Nails of the Week

Hey guys! When I picked up the first Revlon Parfumerie polish, I had become mesmerized by another Revlon polish, Charmed. This was their "top speed fast dry" formula. The color on my nail came out much more pumpkin than the orange-yellow shimmery shade from the bottle and I was not pleased at all. Orange just isn't my thing. Since the return policy at CVS is generous, I'm going to try returning it. There is nothing charming about this shade.

A few notes on the formula. The "fast dry" made applying the polish evenly difficult, as the polish on the nail would begin to dry before finishing. On top of the already difficult nature of shimmery polishes, this made applying an even, streak-free coat difficult. I like to paint thin coats so that each layer drys quickly, and I wasn't able to figure out the formula this time.

So I did what any sane person would do and repainted my nails immediately. I even used up a bottle of polish remover, which is very unusual for me but justifies my recent nail polish purchases.

I had already applied the polish on my toes and needed a color that would contrast well with it. Since I still wanted to mattify a shimmery shade, I chose an old color I've had for years, Pink Petals by Sonia Kashuk.

I'm in love with Sonia Kashuk polishes. The colors that I've tried are all great and resists chipping fairly well. This particular shimmery shade wasn't as difficult as some, drying evenly despite applying with minor streaks. I should have gone ahead and painted a third coat to completely even it out visible nail ridges, but I had already spent too much time on my nails to bother. For $4.50, it's worth a trip to Target if you have yet to try her polishes.

After applying a top coat, I applied Sally Hansen Big Matte Top Coat, a new purchase. So far, I am loving the matte effect. I think it works particularly well on shimmery/sparkly/glittery polishes, though I also like the chalkboard effect it gives opaque polishes. (I'm not sure why I like that it reminds me of chalkboards.) I've read on various blogs that matte polishes chip easily, but hopefully applying the normal top coat first will prevent excess chipping. We'll see!

On my toes is another stash polish, Savage by Sinful Colors. Based on reviews, I was expected this to be a very matte polish, though mine came out more semi-matte. Since I thought it looked better matte, I applied a matte coat. Matte, matte, matte!

I'm not particularly pleased with my nails this week, unlike last week. If my nails chip significantly, I'll most likely remove the polish and let my nails breathe, as the matte will just make maintaining the tips difficult. Next week, I'll try another Revlon Parfumerie I purchased during a CVS sale. That, I am looking forward to! I just have to decide between Ginger Melon and Tropical Rain.

(Note: in the pictures, I hadn't cleaned excess polish yet.)