong.

Lifeboat #6: this one makes a lot of sense. I don't like many fresh/clean scents but this one is nice and not artificial or overwhelming. Salty sea air with hints of light florals and pine needles. Moderate.

Unsinkable: this one lists about a dozen fragrance notes, but I only really get Bergamot and cashmere musk. It's very pretty but not super complex; many of the notes are lost to me. Moderate.

The Grand Staircase Lip Balm:

It smells super yummy, like strawberry shortcake. I can't wait to test it out.

(There were two other items in this sampler, but I do not have them and therefore can't review them). A big thanks to the person who sent them; I'm sorry the scents weren't for her, but I love them! She also generously sent 3 mystery overpour scents from the brand Sweet Fixations. To me the pink one smells like super sweet bubble gum and grape jolly ranchers, the purple one like blackberry cake, and the yellow one like sweet vanilla and maple sugar with hints of strawberry and orange. All scrumptious! I had a fun afternoon of sniffing and was happy to try some new to me vendors!

Perfume Reviews: Elizabeth & James Nirvana White & Black

Nirvana Black:

I love this fragrance! A pretty consistent musk and sandalwood throughout the day. Powdery and sensual; could be unisex; not overly masculine or feminine. Such a bright, warm, seductive fragrance. Lasts about 3-5 hours on me.

Nirvana White:

A beautifully fresh and bright summer floral with hints of warmth from powdery musk and orange. The musky, powdery base notes share some similarities to Nirvana Black, but the top notes of green florals make it a more cheery scent. Great for daytime wear in the summer; it lasted about 3-5 hours on me.

Matching Nails & Outfit

This may be one of my favorite manis to date! Since I learned leopard nails I'm addicted. :) This is 2 coats China Glaze We Got The Beet, which had a surprisingly fussy formula. The first coat was quite sheer and patchy and the shimmer was a little lumpy. I could have done with 3 coats but didn't have the time. Silver holo is 2 coats of my beloved Color Club Harp On It. The black is LA Colors Art Deco Black. I loved it's long thin brush to accent the spots. 

And of course my nails are matching my black maxi dress, cardi, and leopard headscarf today. :)

Dress: thrifted 
Cardi: JC Penny 
Bag, sandals: Payless 
Headscarf: old
Earrings: Walmart 

Perfume Sniffing

I had a months old stack of magazines that DH was begging me to get rid of. It's so funny; I haven't subscribed to any mags in probably 5 years at least, and yet some of them keep on coming, lol! When I was a little girl and teen I used to adore looking through the magazines and oogling all the beautiful clothes and cutting them out and making collages. As an adult I find that with everything at my fingertips on the interwebz, I'm rather disinterested in magazines, hence the months old stack. 

I did manage to recapture a bit of the magic yesterday though, by going through and tearing out all the perfume samples and coupons before I tossed them. Do any of you subscribe to any mags? Do you enjoy sniffing the perfume samples?

Of all the ones I sniffed, two really stood out to me. Flowerbomb (can't believe I've never sniffed it before) is a lovely not overwhelming floral with a bit of soft sweetness. Also Joe Malone Peony Blush & Suede. Such a pretty floral with soft musk. I wanted to try more of those so I went to Sephora. I live in the country, so the main city I shop in is about 25 miles away. It only has a Sephora in JC Penny, which I realized has a pretty small perfume selection. They have about a quarter of what the regular Sephora that's 45 miles from me has. I thought they'd at least have Flowerbomb, but no. :( 

I ended up picking up samples of EJ Nirvana White and Black. I'm going to test out White today and Black tomorrow. I know these are favorites for some of you. Anyway, thanks for reading my ramblings!

Adventures at Sally Beauty

It's been a while since I hauled NP's in store (mwahaha!) I've been on something of a low buy; unexpected bills will do that. :/

Anyhoo, I finally had a tiny bit of extra cash and a 20% off coupon, so I hit Sally's for the mini Lite Brites collex. I'm so glad they still has this set! I had been lemming it for weeks and when I first looked there was only 2 sets, and yesterday I got the last one! *happy dance* They were sold out of a couple of the colors I most wanted in full size, so very glad they had the minis. Anyway, I only went in for that one thing, but of course I was lured by this glittery aqua nail file. Then I *casually* glanced around for the clearance NP's. They weren't in the usual spot, so I just assumed they'd sold out of them. On a whim I decided to look around the rest of the store. I usually only stay in the polish isle, so I was curious. Lo and behold I found the magical land of clearance polish stuffed into the back of the store! Even though I didn't *need* anything else, I had to paw through each and every polish, purely for scientific purposes, lol. I was so elated to find a long time lemming, OPI Muir Muir for $4.50! They had a lot of other treasures such as OPI Russian Navy and about 4 Orly Mirrorballs, both of which I already have. They had a ton of the mini Sally Girls; I'm sad they're doing away with those. The glitters had especially good formula.

I was about to finally check out with only 3 items when the impulse buys at the register got me. They had a brand I'd never seen before so of course I had to investigate. Bitzy polishes were on display for $1.69 where the SG's used to be. A lot of them looked really cute. I restrained myself to just one to test; a glitter crelly called Sweetie Pie. I've really been digging glitter crellies lately and been wanting some with bright glitters for summer. The price was right. With coupon and card discount I got out of there for $17 and change; not too shabby considering the regular price of the ChG set was $14 by itself. I saved a ton, right?? Lol. Anyway thanks for reading! Anyone find any Np treasures lately?

Recent Wax Reviews

Sugar & Spice Hazelnut Espresso:
Both on cold sniff and when melting it's a yummy, smooth coffee scent with hints of hazelnut and spice. The first time I melted it I got about 6 hours of throw (1/4 tart in 2 warmers) but the 2nd time it was still noticeable after about 10 hours. A very nice scent overall, but not super unique. Overall grade: A-. Might purchase.

Country Lane Keepsakes Chocolate Orchid:
CLK Chocolate Orchid is the prettiest rose shape I've ever seen! It's only been in the last few days that I've tried a couple of chocolate orchid blends and I must say I find them unusually delightful! It's an intriguing combo, hard to describe. Yummy, rich milk chocolate swirls together with the berry-like perfumy musk of purple orchids. One wouldn't think it should work but it does. This one had strong to moderate throw all day. Loved it! Overall grade: A+. Would purchase.

Kitty's Konfections Candy Fluff:
It's a super sweet and slightly powdery scent, just like those Sweet Tarts candies. Not my most favorite scent ever, but it's pleasant and a good dupe. Like most KK tarts, it had strong throw for about 8 hours, becoming lighter thereafter, but still noticeable. Overall grade A-. Wouldn't repurchase, a little tool sweet and powdery for me.

Cosmic Gems Peach Soda: It's a super sweet, juicy peach nectar with bubbly, fizzy soda. It's such a bright and peppy scent; it makes me happy! I have been really impressed with the quality and throw of Cosmic Gems scents; all the ones I've melted so far have been strong all day. Plus her blends are fun and unique. Overall grade: A+. Would repurchase.

NOTD: Gray & Gold

The Today's NOTD is 1 coat SC Prosecco over 1 coat NYC Sidewalkers. The glitters are LA Colors Dizzy and Sassy Pants Polish Temptation.