Rainbow Honey Summer Mixtape - Swatches and Review!

 Press Sample

Good morning, lovelies!  I got these a little late, so I meant to get this posted yesterday, but since there were some shitty things going on in the blogging world, I totally skipped being responsible and joined in on Marathon Monday.  I didn't drink sun-up to sun-up (really?  Who is awake to do that?), but I enjoyed a large glass of mojitos.  Inspired, of course, by getting a reply tweet from possibly the most gorgeous (but married.  Boo), man on the planet.

The polishes I was sent of the Mixtape Collection by Rainbow Honey were Control, Fall in Love, and Elevate.  I love that these were inspired by those summer songs you just had to make a tape of to have with you all the time!  Speaking of, do you guys remember sitting at the radio with your hand on the play/record buttons waiting for your favorite song?  I do!  So glad that time in history is done with!  So, let's see some polish!!!!!!

in lightbox

natural lighting 

lightbox macro 

Control is a neon pink with blue and gold glass flecks.  I just absolutely love this polish!  You may be a tad confused by the pictures, though.  This polish does change quite a bit with different lighting, which could possibly be attributed to the gold it contains. I won't say it's duo chrome or anything like that, but in artificial lighting it can take on the orange tinge that can be associated with neon pink pigments.  That aside, I still love this polish.  I used three coats here to even it out.  The formula was a little thick, and I added some thinner for future applications.  

Fall In Love is a little deceiving.  The description calls it a crimson with blue glass flecks.  I call it pink.  Fuchsia.  Something that isn't crimson!  It definitely does lean red, but I feel like it is for sure still a pink.  The formula on this is described as a jelly, but I'm going to call it a crelly.  It has a squishy texture that I adore, but it is a little too pigmented for pond/sandwich/syrup manis.  

 over Control

over Fall in Love

macro

Finally is Elevate.  This is such a fun glitter!  It contains pink circles and hexes; blue, white and orange hexes; green and yellow circles; and white TRIANGLES!  This is the first topper I've seen with triangles in it, though there are many more popping up!  I love all the shapes that are coming out!  This also has a blue shimmer in it.  This applied like a chunky glitter, I had to dab it on.  However, I got a good variety of shapes without having to dig too much.  

As usual, I am very impressed with the offerings I was sent!  I'm really hoping I can check out the rest of the collection!  

Until 8/31/14 use the code MIXTAPE20 for 20% off your order at rainbowhoney.com!

For all other information, Rainbow Honey can be found on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Don't forget to tell me what you think below, thanks for reading!

 *polishes sent for review.  full details can be found on the disclaimer page of this blog
 

Does Anyone Do Pink Wednesday Anymore?

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Hey y'all!  So, I don't know if you know this about me, but besides nails, I'm kind of a make-up hoarder.  Specifically Urban Decay palettes and OCC lip tars.  Oh my how I love lip tars!  Although, I haven't perfected them yet.  I can't get them to last on me!  I've tried just about every primer there is... Anyway, I digress.  Awhile back Sephora started carrying OCC products, and that's when I fell in love.  I was so excited to buy a whole bunch of colors and play with them!  I got a few, then the prices got jacked, and I had to stop buying them.  Around Christmas time, though, these sets with lip tar and corresponding nail polish popped up and I HAD to have Anime!  I would have bought others, but I already had all the tars that went with them.  Oops.  lol

Anime is just about the perfect neon pink.  The polish itself is a little thick and goopy, and doesn't self level.  Of course, this could be because I got it in the winter and I've never really used it.  I used three coats, and a thick layer of Poshe topcoat.  The finished look was actually kind of squishy and delicious looking!  That being, I'll still add thinner before I use it next time.  :)

As of now, Sephora doesn't have the Anime lip tar available.  I'm not sure if it's sold out, or what the deal is.  However, you can buy the polish/tar set for $22.50, or the polish alone for $10.

So what do you think of Anime?  Are there any other colors of polish/tar I should try?  Thanks for stopping in!

Monday Mani

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Hi lovelies!  Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  I was actually sick so I didn't get any swatching done.  It'll have to wait until I'm back from the lake!  That said, I wanted to do something fun with my nails.  As you'll see, my long nails from the gel mani are long gone.  Of course.  I had a bad break while shopping Friday.  So, I picked two unused polishes I got waaaaay back during my birthday in October! 

I used Mainstream Lacquer Too Gay To Function, with an accent of You Can't Sit With Us.  These were, of course, inspired by Mean Girls and I LOVE them!  I should have used undies, because TGtF was four coats.  Otherwise, I love them.  Like, LOVE love them.  Pink and orange is my favorite summertime color combo, so these were a perfect match!

And, I definitely didn't know this until after I was "done" with this post... But TGtF GLOWS!  The batteries on the Canon are dead, but I tried my best to get an iPhone pic.  Take a look!

It's not very good, but there you go!  The glow is super bright irl.  Another reason it's so awesome!

You can get these on Etsy at the Mainstream Lacquer page for $6 each.  I'm going to go back and get the rest of the Mean Girls collection, they look just as great!

Do you have any Mainstream?  Are there any I NEED?  Thanks for looking!

 

DIY Gel Manicure? Day 1.

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Good evening, lovelies!  I've been gone awhile, and I wasn't going to post until tomorrow, but I figured what the heck.  This past two weeks or so I have been a a feverish hunt for the perfect gel manicure system.  I have so much trouble with breakage (which explains my lack of swatching/posting.  Sorry!) that I just haven't been into the whole polish thing lately.  I got a gel manicure a couple weeks back and the protection I get is just incredible!  I had forgotten what it feels like to have one!  I even have significant growth, too, which can be seen below.

The hunt for the perfect system is awful.  Especially on a budget.  Then I remembered that I had seen somewhere that you can "get gel manicure results" using Gelous (you can get it at Sally's)!  Who of us doesn't have a bottle of that around??  I used these instructions that I found on Pinterest.

I know NOTHING of who came up with the procedure or technique, so if you know, tell me so I can credit them!
The comments made this sound promising, so I jumped in.  I decided to use a new Zoya (Kirtridge, which I was going to pull double duty and use this as the swatch for that color... but it wasn't meant to be!) and KBShimmer Clearly On Top.  This is what the mani looks like:

Y'all see those bubbles, right?   I'm hoping that they were because I am very impatient and couldn't wait the full wait time.  It takes 14 minutes of wait time (not counting after topcoat!) to do each hand.  Crazy.  I can't sit still that long.  So, if any of you have done this and know for sure what I did wrong, let me know!  Otherwise, I plan on keeping this mani on for ten days.  I will take more pics Friday, or before if I have major issues, then every two days after.  I'll keep you updated! 

La Bella Vernice is Dream(ing) Out Loud

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Hi ladies!  Today I have another LBV polish to show you!  This is one of my personal contributions to the line (you'll see plenty more, I can assure you! LOL).  It has been in my dreams for ages, and I kept hoping that an indie brand would somehow pull the vision out of my head and create it.  That never happened.  So, when Roni decided to start an indie brand, this polish was a MUST for me to create!

The name of this beauty is Dream Out Loud.  For several reasons.  First of all, because this is literally a dream polish for me.  I used to see it, smell it, taste it and I couldn't wait until it existed!  Second, Dream Out Loud is a personal mantra of mine.  Some dreams are unattainable, but that shouldn't stop you from trying to reach them.  No matter what they are.  Helping Roni with this brand, being able to create alongside her, fulfills many dreams of mine.  Dream Out Loud represents all of the dreams that people haven't been able to speak.  Speak them out loud and they are more likely to happen!

Okay, finally on to the polish!  There is a lot of amazing going on here, and it is very hard to capture. Because of that, there are several pictures of varying lighting and quality to make sure I got it all!  In the pink base, there are hot pink holo hexes, a blue and green duo chrome shimmer, and a very slight holo.  Check it out!

 The bottle shots show everything the best!

Here you can really see the hexes and the green shimmer.

 This blurry bottle shot shows the green shifting to blue.

The holo is super hard to capture, it's barely there anyway.  It's in there to add extra sparkle.  :)  I plan on revisiting this polish in the spring when I can get it in the sun!

This, like the other LBVs I'll be showing you are available for $10 for large bottles and $4.50 for minis.  Find them at bellavernice.com
Thanks for looking!

A-England She Walks In Beauty

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Happy afternoon, ladies!  (And gents, as always)  First off, sorry about the dry skin.  I really didn't realize my hands were this gross until I was just now editing pictures.  Oh, the woes of living in a cold climate!  ;)  

So, I'm going to try to do swatching of newer polishes or ones I haven't used yet before I start doing others you've probably seen a million times.  I have probably hundreds (sick, isn't it??) of untrieds I need to go through!  Today I picked A-England, She Walks in Beauty.

I got this polish probably six months ago in a swap.  I LOVED it, but for some reason I've never worn it.  I think maybe I thought I had to layer it?  I'm really not sure, but that was a mistake either way!  This polish is gorgeous.  It's probably the most beautiful gold I've ever seen!  

As you can see, She Walks In Beauty turns your nails into a highly reflective, gold foil bed of awesome.  The pink glitter that it contains sometimes isn't even visible because it's so shiny! I used three coats for the pictures, but I'm not sure if I had to.  This instantly became a favorite and you'll probably see art with it soon!  It would make an amazing base for black or darker pink stamping, don't you think?  

Hope you all had an awesome day!  Thanks for stopping in! 

Pink Week #5: The Final Mani

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I made it a whole week!  One color scheme, no missed posts!  I've got to do this again ;)  I may make this a once a month thing.  Or every other week?  Or... What are some ideas you have?  

For this mani I once again used Color Club Beyond and also: Color Club Halo-graphic, China Glaze Glistening Snow and Zoya Lo. 

I tried to make a bow with Glistening Snow, but it didn't quite translate.  The dots also kind of smeared.  Otherwise, I really like this mani!  I left it on and I really didn't think I would.  

Pink week is over!  Did you like it?  Not?  Only certain parts?  Remember, I'm trying to make my blog better this year, so let me know!  Thanks for stopping :) 

Pink Week #4: With An Assist From Me...

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"To be who you'll be

Instead of dreary who-you-were:well are

There's nothing that can stop you

From becoming popu-

Ler: lar:"

Yup, I definitely started this post with a song!  For those of you who haven't seen or read Wicked, it is probably my favorite book ever.  I keep missing the play, though.  Something always comes up!  So, I was super excited that they are making it into a movie!  I heard that the play isn't as dark and gritty as the book is, so I'm hoping they will make it up to me in movie form :) 

For the anniversary of Wicked last year, Deborah Lippmann released a limited edition Sephora exclusive set.  I HAD to have it!  I was going to review the whole set, but I effed up the box (and am consequently looking for someone that doesn't want their set so I can buy it... again), so I'm going to show you the colors individually at some point or another.  Today though, I have Popular.  This shade represents Glinda, the good witch.  

I included a photo of the mini bottle next to a Zoya bottle to compare DLs "mini" sizes.

By and large, although this is a gorgeous color, I'm super disappointed with DL on this one.  It is super sheer.  I had to use four coats to get rid of the VNL.  That is not good.  Especially in a mini bottle!  Although I want a second of this set, it is completely for the collector aspect.  I wouldn't pay $15 for this polish alone.  Deborah, again, not impressed!

To lead out on a good note though, I think I'll add the video for this song.  Hope it makes you smile!  :)


On another note, I LOVE Kristen Chenoweth!  :)
What do you all think?  Thanks for reading!

Pink Week #3: I've Been Framed!

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Day 3!  When I started this week, I decided I wanted to do more art.  This was one technique that I couldn't really decide if I liked it or not.  When I got done, I realized that if I can get good at it, I kinda like it.  Then I see it in pictures and I don't.   I think it's because my nails are so much bigger!  

So for today's mani I did frames.  I used a Singapore exclusive OPI called "That's Berry Daring," and Color Club Beyond for the dots.  This is how it turned out!

My camera kind of flipped out with the pink.  The top photo is the most accurate.  Also, I was super shaky when I did these,  so some dots are sort of messed up.  Other than that, I think they are pretty good!  What do you think?

Thanks for stopping!  

Pink Week #2: Opal Serenity

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Hello everyone!  For day two of my Pink Week, I have the pink version of Barielle's Buddha-ful.  I don't know if this is the new or old formula, I have both.  lol   The other has a base that is more beige, whereas this one is a light baby pink.  When you get them on though, they look pretty much the same!

I have never worn this over another color.  I really prefer it in it's "natural" state.  It looks just like an opal!  It's gorgeous.

That's it for day two!  Tomorrow will be more pink, I promise.  Thanks for stopping in!

Pink Mani Week! "Nautical" Nonsense

*Some Products in this post were provided for review.  No other compensation was received for giving my opinion of the product.*

How was everyone's weekend?  I hope better than mine.  I really did have that bronchial crap that's going around.  I had it in September too, but worse.  MUCH worse.  Yay me :)

I'm back, however!  No sickness can keep me down for long!  This week is going to be "pink week."  I needed a theme so that I'd get things done.  I just couldn't decide on anything else!  My BFF suggested a Valentine week... but I'm not ready for that yet, so I went with pink.  My first mani is my favorite, and uses the least amount of the color I'm supposed to be using.  Oops.  lol

I used Zoya Ziv for the gold, Zoya GeiGei for the pink, and Rainbow Honey Mint Flavor for the green.

I used nautical stripes as inspiration, but other than that, I can't call it nautical.  It's really just a pretty mani!  I really didn't want to take it off, so I'm sure I'll be using this color combo again!

What do you think of these colors and this style?  Thanks for looking! 

*Some Products in this post were provided for review.  No other compensation was received for giving my opinion of the product.*

How Do You Like Your Leftovers?

Hello hello!  Today I have a leftover mani from back in February when my internet wasn't working.  SO glad it's back on!  This is a simple polka dot mani that I did with various pinks and white.  Don't ask me the names, I don't remember!  (sorry!)  However, pretty much all colors work for polka dots!

Is it just me, or do my fingers look really ashen in these pics?  They didn't in some of the bad ones.  Nothing I'm worried about, it's just strange!  

So, what do you guys think of polka dots?  Have you seen them a ton lately like I have??  Thanks for reading!