Tuesday, March 31, 2015

KBShimmer Spring Polishes

***Press Sample***

Happy Tuesday, all!  I hope you're starting to maybe see a glimmer of Spring wherever you are, especially if you've been dealing with snow!

Today I've got three polishes from the Spring Collection by KBShimmer to share with you - you know, in case you haven't already picked up some of these beauties ^_^

First up is Meow Or Never:







Meow Or Never is a lovely light gray crelly packed with various sized matte and shiny purple, grey, periwinkle, blue, and white glitters.  This polish was based on Pantone's spring color "Glacier Gray."  Meow Or Never applied very smoothly and evenly and was opaque in three thin coats.  It dried to a shiny finish in under 5 minutes, though I added a coat of HK Girl Glisten & Glow to help even it out a bit.

Next up is a polish that I'd seen mixed reviews on - mostly negative, and one blogger even calling it "milky glitter puke" :P  I'll let you decide for yourself what you think, but I gotta say, I was (surprisingly) pleasantly taken with this polish - "To Peach His Own:"







To Peach His Own is described as a pale peach crelly with holographic glitters in lime green, gold, violet, and magenta colors.  This polish had great application as well, with a nice even spreading of glitters.  Opaque in 3 thin coats, it also dried in under five minutes to a shiny finish (again, one topcoat in the pictures).  I personally kind of love this color - it's very antique, and reminds me of tea cups I used to have as a little girl :)  It's very Springy to me - a nice neutral peach tone with all those various colored glitters reminds me of flowers.  The name of the polish is very fitting for its character :)

Last but not least is my favorite of the three (and I'm sure you're not surprised at all by it!) - "Thistle Be The Day:"







Here are some outdoor shots to really show off that holo goodness:




Thistle Be The Day is described as a pale pinkish purple linear holographic polish.  Opaque in 2 coats, it applied smooth as butter and dried in record timing - under 3 minutes.  An added topcoat really made that holo pop!  This polish has one of the best holographic formulas I've come across yet - I definitely recommend it for all you fellow holo lovers!

I decided to stamp a nice Spring pattern over Thistle Be The Day using the oh-so-perfect stamping polish color "Snowberry" by M Polish and a flower pattern from plate 124 by MoYou Nails.




You can find the Spring collection at KBShimmer's online store here.  You can also follow the brand's Facebook PageInstagram Account, and Twitter Page for updates on new products and sales.

So what do you think of these polishes?  Did you pick up any of the Spring collection when it first launched?

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Polishes sent by the company for review purposes.  My opinion remains 100% honest.

Monday, March 30, 2015

Smokey Mountain Lacquers: New Lip Balm

***Press Sample***

Taking a quick detour from polish to show you a brand new item from Smokey Mountain Lacquers - a lip balm!


Her lip balm comes in a 10ml sized pot-shaped container.  The balm is vegan friendly (always a plus!) and is made with hydrogenated soybean oil, cocoa butter, octyl methoxycinnamate, ethylhexyl salicylate, shea butter, apricot kernel oil, sweet almond oil, vitamin E, organic coconut oil, stevia leaf extract, and strawberry flavor oil (for the strawberry scented balm).  It also contains SPF 15, so it is definitely ideal for these upcoming Spring/Summer months with all that sun!

I loved this balm the moment I opened it - and I love it even more after using it!  The balm was packaged very well and included a pop-off seal under the screw-on lid, to help keep the balm from drying out.  The scent is subtle and not overpowering, and there really isn't a taste once it's on the lips.  I know some people like flavored lip balm - I am not one of them, because I really don't want to be licking it all off when it is supposed to stay on :P

The balm stayed on my lips for a good 2+ hours without needing any re-application!  I can tell it hydrates my lips more than most because of how soft they are after the balm has worn off.  It has definitely become my new go-to balm!

The only aspect of the balm that is a little bit of a hassle for me is getting it out of the container - I've got rather long fingernails so it is difficult to get my finger in there and remove balm without getting it underneath my nails.  But!  I came up with a very simple and easy solution - I used a make-up applicator!


Makes for easier application onto the lips as well, without any balm going to waste on my fingers.  AND, it stores perfectly in the container so I don't lose it!

It rests nicely on the pop-off seal and still allows me to screw the cap back on the balm completely :)

The applicator I used is from the brand E.L.F. and you can find them in stores like Target for uber cheap (I think this came in a pack of ten for $1).

You can purchase the balm here and you can choose either strawberry flavored, or pink frosting (I'm getting that one next!).

What do you think of this product?  Are you always looking for the right balm?

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Product was sent to me for testing and review by Smokey Mountain Lacquers.  My opinion is in no way swayed and remains 100% honest.

Saturday, March 28, 2015

Press Sample: Fraggle Rock "Dance Your Cares Away" Collection

***Press Sample***

Happy Weekend!!  Only 8 more days until Easter...what?!  Crazy sauce!

Today I have a super fun flashback-to-childhood collection by the fabulous brand I, A.M. Custom Color!  When she approached me about the collection, and told me it was inspired by Fraggle Rock, I was beyond giddy because I remember watching it with my brother when we were kidlets ^_^


The Dance Your Cares Away collection consists of 7 polishes including glitter, holographic, cremes, glow-in-the-darks, and thermals!  Let's take a look at them, shall we?

First up is "30 Minute Work Week:"





30 Minute Work Week is a neon cool-toned purple creme that leans blue under certain lighting.  Opaque in 2-3 coats (depending on how thick you apply), it dries in under 5 minutes to a shiny finish.

Next is "Capture the Moon:"





Capture the Moon is a sea green/teal thermal that changes very subtly to a sapphire blue.  I couldn't manage to capture the shift with my camera, though there was a very subtle change in the color in person.  The polish applied very smoothly, dried in under 5 minutes to a shiny finish, and is opaque in 2 coats.

This fun topper is "Fraggle Wars:"





Fraggle Wars is a glow-in-the-dark glitter bomb packed with various sized and shaped matte and iridescent glitters.  The glitters spread out pretty evenly with good coverage in one coat (shown in the above pictures).  It dried to a semi-textured finish, so I would suggest a good topcoat like HK Girl Glisten & Glow to smooth it out.  

Here is "Red's Club:"


Warm State

 Cold State




Red's Club is a really awesome yellow/gold to fiery red thermal that's packed with gold shimmers and flecks.  This one, in its warm state, is still pretty sheer at 3 coats, but is opaque in its cold state.  Application was very smooth and even, not at all thick (which can be the case with some thermals), and dried in under 5 minutes to a shiny finish,

Up next is, "River of Life:"





The River of Life is a beautiful light teal with a green shimmer.  This polish applied very smoothly and evenly, mostly opaque at 3 coats, and dried in under five minutes.

Here is, "Secret Society of Poobahs:"





Secret Society of Poobahs is a beautiful mauve colored holographic polish with a green shimmer.  This applied the same as River of Life.

Last from the collection is, "Space Frog Follies:"





Space Frog Follies is a lovely apple green metallic shimmer.  This polish is opaque in 2-3 coats depending on how thick you apply each layer.  It applied very smoothly and dried in under five minutes to a shiny finish.

The Ups: This collection is such a wonderful array of color and types, I just love the diversity!  It captures the essence of the show very well!  And the formulas for each are pretty darn solid.  I loved the smooth application and the quick dry time :)

The Downs:  The only "down" I came across was the very subtle thermal change in Capture the Moon.  The polish in its teal state is already so beautiful, though, that I really didn't mind ;)

Overall:  Ashlie, the owner/alchemist of I, A.M. Custom Color, created this collection as an homage to the world of Fraggle Rock, because it was her own little world when she was a kid growing up watching it.  I think she did a fantastic job capturing the essence of the show!!  It's a wonderful array of colors and types, just as the cast :)  Thumbs up all around from me!

Here are some links for you of the store where you can purchase this collection, and some social media links so you can keep up-to-date on all the cool fun stuffs:

Store: Here

Facebook: Here

Instagram: Here

This collection will be releasing later today!  What do you think of it?  Were you/Are you a Fraggle Rock fan?  Any of these polishes tickle your fancy the most?

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This collection was inspired by the show Fraggle Rock - it is in NO WAY associate with or promoted by the Jim Henson Company or any of its affiliates.  Polishes were provided to me by I, A.M. Custom Color for pictures and a review.  My opinion is in no way swayed and remains 100% honest.