Purple Jelly Comparison

Hi guys!  I have a small comparison for you today.  A reader asked how these two polishes compare when I posted my swatch picture of Deborah Lippmann Call Me Irresponsible so I figured I do a formal comparison.  I don't have a bottle comparison picture since the Milani is in an opaque bottle.  First up, I'll repost the swatch pictures of each.

I think this is four coats of Milani Rad Purple.

And here's a picture of four coats of Deborah Lippmann Call Me Irresponsible.

Now on to the comparison.  I've got Call Me Irresponsible on my index and ring nails.   Rad Purple is on my middle and pinkie finger nails.  I used four coats of each and this picture was taken in the sun.

This picture was taken inside by a window.  This one is the most color accurate of all my photos.  I think it's funny how the Deborah Lippmann comes closer to the Milani bottle than the Milani does.

And this picture was taken with the flash.  It's not very color accurate, but that's how it sometimes goes with purples.

Rad Purple is brighter and redder than Call Me Irresponsible (which is bluer). Rad Purple also dries to a satin finish so I put top coat on it. Call Me Irresponsible dries shiny.  Formula-wise, the Milani behaved better for me.  I had a heck of a time trying to get the Deborah Lippmann even, but the Milani wasn't so bad.  They are both jelly finishes.

It seemed like such a shame to just wipe these off after taking pictures so I tried out some layering.  I pulled out Pure Ice Heart Breaker and Nfu-Oh #51 and added on coat of Heart Breaker to my index and middle nails.  Then I put one coat of the Nfu-Oh on my ring and pinkie fingers.  Gah!  This was so gorgeous.  I'll have to do a full manicure of Call Me Irresponsible with the Nfu-Oh on top very soon.

I hope you enjoyed!

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I Love Accent Nails!

I love doing accent nails.  It's actually my favorite way to wear those super glittery polishes that are a huge pain in the butt to remove (even with the foil method).  I love wearing a plain creme or jelly polish as my main color and then a coordinating glitter bomb on my ring finger or thumb.  This is super easy since you don't have to be very creative to do it.

Here's a recent accent manicure I did with Orly Orange Punch and OPI Extra-Va-Vaganza ring fingers.  I used four coats of the Orly and three of the OPI.

I got a close-up picture of the glittery ring finger for you.

 
Another recent accent manicure I liked consisted ofOPI Lincoln Park After Dark with OPI Mad As a Hatter thumbs.  I went with three coats of each for this one.

I even went with an accent nail manicure for Christmas last year.  I loved this one.  I went with (I think?) three coats of BB Couture Fairy Blood for the red and three coats of China Glaze Emerald Sparkle for the green.

This was one of my favorite accent manicures.  I went with four coats of Essie Marshmallow and four coats of Pure Ice Strapless.

Another favorite of mine is Essie Licorice with OPI Mad As a Hatter ring fingers.  I went with three coats of the Essie and four of the OPI.

Another one I did around the same time is OPI A Grape Fit! and Mad As a Hatter.  I did three coats of each.

I also love this combination and I've done it several times since.  This is three coats of OPI Dating a Royal with four coats of OPI Absolutely Alice.

And last, but not least, is a manicure I did with three (maybe four) coats of OPI Do You Lilac It? and Mad As a Hatter.

I know accent nails are everybody's cup of tea, but they sure are mine!

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Cheap thrills

Happy hump day everyone! I'm always on the look out for great deals, and who doesn't love a bargain? I looove bargain hunting and shopping. It makes me love the item more knowing that I got it for cheaper than original! So today I have my recent bargain acquisitions!

First up is Pure Ice French Kiss from Walmart. Gorgeous blue creme, I mean honestly.. I have too many blue cremes as it is, but I couldn't pass this up for the $2 price tag.

Direct sunlight:


Indirect light:

Seriously, perfection in two coats and formula is fab!

Here we have Wet n Wild Shield from their Craze line. These should be widely available now, I've been spotting these at many Rite-Aids, but also disappearing from shelves quickly! My brush had one bristle sticking waaaaay out, but with a snip it was perfect! This is also two coats. What makes this polish amazing is the little bits of copper shimmer in the gold base makes it POP. Also $2 from the drug store!



And finally, Wet n Wild Wild Orchid. Super pretty blurple polish with holographic glitter. Unfortunately my camera made it blue, but really it is more purple than this. One downside about this polish is that it took me four, FOUR coats to reach bottle color. BUT for four coats, it dried pretty fast! And for 99 cents, the price definitely makes up for four coats hehe


And more importantly, drug stores sometimes have sales on Wet n Wild, like buy one get one free or buy one get second 50% off. Even without the sales, these are seriously a bargain, and you get more than what you pay for!

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Nail polish and grad school. My life in a nutshell.

Lacquering: yesterday's NOTD.

Pure Ice Spit Fire.

Photos do not do this polish justice. It is the most playfully glittery polish I own and is nearly opaque in three coats. Pink tinted with holo glitter of several different sizes, it catches any stray light and glimmers even in dim lamplight. I wish it were tinted some other color since this dusty shade of pink is not particularly flattering to me but who cares about the color with all the glittery goodness?

This polish was given to me in a "mystery" swap and I am grateful for it because I would've never seen it myself (I don't think I've ever gone into a Walmart and I don't mind keeping it that way).

Now for a close-up of the aforementioned glittery goodness.

I don't know why I enjoy glittery polishes so much. They catch light, they glow, they frolic: they are dynamic and are captivating to watch. They are playful and make me smile. Which is true of nail polish as a hobby for me to begin with.

Learning: unable to concentrate on anything of substance.

Not much learning has been taking place since I got the flu a week ago. I just completed the first year of my doctoral program in June and promptly treated myself to a month of not-doing-anything. Which was then extended for a week of not-doing-anything-because-I'm-sick-and-therefore-not-enjoying-it. Tomorrow though I have some articles to read, some data to send, and hopefully my poor dizzy, congested head will be in a better place to actually process information.

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