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Thursday, April 25, 2013

April Nail Art Society Box

Today I'm showing you what came in this months Nail Art Society (NAS) box. If you've seen some of my prior posts, this subscription is one that I've been on the verge of cancelling however I do actually think that this month was a good box and worth my subscription cost of $10. Unfortunately some others are paying their $19.95 price point since they were not locked into the earlier pricing.

This months theme is 'Bows & Stripes' and they've gotten their inspiration from Louis Vuitton's Spring/Summer 2013.

April Nail Art Society

They've given NAS subscribers the bows and other tools to create the checkered pattern or stripes. While they didn't give any true polish they did give some good quality products to recreate these looks.

April Nail Art Society

The Kiss Nail Artist paints have the striping brushes (long and thin like a toothpick) to create your stripes or checkerboard patterns and came in three different colors shown above and also had some tip guide 'stickers' within the box. I've seen these little sets in CVS or Walgreens before and they cost around $7 or $8. They also included some aqua striping tape which I've used before and think does a fantastic job at allowing for straight lines (which I would have never been able to do freehand). The 'Love Stones' are 3D plastic bows and they've supplied the nail glue to apply these babies. There are a considerable amount of these bows and they are in 12 different patterns so that's quite a variety. I wouldn't be surprised if you were able to re-use these as well. (Thrifty Thrifty Thrifty)

I've included a close up below so that you can get a good idea of what these look like. Not too shabby in my opinion.

April Nail Art Society Bows

I think the inspiration and what they've supplied this month really allows their subscribers to pull together some fun nail art and the value of this box is substantially better than previous months.

Here's the handy card they include each month to explain their inspiration and some step by step directions (on the back) as to how to use these products.

April Nail Art Society

I'll be pulling together a look using these items this weekend and will make sure to share my vision with you all. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

~Linda

Friday, April 19, 2013

Zoya Earth Day Nail Polish Exchange is back!

Don't miss out on your chance to get some seriously discounted 5Free polishes, and an opportunity to discard your old (non3free) polishes the proper way! See the details below from Zoya.com

Zoya Earth Day Polish Exchange

The Zoya Nail Polish Exchange* is BACK for Earth Day 2013!


Once again, Zoya is helping you do a little spring cleaning with the return of the Earth Day Zoya Nail Polish Exchange* for 2013. Clean out your nail polish wardrobe and get rid of old nail polish that may not be BIG5FREE(Free of Formaldehyde, Formaldehyde Resin, Toluene, DBP and Camphor) and exchange it for a greener alternative - long lasting, award winning, healthy ZOYA Nail Polish Bottles!
  1. Go to Zoya.com and pick out the polishes you would like (Note: ALL Zoya PixieDust Collection shades are excluded) and add them to your cart. You must select at least 6 bottles and no more than 24 bottles of polish (Salon accounts minimum 12 maximum 48 bottles).
  2. Apply the code: ZOYAEARTH2013
  3. Your order value will be adjusted to reflect a 50% discount (we use these funds to properly dispose of the old nail polish).
  4. SUBMIT your order!
Then Zoya will ship out your NEW polish! YEAH!
Once you get your order, here is where the exchanging* happens…
  1. Ship back the equivalent number of bottles you received to the return address below (ie. If you got 6 bottles of Zoya – you would send us 6 NON-ZOYA polishes). Please check with your carrier on the proper way to ship nail polish.
  2. Include a copy of your order. 
To clarify the exchange: You do not have to send us the exact amount of bottles that you are ordering. You can send any quantity up to that amount. You can also donate. If you decide you don't want to do either, it's ok "Offer is not contingent on customer returning polish" - we will still love you and will ship the Zoya polishes... we'll just send you on a guilt trip for a while :)
Ship Your Old Nail Polish To:
 
Art of Beauty, Inc.
c/o Polish Exchange
5060 Taylor Rd, Unit D
Cleveland, Ohio, 44128, USA

Once we receive your polish we do the rest! It’s that simple!

IMPORTANT!

The bottles you send in cannot be Zoya, Qtica or Nocti polishes (but they can be any other brand).
We are using the honor code here folks! We want to make sure you get your Zoya Nail Polish! We send you the polish first then you send your old polish back to us! If you do choose to send us your old polish we promise to properly dispose of it according to EPA guidelines. This offer is only good for 1 week so hurry – Don’t Wait!

*Offer valid online at www.zoya.com only. Offer expires on 4/26/2013 at 11:59PM EST. Continental US ONLY.Excludes ALL Zoya PixieDust Collection shades. Not valid with any other codes, coupons or promotions. Shipping and handling fees apply. Consumer accounts must exchange a minimum of 6 polishes with a 24 bottle maximum. Salon accounts must exchange at least 12 with a maximum of 48 bottles. Polish can be from any brand EXCEPT Zoya, Qtica or Nocti and can be exchanged for in-stock .5oz Zoya Nail Polish. Offer is not contingent on customer returning polish. Zoya Exchange code is unique and non-transferable. One code per account. Art of Beauty is not responsible for incorrect addresses, credit card entry errors or errors associated with declined credit cards. Please allow standard time for processing and shipping, however if volume is higher than expected please allow up to 6 weeks for shipping and processing. Art of Beauty, Inc. reserves the right to remove any polish that is out of stock from your order. You will not be charged for this polish. Backordered polish is not included in this promotion.

Thursday, April 18, 2013

OPI Diva Of Geneva

Hello again my fellow addicts. Today I have a quick post showing off the beauty of an oldie but goodie...OPI Diva of Geneva. I absolutely love this polish! The color spectrum changed drastically for me when in different types of lighting. At work it appeared to have a golden/pink shimmer to it, at home it is more red based and outdoors it's a purple/red color. It's multi dimensional color...and it's fan-freakin-tastic!

I'll just leave you with a few quick shots of the polish. This is two coats with Color Club topcoat.

OPI Diva of Geneva

OPI Diva of Geneva

Diva_of_Geneva

Diva of Geneva has the standard consistency and brush as any other OPIs. I love their brush because it's not super skinny, and it gives me an amazing application for my wide nails. :)

Hope you enjoyed.

~Linda

Saturday, April 13, 2013

Essie & Aly Unite

Happy Weekend!

It's been a rainy 2 weeks with no sunshine, or I would have shown you some of my new Aly's Dream Polish Holographics that Jennifer requested. Sooo...I decided to do something else and use one of them for stamping. Not quite the same thing but...it worked out nicely. 

I started with two coats of Essie In The Cab-ana from the Spring 2013 Resort Collection: a beautiful turquoise-ish blue that sometimes leans more sky blue. On my index finger I used a few coats of holographic top coat that I made using a Spectraflair liquid mix, then added a coat of Rainbow Honey The Worst Possible Thing. On my other fingers I used a Spring inspired stamp, Aly's Dream Polish  #58 Intense Blurple and some purple striping tape. 



I used the striping tape along my fingers so that each nail was slightly more angled with more coverage of stamping towards my pinkie. This made a nice visual for me while I was photographing my hands, but still looks nice from a day to day perspective.



What do you think of using a holo topcoat, glitter, stamping and striping tape all in one mani? Was it a bit all over the place for you or do you like the way it looked? 

Thanks for stopping by ladies! 

~Linda

Friday, April 12, 2013

Ocean Blues

Hi Lovelies!

Today I have a Julep mani to show off. I recently purchased a Julep set of 5 blue polishes that I don't already have in my collection, and when I got them I swatched them instantly! I loved Annie from their Trina Turk collection and I really loved Portia which is a sheer tropical blue color with opalascent glitter. So I used both in todays mani.

Julep Portia

This is two coats of Annie on all nails. I added Portia to my ring finger for an accent nail and then added bubbles of Portia on the inside half of my thumbs. I followed up with a thick layer of seche vite.

Julep Annie_Portia

Since portia is not a creme it started to spread as the bead of polish started to dry, so the dots are not as clear and distinct as I would have liked, but it still looks pretty good. The lighting was not doing me any favors, so the pictures are kinda crappy. Sorry guys.

Julep Annie & Portia

Thanks for stopping by!

~Linda

Sunday, April 7, 2013

FabFitFun March Box

Today I will be sharing the FabFitFun VIP Inaugural Box that I received for March 2013. This was the first box that has been issued and it seemed like it was going to be a pretty big deal. The subscription is described as including hand picked beauty, fashion, fitness and wellness items by Giuliana Rancic. The box will be sent out quarterly (4 times a year) and will include full size items worth over $100 in value. They also promote that some random lucky ladies will receive super fabulous bonus gifts. The going price for the box is $49.99 but there are a few coupons lingering around the world wide web so you might be able to get it for a bit cheaper. I believe I used a coupon for $10 off therefore I paid $40 for my box.

Wanna see what I got?


All together they sent me 8 items in my box:
-Full size (3.4 fl oz) MoroccanOil Treatment
-Full size Zoya made specially for FabFitFun (Fuchsia)
-Full size thinkThin creamy peanut butter bar
-Full size Josie Maran lip duo
-Sample size Jouer lip gloss
-Perfekt Brow Gel
-2 JewelMint items


Moroccanoil treament has an uber nourishing formula packed with fatty acids, omega-3 oils, vitamins, antioxidants and deluxe oil guards to add serious shine and transform dull, dry hair.


The Zoya polish is a foil metallic finish and bright fuschia pink!
The Josie Maran lip duo is also a bright redidish pink color which has a lip stain and a lip crayon option.
The Jouer lip gloss is loaded with vitamins, shea butter, jojoba oil, and pomegranate seed oil for smoothness and hydration. It's super soft, not sticky or gloopy and adds some serious kick-ass shine to your lips. Loved this!! I wish I had received a full size of this as this was probably my favorite item in the box.


This thinkThin bar has some serious protein in it. 20grams of protein is a knockout and will probably keep me quite full when using this as a meal replacement. The bar is super heavy and gluten free. 240 calories and 9 grams of fat rounds out some of the key nutritional information.


The perfekt brow perfection gel is something I have never used before. Mine is a caramel color and will probably be a bit dark for my brows but I'm intrigued.


This JewelMint charm bracelet has a good weight to it but I'm unsure of the material. It has 7 charms attached that are mostly summer of travel related. This is not something I would ever wear so maybe I will be able to swap it out or give it away to someone.


These are some.....hmmm, how to put it?...Interesting? Eclectic? Unqiue?...Let's go with unique, earrings. Bright yellow plastic with golden slightly brown tinted jewels. These have to be some bottom of the barrel cheap-o earrings that they couldn't get rid of, because I can't imagine anyone wanting to buy these. (sorry to anyone who likes these...I guess I'm just not into 80s style costume jewelry)

Overall I think that the box had a decent value to it (mostly from the Moroccanoil) but it was kind of all over the place. A meal replacement bar was not something I was expecting when it could have been replaced by some other beauty product to give it a much better value. Two pieces of jewelry was nice, but nicer pieces would have been a plus. For $50 I don't think I will continue my subscription.

If you're interested in checking it out, you can see some brief information about FabFitFun VIP on their website but they do not go into too much detail as to the brands they have partnered with. Her FFF site does have quite a lot of information and articles to peruse.

Did you subscribe to the FabFitFun VIP Inagural Box? Please share any products that you received that you think were Studs or Duds, I'd love to hear that others received a variety of products!

Thanks for stopping by!

UPDATE: I'm hearing from many ladies that they have are having serious problems with customer service. Please be advised and I will make sure that I follow-up with any more news I hear. Soo sad to see this type of thing happening after only one box.


~Linda

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Endless Blue? More Like Endless Love!!

Hi guys,

One of the most recently sought after Essie polishes was Butler Please from the Winter 2012 Collection. I happened to order my bottle online and when it arrived I must say that the consistency was thick and gloppy. Also those thin little brushes never make me very happy. Lets just say that I was let down.

A few days later I was in Walgreens and found SinfulColors Endless Blue. Amazing blue pigmentation without that retchid smell that blue polishes tend to have. The consistency was like butter (like buttah baby) and the brush is not like a toothpick. I fell in love!

SinfulColors Endless Blue

This cobalt blue is breath taking! I couldn't stop staring at my nails when wearing this. Soo bright in sunlight while a bit darker indoors, this is my perfect spring and even summer color!

SinfulColors Endless Blue

SinfulColors_Endless_Blue

SinfulColor polishes are priced at $1.99 in Walgreens on a regular basis but often go on sale for .99 cents. The consistency for me is hit or miss with SC but the wear is good enough since I'm always using a decent topcoat. I generally don't have any complaints. What are your thoughts on the SinfulColor lines?

Thanks for stopping by!

~Linda

Monday, April 1, 2013

Julep Maven Box - April

Hi Lovelies

The Julep Maven box for April is all about bright colors. I upgraded from my normal It Girl box to the full April Collection which included the Mighty Nail & Cuticle Serum, Dry Clean Invisible Dry Shampoo and 10 new polishes.

Julep Maven April

Mighty Nail & Cuticle Serum
Kapow! Peptides – super-charged amino acids that build keratin (for your nails) and collagen (for your cuticles) – are our Mighty Nail & Cuticle Serum's secret weapon to transform dry and damaged cuticles almost overnight. Plus, get visibly stronger, smoother nails with fewer ridges and less splitting and brittleness in only 2-3 weeks.

Dry Clean - Invisible Dry Shampoo
You want 20 more minutes of sleep. Your hair wants a break from the blow dryer. This lightweight spray-on powder absorbs oil, adds body, and leaves no residue. Enjoy fresh, voluminous locks and an extra snooze cycle or two.

Julep Maven April

Julep Avery
 Avery is a hot pink creme..can you say Barbie?

 Ally is described as an electric blueberry frost and she has a fantastic shimmer!

Lena is a bright teal with a golden shimmer that's quite present in the bottle and subtle on the nail. 

 Abbie is a bright sunshine yellow creme. 

Kaylen is described as a neon orange cream however it's good to know that this does not dry shiny. It almost dries like a rubber finish that is not quite matte. I actually really like this finish for Kaylen but you'll see that Eden has the same finish.

Mackenzie is a sour apple green frost which has a sweet little shimmer to it. Lovely!

Eden is a darkened violete creme. It's much brighter in the bottle than on the nail. It also has that rubbery finish that is not shiny but not quite matte. I'll have to see how this is with top coat because I really really want to love it, but it's too dark for this finish in my opinion.

Jackie is a bright cherry red creme. Classic red color! 

 Janel is a pink raspberry frosted polish that has a subtle little pink shimmer. Very bright and cheery! 

Candy is a Rock Candy Nail Glaze that Julep added in to the box this month but they also sell this at Sephora with a few other colors. This is a super sheer jelly that is meant for just a tint of color. 

Phhewww...There were soo many colors this month, I could barely remember all their names. lol
They also included a rock candy for that sweet tooth that many Mavens have ☺

The fully upgraded collection has a $190+ value for the maven cost of $55. All of these colors were bright and cheery which is going to be great for spring and summer.

In case you have not signed up to be a Julep Maven yet....what are you waiting for?!? Their monthly subscription is nothing short of amazing. When you love the colors you have choices to change your box, and super cheap add-ons for items not in the box you choose. If you dislike the colors that month, skip for no charge. Still not sure... get your first box FREE! Click here and take the style quiz to figure out which box is right for you (click Become A Maven and choose the quiz). Add the intro box and use the code FREEMAVEN. This will sign you up for the monthly subscription but you can always cancel if you decide being a Maven is not for you. (Although I know that won't happen ☺)

Once you purchase your monthly box Julep has begun having a secret store for those who did not skip, where there are a bunch of items on sale for cheap prices. It's hard to resist once you've just bought your box, let me tell you that!!

What Julep Maven box did you get this month? Do you have any favorites from the April Collection?

~Linda