Quick Swatches: Revlon Starry Pink and Facets of Fuchsia

I"m currently in the middle of moving and preparing for a hurricane (!!!), but I managed to get my hands on two of Revlon's Fall 2011 colors: Facets of Fuchsia and Starry Pink. I saw them on Eva Chen's tumblr a few months ago and was instantly smitten. When Steph said she found them at Target in the regular Revlon stock, I made sure to check my locals as soon as I could.

Starry Pink. A pale powder pink with silver micro and hexagon glitter. I think this is lovely for fall. I can see it working really well with dark grays, black and deep berry shades in your wardrobe.

Facets of Fuchsia. A sheer black jelly with deep fuchsia micro and hexagon glitter. This is really stunning. None of my photos could capture it. 

This is three coats of each, no topcoat. This collection also has a blue glitter, I think called Blue Mosaic, and a grayish taupe called Smoky Canvas, which I really like but didn't get because I have so many grays and taupes. I might cave later, though. 

Holiday

I'm going to the beach with one of my favorite vintage bags and Essie Turquoise & Caicos.

I'm going to take it as easy as I can. See you soon!

Casual Friday

Today is a rare "Casual Friday" at work, in honor of the heatwave. Our casual days are few, far between and fraught with drama re: what's appropriate.

So I just wore a skirt, tank top and cardigan. I love these sandals but they're wearing out. They probably have one more summer left in them.

Things I Haven't Accomplished Lately, Summer Edition:

1. Running a 5K this weekend. Too hot! No way. Plus I haven't been training. I blame my coach, a skinny millennial who overuses the word "bitch" and was inconveniently out of the country for a couple weeks on personal business. Like I'm supposed to run while she's gallivanting around Scotland? She's never even heard of Camera Obscura!
2. Getting through the stack of books on my bedside table. It keeps growing. I just got a new parenting book and "No one belongs here more than you" by Miranda July. Am currently working my way through "Women, Food and God."
3. Doing a decent mani. I painted my toenails for our family vacation but since then it's been a bust! My poor nails. Maybe tonight.
4. Updating my blog. I know! I have a few drafts in the works. Miss me?

No makeup today. Take that, world!

Winning!

First, let's talk polish. Continuing with my Revlon fixation as of late, today I have Revlon Top Speed in Royal on my toes:

I really like it. It performed better than the two other Top Speeds I've tried in the past couple weeks: Electric (so chalky and terrible I took it right off) and Mock Snob (which looked fine after three coats but was a nightmare to apply). This is just one coat of Royal; if it had been my fingernails I would have done two. It dried flat so I added Seche Vite.

In non-polish news, I won something! And a really great something! These lovely earrings from etsy seller Contempo Jewels:

I won them by entering a drawing on StyleLush. If you haven't visited StyleLush, I highly recommend it. It's full of great finds in nearly every area - beauty, home, kid stuff, places to go - oh, and gifts! I've gotten so many great gift ideas from it! And its sister site, FoodLush, is also a great idea generator. Anyway, I was so excited when I saw my name in the winner announcement post! I never win anything! Can't wait to get these babies on my ears!

Revlon Just Tinted

I'm not sure where I first heard about Revlon's Limited Edition Just Tinted nail polishes...it was probably this post on Nouveau Cheap. The idea of a sheer matte polish really appealed to me; it sounded novel and summery. I looked and LOOKED for these for weeks with no luck. I finally found them at the Rite-Aid near my house, which gets lots of limited edition displays. I've had really good luck finding LE polishes there, so I wasn't surprised when they finally turned up. Of course I saw them at Ulta a few days later, but that's usually how it goes.

I picked up three of the four shades:

Victorian, Desire, Dawn

I swatched all three as soon as I got home. 

Dawn, Desire, Victorian

This is two coats each. Application is a challenge with these; the sheer/matte combo is like watercolor paint. If you're not careful, it looks like when you were little and you colored your nails with markers. So it takes practice to get the coats even. I didn't use a base coat because I thought it might affect the finish. 

Speaking of finish, the display also had a gloss topcoat in it, but I was skeptical that it was any different than a regular topcoat so I skipped it. My first full mani was Desire: 

This Instagram shot doesn't really capture the sheerness. Of course the matte finish means that you get quick tipwear, but I don't mind because I really like the look of the polish. 

Next I tried Dawn, a subtle coral: 

I used Seche Vite over this to achieve a glossy finish and I really loved the way it looked. Very jelly-like and soft. 

I love these tints and I might go back for the fourth shade; it was a berry/purple. Nice work, Revlon! I feel like I've been on a Revlon/Essie kick lately when it comes to drugstore buys. I just got in an order from Zoya too, so I'll be swatching that soon. I'm going to do my best to get as many fun summer colors in as I can this year! Bright beauties improve my mood. 

All of the Things I Was On the Inside

Do you ever feel like you left yourself behind somewhere?

I wish I was braver. 

Spring Nails of Late

Essie Coat Azure

Oooh...this was a while back and I can't remember what color it was.  Had to be Essie Bachelorette Bash, which is bright hot pink in reality. Posed with an awesome Rachel Roy boombox pendant that I got half-off at Macy's.

China Glaze For Audrey

Sally Hansen Tracy Reese Midnight in NYC. Glossy black creme with multicolored microglitter. 

Revlon Moss. Part of a set of three minis that I hunted down for weeks. It's much darker than I thought from seeing it on the internet; it's close to Essie Sew Psyched but it has more yellow in it, and no shimmer.

Orly Sapphire Silk. A dusty teal. 

Zoya Mod Mattes Lolly

Two Reviews: Butter London Yummy Mummy and Day Out With Thomas

I've had several manicures since you saw me last, but here's the story of one: Ulta was having free shipping and I wanted to try a beachy-waves spray that I'd heard about that's not readily available anywhere else, so in order to bring my cart up to $25 to qualify, I decided to try Butter London brand nail polish, which I'd been wanting to do for a while. I picked up a shade called Yummy Mummy, which BL describes as "universally flattering." It's a greyish nudie with a slight hint of lavender and a barely perceptible shimmer. As I'd heard, application was quite smooth, although in my usual poor lighting (and looking up to watch the Amazing Race), I had to fill in some bare spots after the two coats I applied.

I like it. It's very similar to Revlon Grey Suede, which is one of my all-time favorite nudes, but Yummy Mummy is less pink. Oh! I almost forgot. When I added this polish to my cart, Ulta added a free two-ounce bottle of Butter London's Powder Room polish remover. I tried it a couple manicures before this one, just because I had the bottle out, and it was, hands down (ha!) the best nail polish remover I've ever tried. It just swiped the polish RIGHT OFF. And it was acetone-free...now, here's something odd, I've been using remover with acetone for a while now because I do my nails so often and I thought the acetone stuff would be faster, removal being the most annoying thing about the manicure. And I've noticed that my nails have become thinner and prone to peeling (especially my thumbnails). So I was shocked to find how quickly this non-acetone stuff worked. It also had a bit of a not-quite-oily-but-almost finish, so i'm not sure what else in it makes it work so well. Anyhoo, after being blown away by Powder Room, I went to the Butter London website to see how much a full-size bottle cost, figuring it would be way expensive. But. The full-size bottle is just the two-ounce bottle; I thought I'd gotten a small sample, but no, two ounces is IT and...it's $5.00. $5.00! So...if you have money to burn and space for dozens of two-ounce bottles of the Greatest Polish Remover on Earth, well, have at it. I don't, but this experience inspired me to go back to acetone-free and I picked up a jumbo bottle of the Target brand for under $4. Regarding Butter London, the polishes are $14 a pop, so I don't think I'm going to return, however, they do have a limited edition shade called No More Waity, Katie, a tribute to Kate Middleton, which I may have to get because it's kind of a cool Royal Wedding commemorative (remember Pope Soap on a Rope?) even though I think a shimmer would have been more appropriate than a glitter...I mean, don't you think? By the way, have you seen the Kate Middleton FTW tumblr? It's kind of awesome. My favorite might be the shot of her and Pippa entering the church: "Yes, We've Brought Sleeves Back. You're Welcome."

What did I do for Mother's Day? Brunch? No. Day at the spa? Heavens, no. I took my two-and-a-half year old daughter to Day Out With Thomas! I know, MOTHER OF THE YEAR. Since I waited so long to buy tickets, we were on the last train of the day on the last day of the event. B was very excited about riding on Thomas but less so about the other activities. Did she want a temporary Thomas tattoo? She did not, shrieking "No! No!" as if we were threatening to give her a real tattoo. She waited in line for the (tiny) carousel, then changed her mind at the last minute, then decided later she did want to go on it, then held on to me for dear life with a very worried look on her face during the extremely slow ride. She expressed interest in the moonbounce, even took her shoes off and stood at the entrance, but couldn't be persuaded to go in. At last it was time to board the train. Upon hearing this, B got decidedly more animated and got cutely impatient when the line would stop. "Don't stop! Don't stop!"

I do think she was very excited to see the life-size Thomas, but she was rather subdued. In awe, maybe? We found a seat on the train (an ancient Amtrak car) and settled in for our ride. It was not nearly as...scenic...as the Island of Sodor, but I'm sure B didn't mind the graffiti and rusting old train cars. And trees. There were some trees. All in all, a worthwhile event. She loves her souvenirs.

"Charm City? Really?"

Working But Dreaming

Working But Dreaming by Elizabelle73 featuring gold plated earrings

Rachel Roy print dress
$495 - neimanmarcus.com

Notify stretch denim jacket
$280 - net-a-porter.com

See by Chloe leather wedge shoes
$230 - youheshe.com

Proenza Schouler leather bag
$1,595 - openingceremony.us

Isharya gold plated earring
$295 - net-a-porter.com

Miss Selfridge semi precious ring
13 GBP - missselfridge.com

H m jewelry
6.99 GBP - hm.com

Chloé brown shade
$355 - zappos.com

NARS Illuminator - Orgasm
$29 - barneys.com

Illamasqua Lipstick
$28 - asos.com

Dior Vernis 'Rock Your Nails' Nail Lacquer (Nordstrom Exclusive)
$21 - nordstrom.com

Only You

When I put my outfit on this morning:

Baggy, wrinkly linen dress and oversized, striped mesh-like cardigan,

Blue nails (China Glaze For Audrey) and excess gaudy jewelry,



I thought, "oh snap...I'm going to get hit on CONSTANTLY today." So I added these beauties to frump things up:

Authentic, orthopedic Swedish clogs. That ought to do it! Whew.

Heard this song for the first time in YEARS this week. Can't get it out of my head now. So beautiful.



To Our Love, Send a Dozen White Lilies

Dreams. Been having detailed, extravagant work dreams, where my job is kind of like living on a huge, stressful cruise ship where I can hide easily but still have responsibilities and pressures dogging me at every turn. And elevators. Lots of waiting on elevators, getting on the wrong elevators, not seeing the right buttons, trying to avoid talking to people. I Googled "elevator dreams" and found that they're quite common, but are usually more nightmarish, like with the elevator speeding up uncontrollably and shooting through the top of the building. I think my elevators are just indicators of stress. Also having dreams where I'm arguing with loved ones and searching desperately for people and questioning motives and...it's been exhausting, really.

Food. I lost about six pounds, then gained some back, and at this point have lost about 5.4 pounds total. But it seems like days and days go by where all I want to do is eat crackers and drink wine. Some days it's so easy to stay on track. I need more of those days. Any suggestions?

Music. All I want to listen to lately are 60s and 70s lady folk singers. This past Saturday I pulled out Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' The Boatman's Call for the first time in about 10 years and now I can't stop listening to it. It's such a deep plunge into the psyche. Just what I need right now.

Clothes. Trying to summon spring:

You Been on My Mind

Sitting in my brain recently:

Snappy blue polish (Essie Coat Azure)

Sappho for Spring reading (If Not, Winter)

1960s/1970s British lady folksingers (Bridget St. John)



Pretty pretty Spring dresses (Top: Rachel Roy Spring 2011; Bottom: Forever 21)

This video. (Simone White, Why is Your Raincoat Always Crying?)

NOTD: Glitter in the Air

On my birthday I bought an $18 bottle of nail polish. Here's what it looks like:

Glitter in the Air. This was a much-anticipated shade from Deborah Lippman. When people finally got their hands on it and swatches started showing up, there was much disappointment online. "It's too sheer!" "Four coats and it's not even bottle color!" "I'm returning it!" No such complaints from me. I think it's a stunner. It's sheer but milky, like milkglass, and the glitter is so delicate. I haven't seen another polish like it. It's truly like nail polish you'd see in a dream. One of my all-time favorites and worth every penny.

Happy Friday!

And Loses Herself in Her Dreaming and Sleep

I don't know about this outfit, you guys. It's looking a little "Andie from Pretty in Pink goes on a job interview."

Still trying to figure out how to wear this dress. I think I really need to thread a ribbon through the belt loop. We shall see. It will probably get thrown to the wayside soon anyway because there's no way I'm wearing it without tights, and hopefully, spring is FINALLY on its way!

NOTD: Sally Hansen Tracy Reese Spring 2009 Night Hydrangea

I now have four polishes from this collection: Nasturtium, Beet Stain, Azalea and Night Hydrangea; I got them all on eBay. In real life, this one is much brighter with a subtle yet sparkly shimmer. I love it but it's really more of an evening polish for fingers; it'll be good for toes, though.

Happy Wednesday! I love you and too much. :)

Things I've Accomplished Lately: Birthday Edition

So, it was my birthday this weekend. First, all the pretties:

Picked up a few things Saturday with some budgeted mad money from our tax refund. China Glaze gray crackle polish (I think it's called Crackled Concrete), a bottle of Philosophy shower gel (a free birthday gift from Sephora), Kiehl's grapefruit essential oil rollerball and Deborah Lippmann Glitter in the Air. This was my first DL polish purchase; they're $18 and I hadn't seen a color before that I thought was worth it. But this one I fell in love with at first swatch; lots of people online are disappointed in the sheerness but I think it's perfect. I'll be trying it out this week. 

My husband and I dropped B off at her auntie and grandmother's and had a wonderful evening out. We stayed at a hotel and he thought I was being my usual dorky self when I told the guy checking us in that we were celebrating my birthday. But then this turned up in our room: 

So this dork enjoyed champagne with her bubble bath. It was bliss! 

This was my birthday mani; Milani Gems over a coat of China Glaze White Cap: 

On my "work birthday," last Friday, I did a totally office-inappropriate manicure with OPI Katy Perry Teenage Dream: 

And I wore one of my most favorite things in the universe, a vintage sparkly cocktail ring that I've had for years: 

Had lunch with two of my favorite ladyfriends. It was a good day. 

Sunday we celebrated with my in-laws. My wonderful sister-in-law made me this gorgeous box with decoupaged sheet music from 1927: 

Now for the SRS BZNS. I just turned 38 and I feel like I'm in regeneration mode. Things are changing and I don't know exactly where I'll end up. One thing: I've lost six pounds in the last three weeks. And last week I tried two new classes at my gym: spinning and yoga, and I enjoyed them both immensely. I need to feel better and I need to work at feeling better, so I want to keep this up. And there are lots of things I want to do this year. At the start of 2011 I made a list, not of "resolutions" per se, but of things I want to do this year. Here's how far I got:  

1.     Make a quilt. Or something quilted. Start and complete a quilt project!

2.     Embroider tea/dish towels for people I love who are far away.

3.     Try going vegan. To see how it feels. To see if I can do it. [UPDATE: Tried this and did fairly well but my urge to succeed comes and goes. I do want to make more recipes from my many, many vegan cookbooks.]

4.     Get over my fear of running on a treadmill. The elliptical just isn’t cutting it and I’m never going to be a better runner if I don’t fucking run. And I think it’s more of a self-conscious nervousness than a fear and I CAN GET OVER IT!

5.     Do more thrifting. Buy more used things, especially clothes.

6.     Make my own lunch to bring to work the majority of the time. To keep from spending on restaurant food, save on calories and decrease the amount of junk going into my body. [UPDATE: This is working pretty well so far.]

7.     Read all the books currently sitting on my nightstand. [UPDATE: Slow start on this; am currently working my way through Wuthering Heights. Want to finish Women Food and God and the two parenting books I bought recently.]

8.     Have fewer retail experiences. I.e. stop using shopping to feel good. Find other outlets for expressing creativity, etc. Other than retail outlets, ha. [UPDATE: Er...still working on this one.]

9.     Create and stick to a budget.

10. Drink more water. Make water my default drink. [UPDATE: Have been doing well on this!]

So what does it all mean? Who knows. I Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound.