First Impressions - The Body Shop Sweet Almond Oil Nail Varnish Remover

Hey, guys!  Sorry about my little hiatus there.  The nausea and fatigue does seem to be improving little by little, so I am hoping to get back into the swing of things very soon!  Today I picked up The Body Shop's Sweet Almond Oil Nail Varnish Remover, which I've heard some pretty good stuff about!  I emptied it into my flip-top pump before taking a photo, but at least you can see how it's packaged.

I will say right off the bat that it's pretty pricey for the size ($10 for 3.3 ounces).  It does not have a strong or unpleasant odor, which is a fantastic change of pace after finishing off the Nailtiques remover I wrote about in my remover comparison post last month.  It actually has a sweet fragrance that strikes me as vanilla-ish.  You can definitely still smell the alcohol in it, but overall it's a nice scent.  I'm using it on my nails as I type, so you're pretty much getting a play-by-play here.  Isn't that exciting?  I'm noticing now that the smell is actually pretty nice once you've got it on a cotton ball and the alcohol vapors dissipate.  The three nails I've done so far have come off nice and easy.  There is a bit of oily residue left behind, but it really feels like it's hydrating my nails and cuticles.  Working on my accent nail is proving a bit difficult, but that's to be expected since I used a glitter topper.  I'm not totally sold on the ten dollar price tag for such a small amount of product, but my first impression is that the product itself is really nice.  I might really love it after a few uses!

Zoya Aurora Swatches

Hey, guys!  I am so sorry I have been late posting recently!  Unfortunately, I suffered two breaks on my swatching hand over the last last week, and today was the first day I've seen the sun in a while.  I struggled trying to decide whether or not to trim my other nails, but the weather wouldn't have been cooperative for swatches, anyway.  Now that I finally got some swatching weather, I went ahead and trimmed my nails and put on a new color, which you'll see below.  Click through to see the rest of the swatches.

Pacifica Super Hydrating Hand Cream Review

The winters here in Iowa are cold, dry, and windy, and that is a terrible combo for your skin.  So when regular lotion wasn't cutting it, and I started developing severely dry patches of skin on my wrists, I went to Ulta in search of something with more intense moisturizing capabilities.  I had been considering The Body Shop, because the reviews for their hand cream are great.  I opened the Ulta app to see if there was another highly-rated had cream, and I noticed Pacifica.

I had never tried anything from this brand before, but I did see it on the shelves in store, so I picked up a tube.  It's a bit pricey, but Ulta puts out coupons frequently, and you can get an even better deal if you use the coupons in conjunction with rewards redemption.  The lid screws off and the product comes out of a small hole, which is good because you don't need to use a lot to get the job done.  Since I am a lover of fruity scents - particularly citrus - I opted for the Tuscan Blood Orange scent.  It smells so good, you guys.  It's sweet and citrusy, but not a way that's cloying, and it doesn't fade quickly (which is great with a fragrance this nice).  I've actually had guests at work comment on how nice it smells!  this hand cream does leave some residual oils on the skin after you've got it rubbed in, but that can be a good thing when the air around you is dry and/or you're doing a lot of hand washing.  I may not use this during the Summer, but it was a great find for the colder, drier months!  Pacifica has a lot of great things going on within their company, such as ethically-sourced ingredients, vegan and cruelty-free formulations, and charitable work within their community.  And I just saw that they also make a 7-free nail polish line!  I'll definitely have to check that out when my no-buy is over.

Deborah Lippmann Xanadu Swatches

Hello, everybody!  Today I have a great polish to show you from Deborah Lippman, and the post is going to be a bit on the picture-heavy side.  So, you know, fair warning.  This is my first Deborah Lippmann, and I think I did a good job narrowing it down.  I actually won a DL twitter contest and got a $30 credit for the website.  The kicker, though, was that it was right in the middle of my no-buy and the credit was only good for a week.  I found myself considering breaking my no-buy and getting a second bottle, but I ended up reaching out to my fellow nail bloggers to see if anybody would be willing to help me out.  As luck would have it, Jessica from Trial & Acetone was willing to use the rest of the credit and send me my polish.  I felt so much better knowing that half of that credit wouldn't be wasted!  Click through to see the rest of the swatches!

Mint Slumber Party and Moonlit Stroll Swatches

*Press sample*

Hey, guys!  Today I'm going to give you guys a two-fer since I missed Monday's post.  I've got two more Mint shades to show you,  Moonlit Stroll and Slumber Party.  The first shade I'm going to show you is Slumber Party, which is a bright pink creme.  Click through to see the rest of the swatches!

Let's Talk Nail Polish Removers!

Hey, guys!  Today I thought I would share with you my thoughts on the remover I am currently using, which is the Nailtiques Non-Acetone remover.  I picked this up at Ulta while looking for something gentle since we're coming out of winter here, and it's cold and dry and an all-around terrible time of year for my hands.  It includes aloe and conditioners!  I also picked up a Flowery pump, so I ditched the bottle, but it also said something about the remover having a pleasant scent!  I was sure that this remover would be the be-all-end-all of removers, but I was sadly mistaken.  To me, I feel it's quite drying (moreso than other acetone-based removers Ive tried), and it has a strong scent that is nowhere near as pleasant as OPI Expert Touch, Essie Naturally Clean, or Zoya Remove +.  I know that others seem to love this remover (the Ulta rating is currently the same as OPI Expert Touch), but it was a total dud for me.  I've recently had a hard time with some glitters I've tried, but to be fair, they may have just been stubborn glitters and it's possible that wasn't the fault of the remover.  So overall, I wouldn't recommend it.  There are other removers in around the same price range that leave my cuticles much happier and smell better, to boot!

Here's a breakdown of the price per volume of all the removers I've mentioned:
• Zoya Remove + // $9.99 for 8 ounce, or $1.25 per ounce
• Essie Naturally Clean // $6.00 for 4 ounces, or $1.50 per ounce

• OPI Expert Touch // 5.95 for 4 ounces, or $1.49 per ounce

• Nailtiques // $8.00 for 6 ounces, or $1.33 per ounce

So clearly Nailtiques is a little cheaper by volume than OPI Expert Touch or Essie Naturally Clean, but I would still put it at the bottom of the list were I to rank these four.  I found Essie Naturally Clean to be drying, too, but the scent is much nicer.  OPI Expert Touch has a citrusy scent, which I love, and leaves my cuticles looking and feeling nice.  Zoya Remove + is my favorite of the bunch, and I was surprised to see that it's actually the least expensive per volume!  It's definitely worth mentioning that Nailtiques is the only non-acetone remover on this list; however, OPI Expert Touch and Zoya Remove + both contain additives to counteract the drying properties of acetone and condition nails and cuticles.

Mint Fancy Swatches

*Press Sample*

Hello, everybody!  I finally had a decent day to take a few pictures.  Yay!  So today I've got some swatches from a new-to-me brand that's 5-free: Mint!  I reached out to Mint in the hopes of finding some great non-toxic brands to share with you guys, and Greta was kind enough to send me some samples!  The first color I tried, Fancy, was my least favorite in the bottle, but I actually ended up really liking it!  Click through to see the rest of the swatches.

Rainbow Honey Crystal Sword Swatches

Hello!  My apologies for not getting this up on time.  The weather here was pretty gloomy yesterday and it's even worse today, so I'll have to update this post later with outdoor lighting.  :(  Without further ado, the remaining color from the Rainbow Honey March Mystery Bag, Crystal Sword!

Rainbow Honey Lemon Honey Swatches

Okay, guys.  Remember in my last post where I said time had been getting away from me?  Well, nothing's changed on that front.  Luckily, the reason for that will probably become more clear soon.  Anywhoodle, I've got another shade from the Rainbow Honey March Mystery Bag to share with you today!  Click through to see the rest of the swatches!

Rainbow Honey Kozmic Blues Swatches

Hello, all!  Today I've got just one color fro the Rainbow Honey March 2015 Mystery Bag to show you.  In the past, I've been able to do a full review of the mystery bag all on one fell swoop, but time has been getting away from the past couple of weeks.  The remaining Mystery Bag items will probably go up on Friday.  Click through to see the rest of the swatches!

Zoya Maria Luisa Swatches

Hey, guys!  I totally forgot I had taken these pictures and started freaking out a little bit about what other greens I had to show you...  And then I finally remembered that I had these and all was well with the world!  Click through to see the rest of the swatches...

First Impressions - FingerPaints Gel-Like Base and Top Coats + Hard As Steel Strengthener

*Press Sample*

Today is going to be a rare day in that I will not have any nail photos in my post!  I want to talk to you guys about some products that FingerPaints graciously sent for my review.  Last week I told you about their new Grab It! Base Coat and Smooth Over Ridge Filler, which I really liked.  This week, I have a product that I was pretty neutral about and two that just didn't work for me.  Click through to read more.

Sally Hansen Jazzy Jade Swatches

Hey, everybody!  Today I've got a great shade that I thought I had swatched a while back, but hadn't!  It's a nice Springy color (at least in my opinion), too, so it's definitely worth checking out for those of you in search of a fun new color to complement your Spring wardrobe.  Click through to see the rest of the swatches!

Rainbow Honey February 2015 Mini Mystery Bag Swatches

Hey, guys!  I've got another big post for you today.  Last month, I subscribed to the Rainbow Honey Mini Mystery Bag, which was to be the sole exception to my 100 day no-buy.  Looking forward to these amazing colors really helps curb the desire to buy everything I see!  The February Mystery Bag is, unfortunately, already sold out.  It included three nail polishes, a scented cuticle balm, perfume oil, and foot massage lotion.  This month's fragrance was carnival candy, and it's a light, sugary-sweet smell that is reminiscent of cotton candy.  I found that the perfume oil had a much lighter fragrance than the lotion and the cuticle balm and faded pretty quickly for me, but I'm not much for perfumes in the first place so that didn't really bother me.  The foot lotion was fantastic.  I stand pretty much my entire shift at work, so my feet are usually pretty weary by the time I get home.  This is especially true if I run errands before or after work and/or work through my break.  I used a small amount of the massage lotion on each foot, and it really felt great on my poor, neglected feet.  The cuticle balm seems to moisturize really intensely, which is great because we've been having cold, dry weather here and it's been really difficult to keep my cuticles in check.  Click through to see what else I got!

Rainbow Honey January 2015 Mini Mystery Bag Swatches

Today I've got a lot of stuff to talk about!  I recently subscribed to the Rainbow Honey Mini Mystery Bag, which is the sole exception to my 100 day no-buy.  Not wanting to miss out, I also purchased the January bag separately from my subscription.  I received the January bag on Saturday, and today I'm going to talk about everything that was in it.

Revlon ColorStay Moisture Stain Swatches

Veering off the track of nail polish, today I am reviewing the Revlon ColorStay Moisture Stains.  I picked up four shades yesterday at Ulta, where I found Revlon products were on sale buy one get one 50% off.  They retail for $9.99 at Ulta (I am sure the price point varies a bit depending on your location), so I pretty much got four for $30.  Picture-heavy review after the jump!

Mystery Pahlish Swatch

Today I have a mystery Pahlish to show you!  Pahlish does kind of a fun thing in their shop where you can purchase mystery colors at a discount.  According to the listing, " These bottles consist of prototypes, colors that did not get released, test bottles, and "oops" batches which can include polishes with some sinking glitter."

SUPER BLACK Lacquers Spanked + Bazillions Swatch

Okay, so I've had this photo ready to go for several days now and just haven't gotten around to actually posting.  These are my last two colors from SUPER BLACK Lacquers (for awhile, anyway,) Spanked and Bazillions!

Too Faced Sweet Sun Shines Lip Gloss Swatches

I went to Ulta recently and picked up a few new lip glosses to swatch.  I had several nails break recently, so I'm waiting for them to grow out a bit more before posting more nail polish swatches.  My nail beds are just so tiny, I think my nails look silly when they're cut short and painted.  Anyway, one of the glosses I picked up was a Too Faced Sweet Sun Shines Lip Gloss.  Swatches and review after the jump!

Maybelline SuperStay 10 Stain Gloss Swatch + Wear Test

I picked up a tube of Maybelline Superstay 10 Hour Stain Gloss in Cool Coral the last time I was out and about shopping for beauty-type stuff.  I decided to put it to the test and photograph it throughout the day.  See the results behind the jump!