My First A-England: Briar Rose

Hey everybody!  I hope you're doing well this week.  Well, as the title of this post suggests, I've finally acquired my very first A-England polish.  After months of going back and forth about which one I wanted as my inaugural A England experience, I chose the one I had a feeling it would be all along...Briar Rose, from the Burne-Jones Dream collection.

I'm not going to repeat what you've read about this polish a hundred times already...about how striking it is, how strong and dense the scattered holo effect is, how easy it is to apply.  Nah, I'm not going to bore you with all that. :)  Instead, I'll tell you about the other things I like!  

First off, I adore Pre-Raphaelite art.  I've always related to those sad-eyed, juicy-bodied maids of old.  My 1998 (back when all you guys were about 3) calendar was an Edward Burne-Jones calendar that contained one of the paintings from whence came this collection's inspiration, The Rose Bower.

Other reasons I love this polish, in no particular order:

1.  I love Sleeping Beauty...well, particularly Maleficent, but Aurora was pretty nice too.

2.  You can't make a mistake with this!  Very helpful for somebody so clumsy that she just smashed her elbow whilst putting clothes in the dryer.

3.  It's that color that sucks me in every time...a metallic, slightly wine rose.

4.  A-England is just a cool brand.  I mean, I love the Camelot legends, AND I have John William Waterhouse's The Lady of Shallot over my bed (you'll see that one on my wish list)!??!!

5.  The best reason of all:  this polish looks dusty.  Like it's literally covered in dust.  Magic dust.  It gives it such an antiquated feel.  It makes you want to break out the heirloom jewelry...

...or at least the 10-year old jewelry that was designed to look antiquated. :P

So my first experience with A-England was a marvelous one.  The legends are true.

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

Drugstore Halloween Part 1: Wet n Wild Poison Ivy and Lethal Injection

Hey everybody!  There's something about a drugstore to which I am magnetically drawn.  I don't know what it is.  When my sister and I were teenagers, we went to the drugstore every single Sunday afternoon.  We loved to look at all the new makeup and perfume displays and buy candy.  So as a result, we ended up being two chubby tarts who wore lots of Malibu Musk. :D

I still love to look at all the new drugstore makeup displays.  Last weekend, I was in Walgreens and saw a really big Fantasy Makers Halloween display...it had apparently just been put out, because I made the first purchase from it.  It was stocked with the trademark Fantasy Makers false eyelashes, eyeshadow palettes, and everything else, including nail polish.  I picked up a couple of the Wet n Wild Megalast polishes.  I believe the Halloween polishes are re-releases, but I didn't have any of them.  And they were only $1.99, you know?

First up I have Poison Ivy, a metallic green shimmer.

Poison Ivy is a deep, slightly blackened hunter green.  Strangely enough, I don't have another green this color in my collection.

I applied two coats of Poison Ivy for the photos.  The Megalast brush is called a "Manicurve Pro Brush", which means a wide, paddle style.  That is always problematic for me since I have such tiny nails, so I had to be really careful.  I experienced a bit of dragging, but of course, it looks worse here than in real life. :)

Poison Ivy is a great green, both for Halloween and for autumn.  The photos show a warmer side to the color, but in real life, it leans a touch more blue. 

I gave my sweet husband Brian the task of choosing my other Wet n Wild polish, and I think he did a great job.  The name is great...Lethal Injection.  Oh my.

The color of Lethal Injection reminds me of OPI Diva of Geneva, only Lethal Injection's shimmer is silver and not gold.  Again, in real life, this color is a bit different...it's more oxblood than wine.  Maybe Wet n Wild polishes like to keep you guessing? ;)

I experienced dragging again with my two coats, but it all looks fine in real life.  My biggest problem was how much of a mess it made my cuticles! :/

Lethal Injection isn't an unusual color, but if you are in the mood for a deep, vampy shade for very little money, this will do nicely for you. 

Quoth the Raven, "Lethal Injection!"  no...wait...

Have you gotten any Halloween drugstore offerings this October?  I always wish I had a place to wear all those great false eyelashes...*sigh*.

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

A Week of Falls with Pretty Jelly: Rabbit Hole

Hey everybody!  I hope you are all doing well today.  I am super excited for today's post, another epic "fall" as interpreted by the amazing Liz at Pretty Jelly.  It's a story of confusion, riddles, and trying to get back home - featuring a girl named Alice, who fell down the...Rabbit Hole!

OH.  MY.  GOODNESS.  I think I would gladly put up with a weird cat, a grumpy caterpillar, a chop-happy monarch, and insanity in general if Wonderland was THIS color.  I mean, why would Alice even want to come back?? :)  This stuff is magic in a bottle.

Let me quote Liz's description of Rabbit Hole, because it's so complex I'd never get it right myself: "brown-purple base with red-violet shimmer that turns gold at extreme angles, large copper glitter, small copper-gold glitter, and sparse holographic glitter."  And that's all there, in one convenient polish!

I would describe the overall look of Rabbit Hole as aubergine.  It's just so gorgeous.  Really.  It's a crelly, and I could have used 3 coats, but I only used two because quite frankly, my lighting was bad and I couldn't see what I was doing! :P  The formula is fantastic and the application effortless, as with all Pretty Jelly polishes.

So...will you also be falling down the Rabbit Hole?  It's a lovely place to be...

Pretty Jelly Rabbit Hole is available on Etsy.  Be sure to check out the entire Fall Collection!  They are all so beautiful that you'll be sure to "fall" for them! 

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

Nail of the Day: OPI Suzi Loves Sydney

Hey everybody!  I am up writing this post in the middle of the night because my sister and I have a big singing engagement today, and I'm nervous and can't sleep. :(  So I thought rather than toss and turn in the bed, I'd show you what was on my nails right now:  a true blast from the past...OPI Suzi Loves Sydney.

OPI Suzi Loves Sydney

Suzi Loves Sydney is from the 2007 Australia Collection, back when the Pro-wide brush was new and OPI's polishes retailed for $7.50 a bottle! :D

OPI Suzi Loves Sydney

Suzi Loves Sydney was described in the 2007 press release as "a sophisticated deep wine shade."  It also has a shimmer and the slightest bit of brown in it.  I LOVE this polish.  I've had it forever...I think I picked it up in 2008 in an Ebay lot with some assorted Russia and Hollywood polishes.  Wow...that was a really good purchase...

This bottle and I have been through thick and thin together...can you see where I once had to take the pliers to get it open?  But OOOH...closeup on the shimmer!!

An oldie but a goodie

You can actually still find Suzi Loves Sydney on Ebay in very limited supply.  It's a gorgeous polish, and I have loved it well. 

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

The Divine Wine: OPI Diva of Geneva

Hey everybody!  As I've said before, I tend to gravitate towards blue and green polishes, but my favorite color on me has always been some form of wine.  I think wines and maroons look really good against very pale skin.  Maybe it's because nobody expects it.  Maybe it's because it makes innocence look a little vampy? :P

 

OPI Diva of Geneva

Diva of Geneva is from the Swiss Collection of 2010.  I had originally purchased this polish with the hope that it would be about the same color as My Big Break, which is my all-time favorite OPI.  I had a bottle of the latter that I finally had to part with when the lid got completely stuck to the bottle. :(  But as it turned out, Diva of Geneva was quite a bit darker.

A perfect Swiss Miss

Diva of Geneva is described by about everyone else as purple-pink, but on me, it's a plummy wine with a subtle shimmer.  I *love* this color...it's always my go-to wine hue.

Cleanup on Aisle 3...somebody just passed out from all the gorgeousness!

The only down side to this polish is that it's not as forgiving as, say a foil finish...OPI's brush is too wide for my ridiculously tiny nails and I have to pay very close attention when I apply this polish.  It's worth it though...it's a very elegant color.

Pardon me, do you have any Grey Poupon?

So, if you dare to release your inner diva, pick up Diva of Geneva.  And don't be surprised if you start ordering people around. :P

Have a lovely evening! :)