What Fall 2010 collection are you most looking forward to?

Lacquerized has rounded up the info about most of the Fall 2010 collections in one awesome post. There's a lot of great collections to look forward to, but my question to you is: 

Which Fall 2010 collection has you most excited?

Leave me a comment and let me know! I'll go first and tell you mines. I am most looking forward to...Orly Cosmic FX!

 

Cover Girl Smoky Shadow Blast- Tempest Blue

Today is part two in my Cover Girl Shadow Blast miniseries. I've got a "Bold" look for you today. The Tempest Blue shadow duo is not for the faint of heart. This bright blue smoky eye combo is bold alright. Against my dark skin, the lid color looks really pale...almost white. The crease color is a darker blue that I like. I uploaded a video on YT showing me applying the eyeshadow:

This is my second YT video by the way, so be easy. ;-) Sorry its so dark, I couldn't get my lighting the way I wanted it and I fiddled around with it for at least 30 minutes!

Alright, we've got one more part to go. Then I'll sum up what I like about these eyeshadows in a pro and con list. Don't forget the Cover Girl Wal-Mart giveaway, check the link at the top of my blog!

This post contains a Cover Girl Smoky Eye kit ,product image/information and gift card sent for review and giveaway by Cover Girl through Blog Spark. For more information about my disclosure policy, please read this post.

Cover Girl Giveaway!!

This week I will be posting 3 Smoky Shadow Blast looks from Cover Girl. If you like what you see or want  to get your hands on some Smoky Shadow Blasts, you're in luck! I'm giving away a $20 gift card to Wal-Mart in my Smoky Eye competition!

The rules are easy! Here are the way to enter:

• At the end of this week, leave a comment on this post telling me which Smoky Eye look you liked, the best: Natural, Glam or Bold. Be sure to leave your e-mail address!
• If you're a makeup newbie to makeup master, show me a picture of your smoky eye shadow look. Leave a comment on this post w/ email address.
• Become a follower of this blog!  Leave a comment with your e-mail address.
• Follow me on Twitter! Leave a comment with your Twitter username.
• Tell me your favorite Cover Girl product. Leave me a comment on this post w/ e-mail address.
• Blog about my giveaway! Leave me a link to your post in the comments.

The contest starts today June 28th through midnight CST July 5th! Good luck!

This post contains a gift card given to me for a contest by Cover Girl through Blog Spark. For more information about my disclosure policy, please read this post.

Cover Girl Smoky Shadow Blast Review

Alright ladies, I am certifiably nail polish obsessed and I will admit it. Ever since I started getting into polish I've began to explore the world of color and makeup. One look that I've envied is the smoky eye. Its a pretty hot look but so far has been pretty elusive to this makeup newbie. Well, enter Cover Girl smoky shadow blast eyeshadows! Getting the look is supposed to be easy with these products:

I tried the "Natural" look with Shadow Blast duo in Bronze Fire, Line Exact liquid liner in Brown and Lash Blast volume mascara in Brown. These are the swatches of the lid color, crease color and liner, L to R:

I own plenty of gold/bronze type of eyeshadow, but I was still excited to try this smoky look. 

The results:

Review:

I'm a brown girl, so this look was definitely "natural". The colors blended in right with my skin, especially the crease color. It gives me a nice every day look. I wore this combo on Friday and I found that the shadows definitely crease without a primer. I don't own any eyeshadow primer at the moment and this eyeshadow made me wish I did. I may not be a makeup expert, but I know that this eyeshadow creased faster than any other eyeshadow I own! I'm not a fan of volumizing mascara, I prefer lengthening mascaras but this one I like. I'm a Maybelline mascara girl, but this Lash Blast mascara has got me wanting to try the other Lash Blast products because the rich brown color payoff and the somewhat volume it gave to my not so thick lashes. The Line Exact liner? I'm in love, that liner definitely has staying power. All day long staying power and it still washes off easily with soap and water. Cover Girl may be on to something with their Blast mascaras and Line Exact liners. Stay tuned this week to see two more Smoky Shadow Blast looks...

This post contains a Cover Girl Smoky Eye kit and product image/information sent for review by Cover Girl through Blog Spark. For more information about my disclosure policy, please read this post.

China Glaze Custom Kicks Polka Dot Mani

Here's a recent manicure I did with CG's Custom Kicks from their Kicks Collection. It is a really gorgeous vibrant blue with golden shimmer, but what else do you expect from CG? They are my favorite nail polish company for blues and greens. This is one coat of Custom Kicks, its really opaque! I added polka dots just to do a little something different.

Rainbow Tiger Striped Nails!

Let me say that Twitter is awesome; if you aren't there, then you should be! The exchange of ideas on there is constant and you can really find some cool people on there. I follow China Glaze on Twitter and they tweeted about a Tumblr that showcases pretty nails. That's where I got this manicure idea from Artsy RN. She's a pretty cool girl who does some really cute nail designs. Though its not specifically a nail blog, she posts about nails a lot, so I would check it out if you want inspiration.

Here are the supplies I used:

L to R:

• Sally Hansen Blue Me Away
• Essie Pansy
• Zoya Creamy
• Wet n Wild French White Creme
• Seche Vite topcoat
• Art Deco Nail Art Polish in Black
• Makeup sponge

Artsy RN made a YouTube video tutorial which I used as my guide:

The Results!

As you can see, sponging your nails can get a little messy. So this is what they looked like before clean up:

This is Day 2. Getting a little tip wear, but I think it held up well considering the fact that I was moving. The white polish is a cheap, chip-tastic polish so when I do this again I want to use another white polish.

I used my go to topcoat Seche Vite and it kind of smeared the black stripes a bit. Next time I will use a different topcoat. Also you can reuse your makeup sponges just by cutting the used tip off.

China Glaze Pool Party + Sun Worshiper

You've seen the greatness that is the CG Poolside collection. I knew these colors were neon, but until saw them on my hands I didn't realize how scorching they were!

Pool Party was an instant favorite. An intensely hot pink made for summertime pedicures. This is two coats over white. It gets no complaints from me.

Sun Worshiper is a bright orange attention grabber. I described it to someone as bright highway vest neon orange because that's what it reminds me of. I had a hard time using this one, but it may be attributed to the white polish I used underneath. I switched from the Wet n Wild polish I was using to a white Nailene polish I had laying around. The Nailene polish had a horrible brush and was so thick! Not that white polishes are notorious to work with anyway... That plus the fact that Sun Worshiper liked to pool around my cuticles made for a application nightmare! Even so, that wasn't enough to keep me away from this color, its just so unique to my stash.

By the way, China Glaze won some of the ALU Superlatives in the Class of 2010! Which ones? Check it right here.

This post contains a sample product sent for review. For more information about my disclosure policy, please read this post.

Finger Paints You Hue!

It's safe to say that Finger Paints loves to play on their name with all the "Hue" shades. Well I've got another one: You Hue!

 You Hue! is a warm pink shade with golden shimmer. This is two coats, but its actually pretty opaque in one. Finger Paints are sold at Sally Beauty Supply. You can check them out at www.fingerpaints.com. On the website, they actually have information about collections. There's a collection called Heavenly Miracles, a limited edition set of blues, that according to the website are $1.99? They might be worth checking out in Sally Stores...

Petites Figi

I didn't plan on falling in love with Petites Figi...it just happened. I went to visit my parents for a couple of days (2-3) and ended up staying a over a week! I thought I'd packed my nail polish box and when I went looking for it, it was nowhere to be found. Needless to say, naked nails were driving me crazy! My mom and I went to Wal-Mart for a non-nail polish related trip but I wandered over there anyway. I'm glad I did, because I found Figi. Actually, I think Petites has stepped their game up because they had a couple of interesting shades, and depending on which Wal-Mart you visit, they range from $1.50-2.00. Not bad! So enough talk, lets get to the pictures!

Bottle Shot: Figi is blue/teal shimmer.

This is two coats + topcoat. The first time I wore this color on the aforementioned trip, I had no base coat or top coat. I just applied two coats of this color. Desperate times call for desperate measures okay? :-) I didn't see a chip for two days! To me, that's kind of amazing with no base coat or top coat.

Sinful Colors Mint Apple + China Glaze Medallion

I've had CG's Medallion for a while and haven't used it very much. It is an amazing gold glitter that (if you're brave enough) can look great own its own after a couple of coats or simply layered over any polish. While looking through my stash I rediscovered it and decided to pair it over Mint Apple for today's manicure.

On it's own Medallion can make your nails feel a little bumpy/rough but that's nothing I couldn't fix with my favorite topcoat Seche Vite.

Maybelline Twinkle Twinkle

Yes, I would love to own Essie Starry Starry Night. So when I spotted Twinkle Twinkle today at Dollar Tree (isn't it funny how you find something when you're not looking?) I picked it up without hesitation. Sure, its not an exact dupe, but its the closest I am to owing something like SSN.

Twinkle Twinkle is really pretty in the bottle, but on the nail the glitter is very fine and way less dense. This is two coats + Seche.

Zoya Sparkle Collection Summer 2010

Zoya's Sparkle collection is definitely a winner. I'm sure most of you have seen the collection before but I wanted to show the colors against a darker skin tone. With these glitter metallic shades there's something for everyone! All of these swatches are two coats.

Gilda

The pink addict in me loves Gilda. This hot pink is a stunner. Its bright, flashy and perfect for summer.

Nidhi

Remember how I said there was something in this collection for everyone? Maybe Nidhi would look better on that person. Its not that she isn't gorgeous but if you've read my blog long enough you know about my aversion to reds. This rich red polish is the most opaque of the bunch.

MiMi

Mimi is eye-catching color.You cant go wrong with a deep royal purple like this. It kind of reminds me of Hot Topic's Iridescent Purple:

The difference is that the Hot Topic polish has blue shimmer in it.


Alegra

(Please excuse the mess that is my cuticles)

 Alegra is like Gilda's older sister that still has it. A pink not quite as bright as Gilda and a little more subdued, but still a gorgeous fuchsia. 

Charla

My 2nd favorite polish from this collection and a must have. Charla is a blue green paradise on your nails. I haven't read one bad review about this color.


Ivanka

The best polish in the whole collection. The most head turning, envious green metallic foil ever! Even for this pink lover, Ivanka made a believer out of me. It is hands down the best green I've ever seen and I am so glad to own it!

Want another reason to love these? The Sparkle polishes are also super easy to remove! You get the look of glitter without the hassle of removing it. I made my first (quick) blog video showing the easy removal of MiMi.

Zoya's Polish Exchange is still going on through June 30th. That means you can dump some of your not so favorite shades for these lovelies. Check Zoya's  website for more info!

This post contains a sample product sent for review. For more information about my disclosure policy, please read this post.

Heel to Toe Invigorating Foaming Foot Soak Review

I hate doing my own pedicures. I don't mind doing my own nails, but for some reason when it comes to dealing with my own feet, its a task I'm much less enthusiastic about. As a transitioning grad student/real world job having chica, I don't have the money to drop on a pedicure. However, I still want my home sessions to feel a little special. I picked this foot soak up at Sally Beauty Supply for a mere .42 cents because of my Beauty Club Card. If you shop at Sallys and don't have one, you should get it! When you buy the card for $5, you get a $5 gift certificate to use the next month. Thats how I was able to get this $5.39 regularly priced foot soak for just a little change.Okay, on to the review!

Product information:

• Prepares feet for pedicure by conditioning and cleansing
• Revitalizes and refreshes
• Softens and conditions
• Helps kill foot odor
• Soothes and relaxes hot, tired feet
• Infused with Botanical Extracts, Tea Tree Oil, Sea Salts and Aloe Vera Gel

My experience: I have a huge bowl that I reserve for pedicures, so I pulled that out and poured a small amount of the gel in. When I get the water to a warm temperature I can handle, I put my feet in. After soaking them for about 15 minutes, I dry my feet off to feel the results. The foot soak did soothe and relax my feet and they do feel a little softer. My skin is soft enough to use my pedicure file and my cuticles are easily pushed back. I was also pleasantly surprised when I began to file my toenails, because my feet did actually smell clean and slightly minty! It really is a great deodorizer. Overall, I would recommend this product to anyone who does DIY pedicures. It adds to your normal routine to make it feel a little more luxurious, even if you're at home!

Wet n Wild Caribbean Frost

In an effort to build up the number of green polishes I own, I decided to get Wet n Wild Caribbean Frost. You see ever since I've laid eyes on Zoya Ivanka (which I will post about later),I suddenly got what the big deal was about greens. News flash: Green nail polishes are gorgeous! I can honestly say I had never met a green polish I liked.  However, Caribbean Frost is a lovely green in its own right. You be the judge, check it out:

Two coats + Seche Vite

Aren't you green with envy? Come on! I had to say it! I don't get to post about greens often enough. :-)