MIA No more!!

Hello blogosphere! Just a quick note to say I am still alive! I went away for the Memorial Day weekend and didn't get a chance to post an "I'm going away" message before I left. Well, I'm back home and ready to go on a post-athon to make up for the silence!

Here's what I'm working on to post this week:

--more swatches and reviews of the new Revlon Just Bitten Kissable balm-stains
--swatches and reviews of my entire ELF makeup stash. (I noticed Target has greatly expanded their ELF stock and ELF has also been reportedly popping up in Dollar Trees recently--so that inspired me to pull out and show off all my ELF stuff so you'll know what you should get and what you should skip!)
--the usual random NOTD/FOTD posts
--swatches of the new Sleek ultra matte palettes (which I got my hands on thanks to the wonders of Ebay)
--comparison swatches of the new China Glaze Neon polishes vs Color Club Electro-candy collection from 2009 (another batch of awesome, shimmering neons)

and, of course, I will continue to expand and update my stampable polishes list


So stay tuned for much yammering coming soon! :)

Awesome Deal Alert: TheBalm Shady Lady Palettes 3 for 1!! Today only!

I just caught this post on Temptalia. Apparently TheBalm is running a special deal today only: buy 1 of their Shady Lady eyeshadow palettes, get the other 2 free!! That's $119.85 worth of gorgeous, buttery shadows for only $39.95! How freakin sweet is that?

Hurry over to TheBalm and get yours while the gettin's good!

Revlon Just Bitten Balm Stain in Lovesick-swatch and review

I was in Walgreens earlier and stumbled upon a display for the new Just Bitten Balm Stains by Revlon--win!! And then I noticed the "30% off Revlon" sign stuck onto the display--double win!! So of course I had to snatch one up-- I went with Lovesick--the fuchsia one, of course (yea I'm a creature of habit, what can I say)...with the 30% off deal, it cost me a whopping 6.49.

First up, I love the packaging! It's this awesome plastic pencil/tube hybrid. The product twists up (the bottom silver part is the twisty part), so no sharpening--woot! I also love that Revlon decided to continue with the "make the packaging the same color as the product" theme it started with their lip butters. 

Here's a close-up of the tip. Of course, with more wear, it's gonna get more and more blunt but, honestly, that is not a problem for me. When it gets to that point, t will just be like working with a slim tube of lipstick. No biggie. 

Now onto the swatches:

Blue-based fuchsia awesomeness. There's a trace amount of silver shimmer in this, which I personally love. The formula is amazing--nicely pigmented but not totally opaque, it slicks on with a true balmy feel. It has just the right amount of slip, not even the slightest amount of stickiness and your lips really do feel and continue to feel moisturized the whole time you are wearing it. When it first goes on, it has a nice shiny finish--it's not superduper glossy or anything. After a few hours, the shine wears away and you're left with that gorgeous flush of color so it truly does live up to its 'balm stain' name. 

I should also mention there is a bit of mintyness to this lippie. Nothing ridiculous, it's just enough to give the slightest, very pleasant cooling sensation to your lips.

So, to sum it all up, I am a BIG fan. Love the color, love the formula, love the performance and love that it actually does what it is supposed to do. Revlon has really been on a roll this past year with its lip and nail products! I'm definitely adding this to my "awesome junk I need every single shade of" list!

Salt N Peppa Popsicle

Look, ain't I funny? I did one of those thingies where you combine the names of polishes in your post 

title to make it sound like something completely different. That's right, peeps. You better be scared of me & all this cleverness I got over here...

Alright, enough senseless rambling...

THIS, people, is the amaze-bawlz, retina-seering, practically radioactive insanity that is Orly Melt Your Popsicle from the line of neons they just released. Yea, these photos? Not even CLOSE to the redonk brightness these babies give off. Let's just say that, if your power goes out and you're wearing this polish, you will have no need for a flashlight....These 2012 Orly neons are the BRIGHTEST polishes I have ever come across in my entire career of polish-obsessing.

OH, and the awesome black and white speckly things on top of Melt Your Popsicle? That would be none other than Salt N Peppa, beautisimal (yea it's so awesome, it needs a whole new word to describe it) creation of Karin and Lexi of Lush Lacquer, who (as I've mentioned before) serve up sparkling indie  fierceness over on Etsy. Seriously, if you haven't already, go buy their polishes! These ladies have some kind of crazy sorcery over glitters. I've never met such gorgeous, well-behaved glitters in my life. I know I must sound like a broken record but, once again, these glitters come out of the bottle with no problem, lay down nice and happy on the nails (a few of the bar glitters might hang over a nail's edge but ALL bar glitters are guilty of that) and spread out beautifully. Love love love and love some more!

(oh God, the cuticle horror show. For your own safety, look AWAY from the base of my nails)

(note the gorgeous iridescent microglitter that is also mixed into Salt N Peppa & ignore my tip-wear...frickin housework always wreaking havoc on my manicures)

This mani consists of:

basecoat of Beauty Secrets nail hardener 

1 coat of Finger Paints Papier Mache

2 coats of Orly Melt Your Popsicle

2 coats of Lush Lacquer Salt N Peppa

1 coat of Seche Vite Quick Dry Topcoat

So are you on board with the neon trend this summer? What about the black and white glitter bonanza currently happening in the indie polish world? I, personally am in SO much luuuuurrve with both these things!

A bag in a bag (and what's in the bag in a bag)

When you have a 19 month old child, there's no way you're getting out of the house without a big honkin bag full of baby paraphernalia...but if you're like me, you make sure to stash another mommy bag inside the baby bag.

Left: big honkin baby bag (complete with skull print and I <3 zombies pins). Right: lesser but still honkin mommy bag that lives inside big honkin baby bag.

I got this bag on clearance at Target. I'll buy anything with skulls on it...especially when those skulls are accompanied by unicorns and the price is greatly reduced.

And here's what lives insider the mommy bag!

Neutrogena makeup remover wipes

Udderly Smooth lotion (best lotion EVER and not just because of the cow print on the tube)

Maybelline Baby Lips--the minty one with no pigment 

Ecotools retractable kabuki brush

Neutrogena pimple-zapping pen

Gaudy bejeweled gold compact with a shoe on the front

Plastic thingy full of q-tips

CVS oil-absorbing sheets (Lurve those)

Physicians Formula Healthy Wear foundation powder

Burt's Bees lemon cuticle balm (which I have to actively refrain from nomming every time I smell it)

Nivea hand cream (yes, that's a total of 3 different moisturizing hand products in here)

The blush I happened to be wearing the day I shot this pic (Physicians Formula Happy Booster)

The lippie I happened to be wearing that day (Wet N Wild Fuchsia with blue flash)

Pill box with little black dresses printed on it--chock full o' Tylenol for when the kids won't stop screaming...

Nice and neatly organized--and still room for tons more crap.

Glitter Me Up Friday, Vol 4!

Well shoot, it's Friday again, isn't it? Time for some more glitter!!

And Oh what a glitter this is!! This beauty is Birthday Cake--amazing sparkling creation of Lush Lacquer, an awesome and super sweet mom and daughter polish making team who can be found HERE on Etsy.

(click to enlarge)

Let me first apologize for the suckage that is New England's weather--yet another photoshoot that had to take place outside under thickly overcast skies...but this polish STILL shines.

Birthday Cake is a white sorbet-type polish chock full of pink, purple, orange, gold, blue and green small glitters, bar glitters AND large holographic silver hex glitters. Ok, did I say glitters enough times?? This. Polish. RULES!!! Seriously I can't get over all those gorgeous glitter colors embedded in that white. This is 2 coats of Birthday Cake by itself with 2 coats of Seche Vite on top (accent finger is Essie Mojito Madness stamped with Essie No More Film and vice versa--was testing their stampability. As you can see, No More Film is an excellent stamping polish...but I digress)...

I don't know what else to say except I LOVE LUSH LACQUER. Their polishes beautiful and they have none of the issues that Indie polishes sometimes suffer from (like glitter that refuses to come out of the bottle or clumps of pigment or separation issues). They are as expertly made and mixed as any big-name salon polish and the color and glitter combos are just stunning. I now have a total of 5 Lush Lacquers--Slime Time, Salt n Pepa, Camo Queen, Tutti Fruitti and this one (seriously I'd have WAAAAY more if I had more money or less self control) and every one of them is consistently awesome...

So um, why are you still here?? Go get some Lush before it's gone! and then go check out my awesome Glitter Me Up Friday sisters:

http://parisianbluesky.blogspot.com.au/

http://polishedperipherals.blogspot.com.au/

http://www.prettypurplepolish.com/

http://www.kellyskolors.com/

http://sgnails.blogspot.com.au/

New Hot Topic skully polishes 'Royally Screwed' and 'Deceit' swatches and review

Look who was a good girl and got her swatches done (well, 2 out of 3 of them anyway)...so here's a closer look at those awesome skull polishes I picked up yesterday at Hot Topic....

First up is 'Royally Screwed'--large and small royal blue hex glitters in a clear base. This is one coat of RS over Sally Hansen Extreme Wear Cherry Red:

The polishes have impossible to read labels on the back. If you wanna know the names, you gotta go check out the Hot Topic website.

Left to right: Royally Screwed by itself at 1, 2 and 3 coats.

So I'm totally digging this glitter. Good formula, nice amount of glitter in each swipe and the glitter behaves itself and doesn't try to gang up on you. I also LOVE the cobalt blue awesomeness. This is SO destined for many a jelly sammich! I know there are other blue glitters out there in the world but I personally don't have one like this, so I'm happy I got it! And I would have gotten it even if I DID have a dozen polishes just like it cuz....THE BOTTLE IS A FRICKIN SKULL! Skulls rule, damnit.

Next up is 'Deceit,' multi colored glitters and large copper flakies in a lightly tinted pink jelly base. 

Please excuse my ugly, hateful cuticles...also the general sloppiness of my application. I totally disrespected poor OPI Roadhouse Blues (well, that's what it gets for being a blurple and not the true navy blue cream I was hoping for). This is 2 coats of Deceit with a coat of Seche Vite on top to help smooth it out. The flakies are large and in charge and if you don't top-coat them, you can feel some of their points on your nails. I am seriously LOVING this. The shards of copper mixed with the blues, teals and purples of the smaller glitters is just such a gorgeous contrast. The formula was a little goopy and chunky but I busted out my trusty Beauty Secrets polish thinner and took care of that. 

So who else is wondering how this compares to OPI I Lily Love You from last summer's Nice Stems collection?

Can't really tell in the pic but I Lily Love You's base is slightly more purple.

I Lily Love you on the left and Deceit on the right. OBVIOUS differences here. The flakes in Deceit are much larger and there's more of them, while the glitters in the OPI are smaller but slightly more dense. I personally like Deceit better. I can't get over the gorgeous broken glass look of it.

Anyway, so I'm a fan. The novelty of the bottle is awesome enough--it's just a bonus that the polish inside is so gorgeous. Stay tuned for swatches of the third bottle I got (they call it 'Party Action'...I call it 'Clown Puke')!

Are you a fan of novelty polish bottles? Skulls?

Look what I found at Hot Topic...

Skull-shaped nail polish!!

How freakin awesome are these?! There part of a new line of cosmetics called Blackheart Beauty that was just launched. The blue one is large and small hex blue glitters in a clear base, the middle one is a large and small hex multi colored glitter (you're standard clown puke glitter a la Deborah Lippmann's Happy Birthday) and the one on the right is a...wait for it....FLAKIE!! Looks pretty dupey to OPI's I Lily Love you...anway, I'll be swatching these up ASAP...in the meantime, you can check out some of the other shades here. They have crackles & glow in the dark shades, too.

Nail polish in skulls...it just doesn't get any better than that!

Stuff that Rules: 'iLine' mineral wetliner from TKBTrading.com

A while ago, I was looking for a good foiling solution for my loose eyeshadows. Being the cheap ass that I am, I was unwilling to pay a zillion bucks for something like MAC's Mixing Medium. So I scoured my hoard of makeup site links and I found this:

I found it on TKBTrading.com, which is a site that sells everything people need to mix and package their own cosmetics. Although they call this "Mineral Wetliner" online and show a plain white bottle in the picture, when you order it, the above pictured bottle is what you get in the mail. You can get 1 bottle of .5 oz worth of solution for $8.00 or a set of 6 for $26.00. I opted for the set of 6 since it was a better deal.

As you can see, the bottle is sort of like an eyedropper bottle, which makes it very easy to work with--you just squeeze out a few drops for what you need and you're done--no mess. The liquid is clear on its own. You can use it to seal your eyeliner, foil loose shadows (which is turning loose shadows into a wet solution to use as a liner or to make the color pop more) and it also makes a great glitter adhesive. You can also use it to revive dried out cream/gel liners: just squeeze a few drops into your liner pot, use a mixing spatula or an orange stick to stir everything together and, voila!

In the pictures below, I thought I would demonstrate how good it is at sealing liner and keeping it smudge proof.

The above is a swatch of ELF's cream liner in black on top of which I applied the iLine solution.

This is that same swatch after I rubbed it back and forth a zillion times with a damp finger. Pretty impressive, huh?

Below, I used the iLine to foil an NYX Pearl Mania loose shadow (Jade Green Pearl if I recall correctly)...

full sun

shade

flash

The solution really brings out the vibrancy of whatever shadow you mix it with and makes it like liquid metal.

The one thing you need to be aware of with this stuff: it dries pretty fast once mixed. If you are using it just to line with a loose shadow, I suggest squeezing a few drops into the dropper bottle's cap, dipping your liner brush into that, then into your chosen shadow and applying it that way. If you're foiling a larger amount of shadow, you can use the cap as a tiny mixing pot by squeezing some solution into it and then adding shadow (I find that mixing it in the bottle's cap, rather than something that is flat and more open, slows the drying process). I just rinse the cap out with hot water and dry it before I put it back on the bottle. 

To sum it up, I'd much rather pay $26.00 for six of these than pay the same price for only one tiny bottle of a high-end mixing medium. It works beautifully, has tons of uses, comes in smart, easy to use packaging...really, what's not to love?

Do you ever foil or line with loose shadows? What do you use?

DEAL ALERT!! TheBalm is on Hautelook until Friday!

If you're not already signed up for Hautelook, then you need to change that right quick! It's  a website that features amazing brands at very deep but very temporary discounts and awesome beauty brands are always popping up on it. But you have to act quick--most deals only last a few days and they sell out FAST!

Hautelook is usually the ONLY way I ever get my hands on anything 'high end' because the discounts are just as good as paying drugstore prices. This time they are featuring TheBalm--purveyor of awesome satiny eyeshadows, blushes and highlighters in cute retro packaging. The discounts are amazing--around 50% off per item--check it out! I've wanted to try the 'Manizer' highlighters & bronzers for a while now and at 12 bucks a pop, I may finally let myself get them!

TheBalm sale lasts until Friday at 9 am PST but, like I said, the items frequently sell out well before the last day--so get thee over there before everything's all snatched up!

Spam on the Cheap, the FOTD edition

Yep, it's time to clean out the To Post folders again--I always procrastinate on sorting through my FOTD pics because I tend to take about 340850438504 shots of each look and it takes forever just to upload them and click through them all.

It's kinda funny--I can tell the chronology of these pics based on my hair color's metamorphosis. Gotta love my Manic Panic A.D.D.!


**Unless otherwise noted, I used the following in all these pictures: Almay Clear Complexion Foundation, Powder and Concealor in Light/Ivory; ELF Eyebrow kit in 'medium;' Jordana Fabuliner; Maybelline The Falsies Flared Mascara; NYX HD eyeshadow base**

Look, I still have pink hair in this one! 

Eyes: Sugarpill Chromalust in Tiara and Stella

Cheeks: Physicians Formula Happy Booster blush

Lips: Baby Lips balm--the minty one with no pigment in the lime green tube (I can't remember the name)...

Enter the Turquoise/purple hair! 

Eyes: Wet N Wild 8 Pan eyeshadow in "Blue Had Me at Hello." Sugarpill Chromalust in Stella

Cheeks: ELF blush in Pink Passion

Lips: Revlon Lip Butter in Dollypop over NYC Lipstain in Forever Fuchsia

Oh look, yet another blue shadow look...what a shock.

Eyes: Glamour Doll Eyes shadows in Fabulous  and Aqua Foil, some ELF loose shadow that I can't remember and Sugarpill Chromalust in Stella (oh yea I'm crushin HARD on Stella!)

Lips: ELF lipstick in Gypsy

Cheeks: Physicians Formula Happy Booster blush

This is my eye look from yesterday. I was being lazy and didn't do my whole face, hence the eyeballz only shots. For this look, I used Pearl Ex Pigments in Green/Yellow Duo, Blue/Green Duo and Interference Gold. 

What are Pearl Ex Pigments you ask? Well, if you are a crafty bitch like me, you might find the name familiar: they are powdered pearlescent pigments used to add color and luster to arts and crafts projects. You can find them in places like Hobby Lobby, AC Moore and Michael's. Here's the thing about them: they are non-toxic, inert, acid-free, amazingly finely milled, richly pigmented and they apply, blend, and last (all frickin day) like a DREAM...but they're not TECHNICALLY cosmetics. I figure if it looks like makeup, applies like makeup, and is made of perfectly safe ingredients, then HECK, to ME, it's makeup! But, to cover both my ass and Pearl-Ex's I'm gonna say if you wanna try them out, do so 'at your own risk.' I've worn them quite a few times with absolutely no ill effects whatsoever and I am always blown away at how vibrant they are and how easy they are to work with.  ...

Anyway, so there's some of the mugshots I've collected over the past few months. Clearly, I gotta lay off the blue eyeshadow for a while. It's funny. I used to avoid blue shadow like the plague cuz I always read it didn't do anything for green eyes. But, after I started dying my hair all crazy-like again, I decided to HELL with what's "appropriate." I just wanna play with COLOR, dangit! 

Here's to self-liberation...

So what's your color of the moment?

An open apology to OPI Just Spotted the Lizard

Dear Just Spotted the Lizard,

I understand if you're mad at me. I would be mad at me too. How dare I post such horribly embarassing pictures of you that don't even come remotely close to capturing your true fabulosity & magic? And then I had to go and make it even worse by doing a bad stamping job on you. Sally Hansen Insta-dri Co-Co a Go-Go led me astray. Actually, no I shouldn't blame Sally. It's not her fault I placed my stamps all wickity wack and then did a half-assed job cleaning up my cuticles. 

Anyway, Lizard--(is it ok if I call you Lizard?), I pray you can find it in your heart to forgive me and let me have another chance. You are truly an amazing polish--Chanel Peridot's got nothing on you (well, except for a big fat price tag). You're JUST as multi-chromatic on the nail as you are in the bottle (despite my horrible pics that show otherwise), and easy enough to apply (you have to admit, you could be slightly thicker and you know it but it's nothing I can't work with if I just wipe the brush well to prevent pooling at the cuticles). I was thrilled to see you were gorgeous, shiny, opaque and brush-stroke free in 3 light and easy coats...other polishes could learn a thing or 2 from you...

Ok, I'll be quiet now and give you your time and space.  I'll be waiting with poorly-polished fingers crossed.

Love,

Mama Glam

Thanks for putting up with my lunacy, faithful readers. Youze Guise are awesome.

Essie Mojito Madness, will you marry me??

I have a new favorite green nail polish. Behold the majesty of Essie Mojito Madness:

This, my friends, is green creme perfection. I LOVE that it is a perfect cross between mint and grass green. It has such a mellowness to it...and it just screams summer to me. Oh, and the formula? OMFG glossy flawlessness in 2 coats. The polish basically just jumped off the brush and laid down nice and smooth on my nails all by itself. 

My accent nail is another finger full of glitter. I just dipped my finger into a pot full of gorgeous duo-chrome blue green glitter while the polish was still wet. Then I put on a coat of Gelous and another coat of Seche Vite. 

Beauteous!! Even in the shade. 

Mojito Madness is part of Essie's summer 2012 collection. I found mine in Target the other day. It was fate. We were meant to be together....oh MM, you complete me!

Happy Mothers Day

To all the moms out there: Have a wonderful Mother's Day!!! 

me and my momma back in the day. I love you, ma!