Dear La Boheme,

Can you forgive me for my past trash-talking? I now appreciate the beauty you truly are...







I hope you can accept my apology.

Love, The Asian Girl

"After this one, you're gonna need a root canal..."

Hey!!! How's everyone doing? School and work have taken over my life...again. But don't worry, I still seek refuge in nail polish!

Back in February, I talked about Hard Candy Sky...guess what, Hard Candy is now available at select Wal-Marts! For those of you fairly new to nail polish, Hard Candy was a huge trend back in the '90s with their out-of-the-ordinary pastel polishes. Urban Decay also came to prominence around the same time (coincidentely, UD has also released new polishes, albeit minis).

I heard the news back in August, so I started stalking a few local Wal-Marts. Sorry for the low quality pics, I only had my Blackberry on hand.

9/17/2009 :(

9/24/2009 :D

Lava: red/gold glitter; slightly orange-y redFishnet: red creme

Pretty in Punk: hot pink creme

Date Night: mauve-pink glitterHypnotic: dusty pink with gold shimmerSplendid: sunny yellow creme

Sweet P: lime green glitterEnvy: blackened green shimmer

Frenzy: teal cremeMr. Wrong: purple/gold foil-ish microglitterMr. Right: blurple shimmer

Hot Pants: hexagonal and small glitter in a purple jelly baseRumor Mill: vampy purple creme (similar to OPI LPAD)Break Up: hexagonal and small glitter in a translucent white base

Sugar Daddy: white with gold shimmerThe End: black creme

I only bought Mr. Wrong and Envy, the two standouts of the collection. Envy reminds me of satin sheets...it's a rich, blackened green similar to Wet 'N Wild Craze Morbid but more of an emerald green sheen. Mr. Wrong is unlike anything in my collection...it has light purple and gold flaky microglitter which gives it a foil-like texture. I have a feeling I may end up impulsively buying Lava in the future since I have a weakness for red glitter polish. I didn't really feel any of the cremes; Splendid and Frenzy look nice but they remind me too much of Zoya Pippa and Color Club Bizerk Turq. That, and I'm not much of a creme person.

The rings suck. I think it was just thrown in for familiarity with the old brand. They're made of hard plastic and do not stay on the cap securely. I'm guessing they added shrink wrap to secure the rings and to keep those pesky tweens from "sampling" the polish on the display or on themselves.

The makeup line looks REALLY tempting but I'm on a strict no-buy. I told myself if I won Chanel Holographic on eBay, I would be on a 2-week no-buy and on restriction for another two weeks. This is my only indulgence for now! I hope you find Hard Candy at your local Wal-Mart; I hear it was only released in 3000 stores. Keep your eyes peeled!

The crown jewel of my collection...

I don't say that statement lightly. During my hiatus, I've accumulated quite a few amazing HTFs, but this one takes the cake. I mentioned back in February that I had a line when it came to spending on a nail polish, but I crossed it and then some for this. I had Essie Starry Starry Night as my main lemming because I never thought I'd actually get the chance at Chanel Ciel de Nuit.


Ciel de Nuit was born from a Seventeen magazine/Chanel contest back in 1997. They revived the contest last fall with Haute Chocolat winning out. I clearly remember seeing this color in Seventeen but it was too expensive for 12-year-old me. Luckily (or unluckily, depending on how you look at it), the 24-year-old me decided to throw caution in the wind when she saw it up on eBay. I spent an insane amount for this...if you're curious, look at recent eBay auctions for this color. It will make you gasp in horror.

I own 3 polishes similar to Ciel de Nuit and I'm sad to report that none of them live up to it. Both Jessica Twilight and Naturistics Crystal Blue Pearl are jellies but lean closer to indigo/violet. Maybelline Twinkle Twinkle is more blue but isn't a jelly.

For some reason, a few John Mayer lyrics came to mind after looking at this color in person for the first time...

"I know you're mine, all mine, all mine
but you look so good it hurts sometimes..."

No pics...yet!

I'm so excited that I couldn't wait to post...my Rescue Beauty Lounge blogger polishes arrived today!!! :D

I haven't had time to try them on myself, but just enough time to swatch on nail tips...wow! I was a little worried about Orbis Non Sufficit and Mismas being dupeable, but they greatly exceeded my expectations...they are both one-coater cremes! The formula on these two are a great testament to why RBL is considered the gold standard for nail polish application.

And Scrangie...words cannot describe this shade. If you have to splurge on ONE high-end polish this year, Scrangie is IT! There is nothing out there similar; it is one of a kind! I've seen quite a few pictures of the three blogger polishes on the nail board, but it's still a joy to see them in person. Pictures don't do any of these polishes (ESPECIALLY Scrangie) justice.

After months of waiting, I finally found the Tracy Reese Sally Hansen Salon polishes! There's a CVS on my way to Pensacola Beach at Gulf Breeze proper that I make a point to attempt to visit every time I'm in the area. This little ritual of mine began when I found the fall 2008 Barielle Shades collection there back in March, so it's kind of my drugstore polish good luck charm. I picked up Night Hydrangea and Honeydew.

I'll try to get some pics up as soon as I can! I've been pretty busy between work and class, so please bear with me!

"It's what's inside that matters."

I received some samples from Diamond Cosmetics and I must say, I'm extraordinarily impressed. At first glance, the bottles of Diamond Cosmetics are relatively nondescript. However, once you apply...wow!


Don't Teal My Heart Away is a pretty creme teal. Teal is also the color of Ovarian Cancer awareness...Diamond Cosmetics will donate $0.25 with each bottle sold of this color.


Hue Are You is a burgundy with a gold shimmer...it has a gorgeous foil-like finish.


My personal favorite is Hot Summer Pink, part of their Summer 2009 collection. It's a neon pink with a bit of a blue flash. As with most neons, it can't be captured accurately; it GLOWS!


After seeing Oh, Tiff I had to compare with other popular Tiffany blues. On my index finger is three coats of China Glaze For Audrey, which is darker and more blue than Oh, Tiff. Three coats of Oh, Tiff is on my middle finger. The ring finger is two coats of Nina Ultra Pro's In A Tiff which is slightly lighter. Just for kicks, I applied 4 coats of Rescue Beauty Lounge's Bikini Bottom, a sheer jelly, on my pinky finger.

You can pick up any (or all, I highly recommend them!) of these polishes at www.diamondcosmetics.com for $2 each. There are a few colors at $2.50, but none of the above. Not only do I recommend them, I came back and bought a few more, especially this gem:


While I love OPI My Private Jet, it's just too sheer. A long lemming of mine, Color Club Revvvolution, was a disappointment. Chainmail Charm, in my opinion, is the best charcoal/black holo I've had the pleasure of using. It applies well and only needs 3 coats for opacity...all for $2. So what are you waiting for?!

Revlon's Runway Collection and reasons why I may need a dunce cap

Back in the day as a wee nail-biter, I used to fantasize about having long, elegant nails. I was especially envious of acrylic nails...I wanted a perfect french manicure. My parents were (and still are) very frugal, so there was no way my middle school nails were getting done at a salon. My cousin obtained a Fing'rs press-on nails kit, thus my quest for the perfect (plastic) manicure began.


I had the same issues at 24 with these nails like I did with the Fing'rs nails I used at 12: they're too curved. My nails are flatter, so I get dreaded bubbles. As you can see, only my pinky nail escaped that fate, but with only 24 nails a pack, you only get one shot to get them glued on correctly. Considering that this is a repeated problem for me; is it just me or do I need a dunce cap? Please heed that this is someone who has trouble with her Bumpits.

Check out the detail though...I'm impressed! These aren't the staid French manicures of my youth. I wish they did work out better for me; if anything for the gorgeous designs!

One last thing: I wish these came with the adhesive stickers as well as the glue. I've never been a fan of nail glue since it requires acetone to soak it off. The less damage to natural nails, the better, I say. Other than that, it's a lot quicker, cheaper and will damage your nails a lot less than acrylics, so it's a nice change of pace.

"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end..."

Wow.

I haven't posted since May, but nail polish hasn't been far from my thoughts...in fact, the very opposite. In fact, I've had to move on from my cassette tape cabinet into some new digs...



I found this in Target for $30...I think the capacity is similar to a Helmer. Unfortunately, the closest Ikea is 6 hours away in Atlanta, so I have to make-do somehow. :)

I've been trolling around a bit, sometimes on Makeupalley and posting a random comment here or there on my fellow bloggers' sites. It's been a crazy summer to say the least thanks to work and the occasional crazy stuff that pops up in my personal life. However, there's something else that will be taking up my time: it's official today...I'm returning to school on August 24. I finally took the plunge and I'll be starting classes toward a GIS (geographic information systems) certificate.

Some recent observations about nail polish:

1...Matte is EVERYWHERE! I swore I'd never get an OPI matte, but I'm really interested in La Paz-itively Hot. I'm considering buying Essie's Matte About You topcoat but I'm perfectly happy with my Nubar V For Men.

2...Zoya, Zoya, Zoya! If you follow nail polish and/or the MUA nail board, you've heard about Zoya's 5000 Twitter offer. My only regret about this offer was that I wish I knew that I could use the $18 credit toward Zoya Remove+ (the BEST nail polish remover EVER) instead of three free polishes. Honestly, I own more than enough Zoya polishes; I took clear advantage of the polish exchange...unlike some unsavory folks taking advantage of circumstances...but I digress.

3...Victoria Nail Supply. I'm very impressed by their quick availability, exceptional customer service and prompt delivery.

4...Wet 'N Wild Craze. While it's probably one of the cheapest drugstore brands, Wet 'N Wild does not scrimp on quality. Black Creme is one of the easiet-to-apply and opaque black polishes out there (perfect for frankening/layering purposes). I was lucky to find Craze at my local Walgreens (yet I felt a bit insane for calling them and asking if they had them in stock). It's still summer yet I'm already wearing Morbid, a fantastic blackened forest teal. The Craze polishes are worth it; they're cheap ($1.99!!!) and a dream to apply.

5...Chanel Jade. Okay, shoot me now...I've caved into green madness. I've obtained a couple of green HTFs (OPI Jasper Jade and Hey! Get In Lime!) and now I'm officially a green convert. I don't know about y'all, but I want Jade NOW! I didn't buy into any of Chanel's summer or fall lines (but I did get two of the disappointing Tokyo Happening polishes). I wasn't too thrilled about Orange Fizz (but picked up a much cheaper alternative; Wet 'N Wild Blazed), Golden Sand was too similar to last summer's Antilope, Intermezzo is supposedly a pain to apply, and I found Gondola too close to Cosmic Violine. October can't come fast enough...

I'll be posting again from time to time. I have tons of pics and reviews that haven't hit the internet yet, so stay tuned!