I Hate Summer! But I LOVE Summer Indulgences! (Pic Heavy)

Hey everybody!  Yes, it's true.  I know I'm in the minority here, but I truly and fervently dislike summer.  Summer inevitably reminds me of the 3 things I avoid like the plague:  sun, water, and sweating.  During summer, I have to practically style my hair into a beehive so that it will shrink down to the right amount of fluffy by the time I arrive at work.  It's all very distressing.

However, there ARE things about warmer months that bring a smile to my face, such as homeade ice cream...store bought ice cream...ice cream cones.  I like ice cream a lot...it's one of my indulgences.  What an awesome segue! :)  Today's post is the absolutely beautiful new Summer Indulgences Collection by Pretty Jelly.  Lovely Miss Liz says about her charming creations:  "Whether it's chasing down your favorite bands at music festivals, sipping your favorite drinks while reading a book, or taking a nap among the flowers - this summer take a moment to indulge in your favorite things."

Pretty Jelly Summer Indulgences Collection

 The Summer Indulgences Collection is made up of 5 polishes...there's something for everybody here.  Maybe even 3 or 4 for everybody...

First up, we have Daydream, a white base with green, yellow, and neon pink glitters.  I used 3 coats for the pics over China Glaze Princess Grace, which, I discovered, is pretty much the worst polish ever invented.  Daydream still looks lovely over it though...very soft and feminine. :)

 

Festival is a really fun glitter topper filled with neon pink, blue, green, yellow and white glitter.  There are also green and white stars and small blue bars.  This is an excellent glitter that behaves very well on the nail. :)  I layered 2 coats over OPI You're Such a Budapest to get the partaaaaaay started.

Electric Limeade is a light yellow creme base with neon green and neon blue glitter.  And this limeade is electric because of the holographic glitter!  Just look at that delicious sparkle! :)  You could use 3 coats on its own, but I used 4 for the photos.  Mmmmmm!  I'll take another glass, please! 

UGH!!  How pretty is this one??  This beautiful glitter topper is Wildflowers, a mix of pale purple, pink, blue, yellow, grey glitters.  And the pink is CIRCLE glitter!  This is 2 coats of Wildflowers over L'Oreal Club Prive, but you could even layer this one over a sausage and cheese biscuit and it would look great.

And now for the pièce de résistance:  Melon Sangria!  I know you all just *love* all my food references...so let's say it together:  FRUIT SALAD!!  Melon Sangria is a coral jelly packed with large white, green, yellow, orange, and pink hex glitters.  I layered 2 coats over OPI Suzi's Hungary Again!...I really don't know why it looks patchy in the pics, because it didn't in the least in real life.  It's pretty squishtastic.  And so awesome that it wins the coveted ring shot:

Now THAT'S some Pretty Jelly.

What do you guys think? :)  All 5 of these polishes are crazy gorgeous and behave so nicely.  Application is great and the dry time is very fast.  The Summer Indulgences Collection is already making me feel better about the quickly approaching season.  That and ice cream.

You can purchase the Summer Indulgences Collection and other Pretty Jelly polishes on Etsy!

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

The Cheapskate Files: You CAN Fix Ugly

Hey everybody!  Today I have another frugal episode of the Cheapskate Files, my own humble way of making you feel better about spending way too much money on your out-of-control habit. :)  

Sometimes when you see a good bargain, you know it's an amazing find.  But other times, you realize pretty quickly why a particular polish was on the clearance shelf in the first place.  Today's post is both!  On one of my recent Ulta clearance shelf treasure hunts, I spotted OPI Where's My Bikini Top?, a rather peculiar-looking, grayish-green pastel creme, for the low, low price of $1.99.  

OPI Where's My Bikini Top?

Where's My Bikini Top? is actually a renamed Stranger Tides, from the 2011 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Collection.  Perhaps in its original incarnation, this was possibly a bit better...but now, with a silly new name and no charming Capt. Jack Sparrow association, this baby is HIDEOUS.

OPI Where's My Bikini Top?

I'm not talking about the color...it's a little dirty-looking, but it's a nice antique fern green.  But the formula is the issue here.  Just look at that bottle...the polish was permanently separating and runny as anything.  I even tried Seche Restore, which could fix 152 year old paint, and nothing helped.  It was streaky and the wateriest mess I ever used.  My official scientific term is blech.

Now enter the AWESOME clearance find:

Essie Luxeffects Pure Pearlfection!!  I have to say that I have no idea why in the world this was on clearance...this stuff is wonderful!  Described by Essie as a "multi dimension top coat", it gives your blech polish a whole new lease on life with its effortless pearly glaze.

Oh my.  That's so much better.

One coat of Pure Pearlfection, and the streaks are gone.  It applies evenly and smoothly and is quite honestly the best Essie product I own.

Pearls + Blech = Gorgeous!

I cannot recommend Pure Pearlfection enough.  If this stuff doesn't fix your ugliest polish, nothing will.  I've even convinced Where's My Bikini Top? to back away from the ledge and enjoy life for once.

I just noticed I have 3 paper cuts on this hand.

I love a happy ending like this one!  And a CHEAP happy ending is always better! :)

Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely day!