NOTW - Watermelon, Good Karma, Wooden Shoe Like to Know?

I wasn't feeling all that inspired the past couple weeks so I picked fairly boring polishes. In dramatic contrast I went crazy the past few weekends so check those posts out for something wayyyyy more interesting.

Essie - Watermelon

Watermelon - When I bought this polish I thought I wanted a pink/peach/coral color, but I somehow chose something much more red. I think I got sucked in by how pretty this looked in the bottle and the name made me assume it was going to be pinkier. To be honest I don't think you could tell this isn't just plain red unless you were right next to something red. And an additional reason this is going to be far from a favorite is that Alex told me it looked too "mature," basically calling it an old lady color.

Spoiled - Good Karma

Good Karma - I guess the theme of this post is that I'm a sucker for what polishes look like in the bottle. I love all those blue/greeen/aqua duochrome polishes, there is just something about this color that I'm drawn to. It doesn't seem to matter what brand of polish it is, my eye just goes right to this type of color and I have to tell myself that I already have roughly 4 versions of this same polish (Good Karma, Gorgeous, Trophy Wife, Yodel Me On My Cell, and don't think I'm not going to get this too).

OPI - Wooden Shoe Like to Know?

Wooden Shoe Like To Know? - To me this will be a great Fall color, but I got it when the Holland Collection came out in Spring and I just couldn't let it sit around until Fall. I loved the milk chocolatey color with all the golden shimmer. I really did like this color and I'm a little sad that it wont get pulled out for a few months, but alas all my favorite things are Fall related so I'm used to struggling through the summer to get to the glory that is Fall.

NOTW - Awesome Weekend Nails

I LOVE THE WEEKEND BECAUSE I DO CRAZY THINGS WITH MY NAILS THAT SOME PEOPLE THINK ARE TACKY BUT I GET THE MOST COMPLIMENTS ON FROM STRANGERS!!!!!

Neon Explosion

Awesome Town

The Supplies

This totally reminds me of a graphic print tee or a pair of bicycle shorts I would have worn as a little kid. LOVE!

1 - Sally Hansen White On: My go to opaque white to create a base that helps the neons glow.

2 - Studio M Grape Escape: Definitely stood out more in real life and this is the first purple neon that I have found that isn't just a dark pink (much less blue than the pictures).

3 - CG Kiwi Cool-ada: Supah amazing bright green, I will probably use this for one of my Spartan manicures at the start of the football season.

4 - CG Sunshine Pop: As you might remember from a previous post, I only planned on using this color in a neon/rainbow/orgy of color mani, so I did! Recently I broke down and bought a true neon, highlighter yellow polish (it's a lot more awesome than I expected), but it really highlighted (pun intended) how dirty Sunshine Pop looks, it's more noticeable in "The Supplies" pic.

5 - CG Pool Party: Just makes me happy! Be careful using Seche Vite with this color, because it can make it look more coral than bright pink.

6 - CG Orange Knockout: You sure are.

7 - Konad Special Polish Black: Whenever I use my stamping plates, the Konad Special Polishes really do work the best. You can use a regular polish, but try to use polishes with a really thick formula.

8-  Bundle Monster Plate BM 208/ Konad Double-ended Stamper: Yay I finally used a different stamping plate. The nice thing about this plate is that it has the option I used (geometric boxes) and basically the inverse (jagged outlines). The stamper is what transfers the image from the plate to your nail.

Splatter Attack

Ok I'm not even close to a nail artist and this didn't come out quite how I envisioned, but it's the best I could do....get off my back, GEEZ! The way that I chose the colors was these were my favorite crayons to use as a kid (I guess my weekend themes were all childhood related). The only favorite crayon color that is missing is Cerulean, unfortunately I don't think I have a polish this color and also my nails aren't big enough for a 4th splatter color.

My basic technique was to paint my nails white, plop a blob of color on to a corner of my nail, use a small dotting tool to drag out the little splatter arms, and finally put a little dot at the end of each arm.

White - Sally Hansen White On:  Duh.

Pink - CG Purple Panic (corresponding crayon - Magenta)

Green - CG Turned Up Turquoise (corresponding crayon - Jungle Green)

Purple - Essie Sexy Divide: In real life this shows up as a gorgeous purple, you can barely tell what color it is from the pic. (corresponding crayon - Royal Purple)

Birchbox May - Gossip Girl Edition

Thanks Birchbox for making a lovely professional photo of my box available.

The Run Down

 

The Box:

Algenist Eye Renewal Cream - This was a fairly large sample size; I started with only a tiny amount and now I'm using a good size amount and it has still lasted for weeks. I have been using it nightly, but I haven't noticed that it's done anything for me. I don't have any wrinkles, so I wouldn't be able to tell if there was any improvement. I do have dark circles, but there didn't seem to be any improvement on that front. Perhaps in my case this would work as a preventative cream, but I'm not going to spend this much on a product to feel like it may or may not be doing anything.
Full Size 15ml, $65; Sample Size 7ml, $30.33

Color Club Foil Collection (Disco Nap) - So right after I was talking about a Rage, I received another gold nail polish. I just swatched it on my nail wheel, but I didn't notice any application problems. What I liked is that the finish wasn't particularly grainy or streaky. I know I see Color Club around places, but I can't think of a store off the top of my head. While it's a nice polish and $8 is a fairly standard price, it's not anything super special and I think you might be able find something just as nice for a bit cheaper.
Full Size .5 fl oz, $8; Sample Size .25 fl oz, $4

Dr. Jart+ Water Fuse Beauty Balm - I believe this is one of the first BB (beauty balm) creams to come to the States; they are supposed to be like a tinted moisturizer on steroids. This particular one is a moisturizer, SPF 25, and a treatment serum. I've heard good things about BB Creams and was interested to try one out. The coverage was ok, I'm a full coverage foundation kinda girl, so I definitely had to build it a little. Personally I would use it when I don't have much time to get ready or on the weekends when I don't feel like putting on a full face of makeup. I can't really say much for the "treatment" benefit of this product, since I basically used the whole sample for just one application. SIDE STORY: I thought my sample was empty when I got it because the product didn't come out of the tube easily. So I emailed Birchbox and they sent me two replacement tubes. At some point I plan on using the two samples for as long as I can to see if there is something to the "treatment" claim.
Full Size 1.7 fl oz, $32; Sample Size .06 fl oz, $1.13

Ojon Volume Shampoo - I have been on the hunt for a good shampoo since my hair colorist keeps yelling at me about the shampoo/conditioner I'm currently using. I'm a little lost because I need a color protector and I want to get a little volume for my sad, thin, limp hair. The sample was enough for about three uses, unfortunately I only fully did my hair one of those days. What I noticed was that my hair did seem a little fuller and I definitely felt like it maintained volume the next day when I didn't wash my hair (although that might have something to do with the dry shampoo that I'm currently loving). I wonder if I would have noticed more of an effect if I had used the volume conditioner too. I think I'll try a combo of the color protect shampoo and the volume conditioner, or both volume products. 

Full Size 8.5 fl oz, $22; Sample Size 1 fl oz, $2.59 

Birchbox Notecards - Honestly this has been the first item I've received that I looked at and thought, "ummmm yeahhhh, no." There isn't much else to say, it was one notecard/envelope with the Gossip Girl XOXO on one side and blank on the other. Maybe I'll write to Birchbox on the notecard and tell them they can have it back, then send it by pony express (jaded by the internet much, geez Audrey).

Full Size 12 pack, $10; Sample Size 1 card, $.83 

 

Wrap Up:

Box Value: $38.88

The Good: Disco Nap (for anyone with a normal size polish collection), Ojon Volume Shampoo, Dr. Jart BB Cream

The Bad: Algenist Eye Cream (based on price to benefit ratio), Birchbox Notecard

The Verdict: I guess when I saw that this was going to be Gossip Girl themed I expected a glitzy, glamorous, fabulous box (I've never watched the show, apparently I think it's Toddlers & Tiaras). Well it turns out that the boxes came in a couple different versions, mine was the "Sunday Brunch" version; not so glamorous. This was the first time that I wasn't wowed when I opened the box, partly because there were fewer items this month, the extra wasn't exactly "useful," and the products didn't live up to my expectations of the theme. Upon reflection the products were decent once I tried them, but it was those darn expectations that got me slightly disappointed.



If you're interested in your own Birchbox click here. If you have any questions about cost or how you can earn/use points, let me know.

NOTW - Sunshine Pop, Avery, Hazard

China Glaze - Sunshine Pop

Sunshine Pop - More like sunshine fizzle. I've never tried a yellow polish, so I thought I would give it a whirl...yeah pretty much never again. I think I'll reserve the yellow for something involving rainbows or Lisa Frank. Although it looks like it, this is not a "happy-face" yellow. The polish has some shimmer which is what makes it look less than pure, bright yellow. I felt like there was a slight (teeny, tiny slight) orange cast, which made the color look dingy on my nails. Overall, just not a fan of this on me.

Zoya - Avery

Avery - It may not seem very exciting, but I reeeeaaaallllllllllly liked this polish. I just couldn't think of anything "fun" that I wanted to do, so I decided to try out one of the other neutrals that I bought from Zoya a while ago. I have to say that I actually liked this a lot more than Kennedy (cuz they're sooooo different [this is a joke, I know that having polishes barely a shade different is silly, but I do, so that happened]). Zoya's website does a good job of describing the color, opacity, finish, and tone. I should really start paying more attention to that, becuase I need to stop buying cool toned polishes; they make my skin look terrible. Avery was more complementary to my skin tone and just made my fingers look long and elegant.

Sinful Colors - Hazard

Hazard - I thought this looked a lot like Coral Reef (although not based on the photo in a previous post, I feel like that pic made it look a bit more pink than real life), and CR also had that odd dingy look. I would definitely call Hazard an orange, but it's a soft orange. This is a very wearable, happy summer polish.