Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Guest Blog Entry! + Green is Still the New Black

Recently I was given the chance to do a guest blog entry for the UK site http://www.become.co.uk, a fashion/lifestyle/shopping website. In my (fabulous) blog entry, I discuss winter trends in nail polishes and offer suggestions for the darker winter days. I mention that a very cool look for going out at night or a party in the winter would be an all-black outfit with either snow-white or mint green nails just to give that contrast. And let me tell you, I have found the perfect mint green.

Unfortunately, I also discovered that my beloved topcoat, Out the Door, has a tendency to slightly yellow the colors of light polishes, a problem I've never had before with it. In fact, I learned my lesson once putting on an unnamed other brand of topcoat that it did the same thing so I stuck with it Out the Door...except now Out the Door is doing the same thing. I don't know what's going on but for now, I'm looking for a new topcoat. I'm trying the Sally Beauty's store brand right now, the UV-shielding topcoat and I'll probably try Poshe later too. I'm really sad to be breaking up with Out the Door but sometimes, relationships just end. Maybe the problem is a faulty batch or something but I was really disappointed since the coloring of the polish in the pictures (coupled with poor lighting) don't convey how beautiful this polish is. It's so beautiful that I actually wore it twice in a row, which NEVER happens.

Now, when I think of Revlon, I immediately think of their lipsticks. I was never a fan of their mascaras, I don't really use face makeup such as foundation, bronzer, blush, etc, but their polishes were all sorts of awful. No real variety, and the formulation was terrible. The most exciting thing they did was a couple of years back when they had that Dark Pleasures collection that was such a big hit. However, Revlon's polishes are newly formulated and I can truly say that Revlon is back in the drugstore polish game. Now the only brand that really has to step it up is Cover Girl.

There's a variety of new colors of the new, reformulated line called "Revlon Top Speed," but the one that caught my eye the most was this pretty mint green polish called Jaded. I'm really sad that I had such issues with my topcoat because when applied before my topcoat it looks a lot lighter. It really reminds me of mint, but I had to describe it, I would call it a sort of "ice mint."

Anyway, here are some pictures. The lighting is kind of bad so my skin looks all sorts of ridiculous but the polish is actually lighter in person:


The reason I feel like mint green goes so well with black because it's a fresh color that's not really expected. It's like a breath of fresh air. I have to admit, I've been a bit jaded (excuse the pun) as to green polishes lately. I realize that there are only so many ways a color can be jazzed up but I felt like we were just seeing a lot of the same hue. Here's a slightly better picture that doesn't make me look quite as jaundiced:


But what I really love about this polish is the amazing microshimmer.


When the sun hits the polish, it kind of almost glows. And surprisingly, the more I wore it, the more I noticed that it went really well with all sorts of colors...even yellow, and even purple. I think it's because it's like white but takes a but of the edge off the starkness with a hint of color, much like how a pale pink also complements everything, but this is just something slightly funkier. I know I'm making this polish sound like the second coming of Jesus but this is honestly a color that has broken me out of my nail polish rut and reminded me why I freaking love nail polish. It really is a form of expression and sometimes it really is the ultimate accessory. Of course I couldn't resist one last plug.

Thanks to Ranjit from become.co.uk for allowing me to share my opinions for the site.


Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Tiffany Blues

It's the beginning of winter here (though it feels like winter has been going on for at least a month, it's been so cold!) and you know how you always get a little bit blue in winter? Having it be dreary and bleak most days can really be a drag.

Now, memories are a funny thing. The smell of a certain perfume can remind you of an occasion or a certain someone. Seeing a sign can remind you of an inside joke. Places can remind you of good times (or bad). When I'm driving down the I-5, there's an exit called Utica Avenue and I think of The Office episode (S4EP06) where Dwight proclaims "We will burn Utica to the ground!"

I distinctively remember the nail polish I was applying when my dad called to tell me he had cancer again (OPI Cara Mi Crimson), but a nail polish color I associate with happier times is China Glaze For Audrey. It is, of course, Tiffany blue. There's no other way to describe the color because Tiffany & Co. literally has it protected by a color trademark. It's the blue that is synonymous with the high jewelry company Tiffany & Company. So if you can't afford a piece of jewelry at Tiffany's (aka me), you can at least have a bit of luxury in this amazing color on your nails. It really is a very aesthetically pleasing shade of blue. I don't know what it is about it, but it's just really awesome. It might be because it's not quite baby blue and has a bit of sophistication that can't really be categorized as light blue yet. Or something like that. Well, now I'm just typing my thoughts out which I tend to do.





I love, love, love this color and part of it has to do with the fact that in September I traveled to Disney World with my sister (our first real vacation together without our parents) and this is the color I wore. So obviously, this color reminds me of the Happiest Place on Earth. Or rather, the most exhausting place on Earth. Disney World is HUGE. I mean, it's amazing but wow, it's huge. There's so much to do, so much to see, so much to EAT and so much to drink (non-alcoholic and alcoholic of course).

So whenever I'm feeling down this winter, I'm definitely going to be reaching for this color. It reminds me of Disney World and most importantly, getting to go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios too. Talk about amazing!! Also, the butterbeer is amazing. Get the frozen kind though because it is pretty sweet and the ice dilutes it.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

SP6

Don't forget to get your 6 free spoons at Zoya.com today with the code SP6! I already know one of the ones I'm going to get for sure is Gaia.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

formspring.me

Don't forget you can ask me anything! http://formspring.me/BATpolish

Monday, December 6, 2010

Zoya Wants to Spoon With You, Do You Accept?

*UPDATE* You will need a code for the free spoon event. It will be released on Thursday




This Friday only, Zoya will be letting you receive 6 spoons for FREE! Including free shipping! Now I'm a sucker for anything with free shipping, and as a bonus the spoons are really cool in deciding whether or not you want to take the plunge and commit to a color. Because honestly, there's nothing worse than buying a color online only to decide that you hate how it looks outside the bottle. It's a modern day tragedy, really.

This offer is only good on Friday, December 10th, and you will also receive a $3 Color Spoon credit code for use on a future zoya.com purchase, which basically means 6 more free color spoons the next time you buy something from the Zoya website. I personally think it's a great offer, and I've already inputted it into my Blackberry calendar.
 
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