Financial Responsibility, Part 1: Sinful Colors

Hey everybody!  I have been really busy this week, but I did manage to do something I've been meaning to do for a long time.  I made a list of all my unworn polishes.  I feel rather ashamed of myself.  I won't give you a number, but let's just say that facing an addiction is pretty sobering. :P  SO...that being said...I'm ushering in a new series here at my Reverie to feature said polishes.  It's the Era of Financial Responsibility!

Another thing:  you may have noticed that I do not like using typical nail polish language.  I will not use the words "dupe" or "stash", and don't even get me started on "lemming".  Another term I really dislike is "untried".  I mean...who came up with all this stuff anyway?  Who invented the nail polish language??  Anyway, as I always call my terms by a different name, I am officially calling my unworn polishes my never-worns.  I think it lends a sort of elegance to my unhealthy habit. :D

Today's post features two polishes by Sinful Colors that were both *meant* to be a Blogger Made Me Do It post blaming the ever-charming Liesl Loves Pretty Things.  So I guess you're gettin' a two-fer!  First off, let's hear it for Graine de Poivre.

Graine de Poivre (translation: peppercorn) is a mushroom taupe creme, introduced fall of 2013.  I fell so in love with this when Liesl featured it that I went looking for it right away.  I have some close-but-no-cigar colors like it.  Graine de Poivre turns really grey on me, but I still like it.  The formula is very good on this one.

I did a little comparison shot of some taupe-ish and greige colors, just so you can see about where Graine de Poivre falls in the spectrum.  Oh, and I have no idea why Berlin There, Done That looks matte...:/

The other Sinful Colors offering that I just HAD to have after Liesl's feature is Hot Chili, a sort of "texture lite" introduced around May of 2014.

See how pretty this is?  Would you believe me if I told you it's even prettier in person??  Hot Chili is a barely pink-tinged red metallic with textured bits of something and small holographic glitter.  Yeah, this is nice.  I was surprised that the formula was super runny.  My results after one coat were disastrous, but two coats seemed to help quite a lot.

Well now.  I feel better already.  Two down from my long list of never-worns and many, many more to go.  At $1.99 each, these two SC polishes don't induce *that* much of a guilt trip.  I blame Liesl anyway. :P

Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely day! <3

Mamma Mia! Sinful Colors Sinful Shine Prosecco

Hey everybody!  Isn't it interesting to watch the rise of a humble polish that suddenly finds itself to be the beloved flavor of the month?  Tonight's polish is one of those lucky colors.  I had heard some buzz about Sinful Colors Sinful Shine Prosecco and happened up on some in Walgreens over the weekend with Mr. Sweets.

One look at the bottle told me exactly why this polish has ascended to fame.

Um.  YIKES!  Named for an Italian white wine (I had to look that up, as I don't drink alcohol :D), Prosecco is a taupe-colored crelly with a boat load of gold shimmer.  It's quite thin, and I'm sporting FOUR (4) coats in the photos.  Amazingly though, it dried very quickly between coats, which surprised me, as my former experience with a Sinful Shine was a more arduous path to dryness. :)

Application of Prosecco was fabulous.  And as you can see, it's very shiny too.  Prosecco has my absolute favorite quality in a polish:  it's dirt cheap and looks expensive.  YAY for fooling everybody!! 

Have you been fortunate enough to snag Prosecco?  When I told Mr. Sweets about its current status as an "it" polish, he suggested I buy all 3 from the display.  See ladies, there ARE men out there who actually encourage the insanity.  How lucky am I?? :)

Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely evening! <3

My New Sinful Colors Picks! Embers Only and Peppered Amazon

Hey everybody!  It's Friday!  Isn't that nice? :)  And talk about nice (I love segues), our favorite super-affordable-but-unfortunately-named brand, Sinful Colors, has come out with some beautiful new shades for summer!  I was on my monthly drugstore polish shop fest with Mr. Sweets looking for Hot Chili, thanks to Liesl Loves Pretty Things and the way she makes me want AWL the polishes, and not only did I find Hot Chili, but I also picked up two of the new shades.

First up is Embers Only...heh heh heh!!!  Embers Only!!  Do you all remember Members Only jackets?  Of course you don't.  You weren't born back then.  But I digress.

Ooooooh.  That's mighty nice.  Embers Only is a true red...to me it doesn't lean orange or blue...it's just red.  It's bright too, and it's got a pink shimmer and sparse pink and gold glitter.  This one is a crelly and a little thin.  I used 3 coats of Embers Only for pretty good opacity.

My best high school bud Todd had a Members Only jacket back in 1983.  He wore it with his parachute pants and looked totally awesome!  But again, I digress...

I made the comment to my friend Yadi at Night Swatcher that I am making the BOLD prediction that this next shade will be the coveted Sinful Colors shade of the year:  Peppered Amazon.  Peppered Amazon??!!  :/

My bottle had spottitis wonkimus for some reason, but try to overlook that and look at how utterly fantastic Peppered Amazon is!!  It's a creamy, dreamy, slightly dusty jade that's loaded with more silver shimmer than an episode of Toddlers and Tiaras.  This is an unusual shade and finish of green, and it's gorgeous!  Application was fabulous on this one, and I used 2 coats.

What do you think of these Sinful Colors shades?  I'm loving Embers Only, but Peppered Amazon is SO lovely that I am anticipating the possible arrival of Salted Nile for autumn? :P  I purchased these at Rite Aid. 

Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely day! <3

Sinful Colors Silver Belle

Hey everybody!  My name is Melissa, and I run a humble blog called Lacquer Reverie.  When the lovely Dani asked me to do a guest post for her while her nails are in rehab, I was only too happy to oblige!  Dani is a sweet girl with two terribly cute little boys, and she is forever posting on Facebook delicious photos of some gourmet dish she's whipped up.  Maybe one day she'll post some food pics on here! ;)

Today I have decided to appeal to the cheap in all of us nail polish collectors.  Nail polish is great.  We already know this.  But when a nail polish is pretty AND inexpensive, well, that's even better.  Sinful Colors is a line that I have had very good experiences with as far as wear, application, and interesting color choices...and the whoppin' $1.99 price tag just can't be beat.  This year Sinful Colors introduced quite a few new polishes for Christmas, including a frothy little delight called Silver Belle.

Silver Belle is a simple polish.  It's a muted metallic, not shiny, and not quite what you would call frosty.  It looks like pearly fabric.  It's got a medium amount of small silver hexes. 
 

Silver Belle is quite sheer, so I layered two coats over a light grey creme.  The polish applied effortlessly with no glitter issues or patchiness.

Isn't this pretty?  It's a Christmas party.  It's a winter's night.  It's a magical snowdrift.  It's $1.99!  Sorry...my enthusiasm got the better of me. :)

How could you NOT be the belle of the ball whilst wearing this lovely holiday polish?  I found my Sinful Colors Christmas polishes at Walgreens on a very large end cap display titled "Glitz and Glittered."

Thanks so much for reading, and many thanks to Dani for having me here today! 

Sinful Colors Yes Officer (and lots of Halloween Pics!)

Hey everybody!  Are you having a fantastic Saturday? :)

Okay, I'm going to go ahead and admit it...I have officially morphed into a Sinful Colors addict.  It happened so quickly.  I never knew what hit me.  Was it the $ 1.99 price point?  The huge selection of interesting colors?  Well, I know what did it for me this time:  it was the NAME.  I bought this polish because I read the name and laughed out loud...in Wal-Mart.  Yes Officer.

YES OFFICER!!  That still makes me laugh.  Is it just me, or it that hilarious?  Hahahahaha!!!  Yes Officer is one of the new SC polishes for fall from their espionage-themed line (like Classified).  So yes, I bought this polish for the name.  BUT the fact that I didn't have another blue like this one didn't hurt. :)

Yes Officer is a peculiar little number.  In photos, and outside in sunlight, it looks like a really bright and rather Smurfy blue.  But indoors, it looks almost teal.  I don't think I ever saw a polish change so much going from inside to outside.  And of course, all attempts at capturing the indoor teal look have failed.  You'll just have to trust me on this one.

Well, at least I know this:  whatever lighting you're in, Yes Officer is a lovely color and a very autumnal, *slightly* dusty blue.  The formula seems to be more like a crelly than a creme.  I used two coats for photos and still had a bit a patchiness, so next time I will use three.  The only bad part about Yes Officer is that it did an illegal amount of flooding... just be careful of that.  Yes Officer just might cause you to be arrested and dragged off in chains for looking so fabulous!

And...as promised...I have some of this year's Halloween pics I thought I'd share with you! :)  My baby Angelo as a rootin-tootin' cowboy:

 

 And Nicolo as a (depressed) jester:

My sister Melanie and brother-in-law Chris do Halloween like nobody else.  They have a 3-story house that seems to have been intentionally designed to look spooky...we have nicknamed the house the Monster Plantation, a.k.a. Monsta P (Chris even created a Facebook page for it).  Mel and Chris decorate the Monster Plantation from the bottom all the way to the top. 

Here are me and Mel as cracked dolls...hey, check me out as a redhead Bratz, LOL! :D

My brother-in-law Chris as a ventriloquist's dummy:

Me, Mel, and Penny the zombie girl in the graveyard:

And photos of the Monster Plantation in all its spooky glory...

The Monster Plantation!

I HATE this guy.

Quoth the ravens...

Yes, Penny's eyes glow.  And she swings by herself and sings.

Well, if you've read this post all the way through, I am impressed!! :)  Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely day!

Drugstore Halloween Part 2: Sinful Colors Pumpkin Spice and Black Magic

Hey everybody!  Have I ever been having some fun at the drugstore this Halloween. :)  So many polishes for so little $$$.   I've already shown you a couple from the Fantasy Makers Wet n Wild collection, and today I've got two from the Sinful Colors Halloween collection.

First up is a polish that is great for Halloween, Thanksgiving, or anytime you're craving pie but on a diet - Pumpkin Spice.

Pumpkin Spice is a fiery orange and gold glitter mix in a clear base.  This pumpkin's on fire!!

I layered two coats of Pumpkin Spice over China Glaze Bend Over Backwards.  Then I decided to be all cutesy and do a sort of reverse accent nail. :D  The formula was a bit thin, but I got loads of glitter with every bottle dip. 

Let me tell you, this is one flashy glitter polish.  The colors glow to make a party on the nail.  Very festive...I think I almost prefer it for Thanksgiving, you know, when everybody gets the after-dinner sleepies and you need a jolt to wake you up.  Well, this gets your attention way better than caffeine, AND it won't burn holes in your tummy! :) 

Next up is definitely a Halloween polish...Black Magic.

Wow...this is so pretty!  Black Magic is an orange and black glitter mix in a clear base.  It's also loaded with tiny silver glitters that make this polish come to life with a diamond-esque look.

I layered two coats of Black Magic over Sally Hansen Black Out.  Then I decided to press my luck and attempt cuteness TWICE with a reverse accent nail. :P  The formula for Black Magic was not as thin as Pumpkin Spice and was very easy to apply.

Black Magic has that burning ember look I love in a black glitter polish.  It's just as festive as Pumpkin Spice...only it's a dark and brooding kind of festive. ;)  Both Pumpkin Spice and Black Magic dried a little bit dull, but some good ol' top coat perked up that shine just like Mop 'n' Glow did on your 1970's linoleum! :D  Oh, I forget...like 99.7% of you all weren't even born then...:P

Have you all checked out the Sinful Colors Halloween collection?  Don't be afraid of a frightening price...I found mine at Walgreens for $1.99.  Well, they were actually on sale for $1.50.  Spooky, sparkly, and not 'spensive. :D

Thanks for stopping by, and have a glittery day! <3

Comparison Post: Attack of the Murky Greens!!

Hey everybody!  I hope your Saturday has been a fantastic one!  

Earlier in the week, I did a post on Sinful Colors Classified.  It's one of those greens with a pretty serious identity crisis...it doesn't know if it wants to be green, or blue, or grey, or all of the above.  Some of my friends observed that Classified bore a resemblance to a couple of other colors out there, so I decided to do a comparison post for your enjoyment (and possibly helpful info...or maybe just curiosity?). :D

L to R:  butter LONDON Victoriana, Zoya Evvie, Sinful Colors Classified, China Glaze Elephant Walk

Who knew there were so many polishes in desperate need of therapy?  One has to wonder if these gals could even describe themselves if asked!  Let's see if we can get to the bottom of this mystery... 

 

butter LONDON Victoriana

I finally snagged this one from my wishlist! :)  Victoriana is a dusty, more-blue-than-green color with a lovely foil-like shimmer and superb application.  Greasy bottle thumbprint not included in most versions. 

Zoya Evvie

Evvie is definitely a green-grey color with only a very slight hint of blue.  As you can see, just my holding the bottle gives the whole photo a murky quality.  Evvie is a creme with a lovely application.

Sinful Colors Classified

You can read my entire (not so) Classified review here. :D  It's more blue-leaning than Evvie but not as much as Victoriana.  It's got a great creme formula with a remarkable price tag!

China Glaze Elephant Walk

I would say Elephant Walk is 50% green, 45% grey, and 5% blue.  This is one of those colors that looks different on the nail than in the bottle, and in a very good way.  I was surprised by this polish...it's a fantastic neutral with a gentle shimmer.  And that adds up to 100% gorgeous! :)





Now for some group shots!  And yes, Midget Pinky is fully aware that she looks ridiculous.  She'll be needing therapy too...

L to R:  butter LONDON Victoriana, Zoya Evvie, China Glaze Elephant Walk, Sinful Colors Classified

L to R:  butter LONDON Victoriana, Zoya Evvie, China Glaze Elephant Walk, Sinful Colors Classified

 

L to R:  Sinful Colors Classified, China Glaze Elephant Walk, Zoya Evvie, butter LONDON Victoriana

My final thoughts:  these are all four clearly not replicas (no, I will NOT use that annoying word) of each other, even though they have that same murky quality about them.  All four formulas are very good...it's just a matter of whether you like a foil, a creme, or a shimmer application best. :)  I really love all the colors and find that swamptastic shades like these look pretty good on me.  I think? :)

What do you think?  Which of these is your favorite?  

Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely day! <3

Top Secret Style! Sinful Colors Classified

Hey everybody!  Have you all been to your local Wal-Mart lately and happened to have seen a HUGE 4-sided display of Sinful Colors polishes?  I saw just that last weekend, and said display had several brand new colors on it.  So, I took this as a golden opportunity to get my very first Sinful Colors polish! :) 

The new colors have espionage themed names.  They're quite funny.  One of the ones I picked up is Classified, a creme with a not-so-definite color.

Let me mention that I have no idea what is going on with that first pic.  I look like I have something stuck all over my fingers?  Ugh...overlook that please and just pay attention to the lovely autumn color this is!

Classified is a dusty, greyish-blueish-greenish creme.  I just love it when a polish color is impossible to define.   Mayhap I am the same way? :P  I have read how sometimes Sinful Colors polishes are hit-and-miss as far as the formula goes, but Classified had a good formula and was almost a one-coater.

The pics look like there is a slight shimmer to Classified, but I can't for the life of me see it in real life.  Usually it's the other way around.  I must be more tired than I thought!

I have tried the Sinful Shine line of Sinful Colors, but this was my first regular SC polish.  And I think for $1.99, this is a pretty good little strangely-hued creme.  If your Wal-Mart has the new colors, check them out.  There are some really pretty things going on there. Um, I meant the SC display...NOT Wal-Mart.:)

Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely day! :)

How Bloggers Influence Me: SinfulColors SinfulShine Yours Truly

Hey everybody!  I hope you're doing well.  I gave this post its name because there were two different blogs that influenced me to purchase today's polish.  Yun at The Polish Hideout was featuring some of the Tink Collection by Nicole by OPI last week, and I knew I HAD to have that pink one.  In the meantime, Karen at Frazzle and Aniploish did a review of some of the new SinfulShine polishes.  I thought, "Hmmm, I really like that last green one..."

I went down to Walgreens, after checking Yun's post *one more time* to make sure the Tinks were, in fact, a Walgreens exclusive.  Well...no Tink Collection in the building.  Pooh. But they did have a wonderful selection of the SinfulShine polishes...

I compromised and got a deliciously girly pink by SinfulShine, Yours Truly.

 And I have to tell you that the actual name of this polish is Your's Truly...but you all know I'm not going to give any airtime to badly used apostrophes, right?  Good. :)  I have been wanting a full-coverage, feminine, slightly bubblegum pink creme, and Yours Truly fit the bill perfectly.

SinfulShine polishes contain a polymer they call "Gel Tech", which is supposed to give the glossy shine of acrylic UV gel.  I don't know how it compares to a gel polish, because I've never used it, but this polish is very glossy.  It has a good application, and I used 3 coats just to try to cover up that ever-present visible nail line.  However, the glossy shine did dull a bit after 24 hours, which in my opinion isn't bad, considering the way polishes behave on me.  And these photos were taken after 24 hours.  The tip wear you see is half of what I usually have after a day.

I have never had a SinfulColors polish before now.  I guess I always figured at $1.99 (or $1.98 at Low Price Leader Wal-Mart! :D), they couldn't possibly be any good.  I also don't care for the word "sinful" in the name.  I mean...there's enough sin and depravity in the world without my nails traveling down the road to perdition as well.  Anyway...the SinfulShine line retails for $2.99 each.  I like Yours Truly so much that I wish I'd picked up a couple more.  The entire collection is 32 colors!!

Have you tried any SinfulShine polishes yet?  And most importantly...have you entered my Warm and Fuzzy Indie-tastic Giveaway??  

Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely day! :)